CJ Koome champions community ole in Ending Gender-Based Violence » Capital News

KISUMU, Kenya May 13 – Chief Justice Martha Koome has called on communities to support the fight against Gender-Based Violence (GBV), terming it a societal issue that cannot be tackled by the judiciary alone.

Speaking during a working tour of Kisumu, Koome said the judiciary has established specialized GBV courts in hotspots like Kisumu and is putting structures in place to address the vice.

She made the remarks while launching the Kisumu Tribunals Shared Services and Alternative Justice System (AJS) Centre, which Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o welcomed as a faster, community-led path to justice.

“We have specialized SGVs courts here in Kisumu because Kisumu was marked as one of the hotspots,” she said.

The CJ says the judiciary must get support from the society to deal with the issue.

“We are helpless if left alone to deal with GBV, we must work as a team to address what is ailing our society,” he said.

She says getting justice for the vulnerable groups whose rights are being infringed upon must not only be found within the courtroom.

Koome says justice must be experienced from the homes, communities and places of work.

“We want a society that respects one another, what I want to be done unto me, is what I want to be done unto my brother,” she said.

Koome spoke when she launched the Tribunal Shared Services and Alternative Justice System (AJS) housed at the Lake Victoria Water Services Works compound in Kisumu.

Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong’o hailed the introduction of AJS as a game changer in the justice system.

“It offers our people an opportunity to resolve disputes through community-led mechanisms, thereby speeding up access to justice,” he said.

The CJ will then on Tuesday lead the judiciary team in launching Kombewa law courts in Seme.