Human rights exports: publicity, policy, manuals & training

1. Human rights exports: publicity, policy, manuals & training

4. Sierra Leone Justice Sector Development Programme Project Memorandum 4 April 2004

5. 1. Summary and Recommendations 1.1 The Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL) is committed to restoring the rule of law, preventing further conflict and improving safety, security and access to affordable and equitable justice for people, particularly the poor, the vulnerable and marginalized groups. The Justice Sector Development Programme1 (JSDP) will support these aims by helping to improve the performance of key sector institutions, policies and practices and by strengthening the justice sector’s ability to create an environment where grievances can be addressed, economic growth can be stimulated and poverty reduced.

6. 1.2 The Goal of the JSDP is the improved safety, security and access to justice for the people of Sierra Leone. The purpose is to support the development of an effective and accountable Justice Sector that is capable of meeting the needs and interests of the people of Sierra Leone, particularly the poor, the vulnerable and the marginalised.

7. 3.2.1 The GOSL is committed to security and justice sector reform, which it sees as integral to conflict prevention and poverty reduction. The GoSL reform policies are contained in the Interim Sierra Leone Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (IPRSP), which sets out the Government’s plans to tackle poverty in the medium term. The IPRSP cites rule of law and respect for human rights as key components of governance and includes as a priority objective “improved administration ofjustice and human rights”. The final PRSP is being developed. It is intended the JSDP will be linked to this process and will make a major contribution to achieving the PRSP and the priorities of the GoSL.

8. 3.2.7 The JSDP provides a flexible and a realistic approach to achieving improved and affordable justice in Sierra Leone. It has been designed to be responsive towards political and institutional developments and processes in Sierra Leone while taking into consideration national capacities and constraints. How the JSDP can be used to improve economic growth will be a major feature of programme activity.

9. What will the JSDP do? 3.5.3 The following principles will be used to underpin all programme activities: • Improving respect for human rights • Improving the treatment and access to justice for the poor, women, children and marginalised groups • Improving accountability and oversight of justice sector organisations • Improving the quality of information on which policy and management decisions are made • Improving systems to prevent conflict • Improving the justice sector awareness of HIV/AIDS • Promoting economic growth at micro and macro levels • Recognising the budgetary and capacity constraints of the GoSL and justice sector organisations.

10. “Education as utilised by NGO’s could interestingly be compared to the intention of the colonial schools system designed to construct a particular future society and bring about particular social and cultural transformations” (Barnes 1997).

11. changes during the first half of the 20th century as combining “to make the English Prison system… an exemplar of prison reform”. • He continues “Vestiges of this are plentiful. For example, each year, despite the dismantling of the British Empire, groups of senior staff from the Commonwealth attend long courses at The Prison Service College, Wakefield, a practice begun in the 1930’s”.

12. Key points • The complexity and depth of the social field that human rights interventions aim at transforming is often underestimated by NGO’s and donors • A lack of baseline knowledge about prison practices creates the problem of how to intervene to change a set of practices one knows nothing about. Without understanding the obstacles and opportunities confronting those who want to bring change, we cannot comprehend fully how justice can be achieved in Africa (Welch 1995: 4)