Asia-Pacific Conference on the Promotion of Gender-Responsive Judicial Systems

Samantha Hung 
Chief of Gender Equality Thematic Group, Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department Asian Development Bank (ADB) 
Ms. Samantha Hung underscored ADB’s commitment to effectively address gender-based violence (GBV), a critical component underpinning the bank’s gender equality work. She also gave an overview of ADB policies, strategies, and initiatives to advance gender equality, such as integrating considerations of women’s safety in project designs; incorporating GBV response into quick-disbursing pandemic response budget support; and technical assistance projects that aim to address access to justice barriers and strengthen the formal justice sector.

Abigail Erikson
Senior Advisor, Ending Violence Against Women and Girls, United Nations Women
Ms. Abigail Erikson gave an overview of how gender discrimination and inequality underpin violence against women and girls across the world. She also discussed access to justice barriers in the Asia-Pacific context and gave a three-point recommendation to address these challenges: (i) a stocktake of gender discriminatory attitudes, (ii) access to quality and essential services, and (iii) ensuring that women and girls know where and how to get help.

Session Moderator: Hon. Dr. Robyn Layton AO QC
Former Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia and Adjunct Professor, University of South Australia
 

Hon. Chief Justice Kamal Kumar
Supreme Court of Fiji
Chief Justice Kamal Kumar shared notable legislative measures and court processes in Fiji that afford protection to women and girl victim‑survivors and strengthen their access to the formal justice system. First, Fiji has a comprehensive set of laws on sexual offenses, primary of which is the Domestic Violence Act 2009. Second, vulnerable victim-survivors and witnesses are afforded protections in the courtroom. Third, the creation of a sex offenders register allows government authorities to quickly retrieve information about the identity of sex offenders, his personal details (e.g., passport details and active social media accounts), and how sexual offense cases were resolved. Fourth, the no-drop policy, which came into effect in 2020, mandates that the police adopt a zero-tolerance policy on GBV. Fifth, capacity development for members of the judiciary is crucial.

Hon. Judge Robyn Tupman
District Court of New South Wales, Australia, Secretary Treasurer - The International Association of Women Judges 
Hon. Judge Robyn Tupman shared the setup, implementation, and effectiveness of the Child Sexual Offence Evidence Pilot Scheme, 2015 in New South Wales, Australia. She emphasized that the evidence of child victim-survivors should be secured as soon as possible after a complaint is made. The ability to promptly gather evidence effectively addresses a typical cross-examination strategy that casts doubt on children’s memories because they do not last very long and/or are not sufficiently detailed. Judge Tupman articulated the lessons learned from the pilot evidence program in a series of “do’s” and “do not’s”: (i) do educate; (ii) do take everybody on board; (iii) do not forget it is a court of law; and (iv) do not get the technology wrong.

Hon. Justice Vui Clarence Nelson
Supreme Court of Samoa and Member, Committee on the Rights of the Child (Convention on the Rights of the Child)
Hon. Justice Vui Clarence Nelson shared Samoa’s progress in promulgating laws and institutionalizing practices to protect the rights of women and child victim-survivors of GBV. He talked about (i) The Family Safety Act, 2013, which provides for protection orders and a comprehensive array of protective mechanisms for domestic violence victims; (ii) The Sex Offenders Registration Act, 2017, which requires a registry of local offenders and offender-deportees from Australia, New Zealand, and the United States; (iii) a child welfare care and protection legislation pending before Parliament, aimed at establishing a comprehensive system for child protection; and (iv) Samoa’s compliance with the Paris Principles. Justin Nelson also spoke of institutional reforms, such as the establishment of specialized courts. Finally, he gave his opinions on what more could be done to promote a truly gender-responsive judicial system.

Hon. Justice Hima Kohli
Supreme Court of India
Hon. Justice Hima Kohli talked about India’s Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 and other good practices in India that protect and support women victim-survivors of gender-based violence. First, the definitions of “vulnerable woman” and “male respondent” were expanded through judicial interpretation of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005. Second, the Crime Against Women (CAW) cells established in the early 1980s in New Delhi have now been replicated across the country. Third, specialized courts (e.g., Women’s Court and Fast-Track Court) have been established. Fourth, the Victim Compensation Scheme was introduced by the government in 2018. Under this scheme, the government has a corpus of funds that court can dip into for compensation at the end of a trial.

