By Vernon Daley, Staff ReporterMEMBERS OF the governing People's National Party (PNP) and the Opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) are to begin talks today aimed at finding common ground on constitutional reform.
The meeting, which is a follow-up to the recent Vale Royal summit, will tackle key issues such as the differences between both parties on the proposed Charter of Rights, which aims to expand the rights that Jamaicans now enjoy.
The parties will also discuss whether the country should retain its basic system of Government, or move to have an executive president who would be elected separately from Members of Parliament. The proposed Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) will also be on the table.
Delroy Chuck, Dorothy Lightbourne and Bruce Golding will form the JLP's team at the meeting, while A.J. Nicholson, K.D. Knight and John Junor will represent the PNP.
Mr. Chuck explained the Opposition's concerns about the Charter of Rights when The Gleaner spoke with him last week.
He argued that the Bill, as currently drafted, gives the people rights with one hand and takes them away with the other. For example, he said the proposed Charter gives rights, which can be overridden by Parliament in periods of public emergency or disaster.
RIGHTS IN DANGER
He singled out Clause 13 (2) of the Bill as one of the main dangers to citizens. The clause guarantees the rights of citizens but these rights could be stripped away, "Save only as may be demonstrably justified in a free, peaceful, orderly and democratic society..."
The words 'peaceful' and 'orderly', Mr. Chuck said, give the Government a dangerous power to take away people's rights in periods where there is some unrest in the society.
The JLP spokesman contended that in the current environment of lawlessness and crime, the Government would have the right, under the proposed Charter, to take away the basic rights of the citizens.
He also criticised the current Charter for what, he said, was its complex language and the difficulty it posed for persons trying to figure out what were their basic rights.
BURDEN OF PROOF ON GOVERNMENT
Attorney-General A.J. Nicholson, who returned to the island on the weekend, was unavailable for comment yesterday. However, in opening the debate on the Charter in the House in June, Prime Minister P.J. Patterson said the new Charter would place the burden on the Government to justify its actions in cases where it takes away the rights of citizens.
Mr. Patterson also pointed to new restrictions in the Charter on the Government's ability to declare a state of public emergency. Under the proposed amendments, the duration of a public emergency will be shortened from one month to 14 days and from a maximum duration of 12 months, when extended, to a maximum of three months.
Additionally, before such a declaration can be made it must be supported by a two-thirds majority of the Members of the House, rather than a simple majority, as is now the case.
The House of Representatives, in June, suspended debate on the Charter of Rights Bill, after the JLP raised concerns about some of its clauses. The Opposition had also questioned whether the Government had obeyed the constitutional requirement of allowing three months between the time the Bill was first brought to the House and when it was debated.
At today's meeting, the parties will also try to work through areas of agreement on the form of Government the country should have.
