The Roles And Challenges Of Professional Family Mediators The Case Of Family Mediators Under Child Justice Project Office Childrens Legal Protection Centers In Three Courts Of Addis Ababa
With four mediators and seven legal professionals the study has made an effort to explore thernintents of the court to include professional family -mediators and the prospects of professionalrnfamily mediation to families and the court. The study has also explored the roles and challengesrnof professional family mediators who were currently working in the child justice projectrnchildren's legal protection centers. For this effort a qualitative method with case study approachrnas a specific method have been employed. Professional family mediators were participants of thernstudy and family bench judges, lawyers and mediation coordinator of the child justice projectrnchildren's legal protection centers has been-key informants ofthe study. In-depth interview, keyrninformant interviews, observation and document reviews were utilized to collect data. Thematicrnanalysis was used to-analysis the data that has been collected from field. The findings include thernfollowing points. Article 36 of the Ethiopian constitution that devotes a full article on child rightrnhas been the source for the court to include family mediators in the court in the area of familyrnissues (civil cases) to safeguard the best interest of the child. Mediation protects thernconfidentiality of parties, promotes a win-win solution and helps them to build a strongerrnrelationship and etc. Mediators have the role of facilitating conversation between disputingrnparties, negotiating, teaching, encouraging and refeFFal. Lack of cooperation from police officers,rnlimited source for. referral , the attitude of families towards-Illediation services, shortrnappointments that are given by judges were some of the challenges that were identified in thernresearch. Trainings to mediators in order to expand the services, more budget to the projectrnoffice in order to help families in a better way have been indicated in the research.rnKey words: child justice project office, family mediators, courts, roles and challenges.