Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Constitutional structure and position of IHL in domestic law
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is an independent sovereign State within the Commonwealth. The islands belonged to the West Indies Federation from 1958 until its dissolution in 1962, won home rule in 1969 as part of the West Indies Associated States, and achieved full independence on 27 October 1979. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is a parliamentary democracy.
The executive branch includes the Queen of England as the Chief of State (represented by a Governor-General) and a cabinet headed by the Prime Minister. The Parliament comprises the Queen of England (represented by the Governor-General) and a unicameral House of Assembly. The first rung in the ladder of judicial organs is the Magistrate's Court, the next rung being directly the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, (which actually comprises two courts: the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal) and the last being Her Majesty in Council (Privy Council).
Section 101 of the Constitution provides that the Constitution is the supreme law of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and that if any law is inconsistent with it, the Constitution shall prevail to the extent of the inconsistency. The Constitution contains no rules on the ratification of treaties. Legal sources in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines include acts adopted by Parliament, UK laws and regulations that were in effect immediately before 27 October 1979 and have not been repealed, but which may have been amended by the Governor-General before 27 October 1980, and English common law.
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines acceded to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 on 1 April 1981 and to their two Additional Protocols on 8 April 1983.
Full text of the Constitution: 
Constitution (extracts):
Chapter I: Protection of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms
Sect. 5 - Protection from inhuman treatment
No person shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading punishment or other treatment.
Sect. 15 - Protection of persons detained under emergency laws
(1) When a person is detained by virtue of any such law as is referred to in section 14 of this Constitution the following provisions shall apply, that is to say:-
a. he shall, with reasonable promptitude and in any case not more than seven days after the commencement of his detention, be informed in a language that he understands and in detail of the grounds upon which he is detained and furnished with a written statement in English specifying those grounds in detail;
b. not more that fourteen days after the commencement of his detention, a notification shall be published in the Official Gazette stating that he has been detained and giving particulars of the provision of law under which his detention is authorized;
c. not more than one month after the commencement of his detention and thereafter during his detention at intervals of not more than sic month, his case shall be review by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law and presided over by a person appointed by the Chief Justice from among persons who are legal practitioners;
d. he shall be afforded reasonable facilities for private communication and consultation with a legal practitioner of his own choice who shall be permitted to make representations to the tribunal appointed for the review of the case of the detained person; and
e. at the hearing of his case by the tribunal appointed for the review of his case he shall be permitted to appear in person or to be represented by a legal practitioner of his own choice.
(2) On any review by a tribunal in pursuance of this section of the case of a detained person, the tribunal may make recommendations concerning the necessity of expediency of continuing his detention to the authority by which it was ordered but, unless it is otherwise provided by law, that authority shall not be obliged to act in accordance with sly such recommendations.
(3) Nothing contained in subsection (1)d. or subsection (1)e. of this section shall be construed as entitling a person to legal representation at public expense.
Sect. 16 - Enforcement of protective provisions
(1) If any person allege that any of the provisions of sections 2 to 15 inclusive of this Constitution has been, is being or is likely to be contravened in relation to him (or, in the case of a person who is detained, if any other person alleges such a contravention in relation to the detained person), then, without prejudice to any other actin with respect to the same matter that is lawfully available, that person (or that other person) may apply to the High Court for redress.
(2) The High Court shall have original jurisdiction-
a. to hear and determine any application made by any person in pursuance of subsection (1) of this section, and
b. to determine any question arising in the case of any person which is referred to it in pursuance of subsection (3) of this section,
and may make such declarations and orders, issue such writs and give such directions as it may consider appropriate for the purpose of enforcing or securing the enforcement of any of the provisions of sections 2 to 15 (inclusive) of this Constitution:
Provided that the High Court may decline to exercise its powers under this subsection if it is satisfied that adequate means of redress for the contravention alleged are or have been available to the person concerned under any other law.
(3) If in any proceeding in any court (other than the Court of Appeal or the High Court or a court-martial) any question arises as to the contravention of any of the provisions of sections 2 to 15 (inclusive) of this Constitution, the person presiding in that court may, and shall if any party to the proceedings so request, refer the question to the High Court unless, in his opinion, the raising of the question is merely frivolous or vexatious.