Hon. Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting
Supreme Court of the Philippines
Hon. Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting talked about initiatives of the Philippine Supreme Court’s Committee on Gender Responsiveness in the Judiciary, including issuance of Guidelines on the Use of Gender-Fair Language in the Judiciary and Gender-Fair Courtroom Etiquette, 2022. The guidelines direct court officials and employees to make a conscious effort to avoid implicit and explicit discriminatory language against men or women. Justice Inting also spoke of the court practices in place that aim to protect both children and women, such as the rule on examination of child witnesses and the rule protecting the identity of women and child victims. The Supreme Court-issued Administrative Circular No. 83-2015 (or the Protocols and Procedures in the Promulgation, Publication, and Posting on the Websites of Decisions, Final Resolutions, and Final Orders Using Fictitious Names) mandates the use of fictitious initials like AAA or XXX when referring to the names of women and children victims, as well as their personal circumstances or other information which may establish or compromise, directly or indirectly, their identities.

Facilitator: Maria Cecilia T. Sicangco
Senior Legal Officer, ADB
 

Moderator: Zarizana Abdul Aziz
Gender and Human Rights Lawyer and Adjunct Professor, George Washington University
 

H.E. Dr. Alfonso Lopez
Prosecutor General, Timor-Leste
H.E. Dr. Alfonso Lopez gave an overview of penal and statutory laws governing violence against women and girls (VAWG) in Timor-Leste. He also discussed the role of and difficulties faced by the Public Prosecution Office in implementing these laws and investigating gender-based violence cases. Finally, Dr. Lopez discussed his recommended reforms. He believes that the Criminal Procedure Code should be amended to, among others, (i) extend the ‘statements for future use’ so that this is used in all situations involving VAWG; (ii) establish a maximum deadline to undertake an inquiry and to have a trial concerning VAWG; (iii) encourage professional support (e.g., from psychologists) to assist Public Prosecution magistrates and judges in technical matters in the context of an interdisciplinary approach to the cases, and to promote a more effective judiciary; and (iv) provide additional and specialist trainings to Public Prosecution and judicial magistrates, who can disseminate learnings to criminal investigation police officers and court clerks.

Hon. Justice Sandi McDonald
Supreme Court of South Australia and former Acting Director of Public Prosecutions 
Hon. Justice Sandi McDonald discussed substantial reforms undertaken to strengthen the prosecution of domestic violence cases in South Australia. She framed her discussion using the case of Zialloh Abrahimzadeh, which served as catalyst for these reforms. She spoke of the recommendations that arose from the coroner’s inquest, such as (i) conducting risk assessments; (ii) training officers and the police; (iii) ensuring that any person who files a complaint of domestic violence be put through to someone with expertise in that area; and (iv) ensuring that domestic violence victims who want to withdraw charges go through a process that affirms that they have been counseled, understand the decision they are making, and no one has influenced them in any way. Justice McDonald also pointed out that to effectively uphold the law, one must understand cultural context and how this impacts the prosecution of a case, e.g., in considering what a “good outcome” would be.

Shyamala Alagendra
Gender Advisor, United Nations Sri Lanka Accountability Team, Former Prosecution Trial Lawyer, International Criminal Court, and Former Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, Fiji
Ms. Shyamala Alagendra discussed the importance of a survivor-centered and trauma-informed approach in the prosecution and handling of sexual and domestic violence cases, especially those involving child witnesses and/or victims. Ms. Alagendra emphasized that this approach goes beyond the provision of counseling and medical care: (i) being sensitive to signs and symptoms of trauma since all witnesses and victim-survivors of crime are traumatized, even as trauma manifests in different ways for different people; (ii) showing witnesses and victim-survivors empathy (as opposed to sympathy), putting aside biases and assumptions and interacting with them in a gender and culturally sensitive way; (iii) allowing victim-survivors to tell their story in an uninterrupted manner and in a chronology and style that enables them to recall events as completely and as effectively as possible; (iv) labeling crimes appropriately and charging crimes accurately to reflect the gravity of conduct; and (v) empowering victim-survivors to make informed choices. Finally, Ms. Alagendra discussed important matters for prosecutors to keep in mind when dealing with child witnesses, such as taking a multi-disciplinary approach (i.e., prosecutors should not push out other actors).

