CHIEF JUSTICE, ATTORNEY GENERAL, AND JUSTICE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 000750

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE. NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/PASCUAL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/02/2018
TAGS: KWBG PGOV PREL PTER PHUM IS
SUBJECT: CHIEF JUSTICE, ATTORNEY GENERAL, AND JUSTICE
MINISTER ON JENIN, JUSTICE SECTOR FRAMEWORK, AND JUDICIAL
INSTITUTE

REF: A. JERUSALEM 700


B. JERUSALEM 587

C. JERUSALEM 497

Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, per reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary. Chief Justice (CJ) of the Supreme Judicial
Council (SJC) Issa Abu Sharar, Attorney General (AG) Ahmad
al-Mughani, and Justice Minister (MoJ) Ali Khashan told
Poloff and USAID on April 30 that 40 Judicial Police officers
will be deployed to Jenin on May 3 to deal with the 6,500
pending criminal cases in that governorate. CJ Abu Sharar
said he expects most major felony and high-level security
cases in Jenin to be heard at the Jenin courthouse, which
will open in June, rather than Jericho. On May 21, the CJ,
AG, and MoJ will sign a "2008-2010 Governing Framework" for
the justice sector which stresses judicial independence and
the need to eliminate duplication of roles. CJ Abu Sharar
said the SJC nominated Judge Assad Mubarak to serve as the
Judicial Training Institute's (JTI) new director and expects
PM Salam Fayyad to approve his nomination. End Summary.

Judicial Police Deploy to Jenin
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2. (C) Chief Justice (CJ) of the Supreme Judicial Council
(SJC) Issa Abu Sharar, Attorney General (AG) Ahmad
al-Mughani, and Justice Minister (MoJ) Ali Khashan told
Poloff and USAID on April 30 that there are 30,000 felony and
misdemeanor cases pending in the West Bank, some over ten
years old, that require judicial enforcement. MoJ Khashan
said 40 Judicial Police officers will be deployed to Jenin on
May 3 to deal with the 6,500 pending cases in that
governorate. MoJ Khashan said that criminals in Jenin with
outstanding warrants were given two weeks to turn themselves
in. He added that he expects the Judicial Police to resolve
1,000 cases in Jenin by mid-May by making arrests and
collecting outstanding fines but noted that the Jenin
Judicial Police force lack resources and will share six
vehicles with the PA Police. (Note: The Judicial Police fall
under the PA Police Chief's administration but their work
priorities are set by the MoJ. End Note). MoJ Khashan said
the Ministry of Justice cooperated closely with the Ministry
of Interior and PA Police during the Nablus deployment, but
worked mostly behind the scenes. In contrast, he plans for a
more public MoJ role for the Jenin operation. MoJ Khashan
noted that Judicial Police officers will also start work in
Ramallah in mid-May where 7,000 cases are pending.


3. (C) AG al-Mughani said PASF will need logistical support
and GoI coordination to succeed in Jenin. He added that the
PASF and Judicial Police arrest campaign could strain Jenin's
small detention facility. Azmi Shuwaibi, Secretary General
of Aman Coalition (a legal NGO consortium),said the PASF
deployment to Nablus in November was positive and the Nablus
model should be adapted to Jenin. He suggested the Jenin
operation also focus on rule of law so Palestinians witness
the strengthening of judges and courts in addition to police.

Jenin Courthouse to Open in June
--------------


4. (C) CJ Abu Sharar said he expects the new Jenin
courthouse to open in June. (Note: This courthouse was
funded by the Japanese and built by UNDP. End Note). He
said there is a shortage of judges in Jenin and that many
serious felony cases remain pending since the start of the
second intifada. Abu Sharar said the new courthouse will
allow most major felony and high-level security cases to be
heard in the first instance in Jenin, not Jericho (ref C).
(Note: The Jericho court is one of the eight courts of first
instance in the West Bank and only a presidential decree
could change it to a major criminal court. The Criminal
Procedures Law, however, permits the reassignment of cases to
other courts. End Note). He said if the AG motions for a
change of venue, the panel of judges assigned to the case
will decide whether to transfer the case to Jericho. Abu
Sharar said such transfers will be made on a case-by-case
basis, but expects most judges will not to transfer cases to
Jericho due to obstacles to access and movement that hinder
movement of police, judges, attorneys, witnesses and
defendants. AG al-Mughani added that transfer of cases takes
a long time and slows the judicial process. He cited the
example of a recent case, transferred from Hebron to
Ramallah, that is stalled because the key witness has not
received GoI permission to travel.

Justice Sector Governing Framework

JERUSALEM 00000750 002 OF 002


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5. (C) On May 21, the CJ, AG, and MoJ will hold "Justice
Day" in the West Bank and sign a "2008-2010 Governing
Framework" for the justice sector. According to a draft copy
obtained by Post, the framework stresses the importance of
judicial independence and the need to "strengthen
complementary relations between the CJ, AG and MoJ, bridge
any gaps, and eliminate the duplication of roles." The
framework also states the need to secure fair and speedy
trials by developing a case management system, establishing a
full Judicial Police force, improving the court notification
system and inspection department, and establishing a court
administration department. CJ Abu Sharar, AG al-Mughani and
MoJ Khashan told Poloff and USAID they will promote two
messages on "Justice Day:" (1) judicial independence and (2)
the equality of all Palestinians. Nabil Isifan, Chief of
Party of USAID Netham Rule of Law Program, said the PA will
target 1,500 West Bank schools with Rule of Law programming
and send all Jawwal subscribers SMS messages conveying these
points.

SJC Nominates Director
for Judicial Training Institute
--------------


6. (C) CJ Abu Sharar said the SJC nominated SJC Judge Assad
Mubarak to serve as director of the Judicial Training
Institute's (JTI),located on the first floor of the MoJ
building with USAID-funded renovation and furnishing. He
expects PM Salam Fayyad to approve Mubarak's nomination on
May 15 and the JTI Board of Directors to hold its first
meeting on May 16. The Board will subsequently draft by-laws
and submit its budget to the PA Cabinet. Abu Sharar said
training of judges will begin during the summer of 2008 and
by October the institute will be fully functioning. CJ Abu
Sharar said he hopes to use the institute as a tool "to
upgrade the quality of judges and prosecutors and to start a
policy of continuous training for the judicial sector." He
plans to encourage cooperation between SJC judges and the
inspection unit and technical office to identify weaknesses
and submit recommendations to the JTI director. Abu Sharar
said JTI's training of attorneys does not guarantee they will
become judges, but said after two years of study the
attorney-students will have the opportunity to sit before a
review panel for judicial appointment.

WALLES