Community Justice Centers Presented Their Achievements and Plans for the Development of People-Centered Justice

Representatives of courts, police, probation, free legal aid, territorial communities, experts and public activists from Odessa, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi and Kherson regions discussed on December 17, 2021 the experience and prospects of implementing people-centered (friendly) justice in communities.

The main conclusion of the discussion is that in territorial communities there is a certain imbalance in local government and justice sector reforms, and at the local level there is a lack of a common vision, capabilities and coordination to develop people-centered justice. These needs in communities can be effectively met by the format of the Public Justice Center, which is successfully implemented in the city of Tatarbunary, Odessa region and communities of Chernihiv region.

The discussion “How to develop friendly justice in communities” was held on December 17, 2021 in a mixed online and offline format simultaneously in five communities – Odessa, Tatar-bunary, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi and Bilozerka. The discussion was attended by 35 participants – representatives and partners of Public Justice Centers, employees of the court, police, probation, free legal aid, representatives of local government, experts, public activists, as well as representatives of international projects in the field of justice.

The discussion began with a presentation of the Public Justice Center in the city of Tatarbunary, which operates on the basis of the Odessa regional organization of the NGO “Committee of Voters of Ukraine”. The center was established in the city of Tatarbunary at the end of 2018 with the support of the USAID New Justice program. In 2020-2021, the Public Justice Center operates with the support of the European Union, which allowed it to expand its location to the southern regions of the Odessa region and form a number of innovative tools for the development of “friendly” people-centered justice. During this time, a certain identity and model of work of the Public Justice Center has been formed, which works as a multifunctional hub and promotes a new format of cooperation between justice bodies, local authorities and residents on the principles of trust and responsibility.

From the office location in the city of Odessa, representatives of the Odessa regional organization of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine

Anatoliy Boyko, Ihor Brynosh, Yulia Lisova, Svitlana Gud

and

Yevheniya Genova

presented the model of influence and priority areas of the center’s activities. As noted by the Deputy Head of the Odessa Regional Organization of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine

Igor Brynosh

, the Public Justice Center implements four main areas at the community level: 1) high-quality and inclusive legal, administrative and social services; 2) a justice system that is human-oriented before, during and after the trial; 3) alternative dispute resolution and early conflict prevention; 4) the ability of community residents to proactively resolve issues in a legal manner and protect their rights.

When asked why the community needs the Public Justice Center, several areas were highlighted in specific cases: constant systematic work with vulnerable groups, development of social cohesion and inclusion in communities; support for the community in crisis situations, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; development of self-organization and more proactive residents; increasing the legal culture and legal capacity of community residents; lobbying in the field of access to justice for local governments, courts, police, probation and other state authorities; image opportunities for communities and municipal diplomacy.

Legal Advisor of the Public Justice Center

Yulia Lisova

separately presented the impact of the Public Justice Center through strategic cases on local, regional and national justice policy. One of the cases presented concerned the Public Justice Center’s appeal of the orders of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on the ban on entry/exit to and from Crimea in connection with the quarantine that took place from March to June 2020 and in August 2020. The Public Justice Center pursued this case as strategic, since such a ban violated the rights of thousands of Crimeans who could not reunite with their families, get medical treatment, work, or access their property.

From the premises of the partner library in the city of Tatarbunary, Odessa region, representatives and partners of the “field” office of the Public Justice Center joined the discussion – the head of the center

Leonid Semenenko

, the head of the district probation sector

Alla Mukienko

, the head of the local center for providing free secondary legal aid

Oksana Sokolova

, representatives of the district court

Nadiya Kolesnyk

and

Iryna Kovalenko

, a representative of the police

Efrosiniya Mukienko

, a representative of the legal aid bureau Inga Dmytrieva, a public councilor

Tetyana Stoyanova

and a representative of the Roma public organization “Bakhtalo”

Oleksandr Karai

. The participants of this location emphasized partnership, in particular, on involving the community in the work of the Public Justice Center.

The Head of the Public Justice Center in Tatarbunary

Leonid Semenenko

noted that the center currently supports/coordinates more than 10 volunteer/public initiatives, including: probation volunteers, the social initiative “From Mom to Mom”, the Self-Defense School for Women and Girls, the Neighborhood Watch, the Council of Veterans-mentors of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Roma activists. “Now we are planning to implement the initiative of court volunteers together with the court. Currently, a suitable building is being transferred for the court, where our volunteers will be located next to the integrated court reception. These will be retired veterans of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the court, the prosecutor’s office, and other state bodies who have both life and professional experience.”

