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Controversial webinar for the Judiciary: Not politically motivated: Ali Sabry 

28 Aug 2021

  • Justice Min. defends said judicial training as ‘normal procedure’  
  • Highlights non-involvement in JSC/SLJI activities 
  • Webinar for magistrates organised by SLJI, says JSC  
 BY Yoshitha Perera    With controversy surrounding a recent webinar for judicial officers including magistrates, Justice Minister M.U.M. Ali Sabry PC informed The Sunday Morning that the particular webinar in question was not motivated by politics and that it was normal procedure when training judges.   Speaking to The Sunday Morning, Minister Sabry emphasised that no one was getting involved in the work handled by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) and the Sri Lanka Judges Institute (SLJI), certainly not the Justice Ministry.   “I think that no one should get involved and tell judges how they should hear cases. Training is provided by the SLJI and that is the sole responsibility of the SLJI and the JSC,” he stated.  He also explained that the independence of the Judiciary is very important; yet in the meantime, it is also important to maintain the decorum of the institution and not to scandalise it.   “We have to balance these two aspects, and the JSC has clearly indicated this in its response to the recent webinar organised by the SLJI.”  Adding that judges go through these trainings occasionally, Minister Sabry pointed out that the SLJI is a fulltime organisation which provides training to judges. He observed: “From time to time, depending on the importance of what is required, they organise conferences, and the JSC handles these matters.”   According to a letter that circulated on social media during the last two weeks, the JSC had conducted a webinar titled “Matters relating to judicial proceedings in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic” on 13 August. As per the letter, “the failure to attend the particular conference will be considered when making recommendations for annual salary increments, selections for foreign trainings, and in the promotions to higher courts”.   As per the letter, the webinar was handled by the JSC, comprising Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya PC, and Supreme Court (SC) Judges Justices Buwaneka Aluwihare PC, L.T.B. Dehideniya, and Mahinda Samayawardhena. As per the SLJI website, Justice Dehideniya is its Director.  However, after the said webinar, several magistrates had expressed concerns regarding it, claiming that the particular webinar had exerted undue pressure on judges.   Certain judicial officers had also claimed that they had been given instructions on using certain provisions of the law to control public gatherings including protests during the Covid-19 pandemic.   Meanwhile, responding to the abovementioned claims, the JSC issued a letter on 23 August, stating that the webinar held recently for the magistrates was organised by the SLJI and not the JSC.   It mentioned that the JSC does not get involved in any activity that is not based on the powers vested in it through the Constitution.   The JSC also noted that the content of the letter with the details pertaining to the particular webinar was included on a 10-year-old draft format that was being used to organise similar events over the years.   It further mentioned that conferences and workshops for judges are organised using public funds and that the failure to appear at these events would be a waste of public funds.    The SLJI was not available for comment. 


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