Nauru's new Chief Justice outlines challenges

Transcript

Nauru's new Chief Justice Joni Madraiwiwi says he has no cause to doubt assurances about the independence of the judiciary in Nauru.

The Fijian lawyer and former Vice-President of Fiji has taken over from Geoffrey Eames, who resigned in March after Nauru's government controversially withdrew his visa, and barred him from returning to the country.

Ratu Joni told Philippa Tolley there are many challenges associated with his new position but they're challenges faced by small island jurisdictions throughout the region.

JONI MADRAIWIWI: The government has given assurances of its support for the judiciary and the independence of the judiciary and I have no cause to doubt that and I take them at their word.

PHILIPPA TOLLEY: Although again your predecessor rather strongly accused the government of interfering in the judiciary which is obviously a very concerning allegation to make.

JM: I think it is, but I think across the Pacific it is the nature of our countries which are in transition that we will have these challenges  and that the rule of law which is well-established in western metropolitan countries really evolved over time and I think some similar process is happening in the Pacific and I think one has to, I think, view it in those terms.

PT: I suppose you'd want some quite strong assurances not just reassurance given recent past.

JM: Well, as I said, I have no cause to doubt them and I think the proof of the pudding is in the eating and that will come when we as a court have to determine important constitutional or controversial legal issues, particularly in a small community and I think we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

PT: How often do you travel (to Nauru), do you sit and work in Nauru?

JM: I think it's envisaged once we've dealt with the backlog of cases that we will be there every six or seven weeks, for a week or two at a time.

PT: From a professional point of view, is it a challenging place to work given the asylum situation where you have people being held on behalf of another country but cases coming through your courts.

JM: I suppose it is but I think it's a challenging situation anyway because Nauru is such a small community - everyone is related to everyone else, so one has to be very conscious of that, so we're part of the community but not of it so we're I think quite careful to make that distinction.

PT: Is it challenging from a legal point of view to deal with these cases, to do with jurisdiction and the like?

JM: Not particularly, because I suppose we'll just be applying the law of Nauru to the situation. I think what's perhaps challenging is perhaps maybe the human rights aspects and also just I think the human issues with which the refugees themselves are faced and the problems they've had to come to actually get to Nauru.