HISTORIC RULING – Former Grenada 17 prisoner scores legal victory in UK court

Ewart Layne, who has appealed a High Court judgement which rejected his application to become
a practising attorney in Grenada, believes that a recent UK Court judgement can have some positive impact on his matter.

The High Court in the United Kingdom last week Monday ruled that notwithstanding his recorded convictions for the tragic deaths of Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and others on October 19, 1983, Selwyn Strachan possesses the requisite character and suitability to be admitted as a Solicitor to the legal profession.

In the appeal matter of Selwyn Strachan vs Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), the presiding High Court Judge stated the following: “...The conclusion of the SRA that the appellant does not satisfy
the Suitability Test is flawed and cannot be relied upon to support an argument against waiver of the requirement of student enrolment.”

Both Layne and Strachan were imprisoned for their involvement in the October 1983 killings and both of them obtained legal education and qualification while imprisoned. They were released in 2009
following a re-sentencing after numerous appeals as provided in the justice system.

“The outcome of Strachan matter in London should not affect my matter negatively. Yes, it is a judgement that is not binding in Grenada, but precedent in law. It should have some bearings when my matter goes before the Appeal Court,” said Layne, who expects the matter to be heard later in the year when the OECS Court of Appeal meets in Grenada.

A press release from the London-based Committee on Human Rights Grenada said that in this landmark judgement delivered on June 23, 2014, Justice Charles, having already allowed Strachan’s appeal at the end of the hearing on February 11, 2014, held that the SRA, the independent regulatory body of the Law Society of England and Wales, was wrong to refuse to grant Strachan the right to pursue the Legal Practice Course (LPC) in the United Kingdom, so as to pave the way for his admission as an Attorney-at-Law in the jurisdiction of Grenada.

In this regard, the release said Justice Charles made it clear that if the SRA had not indicated its agreement during the hearing to abide by a waiver of the relevant regulation, he would have directed them to issue a certificate of enrolment to Strachan as that “would have been the only route open to me to ensure that the appellant was able to undergo the training that would enable him to seek and obtain authorisation from the Grenadian authorities to act as an Attorney-at-Law in Grenada”.

Further, the learned judge opined: “...In my view such an enrolment would likely to enhance rather than damage the reputation of the profession and its regulator the SRA in England and Wales in the exceptional circumstances of this case which clearly include the possibility that the appellant’s convictions did not accord with a proper application of the rule of law.”


In the judge’s view, “The SRA, in its decision-making process and so through the Committee, erred in principle and acted unfairly in reaching the Decision.”

Moreover, Justice Charles stated that “it is unfair and wrong for the SRA to assert (as it did) that a factor in favour of the approach by the Committee, and which it supported, namely that the convictions must be treated as sound, was that the Privy Council and the sentencing court did not reopen the convictions. This is because the Privy Council did not have the jurisdiction to do so and the sentencing court was only concerned with sentencing pursuant to the direction of the Privy Council”.

Justice Charles placed particular emphasis on the fact that Strachan’s recorded convictions, which occurred over 30 years ago, were obtained under exceptional cir-cumstances, and the SRA ought to have taken those exceptional circumstances into account before denying Strachan the opportunity to write the LPC in the English jurisdiction.

The learned judge noted, among other things, that the trial of the Grenada 17, of which Strachan was one of the prominent accused persons, was unfair and “fatally flawed and in gross violation of international standards of fairness”, as clearly recorded in the 2003 Amnesty International Report; that the Court in which the trial of the Grenada 17 was conducted was unconstitutional, being a court of necessity, as clearly recorded in the Judgement of the Privy Council; that the main prosecution witness Cletus St. Paul, who is presently a Security Co-ordinator to Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell, whose evidence convicted Strachan and nine other members of the Grenada 17, gave five conflicting statements to the police, Magistrate’s Court and the trial court, as clearly expressed by JOF Haynes, the late former President of the Grenada Court of Appeal, and recorded in the Amnesty International Report.

Thus, in Paragraph 59 of his judgement, Justice Charles was particularly forthright. He summarised the factual position vis-à-vis the trial and convictions of the Grenada 17 in this manner: “The fundamental error made by the Committee and the SRA is a failure to appreciate and take into account that the political background to the convictions and the manner in which they were obtained is an integral part of the circumstances that make this case exceptional... Factors within those circumstances are: political tensions; the allegations of torture of Defendants; the court was unconstitutional; the jury was chosen by a person who had acted for the prosecution; the jury behaved in ways that demonstrated bias
or a severe risk of bias (and the allegations on which this is based came from apparently reliable sources); the Defence Counsel withdrew on the basis set out in the Amnesty International Report; there is strong evidence that the key prosecution witness gave conflicting statements that were kept from the court and Defendants; the view of the former US Attorney General who observed the trial was as set out in the passage I have cited from the Amnesty Interna-tional Report.”

