Human Rights in the Eastern Caribbean

In Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines—the independent states of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) ¹ —the constitution, "the supreme law," guarantees individuals certain fundamental human rights and freedoms, in provisions called the Bill of Rights. The legal philosophy of these rights is that they should enable individuals to nurture their talents for the advancement of themselves and the body politic. In this the courts, the legislature, the executive, the bureaucracy, society generally, and the individuals themselves all have their respective roles to play. Legal analysis measures the degree of success attained in the enjoyment of these rights, for the benefit of the individual and society, primarily on the basis of the frequency and the outcome of litigation undertaken to enforce them. This form of analysis is applied in this chapter in an examination of human rights in the OECS.