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This article was downloaded by: [Queen Mary, University of London] On: 06 October 2014, At: 10:32 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK Commonwealth Law Bulletin Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rclb20 Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions Don McKinnon a a Commonwealth SecretaryGeneral , London, UK Published online: 17 May 2008. To cite this article: Don McKinnon (2007) Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions, Commonwealth Law Bulletin, 33:4, 701-704, DOI: 10.1080/03050710701814938 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03050710701814938 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub- licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly

Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions

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This article was downloaded by: [Queen Mary, University of London]On: 06 October 2014, At: 10:32Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH,UK

Commonwealth Law BulletinPublication details, including instructions for authorsand subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rclb20

Meeting of Law Ministers andAttorneys General of SmallCommonwealth JurisdictionsDon McKinnon aa Commonwealth Secretary‐General , London, UKPublished online: 17 May 2008.

To cite this article: Don McKinnon (2007) Meeting of Law Ministers and AttorneysGeneral of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions, Commonwealth Law Bulletin, 33:4,701-704, DOI: 10.1080/03050710701814938

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03050710701814938

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all theinformation (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform.However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make norepresentations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, orsuitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressedin this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not theviews of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content shouldnot be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sourcesof information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions,claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilitieswhatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connectionwith, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes.Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly

forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

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Commonwealth Law BulletinVol. 33, No. 4, 701–704, December 2007

0305–0718 print/1750–5976 online/07/040701–04©2007 Commonwealth SecretariatDOI: 10.1080/03050710701814938

Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions

DON McKINNON

Commonwealth Secretary-General, London, UK

Taylor and FrancisRCLB_A_281565.sgm10.1080/03050710701814938Commonwealth Law Bulletin0365-0718 (print)/1750-5976 (online)Original Article2007Taylor & Francis3340000002007AldoZammit-Bordaa.zammit-borda@commonwealth.int

Opening Address

The following Opening Address was delivered by the Commonwealth Secretary-General tothe Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General of Small Commonwealth Jurisdictions(LMSCJ), which was held at Marlborough House, London, on 4–5 October 2007.

A very warm welcome to the 10th Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General ofSmall Commonwealth Jurisdictions.

You have met every three years since the first such meeting in July 1983, on the Isle ofMan. Your last meeting was in London, in October 2004, and no one will quite forget theheat of the excellent debate that was had, on how far we should legislate for human rights.

That adds up to 24 years of Commonwealth support in the many challenges you face:

in

domestic

law, with the day-to-day responsibilities of legal administration, lawreform, legislative drafting and legal education – all with little human and capitalresources; and

in

international

law, in meeting the ever-increasing demands of internationalobligations.

In that quarter of a century, there have been many highlights in our work together.

There have been the highlights that make headlines: for instance in drafting the Consti-tution of St Kitts and Nevis in 1983, or the Constitution of Swaziland in 2006 – the latteradopted after more than 30 years of rule by decree.

There have been the less obvious ‘highlights’ of our more painstaking, perhaps lessglamorous, work, like:

reviewing legislation on the 1982 Law of the Sea;

helping negotiate maritime boundaries, for instance in Grenada;

running short courses in legislative drafting in Africa and the Caribbean; and

assisting the way Commonwealth Small States report to the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee.

So today is about partnership – and planning for the practicalities of implementingpolicy.

The Commonwealth membership may include some of the world’s most populousStates, but the 53 nations also include 32 official ‘Small States’ which have populations under

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702 Don McKinnon

1.5 million. We tend to join them with Botswana, Jamaica, Lesotho, Namibia, and PapuaNew Guinea which are not much bigger. Some 25 of you are here today.

Small jurisdictions have a special place in the family that is the Commonwealth, and thatis why it has long championed their cause, especially in the areas of trade, the environmentand maritime boundaries.

It is also why the Commonwealth joined forces with the World Bank on Small States.In 2000, we convened a global conference on a Development Agenda for Small States. Alandmark Report followed in 2000 and another in 2005.

1

The 2000 Report talked of vulnerabilities. It established how Small States suffer fromtheir remoteness, their susceptibility to natural disasters, their limited institutional capacity,and their limited potential for economic diversification.

The 2005 Report talked of new concerns, like the removal of trade preferences fortraditional exports like bananas and sugar, and rising concerns over youth unemployment,security and crime, as well as HIV/AIDS. Yet in fact it talked less about vulnerabilities, andmore about resilience.

Both Reports agreed that Small States’ best hopes lie in economic diversification,especially in services like tourism, financial services and health.

Meanwhile, alongside those Reports, we in the Commonwealth have also pointed atsome of the legal challenges posed to Small States, by having to implement new WorldTrade Organization (WTO) rules.

This is especially the case in the area of intellectual property, where Small States oftenhave neither the capacity to introduce the new legislation, nor, sometimes, the interest indoing so. Here, I think especially of the patent regime on access to medicines.

