The CCJ: an example to Latin America | Sir Ronald Sanders

BY: SIR RONALD SANDERS Two events at the Organisation of American States (OAS) in recent months have underscored the soundness of the system by which the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) is financed.  It is a tribute to Caribbean creativity and innovation that the CCJ is one of the few Courts in the world that does not depend on government contributions to function. The example that the CCJ represents should be replicated elsewhere, and the people of the 14-nation Caribbean Community countries should take pride in the inventiveness of Caribbean minds in structuring the funding of the Court. The two events at the OAS that highlighted the reliability of the mechanism for funding the CCJ are related to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights. Both organisations declared that they are strapped for cash and desperately need contributions from the 34-member states of the OAS to continue their functions.  The two bodies are important. They are dedicated to the protection of human rights within the Inter-American system. Eminent Caribbean jurists have served on the Commission where they have advanced causes to combat scourges such as racism and discrimination. But, the Commission - set up by the OAS in 1959 — released a statement earlier this week in which it said things are so bad that mass layoffs and cancelled visits are imminent and inevitable, unless member countries provide emergency donations. Remarkably, it was donors from European countries, not Latin American and Caribbean nations, that have been keeping the Commission alive through donations. The President of the Commission, James Cavallaro, said the crisis was sparked by these European donors cutting back because of the influx of refugees from Syria and elsewhere. According to Mr Cavallaro, the withdrawal of European money has exposed the reluctance of Latin American and Caribbean governments to come up with the cash that the commission needs. In a caustic but frank comment, he said, “Some countries feel uncomfortable when the Commission highlights the challenges the region faces in human rights. They strangle us financially, perhaps in order to stop us fulfilling our mandate.” At a meeting of the Permanent Council of the OAS on 25 May only Panama, Costa Rica and Antigua and Barbuda offered to make immediate donations to the Commission. In the case of Antigua and Barbuda, I explained that Antigua and Barbuda greatly values the work of the Commission. I recalled the contribution made by my colleague, Sir Clare Roberts, when he served as a Commissioner, in ensuring that the rights of black people were specifically accepted as part of the Commission’s mandate as well as the obligation to tackle racism. I made the point that the reason that the Antigua and Barbuda government could not be more generous to the Commission is that, as a small state, we are marginalised by bigger and more powerful nations that deny us access to concessional financing for development; unfairly attack our financial services sector; treat us in world trade on the same terms as large countries such as the US, Canada, India and South Africa; and refuse to provide us adequate and affordable financing to combat the effects of Climate Change of which we are an innocent victim. Despite our own struggling circumstances, we made a voluntary contribution to the Commission as an example to other larger and richer countries of the importance of upholding and protecting human rights.  But, some Latin American governments dislike both the Commission and the Court, accusing them of being “political”. Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, for instance, has dismissed criticism of his government’s legal pursuit of opposition leaders and general human rights record. Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa has also accused the body of “exceeding its authority” in its criticism of harassment of critical journalists who have criticised his regime. In the last two decades, the Commission has made ongoing efforts with the OAS Member States to secure a budget that would enable it to work effectively to fulfil its mandate. As a result of these efforts, the OAS General Assembly has approved a number of resolutions expressing a commitment to address the situation; however, these have not been reflected in a significant increase in resources. This situation is not surprising given the financial state of the OAS itself. Two of its largest member states are severely in arrears in their contributions to the Organisation and they vigorously resist any attempt to impose sanctions for non-payment. Indeed, the OAS is operating on a fictional budget that cannot realistically meet its costs of operation. In political organisations a financial crisis, while not sustainable, is bearable for a time. Not so with Courts and Commissions that are charged with upholding human rights and protecting minorities and the vulnerable. Thousands of victims of human rights violations throughout Latin America and the Caribbean would be left unprotected. That is why the CCJ model should be adopted by the OAS in relation to both the Court and the Commission. The CCJ is funded through an independent Trust Fund which was established with US $100 million from initial contributions of the member states through loans from the Caribbean Development Bank. Since its establishment in 2001, the Court’s expenditures have been met by the Fund, allowing it to function without having to go cap in hand to governments, and maintaining its flow of work in delivering justice. It is clear that some member governments of the OAS do not want an independent and functioning Court and Commission. It is up to others who believe in human rights and the rule of law to keep them from withering. The member states of the OAS that believe in democracy could do no better than to advance the adoption of the CCJ model for the Inter-American Court and the Inter-American Commission. In this, CARICOM has led the way – at least on sustainable funding. Source: http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/columns/caribbean-court-example-latin-america  (Sir Ronald Sanders is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the Organisation of American States. The views expressed are his own. Responses and previous commentaries:www.sirronaldsanders.com)

