Launch of the Jamaica Association Women Judges Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, Kingston, Jamaica, January 7, 2017.
Message from the President
Her Hon. Mrs. Paula A. Blake-Powell, Senior Parish Court Judge
Senior Parish Court Judge, Kingston & St Andrew Family Court
Vice President, Caribbean Association of Women Judges
Chairperson, Steering Committee, Jamaica Association of Women Judges (JAWJ)
It is a fact that Women Judges from Jamaica were attending international conferences put on by the International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ) from long before March 2014 when the Caribbean Association of Women Judges (CAWJ) was launched in Trinidad and Tobago. In fact, our Honourable Chief Justice attended and participated in the IAWJ’s Biennial conference held in London in 2012.
The importance and benefits of involvement in such an Association have been long recognized and highly appreciated by Women Judges in Jamaica – such benefits include opportunities for expansion and enhancement of Judicial knowledge/education and training; opportunities for gaining scholarships and sponsorship to attend conferences in all five continents of the world; exposure to different nations and cultures; opportunities for collaboration, building relationships and networking; opportunities for receiving assistance to carry out research on subjects such as gender and justice; the possibility of having projects implemented in your region and your country………………….. and I could go on and on. (As indicated by the Honourable Chief Justice, others will share with you shortly on the role, function and achievements of the IAWJ and CAWJ and on the back of your programmes is a short summary which speaks to some of these points.)
In March of 2014 the Honourable Chief Justice and I attended and participated in the Launch and Inaugural Conference of the Caribbean Association of Women Judges held in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, under the theme “The Law and Protection of Children”. The Honorable Chief Justice moderated the panel on which I sat. I presented a paper on “Children in Care & Custody” and this paper is posted on the website of the CAWJ. After the CAWJ launch and conference, a business meeting was held to elect the first executive and adopt the Constitution. I was nominated by the Honourable Chief Justice of Jamaica to be a CAWJ Vice President and I was duly elected.
Thus began the formal journey leading up to today as I have been privileged over the past nearly three years to work with and build relationships with Caribbean women of distinction – CAWJ President, Trinidad and Tobago Supreme Court Judge, Justice Joan Charles who has held a leadership position in the IAWJ for some time and in May 2016 became its Secretary/Treasurer; fellow Vice Presidents Justice Maureen Rajnauth Lee formerly of the Trinidad and Tobago Court of Appeal and now based at the Caribbean Court of Justice, Barbados Supreme Court Judge, Justice Jacqueline Cornelius and from Guyana Justice Yonette Cummings former Court of Appeal Judge and now Guyana’s acting Chief Justice. There is also CAWJ Secretary Trinidad and Tobago Supreme Court Judge, Justice Carla Brown-Antoine, CAWJ Treasurer Justice Nadia Kangaloo also of the Trinidad and Tobago Supreme Court and CAWJ Assistant Secretary Trinidad and Tobago Magistrate Lisa Ramsumair Hinds.
I have been privileged to rub shoulders with and learn from undoubtedly some of the Caribbean’s brightest and best! (I must confess though that it took me quite a while to refer to some of these ladies by their first names as they are so highly placed in their individual jurisdictions that I would feel as if I was being disrespectful to say Joan, Maureen or Yonette. The beauty of the Association however is that while working together to achieve our objectives we became sisters, we became friends. I must say publicly that I am grateful for the mentorship and guidance that have been provided by the more experienced ladies of the CAWJ Executive for those of us who are younger .They have shown genuine love, and they sincerely care for our professional development as they are always pushing us forward and seeking opportunities for us to participate in regional and international conferences.
When I attended my first international IAWJ conference in Washington DC in May 2016, in one sense I felt very lonely because I was the only member from Jamaica among nearly 1,000 women Judges who were from nearly 100 nations of the world. However, in another sense I felt comfortable and quite at home because I was with members of my Caribbean family! As you have heard, Justices Joan and Carla, have travelled to Jamaica all the way from Trinidad and Tobago at their own expense to support us today and I say to them THANK YOU!! Thanks for encouraging us to take this step and formally join the IAWJ.
