How to deal "legally" with mentally ill persons who break the law? The situation is not uncommon to Belize and recently we have seen major crimes perpetrated by mental health patients. The Death Penalty Project, a London-based NGO, is here in Belize to host a three day workshop in an attempt to at the very least, create a baseline protocol for dealing with the mentally ill within existing laws.
We spoke to the event organizer this morning and he told us about the importance of hosting such an event in Belize.
Parvais Jabbar, Co Exec. Dir., The death Penalty Proj.
"We've been working in Belize now for over 20 years on individual cases representing prisoners who had been sentenced to death. Over that period of time, we got to know the country very well, we have very good relationships with lawyers and other organizations here and one area that we wanted to explore was the criminal justice system. A couple years ago, together with other stakeholders in Belize, we launched a report 'Behind the Prison Gates' which looked at issues that were important not only in relation to death row prisoners, but other vulnerable prisoners such as juveniles, mentally disordered, and so on. As a result of this report and some of the findings and recommendations that were agreed and considered by a number of important stakeholders in Belize, together with the Chief Justice and with the Belize Bar Association, we agreed to hold a number of training workshops and seminars looking at mental health and the law."
Reporter
"Why is it important to look at that particular aspect of legal processes, especially considering people with mental health issues?"
Parvais Jabbar, Co Exec. Dir., The death Penalty Proj.
"It's one of the most important areas that is being looked at all over the world. There is serious concern about how mental health is dealt with within the criminal justice system and how it is applied and used in individual cases. So as a result of that, what we have found, not only in Belize but in the many jurisdictions, is that people suffering from mental disorder whether it be some mental illness or some intellectual disability. These individuals need to be treated and considered in specific ways when looking at the administration of justice."
Today's session was a closed workshop for Belizean judges. The seminar is being organized by the Death Penalty Project in collaboration with the Bar Association and the office of the Chief Justice.
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