GUYANA 1. I. General Information. Judicial System Highlights. III. Institutions. 1. Overall Structure and Operation of the Judicial System

Transcription

1 288 Guyana GUYANA 1 I. General Information The Co-operative Republic of Guyana is divided into 10 regions and has an area of 214,970 km 2. According to the government s Bureau of Statistics, the country s population was approximately 761,510 in ECLAC reported that the urban population rose to 38.5% of all inhabitants in 2005, 3 and gives the following age group distribution: 29.3% between the ages of 0 and 14; 37.8% between the ages of 15 and 34; 18.4% between 35 and 49; 9.3% between 50 and 64; and 5.2% over the age of 65. In 2000, 35% of Guyana s population lived in poverty. 4 The country is ranked 103rd on the Human Development Index in the medium range. 5 In 1997, its Gini Coefficient was In 2001, unemployment stood at 9.1% 7 and illiteracy among adults over 15 was 1%. 8 National GDP for 2005 was US$7.59 billion, approximately 16.9% higher than in Per capita GDP in 2005 was US$1,010, also 16.9% higher than in The year before, per capita GDP rated for purchasing power parity was US$4, II. Judicial System Highlights The government has implemented a strategy for reforming the justice sector from 2006 through Its purpose is to coordinate actions, increase confidence in the system, and make it more accessible and transparent. Guyana adopted the appellate jurisdiction of the Caribbean Court of Justice as its court of final instance, repealing the jurisdiction of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. During the first quarter of 2006, eight leaves to appeal from Guyana were filed with the Caribbean Court of Justice: three special leaves to appeal, four applications for leave to appeal as a poor person, and one appeal of a criminal case. 12 There are approximately 1.7 judges per 100,000 inhabitants; this rate rises to 3.5 when including judges sitting in the Magistrates Courts. 13 The 2006 budget of the Director of Public Prosecutions was US$322,442.57, and US$8, more was allocated for capital projects. This represents a 239% increase over The average annual rate of growth between 2000 and 2006 was 24%. In 2006, there were 1.5 prosecutors per 100,000 inhabitants. In 2005, the country s police force had 3,000 members, a rate of officers per 100,000 inhabitants. - There were 1,485 inmates in the country s prisons, or per 100,000 inhabitants. In 2006, it took an average of 661 days to enforce a contract from the filing of suit until the debt was paid. III. Institutions 1. Overall Structure and Operation of the Judicial System Guyana s judicial system is composed of the Judicial Branch, Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs, Director of Public Prosecutions, the police, Legal Aid Center, and Ombudsman. Guyana is a member of the Caribbean Community and the British Commonwealth. It has a common law legal tradition and an adversarial justice system. After the adoption of constitutional changes, the country s final court of appeal is now the Caribbean Court of Justice. 1 This report is based on the Introduction to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) featured in this report; the data questionnaires submitted by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and Ministry of Education of Guyana; the Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas ; Country Reports on Human Rights Practices , which was published by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor of the United States; the World Bank report Doing Business (2006); the IDB document - Modernización de la Administración de Justicia (Loan Proposal, 2006); the document Guyana - Justice Sector Reform Strategy , published by the Government of Guyana; and information gathered via Internet.

