Last Updated on November 24, 2022, 6:00 AM AST by Anthony Morris
Attorney General Garth Wilkin, The Minister of Justice and Legal affairs in the government of St Kitts and Nevis, is attending the Commonwealth Law Ministers’ Meeting in Balaclava, Mauritius. Attorney General Wilkins travelled to Mauritius for three days as a representative of St Kitts and Nevis.
The Commonwealth Law Ministers’ Meeting is being hosted under the theme: “Strengthening international cooperation through the rule of law and the protection of human rights.”
The meeting takes place once every three years. The main objective of the meeting, in accordance with the theme, is to advance Commonwealth consensus and cooperation and enable Law Ministers to set clear directions on a range of legal, the rule of law and justice issues of mutual interest to the various countries.
The Commonwealth Law Ministers’ Meeting was attended by various Law Ministers and Senior Legal Officers from other Commonwealth Caribbean nations.
The officials and leaders from nations Belize, British Virgin Islands, Grenada, Jamaica, St Vincent & The Grenadines, Trinidad & Tobago, along with the representatives of the 56 independent countries that constitute the Commonwealth in Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific, were in attendance at the event.
The Attorney General Garth Wilkin stated that “These meetings are very important for small island states like St Kitts and Nevis as we lack the human capacity essential to develop all the necessary complex systems and laws to preserve and enhance the rule of law.
The Attorney-General elaborated, For example, we have no National Computer Emergency Response (“CER”) Structure. This, according to Minister Wilkin, is a need given the proliferation of international cybercrimes.
During the event, The Minister of Justice and Legal affairs, Garth Wilkin promised to return home with the best practice policies and model laws to implement a CER Team and National Cybercrime Response Plan.
He plans to execute the implementation with the assistance of Konris Maynard, Minister of ICT.
The Attorney-General also held discussions with the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Dr Emmanuel Ugirashebuja of Rwanda,regarding the various legal systems that can be adapted to serve the people in St Kitts & Nevis.
Particularly, the two ministers talked about Rwanda’s innovative Legal Aid and Criminal Investigation systems. Further, during the meeting, Minister Garth Wilkin negotiated technical support from the Director of the Criminal Justice Unit of the Ministry of Legal Affairs in Trinidad & Tobago, Farzana Nazir-Mohammed.
The support will be beneficial for the Criminal Justice Reform project of St Kitts and Nevis. Attorney-General Garth Wilkin initiated this project since taking office.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
