It is expected that the Juvenile Court in Anguilla will be functioning well in the near future. This follows the appointment of eight persons as Assessors by the Governor and their training.
The re-institution of the Juvenile Court, in accordance with the provisions of the Juvenile Act, was the subject of an opening ceremony and a training workshop, last week, presided over by Senior Magistrate, Ms Ivenia Benjamin.
Deputy Governor, Mr. Stanley Reid, described the workshop as “a reflection of the desire to ensure that we use existing legislation in the most efficient and effective manner.” He explained that “under the authority of the Juvenile Courts Act, persons without legal training have been identified and appointed as Assessors. These persons will sit with the Magistrate and together will constitute the Juvenile Court.”
Mr. Reid stressed that “any innovation that will afford juveniles the greatest possible opportunity to contribute constructively to their family and community lives must be pursued.”
He continued: “In my opinion, the preferred course when dealing with juveniles is that they be subject to interventions outside the court system. Such interventions might involve actions at home, school, church, and in the community, which should all be designed to reduce the need for contact between the juvenile and the court system. Regrettably, interventions by the home, school, church, and community, where they exist, might not be sufficiently robust as to effectively dissuade juveniles from following a course which will inevitably require the intervention of the court system.”
Mr. Reid further pointed out that “any court intervention in the lives of juveniles, will have as a significant consideration the need to exert great effort to ensure that the juvenile at issue has the greatest possible chance of being an asset to his or her community.”
High Court Judge, Justice Cheryl Mathurin, saw the programme for the re-institution of the Juvenile Court as “well-rounded – and meets the requirements for the implementation of the provisions of the Juvenile Act which will be to the benefit not only of the children, which the Act seeks to protect, but also to the benefit of society on a whole.”
She spoke at length about the Convention of the Rights of the Child “which is illustrative of the gravity and the extent of its world-wide application, and the seriousness of how it is on society’s approach to juvenile justice.” She said that 194 countries were signatories to the convention and Anguilla became a signatory to that convention that in 1994. She stated that the convention was very detailed, extending to areas such as health, religion, education of children – to abuse, trafficking, sexual exploitation with several other issues affecting children in between.
The Judge emphasised that “our responsibility under the Convention of the Rights of the Child is something that we have to take and bear in mind at all times.”
Attorney General, Mr. Rupert Jones, commended the Senior Magistrate, Ms Ivenia Benjamin, Mr. Don Mitchell and all other persons, for their hard work in arranging the opening ceremony for the re-institution of the Juvenile Court and the training workshop for the Assessors.
Mr. Jones said one of the matters currently being looked into was whether the definition of a juvenile in Anguilla was a person under 16, or whether or not that was the way forward. “That work is ongoing, and we hope that the outcome will bear fruition in the next year when legislation is available to put before the public,” he added.
