SDG #16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions You and the Global Goals
-
- Government
Dashboard map for 2022 SDG Index Goal #16 ratings. Data source: sdgindex.com
Homicides (per 100,000 population)The 2030 aim is for the homicide rate to be below 0.3 per 100,000 population, excluding deaths in the context of armed conflict.
Summary: Don’t commit homicide.
Unsentenced detainees (% of prison population)This measure considers those in the prison population in remand, awaiting trial on criminal charges about whether the legal system will acquit or convict them. Being in remand, from a legal standpoint, is different from imprisonment. Rather than a punishment from a conviction, it instead is a means to ensure the presence of the person charged at their eventual trial.
Yet in some countries, authorities can take liberties with how long they hold a detainee in detention, contrary to Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states: “no one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.” Unsentenced detainees include those detained or arrested with little evidence. This can also ignore due process, whereby the state must observe the legal rights of a citizen while charging and prosecuting a citizen. Often this entails the issuing of a warrant by a judge or magistrate, giving officers of the law the authority to carry out orders which otherwise may subvert the rights of the person. To be under arrest, with criminal charges placed by a law enforcement agency of a government, is different from a conviction. An arrest or detention may be necessary by the police upon passing a threshold of evidence for prosecutors to pursue its potential, otherwise the legal system exonerates the accused. Depending upon the context and jurisdiction, indefinite detention is contrary to international law, human rights agreements, and even the laws of war.
The 2030 aim for this indicator is for those unsentenced among a prison population to be 7% or less. If your line of work is part of the prison and judicial system in a country scoring red, you could consider seeking a new occupation, if you believe you're participating in a system perpetuating a contradiction of human rights and international law.
A reason for such a large part of prison populations held in remand could very well be due to backlogs in the courts, in which instance quitting one's job would be counterproductive. Is leaving detainees unsentenced intentional, or is there a genuine bottleneck in the flow of prosecutions due to lack of resources? If you sense the latter is closer to the truth, then you could consider retraining. You might parlay your experience from the prison side of the justice system to the judicial side, allowing prosecutions and sentencing to flow at a greater pace.
Each country scoring red in the 2022 Index is a developing country, where the state may be short of the resources to subsidise job retraining, making these suggestions more challenging. If you believe you’re perpetuating the high rate of detainees unsentenced in your country, I encourage you to excuse yourself from your present field of work.
Summary: For readers in
Dashboard map for 2022 SDG Index Goal #16 ratings. Data source: sdgindex.com
Homicides (per 100,000 population)The 2030 aim is for the homicide rate to be below 0.3 per 100,000 population, excluding deaths in the context of armed conflict.
Summary: Don’t commit homicide.
Unsentenced detainees (% of prison population)This measure considers those in the prison population in remand, awaiting trial on criminal charges about whether the legal system will acquit or convict them. Being in remand, from a legal standpoint, is different from imprisonment. Rather than a punishment from a conviction, it instead is a means to ensure the presence of the person charged at their eventual trial.
Yet in some countries, authorities can take liberties with how long they hold a detainee in detention, contrary to Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states: “no one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.” Unsentenced detainees include those detained or arrested with little evidence. This can also ignore due process, whereby the state must observe the legal rights of a citizen while charging and prosecuting a citizen. Often this entails the issuing of a warrant by a judge or magistrate, giving officers of the law the authority to carry out orders which otherwise may subvert the rights of the person. To be under arrest, with criminal charges placed by a law enforcement agency of a government, is different from a conviction. An arrest or detention may be necessary by the police upon passing a threshold of evidence for prosecutors to pursue its potential, otherwise the legal system exonerates the accused. Depending upon the context and jurisdiction, indefinite detention is contrary to international law, human rights agreements, and even the laws of war.
The 2030 aim for this indicator is for those unsentenced among a prison population to be 7% or less. If your line of work is part of the prison and judicial system in a country scoring red, you could consider seeking a new occupation, if you believe you're participating in a system perpetuating a contradiction of human rights and international law.
A reason for such a large part of prison populations held in remand could very well be due to backlogs in the courts, in which instance quitting one's job would be counterproductive. Is leaving detainees unsentenced intentional, or is there a genuine bottleneck in the flow of prosecutions due to lack of resources? If you sense the latter is closer to the truth, then you could consider retraining. You might parlay your experience from the prison side of the justice system to the judicial side, allowing prosecutions and sentencing to flow at a greater pace.
Each country scoring red in the 2022 Index is a developing country, where the state may be short of the resources to subsidise job retraining, making these suggestions more challenging. If you believe you’re perpetuating the high rate of detainees unsentenced in your country, I encourage you to excuse yourself from your present field of work.
Summary: For readers in