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Monday, October 28, 2002 - Web posted at 8:16:07 GMT Magistrate's Courts not as bad as made out, says Kawana WERNER MENGESCRITICS of the standard of justice dispensed by Namibia's Magistrate's Courts are proved wrong by the statistics of lower court cases that are reviewed by the High Court, according to Deputy Justice Minister Albert Kawana. |
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Kawana on Thursday gave the Assembly statistics on the outcomes of High Court reviews of lower court cases when answering a question put to him by DTA Member of Parliament Philemon Moongo. The Deputy Minister said 30 012 cases were sent on review from the Magistrate's Courts to the High Court from 1990 to 1999. In terms of the Criminal Procedure Act, a case tried by a Magistrate with less than seven years' experience is sent on review whenever a sentence of more than three months' imprisonment or a fine of more than N$500 is imposed. When a Magistrate has more than seven years experience as a judicial officer, cases are sent on review when a sentence of more than six months' imprisonment or a fine of more than N$1 000 had been imposed, Kawana told the Assembly. Of the 30 012 review cases heard by the High Court between 1990 and 1999, 27 702 - 92,3 per cent - were confirmed to have been properly tried by Magistrates, Kawana said. In 1 011 cases, Magistrates' sentences were changed, 402 were referred back to the lower courts as "outstanding queries", and only 897 judgements, or 2,99 per cent of the total, were set aside. Said Kawana: "These figures prove that contrary to what is being claimed by some critics, only about three per cent of cases at Magistrate's Courts were wrongly decided during the period under discussion." His Ministry would continue to train its staff, including judicial officers, "to ensure that justice is done to all our citizens", Kawana added. |
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