Judicature: Problems & Solutions [Archives:2000/43/Culture]
Hassan Al-Zaiedy,
Yemen Times
Throughout the century in all countries the authority of the state is reflected by the authority of the judicature, the citizens faith in it and the execution of its decisions and verdicts. Since the officials in charge of the judicial offices confess that there is corruption and intervention in the judicature, why do they not try to eradicate it and put an end to such corruption and problems?!
The corruption in the judicature in our country has led the people to distrust it. The State has announced that there is a scheme for judicial reforms. Propagating that plan on the media means, it is not fulfilled in reality. The courts are congested with people following their cases that have not been resolved for more than ten years and everybody is complaining. Therefore, who is responsible? What is the solution? Why do people distrust the Yemeni Judicature? Why are the judges always attacked? Is it because the judges themselves are corrupted or is it because of the corruption in the judicial offices? How can the Judicature be re-established? What are the forms of violations of the judicatures independence? Why are the laws defining the autonomy of judicature not applied? What are the interventions that hinder the execution of judicial laws and acts? Where do these interventions come from? Where can the people, following their cases and spending all their money on false promises made by judges for years, go?
If all this happens in the most important authority from which the people expect to get their rights easily without resorting to violence, kidnapping or robbing, what is the solution and until when will the people wait for the reform?
We put this issue and others forward to the Chairman of the Judicial Inquisition Authority Judge Aidaroos Mohsen Atroosh and we came out with the following:
Second Episode
The phenomenon of attacking judges is due to our lack of correct judicial traditions and to the non-understanding of the idea of the Judicature autonomy. This idea is important to all, particularly to the judicial offices themselves by which it should be protected. That is to say, judicature autonomy must be protected by the judicature itself in the present time. The autonomy of Judicature depends on many factors some of which were afforded and some were not. These factors are:
* The State institutions, officials, citizens, judges, and the people concerned about judicature and the execution of its laws and acts should have a clear understanding of the idea of the Judicature autonomy judicially, administratively, and financially. We hope that this understanding exists theoretically and practically.
* There are general, absolute and obligatory clauses on which the judge depends in resolving cases, and gives his verdicts. By those clauses he can ensure equality between disputing parties whose status and conditions are the same according to conjoined criterion. The autonomy of judicature becomes eminent by these clauses that were available by issuing substantive and adjective laws that judges apply abiding by the Islamic rules and laws.
* The self-protection of the autonomy of the Judicature by the character of the judge himself,to that is, the judge should meet the conditions and standards to uphold his profession.
* Our constitution includes such constitutional clauses for protecting the autonomy of Judicature. These clauses and guarantees ensure this autonomy.
* The constitution has included clauses of penal protection to prevent and punish all forms of violations, interventions and influences. A great deal of this protection has been fulfilled by prohibiting intervention in cases of any judicial affairs and preventing the non suiting by prescription.
* The people should recognize and feel that the autonomy of the Judicature should be protected. This can be fulfilled by developing an informative and cultural policy, Jurassic awareness in the public. The people should also stand up against any corrupted person who uses his post in abusing the judicature for his own interests. People should choose honest ones.
Despite providing the constitutional and penal protection to ensure the Judicature independence, the forms of violations on it are so many. This is because of the missing of self-protection and the public protection of the judicature. The violations can be either those happening while trying or looking into the case or those happening after pronouncing the verdict or act. They can also be those violations related to the legal and constitutional guarantees of appointing, transferring, pensioning off, dismissing, and punishing the judges. For we often see that many officials and even judges mediate and interfere to get orders, instructions and contacts for appointing some people as judges or for promoting, transferring them to get legal and illegal privileges. The judge must feel that he does not owe to anybody or any particular authority the position he is in or the rights he gets. He must rather feel that he achieves that by his own efforts, diligence, competence and by acts and laws.
What is more serious and shameful than violation of the judicature is the aggression on the judges and threatening them by those who follow cases or by some officials in the Judicial Police. This phenomenon has increased in the last period because the people do not respect judges . Perhaps it is also because the people do not respect the verdicts and acts given by them. Another reason can be the behaviors of those in the main judicial system that offend the autonomy of the judicature and the contradictions that arouse sarcasm of the judicature and consequently mistrust whatever verdicts are given. Besides, the government does not punish those offenders and deals with the offense as if it were a personal problem that concerns the judge as a citizen although there is a big difference between the two. To solve this problem the following should be done.
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