Regional Judicial Integrity Meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean

From 6 to 8 August 2024, the Regional Judicial Integrity Meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean took place in Brasilia, Brazil, bringing together judiciaries of the region to explore strategies to strengthen judicial integrity across the region and share good practices and experiences.

The event was organized by UNODC under the umbrella of the Global Judicial Integrity Network, the National High Court of Brazil (STJ) and the Superior Labour Court of Brazil (TST). The meeting also supported the implementation of roadmaps adopted by three Regional Anti-Corruption Platforms for South America and Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, which identify strengthening judicial integrity as one of the priority areas for the region. 

Should 11 January be designated as International Day of Judicial Independence?

On 27 March 2023, the International Association of Judges (IAJ) has proposed that the United Nations proclaim 11 January as "International Day of Judicial Independence - 1000 Robes March" to mark the brave and peaceful call of judges for an independent judiciary which all citizens of the world are entitled to. Through that initiative the IAJ underlined that, since 2015, the rule of law in Poland, like in recent years in many parts of the world, has been progressively undermined by other State powers. Successive governments have, under the guise of "reforms", introduced a number of amendments concerning the Polish judicial system in order to exert control over it in a way that facilitate the implementation of its policy agenda.