(4) Where any question is referred to the High Court in pursuance of subsection (3) of this section, the High Court shall gibe its decision upon the question and the court in which the question arose shall dispose of the case in accordance with that decision or, if that decision is the subject of an appeal to the Court of Appeal or to Her Majesty in Council, in accordance with the decision of the Court of Appeal or,as the case may be, of Her Majesty in Council.
(5) The High Court shall have such powers in addition to those conferred by this section as may be conferred upon it by Parliament for the purpose of enabling or more effectively to exercise the jurisdiction conferred upon it by this section.
(6) The Chief Justice may make rules with respect to the practice and procedure of the High Court in relation to the jurisdiction and power conferred on it by or under this section (including rules with respect to the time within which applications may be brought and references shall be made to the High Court).
Sect. 17 - Declaration of emergency
(1) The Governor General may, by proclamation which shall be published in the Official Gazette, declare that a state of emergency exist for the purposes of this Chapter.
(2) A proclamation under this section shall not be effective unless it contains a declaration that the Governor-General is satisfied-
a. that a public emergency has arisen as a result to the imminence of a state of war between Saint Vincent and a foreign state;
b. that a public emergency has arisen as a result of the occurrence of any volcanic eruption, earthquake, hurricane, flood, fire, outbreak of pestilence or of infectious disease, or other calamity whether similar to the foregoing or not; or
c. that action has been taken, or is immediately threatened by any person, of such a nature and on so extensive a scale, as to be likely to endanger the public safety or to deprive the community or any substantial portion of the community of supplies or services essential to life.
(3) Every declaration of emergency shall lapse-
a. in the case of a declaration made when the House is sitting, at the expiration of a period of seven days beginning with the date of publication of the declaration; and
b. in any other case, at the expiration of a period of twenty-one days beginning with the date of publications of the declarations, unless it has in the meantime been approved by resolution of the House.
(4) A declaration of emergency may at any time be revoked by the Governor-General by proclamation which shall be published in the Official Gazette.
(5) A declaration of emergency that has been approved by resolution of the House in pursuance of subsection (2) of this section shall, subject to the provisions of subsections (3) of this section, remain in force so long as the resolution remains in force and no longer.
(6) a resolution of the House passed for the purposes of this section shall remain in force for twelve months or such shorter period as may be specified therein;
Provided that any such resolution may be extended from time to time by a further such resolution, each extension not exceeding twelve months from the date of the resolution effecting the extension; and any such resolution may be revoked at any time by a further resolution.
(7) A resolution of the House for the purpose of subsection(2) of this section and a resolution of the House extending any such resolution shall not be passed in the House unless it is supported by the votes of two-thirds of all the Representatives; and a resolution revoking any such resolution shall not be so passed unless it is supported by the votes of a majority of all the Representatives.
(8) Any provision of this section that a declaration of emergency shall lapse or cease to be in force at any particular time is without prejudice to the making of a further such declaration whether before or after that time.
Sect. 18 - Interpretation and savings
(1) In this Chapter, unless the context otherwise requires-
"contravention", in relation to any requirement, includes a failure to comply with that requirement, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;
"court" means any court of law having jurisdiction in Saint Vincent other than a court established by a disciplinary law, and includes Her Majesty in Council and in sections 2 and 4 of this Constitution a court established by a disciplinary law;
"disciplinary law" means a law refutating the discipline of any disciplined force;
"discipline force" means-
a. a naval, military or air force;
b. the Police Force; or
c. a prison service;
"legal practitioner" means a person entitled to be in or to enter Saint Vincent and entitled to practice as a barrister in Saint Vincent or except in relation to proceedings before a court in which a solicitor has no right of audience, entitled to practice as a solicitor in Saint Vincent;
"member", in relation to a disciplined force, includes any person who, under the law regulating the discipline of that force, is subject to that discipline.
(2) In this Chapter "period of public emergency" means any period during which-
a. Her Majesty is at war; or
b. a declaration of emergency is in force under section 17 of this Constitution.
(3) In relation to any person who is a member of a disciplined force of Saint Vincent, nothing contained in or done under the authority of the disciplinary law of that force shall be held to be inconsistent with or in contravention of any of the provisions of this Chapter other than sections 2, 4 and 5 of this Constitution.
(4) In relation to any person who is a member of a disciplined force of a country other than Saint Vincent that is lawfully present in Saint Vincent, nothing contained in or done under the authority of the disciplinary law of that force shall be held to be inconsistent with or in contravention of any of the provisions of this Chapter.
