JUSTICE and constitutional development deputy minister, John Jeffery, said the country’s courts have made great strides to maintain high conviction rates over the past financial year.

Jeffery said this when he led the presentation of the annual reports of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and the National Prosecuting Authority in Parliament on Wednesday.

“With regards to court performance, great strides have been made to ensure that high conviction rates were maintained and improved on, in all court forums,” he said.

The conviction rate for the 2017/18 financial year stood at 91.7 per cent against a target of 87 per cent.

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He said historically – over several financial years – the performance of the high courts has fluctuated.

Jeffery said, meanwhile, the regional courts achieved a record conviction rate in two decades.

“The regional courts have also gradually increased to 81 per cent in 2017/2018 against a target of 74 per cent.”

Jeffery said, meanwhile, that with regards to the remand detainees, the department, in conjunction with the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster departments and the respective justice entities, have put in place measures to monitor the status of all persons awaiting the finalisation of their cases for long periods.

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He said backlog cases are those that remain on the roll longer than six months in the district court and longer than nine months from enrolment in the high court till finalisation.

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