Put simply, more expensive and less available medicines can seriously affect SmallStates’ ability to handle HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, etc. WTO policies have also leftSmall States powerless to preserve what is known as their ‘traditional knowledge’. If a multi-national pharmaceutical company wants to appropriate a local medicinal herb or cure, thenbasically it can – and the country from which it takes has very little legal recourse to protector even benefit from what was theirs.

So Commonwealth Small States have as many legal challenges as they have economicchallenges. And we can come together and discuss them today, in part because we come

from

the same place, with the shared legal tradition of the common law system, and in partbecause we are going

to

the same place, in meeting the same challenges.

When it comes to implementing

domestic

law, in Small States, specialisation in the lawis a luxury. The Small States lawyer frequently has to be a jack-of-all-trades: from handlingcriminal prosecutions, to appearing in civil matters, to drafting legislation. There is a lawyerfor every 130 people here in the UK. In my colleague Katalaina Sapolu’s Samoa, there is onefor every 2,000 people.

Meanwhile when it comes to implementing

international

law, first, there is no chance –in the globalised 21st century, in which a challenge for one is a challenge for all – of SmallState isolation from global developments. If international law applies to large-state Kenya,then it also applies to small-state Kiribati.

1 These Reports are available at www.worldbank.org/smallstates.

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Meeting of Law Ministers and Attorneys General 703

But, second, it is clear that Small States genuinely lack the capacity to fulfil their newinternational legal obligations. Hence the keynote paper before you for this meeting (onwhich I commend Dr Chaloka Beyani for his excellent work).

To take one example: last year, on the 40th anniversary of the signing of the twoInternational Covenants on Human Rights – ‘Civil & Political’ and ‘Economic, Social/ &Cultural’ – we spoke at length to Small State jurisdictions which had not ratified them, andasked why.

One problem was the time and complexity of reporting obligations. Another problemwas, simply, working out which ministries were supposed to take responsibility forsafeguarding which human rights. Another still, was simply making the time to draft and passnew legislation.

So we see your problems – and we help you solve them.

Real progress has been made. In the human rights area, Maldives has now ratified theCovenants in the last 12 months; while others – I think of Papua New Guinea and Samoa –are giving them very serious consideration.

We in the Commonwealth have helped this process with short, sharp and focusedassistance. For instance, in the Maldives we provided support in the ratification of the twoinstruments, and also in the Convention against Torture. We also convened a workshop forthe police on human rights.

The Human Rights Covenants are just two of the international legal obligations. Todayyou will be discussing several more – like the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, andthe Conventions on International Trade in Endangered Species, and on the Prevention ofMarine Pollution from Ships.

I take special interest in two particular aspects of your discussions on implementinginternational legal obligations.

First – in the alliance of governments and peoples that is the modern Commonwealth– let me raise the role of civil society as partners in these processes.

I know that not all of you agree, and that there is debate to be had. But when I thinkof the advocacy role of Transparency International and others like it in helping governmentsmove towards ratifying the UN’s Anti-Corruption Charter UNCAC, then I fully see thevalue of civil society engagement in government debates.

Today I urge you to look at the best ways to achieve constructive engagement betweengovernment and civil society when it comes to implementing international law.

Second, let me raise the way in which

international law

is adopted by becoming part of

domestic

law. To domesticate international law requires political will. This is not always aneasy task, especially when it comes up against local, often time-honoured, culture.

Slowly but surely, we are witnessing change here. For instance, we are helping theCaribbean Community (CARICOM) develop model laws in areas like equal opportunity,and domestic violence. I ask you to look at these issues today, as well.

So what is the foundation stone of everything that

you

are, and everything that wediscuss in these meetings? It is this: whether Commonwealth Small States are enforcingdomestic law or international law, they are enforcing the

Rule of Law

, as enshrined by ourCommonwealth Declarations of Principle of 1971 and 1991.

Those Principles were developed further by the 2004 Commonwealth (Latimer House)Principles which defined and differentiated the roles of the three pillars of government: thelegislature, the executive and the judiciary.

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704 Don McKinnon

But some recent events in some small jurisdictions have weakened the rule of law.

You may know that I have just returned from a meeting of the Commonwealth Minis-terial Action Group in New York, where the situation in Fiji was discussed. There, the ChiefJustice was unlawfully and forcibly removed, and an acting Chief Justice was then appointed– again unlawfully. By these acts, the judiciary was in effect politicised, and its independencecompromised.

An independent judiciary is integral to upholding the rule of law. ‘Independent’ shouldnever mean ‘unaccountable’ – but it should mean ‘independent’.

Ministers, Attorneys-General, the rule of law is your professional reason for being. Itis what guarantees your citizens policing that ‘serves and protects’. It is what guaranteesthem fair trial in a court of law, according to the statutes of national legislation. If they arefound guilty of a crime, it is what guarantees them reliable, responsible remand and rehabil-itation.

And when we ask what the rule of law actually means to us, I recall Eisenhower, whosaid that ‘the clearest way to show what the Rule of Law means to us in everyday life, is torecall what has happened when there is no Rule of Law’.

May the force of that vision be a lantern to your feet and a light to your paths.

I wish you a very successful conference – thank you.

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