The activities of the Public Justice Center of Chernihiv region were presented from the premises of the Chernihiv Court of Appeal, the discussion was joined by representatives of the Public Justice Center

Natalia Kulikova

and

Iryna Biryuk

, Head of the Bakhmatsky District Court of Chernihiv region

Pavlo Parkhomenko

, Head of the Chernihiv Court of Appeal

Tetyana Kryvonos

, Head of the Department of Analytical Work, Generalization of Judicial Practice and Communication of the Chernihiv Court of Appeal

Lesya Gaidai

, Head of the Desnyansky District Court

Tetyana Pyka

, Head of the Department of “Court. Advocacy. Prosecutor’s Office” of the National University “Chernihiv” Polytechnic»

Natalia Kolomiyets

.

The Public Justice Center in Chernihiv Oblast is a spacious platform where representatives of the authorities, local governments and the public have combined their efforts and resources to study the needs of communities and solve current legal problems, including combating domestic violence. The Public Justice Center was created with the support of the Chernihiv Court of Appeal and has existed for over 2 years, during which time 2 branches have been opened on the basis of district courts (Ichnyansky and Bakhmatsky district courts). Cooperation with the Desnyansky district court of Chernihiv is being actively implemented, more than 7 courts have been involved in cooperation and the provision of affordable free legal assistance to residents of the region has been ensured.

As noted by the head of the Public Justice Center in Chernihiv Region

Natalia Kulikova

, in general, the services of the Public Justice Center are comprehensive and include the provision of free high-quality legal assistance to both residents and the communities themselves. In addition, the organization systematically studies the needs of communities and offers algorithms for their solution with the involvement of all subjects. Today, cooperation has been established with all executive bodies, local governments, courts and public organizations of the region, which allows for comprehensive solutions to problems in communities, public monitoring of processes taking place in communities and high-quality resolution of issues. The Public Justice Center is a platform for internships/mentoring of students of the law faculties of the National University “Chernihiv Polytechnic” and the Academy of the Penitentiary Service of Ukraine. In addition, a large part of the work of the Public Justice Center, in particular the School of Legal Sciences at the Ichnyanskyi District Court of Chernihiv Oblast, is legal education.

The discussion was also attended by experts, representatives of communities and justice sector bodies from Chernivtsi and Kherson Oblasts, who have their own experience/visions on community development and are interested in implementing human-centered justice at the local level and the model of Public Justice Centers. Chernivtsi Oblast was represented at the discussion by experts from the Ukrainian People’s House in Chernivtsi

Taras Khalavka

,

Ihor Babyuk

and

Olha Chepel

, as well as the head of the Velykokuchuriv community

Vasyl Toderenchuk

and the deputy head of the Hlybotsky community

Anatoliy Timofti

. Kherson region was represented at the event by the Bilozersky territorial community, in particular, the head of the Bilozersky Regional Development Center

Ella Petrenko

, a representative of the probation service

Oksana Kuzmych

, a representative of the free legal aid system

Natalia Nechay

. According to the common opinion, currently in the communities some elements in the sphere of justice are beginning to be implemented, however, at the local level there is a lack of a common vision, capabilities and coordination to develop people-centered justice. It is these needs in the communities that can be effectively met by the format of the Public Justice Center, which is successfully implemented in the city of Tatarbunary, Odessa region and communities of Chernihiv region. Also at the end of the event, the general plans of the USAID Justice for All Program for the development of human-centered justice in Ukraine and the program to support Community Justice Centers were presented by the program representative

Thomas Verteletsky

.

The interregional discussion was initiated by the Community Justice Center in Tatarbunary (operating on the basis of the Odessa regional organization of the NGO “Committee of Voters of Ukraine”) and the Community Justice Center in Chernihiv (operating on the basis of the Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights).

More about the discussion in the video on the page

The activities of the Public Justice Center in Tatarbunary are implemented by the Odessa Regional Organization of the VGO “Committee of Voters of Ukraine” with financial support from the European Union within the framework of the project “Public Justice Center as a Multifunctional Platform for the Development of Justice in Communities”.

Press Service of the Odessa Regional Organization of the VGO “Committee of Voters of Ukraine”