In his concluding remarks, Justice Charles made the following telling and instructive comment: “I am sorry to have to record that in my view the approach taken by SRA through its decision-making process lacked humanity, having regard to the factual history put before them...”

St. Mark Flood Mitigation project completed

Health and Social Security Minister, and Parliamentary
Representative for St. Mark, Clarice Modeste (second from
right, partially hidden), along with Chinese Ambassador
Ou Boqian, unveil the plaque in recognition of the St. Mark Flood
Mitigation project, while Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell looks on.

“A lion has been tamed,” was the assurance from Parliamentary Representative, Clarice Modeste, to residents who live close to the Great River in St. Mark’s, when officials from China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. (CHEC), along with Government, held a closing ceremony to officially bring to an end the St. Mark Flood Mitigation project.

Describing the river as a lion is not an understatement to the residents, as it is known for flooding its banks during the rainy season, claiming lives and destroying the homes of many, who like those in rural communities reside close and in some cases, extremely close to the banks of rivers.

“I grew up not far from the river and every rainy season we worried about it bursting its banks, but you will no longer have to worry about that as this river, which can be so gentle now can turn into a roaring lion with the right amount of rain,” Modeste said about the river, which source is the watershed area of St. Mark.

Modeste, who serves as Health and Social Security Minister, said that the flood mitigation project is a priority needed for the safety of the community. The construction, which cost US$5 million, was completed and handed over almost one month before the scheduled completion time, and will protect the community from the effects of dangerous flooding. The launch of the project in 2013 was the first for the then new Chinese Ambassador Ou Boqian.

In her remarks, she said that her Government was very pleased to be associated with the project, which brings less worry to the people.

“You don’t have to worry about the River suffering you again; its feet and hands are tied up,” she said about the project, which involved dredging certain parts of the river, building river defences and placing of steps so that residents can continue to use the river for traditional practices, such as washing.

Dr. the Right Hon. Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique, said that this occasion was a special one for his country.

“This is a very happy day. We are launching a very significant project for the development of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique. I want to extend a special thanks to our friends at China Harbour. With Grenada working along with China and the US together, we can’t go wrong.”

In the past, torrential rains and mudslides caused much devastation in the parish of St. Mark, many of which resulted in the destruction of homes, and, more importantly, the loss of lives.

In an attempt to combat this problem, the Government took the decision to contract China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) Americas to implement the St. Mark Flood Mitigation project in 2013. Steps to better access the river were laid and clearly marked swimming basins/areas were put in place to further cater to the needs of the community.

“In the Caribbean, you never know when a hurricane can hit, especially in the season between June and November,” remarked Jeff Wang, Country Manager of CHEC Grenada.

“With this in mind, our team has been working especially hard to complete this project before the peak of the hurricane season, as this area is particularly prone to floods and damage caused by soil erosion.”

The project employed nearly 100 people – 90 per cent of whom were Grenadians from the immediate surroundings.

Social outreach

During the project life, CHEC Americas did not only build barriers to control the river, but showed its commitment to further enhancing the community through a number of social outreach programmes, one of which is the basketball court which was granted to the Bonaire Government School to celebrate the completion of the project.

Since CHEC began its operations in Grenada, it has been engaged in several Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, including the donation of school supplies, clean-up campaigns, and the sponsorship of cricket in Carriacou.

Frank Yuan, Deputy General Manager of CHEC Americas, thanked the Government and the people of Grenada for their support, while reassuring attendees that CHEC would continue to contribute its best services to the country.

“At CHEC Americas, we strive to stand by our core business values, which can be best characterised with four words – Integrity, Dedication, Inclusion and Innovation. As such, we are deeply rooted in our commitment to maximising the utilisation of local resources and expertise in all our operations.”

The St. Mark project is the first of a series of infrastructure development Government projects, which are to be implemented by CHEC Americas. The company has already completed its geotechnical studies on the Lauriston Airport in Carriacou and work will soon begin on the expansion and refurbishing of the Maurice Bishop International Airport in St. George’s.