Antigua-Barbuda prepares to join Guyana, others at Caribbean Court of Justice

Source: Demarar Waves

Antigua and Barbuda appears poised to join Guyana and several other Caribbean Community (Caricom) member-states in having the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as the final court of appeal.

A three-month public education campaign was launched on Thursday in that twin-island nation as the government prepares to hold a referendum to determine whether to replace the London-based Privy Council as its apex court with the Trinidad-based CCJ.

The campaign, which has bi-partisan support, will span three months on a budget which government said will exceed 2 million Eastern Caribbean dollars.

While no date has been set, the government hopes to hold the referendum in June.Already using the CCJ as their final court of appeal are Guyana, Barbados, Belize and Dominica.

Demonstrating a united front, Prime Minister Gaston Browne and Leader of the Opposition United Progressive Party (UPP) Baldwin Spencer who were both at the head table at the launch, urged the electorate to choose the CCJ, contending it will provide easier access to justice.

Spencer noted that “true freedom” will only come when the country and region move from a position “where colonialism and imperialism controlled our decision making processes to a position where we are not only a free people, but we have to make sure we form a society in which our decision making processes are ours.”

Supporting Spencer, PM Browne made “a clarion call for all registered voters in Antigua and Barbuda to support this important institution of regional Governance and sovereignty.”

He said the current final appellate court “is clearly an outmoded colonial construct that was designed exclusively for the wealthy few and has failed to provide broad-based accessibility and dispensation of justice to the masses.”

Elaborating on Spencer’s point on access to justice, PM Browne said justice is not only delayed because of the remoteness of the Privy Council but, in many instances was denied because of inaccessibility associated with the prohibitively high costs.

“Even today, justice is being denied to the majority of our people who find it cost-prohibitive to take their case to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council,” he said.

“Having the CCJ as an all-inclusive final appellate court, will cure this egregious injustice of exclusivity that has plagued us since 1834,” Browne said, while adding that the fact that the CCJ is an itinerant court (travelling court) will help offset costs for litigants.

Former attorney general Justin Simon QC noted that between 2007 and 2014 about a dozen cases from Antigua and Barbuda were taken before the Privy Council, while over 30 cases were taken before the CCJ which was inaugurated in 2005 and which also serves as an international tribunal interpreting the Revised treaty of Chaguaramas.

Simon said the statistics suggest there is a serious problem of a lack of access to justice as he pointed to two cases where litigants spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to cover legal expenses before the Privy Council.

In a video message, Caricom Secretary General Irwin LaRocque also expressed support from the proposed move, stressing it will “complete the country’s circle of independence.”

He said the court was set up with the highest levels of international standards and steps were taken, and remain in place to ensure there’s no political interference in the management and operations of the court.

According to him, the CCJ is also staffed with some of the “highest intellectual minds” and “there’s no other court in the world as independent” as the CCJ since it is funded under a unique trust fund arrangement and does not have to rely on governments for money.

Another point noted was that the judges are not appointed by the heads of government.

CCJ President Sir Dennis Byron, who applauded the main opposition UPP and the ruling administration for dealing with this issue with “political maturity”, said there’s no evidence justifying public concern of political interference, while he highlighted that the “high quality” judgments of the court are readily available for public perusal.

Explaining the system used to ensure the financial independence of the institution, he said, “The financial arrangements of the court included the establishment of a trust fund where member states invested US$100 million with the expectation that the interest of that investment would fund the court in perpetuity.”

