Members of the House of Peoples' Representatives were given an awareness training on the Criminal Procedure code and Evidence law Amendment Proclamation.

The training was delivered by the Minister of Justice, Gedion Timotheos (PhD) who explained the importance of the draft amendment proclamation.

He clarified why the proclamation needs to be amended. He said the draft was due to the need to modernize, improve the criminal justice system and ensure that the law is up-to-date, which includes international cooperation.

He enlightens that it took more than a decade to draft the law and stakeholders have been mobilized in all regional states to develop the draft.

He said federal and state judges, prosecutors, university scholars and lawyers were involved in drafting the Evidence law and Procedure.

MPs, for their part, raised questions; "Is it fair to take up to four months for a decision to be made after the arrest of a suspect or detainee? How is it possible to improve the criminal justice system without amending the constitution?"

Responding to questions from MPs, the minister said, the police deadline would be extended to four months after citizens were arrested on suspicion of serious crimes.

Asked about the constitution, he said: "The proposed amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code does not violate the current constitution."

Translated by Yared Eshetu