With resounding “Ayes”, the Senate of Saint Lucia passed the CARICOM Arrest Warrant Treaty Bill on August 21.
The legislation, which will now become law, gives domestic effect to the treaty that Saint Lucia signed in 2017, which aims to establish a regional system for the arrest and surrender of persons requested by other countries.
Officials say Saint Lucia is now positioned to work more seamlessly with regional partners in apprehending fugitives, ensuring swifter justice across CARICOM, and closing gaps that once allowed offenders to evade prosecution or sentencing.
At Thursday’s Senate Sitting, Leader of Government Business Guibion Ferdinand voiced his support for the legislation, bringing into focus both domestic and regional escalation of violent crime.
“That by itself suggests that we have a serious problem within the region, and if we do not address it adequately, it will only add to the already existing problems that we have in our own country,” the senator said.
Voicing his support for the bill, Independent Senator Deale Lee urged the government to conduct more research into crime and its underlying motivations in order to adopt a more meticulous approach to combating it. He said the legislation should have been signed into law sooner, as St Lucia had been a signatory to the treaty for about eight years.
“I think too often, we recognise steps that need to be taken, but we don’t act quickly enough to enact them. And so, there does need to be that level of urgency to make sure when we have good ideas, we implement them,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition Business Dominic Fedee underscored that while the new law is a positive step, it must be paired with clear and decisive leadership on crime at home.
“The time has come for the government to clearly outline: What is the strategy to fight crime? What are those preventative measures that you are taking? What are those strategies you have implemented since coming to office? What’s the plan going forward?” Fedee questioned.
Though senators differed in their perspectives on crime management, all ultimately agreed on the importance of the legislation, and it was passed unanimously with bipartisan support.