Meanwhile, head of the education campaign mission, Ambassador Dr Clarence Henry said in order for the national referendum to be executed, elections rules must be drafted and that is currently being done by Dr Francis Alexis, a constitutional lawyer based in Grenada.

“He has been provided with all necessary legislation from which draft rules for the referendum will be drawn, in consultation with the Antigua and Barbuda Electoral Commission and there’s also a parliamentary process to be followed,” he reported.

On Friday morning, there will be another session which will be led by youths. Henry said the aim is to ensure the public is sensitised adequately to participate in the referendum which requires a two-thirds favourable majority to allow for the move from the Privy Council to the CCJ.

Source: http://demerarawaves.com/2016/03/11/antigua-barbuda-prepares-to-join-guyana-others-at-caribbean-court-of-justice/

ABEC begins preparations for referendum on CCJ

The Antigua & Barbuda Electoral Commission (ABEC) said it is making preparations to facilitate the vote which will determine whether or not the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) replaces the Privy Council as the nation’s final court of appeal.

To replace the Privy Council with the CCJ, however, would require a constitutional change, which would have to be approved by voters in a referendum.

Said referendum is expected to be conducted later this year.

Chairman of ABEC, Nathaniel Paddy James said a constitutional expert from Grenada is currently drafting the rules for the referendum which will be conducted similarly to a general election.

There is a provision in the Referendum Act which allows for the making of rules by the minister, which is the prime minister,” James said. “They are being drafted and will be looked at and will eventually go to Parliament for ratification.”

James said this is expected to be done in “short order”.

In the meantime, the National Coordinating Committee (NCC) will spearhead a public education campaign aimed at sensitising residents about the Trinidad-based CCJ.

Source:http://antiguaobserver.com/abec-begins-preparations-for-referendum-on-ccj/

Published February 15, 2016

Public education programme on CCJ to start in March

ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) – The Consultative Committee spearheading preparations for a nation-wide public education and sensitization programme ahead of the referendum on whether Antigua and Barbuda should join the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) says the programme will be launched on March 10.

Head of the Committee, Ambassador Dr Clarence Henry, says “work is in full gear” to ensure that the public education programme meets with the objective of informing citizens on the move by the government to move away from the London-based Privy Council, which serves as the island’s highest court.

Henry said that invitations had been sent to Caribbean Community (CARICOM chairman and Belize Prime Minister Dean Barrow, as well as the prime ministers of St Kitts and Nevis, and Grenada; the President of Guyana and Premier of Montserrat to attend and participate in the formal launch ceremony at which Prime Minister Gaston Browne will deliver the feature address.

He said the Committee has also invited prominent Barbadian jurists Sir David Simmons, Sir Henry Forde and Richard Chetanham to participate in the public education campaign.

“Plans also include visits to Barbuda for consultations with key groups including the Barbuda Council, the Barbuda representative, Arthur Nibbs, the leadership of the Barbuda People’s Movement, as well as church leaders. There will also be a Youth Forum specifically for the youth of Barbuda as well.”

Last Thursday, Governor General, Sir Rodney Williams, delivering the tradition Throne Speech at the start of a new parliament term, said that the government is committed to making the CCJ its highest Court.

He said the issue should be a bipartisan affair, but warned that any attempt to politicize the process could derail plans to move ahead with the campaign.

Henry who is also Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to CARICOM, said  the Committee has “been busily putting together a draft public education campaign strategy that will seek to educate and inform the general public surrounding the CCJ and the Privy Council.

“I wholeheartedly welcome this latest indication of the pending referendum. The government has stated its position and I can advise that we are in the advance stages of our planning for what will be an extensive all-embracing comprehensive public education exercise.

“We will be education, informing, listening and sharing with all in the society; the electorates will be specially targeted; the private and public sectors, civil society, the Opposition, trade unions, and the Bar Association will be among the focus groups down for engagements which hopefully should run in earnest for approximately four months”, he said.

Henry said the inaugural meeting of the Consultative Committee will take place shortly to discuss the draft campaign strategy as well as the other plans ahead of the referendum.

