The Gambia’s first blind magistrate tests a system built for the sighted

Banjul, the Gambia – It is still early when Magistrate Muhammed Krubally arrives at the Banjul Magistrates’ Court. Before the first case, his clerk goes over the day’s proceedings, running through the files and making sure everything is in place. Krubally listens, asks questions, and prepares to preside. Then he enters a packed courtroom, where lawyers, witnesses and relatives have gathered for a criminal case. Krubally cannot see the people before him, but he can hear them. A lawyer rises. A witness speaks. Papers move across the room. His clerk is nearby. Krubally uses JAWS, or Job Access With Speech, a screen reader that allows him to navigate his computer and read documents and judgements.