When I received sponsorship from the INL department of the United States Embassy to attend the Biennial IAWJ Conference in Washington DC in May 2016, I made a pledge to implement a project related to an issue raised at the conference and to spearhead the establishment of a chapter of the IAWJ in Jamaica and thus began Phase two of the journey to today’s launch.
The topic “Women and Girls in Detention” was addressed by a Panel at the Conference and we the Women Judges in Jamaica have begun work on this, our first Project.
We recognize that we must continue to follow International Law principles and utilize institutionalization as a last resort when making decisions about remand, when handing down final orders and when imposing sentences. We must encourage our society to maintain an environment in which children especially are kept out of state care and custody. Social programmes must be implemented that provide a healthy
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alternative and Parenting skills must be improved. We await the formal implementation of the Child Diversion Programme whereby children accused of committing relatively simple offences are diverted from the Court system into community-based interventions. In the interim we will utilize Mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution to reduce the incidence of persons, especially women and girls entering the prison system.
Where persons have to be incarcerated however, we must ensure that the minimum standards set out in international and local statutory instruments are observed.
A recent internet article spoke of a female Judge in the United States being outraged that women prisoners were not provided with pants to wear to court. She felt that their rights had been breached and it was reported that the women prisoners told the Judge they were being denied hygiene products in prison.
At the Washington DC Conference the President of the Italian Women Judges Association shared that nursery facilities exist in their prisons as under their law women prisoners are allowed to have their children with them until they are about 5 years old.
We bear in mind the principles to be found in the Bangkok Rules and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols, and local legislation such as the Child Care and Protection Act.
We have been establishing links with the two prisons/detention centres for girls and women respectively at South Camp Road and Fort Augusta.
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Periodic visits to the detention centres will continue to enable observation of the conditions under which women and girls are held and ensure any possible action to effect improvement
Future fundraising efforts will be undertaken to enable the Judges to purchase and donate toiletries and hygiene products to the detainees. During our recent visits we became aware that there is always a need for pregnancy testing kits.
The second project that the JAWJ has been pursuing is working with the Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation which falls under the Ministry with responsibility for Gender Affairs. The Centre gives pregnant teenage girls and teenage mothers a second chance to continue and complete their education. We are committed to ensuring that girls in their programme do not resort to unsafe practices and inappropriate relationships after becoming depressed because they have no family support nor financial aid. We have therefore been making visits to interact with the girls and encourage and motivate. We have also provided financial assistance for payment of external exam fees/provision of meals during exam preparation marathons/the offsetting of transportation costs for the young ladies who must travel back and forth between the Kingston exam centre and their homes all across Jamaica in order that they will not be separated from their babies for an extended period of time.
We will be embarking upon fundraising in order to purchase and donate toiletries and hygiene products and toys for the children born to the young ladies who attend the Women’s Centre. I am serving notice that during May, celebrated as Child Month, we will be going on a drive to collect toys for the children!
Future projects for the JAWJ will focus on urgent issues such as gender-based violence.
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Today’s Launch is indeed a dream come true! Although the Honourable Chief Justice has given the Welcome Address I must also say thanks to everyone present today for your attendance and show of support. As Chairperson of the Steering Committee, I must appeal to all Judicial Officers present to please attend the Business Meeting scheduled for 1.00pm today as the final step of the journey will then be taken when we adopt a Constitution, elect the first Officers of the JAWJ and formally appoint our First Patron , Woman Judge of Distinction , The Honourable Miss Justice Gloria Smith, Retired Senior Puisne Judge.
Finally, I must place on record our gratitude to the Honourable Chief Justice for the invaluable role that she has played in the establishment of the JAWJ! Ma’am this achievement would not have been possible without your proactive and visionary leadership, your unfailing support and encouragement and the latitude that you allow to young Judges like myself to take on and execute projects and programmes that complement our Judicial role. We bear in mind that being a Judge does not only involve adjudicating within the four walls of a courtroom and writing judgments-but that we are to use our Judicial power and influence to achieve positive change within the society in which we serve!
I THANK YOU!!