“Already discussions have been held with the Chairman and other members of the Electoral Commission, several groups and potential partners who will be playing a key role in the public education process and management of the referendum.

‘Our draft plan includes focus group discussions; town hall meetings; the establishment of a  website in association with technicians within the Ministry of Telecommunications; engage all forms of media in a massive campaign as well as the publication of a magazine and flyers for distribution,”  Henry said.

He said the official launch, which is expected to be an all-day affair, will also include a public sector Forum.

The CCJ was established in 2001 and while many of the Caribbean countries are signatories of the Original Jurisdiction of the Court, only Barbados, Dominica, Belize and Guyana are signatories to its Appellate Jurisdiction.

The CCJ also serves as an international tribunal interpreting the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas that governs the 15-member grouping.

Published in the Jamaica Observer, Tuesday, January 19, 2016
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/pfversion/Public-education-programme-on-CCJ-to-start-in-March#ixzz3xp9fDEHU

Commentary: More countries showing interest in joining CCJ
Source: Caribbean Net News

By Oscar Ramjeet
Published on Wednesday, December 9, 2009

It is more than four and a half years since the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) was inaugurated and, so far, no other jurisdiction has joined Guyana and Barbados in accepting the CCJ as the final appellate court.

I read with great interest a statement made by St Lucia Oppositon leader, Kenny Anthony, calling for a region wide simultantous move to join the regional court.

He added that he does not believe that any government should go into amending their particular constitution to facilitate accesssion without securing the agreement of the opposition.

I wonder why when politicians are in the opposition they call on government to take action and when they are in power, they do not comply. Anthony was prime minister when the Court was inaugurated in April 2005. In fact he was present at the lavish ceremony in Port of Spain, and he was in government for 20 long months and he failed to set in motion for his country to remove the Privy Council as the final Court and replace it with the CCJ.

Now he is out of government, he wants co-operation between the government and opposition to join the regional court. This a good move on his part, but he should have done so when he was in government.

There are several factors why some countries are/were reluctant to join the regional court. Jamaica for instance, which was in the forefront in the establishment of the Court, lost interest. Former Attorney General Dr Oswald Harding, who is the current President of the Court of Appeal. who was the main advocate for the court in the late 1980s and early 1990s, said that, although Jamaica is contributing 27% towards the operation of the court, no Jamaican has been appointed as judge, although seven senior well qualified lawyers had applied for the position, and they were all by passed for persons who were less qualified.

He added also the former Prime Minister P.J. Patterson tried to railroad Jamaica's entry and failed to carry out the correct legal procedure to remove the Privy Council as the final Court, which was later struck down by the London-based final court.

The rejection by the electorate in St Vincent and the Grenadines of the November 25 referendum should not be used as a yardstick in the region to measure the thinking of the people whether or not to accept the CCJ as the final Court. I think there were other factors why that referendum failed.

Antigua and Barbuda Attorney General, Justin Simon, made the point that the results of the St Vincent rederendum should not deter other jurisdictions from seeking constitutional changes to accommodate the regional Court.

Belize will soon join the regional court. Jamaica has reconsidered its position and will soon put the mechanism in place to do so and a few OECS states including Grenada, Antigua, and St Lucia are also willing.

Trinidad and Tobago, which spearded the establishment of the Court along with Jamaica, will take some time before it comes on board. The reason being that it must first secure the approval of the Opposition, and Basdeo Panday's UNC is not interested... at least not for now.

Lets hope by the end of next year at least three other jurisdictions will be on board.

Caricom and Party Politics

Caricom and party politics '08
Rickey Singh
Wednesday, December 31st 2008
Source: Trinidad Express

ALTHOUGH they all remain officially committed to the creation of a Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME), it became evident during 2008 that there are regional governments that are not singing from the same hymn sheet.

If the long overdue inauguration of the Caricom Development Fund was one of the few encouraging developments, the reality is that the list of unfinished business to move from a single market to a single economy remains quite significant.