2 Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas Judicial Branch 2.1. Institutional Structure The Judicial Branch is composed of a Supreme Court, which includes the Court of Appeal, with unlimited jurisdiction over leave of appeal in civil and criminal cases, and the High Court, with unlimited jurisdiction over the hearing of criminal and civil cases. The High Court is staffed by a Chief Justice and 11 justices. It hears cases involving serious crimes (those punishable with more than five years in prison), civil matters outside the jurisdiction of the Magistrates Courts, and administrative cases, as well as some others. 14 The Magistrates Courts have limited jurisdiction over minor criminal, civil, family and juvenile cases. The Chancellor of the Court of Appeal is their highest authority. They handle approximately 90% of criminal and civil disputes, 15 including: 16 Criminal matters: less serious and serious crimes punishable by up to five years in prison and preliminary investigations of serious crimes Civil matters: disputes involving less than G$50,000 (US$250), some trials involving disputes over land ownership and those involving family issues (for example, separations, child support, and custody disputes) Government and Management 17 Some of the government and management functions of the Judicial Branch are exercised by the Judicial Services Commission, which appoints judges and disciplines judicial officials when warranted. The commission may directly make appointments to lesser posts. Higher-ranking officials are appointed upon the recommendation of the President to the Judicial Branch Reform Projects Underway The government has implemented a justice sector reform strategy that will be implemented from 2006 through Its purpose is to coordinate actions, increase confidence in the system, and make it more accessible and transparent Human Resources There are approximately 1.7 judges per 100,000 inhabitants in Guyana, and 3.5 if one includes judges who sit in the Magistrates Courts Case Movement During the first quarter of 2006, eight leaves to appeal from Guyana were filed with the Caribbean Court of Justice. These include three special leaves to appeal, 19 four applications for leave to appeal as a poor person, and one appeal of a criminal case. 20 The May 2001 study A Diagnostic Assessment contains the following information on the case volume in Guyana: The backlog in the courts is reported to be a very serious problem. Many civil cases are allegedly heard more than five years after filing. In 1998, 3,334 civil and 70,959 criminal cases were filed in the magistrates court, 1,107 civil and 35,832 criminal cases were disposed of, leaving an increase in the backlog of 3,278 civil and 53,338 criminal cases. Clearance rates, defined as the number of cases disposed over cases filed in a year, are 33% for civil cases and just a little over 50% for criminal cases. In the Court of Appeal, 147 civil cases and 49 appeals were filed during 1998, 46 civil (31%) and 34 criminal appeals (69%) were heard Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs 22 The Attorney General provides legal representation and advice to government agencies and ministries for civil matters and assists in the drafting of national legislation. It is accountable to Parliament and the Cabinet and reports to them as representative of justice administration institutions that are not otherwise represented before those agencies. This institution has two main departments: (i) Advice and Litigation, which is headed by the Attorney General and staffed by the main legal counsel and a deputy attorney general; and (ii) Drafting of Laws, which is the responsibility of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel, a body that is made up of attorneys who work for the government. The institution also includes the State Attorney s Office and the Public Trustee, and has an Archive Deposit (of titles) and its own library. 4. Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions 4.1. Institutional Structure The Director of Public Prosecutions is empowered by the government to initiate,

3 290 Guyana continue, or discontinue all criminal accusations except those stemming from military courts. It also advises the police and government ministries on criminal affairs. Finally, it is responsible for ensuring that no citizen is unjustly arrested or prosecuted and that criminal procedures are applied correctly. Article 187 (4) of the Constitution of Guyana states that this agency is to be autonomous. As a result, the Director of this agency is not subject to oversight or supervision by any individual or authority in the exercise of his duty as provided for in that article. The Director is appointed by the Judicial Services Commission, which is independent and has constitutional status. The Director and prosecutors have the following responsibilities: To review the files of the police and other government offices and provide them with advice To meet with and counsel members of the public regarding complaints about criminal justice system administration To investigate and try criminal cases on behalf of the State Transparency and Accountability This agency promotes and maintains professional transparency and integrity through its annual report and budget. The annual report is presented to Parliament and provides information on: complaints filed in the Supreme Court in the regions of Demerara, Essequibo and Berbice; appeals of decisions in those three regions; financial information such as the annual budget and agency s real expenditures; and administrative and organizational responsibility of its staff. All staff members are public servants employed by the Public Services Commission with the exception of the Director and his delegate for criminal prosecution, who are appointed by the Judicial Services Commission. The Director may discipline any official and refer cases to the Public Services Commission or Judicial Services Commission for future disciplinary actions. The agency has recognized that its deficiencies are related to the lack of resources for training and to gender equity. Notably, in 2006 there were 11 women and one man in the agency. This problem was recognized by the Office in Reform Projects Underway Reforms are designed and implemented according to the strategy plan developed by the Director and incorporated into the annual budget. The plan includes an increase in State Counsel and the creation of special divisions or departments to respond to specific types of cases such as homicide, assault, sexual assault, robbery, kidnapping, and possession of drugs or weapons The increase in State Counsel will be financed by the Ministry of Finance. The hope is for this reform to be a permanent one that has a positive impact on the institution. Table 1 Annual Budget of the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions Year Capital Projects Current Budget GYD US$ GYD US$ ,807,000 8,945 67,113, , ,500,000 12,376 51,860, , ,000,000 9,900 47,609, , ,500,000 12,376 43,927, , ,500,000 7,425 40,324, , ,000,000 19,801 26,821, , ,000,000 9,900 19,800,000 98,019 Source: Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

