CASTRIES, ST. Lucia – St. Lucia’s Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre has held talks with his Trinidad and Tobago counterpart Kamla Persad-Bissessar providing an “update” regarding her challenge to the reappointment of CARICOM Secretary General, Dr. Carla Barnett.
“In my capacity as Chairman of CARICOM, I also provided an update on the matter of seeking an advisory opinion from the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) concerning the appointment of the CARICOM Secretary-General,” Pierre wrote in a statement on his Facebook page.
Late last month, the Trinidad-based CCJ said it was not in receipt of any official request for an advisory opinion from CARICOM regarding the re-appointment Barnett.
CARICOM leaders at their summit in St. Lucia last month had agreed to seek an advisory opinion from the CCJ after both Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica had written to them regarding the procedure used on re-appointing Barnett, the first woman to ever hold the post of CARICOM Secretary General.
“While the Court is not yet in receipt of any official request for an Advisory Opinion from CARICOM, it takes note of the information in the public domain that such a request may be forthcoming,” the CCJ said.
It said that “given the public interest in this issue and in response to general questions already raised by the public, the Court considers it helpful and in the public interest” to indicate that “a request for an Advisory Opinion does not involve either adversarial or contentious proceedings.
“In responding to a request for an Advisory Opinion, the Court’s remit is to entertain submissions from interested parties and furnish a legal opinion to answer the question(s) contained in the request.”
The CCJ said that within 14 days of receipt of a request for an Advisory Opinion, the Registrar of the Court shall serve copies of the request on all member states and the Secretary General of the CARICOM.
“Any entity which has been served shall be entitled to make written submissions to the CCJ within 42 days of being served,” it said adding that “in accordance with its internal procedures, an Advisory Opinion will ordinarily be issued no later than six (6) months after the hearing”.
Prime Minister Pierre described the discussions with Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar as “productive” saying they were “aimed at strengthening the longstanding relationship between St. Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago and advancing our shared regional priorities.
“Our discussions focused particularly on cooperation in health, security and crime-fighting, recognising that greater collaboration among our Caribbean nations is essential to improving the safety, well-being and quality of life of our people,” said Pierre, who was accompanied by his Attorney General, Leslie Mondesir, while Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar was joined by her Attorney General John Jeremie, SC, the Minister of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs, Sean Sobers; and other officials.
“The challenges confronting our region demand dialogue, cooperation and collective action.
A stronger Caribbean requires us to work together, guided always by the interests and aspirations of our people,” Pierre wrote.
In a separate post on her Facebook page, Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar said she remains “committed to working closely with our regional partners to deepen Caribbean cooperation and pursue initiatives that deliver meaningful benefits for all the people of our region.
“Together, we continue working towards a stronger and more united Caribbean,” she said, adding ”our meeting provided an opportunity to discuss matters of mutual interest and ways in which Trinidad and Tobago and St. Lucia can continue working together to advance shared regional priorities and strengthen cooperation, particularly in the areas of health and crime-fighting measures, as both nations seek to improve the safety, security and well-being of our citizens”.
