THE GOVERNMENT is finally getting around to legislation which will offer better protection of the rights of victims of crime. Since the early 1970s a legal aid programme has been in place to provide legal representation at state expense to accused persons unable to afford a lawyer. A number of non-governmental human rights organisations, local and overseas, have been very active in the defending of the rights of prisoners, particularly those sentenced to death for murder.
The rights of the victims of crime have received much less visible attention. In fact, much of the punishment meted out to convicted persons has only served to satisfy the retributive justice of the state.
In a recent public forum on citizens and the law, Minister of State in the Ministry of National Security and Justice, Ben Clare, announced that Government will be introducing legislation in the near future to help advance and protect the rights of victims. The Junior Minister himself admitted that "when a person is arrested, they are given support through legal representation or from human rights advocates, but invariably we forget the rights of victims."
Among the steps to be taken to ensure a 'greater balance of justice' will be the right of victims to bring civil action against convicted criminals for damages. The Victim Support Programme, which is already established, is intended to assist persons who have psychological problems resulting from criminal acts committed against them or persons close to them. With the flood of brutal crimes in the society, there must be thousands of seriously traumatised persons in need of psychological support.
In the 'normal' run of things, there tends to be long time gaps between announcement of intentions and the actual enactment of legislation, except when the Government is in a hurry for political reasons. Victims' rights legislation is likely to be non-controversial legislation in our high-crime environment with the prevailing lack of balance in the justice system. We welcome the announcement of intentions a direct pledge to citizens, really and urge immediate action.
The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner.