The promise made at last July's Heads of Government Conference in Antigua for a special stakeholders consultation on the CSME was not kept and in the face of growing concerns about the likely negative consequences for our region from the international financial crisis, Caricom leaders have not considered it necessary for a special summit.

They seem to be quietly disposed to waiting until their inter-sessional meeting in Belize in March, if not February, to deal with this issue, along with a range of other matters, CSME-readiness among them.

At the sub-regional level, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) may have underscored its own uneasiness, or disappointment, with the pace of progress for the CSME's inauguration in 2015 by the decision of its 48th summit in Montserrat to press ahead towards its Economic Union in 2009.

Trinidad and Tobago has been committed by Prime Minister Patrick Manning - without any consultation with the parliamentary Opposition or private sector and labour movement - to be part of this economic union, with some adjustments.

Its citizens have time to be better informed on how and why this union must take place ahead of an even more challenging process - a regional political union embracing T&T and the OECS without, hopefully provoking fractures with the rest of Caricom which is currently engaged in initiatives to widen and deepen integration and development with our Latin American neighbours.

The report from a group of experts, established under the chairmanship of Dr Vaughn Lewis, to examine and make recommendations for the OECS/T&T economic union with an eye also on political integration, should be useful for public information. But the OECS countries have already targeted 2009 for the realisation of their proposed economic union.

The initiatives for economic and political integration by the OECS and T&T are encouraging but there are problems ahead for lack of appropriate national consultations with national stakeholders.

It is also quite ironic that while enthusiasm is being whipped up for economic union, the OECS, as well as T&T, are yet to unveil any clear action plan to access the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as their final appellate institution and put an end to the old colonial link with the Privy Council in London.

The OECS countries will also be aware of the reservations held by the Bruce Golding administration in Jamaica about the CCJ, as any firm commitment to a new and empowered administrative structure for the Caricom Secretariat that may conflict with its own notions of sovereignty.

The Antigua and Barbuda government of Baldwin Spencer is heading towards new general election while the St Lucia Labour Party of Kenny Anthony is becoming increasingly militant in pressurising the lacklustre administration of Stephenson King, clearly with an early national poll in mind.

Across in Guyana, party politics took a bad turn for the main opposition People's National Congress Reform (PNCR), with the explosion of internal differences that by year end had deteriorated into open calls for the resignation of its leader Robert Corbin.

Corbin was quite dismissive of such calls and has vowed to remain at the helm as he continues to keep hope alive for a return of his party to the power lost in 1992 after some 28 years in power.
That is an optimism not widely shared, even by those outside of the PNCR's fold with their own disenchantment and disagreements with the governing People's Progressive Party (PPP) that has its own internal leadership tensions.

In T&T, for all the reported unpopularity of Prime Minister Manning repeated failures by the Opposition parties to effect a unity platform feed cynicism about threats to continued governance by the PNM.

This is going to be quite a high profile year for Manning in the full glare of media publicity as he hosts, first the Commonwealth Summit in April and then in November the Summit of the Americas with the new US President Barack Obama and new Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as superstar participants. More on this later.

AG of Antigua Endorses CCJ

Simon endorses CCJ as final court of appeal
Monday June 09 2008
by Patricia Campbell

Source: Antigua Sun

Attorney-General Justin Simon has again made a case for the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) to replace the British Privy council as the court of final appeal, saying that sufficient safeguards have been put in place to protect against political interference.

He said that the main concerns have been addressed in the agreement which established the CCJ, and argued that the region is also developing politically and evolving away from the restrictive thinking that would stimulate such interference.

Simon however acknowledging that continued apprehension that the CCJ could find itself subject to political pressure and influence are not unfounded.


“The concern is legitimate, understandable and, in a lot of quarters, genuine,” he said, responding to query on the matter.

“Let us take our own experience here in Antigua and Barbuda. A number of pieces of legislation which were passed here in Antigua and Barbuda were overturned by the Privy Council.

"It took the system to go right up to the top for the laws to be struck down as unconstitutional.

“Our history shows that our High Court, which was the first court which dealt with those various matters, ruled (them) unconstitutional, but the Court of Appeal overturned and it took the Privy Council to reverse the decision of the Court of Appeal and reinstate the decision of our High Court.”

