Geneva, Switzerland - Opening Statement by Senator The Honourable Carl Wilshire Bethel Attorney-General Third Cycle (29th Session) Of The Universal Periodic Review Of The Commonwealth Of The Bahamas 17th January, 2018 Human Rights Council Office Of The High Commissioner For Human Rights:

Introduction

Excellencies, Members of the Human Rights Council, representatives of civil society, ladies and gentlemen — good afternoon.

Mr. President , first of all, on behalf of my delegation, I congratulate you on your election as President of the Human Rights Council for this 12t h cycle. I also wish to congratulate the members of the Bureau.

I would also like to extend sincere thanks and appreciation to His Excellency Ambassador Joaquin Maza Martelli, former President, for his able leadership of the Council during the previous cycle, leaving a legacy of creating a system for the improvement of better management of the Council’s workload.

My thanks also to the Troika selected for The Bahamas- Chile, Qatar and Senegal- for the assistance rendered to my delegation in this process.

It is indeed an honour and a pleasure for me to represent the Commonwealth of The Bahamas at this Third Cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and 29t h Session of the UPR Working Group.

Mr. President , at the national level, our participation in this process is symbolic of the significance which The Bahamas attributes to the promotion and protection of fundamental freedoms and human rights and of its commitment to the principles of the United Nations and other international bodies that seek to promote and protect such rights. On behalf of myself, members of my delegation and my country, I wish to reaffirm The Bahamas’ commitment and support for the work of the Human Rights Council (HRC) and its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism.

Before I commence my opening remarks, it is appropriate to begin by thanking the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and all contributing Members of the Voluntary Fund for Participation, for facilitating The Bahamas’ involvement in this Review.

Let me now introduce the other Members of The Bahamas’ Delegation, who are as follows: Mr. Frank Davis, Minister Counsellor/Deputy Permanent Representative & Charge d’affaires; Ms. Jewel Major, Chief Counsel within the Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Legal Affairs; Ms. Alicia Gibson, Assistant Counsel in the Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Legal Affairs and Ms. DeAndra Cartwright, Foreign Service Officer within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, joined by members of the Permanent Mission of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas to the United Nations and other International Organizations.

Background

Mr. President , the contemporary history of The Bahamas begins with a quest for religious freedoms. Throughout the centuries, the people who settled these islands have adopted a respect for human rights and the rule of law, which continues to thrive today.

Mr. President , this reveals the long association of this beautiful archipelago in the Atlantic with respect for the fundamental rights and freedoms of all humanity, a concept which our founding fathers thought important enough to enshrine in our Constitution, the supreme law of the land, as an ideal for future generations. Thus, the procedure we are embarking on today is only a continuation of a historical journey of national commitment to advancing human rights.

Approach

Mr. President , I should now like to indicate the manner in which I will approach my remarks. Firstly, I will outline a few general considerations which have important legal and institutional implications for the implementation of human rights on the domestic level. Secondly, I will update the Council on the thematic areas of concern and specific recommendations made to The Bahamas during the course of the UPR and from other human rights treaty bodies. Thirdly, I will respond to the advance questions posed by some Member States of the Council, to the extent that these are not answered in the general traverse of the thematic areas.

Constitutional and legislative framework

Mr. President , there are two jurisprudential issues which need to be mentioned at the outset, as they form an important part of the legal and institutional framework of the human rights environment in The Bahamas.

Firstly, The Bahamas is a Constitutional Democracy, which Constitution entrenches many of its provisions, especially those related to fundamental rights and freedoms. These require special procedures, parliamentary majorities and referenda for their change or amendment thus making constitutional change very difficult, no matter how vital the proposed changes may be.

Secondly, the dualist nature of our legal system requires the transformation of international conventions into domestic law to render them applicable in the domestic system. However, in a small state with limited resources, this can pose serious obstacles to the effective and efficient domestication of international human rights. Nevertheless, the Government is committed to this process and is determined to improve the domestication of such instruments...

See attached full opening statement by Carl Wilshire Bethel

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