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Speech
Speech on Access to Justice by Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for
International Development, Gareth Thomas, at launch of the HMG Justice
Assistance Network and its Principles of Engagement, DFID, 16 May 2007
16 May 2007
In 1999, the Sun newspaper surveyed trust in various professions. Lawyers
were ranked tenth, civil servants 11th and politicians 18th. The survey was
repeated in 2001. Lawyers still ranked 10th, civil servants 11th and politicians
had fallen to 20th out of 20!
Along with other ministers, I’m delighted to be here this morning at the launch
of the new Justice Assistance Network. We recognise we don’t have all the
answers, and that we need to pool our expertise.
The truth is that the poorest are too often excluded. DFID’s mandate is to
eradicate world poverty. A billion people, 1 in 5 of the world's population,
live in extreme poverty.
The poorest in the developing world are all too often denied justice. Women,
children or excluded groups often can’t afford a lawyer, the transport to go to
court, or the bribe that is too often required. Lack of secure property rights
can undermine their livelihoods.
We know too that the vast majority of disputes in developing countries,
particularly over land or family matters, are settled through traditional,
community-based structures. These are usually cheaper, faster and easier to
understand than the formal courts for the very poorest. But I’m afraid to say
they are not always fairer.
Resolving long-standing disputes
Here’s one example from Malawi. In 2004 Mwale was a 17-year-old orphan,
looking after three sisters. The Village Headman in his area took possession of
the piece of land that belonged to his family - Mwale felt unable to do anything
about it because, initially, he was understandably afraid of the Headman taking
revenge. Mwale was later beaten up: he was considered to have stolen cassava
from the garden which had actually belonged to his family. That lack of access
to justice could have been devastating for him and his sisters.
But he was able to turn to a community-based organisation called Domasi Village
to Village which we fund, which referred the case to another village elder. In
the village forum, the Headman admitted unlawfully taking the land, and
apologised. The land was returned to Mwale’s family.
Now, access to justice also matters because it is part of the social contract
between the state and the citizen.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, security and justice institutions are
either entirely absent or live off the population, existing through intimidation
and bribes. To try to re-establish public faith in state institutions, we funded
the international NGO Avocats sans Frontières which organised mobile courts in
Eastern DRC, a region which suffered from war. They reached people sometimes
living over 400 km from the nearest permanent court.
They have managed to resolve long-standing disputes – for example concerning
access to water. But they also began to challenge the culture of impunity by
holding to account local power-holders: such as territorial administrators,
police officers, and militias who have been intimidating the population.
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Why access to justice matters
Access to justice matters because it is essential for women’s rights and
gender equality. To go back to DRC, tens of thousands of women and girls –
sometimes as young as three - have suffered crimes of sexual violence. Congo is
not an isolated case. Worldwide, among women aged 14 to 44, domestic violence
accounts for more deaths and ill-health than cancer, traffic injuries and
malaria put together.
The obstacles hindering justice for women are even greater. We believe not only
is it morally right to take action, but helping women to enjoy equal rights,
removing the fear of sexual abuse, and safeguarding their access to property
will liberate them to make their full contribution to the development of their
country and communities.
These are some of the reasons why access to justice matters. Over the last seven
years, DFID has allocated more than £225 million to Safety, Security and Access
to Justice Programmes in over 30 countries.
In our White Paper, published last year by Hilary Benn, we committed to do even
more for justice. Through our programmes, we want to see an increase in the
capacity, accountability and responsiveness of the justice systems.
On accountability: we fund the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust which is
the country’s largest legal aid organisation; 80% of its clients are women. It
offers legal assistance and mediation services and uses the courts to protect
vulnerable people. It has had a huge impact, for example by obtaining a stay
order to prevent the forced eviction of 40,000 landless people who live by
fishing in the Ganges’ flood plains.
On state responsiveness: in the Balkans, attitudes towards justice are starting
to change as a result of initiatives we support through the Global Conflict
Prevention Pool. In Bosnia, there’s improved access to information about court
processes through Customer Care Charters and information desks. In Serbia,
safety councils and citizens advisory groups bring together the police and the
public. There’s greater trust. Complaints are being taken more seriously.
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Reforming the justice sector overseas
When Lord Goldsmith, the Attorney General, asked what more we could do across
Whitehall, I was very pleased to come behind the initiative we are launching
today - the new Justice Assistance Network and its Principles of Engagement for
justice sector reform overseas. They are in line with international best donor
practice. They will make our assistance more coherent, effective and
coordinated. There are five elements:
Local buy-in. Local ownership of what you support makes projects successful.
There has to be a clear demand for our support. For example, if we try and
impose Anti-Corruption Commissions as a condition of our aid but there is no
willingness for action, there will be limited success. So we need buy-in.
Strategies. As in Sierra Leone, we need to support partner countries’ national
strategies for justice sector reform. Or at least make sure our support fits
within a wider plan. One-off activities (such as a little bit of training for a
particular judge) seldom have a long lasting effect if at the same time we don’t
work to improve the performance of the organisations where they work.
Measurable and sustainable impact. We want to have confidence that our support
is genuinely making a long term difference and improving the lives of the poor.
Coordination. Partner governments need to lead coordination of assistance
provided by a huge number of different donors and NGOs. Civil servants in poor
countries don’t have the same range of expertise as you find in developed
nations. A small number of civil servants are the target of missions. We should
avoid duplication – with other UK projects, or international support.
Prioritisation. Our assistance needs to support the priorities of our partners.
And we should also target our own finite UK resources towards countries,
international organisations or themes identified by the government as a major
priority.
We see the Justice Assistance Network as being about sharing expertise across
government and improving communication. We’re already working together well in
many countries, and the Network will further strengthen this.
We can expect to see more justice as a result of our efforts. In short, by
working better together, we will help make sure that orphans in Malawi, women
and girls in Eastern DRC or landless people in Bangladesh can prosper, in
freedom from fear and freedom from want.
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