Call made for establishment of Community Mediation Associations

Participants who have undertaken the Community Mediation Training offered via Canada’s IMPACT Justice programme, are being called upon to utilise their knowledge, by forming Community Mediation Associations, which could assist persons in conflict situations, in reaching amicable solutions.

Professor Velma Newton, Regional Project Director for IMPACT Justice made the call yesterday, as she spoke during the opening of a series of Community Mediation Training Workshops, being held for local and regional police officers, social workers, educators and other participants interested in the mediation process. The workshops are held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Two Mile Hill, St. Michael, this week.

“We have drafted a Community Mediation Bill, which we are lobbying governments to enact, which would provide a Government sponsored mediation registration centre in each CARICOM country, with responsibility for setting training standards, registering trained mediators and arranging for mediations to be conducted in schools, community centres and elsewhere,” Professor Newton revealed.

“Police mediators would be required to register under the scheme, but we are aware that police mediations undertaken on the job will most likely be done in police stations and are mindful that we will need to do further work with police administrators, in relation to how members of the Force handle and record mediations,” she added.

Acknowledging however that Government action is sometimes slow in coming, she encouraged those gathered to form Mediation Associations, while waiting for the legislation to come.

“We will urge and assist you to form mediation associations, under which you will set criteria for membership and for the conduct of mediations and that eventually, your associations will join a Caribbean wide Mediation Association, which we hope to see [come to fruition]before this project ends,” Newton said. (RSM)