Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Session 11 - Importance of independent judiciary

The judiciary is a government branch which is assigned with the the role of administration of justice. As it enjoys absolute autonomy from the executive and the legislature it gets the opportunity to check the concentration of government power. In a democratic country, the independence of the judiciary is very important so that when judges are presiding over cases, there is no interference from any external forces.

This independence matter triggers upon the battle of authority and freedom. The separation of power is imperative because if it does not exist then it would be impossible to try to prevent the government authority from intervening in administration of justice. 

This independence will promise the basic freedom of all citizens at best. Moreover, it is up to the judiciary to carry out in accordance with the law. If there is no separation of power then the principles of the law and rule would be in jeopardy and other government institutions would get the liberty to interfere in justice administration.

In the American judicial system the right to a jury trial is a great example of freedom to the system. In the jury trial a minimum of about 6 Americans (chosen from the registered voters list) determine a person’s innocence or crime through deliberations. They are guaranteed freedom to explain the society’s view on that particular issue. Moreover, they
can declare  a law as the defendant not guilty if they believe that the law is unfair, discriminatory or unconstitutional. With time, the jury’s power has increased maybe due to the reductions of the limitations to become a juror consisting race and sex. The purpose behind the jury trial is to marginalize the government power. However, as the power is very strong it is essential that the judges are unbiased and just so that they do not abuse their power in harming the interests of other people.




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