A brand new Sexual Offences Court, estimated to cost around $9 million, was commissioned at the High Court in Berbice yesterday morning.
Stabroek News was told that the furniture for the courtroom is estimated to have cost around $1.5 million along with Skype equipment estimated to be $1.4 million, audio recording equipment $2.7 million, and infrastructural work for the courtroom and the special measures room, a total of $3 million, among other expenditures.
However, the lawyers’ robing room, which was once situated where the Sexual Offences Court is now located, has since been relocated to another area of the High Court. This newspaper was told that some $2 million was spent on the relocation of that room.
Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards, Chancellor of the Judiciary, (ag), who delivered the feature address yesterday, reminded the gathering that in November, 2017, the first Sexual Offences Court was opened in Georgetown. As such, in an effort to decentralise the services of such a court, they have moved to Berbice and are expected to open a similar court in Essequibo.
Justice Cummings-Edwards pointed out that over the years, the major challenge in addressing sexual violence in the Caribbean was the lack of specialised interventions. She also highlighted the long lasting impact sexual abuse has on survivors.
She said that victims of sexual offences have special needs, which require specialised skills to be possessed by the police, prosecutors and court. “Therefore, there must be a developed, dedicated court and personnel operating from a specialised court with specialised equipment that will respond to these special needs. And with the rise in incidents of sexual offences, these specialised measures are needed now more than ever,” she stated.
Justice Cummings-Edwards said that the main aim of sexual offences courts are to ensure that the environment is conducive to both victims and offenders. “… and as such, we have furnished this with the necessary equipment to protect the victims from having to see the accused and other persons in the courtroom, and the courtroom features a witness screen, which will shield the victim from the accused and others. We also have a testifying room, which is the same as the special measures room, which will allow the victim to give his/her evidence without having to enter the courtroom,” Cummings-Edwards related. This, she said, will ensure greater coordination of services between the court, support agencies, victims and witnesses.
Meanwhile, she relayed that since November, 2017 to March, 2019, there have been 53 sexual offences cases tried in the Georgetown Sexual Offences Court, with a total of 33 convictions and 20 acquittals. She noted that sentences for such convictions range from nine-year imprisonments, to life imprisonments.
The offences for which trials were conducted include seven rape cases, 21 cases related to the rape of a child under 16-years-old, 15 cases of sexual activity with a family member and one carnal knowledge case.
From a total of 53 cases, 41 were females and three males. The ages of the female victims in the cases ranged from three-years-old to 25 years, and the age range of the male victims was three-years-old to 14-years-old.
Cummings-Edwards said that to date, there are 37 sexual offences cases in the Berbice Assizes.
Meanwhile, Sylvia Fouet, UNICEF Resident Representative for Suriname and Guyana, said that in collaboration with the British High Commission and Guyana’s judiciary, they are hoping to open a Sexual Offences Court in Suddie, Essequibo, before the end of 2019.
“It is part of a bigger programme. As we know, sexual violence remains a silent emergency and count on UNICEF to support and present a response to this issue,” she said.
