Some aspects of the Sunset Legislation currently in place in the nine countries hosting Cricket World Cup 2007,in the Caribbean may remain, but others may not, Chairman of the Caribbean Community, Dr. The Honourable Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, said yesterday.
For example, the Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS) has worked well, and should remain, he told a press conference at the CARICOM Secretariat following a day-long visit there. The APIS, he pointed out, has managed to trap unscrupulous persons, and narrow their sphere of operation.
But unless there were “real changes in the arrangement”, he was doubtful that the Single Domestic Space, established from February 1 to May 15, “will survive” given the fact that it involved the suspension of visa abolition agreements. Suspension of those agreements on an ongoing basis would be problematic, he said.
Sharing of information and personnel would most likely continue, he surmised. He told the media that the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and Barbados participate in a Regional Security System ,and routinely shared intelligence on drug, human and small arms trafficking. Current information-sharing has extended that cooperation Region-wide, and that needed to continue, the Chairman said.
Dr. Gonsalves arrived in Guyana yesterday morning for a visit to the CARICOM Secretariat and will depart on Saturday morning. He is accompanied by Ms Nerissa Gittens, Deputy, Integration Unit, Office of the Prime Minister, Mr. Hans King, Press Secretary, Office of the Prime Minister, and Ms Angie Williams, Private Secretary, Office of the Prime Minister.
