Former government official Camilo Gonsalves has fiercely condemned the current administration’s unannounced move to amend the constitution of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, describing the legislation as an “existential threat” to the nation’s governance, democracy, and the rule of law.
In a comprehensive public address, Gonsalves characterized the government’s attempt to retroactively alter the nation’s foundational document to protect sitting politicians as an unprecedented overreach with no parallel in the free and democratic world. He argued that the constitution is the supreme law of the land, and interpreting its ambiguities is strictly the responsibility of the judiciary, not politicians looking to shield themselves from an ongoing legal challenge.
By rewriting the rules after an election has already taken place, the government is effectively acting as its own judge and jury. “You can’t play cricket and after the game done, you say, ‘Well, as a matter of fact, we’re going to count all fours as sixes so the other team won the match,'” Gonsalves stated, emphasizing that candidates must be judged by the laws that were in effect at the time they ran for office.
To highlight the abnormality of the government’s actions, Gonsalves pointed to established international precedents regarding dual citizenship in national parliaments. When similar constitutional crises occurred in countries like Australia, Jamaica, and Grenada, affected politicians routinely chose to either resign from their posts or officially renounce their foreign passports, rather than using legislative power to rewrite their national constitutions.
Gonsalves also issued a stark warning about the broader implications of the government utilizing its commanding 14-1 parliamentary supermajority to change the constitution willy-nilly. He cautioned that if the current administration is willing to tamper with the constitution over what it claims is a “frivolous” lawsuit, other vital institutional protections could easily be dismantled. Specifically, he warned civil servants that the independence and security of the Public Service Commission rely entirely on constitutional protections that could similarly be eliminated by the government’s supermajority.
Appealing directly to the public to look past partisan politics, Gonsalves called on lawyers, teachers, the church, and trade unions to voice their opposition to the amendment. He argued that the society must decisively reject the political interference in the courts, warning that treating the constitution as a flexible tool for self-preservation is a step away from a democratic society.