Although the 26 Haitian nationals who were detained for weeks at the state-run Hugo Chavez Centre for Rehabilitation and Reintegration have left Guyana, acting Chief Justice Roxane George yesterday denied a request by Attorney General Anil Nandlall to dismiss the pending application filed on their behalf over the alleged violation of their fundamental rights by the state.
During a virtual hearing yesterday afternoon, Nandlall told the court that the whereabouts of the 26 Haitians are unknown and asked that the case to be dismissed as the subjects of the application are no longer in the jurisdiction.
He noted that he had written a letter to attorney Darren Wade, who has been representing the interest of the immigrants, asking him to disclose their locations or to present them to the court during the hearing. He stated that he had never received a response.
“I don’t think that the persons on whose behalf these proceedings are filed are within the jurisdiction of Guyana and, therefore, I will ask on that basis that the application be dismissed,” Nandlall stated.
Wade, who had started the hearing by asking for an extension of time, stated that he did receive an email from Nandlall regarding the issue and he has confronted his client, who told him that he had been in communication with persons from the AG Chambers. He subsequently admitted that the Haitians had indeed left the jurisdiction but added he believes that there are serious issues in the case that need to be addressed and the court should at least make declarations on the matter as their rights have been violated.
He further argued that the law does not say that the subjects of the applicant need to be in jurisdiction for the court to decide on if they should proceed with the matter.
Following his argument, Nandlall denied the claims of him being in contact with Wade’s client and noted that while the attorney is claiming to have a client, he does not.
“[The applicant] represents 26 persons who are no longer here. The court ought not to act in vain. The court ought not to act where the ruling will be only of academic importance…The only narrative in law that is before the court is our affidavit, which in answer has not been denied or taken issue with. So this case is far from being proven and I am inviting the court that now that the subjects of matter [are no longer here], the litigation is beyond the territorial jurisdictions of this court [and I ask] the court to respectfully… decline proceeding any further with this matter. It is exactly what the state was alleging in the first place, that the exact suspicion that the state had when it activated its processes and took these persons into custody is the exact thing that has played out,” he added.
However, the Chief Justice noted that based on her assessment of the application, there are numerous issues on the submissions presented by the state that need to be addressed. She said the issues that need to be addressed are not necessarily academic but for future guidance on how such a matter should dealt with. She subsequently denied Wade the extension he was requesting and told Nandlall that she will be proceeding with the case, while stressing that he is making the assumption that the applicant no longer has the authority to proceed with the case since he representing a group of persons that are presently not in the country. She noted that the absence of the subjects of applicant in the court and by extension the country does not mean that they do not want to proceed with the case.
Meanwhile, mentioning some of the issues she wishes to clarify and address, Justice George stated that she is trying to understand at what point were the subjects no longer considered victims of trafficking and at what point it was determined that they were prohibited immigrants. She added that she also wishes to know the status of the subjects between November 8th and November 30th, among several other things.
The next hearing is fixed for January 27th at 3 pm for clarifications or ruling.
Just over a week ago Justice George-Wiltshire granted a conservatory order staying a previous order made by Principal Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus for the 26 Haitian nationals to be deported.
The foreign nationals, including seven children, had been detained for weeks at the state-run Hugo Chavez Centre for Rehabilitation and Reintegration.
They were to be deported for allegedly lying about where they would be staying during their visit to Guyana.
According to Wade, the action is “arbitrary” and was conducted with a clear disregard to his clients’ rights to natural justice.
“They were not informed of, nor allowed to respond to the charge. There is no evidence I have seen supporting the contention made in the applications,” he had previously told Stabroek News in an invited comment.
The Ministry of Home Affairs announced during the latter part of November that the Haitian nationals were found after the police conducted two search-and-cordon exercises in Georgetown and Region Ten.
Some of the Haitian nationals were discovered in a city hotel, while others were found in a minibus on the Linden-Mabura road.
According to a ministry statement, the discovery was made as part of an investigation into a suspected human smuggling racket and trafficking in persons ring.
The Haitians have, however, denied any involvement in trafficking.
Wade, in presenting their case, had argued that since those detained had committed no crime or been accused of committing any crime, their detention was illegal.
The Attorney General’s Chambers had, however, disclosed that the Haitians were being kept in custody for deportation.