Pursuant to Rule No. 59 of the Legislative Assembly (Procedure) Rules 1976, as Leader of the Opposition and the Elected Member for District One I express my dissent from the report of the Select Committee of the whole House of Assembly on Constitutional and Electoral Reform.
My dissent to the report of this Select Committee must in no way be misconstrued or misrepresented as being in direct objection to the proposed reforms set out in the Constitutional and Electoral Reform Committee’s report. To the contrary, the record will show that I have been an advocate for proposed reforms such as grandchildren being recognized as Anguillians and At Large Voting, among others. It is of utmost importance therefore to provide a fulsome explanation as to my decision in dissenting to the report of this Committee.
In my representations in this Honourable House, in the Select Committee meetings and elsewhere in the public domain, I have noted the following in relation to the Constitutional and Electoral Reform process in Anguilla:
1. While the work of the Constitutional and Electoral Reform Committee over the past few years has been extensive, and with meaningful consultation with the Anguillian people, the piecemeal approach taken by this government in “cherry-picking” reforms proposed by that Committee, and excluding other important reforms which collectively are designed to strengthen our democratic system holistically, is a betrayal of the process and the will of the people of Anguilla in these matters.
2. In the construction of the Select Committee of the whole House of Assembly on Constitutional and Electoral Reform, I insisted, based on the principle of effective and meaningful consultation, that the membership of the Select Committee be broadened and more inclusive. In a letter to the Honourable Premier, dated 19th April 2019, I stated the following: “I require that in addition to including earlier members of that committee in our deliberations that we also invite fresh representation from the united opposition, the churches, the business sector, the Chamber of Commerce, fifth and sixth formers, unions, and as many public bodies as possible to ensure we secure wide opinion and buy in.” This request was denied.
3. Specifically as regards the new Elections Act (2019), the bill lacks the comprehensive electoral reforms that the people of Anguilla called for during the consultative process, under the stewardship of the able Constitutional and Electoral Reform Committee. Such comprehensive reforms that have been excluded from this bill include:
• The Establishment of an Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission for the purpose of reviewing and, if necessary, adjusting the district boundaries in Anguilla to achieve an equal number of voters between districts. This is to achieve Equal Suffrage – a democratic principle which ensures that each vote in an election carries equal weight.
• The Establishment of an Integrity Commission, to provide proper and effective oversight of the conduct of political parties and candidates in the electoral cycle. Such a Commission should also have the responsibility to develop a Code of Conduct and a mandatory Register of Interests (financial and otherwise) for elected officials. This is essential to the proper checks and balances of our executive and legislative branches of government.
• A New Enumeration Year, a New Voters List and Continuous Registration, with the power to ask new registrants to appear in person to complete the registration process. This was to address major concerns raised about voter registration which tarnished confidence in the voters list which, in 2015 was published only two days prior to polling day.
• The Right to Stand. The International Convention on Civil and Political Rights guarantees the right of individuals to stand in elections and become an elected member. Previous election observation reports have pointed to the potential violation of citizens’ rights. For example, public servants must resign their posts in order to stand for elections. This is restrictive and potentially violates their right to stand. Calls to address this issue and to provide an equal and level playing field for all who wish to come forward and serve their communities have been ignored.
• Campaign Finance Regulations. Such regulations are to ensure accountability and transparency in the process, and demand that individuals and political parties engaging in general election campaigns in Anguilla disclose their source of campaign funds. This is to ensure that special interest groups and other questionable individuals have no influence in our electoral process.
Furthermore, The Venice Commission which sets International Standards and Best Practices in Electoral Law, and of which the United Kingdom is a long standing member, notes a minimum threshold of 12 months to effectively implement changes to the electoral system proper. In addition, the Venice Commission states, under the heading “Regulatory Levels and Stability of Electoral Law”, that if there are any changes or amendments to the electoral law itself in a country, the old system will apply to the next election – at least if it takes place within the coming year – and the new one will take effect after that. Therefore, with our next election constitutionally due in April 2020 we have passed the minimum time threshold to effectively implement changes to our electoral system proper. Despite several questions raised on this issue, the executive branch has given no real and tangible consideration to the fact that their actions are in direct violation of international standards and best practices in terms of electoral law.
In the absence of proper inclusion, dialogue and deliberation on this important bill, and the lack of comprehensive reforms as outlined in the Constitutional and Electoral Reform Committee’s Report, the foundation upon which this bill should be constructed, I must express my deepest objection to its passage in the House of Assembly and its assent by the Governor.
As members of the legislature we must act always on the will of the people. The will of the people in this case is for a comprehensive Constitutional and Electoral Reform process which is designed to strengthen democracy in Anguilla by achieving broad consensus among all stakeholders involved, and implemented in a holistic way. As assurance of this, the process of Constitutional and Electoral Reform, and the decision to adopt a new Constitution for Anguilla, should be ratified by a referendum enabling the electorate to give its final stamp of approval.
In light of the piecemeal approach to Constitutional and Electoral Reform undertaken by this AUF administration, coupled with the exclusion of important reforms to the electoral system proper from the Elections Act 2019; the absence of requirements for an Integrity Commission and an Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission; and the lack of proper inclusion and deliberation in the Select Committee; as the Elected Member for District One and Leader of the Opposition, I express my dissent from the Select Committee’s report.
Pam Webster
Leader of the Opposition
