Local magistrate Tiyani Behanzin has appealed for change in the manner in which young delinquents are dealt with legally and said the current way of dealing with such juveniles is “a real sham”.
“I think we should be ashamed of ourselves … I think it’s wrong, the way juveniles who are in fact in difficulty with the courts, the way they are treated and processed, all that needs to change,” Behanzin told a Kairi FM radio program Wednesday.
He said the sentencing and punishment meted out to juveniles need to be more “education and skills-focused”.
There have been recommendations for a special court to deal with delinquent youth in Dominica.
Behanzin is of the view that more focus must be given to all juveniles whether they are in trouble with the law or not, through a proper youth development program.
“I don’t think there’s much focus on juveniles per say; most of the talk of juveniles is really the ones that are doing bad or instances where there are difficulties” and Behanzin is convinced a greater contribution can be made to help young Dominicans.
many of you are so ignorant what crimes have these youths commited,the law is there,hes recommending some changes,thats another project the 27 million the idiots we have ruling the country could use it for.
man speaks truth!!!
Mr. Behanzin has made some valid points in regards to the juvenilles of this country. There needs to be some programmes in place in order to assist these youths who may be in trouble with the law. They are the future of this country and they must not be left by the waside.
Behanzin is to hypocrite. When the young men come infront of you fourteen, fifteen , and sixteen years old, why are you not considering the unfairness of the sysytem and give them community service and alike. there are young men in the prison sysytem right now that you have condemned to 18 months and 2 years in prison for really petty crimes. Why didn’t you make a change in their lives Behanzin? Please practice what you preach…..you can fool some people sometimes but you can’t fool all the people all of the time.
Behanzin is the only magistrate who has gone to the prison and conducted intervention sessions with juveniles! He spends more time outside of the court on juvenile matters, you just don’t see other magistrates doing any of that kind of work. I can point to his ongoing work in the carib teritory, Vielle case, Portsmouth, wesley, marigot.
The most serious sentence meeted out to a juvenile def by Behanzin was 4 months, for a persistent offender who attacked a teacher. behanzin ran a very successful programme for in portsmouth, at my school where i teach and all of the juveniles in his programme finished top of the class. this programme was carried out in support of the then principal, laidlow who was replaced because people thought that she was too strict. All the teachers conspiried to replace her, then the very effective project that Behanzin started was stopped as the new replacement Head teacher( the Palrep’s brother) took over. We have engaged mr behanzin while he was on leave and has conducted 4 seminars with juveniles, the last one just four days ago,
he continues to conduct family mediation while on leave at his own cost from all over District G! all you deliberately try to distort this humble man’s work- shame on all of us!!!
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when de new party that y’all are making y’all will fix this problem! wah ’bout dat nuh…
how many young people has HE sent to the prison or condemned to this same justice he is now lamblasting? hope he doesn’t get a contract renewal ever..
This is the point. There is no other option, prison is the only place there is to send them.The Government need to use some of the 27 million to build a rehab center to facilitate what he is suggesting. What is wrong with you people.
to me there is a program at the Social Centre? what they call it again? DNO find out for us!!!!
you put politics in the renewal of behanzin’s contract and the country will pay for it! the politicians will hide behind the gates of the illegal mansion that they have built!!!
When will you all speak the truth and stop destroying and victimising thios hard working humble man because he did not bow to pressure of those who attacked him on the radio!!!!!
really and truly – why does EVERYTHING have to be political? The man is pointing out what he perceives to be flaws in the criminal justice system vis-a-vis the youth, who just happen to be THE FUTURE OF OUR COUNTRY….one would THINK this is something to take a look at with an open mind, whether or not you disagree with him or not….but NO! some people cannot get over themselves and must politicize it – that is degenerative behavior…by no means am I singling persons of any specific political party – this is disease that afflicts all sides of the political spectrum
I probably will never be able to understand why it seems so difficult to discuss substantive issues with individuals who hold an opposing view to mine. I actually find it actually refreshing to do so – that’s how I learn new things, that’s how I understand people, that is how I progress in life. The propensity of some to be totally dismissive of the other simply because they hold a different view is something that surely holds this country back, for an inordinate amount of those individuals are in positions of power, in a position to make a difference, but because of their myopia, or as we euphemistically call it “an inability to see past their noses”, we all regress.
“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” — George Bernard Shaw
Great !!
thank you Mr. Behanzin, some people will hate you when you stand for truth, however remember that many of us love you.thank you for being you
The government should know that we in the 21st century and juveniles cannot be tried in the same courts and face same punishments as adults. If it continues then they will graduate, or should I say continue to do adult crimes. We need to teach them how to do better, especially those from troubled backgrounds. And we need a juvenile court to specialise in juvenile matters. Judges from senior courts cannot impose punishment on juveniles because they specialise in adult matters. Obviously their punishments may be tougher or they may inadvertedly treat juveniles as adults. Personally I have my ignorant moments when I say if you grown enough to do it take the prison time but in real life they need guidance
its amazing how we dominicans criticize people when they are speaking the truth. this man seems to have dominica’s best interest at heart yet we condemn him. if we keep this attitude up then soon this country will be a land of chaos. people open your eyes and ears to whats going on around us and take heed. our justice system is weak and yet we seem to be quite comfortable with that. if we dont change alot of things now in the next ten years this will be a lawless land. so please dont condemn those who wants better for this country.