He cited the Tim Hector case which challenged legislation that the truth was not a defence to libel and a number of other cases where the value of the Privy Council was proved. Nevertheless, said Simon, “There are a number of areas which have been addressed in respect of the CCJ which would, to my mind, have removed that sort of political overshadowing in respect of that court.”

He pointed out that a trust fund has been established at the Caribbean Development Bank for financing the operation of the CCJ, so that its expenses are not part of the budgetary estimates of governments.

This means that governments cannot withhold or withdraw funds as a means of manipulating the decisions of the court.

Ain addition to this, the attorney general pointed out that judges are appointed by a regional legal and judicial commission, with representatives from various civil institutions.

“Only the appointment of the president must meet the approval of the heads of governments and only a majority of the heads (is needed). With us here in the OECS Court, the chief justice has to meet with the approval of all of the OECS prime ministers.

"For that very reason, Justice Byron remained acting as chief justice for a good five years before he was appointed.

"Justice Alleyne, who has just left the court, was appointed acting chief justice and remained acting for two years because we could not get the unanimous approval,” he said.

Simon was making a case for judicial independence during last week’s Conference for Academic Research and Development, organised by the Antigua State College.

Possible Case for the CCJ

Flour issue needs settled thoughts
Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Source: Antigua Sun

Trade disputes are a real and expected eventuality of most regions in the world, especially where economies thrive.

We say this against the background of the obvious disagreements within the sub-region over the steep spike in flour as imposed by the Eastern Caribbean Group of Companies (ECGC), putting a heavy strain on those companies in Antigua and Barbuda that depend on the product and an even greater strain on consumers.

The product and its derivatives do indeed fall in the category of a staple here in Antigua and Barbuda as there is a heavy dependence by consumers. Nonetheless, the entire dispute may have gone the way of unfortunate, especially the turn it has taken as reported by Trade Co-ordinator Dr. Clarence Henry in the front page of the Antigua Sun of yesterday’s issue.

Now, as Dr. Henry has explained, options are being sought since the country is no longer prepared to accept the increase in cost that the ECGC is seeking to exact from the purchasers of the product throughout the region. The matter, Dr. Henry noted, could be taken as far as the Caribbean Court of Justice for settlement under its trade dispute jurisdiction or even the recently established Caribbean Community Competition Commission.

These institutions qualify as a sort of last resort entities when round the table negotiations prove futile. Now, Antigua and Barbuda is mulling the option of seeking settlement through a Caricom mediator because of the obvious void within the organisation of the OECS to deal with these realities of today. Issue can easily be made of the possibility that this is one of the areas where our leaders and the region have fallen out of step with the times. When Antigua and Barbuda presented its proposal, Dr. Henry noted, to be allowed to import 50 per cent of the 100-pound sacks of flour from medium developed countries in the region and sources outside the Caribbean, several of the OECS territories flatly rejected this idea.

The proposal from one territory was for the government to undertake the importation of the commodity. This of course would place an additional burden on the government’s already strained coffers and of course rob private sector interests of needed business.

Article 164 of the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, which governs Caricom, was another issue that was cited by at least one other territory. That country’s prime minister felt that the proposals by Antigua and Barbuda would serve to undermine the protection mechanism within the treaty for fledgling businesses in the region.

To his credit, Dr. Henry hit the proverbial nail on the head.

“These mills are being shielded by their governments and are attempting to hide under the cover of this OECS family,” Dr. Henry stated.

The question, is at what cost and for how long, does the region intend to stand behind these protective trade regimes in a market that is supposed to be growing and dynamic? Not saying that we ignore the treaties, laws and regulations that maintain balance and order, but at the same time consideration must be given to how policies affect the thousands of consumers whose spending allows big businesses like the ECGC to thrive.

A balance must be able to be struck and compromise must be embraced around the negotiation table. We would not want to see an important business go under, but at the same time, that same entity is in a much better position to withstand the shock of the changes on the world market than the ordinary man. We are pretty sure of this.