THE government plans to review the country’s criminal justice system in a bid to make everyone enjoy fair and proper justice.
Ms Mary Makondo, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Constitution and Legal Affairs, revealed this on Wednesday at the event to commemorate 27th anniversary of the Legal and Human Rights Center (LHRC) in Njombe region.
She said the review will examine all criminal proceedings to see if the investigations, prosecutions, evidence and hearings can be improved and provide prompt remedies.
“The review’s goal was to guarantee that both the offender and the victim received justice and that no human rights had been violated,” said Ms Makondo.
Ms Makondo, who was representing the Minister for Constitution and Legal Affairs, Dr Damas Ndumbaro, further said every citizen has a responsibility to protect the rights of others, and the first step in doing so is to acknowledge all the rights guaranteed by the nation’s constitution.
Regarding legal aid services, she stated that the ministry would continue to work closely with all relevant parties to make sure that they were offered in the nation.
As part of celebrating their anniversary, LHRC started offering legal aid services in the area on September 19 of this year. The services culminated on Wednesday and were also offered in the Katavi, Rukwa, and Singida regions.
While land disputes are prevalent in the Njombe region, 796 people have received free legal aid services, according to Ms Anna Henga, the LHRC Executive Director.
“Despite the fact that many women experience various disasters, such as land expropriation, are assaulted, and are denied certain rights, few of them sought legal assistance in comparison to men,” said Advocate Henga.
She stated that men make up 61 per cent and women make up 39 per cent of those who received legal assistance
According to her, between September 19 and September 27 of this year, the citizens who were served and reported various issues totalled about 384 land disputes, 109 child care disputes, and 57 inheritance disputes.
“In all of these land issues, 48 per cent were caused by arbitrary land sales, invasion of lands, lands taken with no or little compensation, and others owing to inheritance disputes,” she stated.
Other disputes, according to her, included those involving marriages and children, which accounted for 14 per cent of all reported conflicts.
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