Latest update October 29th, 2026 5:00 AM
CCJ concludes referral sensitisation campaign
(Kaieteur News) – From 2-5 November 2025, a delegation from the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), visited the Republic of Suriname to conduct a sensitisation session on the Court’s Original Jurisdiction and its referral process for members of the Bar Association of Suriname.
During the visit, Justice Winston Anderson, President of the CCJ, also paid courtesy calls on several officials, including the Honourable Mr. Harish Monorath, Minister of Justice and Police; the Honourable Mr. Justice Iwan Rasoelbaks, President of the Court of Justice; and Mrs. Rinnette Djokarto, Dean of the Faculty of Law at the Anton de Kom University of Suriname.
The Honourable Mr. Harish Monorath, Minister of Justice and Police of Suriname, receives the CCJ’s Original Jurisdiction Rules in Dutch from the Honourable Mr. Justice Winston Anderson, CCJ President.
According to a CCJ press release, the workshop was led by President Anderson; Dr. Jacintha Asarfi, Community Law Expert; and Jasmyn Sargeant, Judicial Counsel, CCJ. The sessions covered various topics, including key aspects of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) Regime, domestic incorporation of the CCJ’s Original Jurisdiction dispute settlement regime, the CCJ’s Referral Mechanism, and practising in the Original Jurisdiction.
The session marked the conclusion of a two-year public education campaign executed with financial support from the European Union’s (EU)11th European Development Fund (EDF) support to the Caribbean Court of Justice, focused on enhancing awareness among members of the legal and business community regarding the duty of national courts to refer questions concerning the interpretation and application of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas (RTC) to the CCJ for determination in its Original Jurisdiction.
In its Original Jurisdiction, the CCJ has exclusive and compulsory authority to interpret and apply the RTC, the foundational treaty of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). Therefore, any matters arising out of the functioning of the CSME including rights related to the free movement of goods, services, capital, labour, and the right of establishment must be determined by the CCJ. As such, the Court embarked on a regional public education campaign to raise awareness of its Original Jurisdiction and the process through which national courts must refer such matters to the CCJ.
Sessions were previously conducted in Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, and Trinidad and Tobago. As part of the engagements in Suriname, President Anderson also presented a Dutch translation of the CCJ’s Original Jurisdiction Rules 2024 to the Minister of Justice, and the Judiciary of Suriname symbolising the Court’s commitment to deepening collaboration with Suriname and facilitating greater access to justice in the Original Jurisdiction of the Court. The translated Rules, funded by the EDF, were also used during the sensitisation sessions to enhance understanding and support effective application by members of the Bar.
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