Port-au-Prince, October 2, 2017.- The President of the Republic, His Excellency Jovenel Moïse, accompanied by the Prime Minister, Jack Guy Lafontant, attended the opening of the judicial year 2017-18. The ceremony was presided over by Mr. Jules Cantave, President of the Court of Cassation, in the presence of several members of the cabinet, including the Minister of Justice and Public Security, Mr. Heidi Fortuné, Interior and Local Government, Dr. Max Rudolph St Albin, and Minister of Planning and External Cooperation, Mr. Aviol Fleurant.
The presence of the Head of State at this solemn audience is a manifestation of his will to bring the three great powers of the State closer together in order to provide concerted answers to the problems faced by our compatriots. It was also a way for President Jovenel Moïse to renew his determination to improve the functioning of the judicial system and the working conditions of staff in order to make them more effective in the performance of their duties and the establishment of the rule of law in Haiti.
After a detailed assessment of the activities carried out in the various judicial courts of the country during the judicial year 2016-17, the President of the Court of Cassation called for the unity of the three powers in order to find lasting solutions to the problems of the judicial system.
Meanwhile, Stanley Gaston, President of the Federation of Bar Associations of Haiti, welcomed the efforts made by his colleagues to boost the judicial system, notably at the Port-au-Prince bar, of which he is the president of the Bar. participates actively in the task force set up by the Ministry of Justice and Public Security to combat prolonged pre-trial detention and to facilitate the reform of the judicial system.
Minister of Justice Heidi Fortuné, who spoke at the ceremony on behalf of the Moses-Lafontant administration, outlined the vision and the various actions of the government aimed at strengthening the capacity of state institutions, in particular the judicial system to transform Haiti into a state of law.
Heidi Fortuné also recalled the actions of the Moise-Lafontant administration, which aims to combat prolonged pre-trial detention. To this end, he referred to the Thémis plan, which involves all actors in the criminal chain and whose objective is to minimize the number of cases of preventive detention in the system. He also stressed that many measures such as the acquisition of office equipment and the rehabilitation of the premises of certain courts have been taken to improve the working conditions of judicial personnel.
Finally, Minister Fortuné mentioned the active involvement of the CSPJ in the drafting of finance laws, the setting up of insurance coverage for clerks, the granting of wage increases to certain personnel in order to problems that hinder the proper functioning of the judiciary.
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