Recognising the potential for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) to disrupt operations, the court system has begun implementing precautionary measures including the further remand of prisoners being done via Skype.
“Given the nature and characteristics of COVID-19 and its potential to disrupt or even halt the functions of the court, it is expected that there will be scrupulous adherence to protocols,” the Supreme Court’s Protocol and Communications Unit said in a statement yesterday. In noting that there are confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Guyana as well as the World Health Organization’s classification of the disease as a pandemic, the statement said that given the nature of the challenges linked to the virus, the operations of the courts will be seriously affected.
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Guyana rose to four on Saturday after three persons, all linked to the 52-year-old woman who died from the illness last week, returned positive tests. The court statement yesterday said that on March 12th, Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards, the Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag), convened a meeting of senior court officials to address the response of the court system in safeguarding staff and court customers in relation to COVID-19. A number of measures were agreed.
