Guyana judges examine effect of international treaties on local laws

Sunday, December 5, 2004

GEORGETOWN, Guyana: A judicial conference that examined how international treaties and conventions relate to local laws opened Friday in Guyana.

Delivering the keynote address, newly installed Chancellor of the University of Guyana Dr. Bertrand Ramcharran, in a paper entitled ‘Principles of International Human Rights Law in the Constitutional Order of Guyana’, noted that the local courts have a duty to uphold international laws.

He quoted various sections of the local Constitution to show their relevance to international Treaties and Conventions.

According to Dr. Ramcharran, the Courts must protect human rights, including international human rights and it must be proactive in this regard.

He posited that it is the responsibility of the Courts to import the provisions of international treaties and conventions as ratified by Guyana into various Constitutional and legal guarantees and that provisions of international human rights laws and related treaties must be applied in concert with human rights provisions of the Constitution.

The Conference was chaired by Chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Desiree Bernard, who noted that Guyana is the first country in the Caribbean to undertake the process of making international treaties into domestic laws. She commended the Government for the “bold step taken to make international treaties part of the culture of Guyana.” 

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