Monday August 3, 2020
FILE - Members of The Federation of Somali Trade Unions during an event for Labor Day 2019.
Mogadishu (HOL) - The Federation of Somali Trade Unions (FESTU) has released a statement welcoming the cabinet's decision to appoint five members to he Judicial Service Commission (JSC), despite vocal criticism to move by opposition figures and legal experts.
"The Federation of Somali Trade Unions (FESTU), it's 12 affiliated trade unions and working people of Somalia applaud the developments of Thursday, 30 July 2020, where the Council of Ministers unanimously approved five eminent persons to be considered for appointment as members of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) in the belief that it shall enhance the administration of justice, expeditiously select judges for constitutional court and enhance the administration of justice and strengthen the judiciary's capability to deal with case backlog effectively."
The FESTU criticised the judiciary as ineffective and welcomed the appointments.
"Though long overdue, the nomination of members of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) signals a breath of fresh lease of life into the institution of the Judiciary. It is no secret that for a very long time, the institution of the Judiciary has been crippled by a multitude of factors rendering it inefficient in the performance of its constitutional mandate of administering justice to the citizens of Somalia. Chief amongst challenges this institution continued to face is the absence of functioning JSC and understaffing of judicial officers who are at the forefront of administering justice."
Organised Labour said that the appointment process should be transparent and open to all Somalis.
"Trade unions call upon the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to ensure detailed and standardised criteria of appointment for judges be made known to the public. Particularly, nominations for appointments of Constitutional Court judges should be based on merit, also taking into consideration the integrity, character and attitude of those seeking judicial offices. A clear, merited, and competency-based criteria for assessing candidates must be developed to ultimately restore acceptability and dignity of the institution of the Judiciary."
The FESTU comments come as Somalia's leading opposition figures, civil society groups and legal experts have all raised concerns about the caretaker cabinet's legal authority to make such appointments.
Furthermore, some legal analysts have said that the provisional constitution only allows the cabinet to appoint three members to the JSC.