TO COMBAT human trafficking in Southeast Asia, the Council of Asean Chief Justices (CACJ) unveiled publications on human trafficking, cross-border disputes involving children, and videoconferencing practices during its meeting in Lapu-Lapu City on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024.
The Supreme Court of the Philippines hosted the gathering of chief justices, judges, and senior judiciary officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ 10 member states, namely the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The 11th edition of the meeting started last Monday, Nov. 18 and it will end on Thursday, Nov. 21.
Filipino Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo led the launch on Tuesday, reaffirming the CACJ’s commitment to fostering judicial collaboration and legal development across Southeast Asia.
The newly released publications include:
A Compendium of Good Practices in Adjudicating Trafficking in Persons Cases in Asean Member States: Lessons Learned and Responses to Challenges;
Framework for a Judicial Knowledge Exchange on Trafficking in Persons in Asean;
Working Group on Cross-Border Disputes Involving Children; and
Compendium of Agreed Frameworks and Videoconferencing Practices Among Asean Member States.
Two publications focused on addressing human trafficking cases will help judiciaries of each member state to better address human trafficking cases.
The CACJ’s Working Group on Judicial Education and Training, co-chaired by Indonesia’s Justice I Gusti Agung Sumanatha and Philippine Judicial Academy’s Justice Rosmari Carandang, developed these resources to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of adjudicating trafficking cases across the region.
The Compendium of Agreed Frameworks was developed by the Working Group on Cross-Border Disputes Involving Children, chaired by Philippine Supreme Court Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier and Singapore Justice Teh Hwee Hwee. It offers comprehensive guidelines for safeguarding children’s rights in cross-border cases, emphasizing the harmonization of practices across jurisdictions. Lazaro-Javier highlighted the material’s importance in addressing the complexities of globalization and its impact on families, while Teh noted the publication’s aim to ease burdens on affected families.
The Working Group on Videoconferencing Hearings, led by Justice Jose Midas Marquez and vice chair Justice Maria Filomena Singh, compiled guidelines to standardize videoconferencing practices in the Asean judiciary. The initiative seeks to leverage technology to improve court efficiency and accessibility.
The CACJ’s efforts aim to unify judicial practices across the region, ensuring resilience and cooperation among Southeast Asian judiciaries. / EHP