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BASL expresses grave concerns; seeks answers from JSC
View(s):The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has requested the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to immediately address concerns raised regarding the holding of a meeting/webinar for judicial officers titled “Matters relating to judicial proceedings in the context of the Covid-19 Pandemic.”
In a letter addressed to JSC Chairman, Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya and JSC members, Supreme Court Justices Buwaneka Aluwihare and L.T.B. Dehideniya, the BASL notes that several of their members have drawn attention to reports published in the media on the meeting/webinar held on August 13 with the participation on non-judicial personnel including “at least one official whose administrative orders and decisions form part of the matters that are currently under judicial consideration in several cases that have been filed or are pending before Courts.”
The letter observes that media reports claim that during the webinar, the issue of trade union protests and the role of the courts also came up for discussion, that judicial officers had been given instructions on the use of certain sections of the Criminal Procedure Code to control public gatherings on account of the pandemic situation in the country, and that there was a perception among judicial officers that there was an effort to impress upon them to give orders, the police request to curb protests.
“The BASL is deeply concerned at the contents of these reports which impact on the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary and on the public confidence in the administration of justice.”
The association points out that the Constitution requires every judicial officer to decide every case based on the facts and circumstances of that particular case and the applicable law. “Every party before court has an expectation that his/her case will be decided upon on its own merits, upon a fair hearing given to such party or his/her counsel. Any party including the State, if dissatisfied with such an order is entitled to canvass the same by way of an appeal or revision application to an appropriate forum,” the letter says.
“In these circumstances whilst any move to conduct a meeting/webinar to create awareness among judicial officers of the seriousness of the pandemic and the need to ensure that the courts are administered keeping in mind health guidelines are most welcome, it is our considered view that the contents of such a meeting/webinar should not leave the impression, either in the mind of the participating judges or the public, that it has any bearing on the manner of the discharge of judicial functions or that it was intended to have the effect of stifling any judicial officer from the independent exercise of his or her judicial mind and discretion in a particular case based on the law and accepted principles of judicial interpretation.”
The letter says that in these circumstances it is the view of the BASL that as there is a strong possibility of an impression being created, if not already created, in the minds of judicial officers and of the public, that the above meeting/webinar was conducted with the aim of impressing upon judges to make particular orders in a particular manner, such an impression should be immediately addressed and if necessary be corrected, in the public interest and the interests of all those tasked with the administration of justice.