Good work Mr Behanzin if you realize every one who is against you have problem, Gwo pwell ;woman problem, man problem, all kind of problem all of them have some kind of syndrome that cannot cure. they want Dominica to be a lawless state as directed by….the criminals
There is a whole lot of truth in this statement and one that needs articulating at the highest level. Youth illiteracy, delinquency and unemployment is today a very serious challenge for Dominica and we must all come together to address this. While on holiday in Dominica during the summer 2010 I did a workshop for inmates; young men incarcerated at the Dominica State Prison. There were about thirty young men in attendance. They were between the ages of 13 to 25. I was horrified to find out that there were individuals as young as 13 years of age incarcerated at the Dominica State Prison with no rehabilitation structure as a part of their sentence. However, it was reassuring to find out that prison officers were doing what they could to alleviate this situation, which is how I ended up doing the workshop. The Youth Enhancement Project for Development of Juveniles and Young Offenders is a programme being run at the Dominica State Prison for inmates under the age of 25. This is not a government initiative nor is it government sponsored. The programme was initiated by Mr Desmond Casimir, Principal Prison Officer. The programme, as Mr Casimir puts it, is simply about Prison Officers and all professional segments of society, from musicians to judges, “offering life skills to young inmates.” To succeed where prisons have failed this project requires the input of every Dominican. Whatever you can give of yourself, your resources or general support – please contact Mr Desmond Casimir, Principal Prison Officer, Dominica State Prison, Stockfarm, Roseau, Dominica – Telephone 767 449 2967. The best support however, would be as stated by Your Worship Tiyani Behanzin, that juvenile sentencing be more “education and skills-focused” – have an element of rehabilitation and not just about punishment. Unless you get this structure in place you are simply preparing youngsters to become more hardened and seasoned criminals! http://www.thedominican.net/2010/08/exponential-justice-in-dominica.html#
For someone to say”the problem man is back”,has a real problem,and i find him to be the problem man,not Tiyani.@ the person who thinks Tiyani wants a job,is really ignorant.But you know what.. he is so much more outstanding than you that i could care less what you think.Do you have children?do you intend on having children?Good luk,i just hope you suffer from what Tiyani is talking about,so you can go bak to your vomit.
The problem with a lot of people around here, is that once you open your mouth one time and oppose thier idol skerrit, you forever in bad books no matter what you talk about. What is wrong with the concerns of Behanzin? The man has the right to be concerned and to express his concerns. As it is he has no choice now but to send the young people stocky….. What are his options? send them to PMH? or the Juvenile Delinquent Home that the government has built on the outskirts of nowhere? Come on people, all of you lay claim to intelligence it would be pleasantly suprising if it was reflected in your contributions/opinions placed on DNO from time to time! Sometimes its actually ok, or even better, to read an article and not comment if you figure that you really cannot be objective or at least make a valuable contribution, than to reply with a hunk of junk.
man of integrety
In the absence of proper juvenile facilities, it is only understandable that in rather very serious instances, a delinquent will find his or her self being sent the the only correctional facility that exists on the island.
Well said, there is a need to engage these young people in empowerment activities even when they are in detention. Mr. B has done much in motivating the young people via village meetings and visits to the state prison.
Things cannot continue as they are, our young people must be saved, they will be our future! I call on the powers that be to intervene and help save our young people. Parents do your duty, they are your children, not your friends! Teachers let us do our duty, we are called to teach and to care! Let us prepare our children for life!!
I agree with you bro Tiyani. The prison system is doing nothing, they need counselling and intervention programmes.
Don’t worry with the negative comments on DNO…not their fault, forgive them for they know not what they say
THE PROBLEM MAN IS BACK . go back to ” Holly Street”
@ R B D …..why are you so stupid? you just don’t get it! hit the shower and brush your teeth leave Mr Behanzin alone. people like you that have the country like it is cursed.
The man is making some valid points here. Think about it or read again
Classic case of looking at the messenger and not the message. You guys never cease to amaze me.
yes cause this was former jack
Well Tiyani, you really desperate for your job. Every minute you in the media. ALAS
its people like you who will continue to uphold wrong in Dominica until the day the effects of it reach on your door step. It is as this time that you may make even MORE NOISE than Tyani and all the others who speaking out.
No comments on this one huh? We hate order
truth said
you’re chatting nonesense…. how many juveniles have you sent up to Stocky? you’re too damn twete!
Where ignorance is bliss ’tis folly to be wise. Some Dominicans continue to wear their ignorance as a badge of honour. There are too many ignorant people in our society. Because the party you support and members of the fraternity pressuring Tiyani, you all fail to understand the good points the man is making. That is a position from the top. Before somebody expresses an opinion there are vultures ready to tear his skin. Take time to comprehend the message my friend. Because Tiyani refuses to be a YES-man, his contract will not be renewed. Tiyani is a Dominican just like the rest of us. While some demonise people like Tiyani, and find it hard to allow him to work in his homeland, sharing his skills and experiences, they blindly give support to all kinds of corrupt leaders and politicians as well as foreigners even though they rape the country. Is so Dominica come. Thanks to those now in Power. Many of my fellow men and women are ENSLAVED AGAIN.
i don’t think that could have been said any better. very good points. cheers
These are some very important points and there are many models in the world that are successful with doing just that. Good advice