Published 11 March 2020
Buckie Got It. St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
ATTORNEY GENERAL BYRON ISSUES SERIOUS CALL FOR RESPECT OF THE JUDICIARY
Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 11, 2020 (SKNIS): Attorney General of St. Kitts and Nevis, the Honourable Vincent Byron, is calling on all people to respect the judiciary amidst threats on social media towards His Lordship Professor Eddie Ventose, Resident High Court Judge of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court.
Attorney General Byron said during the “Discussions for Stronger, Safer Future” town hall meeting held at the Challengers Community Center on March 10 that St. Kitts and Nevis is built on a system of laws and “we are very proud that the Government and people of St. Kitts and Nevis are ranked number one in the OECS for the Rule of Law and the Rule of Law is one in which we obey the laws and those who sit on tribunals to oversee those laws.”
He addressed the issue that arose from a fake profile on social media.
“It is most unfortunate that a fake profile posting on the social media has made what can be interpreted as threats against the judge of the High Court,” he said. “This is unacceptable and we will call on all of our citizens to rally to support the judiciary and the government.”
The attorney general issued a serious call that individuals should desist in threatening any judge and members of the judiciary.
“The idea that we can openly want to attack a judge demeans all of us,” he said. “We have to respect the judiciary.”
Honourable Byron stated that if someone is dissatisfied with the ruling of the court, the recourse that is in place is to go to another court and appeal.
“This is how this government came to power,” he said. “You will recall that five years ago when it was that there was an interlocutory injunction placed against the very funny transactions, the dastardly actions of the Labour Government to change the boundaries in this country, that we applied to the court and they put an injunction on any change of Douglas’ boundaries. It was overturned eventually, it went up to a court of appeal, who did not grant us, and then we went to another court and they reinstated the injunction against Douglas’ boundaries.”
He said that the country’s protection against any breach of an individual’s rights lies with the court.
“We must rally and support our judiciary,” said the attorney general. “If there is an issue, with the judiciary, we appeal. That is what the Rule of Law is and I want to put on record that the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis supports the judiciary in our country and it must be that we adhere to that.”
