PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda has urged the judiciary to maintain integrity by demonstrating a great sense of responsibility, impartiality and diligence in the execution of their judicial functions.
President Banda says to maintain their integrity, the judicial officers must reciprocate the trust and confidence from the people in their various jurisdictions.
Mr. Banda said people look up to the courts for justice and fairness in dispute resolutions.
He said people hold judges and magistrates in high esteem because of the role they play in society.
ZANIS reports that the President was speaking in Livingstone yesterday when he officially opened the 6th International Association of Women Judges Africa Regional conference held at Zambezi Sun.
Mr. Banda said he could not over-emphasize the importance of judicial integrity in advancing women’s and children’s’ rights.
‘’It is common for the women to experience discrimination and inequality in political participation, employment, property rights, personal status in marriage and access to national wealth and resources,’’ he said.
He said it was similarly true that women tended to face many economic and social obstacles which were sanctioned and upheld by culture, stereotypes and perceptions.
Mr. Banda said there was need for integrity among men and women on the bench as without judicial integrity, the cause of safeguarding the rights of women and children, and all who seek recourse in the courts of law would be a lost one.
‘’It is my hope that through this distinguished gathering of eminent adjudicators, solutions maybe proposed to ensure that women and children enjoy their rights as enshrined in national, regional and international human rights instruments,’’ he said.
Mr. Banda also urged the judges and magistrates to ensure that delivery of justice was timely and untainted.
He said there was now a realization that judicial competence required more than just knowledge of the law adding that the judicial training which Judges and Magistrates had undergone has aided them to cope with the increasing volume of litigation which involves the changing world.
Mr. Banda said government was grateful for the work and contribution that the Zambia Association of Women Judges was making towards the advancement of women’s rights in the country.
He assured that his government remained committed to ensuring that women were accorded the opportunity to be equal development partners in every area of human endeavour.
President Banda said since coming into office, he had appointed a total of 15 female judges adding that it was the policy of his government to add more women Judges to the bench in accordance with the SADC protocol.
“As long as I am President, the Association will continue to receive more female Judges,” he said.
He also noted that his government was committed to the advancement of women’s rights adding that that was why the Sixth National Development Plan which he launched recently was aimed at developing gender responsive policies and legal frameworks.
Mr. Banda said the government further intends to develop strategies to domesticate appropriate and relevant provisions contained in the convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women.
He said it was also an objective of the government to enhance the capacity of women to participate in national development and to strengthen institutional capacities for effective gender mainstreaming.
The President was confident that Judges would find ways of incorporating the principles outlined in the international legal instruments.
Speaking earlier, Zambia Association of Women Judges president Ireen Mambilima said it was common knowledge that in most jurisdictions, the appointment of women to the bench was and in some cases still remain a slow process.
“I do not need to go into details about the peculiar challenges that women face but allow me just mention that it is a fact that the workload in most judicial legal systems is fairly heavy and demands full procedural litigation,’’ she said.
She said it was the first time the conference was being held in the country and noted that it had brought women judges from different parts of the continent.
Mrs. Mambilima said the conference would continue promoting dialogue for all women adjudicators on how they could continue practicing justice on the African continent.
“Judicial officers continuously face challenges in this modern and changing world and the appointment of women to the bench still remains a challenge,” she said.
ZANIS
