CONSTITUTION REFORM IN GRENADA1985-2016

IMPROVING HUMAN RIGHTSENHANCING THE RULE OF LAW

BUILDING DEMOCRACYDEVELOPING OUR NATION

byFRANCIS ALEXIS

17 Dec 2015

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INDEXSubjects Pages

1. Since 1985…………………………………………………………..…………………………32. First Reading 2015………………………………………………………………………….43. Some Seventy (70) Proposals For Reform……………………………………...54. Caribbean Court of Justice And Other Justice-Related Matters……...65. Elections And Boundaries Commission …………………………………….…...76. Name of State…………………………………………………………………………………87. Restructuring ……………………………………………………………………..………....98. Rights And Freedoms ….....................................................................10

Rights 10; Principles 12; Gender Equality 14; Freedom 159. Term of Office of Prime Minister, Fixed Date For Elections And

Ensuring Appointment of Leader of the Opposition…………………….1610. Referendum: Key Points………………………………………………………………17

Appendix: Reviewers and Drafters……………………………………………...192

1. SINCE 1985

1. Since 1985 public consultations on reforming the Constitution of Grenada have been taking place. This began with the Constitution Review Commission (‘CRC’) chaired by Sir Fred Phillips, appointed on 13 Feb 1985; which made recommendations in its report of 5 Nov 1985.2. Another CRC was appointed on 5 Feb 2002; its membership changed. It was chaired by The Hon Mr Justice Lyle St Paul when it made recommendations on 30 April 2006.3. Prof Randolph Mc Intosh did various drafts of a new Constitution, between 2011 and 2013.4. The present Constitution Reform Advisory Committee, launched on 16 Jan 2014, made recommendations on 9 July 2014 and 22 Nov 2014.

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2. FIRST READING 2015

1. Reviewing the recommendations, the Cabinet of Ministers, headed by Dr the Rt Hon Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister, had First Reading given in the House of Representatives on 4 Dec 2015 to the:

Constitution of Grenada (Caribbean Court of Justice and Other Justice- Related Matters)(Amendment) Bill 2015Constitution of Grenada (Elections And Boundaries Commission) (Amendment) Bill 2015Constitution of Grenada (Name of State)(Amendment) Bill 2015Constitution of Grenada (Restructuring)(Amendment) Bill 2015Constitution of Grenada (Rights And Freedoms)(Amendment) Bill 2015Constitution of Grenada (Term of Office of Prime Minister, Fixed Date For Elections And Ensuring Appointment of Leader of the Opposition)(Amendment) Bill 2015

2. Those who reviewed the Constitution for its reform and those who drafted these six (6) Bills are listed in the Appendix.

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3. SOME SEVENTY (70) PROPOSALS FOR REFORM

1. These six (6) Bills, in their various clauses (‘cc’), present some seventy (70) proposals for Constitution Reform:

Subject of Bills No of Proposals

Caribbean Court of Justice And Other Justice-Related Matters..….9Elections And Boundaries Commission …………………………………….…9Name of State……………………………………………………………………………..2Restructuring ……………………………………………………………………..………1Rights And Freedoms ….................................................................45Term of Office of Prime Minister, Fixed Date For Elections And Ensuring Appointment of Leader of the Opposition ……………. 4

TOTAL 70 5

4. CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (CARIBBEAN COURT OF JUSTICE AND OTHER JUSTICE-RELATED MATTERS)

(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

1. Allegiance to be to Grenada: cc 36-37 p222. Attorney-General to be a Lawyer: c 38 p233. CCJ to replace UKPC: c 9 p124. Code of Conduct: c 35 p215. Commissioner of Police official: cc 39-41 p236. Eastern Carib Supreme Court: cc 18, 19, 26 pp17, 197. Eastern Carib Supreme Court Order:cc 20,25,26 pp17-19 8. High Court Judges not Puisne: c 32 p219. Retirement Age for Judges from 62 to 72: c 31 p20

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5. CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (ELECTIONS AND BOUNDARIES COMMISSION)(AMENDMENT)

