United States Department of State, U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 1995 - Antigua and Barbuda, 30 January 1996, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6aa3230.html [accessed 6 June 2023]
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ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA Antigua and Barbuda, a small two-island state, is a parliamentary democracy and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. A prime minister, a cabinet, and a bicameral legislative assembly compose the Government. A Governor General, appointed by the British monarch, is the titular Head of State, with largely ceremonial duties. In general elections held in March 1994, the Antigua Labour Party (ALP) led by Lester B. Bird retained power by capturing 10 of 17 parliamentary seats, down from the 15 it held under the administration of V. C. Bird, the current Prime Minister's father. The Governor General appoints the 15 senators, 11 with the advice of the Prime Minister and 4 with the advice of the opposition leader. Security forces consist of a police force and the small Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force. The police are organized, trained, and supervised according to British law enforcement practices and have a reputation for respecting individual rights in the performance of their duties. Antigua and Barbuda has a mixed economy with a strong private sector. Tourism is the most important source of foreign exchange earnings. The country is burdened by a large and growing external debt which remains a serious economic problem. The country was devastated in September when hurricane Luis caused hundreds of millions of dollars in losses. Although the Government generally respected constitutional provisions for political and civil rights, opposition parties complained that they received scant coverage from the government-controlled media, and that the Government sometimes denied them permits for rallies. Societal discrimination and violence against women also continued to be problems.
Respect for Human Rights
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no reports of political or other extrajudicial killings.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution prohibits such practices, and the authorities generally respected these prohibitions. Conditions at the lone 18th-century-vintage prison are primitive and crowded, and a 1930 law still governs treatment of prisoners.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention, and the Government respects these provisions in practice. Criminal defendants have the right to a judicial determination of the legality of their detention. The police must bring detainees before a court within 48 hours of arrest or detention. Opposition leaders claim the Government has developed a pattern of arresting suspects on Fridays and holding them until Tuesdays in order to prolong the incarceration. Most of these cases involve youths suspected of narcotics violations. There were no reports of involuntary exile.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The judicial system is part of the Eastern Caribbean legal system and reflects historical ties to the United Kingdom. The Privy Council in London is designated by the Constitution as the final court of appeal, which is invariably employed in the case of death sentences. There are no military or political courts. The Constitution provides that criminal defendants receive a fair, open, and public trial. In capital cases only, the Government provides legal assistance at public expense to persons without the means to retain a private attorney. Courts can reach verdicts with remarkable speed, with some cases coming to conclusion in a matter of days. There were no reports of political prisoners.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
The Constitution prohibits such practices. Government authorities generally respect these prohibitions, and violations are subject to effective legal sanction.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of speech, the press, and other forms of communication. The authorities generally respect these provisions in practice. However, the Government dominates the electronic media--the only daily source of news--and effectively denies equal coverage to opposition parties. The Government owns one of the two radio stations and the single television station. One of the Prime Minister's brothers owns the second radio station, and another brother is the principal owner of the sole cable television company. The government-controlled media report regularly on the Government's and the ruling party's activities, but grant only very limited access to the opposition parties. The sole daily paper keenly criticizes the Government. Early in the year, protests prompted the Government to grant opposition leaders some media access to oppose a series of tax measures. Political opposition parties and private sector organizations such as the Chamber of Commerce publish several weekly newspapers which offer a variety of opinions without government interference.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for the right of peaceful assembly. The police normally issued the required permits for public meetings, but sometimes deny them in order to avert violent confrontations. While the authorities placed some restrictions on demonstrations, the opposition was able to stage numerous public meetings, rallies, and other events with little interference.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government respects this right in practice.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The law provides for these rights, and the Government respects them in practice. There were no reports of forced expulsion of anyone having a valid claim to refugee status. However, government practice remains undefined.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government
The Constitution provides for a multiparty political system accommodating a wide spectrum of political viewpoints. All citizens 18 years of age and older may register and vote by secret ballot. The Constitution requires general elections at least every 5 years. The law obligates the Government to hold voter registration during a fixed period each year, and parties conduct their own registration drives free of government interference. Except for a period in opposition from 1971 to 1976, the ALP has held power continuously since 1951. The opposition has charged that the ALP's longstanding monopoly on patronage and its influence over access to economic opportunities make it extremely difficult for opposition parties to attract membership and financial support. In 1992 public concern over corruption in government spawned the merger of three opposition political parties into the United Progressive Party (UPP). The UPP succeeded in increasing its representation to seven seats from five during the 1994 election. Opposition and press regularly charge members of the Government with corrupt practices. There are no women serving as members of Parliament or as Ministers in the Government. Eight of the 14 Ministry Permanent Secretaries (the top civil servant position in Ministries) are women.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
While there are no governmental restrictions, no local human rights groups have formed to date. There were no requests for human rights investigations or inquiries from individuals or international human rights groups during the year.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability, Language, or Social Status
The law prohibits discrimination based on race, sex, creed, language, or social status, and the Government generally observed its provisions.
