High Court judge, Justice Angeline Rutazana, has been elected as the regional representative of the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association (CMJA) for a three-year term.The judge’s appointment was announced in Kampala, yesterday, at the closure of a week-long triennial Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association (CMJA) conference that brought together over 60 judges and magistrates. On the council, Rutazana will be the association’s gender representative for the East, Central and Southern Africa region, where she will be in charge of ensuring gender promotion among member states.The council is made up of President, the Executive Vice-President, the treasurer and three representatives from each of the six regions.The other regions include; the Caribbean, West Africa, Indian Ocean, Atlantic and Mediterranean and the Pacific Ocean.“My appointment is in recognition of Rwanda’s distinguished success in gender promotion and this is an opportunity for me to extend this progress to other CMJA member states,” said Rutazana, who is also the president of Rwanda Judges and Registrars Association.In his maiden speech yesterday, the newly elected president of CMJA, John Vertres (Canada) underscored the need to promote the independence of the judiciary, saying it has on many occasions been threatened by government authorities.“Another challenge we face is that our member associations don’t pay their dues on time and this affects the work of the association which includes carrying out training missions in member countries,” Vertres said. It has been the normal practice of the association for the General Assembly of Members to be held during the week of the Triennial Conference.CMJA was founded in 1970 as the Commonwealth Magistrates’ Association and the current name was adopted in 1988.Some of the association’s objectives include; advancing the administration of the law by promoting the independence of the judiciary, advancing education in the law, administration of justice, treatment of offenders and the prevention of crime within the Commonwealth.
