At the invitation of Justice Rangajeeva Wimalasena, President of the Court of Appeal of Nauru, the CMJA President, Mrs Justice Lynne Leitch, and CMJA Director of Programmes, Judge Shamim Qureshi, both played a pivotal role in the formulation of the Nauru Declaration on Judicial Well-being adopted at the Regional Judicial Conference on Integrity and Judicial Well-being. The Conference was organised by the UNODC and Nauru Judiciary and Nauru Department of Justice and Border Control, from 24-26 July 2024
The CMJA President participated online and Judge Qureshi participated in person and spoke at the Conference.
The Nauru Declaration outlines commitments and principles for promoting integrity and wellbeing within the judiciary. It declares that:
- Judicial wellbeing is essential and must be recognised and supported;
- Judicial stress is not a weakness and must not be stigmatised;
- Judicial wellbeing is a responsibility of individual judges and judicial institutions;
- Judicial wellbeing is supported by an ethical and inclusive judicial culture;
- Promoting judicial wellbeing requires a combination of awareness-raising, prevention and management activities;
- Judicial wellbeing initiatives must suit the unique circumstances and requirements of national jurisdictions; and
- Judicial wellbeing is enhanced by human rights.
The drafting committee of 18 members represented a wide spectrum of justices from the Pacific region and Australia, and further afield including England and Wales, Ukraine, Canada, Portugal, the Caribbean, Jamaica, Singapore, and Nigeria.
