SVU receives donation to strengthen its work

By Staff writer
Two donated laptops will help the Special Victims Unit (SVU) of the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda manage information and support cases involving vulnerable victims.
The donation of two laptops by Andrew Hadeed of the Hadeed Group of Companies was facilitated by the Criminal Justice Reform Committee headed by Justice Ann-Marie Smith of the Criminal Division of the High Court of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court.
The initiative is part of efforts to strengthen the agencies that administer justice and it also shows the value of the public and private sectors working together to support criminal justice reform.
The SVU responds to cases involving victims who need specialised attention and support; and therefore those involved in the donation said making sure it has suitable resources is part of a wider effort to improve the criminal justice process and the experience of people who come into contact with it.
The Reform Committee said it appreciates the generosity of Hadeed and the Hadeed Group of Companies and added that the donation shows how good corporate citizenship can strengthen public institutions and the administration of justice.
The Committee’s work is informed by the Needham’s Point Declaration on Criminal Justice Reform. Regional leaders adopted it in October 2023 at the Caribbean Court of Justice Academy for Law’s Seventh Biennial Law Conference in Barbados.
The Declaration recommends modernising criminal justice systems across the Caribbean. It also calls for stronger justice institutions, fewer delays in delivering justice, better treatment and support for victims and survivors, and enough resources to run the system well.
The reform efforts rest on the idea that an effective justice system needs more than new laws. It also needs properly equipped institutions, cooperation among justice-sector groups and practical steps to improve services to the public.
The Committee is working on several other initiatives at this time.
Alcia Browne-Weston accepted the computers on behalf of the SVU.