Women
Violence against women is a recognized social problem. It is treated as a matter of public conscience, and there are nongovernmental social welfare groups focused on the problem. Women in many cases are reluctant to testify against their abusers. Police generally refrain from intervening in cases of domestic violence, and some women have charged credibly that the courts are lenient in such cases. While the role of women in society is not legally restricted, economic conditions tend to limit women to home and family, particularly in rural areas, although some women work as domestics, in agriculture, or in the large tourism sector. The Government promised in previous years to provide better programs and educational opportunities for both sexes as well as family planning services, but failed to implement any new programs during the year. The Directorate of Women's Affairs exists to help women advance in government and the professions, but progress was slow.
Children
Child abuse remains a hidden problem. While the Government repeatedly expressed its commitment to children's rights, it made no significant efforts to protect those rights in practice, and abuse tends to go unpunished.
People With Disabilities
There are no specific laws mandating accessibility for the disabled, but there are constitutional provisions that prohibit discrimination against the physically disabled in employment and education. There is no evidence of widespread discrimination against physically disabled individuals, although the Government does not visibly enforce the constitutional antidiscrimination provisions.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Workers have the right to associate freely and to form labor unions, and the authorities generally respect these rights in practice. Although fewer than 50 percent of workers belong to unions, the important hotel industry is heavily unionized. Antigua and Barbuda has two major trade unions: the Antigua Trades and Labour Union (ATLU) and the Antigua Workers' Union (AWU). The ATLU is associated with the ruling ALP, while the larger and more active AWU is rather loosely allied with the opposition. The Labor Code recognizes the right to strike, but the Court of Industrial Relations may limit this right in a given dispute. Once either party to a dispute requests the court to mediate, there can be no strike. Because of the delays associated with this process, unions often resolve labor disputes before a strike is called. Unions are free to affiliate with international labor organizations and do so in practice.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Labor organizations are free to organize and bargain collectively. The law prohibits antiunion discrimination, and there were no reports that it occurred. Employers found guilty of antiunion discrimination are not required to rehire employees fired for union activities, but must pay full severance pay and full wages lost by the employee from the time of firing until the determination of employer fault. There are no areas of the country where union organization or collective bargaining is discouraged or impeded. There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Constitution forbids slavery and forced labor, and they do not exist in practice.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The law stipulates a minimum working age of 13, which is respected in practice. The Ministry of Labour, which is required by law to conduct periodic inspections of workplaces, has responsibility for enforcement. There have been no reports of minimum age employment violations. The political strength of the two major unions and the powerful influence of the Government on the private sector combine to make the Ministry of Labour very effective in enforcement in this area.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
The law established minimum wages for various work categories in 1981. The lowest minimum wage, for domestic workers, is $0.46 (EC$1.25) per hour; the highest minimum wage, for skilled labor, is $1.30 (EC$3.50) per hour. Most minimum wages would not provide a decent standard of living for workers and their families, but in practice the great majority of workers earn substantially more than the minimum wage. The law permits a maximum 48-hour, 6-day workweek, but in practice the standard workweek is 40 hours in 5 days. The law provides workers a minimum of 3 weeks of annual leave and up to 13 weeks of maternity leave. There are no occupational health and safety laws or regulations; thus there is no provision for a worker to leave a dangerous workplace situation without jeopardy to continued employment.