BILL 2015

1. Chief Elections Officer established: c 3 p42. Chief Elections Officer to be CEO of EBC: c 3 p43. EBC established: c 5 p54. EBC to conduct referenda: c 4 p55. EBC to propose constituency boundaries: c 6 p96. EBC to replace CBC: cc 6, 8, 12 pp9, 107. EBC to replace SOE: cc 3, 4(b) pp4, 58. EBC to supervise conduct of elections: c 6 p99. EBC to supervise registration of voters: c 6 p9

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6. CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (NAME OF STATE) (AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

1. ‘Grenada,Carriacou and Petite Martinique’:cc 3,4,5 p4

2. ‘Petite Martinique’: c 7 p4

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7. CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (RESTRUCTURING)(AMENDMENT)

BILL 2015

1. Rearrangement, tidying-up:c 4 for new s39A p4

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8. CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS)(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

CIVIL RIGHTS

1. A child is a child: c 11 for s 13A p102. Arrested person to access lawyer promptly: c 5 for s 3(2)(b) p83. Arrested person to have reasons promptly: c 5 for s 3(2)(a) p84. Arrested person may stay silent: c 7(b) for s 8(2)(ba) p95. Arrested person to be warned: c 7(b) for s 8(2)(ba) p96. Child education to 16: c 11 for s 13B p107. Child special education for disability: c 11 for s 13B(4) p108. Detained person to access lawyer promptly:c 5 for s 3(2)(b) p89. Detained person to have reasons promptly: c 5 for s 3(2)(a) p8

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CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS)(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

CIVIL RIGHTS (cont)

10. Discrimination extended: cc 4(a), 10(c) pp8, 1011. Due process of law: cc 4(c), 7(a)(c), 12 pp8, 9, 1112. Equal and humane treatment: c 10(b) p913. Equal protection of the law: c 10(a) p914. Equality before the law: c 10(a) p915. Intellectual Property Rights: c 6 for s 6A p816. Media: cc 4(b), 8 pp8, 917. Political Parties-association in: c 9 p918. Press: cc 4(b), 8 pp8, 919. Vote: c 11 for s 13C p10

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CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS)(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE POLICY

20. Challenged persons: c 14 for s 18G p1221. Children not to be abused: c 14 for s 18F p1122. Climate Change-protection: c 14 for s 18D p1123. Culture-expressions: c 14 for s 18J p1324. Directive Principles to guide: c 14 for s 18N p1325. Environment to be protected: c 14 for s 18B p1126. Environment to be healthy: c 14 for s 18C p11

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CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS)(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE POLICY (cont)

27. Family-right to: c 14 for s 18H p12

28. Fiscal responsibility: c 14 for s 18L p1329. Food, Water, Health: c 14 for s 18I p1330. Information-access to: c 14 for s 18K p1331. Natural Disaster-prepare for: c 14 for s 18E p1132. Natural Resources: c 14 for s 18A p1133. Treaties-consider for enacting:c 14 for s 18M p13

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CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS)(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

GENDER EQUALITY

34. Gender inequalities-no: c 14 for s 18R p1435.Gender equality:c14 for Ch 1B ss 18O-18T pp14-1536. Gender equality-political parties:c14 for s 18S p1537. Gender inclusion-‘he or she’: c 21 p1638. Women-no discrimination: c 14 for s 18P p1439. Treaties-consider for enacting: c 14 for s 18Q p14

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CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS)(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

FUNDAMENTAL ESSENTIALS OF FREEDOM

40. Commonwealth is not foreign: cc 15-20 pp15-1641. Independence of Judiciary:c 23 for new s 106 p1642. Parliamentary Democracy: c 3(b) for new s 1 p743. Rule of Law: c 23 for new s 106 p1644. Separation of Powers: c 23 for new s 106 p1645. Will of the people: c 3(b) for new s 1 p7

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10. CONSTITUTION OF GRENADA (TERM OF OFFICE OF PRIME MINISTER, FIXED DATE FOR ELECTIONS AND

