Politics
Dominica to de-link from U.K. based privy council; to adopt Caribbean Court of Justice as final appellate Court
Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has revealed that Britain agrees and has no objection to Dominica recognizing the Caribbean Court of Justice as its final appellate Court.
Section 42.4A of the constitution of Dominica mandates the government to write to the British government, seeking agreement before Dominica moves to delink from the British Privy Council.
According to Skerrit, his administration wrote to the British government late last year and very early this year, January 2014, Dominica received a letter from Britain indicating that the British government is in agreement or has no objection to Dominica recognizing the Caribbean Court of Justice as it court in the appellate jurisdiction.
Skerrit said this removes the need for a referendum. “If we had not gotten the agreement from the British Government we would have to go through a referendum. So the fact that we have gotten the agreement from them means therefore with a simple two-thirds majority, Dominica can recognize the Caribbean Court of Justice as its final court.”
He signaled that while he is anxious to make the move there is one more hurdle to clear.
“In the next couple weeks we will set up a timetable for that because the constitution is very clear in the process. It has to be followed by the Parliament before that happens. But it is a major step, so the ball is now in the court of the Dominican parliament to effectively take that decision to recognize the Caribbean Court of Justice.”
Prime Minister Skeritt said Dominica is pleased to become the first island-nation of the Organization of Eastern States (OECS) to move towards adopting the Caribbean Court of Justice as its final Court of Appeal.
He believes the move will deepen integration and pave the way for other countries to become full members of the regional court.
“I believe this is good news for Dominica. It is good news for the OECS because we are the first country within the OECS to move to recognize the Caribbean Court of Justice. And it is also good for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). It is our hope that the rest of the countries in CARICOM will move in that direction so all of us could finally recognize the Caribbean Court of Justice. And I believe it is a major step towards integration. It is a major indication of Dominica’s commitment towards regional integration and the recognition of the Caribbean institutions.”
“The Caribbean Court of Justice is an important instrument of integration and our own independence because we now have a court that has been designed by ourselves, managed by ourselves and of course indicate to the world that we are mature enough to handle our affairs in every facet of our development,” he said.
The Caribbean Court of Justice was established in 2001 as the region’s highest court. It has both an original and appellate jurisdiction, but while many Caribbean countries are signatories to the original jurisdiction, only Barbados, Guyana and Belize have signed on to the appellate jurisdiction.
In addition, the Caribbean Court of Justice serves as an international tribunal interpreting the Revised treaty of Chaguaramas that governs the 15-member CARICOM grouping. -(CMC)