The Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation (WCJF) is providing critical support to the National Child Diversion Programme. This is in keeping with its mandate of facilitating the continued education of teen mothers as well as providing counselling to teen parents. Speaking in a recent interview with JIS News, National Child Diversion Consultant, Ruth Carey, said that the WCJF has been...

The Legal Aid Council (LAC) is reiterating its commitment to providing legal representation, especially to persons incarcerated who are mentally-ill. This, forms part of the mandate of the Council, which was established to administer an efficient and coordinated legal-aid system in Jamaica that benefits all. Legal Officer with the Legal Aid Council , Kerona Spence, told JIS News, that every...

Cabinet has given approval for the acquisition of property at 26 Rose Street in Savanna-la-mar, Westmoreland, at a cost of $38,500,000 for the continued operation of the Family Court. Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Fayval Williams, made the disclosure during the post-Cabinet press briefing held virtually on March 24. She noted that in 2019, the property owners indicated...

The Ministry of Justice is considering the inclusion of victims as part of the child diversion process to facilitate the mending of broken relationships within schools and communities. Child diversion is an alternative dispute resolution tool used primarily to put the child offender on a path away from the criminal justice system and its attendant negative features. It involves measures...

The Ministry of Justice is calling for more persons, particularly men, to volunteer as mentors for the National Child Diversion Programme. Generally, mentors provide support through guidance and supervision to children in the programme, to help them curb their behaviour and address the issues that have been identified. This is a critical part of the rehabilitation aspect of the programme....

The Justice Ministry will be intensifying efforts to address the use of abusive methods by some parents and guardians in disciplining children. This is light of concerns surrounding the connection between child abuse and the deviant behaviours exhibited by young people. “I am very disturbed about the level of abuses that are being engaged in by parents and community members...

A Commission of Senior Judges of the Parish Courts has been launched to oversee the implementation of the policies and procedures outlined in the strategic plan of the judiciary. Chief Justice Bryan Sykes, who addressed the virtual launch ceremony on Sunday (March 21), said that the Commission comprises all senior judges of the Parish, Family, Traffic, Children’s, Coroners and the...