NO: 35/2013 DATE: 20th February 2013
(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen,
Greater Georgetown, Guyana)
COMMUNIQUE
ISSUED AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE
TWENTY-FOURTH
INTER-SESSIONAL MEETING OF THE CONFERENCE OF HEADS OF GOVERNMENT OF THE
CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM),
18-19 FEBRUARY
2013,
PORT-AU-PRINCE,
REPUBLIC OF HAITI
.....
(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen,
Greater Georgetown, Guyana) The
Twenty-Fourth Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government
of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) was held in Port-au-Prince, Republic of
Haiti, from 18-19 February 2013. His
Excellency, Michel Joseph Martelly, President of the Republic of Haiti, presided.
Other Members of the Conference in
attendance were: the Prime Minister of
Antigua and Barbuda, Honourable Winston Baldwin Spencer; the Prime Minister of
The Bahamas, Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie; the President of the Republic of
Guyana, His Excellency Donald Ramotar; the Premier of Montserrat, Honourable
Reuben Meade; the Prime Minister of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis, Rt.
Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas; the Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, Dr. the Hon.
Kenny D. Anthony; the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr. the
Hon. Ralph E. Gonsalves; and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and
Tobago, Honourable Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
Dominica was represented by Honourable
Colin McIntrye, Minister of Employment, Trade, Industry and Diaspora Affairs;
Jamaica was represented by Honourable Arnold J. Nicholson, Minister of Foreign
Affairs and Foreign Trade; Suriname was represented by Honourable Gin-Mardo
Kromosoeto, Minister of Regional Development, Land and Forestry Management;
Barbados was represented by Mr. Charles Burnett, Permanent Secretary, Ministry
of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade; Belize was represented by Ambassador
Alexis Rosado, Chief Executive Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Associate Member in attendance was the
Premier, Turks and Caicos Islands, Honourable Dr. Rufus Ewing.
Special Guest in attendance was the
Attorney-General of the United States of America, Honourable Eric Holder Jr.
__________________________________
| Honourable Dr. Rufus Ewing |
TURKS
AND CAICOS ISLANDS
The Conference received with interest
the address made by the Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands. It was the first meeting of the Community at
which the Turks and Caicos Islands had been officially represented by a
democratically elected Government since the suspension of its constitution in
August 2009, and a three-year period of direct rule by the United Kingdom
Government.
The Conference noted with grave
concern that, though the elections of November 2012 had led to the restoration
of representative government, the overall state of political affairs remained
less than desirable and the restoration of true democracy was still a far way
off. The 2011 constitution, conceived in
London and thrust upon the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands when they
were without representation, was viewed as a mere by-law for the continuance of
direct rule under the pretext of representative democracy.
Of additional concern were the
challenges emanating from the workings of the justice system in relation to the
criminal investigations that followed the commission of enquiry, and what was
portrayed as "constant infractions of democratic principles and insults to
the ideals of elected government".
The
Conference noted the reaffirmation of the Turks and Caicos Islands Government's
commitment to the Caribbean Community as well as the expressed appreciation for
the pronouncements of the Community on the situation in TCI. It was decided to continue to keep the
situation under close review and to raise concerns
with representatives of the British Government.
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