Agreement on FATCA reached

Grenada has reached an agreement with the United States on the terms of an Inter-Governmental Agreement under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) that requires financial institutions in Grenada to report to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS), information on assets of US$50 000 or more held by US taxpayers, or by foreign entities in which US taxpayers hold substantial ownership interest.

On March 18, 2010, the US Government enacted FATCA to combat tax evasion by specified US citizens holding investments in accounts outside of the United States, specifically as it relates to US-sourced income.

On June 16, 2014, Grenada successfully completed the negotia-tion of a Model 1 Inter-Government Agreement to enable FATCA compliance. This model requires financial institutions to submit customer information to the Inland Revenue Department for onward submission to the IRS.

A statement from the Ministry of Finance said that Grenada intends to have legislators approve the Foreign Account Tax Compliance (United States) Implementation and Enforcement Bill, to provide for the legal submission of customer information for the purposes of FATCA.

The statement said that failure of a Foreign Financial Institution (FFI) to submit information could result in a 30 per cent withholding tax levied on specific income originating from sources in the US and may result in the potential loss of correspondent banking relationships. “As such, Government is committed to ensuring that the required structures are in place to facilitate the requirements of FATCA while preventing the imposition of the withholding tax on the local financial institutions,” the Government release added. (LS)

Women learning more sustainable farming techniques

Often totally dependent on rainfall for irrigation, battling increasingly longer droughts and intense bursts when the rain does come, Caribbean women farmers are looking to more sustainable means of crop production.

With UN Women support, the Caribbean Policy Development Centre (CPDC) has led a project focused on women agricultural producers’ role in sustainable development in the Caribbean. Implemented in Barbados, Grenada and Jamaica, the project aims to reduce women’s lack of access to resources.

The crops include Irish potatoes, organic mushrooms, strawberries, vegetables and other fruit for the production of juices, pepper sauces and dried fruits.

Through workshops on the evolving green economy – an approach that will result in improved human well-being and reduced inequalities, while not exposing future generations to significant environmental risks and ecological scarcities – the women learn to use more sustainable farming methods as a more stable and reliable way of making a living.

Theresia Msacky, from Grenada, said she learnt about water conservation and rain-water harvesting.

“We learned about the importance of crop rotation,” she explained, “not planting an entire area in one crop but rotating the area… and using natural materials in the environment to conserve the moisture and increase the fertility of the soil. Now I am also using natural barriers like lemongrass to eradicate the crop pests.”

“In the Caribbean, young women outperform young men in secondary and tertiary education, and yet when it comes to active labour market participation or economic empowerment, women are most likely to be unemployed, underemployed, or poor,” says Christine Arab, UN Women Representative for the Caribbean region.

“Through supporting local NGOs in bridging the gender divide in the areas of agriculture education, infrastructure investment, and a strengthened understanding of the laws and services which promote women’s security in the home and in public spaces, UN Women believes that women’s livelihoods will be secured, thereby enhancing the resilience of local communities in the face of the economic challenges facing the Caribbean.”

More than 130 soca artistes registered for quarter-final round of competition

THE first quarter-final competition for the Soca Monarch competition was held yesterday in St. Patrick, followed by competitions in St. Mark today, St. John on Saturday and St. David on Sunday.

More than 130 soca artistes have registered for this year’s competition, which has attracted several veterans back into the soca arena. The cast vying for a spot in the semi-final round of competition represents a mix of newcomers and veterans, including Ajamu, Scholar, Squeezy, Inspector and Randy Isaacs.

A press release from the Spicemas Corporation said that approximately 30 artistes will be performing in each venue, offering a great opportunity for soca lovers to hear live most of the soca renditions for the season.

Fans have been preparing themselves for this round of competition as they anxiously wait on the judging nights, said the release.

The Spicemas Corporation (SMC), in preparation for the season last week Saturday, conducted a judges’ workshop in order to sharpen the skills of the judges going into competition.

Speaking about the workshop which was facilitated by Alvin Daniel, SMC’s Manager Amanda Smith said, “The workshop was well received by the participants, and also the artistes, who joined in as observers to get a better understanding of the adjudication process.”

The quarter-finals were originally scheduled to commence on July 2, but due to the staging of the Schools’ Soca Monarch on July 2, on the Tanteen Netball Courts, the quarter-final round of the Soca Monarch competition was changed to July 3.

The top 30 soca artistes will be selected to the semi-final round of the competition, while the top 15 of that 30 will make it to the final competition to challenge Jason “Boyzie” Olive, who is expected to defend his title in 2014.

