Know Your Rights: A look at the Constitution
Every year on September 24th we celebrate Republic Day to commemorate the day when the first Parliament met under Trinidad and Tobago’s new Republican Constitution in 1976. As a newly formed Republic, we relinquished the Queen as our Head of State and swore in our first President, Sir Ellis Clarke, who replaced the monarch. Our new Constitution marked an age of fully independent governance and symbolised freedom from colonial rule.
A constitution is similar to a rule book for a country, describing how the State should be governed and how power is distributed. It is the supreme law of this land; no law can contradict the Constitution except in a few restricted cases.
The Eleven Fundamental Rights and Freedoms
A key feature of our democratic constitution is that it enshrines certain fundamental human rights and freedoms. These rights, set out in Section 4 of our Constitution, are to exist without discrimination based on race, origin, colour, religion or sex. They are:
- The right to life, liberty, security of the person and enjoyment of property and the right not to be deprived of them without due process of law;
- The right to equality before the law and to be protected by the law;
- The right to respect for an individual’s private and family life;
- The right to equality of treatment from any public authority;
- The right to join political parties and to express political views;
- The right of a parent or guardian to provide a school of his own choice for the education of his child or ward;
- Freedom of movement;
- Freedom of conscience and religious belief and observance;
- Freedom of thought and expression;
- Freedom of association and assembly (this includes the right to hold meetings, sit-ins, strikes and to form trade unions); and
- Freedom of the press.
More Protection
Section 5 (2) of the Constitution sets out additional rights. It states that Parliament may not pass any law that:
- authorises the arbitrary detention, imprisonment or exile of a person;
- imposes cruel and unusual treatment on a person;
- deprives a person who has been arrested or detained of—
- the right to be informed promptly of the reason for his arrest or detention;
(ii) the right to retain a legal adviser of his own choice;
(iii) the right to be brought promptly before the court;
(iv) the remedy of habeas corpus to bring a detainee before the court to determine if his detention is lawful and to release him if the detention is unlawful.
- forces a person to incriminate himself
- deprives a person of the right to a fair hearing;
- deprives a person charged with a criminal offence of the right—
- to be presumed innocent;
- to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal; or
- to reasonable bail;
- deprives a person of the right to an interpreter in any proceedings in which he is involved, if he does not understand or speak English; or
- deprives a person of the right to the procedural provisions that are necessary to give effect to the said rights and freedoms.
Exceptions
While Section 5 of the Constitution declares that no law may breach the fundamental rights and freedoms, there are exceptions to this because there needs to be a balance between the rights of an individual against the rights of others, public safety and maintaining a well-functioning society. For example, Section 13 of the Constitution provides that Parliament can make laws which are inconsistent with Sections 4 and 5 of the Constitution if the law is reasonably justifiable and the relevant Bill obtained a vote of at least a three-fifths majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Parliament may also make laws inconsistent with Sections 4 and 5 during a State of Emergency, which can only be called if the country is threatened by war, there has been a natural disaster or outbreak, or the public safety is endangered or about to be endangered or a large part of the community is susceptible to being deprived of essential supplies or services.
If any agent of the State has infringed any of the rights protected by the Constitution, the affected person can file a constitutional motion in the High Court to enforce their rights. It is important that you as a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago know your rights under the Constitution so that you can enjoy the freedom of a free and fair society.
Submitted By: Johanne Ryan
Paralegal
Civil Legal Department
Legal Aid and Advisory Authority,
23 Stanmore Avenue, Port of Spain.
Contact: 638-5222
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.laaa.org.tt
This article is not legal advice. Consult an Attorney for legal issues.