St Vincent’s capital Kingstown is seeing the largest protests in years. These demonstrations are taking place as the islands parliament meets to make amendments to the Public Health Act.
Unions including the Nurses Association, Teachers Union, Police Welfare Association, Public Service Union held a joint press conference telling their members that the amendment to the bill would make the COVID-19 vaccine mandatory for specific categories of workers.
In a release, the Nurses Association said;
“St. Vincent and the Grenadines Nurses’ Association strongly oppose the proposed amendments to the Public Health Act that will adversely affect the fundamental rights and freedoms of our Nurses and the entire Vincentian society.
We encourage ALL NURSES to join the picket lines tomorrow, Thursday 5th August 2021 before or after your shift”.
Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves stated that there would be no mandatory vaccination program on the island.
“This thing that we are amending the Public Health Act to make vaccination of everybody mandatory, that is not so.”
“We are amending the Public Health Act because there are certain categories we’ll have to make regulations for as the circumstances admit for either mandatory testing after the required requisite notice periods and the like and or testing.”
“We are amending the Public Health Act because there are certain categories we’ll have to make regulations for as the circumstances admit for either mandatory testing after the required requisite notice periods and the like and or testing.”
However, the head of the Public Service Union, Elroy Boucher, says that the people of St Vincent must demand that the Government withdraw the proposed amendments to the Act.
“The people, every Vincentian will be touched by these amendments if they are allowed to become law, vaccinated or Unvaccinated.”