ENSURING APPOINTMENT OF LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION)(AMENDMENT) BILL 2015

1. Fixed Date for Elections: c 5 p42. Opposition Leader ensured on PR:c 9 for s 66A p53. Opposition Leader on PR full MP: cc 6, 7 p54. Prime Minister Term Limits: c 3 p4

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10. REFERENDUM:KEY POINTS

1. The six (6) Bills are to be put to a Referendum.2. A Referendum is an election in which the people vote on the question whether they approve of a Bill passed by the House and the Senate to amend the Constitution.3. By s 39(5)(a)(b)(c) of the Constitution:

(a) not less than ninety days must run between the First and Second Readings of the Bills in the House;

(b) the Bills are to be passed by both Houses; and(c) next, the Bills need approval by not less than two-thirds of

all the votes validly cast on the Referendum.4. The Referendum, conducted by the Supervisor of Elections, asks the people regarding each Bill: DO YOU APPROVE OF THIS BILL (its title and objects being then set out)?—— There follow the words: YES NO 17

3. REFERENDUM: KEY POINTS (cont)

5. If you approve of a Bill, make your mark opposite the word “YES”. If you do not approve of a Bill, make your mark opposite the word “NO”.Who votes on the Referendum6. Every person who, when the Referendum is held, would be entitled to vote in parliamentary elections, shall be entitled to vote on the Referendum, by s 39(6) of the Constitution.Counting the Majority7. In a general election, whether any one candidate gets the simple majority of votes needed to win his constituency is counted on how many persons vote there, not elsewhere. In a Referendum on several Bills, whether any one Bill gets the two-thirds majority vote needed for approval is counted on how many persons vote on that particular Bill, not on the other Bills.

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APPENDIX

REVIEWERS AND DRAFTERS

1. On 13 Feb 1985 there were appointed as a Constitution Review Commission (‘CRC’) to review the Constitution of Grenada: Chairman, Sir Fred Phillips; other members Prof Ralph Carnegie, Brynmor Pollard, John B Renwick, A Michael Andrew; Secretary, Bernard Gibbs; Prof Randolph Mc Intosh joining later. It made recommendations for Constitution Reform, in its report of 5 Nov 1985.

2. From 5 Feb 2002 there was another CRC, at first headed briefly by Dr NJO Liverpool; the effective Chairman was The Hon Mr Justice Lyle St Paul; other members were Carol Bristol QC, Meryl Forsyth, Fr Gerard Paul, Basil Harford; Secretary, James Andrews. Also, initially, on that CRC was Prof Randolph Mc Intosh. It submitted its report with recommendations on 30 April 2006.

3. In the third wave, Prof Randolph Mc Intosh between 2011 and 2013 prepared various drafts of his proposed new Constitution of Grenada.

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APPENDIX (cont)

4. On 16 Jan 2014 there was launched a Constitution Reform Advisory Committee, with a representative from thirteen bodies and a Chairman. These were Chairman: Francis Alexis; other members: Norman Gilbert alternate Royden Beharry, Youth; Robert Branch, Ministry of Legal Affairs; Ruggles Ferguson, OECS Bar; Sandra Ferguson alternate Joseph K Roberts, IAGDO; Pastor Alfred Horsford, Evangelical Churches; Naeisha John, Conference of Churches; Dr Lawrence A Joseph later George Prime, Grenada Bar; Kindra B Mathurine Stewart, Carriacou & Petite Martinique; Sherry-Ann Noel, Media; Bert Patterson, Trade Union Council; Simon Stiell, NNP; Tillman Thomas alternate Vincent Roberts, NDC; Margaret V Wilkinson, Chamber of Industry & Commerce. This submitted reports with recommendations on 9 July 2014 and 22 Nov 2014. For drafting purposes, they were joined by Claudette Joseph, NDC, and Sheldon Scott, NNP.

5. Assistance with drafting came from Robert Husbands of UN-Geneva and Ian Gray, Consultant, Commonwealth Secretariat-London. Wynette Baker and Jennine Bernard, Grenada Government Drafters, helped to fine-tune the Bills.

6. Proposals for the Referendum, on the recommendations, were decided by the Cabinet of Ministers headed by Dr the Rt Hon Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister.

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