SC pushes reforms for digitally accessible judiciary
Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/MARIANNE BERMUDEZ
MANILA, Philippines — Although they are required to maintain a respectable distance from the rest of society and confine themselves to the precincts of the Supreme Court in Ermita, Manila, the country’s top magistrates remain well aware of goings-on and may be turning more tech-savvy, too.
Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo said the pandemic prompted the Supreme Court, like other high courts in the world, to turn to technology to keep the wheels of justice from grinding to a halt.
The high court, for the first time, allowed courts to receive pleadings by electronic mail and conduct hearings through videoconferencing.
Gesmundo later said more technological reforms are underway with the development of an information and communications technology infrastructure for the Philippine judiciary.
Now, the Chief Justice said the high court has also started looking into using social media, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, to disseminate important information, like decisions.
Website redesign
The Chief Justice is also looking to redesign the Supreme Court’s official website (sc.gov.ph) to contain information “that is reliable and accurate and easily understandable by laymen.”
“That’s basically the essence of our innovations in the use of technology as far as providing the general public that kind of information that affects the judiciary,” he said.
Gesmundo is also considering the possibility of producing a podcast.
“Hopefully, we can have a podcast because we’ve noticed that people no longer like to read. They would rather listen wherever they are, if they have internet or whatever access they have. They have the device and, if they are interested in a particular decision that is really important, then they can hear the podcast,” the chief magistrate said.
He is not enthusiastic about the use of Tiktok—a popular social media app to create, watch and share 15-second videos—but nothing is off the table.
Most TikTok contents appear to be satirical in nature, he said, but considering its reach and ability to counter disinformation, “we are consulting experts on effective communication.”
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