KINGSTOWN, St Vincent – The St Vincent and the Grenadines Human Rights Association (SVGHRA) said today it would resist any attempt by the ruling Unity Labour Party (ULP) to prevent its members from participating in a local group monitoring the December 13 general elections.
Prime Minister and ULP leader, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, told party supporters last night that his party would inform the Christian Council that it will not accept the HRA as part of the National Monitoring and Consultative Mechanism (NMCM).
But SVGHRA president Nicole Sylvester, an attorney, said she was “shocked” at the position adopted by the prime minister.
“It’s an outrage. It’s an outrage. [This is] the very Prime Minister who asked me to be ambassador to the United Nations and I refused; who asked me to be in the High Commission in London. … He also invited me in the 90s to contest as a candidate for his party in the South Leeward constituency. I refused,” Sylvester said.
“We also have members of our executive who are … members and strong supporters of the Unity Labour Party … and that is not a concern to us because we believe that democracy must flourish. Their political persuasion has nothing to do with their rights as a human rights individual.
“I am very strong in ensuring that democracy reigns. Clearly he (the Prime Minister) has a difficulty with that but we are going to have a caucus meeting and any attempts to stop the Human Rights [Association] … and any attempt to say that I am an NDP activist, we will march and demonstrate on Friday in this country,” Sylvester said.
The ULP and the main opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) agreed in 2001 to have the Christian Council and NMCM monitor general elections here in addition to regional and international observers. (CMC)