Health and agriculture sectors’ partnership vital for reaching food security

RESOLVING dietary health issues in the Caribbean will depend heavily on relevant sectors being able to work together at the research, policy, planning, and on the ground levels.

Director of the Institute for Global Food Security, McGill University, Dr. Hugo Melgar-Quiñonez, has said that though attempts have been made to address major health problems, research and feedback from the region have indicated that a systematic approach to dealing with the issue is still greatly lacking.

The scientist was at the time speaking at the lecture commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Bellairs Research Institute of McGill University, located in Barbados, which took place recently at the Grand Salle of the Central Bank of Barbados.

Speaking under the theme “Food Security and Small Island Developing States,” Dr. Melgar-Quiñonez told past and present alumni of McGill University, as well as food and agricultural specialists from varying local, regional and international bodies, that it was imperative for policy makers to properly assess the role of agriculture and its relationship to nutrition and health.

Noting that economic growth was critical to reaching food security, he warned that it was not in itself sufficient.

“We see huge economic growth in the USA and Canada... but there are millions of families dealing with food and security [issues],” Melgar-Quiñonez said, further stating the FAO recommendation that the enhancement of nutrition and food security status growth should involve and reach all persons, and that governments should put to use additional income to improve, not only the quantity, but also the quality of the food people were consuming, in order to improve the health of people.

The School director submitted that “people in agriculture need to learn the language of people in the health sector, and [that] the people in health and nutrition should know the language of people in agriculture and economics...”. All sectors needed to be working harmoniously for countries to become more food secure.

Areas of recommendation which Dr. Melgar-Quiñonez highlighted during his presentation were: The need to enable people to make more healthy dietary choices; the creation of production incentives for selected, local food products in order to make them more available, attractive and sustainable in the market; the regulation of the importation of agricultural products, based on local product levels from national markets, in order to protect farmers from external competition; capacity development of the manufacturing sector so that it uses more local agricultural raw materials; market diversification and being able to increase the demand for those products. (RS)

Food insecurity affecting more people than we think

PERHAPS the greatest challenge currently facing humanity is the fight against food insecurity and hunger... and contrary to what many think, food insecurity is not a “disease” of the poor in developing or under-developed countries, it is a problem that we all face.

According to Dr. Hugo Melgar-Quiñonez, Director of the Institute for Global Food Security, McGill University, Canada, we now know and have been battling with what has been termed as “hidden hunger”, which deals, not with going to bed hungry, but with accessing a diet which may be meeting ones caloric intake, but is micronutrient deficient.

The last report published by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) reported that 852 million people in the world were undernourished. However, according to Melgar-Quiñonez, this was just the tip of the iceberg.

Regarding cases of hidden hunger in developed countries, he referenced research which showed that in 2012, almost 15 per cent of American households, as well as 8.3 per cent of Canadian households, were food insecure.

The World Health Organisation has already determined that a quarter of the world’s population is iron deficient and one third, zinc deficient.

The scientist, who described food security as a human right, remarked that even though it had become a forefront international issue, within the agenda of many different institutions, it was still on the sidelines and the resources made available to fight it usually did not match the challenges the world was facing.

Melgar-Quiñonez, defining food security as the right of all people to have not only economic but physical access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food, submitted that the prevalence of micro nutrient deficiencies in diets were contributing to the stunting of growth in children, as well as obesity in adults.

He added that the Caribbean ranked high in these areas, and singled out Barbados as a country where persons were, according to research, lacking in iron and Vitamin A, along with being susceptible to obesity. Pointing to research, he said that the prevalence of obesity was 20 per cent of the Barbadian population, compared to 8.3 per cent of the global population.

Dr. Melgar-Quiñonez explained that the challenges facing Barbados, along with other small island developing states, in its fight against food insecurity, were the issues of its land size and farm size for the production of food. He noted the increased competition for the use of limited land space, and also pointed to water constraints and limited domestic markets as food security factors.

Food wastage was another challenge – globally – and was seen not only in the post-harvest situation ,but also within the households.

“From all the food we produce around the world, about one third is wasted... and there is a lot we can do about it,” he added.

The region, according to the view of the food security scientist, was also being disadvantaged by its competitiveness in domestic production, and the distance it was located from the major markets.

 “It is very difficult to transport in small quantities [and as a result of this] poor people have to pay more... ” the academic said. (RS)