4 Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas Budget The 2006 budget of the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions was US$ 322, That year, US$ 8, was allocated to capital projects, up from US$ 12, in 2005 and US$ 9, in The rate of increase between 2000 and 2006 was 239%. The average annual rate of increase was 24% Human and Material Resources In 2006 there were 12 prosecutors, one man and 11 women, for a rate of 1.5 prosecutors per 100,000 inhabitants. In 2005 there were 18 prosecutors, four of whom were male. The number of support staff available to prosecutors increased from 7 in 2004 to 9 in In 2006, the Chamber had 10 computers with Internet connection Case Movement Between January and November 2006, 95 new cases were filed in the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions. Convictions were reached in 29 cases, while 48 ended in acquittal. One case was dropped before the indictment and two were dropped after the indictment. That year 12.6 cases were filed per 100,000 inhabitants. The most common crimes were homicide (29 cases), rape (16). and manslaughter (15). Between 2004 and 2006, cases filed increased by 58%. The average annual rate of increase was 24%. 5. Police 23 The Guyana Police Force is responsible for maintaining national security and is directed by the Police Commissioner. It forms part of the Ministry of Home Affairs and has three main divisions: a mounted police force with crowd control training, a rural force, and a special reserve force. Another group of officers is employed by the government and private companies to protect property. This centralized, military-style institution is spread throughout seven regional districts; however, it conducts all criminal investigations from police headquarters in. Specialized forces include the Tactical Services Unit and the Quick Reaction Group, though not all officers are restricted to specific duties. Though trained as regular police, the Special Constabulary carries out mainly guard duty for Cabinet ministers and certain government facilities. In 2003 the Guyana Human Rights Association delivered training programs in human rights to members of the GPF and the Prison Service. 24 In 2005, the police force had 3,000 members, or officers per 100,000 inhabitants. The Police Complaints Authority is responsible for receiving and investigating problems related to police action. In 2005, it received 269 written complaints, 11 of which involved homicides committed by police officers. The remaining 258 were related to acts of negligence (illegal arrests, corrupt acts, unnecessary use of force, etc.). 6. Legal Aid Clinic 25 Opened in March 1994, the Legal Aid Clinic is a non-governmental organization that offers free or subsidized legal advice, legal representation, and referrals for legal matters to individuals involved in civil and criminal matters. Table 2 Human and Material Resources of the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions Number of prosecutors Number of male prosecutors Number of other staff members Number of other male staff members Number of computers in the office Number of computers with an Internet connection in the office Source: Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

