MANILA – Calamba in Laguna is the seventh justice zone to be launched under the European Union-funded Governance in Justice Programme II (GOJUST II), the EU Delegation in Manila announced Wednesday.
A justice zone is a geographic area where local justice sector agencies identify common problems and generate solutions to address them.
Through an agreed structure and two-way communication with the Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC), testing of innovative solutions can take place within the justice zone, and successful interventions can be translated into policy decisions by the Council.
“The EU commends the cooperation of the three principals of Supreme Court, Department of Interior and Local Government and the Department of Justice for their continued leadership towards improving the coordination of the justice sector in the country," EU Ambassador to the Philippines, Luc Veron said.
“We are together with the Philippine government in reaffirming the respect for democratic principles, human rights and the rule of law that are an essential part of our Partnership and Cooperation agreement."
The launch on March 17 is assisted by the GOJUST II program with funding support from the EU.
GOJUST facilitates increased communication, coordination and cooperation in the justice sector through the JSCC at the national level and the rollout of the justice zones at the local level as the main mechanism for embarking on a long-term sustainable reform agenda.
The Calamba justice zone was recommended by the Regional Development Council of the National Economic Development Authority after extensive consultations with the justice sector agencies in Region 4-A (Calabarzon).
The first justice zone was launched in Quezon City and has proven to be an effective platform for coordination and communication among the justice sector actors.
Other justice zones were set up in the cities of Cebu, Davao, Angeles, Bacolod and Naga.
Significant coordination efforts were made by justice stakeholders including among others: E-Dalaw project, provision for transportation to address the problem of mobility of prisoners-detainees, capacity building and training activities.”
The JSCC joint resolution signed last March 11, which covers the launch of the Calamba justice zone, also paves the way for additional justice zones that will be established in the near future.
The expansion of justice zones will invigorate coordination at the local level and translate the successes of these initiatives into national policy.
This bolsters the benefits of coordination within the justice sector as institutionalized in the Philippine Development Plan (2017-2022). (PR)
