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Basseterre, St. Kitts - Nevis
December 02, 2009 (CUOPM)

St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas says the results of the referendum in St. Vincent and the Grenadines last week are an indication that there is need to fully study and analyse the existing constitutions of the members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) before any attempt is made to change them.

“We have a serious situation in St. Kitts and Nevis with our constitution. A lot of the problems that we have experienced between St. Kitts and Nevis and even the problems we are experiencing now (as they relate to the constituency boundaries and the general elections) go back to the type of constitution that we have,” he said.

But Douglas, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC)’s Peter Richards during an interview in Port of Span, Trinidad where he attended the just concluded Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting that unlike his counterpart in St. Vincent and the Grenadines he was not pushing for constitutional reform “at this time” preferring instead, to look at electoral reform.

“And a lot of the electoral reforms that we could have pursued were dependent upon constitutional reform. But it is not easy to change the constitution and so what we have been seeking to in St. Kitts and Nevis over the years is to have confidence measures introduced to build a capacity of our people to appreciate and be better able to study the constitution and make changes if they have to,” he said.

The St. Vincent and the Grenadines government fell far short of the 66.7 percent required to change the 30 year-old constitution that had been handed down to the island when it gained political independence from Britain.

The main opposition New Democratic Party (NDP), which had mounted a “Vote No” campaign, said it was pleased that 55.6 per cent of the electorate had rejected the document.

According to the CMC Report, Prime Minister Douglas said while there were some measures in the constitutions handed down by Britain to its former colonies in the Caribbean that would need a simple majority to change, “some clauses however are entrenched where you would need to have a 66 and two thirds.”

“I think that wherever it is possible to have a clear majority to make changes to the constitution one should do that,” he said, pointing out that in the case of St. Kitts and Nevis “it is being stated that someone who is a minister of religion cannot stand for parliament…these are aspects of the constitution that can be revisited without having the 66 and two thirds.

“So it depends really on what is the fundamental issue that is before the electorate or the citizens of the country in terms of changing the constitution. Our own constitution, I can say very, very, clearly that was negotiated with Great Britain is not a good document at all.

“There are several aspects…that need to be revisited and we shall do so and we have been on the path of constitutional reform for several years since back in 1998 when the Nevis part of the federation tried to secede ,” he said, indicating that the authorities have been working with various international stakeholders to build confidence “so that we could either work together and accept the constitution as it is or to be at one in agreeing as to what aspects of the constitution needed to be changed.”

Prime Minister Douglas said that while some of the OECS countries would need to hold a referendum in order to become full members of the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) that is not the case for his twin-island federation.

“We are one of those constitutions I understand that does not necessary have a referendum in order to advance to the CCJ. But we have never advanced because we are part of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and we have always said if we are going to advance we would want to do it together as part of the collective court we have in the Eastern Caribbean states.”

He said some Eastern Caribbean countries needed to hold a referendum, but “we in St. Kitts and Nevis do not need to have that referendum.”

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Her Excellency Susan Rice

Basseterre, St. Kitts - Nevis
November 13, 2009 (CUOPM)

Climate change and the global financial and economic crises were among issues discussed last week between Caribbean and United States diplomats at the United Nations.

St. Kitts and Nevis‘ Permanent Representative to the United Nations, His Excellency Ambassador Delano Bart, Q.C., chaired the meeting between CARICOM Member States and the United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Her Excellency Susan Rice.

The meeting, regarded as a very frank and candid exchange, also discussed the Arms Trade Treaty and the Permanent Memorial of the Abolition of the Slave Trade and Slavery.

The general consensus was a desire to work together, to respect each other’s views, and to bridge the divides that remain on these issues.

It was clear that differences remain on the climate change negotiations. However Ambassador Rice stressed that climate change is extremely important to the Obama Administration, and the cooperation with island states and the most vulnerable, was key to moving forward.

There was genuine support for finding initiatives to assist middle income small island developing states to counter external shocks, and strong commitment to finding areas of cooperation on the Arms Trade Treaty including Small Arms and Light Weapons.

The USA was thanked for their continued support to the Slave Trade Memorial which was a CARICOM initiative.

The Meeting was viewed by all participants as very constructive, and Ambassador Bart was thanked for initiating this first in a series of discussions between CARICOM and the United States at the UN.

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“This will reduce the cost of capital….”

Basseterre, St. Kitts - Nevis
October 10, 2009 (CUOPM)

The Nevisian-born President of the Caribbean Association of Industry and Commerce (CAIC), Mr. Carol Evelyn has warned of dire consequences for the region’s economic future if a single stock exchange is not created within the 15-member Caribbean Community (CARICOM) grouping.

“The private sector is again calling for the establishment of regional stock exchange and regulatory framework in order to make the markets truly efficient to raise capital and function as one economic space,” Mr. Evelyn is quoted by the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) in an  address to the opening of a special meeting in Barbados to assess the state of play for the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).

“The region should aggressively pursue the establishment of a regional stock exchange,” Mr.  Evelyn told the gathering that was attended by the Prime Ministers of Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago.

Mr. Evelyn, who is also Chairman of the Manufacturing Division of the St. Kitts-Nevis Chamber of Industry and Commerce and heads a local manufacturing company on St. Kitts, said a single stock exchange for the region would enhance the promotion of the movement of capital across the region, increase investment opportunities, encouraging optimum financing for regional firms and increasing the attractiveness of the CARICOM as an area for investment.

In addition, the CAIC president predicted there would be a greater influence from outside of the 15-nation grouping, should such a step not be taken.

“If a regional stock exchange is not implemented in due time, more and more of the large companies will have no choice but to list outside of the region which is certain to be a set of irreversible decisions,” he said.

Mr. Evelyn also called on governments to quicken the pace on the establishment of the CARICOM Financial Services Agreement (CFSA), which he said would enhance the environment for regional companies to operate within the CSME that creates one economic space among member states.

“It is our hope that the CFSA will increase the efficiency of our financial sectors across CARICOM. We believe that the CFSA should work towards ensuring that capital is sourced at the lowest possible rate by CARICOM services firms or supplier from any member state from anywhere in the Single Market.

“This will reduce the cost of capital and the cost of goods and services supplied by regional firms,” he advised.

Most of the CARICOM countries operate their own stock exchanges with the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE), Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange Limited and Barbados Securities Exchange Inc. spearheading efforts for a new Caribbean Exchange Network (CXN) that will, initially, harmonise three of the largest stock markets via a common trading platform.

The CMC report did not mention the existence of the St. Kitts-based Eastern Caribbean Stock Exchange (ECSE).

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