Women's Justice Unit

History

JSMP’s Women’s Justice Unit (WJU) was formed as the logical next step after the launch of JSMP’s report, “Women in the Formal Justice Sector” in early 2004 English, Bahasa, Portugues. The central goals of the WJU are to use JSMP’s expertise in the justice sector in Timor to assess and report on the status of women in the formal justice sector here, to provide policy advice regarding legal issues affecting women in the formal justice sector and to develop and provide resource support for issues impacting women’s access to formal justice. JSMP’s monitoring in Dili District Court over the past years was limited by the fact that JSMP monitors were unable to gain access to closed sexual assault proceedings.

In late 2003, JSMP’s women researchers acquired access to these proceedings and conducted widespread interviews of police, prosecutors, victims, judges and NGOs about issues affecting women in the formal justice sector. The results of the monitoring were memorialized in the report. The report found that more attention should be given to the plight of female victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and rape, in Timor. In addition, the report made a number of recommendations. The Women’s Unit attempts to implement some of these recommendations and to provide advice to other agencies or bodies that are seeking to implement recommendations.

Objectives and Goals

1. Promote development of fair justice system in East Timor, specifically focusing on access to justice for women.
2. Prompt action to bring current practice regarding women victims and perpetrators in the justice system in line with international human rights standards.
3. Ensure East Timorese womens’ participation and consultation in the ongoing development of the justice system.
4. Increase women’s awareness of the internationally recognized elements of a fair justice system and the rule of law, both within East Timor and the region generally.
5. Promptly report on selected women-related trials about the fairness of the process.
6. Build capacity of female Timorese lawyers through close collaboration: train East Timorese activists, students and lawyers.
7. Facilitate cooperation between relevant East Timorese and international women’s organizations through the exchange of legal observers, common capacity building and information sharing.

Projects

Monitoring and Reports

The WJU follows progress of women-related cases at the District Courts and generates reports on issues it has found.

The WJU monitors and reports on actions of all justice sector actors regarding sexual assault and domestic violence cases.

Women in the Formal Justice System
o Bahasa Indonesia
o English

An Analysis of a Sexual Assault Decision from Dili District Court
o Bahasa Indonesia
o English
o Portuguese

Access to Justice for Women Victims
o Bahasa Indonesia
o English

Police treatment of Women in Timor Leste
o Bahasa Indonesia
o English
o Portuguese

Statistics on Cases of Violence Against Women in Timor Leste
o Bahasa Indonesia
o English
o Portuguese

Analysis of Decisions in Cases involving Women and Children Victims
o Bahasa Indonesia
o English
o Portuguese

Training

• The WJU has designed and delivered training sessions on domestic violence guidelines for prosecutors (funded by UNFPA).
• The WJU has also designed and delivered training on the fromal justice system and domestic violence and sexual assault to police, local government leaders and womens groups in the districts level.

Public Education Materials

The WJU has produced and distributed to the thirteen districts, public education materials about reporting gender based violence to the formal justice system. These materials include posters, brochures and a radio program and a TV Show.

Sra. Flora Sorioano Menezes is the Women Justice Unit  Coordinator. She can be contacted at  alo@jsmp.minihub.org.