Delivering Access to Justice and strengthening women security in Kapoeta

1. Update summary

 RWDSS with grants received from UNDP continues to engage the Justice and Rule of Law stakeholders of Kapoeta South. The Justice Confidence Center (JCC) continues to provide friendly and inclusive platform for the police, the prison service, the Public Prosecution attorneys (PPAs) and key community leader including the women leaders, youth leaders and business communities as well as humanitarian partners on ground.

The JCC awareness team led by our social worker Mrs. Juliet Nakai joined the youth to celebrate the international youth day on the 12^th of August 2024 Kapoeta freedom square. The team performed informative and captivating dramas, riddles and poems to raise the awareness of the over 10,000 spectators on GBV, mob justice and existing judicial services.

Our JCC legal team started comprehensive inmates profiling in August. This follows the inmates screening conducted in July aimed to classify all inmates according to their crimes and extend of judicial process, it also aimed to identify any extra-judicial detentions, detentions due to customary court orders, juveniles, cases with multiple suspects but still under police investigations. The JCC team screened a total of 175 inmates (18 females and 159 males) 20 juveniles were also screened.

Upto 20 inmates attented court for the first time and 18 inmates were released in the course of June to September.15 new inmates arrived to the prison from the police detention here Kapoeta.

The JCC holds its monthly coordination meeting on every 15^th of a month. The August meeting that was held at the premises of Kapoeta Prison. This meeting generated the following recommendations.

1. In a bid to improve judicial processes and combat extra judicial arrests, the meeting recommended for deployment public prosecution attorneys in  the counties of Kapoeta East, Kapoeta North and Budi
2. The meeting also recommended supervisory support to the PPA, Police, Prison and Courts especially from their relevant seniors at the state HQ in Torit.
3. The meeting recommended the local government to work together with the ministry of gender to devise mechanisms to integrate paralegals on ground who were trained by the South Sudan Law Society. This is help streamline the customary courts to be compliant with the laws and statutes guiding their work.
4. The meeting also recommended that the chiefs at the customary court be supported with refresher training on the local government act and on procedures of courts
5. The JCC meeting recommended for supportive supervision by higher courts as well as supervision of customary courts.
6. The meeting recommended the JCC to help the prison to come up with a comprehensive summary of the inmates awaiting access to justice
7. The meeting also recommended support for Washrooms at the police/court complex
8. The meeting recommended for improved support for the female inmates with accompanying infants
9. The also recommended training for the county authorities of Kapoeta South, Kapoeta East, Kapoeta North and Budi counties. The trainings should focus on the roles of county authorities in maintaining rule of law.