Published on: Friday, August 24, 2007 |
Kuching: The Sarawak Judiciary Department proposed to link-up with the police and prisons departments to hear remand applications by criminal suspects using video and teleconferencing tools.
Chief Justice of Sabah and Sarawak, Tan Sri Richard Malanjum, said this way suspects in police lock-ups may not have to be produced in court as they would appear via link-ups and live digital systems.
"Between 20 to 30 detainees are brought to the courts daily. The link-up will save time and cost as well as reduce security risks. The video and teleconferencing system was implemented in Sarawak since March.
"Now, it is a matter of fixing it up with the police and prison department. We hope to implement by year end," he told reporters at the Courthouse Complex, here, Thursday.
Malanjum said the video and teleconferencing of trial proceedings in Kuching, Sibu and Miri were done daily saving travelling time for lawyers and also expenses by clients.
He said the system was being implemented in the High Court in Sabah, linking courts in Tawau and Sandakan, and later Labuan and was expected to be operational by early December.
Sarawak was the first State to conduct court proceedings via video and teleconferencing.
Earlier, Malanjum accompanied by Bar Council Malaysia President, Ambiga Sreenevasan and several council members followed the "live" court proceedings conducted by High Court Judge Wong Dak Wah via video and teleconferencing with the Sibu and Miri courts.
They also witnessed the Short-Messaging System (SMS) and File Tracking Systems (FTS) for Kuching, Sibu and Miri High Courts, a joint collaboration between the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak, the state government and Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd (SAINS), the Information Communication and Technology (ICT) arm of the State Government.
Sreenevasan said the Bar Council would push for faster implementation of the video and teleconferencing system in Peninsular Malaysia to hasten the disposal of court cases.
"We are happy with what we have seen. This has given us the impetus to push for a similar system in Peninsular Malaysia courts," she said, adding the council was looking to implement SMS to notify and remind advocates with regards to the status of their cases.- Bernama
