PARAMARIBO, Suriname– St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves has hinted at the possibility of a matter involving the Trinidad-based political analyst, Derek Ramsamooj, whose Trinidad and Tobago passport has been kept by police in Suriname for the past two years, going before the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).
Gonsalves, speaking at the news conference marking the end of the 43rd Caribbean Community (CARICOM) summit here, told reporters that President Chandrika Persad Santokhi, the new CARICOM chairman, had sought to explain the situation “within their domestic jurisdiction.
“I want to say that every member state of CARICOM has signed on to the Charter of Civil Society, and there we are enjoined to respect the fundamental rights and freedom of every single individual within the community so long as they come within our jurisdiction.
“So, if anyone has any issue, you address that within the national jurisdiction. Suppose it touches and concerns the issue of movement of persons, and it concerns the treaty itself, well. In that case, you go to the CCJ,” said Gonsalves, an attorney and the longest-serving head of government within the 15-member regional integration grouping.
He told reporters that it was necessary to make distinctions between “two different sets of issues, juridically and at the same time to re-affirm that our region is a region which upholds the values in the Charter of Civil Society, and no government can run afoul of those values.
“If they do within their domestic jurisdiction, they have the right of redress. Suppose it touches on and concerns I repeat the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas (which governs the regional integration process). In that case, the CCJ in its Original Jurisdiction addresses those matters authoritatively,” Gonsalves told reporters.
Ramsamooj, 60, was taken into custody on October 6, 2020, and is yet to have his documents returned.
However, Ramsamooj, who has worked as a political analyst in the Caribbean, including in Jamaica, Guyana, Grenada, Suriname, St Lucia, and St Kitts-Nevis, was told by Suriname police on October 6, 2020, that they only wanted a statement to support an inquiry into operations at the Surinamese Post Savings Bank (SPSB).
Ramsamooj had conducted for the SPSB, at their request, existing customer and potential customer surveys, as well as bank employee surveys, in addition to running two-country risk assessments of Suriname in his capacity as an analyst and researcher. The financial institution paid for the activities.
The authorities are also probing Ramsamooj, who developed and worked alongside strategic partners in Suriname to create and manage the global high forest low deforestation conference (HFLD conference) at the request of Suriname in February 2019.
Last month, Ramsamooj, a “diabetic” who has been pleading to be allowed to leave the country to seek medical treatment overseas, was rushed by ambulance to a hospital “with a high fever and severe headache.”
The relative said he has since tested negative for the coronavirus (COVID-19). His wife, Camille Page, said a sudden infection triggered his underlying cardiovascular and diabetic conditions.
“Since October 2020, we have been pleading for his known health concerns to be taken more seriously by the government of Suriname. The Suriname government detained him for 75 days without charge in 2020, of which he spent over two weeks without access to legal counsel,” she said, adding that “for reasons which have not been explained, neither his Trinidad nor his United Kingdom passport has been returned.
But speaking at the news conference on Tuesday night, President Santokhi told reporters that the case had been discussed “by at least two prime ministers with me and is still pending in court.” He did not name the two regional prime ministers.
Without calling Ramsamooj by name, President Santokhi said, “the person is subject to a criminal investigation, and the person has the status of the suspect, he is not prosecuted yet, and there are, yes, some issues which are hampering to expedite his case.”
He told reporters that ‘those issues had been brought to my attention, and it is my role to bring those issues (to) the attention of the Minister of Justice and the Police and the judiciary”.
Santokhi, a former justice, and police minister, added, “we have an administration system in my country, Suriname, based on separation of power…and we have a provision in our Constitution of non-interference in cases which are dealt at the court.
“…if there are concerns we need to address in a good manner taking into account the separation of power and authority, and yes, I promised those two prime ministers that I will bring those issues those cases (to) the attention of the Minister of Justice and Police and our judiciary,” said Santokhi, who is also the CARICOM chairman for the next six months.
During the CARICOM Inter-sessional summit held in Belize, Prime Minister John Briceno said that Santokhi had assured him that Ramsamooj would have appeared in court “in the coming days.
“Yes, I did raise it with President Santokhi, and he (Santokhi) has been in touch with his attorney general, and they are saying now that the case will go to court in the coming days, 12 or so days from now. So it will be in court,” Briceno said then.
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