Legal manual for Muslim Filipinos now available
KORONADAL CITY (MindaNews/27 September)—The National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) has urged its constituents to avail a copy of a legal handbook primarily designed to help Muslim Filipinos increase their human rights knowledge.
NCMF Secretary Yasmin Busran Lao said the legal handbook is now available, after four years in the making, with the assistance of the European Union and other government agencies.
CICL and CAR Seminar
This activity is under the European Union-Philippines Justice Support Programme 2 (EPJUST2) funded by the EU and administered by the DILG. The programme focuses on introducing reforms to the justice sector to enable Filipinos particularly the poor and marginalized sectors to access equitable justice.
EU in the Philippines teams up with SC, DOJ, DILG in creating the “Justice Zones”
The European Union assured its commitment of improving the efficiency of the justice sector in the Philippines by supporting the Justice Zone, a flagship project of the Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC) which was launched on Friday, 28 November 2014 at the Quezon City Hall, Quezon City, the pilot site of the project.
The Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC), composed of the Supreme Court of the Republic of the Philippines, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Interior and Local Government, is supported by the European Union through the EU-Philippines Justice Support Programme II (EPJUSTII).
European Union Ambassador Guy Ledoux and the principals of the JSCC , Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Leila de Lima, and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Manuel Roxas III co-inaugurated the project.
During the launch, Ambassador Ledoux noted the shortcomings of the past reforms in the justice sector and the need for cooperation of the several agencies in achieving its goals.
“It is argued that previous reforms have largely been piece-meal, scattered, and isolated throughout the justice system... It can only properly function when all its constituting elements are interplaying harmoniously and complementarily.” Ambassador Ledoux said.
Ambassador Ledoux also highlighted the importance of strengthening the Philippines’ justice system “to further sustain its economic growth, alleviate poverty, and protect human rights.”
For his part, Mayor Herbert Bautista of Quezon City welcomed the initiatives of the Justice Zone in his jurisdiction and expressed the city government’s willingness to take part in the innovations in the justice system.
Supreme Court Chief Justie Maria Lourdes Sereno, on the other hand, underscored the role of an integrated system of reform such as the Justice Zone in Quezon City in realizing justice for the citizens.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima meanwhile said that the DOJ prioritizes the Justice Zone “to make one last and big push for major reforms to happen and take root,” She also emphasized that the justice must be real time and must be felt by the common people.
Lastly, DILG Secretary Manual Roxas III committed the cooperation of his department, the Philippine National Police and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in delivering effective justice system in the country.
A Justice Zone is an area or locality where a minimum number of inter-agency coordinative reforms are present, rendering that area or locality fully compliant based on a selection and accreditation system established by the Council.
The concept is guided by a strategy map or an operations flow-chart depicting critical processes in the criminal justice system (from alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, case build-up, to trial and post-judgment incidents) and resource requirements to fully operationalize a justice zone.
Aside from the processes, the work of the JSCC will also strengthen the capabilities and capacity of the various justice institutions involved such as: the judiciary, the prosecution service, law enforcement, and the jail management and corrections, among justice sector institutions. (END)
Tribesmen’s access to justice better under revised rules
by Jonathan Mayuga, Business Mirror
published February 24, 2015
TRIBESMEN will have better access to justice under the revised rules of procedure of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP).
NCIP Chairman Leonor T. Quintayo made this statement during the launch of the 2014 Revised Rules of Procedure of the NCIP at the Department of the Interior and Local Government building in Quezon City on Monday.
Quintayo said the new rules of procedure clarify vague provisions under the old rules of procedure that was crafted in 2003.
She said that, after a decade since the 2003 rules took effect, many problems emerged, prompting the NCIP to conduct a thorough assessment, with the end view of coming up with a revision that would enhance tribal members’ access to justice.
“With the revised rules, issue on jurisdiction [of cases] becomes clear. Also, the revised rules give more importance to the beliefs, customs and traditions of the indigenous peoples,” she said.
The NCIP is the primary government agency that formulates and implements policies, plans and programs for the recognition and protection of the rights and welfare of indigenous cultural communities and individuals.
The crafting of the revised rules of procedure is supported by European Union (EU), through the EU-Philippine Justice Program.
Some of the emerging issues, which the revised rules of procedure aim to address, involve delay in the resolution of pending cases at the regional level. The revised rules, she added, promotes alternative dispute resolution of cases at the regional level.
Quintayo said some 70 percent of cases filed before the NCIP are related to land dispute, which includes encroachment of ancestral domain claims or rights of various tribal groups across the country.
In the NCIP’s commission en banc alone, she said, around 400 cases are pending resolution, and most of them involve land dispute.
The NCIP is responsible for the issuance of certificate of ancestral land or domain titles. It is also the primary government agency responsible for the issuance of certificate as a precondition for the use of lands covered by a certificate of ancestral domain title or territories being claimed by tribal groups.
There are over 14 million people belonging to different tribes in the Philippines.
