PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC -The Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) says it is a prime example of Caribbean ingenuity as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) celebrates its 50th anniversary.
The CCJ is the Caribbean regional judicial tribunal established on February 14, 2001, when the agreement establishing the Court was signed by 10 CARICOM member states, namely: Antigua and Barbuda; Barbados; Belize; Grenada; Guyana; Jamaica; St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia; Suriname; and Trinidad and Tobago.
The CCJ, which replaces the London-based Privy Council as the region’s final Court, also functions as an international tribunal interpreting the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas that governs the regional integration movement. It has both an Appellate and Original jurisdiction.
In a statement, CCJ President Justice Adrian Saunders said it is a mark of distinction to be recognized as the oldest surviving integration movement in the developing world.
“Our forebears demonstrated great vision when forming this Community, and we pay them tribute. The CCJ regards itself as a prime example of Caribbean ingenuity. The institutional arrangements developed to fund the Court and select and appoint Judges have been praised worldwide for their uniqueness.”
He said the CCJ notes with “appreciation the undeniable progress the Community has made in achieving its goals over the last five decades, and we look forward to playing our part in consolidating those achievements as the Court pursues its mission to provide accessible, fair and efficient justice for the people and states of the Caribbean Community.”
CARICOM leaders later on Monday open a three-day summit here that coincides with the activities to launch the 50th-anniversary celebrations, including a symbolic flag-raising ceremony at Chagaramuas, west of here, where the original treaty was signed by the then leaders of Barbados, Jamaica, Guyana, and Trinidad and Tobago on July 4, 1973.
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