The Judicial Reform and Institutional Strengthening (JURIST) Project in collaboration with the High Court of Justice in Antigua and Barbuda will officially open the Sexual Offences Model Court (SOMC) on Monday January 21, 2019.
The opening ceremony takes place at the High Court of Justice, Parliament Drive, St. John’s, Antigua at 9am.
The SOMC is intended to introduce specialised procedures to remedy the deficiencies in the court’s handling of sexual offences. There are four main objectives which include:
- The provision of timely, gender responsive and coordinated response to complainants of sexual assault cases;
- Ensuring greater coordination between the courts and agencies that provide services to sexual assault complainants;
- Improving the monitoring and evaluation for sexual offences. It is critical for us to take an evidence-based approach to support improvements in the treatment of sexual offences. Not only rely simply on anecdotal evidence; and
- Reducing the secondary re-victimization that complainants experience.
