Manila: The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday announced that its flagship Justice Zones program has received positive feedback for effectively addressing local justice concerns.

According to Philippines News Agency, the tribunal revealed that a study highlighted "encouraging outcomes in the areas of relevance, efficiency, quality, performance/effectiveness, and sustainability" for the initiative. This program, a flagship project of the Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC), involves collaboration between the SC, the Department of Justice, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

Justice Zones are designed as 'local pockets of efficiency,' where local justice sector units work in coordination to ensure the delivery of real-time justice. The court stated, "Notably, 85 persons of stakeholders perceived that the Justice Zones meaningfully contributed to the resolution of justice issues in their respective localities."

Currently, 16 Justice Zones have been established across the country, including specialized zones such as the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Justice Zone in Zamboanga, the Tourism Justice Zone in Tagaytay City, the Green Justice Zone in Puerto Princesa City, and the Tri-City Anti-Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children (Anti-OSAEC) Justice Zone in Cagayan de Oro City, Iligan City, and Ozamiz City.

The JSCC plans to launch three additional Anti-OSAEC Justice Zones in Tacloban, Ormoc, and Calbayog in Region 8. The survey evaluating the program was conducted by the Governance in Justice (GOJUST) III Program, supported by the European Union and implemented by the International Development Law Organization and United Nations Office for Project Services.

GOJUST III representatives presented the results of the Review and Assessment of the Impact of the Justice Zone Model to Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo on Oct. 29. The findings revealed that 97 percent of stakeholders rated the Justice Zone model as excellent or good, while 90 percent showed moderate to high familiarity with the program.

Regarding the relevance of the Justice Zones, 83 percent of stakeholders confirmed that the zones helped address pressing local justice concerns. Some respondents noted that the Justice Zones facilitated direct resolution of issues with local law enforcement agencies, leading to faster case disposition.