Families affected by human rights violations to get easier legal representation

The Ministry of Justice is working on improving access to legal representation for the families of persons whose human rights may have been violated.
  
This is in response to Amnesty International's latest report on police killings in Jamaica.
 
The global movement on Human Rights Organisation has recommended making the court system friendlier to families of victims and the provision of legal representation.
 
In a statement Thursday afternoon, Justice Minister Delroy Chuck said the Office of the Public Defender is slated for expansion.
  
Mr. Chuck added that the establishment of a Human Rights Institute is under active consideration by the government.
  
Mr. Chuck said improving the court system is a major challenge, admitting that the system needed to be more efficient in disposing cases in a timely manner.
     
However, he is hoping that the Criminal Justice (Plea Negotiations and Agreements) Act will help to move cases through the system more quickly.
  
Mr. Chuck said his ministry is in dialogue with the Chief Justice, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and attorneys on the provisions of the legislation which it expects to be passed early next year.
  
Amnesty International has noted that Jamaica has made some progress in recent years in reducing the number of extrajudicial killings by the police.