Facilitator: Lea Halberstein
Juris Doctor (JD) candidate, Northeastern University School of Law

Moderator: Kate Eastman AM SC
Human Rights Lawyer

 

Nalini Singh
Executive Director, Fiji Women’s Rights Movement
Ms. Nalini Singh gave an overview of research findings and recommendations from Balancing the Scales: Improving Fijian Women’s Access to Justice, a report that took a stocktake of the Fijian legal system several years after Parliament passed the Family Law Act 2003, the Domestic Violence Act 2009, and the Crimes Act 2009. One significant finding was that Fijian women took an average of 868 days to seek help from the formal justice sector. She then spoke of how her organization seeks to address these concerns, particularly the issue of justice pathways. Finally, she discussed the additional gaps that have emerged since the report was published. Ms. Singh recommended that a study be undertaken on the response of the judiciary and what happens to victim-survivors who do not reach the formal justice sector.

Bárbara de Oliveira
Partner, JU,S, Jurídico Social Consultoria, Timor-Leste
Ms. Bárbara de Oliveira shared how her organization, a social enterprise in the legal sector in Timor-Leste, seeks to advance victim-survivor’s rights. She discussed the challenges in carving out and promoting the role and powers of victim-survivors in legal practice and judicial interpretation, when there have been very little before. She concluded with six important lessons JU,S has learned from its experience, including paying attention to the social and psychological aspects of a case.

Asmita Basu
Law, Gender, and Human Rights Specialist
Drawing from her research and on-the-ground experience in India, Ms. Asmita Basu shared three pressing concerns of victim-survivors of gender-based violence and how these could be addressed. First, the current legal framework must be assessed to see whether it is gender-just and adequate. Women continue to be in abusive or violent situations because of other discriminatory laws—whether in relation to access to matrimonial property or other property rights, custody rights in the context of domestic violence, or cases of sexual harassment due to unfair labor laws or job security concerns. Second, with respect to access to justice barriers, legal and judicial stakeholders have a two-fold responsibility: they must examine the hurdles that discourage women from accessing the law, and likewise find ways to facilitate access to the formal justice system. Finally, even good laws must be reviewed to determine how effective they are in practice.

Liliwaimanu Vuiyasawa
Gender and Child Care Consultant, Gender Economic Inclusion Group, International Finance Corporation
Ms. Liliwaimanu Vuiyasawa shared her observations and experiences as a survivor advocate and family law practitioner with the advent of the Fiji Family Law Act in 2003. She also flagged some other matters of concern, e.g., notions around gender are often not considered in the formal justice system. She likewise recommended that the Domestic Violence Act 2009 and the Crimes Act 2009 be applied in a parallel manner; otherwise, a miscarriage of justice occurs. Finally, Ms. Vuiyasawa opined that law enforcement and application remain a challenge in Fiji, making finding willing plaintiffs a greater challenge.

Henry Cornwell
Counsel, Asian Development Bank (ADB)
Mr. Henry Cornwell gave an overview of ADB’s law reform work in relation to gender-based violence. He discussed ADB’s engagement with judges, which is focused on (i) training them to better understand the ways in which GBV and related cases could affect the rights and well-being of victims, and (ii) doing what is necessary to improve survivors’ opportunities for gender justice and procedural fairness even under challenging circumstances. He gave an overview of possible paths forward, including building on the work of the women’s rights organizations to bring empirical analysis into the question of how to treat GBV cases.

Facilitator: Nelania Sarmento
Communications and Liaison Officer (Consultant), ADB

Facilitator: Zhansaya Imanmadiyeva
Master of Public Policy candidate, Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Tokyo