5 292 Guyana Table 3 Case Movement by Type of Crime January-November 2006 Type of Crime Rehearing Filed Conviction Acquittal Nolle Nolle Prosequi Prosequi Before After Indictment Indictment Homicide Premeditated Homicide Manslaughter Rape Carnal Knowledge Buggery Assault (indecent, with serious physical harm) Armed Robbery Aggravated Robbery Robbery Intentional Throwing of a Destructive Substance Vehicular Homicide Wounding with Intent Felonious Wounding Total Source: Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions. The clinic focuses on cases involving violence against women and criminal matters linked to civil cases (such as assault charges related to divorce). A total of 6,023 individuals, including 4,429 women, have benefited from the services of the Clinic since it opened Ombudsman 27 The Ombudsman, who is appointed by the President in consultation with the opposition leader, investigates complaints against government departments with the exception of those filed against the Public Service Commission, the Police Service Commission, or the Teaching Service Commission, all of which have constitutional status. The Ombudsman is the only official empowered to carry out all necessary investigations. Once this process has been completed, he or she reports the results along with any recommendations to the department in question. IV. Criminal Procedure 1. Description Guyana s criminal procedure system is adversarial and governed by the use of oral procedures and the principle of immediacy. 2. Prison Situation 28 In 2005, the country had a total of 1,485 inmates in its five prisons. Approximately half of them were housed in the largest facility, s Camp Street Prison. This prison has a capacity of 500 inmates and was housing 700, which puts the overcrowding rate at 40%. That year, there were inmates per 100,000 inhabitants.

6 Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas V. Civil Procedure Guyana s civil procedure system is adversarial and governed by the use of oral procedures and the principle of immediacy. According to the World Bank, in 2006 it took an average of 661 days to enforce a contract from the time the suit was filed until the debt was paid. This process involves the completion of 30 procedures and costs 24.2% of the debt to be recovered. 29 VI. Legal Profession Guyana s legal profession (education and bar association) is the same as the one established for Caribbean states with a common law tradition that are members of the British Commonwealth. 1. Legal Education Guyana s university has a law school which provides educational services to individuals from all Caribbean countries with a common law tradition. According to the data submitted by the Ministry of Education, the tuition is US$ 1,500 for citizens of Guyana and US$ 6,000 for foreign students. 30 There are no official regulations governing the law program or national bar exams. The only requirements for aspiring attorneys are those set by the universities themselves. In 2006, 43 students entered the law school and 56 graduated from it. In 2005, 44 students were admitted and 52 graduated. There were 26 new attorneys in 2006 and 25 in In 2006, 2.4% of all university students were studying law. Figures from previous years show that this has varied only slightly (2.3% in 2005 and 2.9% in 2004). Table 4 Law Schools, Law Students, Graduates of Law School and New Attorneys Total Number of Law Schools Students Admitted to Law School Students Graduated from Law School Total Number University Students 1,781 1,908 2,092 Number of New Attorneys per Year Source: Ministry of Education. 2. Bar Association 31 Bar association membership is not mandatory. There are currently between 175 and 200 practicing attorneys in Guyana, 30% of whom are members of the Bar. 32 There is also a Committee of Law Professionals, created under the Law on the Practice of Legal Professions, which handles the disciplinary system for attorneys. The Committee develops recommendations and submits them to the judges of the Supreme Court, who decide whether or not to proceed with disciplinary measures. 33 VII. Reform Projects Underway 34 The country currently has several justice reform projects underway. First, it is important to note that the Caribbean Court of Justice and Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission are operational here. Guyana has accepted the jurisdiction of that Court, leaving aside the jurisdiction of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. The Guyana Justice Sector Reform Strategy was approved in The effort is being spearheaded by the government. Its purpose is to coordinate the work of the justice sector, increase confidence in the system and make it more accessible and transparent. Its specific goals include: Reforming the organizations structures and powers Improving training Reviewing and reformulating the number of employees and their incomes Improving infrastructure Creating more autonomy and efficiency in the management, administration and financing of the Judicial Branch and Public Prosecutor s Office Modernizing management and administration systems The government intends to systematically address the challenges that the justice sector is currently facing and develop a legal framework for reform and strategic coordination, a plan of action with priorities and costs, and a mechanism for accountability and monitoring to advance the reform. 35 The project also addresses specific areas:

