ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC—Immigration Ministers from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) began a two-day meeting here on Wednesday, with Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell warning of significant changes to the existing global environment.
Mitchell told the third OECS Council of Immigration Ministers meeting that a major global player is now revisiting and even rewriting some eight decades of global rules and norms.
“Unilateral trade and economic actions are being taken against countries; what appears to be a more confrontational approach to countries within our hemisphere; massive crackdowns on illegal immigration and a retreat to nationalism,” said Mitchell, the outgoing chairman of the Council.
Mitchell, who is also Grenada’s Minister for National Security, said that while citizens of the region must continue to live in hope and expect the best, they must also prepare for the worst.
“In these circumstances, we, as leaders, policymakers, and decision-makers, are responsible for accelerating and consolidating our collective endeavors to deepen OECS integration.
“Our closer integration ought to be seen as a response to the external pressures we face whilst providing an opportunity for our growth and development.
“Therefore, the third meeting of the Council of Ministers for Immigration that I am pleased to chair will allow delegates the opportunity to renew their commitment to going the full nine yards with the implementation of the Economic Union project,” he said.
Within the context of the Economic Union, contingent rights, according to the Policy, must be Rights accorded to OECS citizens taking advantage of the Right of Freedom of Movement, who are termed the principal beneficiaries, and Rights accorded to persons who are not Citizens of the OECS but are moving with the principal beneficiaries.
OECS Director General Dr. Didacus Jules said that member states must work together as a unified bloc to face the challenges created by “shifts in global politics and policy,” especially changes in the United States.
“To face these challenges, we must work together as a unified bloc. He said that strengthening our bonds can reinforce our economic and social integration, making us more resilient against external pressures,” he said.
Jules said that the OECS member states are at a crucial moment in history, as some of the shifts in global politics and Policy, especially changes in the United States, are already heavily impacting the region.
“These include deep constrictions of foreign aid, stricter immigration policies, and tariffs on exports. Such developments place additional pressure on the OECS to accept deportees, reintegrate them into our societies, and bear the related social and security costs,” he said, adding that this council meeting is more important than ever in light of these global shifts.
“We aim to enhance our regional integration through new policies and frameworks that support free movement, maintain secure borders, and modernize immigration procedures. This meeting is not about talk but action,” he added.
The two-day meeting will discuss key issues, including enhancing the capacity of border security personnel, addressing environmental disaster impacts, implementing the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Arrest Warrant Treaty and Model Bill, and enacting Advance Passenger Information (API) and Passenger Name Record (PNR) legislation for timely passenger data.
The API and PNR are passenger data airlines and governments use to manage and identify travelers.
In addition, the meeting will also discuss the implementation of the free movement regime and the OECS Policy on Rights Contingent on the Right to Freedom of Movement, which grants citizens the right to stay, work, and access to services indefinitely without discrimination.
The regime is a core component of the Eastern Caribbean Economic Union (ECEU), which was established on June 18, 2010, under the Revised Treaty of Basseterre (RTB).
In May 2011, OECS leaders decided to grant several benefits associated with the free movement of persons to their citizens and qualifying family members within the ECEU.
These include indefinite stay, whereby OECS citizens can live in any protocol member state indefinitely and receive an indefinite stay stamp upon arrival, and hassle-free travel, which allows citizens to travel within the ECEU with a valid government-issued picture ID such as a driver’s license, national identification card, or voter card.
In addition, OECS citizens can also drive within any protocol member state using a valid driver’s license issued by their home country. OECS citizens and their third-country spouses can work in these states without a work permit.
The OECS groups the islands of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Montserrat.
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