Commission on Free Movement of Persons installed in Suriname
(Suriname Herald) Minister Steven Mac Andrew of Labour, Employment and Youth Affairs (AWJ) installed the interdepartmental committee on the Free Movement of Persons (VVP) on Thursday for a period of 2 years. This commission arises from the Competent Citizens of the Caribbean Community Act.
This committee, according to the law, must advise the minister on the application of nationals of member countries of the CARICOM to obtain the status of Competent Citizen. The status is recognised by means of a certificate issued by the Minister of AWJ. This allows the applicant to move freely within the CARICOM, including Suriname, to work and reside.
“In this regard, he also mentioned a ruling by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) to the effect that member countries are obliged to grant Competent Citizen status to citizens of the Community, regardless of whether the member country has enacted its legislation in this regard.”
According to Mac Andrew, the Free Movement of Persons is one of the pillars of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), it is a fundamental right of citizens of the Community, to which Suriname has committed itself as a member country of the CARICOM. Against this background, Suriname should not deny the status of Competent Citizen to citizens of the Community to the extent that they are entitled to it under the revised Treaty of Chaguaranas.
At the installation, the Minister emphasised the guarantee of the right of nationals to the status of Competent Citizen within the Caribbean Community, referring to the Free Movement of Persons.
According to Mac Andrew, Suriname has not yet included all categories of Competent Citizens in law, but he believes that should not hinder the newly installed VVP committee to advise positively on recognition of the status of Competent Citizen, as long as the applicant is identified as Skilled Citizen.
Caribbean Court of Justice
In this context, he also mentioned a ruling by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) to the effect that member countries are obliged to grant Competent Citizen status to citizens of the Community, regardless of whether the member country complies with its legislation in this area.
According to the minister, the judgment of the court goes so far that member countries must comply with decisions in this area of decision-making bodies of the CARICOM, including the meeting of heads of state and ministerial bodies.
The categories that Suriname has yet to include in the law include: domestic workers, agricultural workers and security personnel. The other categories are already in the law. These are: academics, media workers, athletes, musicians, artists, teachers and nurses.
In the meantime, the ministry has started the process of giving the other categories a legal basis. Mac Andrew has indicated that later this month he will participate in a special meeting of the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD), convened for the specific purpose of making decisions on the Free Movement of Persons.
He will inform the committee afterwards about decisions regarding VVP that will be taken at this meeting. The commission is headed by the ministry’s Deputy Director of Labor Markets, Naomi Esajas-Friperson. She thanked the Minister for the trust placed in her and the members and assured him that she would act in the spirit of the Skilled Citizens of the Caribbean Community Act and the Free Movement of Persons in relation to the pursuit of integration within the region by the CSME.
Source: CARICOM TODAY