7 294 Guyana Public safety: creation of a system that protects citizens and their property Criminal justice: reporting, investigating and prosecuting criminal cases in the courts in a fair and speedy manner. Establishing an effective, more humane and financially sound criminal justice system that includes the development of non-custodial alternatives. Civil justice: offering speedy, effective and less costly mechanisms for resolving civil disputes, including justice system formalities. Administrative justice: having clear and direct administrative procedures for ensuring that public agencies exercise their legal powers properly. Legal services: offering timely, high quality assistance. During the second quarter of 2006, the country launched a technical cooperation project financed by the IDB (ATN/SF-9163-GY) in support of this strategic plan. The agency will contribute US$25,000 for the execution of the following project components in the area of justice: strengthening of institutional capacity, strengthening links between justice administration agencies and improving access to justice. VIII. Websites Presidency of Guyana Contains a biography of the President, information on the government s structure and organization, and the history of Guyana. Also contains press releases, an image bank, and a map of Guyana, as well as links to other government ministries, and links to the country s newspapers and tourism services, among others, and news on the President s activities. English-language only. General Information Contains all kinds of information on Guyana: consular information, website directory, news, history, announcements, links to public and private institutions, and a search engine for information on site and externally. Also contains official publications and reports on issues such as women s status in Guyana, among other topics. English-language only. University of Guyana This website contains news from the institution s academic departments and programs, publications and other content. English language only. IX. Directory Caribbean Community Secretariat P.O. Box 11823, Guyana Phone: (592) Fax: (592) Supreme Court of Judicature Victoria Law Courts Compound, Avenue of the Republic Phone: (592) / Attorney General Chambers 95 Carmichael Street Phone: (592) /69721 Fax: (592) Ministry of Legal Affairs 95 Carmichael St. Phone: 59 (222) / Fax: 59 (222) / Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions 1 Seawall Road, Kingston, Phone: / / Fax: Office of the Ombudsman 39 Brickdam, Stabroek Phone: (592) Notes 2 Bureau of Statistics, see guyana.gov.gy 3 ECLAC, Social Panorama of Latin America, Poverty Reduction Strategy Secretariat, The UNDP Human Development Index classifies countries into three groups: high human development (rating of 0.8 or over), medium human development (rating of between 0.5 and 0.8) and low human development (rating of 0.5 or less). According to the 2006 version of the Human Development Report, 63 countries qualify for the first group, 83 for the second, and 31 for the third. See 6 The Gini Coefficient is used to measure concentration of wealth. It is expressed as a value between 0 and 1, where

8 Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas represents perfect equality (everyone has the same income) and 1 represents absolute inequality (one person has all of the wealth and the rest have none). ECLAC, Poverty Statistics Seminar 7-9, Santiago, Chile. 7 CARICOM Statisctics, 8 ECLAC, Social Panorama of Latin America, op. cit. 9 World Bank, World Development Indicators. See devdata.worldbank.org/data-query UNDP, Human Development Report, op. cit. 12 Caribbean Court of Justice, Annual Report, Trinidad and Tobago, 2006, p IDB, Guyana - Modernización de la Administración de Justicia, Loan Proposal, 2006, p In these cases, the individual presents the petition to the Court and the State is not required to intervene. 20 Caribbean Court of Justice, Annual Report, Trinidad and Tobago, 2006, p Additional information can be found in the Annual Report of the Supreme Court Registry. 22 This point is based on the Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas and the IDB document Guyana - Modernización de la Administración de Justicia, Loan Proposal, See Country Reports on Human Rights Practices See Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas and Country Reports on Human Rights Practices Country Reports on Human Rights Practices See ns htm 27 JSCA, Report on Judicial Systems in the Americas Country Reports on Human Rights Practices World Bank, data from See doingbusiness.org/exploretopics/enforcingcontracts/ 30 University of Guyana: Law Department, Faculty of Social Sciences. See 31 See the IDB document Guyana - Modernización de la Administración de Justicia, Loan Proposal, See the Government of Guyana publication Guyana Justice Sector Reform Strategy and the IDB document Guyana - Modernización de la Administración de Justicia, Loan Proposal, IDB, Guyana Modernization of Justice Administration, Loan Proposal, 2006, p. 2.