INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTS

INTERNATIONAL TREATIES

Apart from its domestic laws, SVG has signed, ratified, and acceded to a number of international documents under the United Nations (UN) and the Organization of American States (OAS). These documents (declarations/treaties/conventions) may give rise to a number of international legal obligations.

The UN is one of the largest international organizations in the world. Amongst other things, it is dedicated to promoting human rights. This includes promoting equality and non-discrimination. To learn more about the United Nations Human Rights System, follow this link and check the UN Treaty Body Database for important documents. To learn more about some of the different documents under the UN that SVG has signed, ratified, or acceded to, see the links below:

Charter

United Nations Charter

Declaration

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Civil and Political Rights

Social and Economic Rights

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

Children's rights

Women's rights

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

Racial Rights

International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination

Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Asylum, Refugee and/or Migrant rights

Indigenous Persons

Universal Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous persons

SVG has ratified or acceded to some treaties or important documents under the OAS.

Under the OAS we have the Interamerican Human Rights System which is the regional human rights mechanism for member states in the OAS. The Interamerican Court of Human Rights is located in San José, Costa Rica, and the Interamerican Commission on Human Rights is located in Washington, USA. To learn more about the Interamerican System of Human Rights, kindly follow this link.

Learn more about some of the different documents under the OAS which SVG has signed, ratified, or acceded to below:

Charter

Charter of the Organization of American States

Declaration

The American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man

Women's Rights

Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence Against Women "Convention of Belem do Para"

NON-BINDING INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTS

There are many non-binding international documents that may be useful concerning promoting equality and protecting against discrimination in SVG.

Declaration of Principles on Equality and commentary

The Declaration was created by a group of experts and activists, outlining the principles relating to the fundamental international human rights norms of equality and non-discrimination.

1. Declaration of Principles on Equality

2. Commentary on the Declaration of Principles on Equality

LGBTQ+ rights

Presently, there is no binding international convention on States protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ persons, however, we do have the Yogyakarta Principles and the Yogyakarta Principles plus 10, which are both non-binding.

1. The Yogyakarta Principles

2. The Yogyakarta Principles plus 10

Disability Rights

Guidelines have been prepared by the United Nations Office at Geneva as part of efforts to implement the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy, launched in 2019. The Strategy is a key framework for policy and action to mainstream disability inclusion at the United Nations. It is aimed at removing barriers and engaging persons with disabilities in all spheres of work and life in order to achieve sustainable and transformative progress on disability inclusion.

1. UN Disabilities Inclusion Guidelines - Take a Look at Annex 1 and Annex 2

2. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0

REPORTS

Human Rights Watch

- "They Can Harass Us Because of the Laws” Violence and Discrimination against LGBT People in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines" (2023)

- “I Have to Leave to Be Me” Discriminatory Laws against LGBT People in the Eastern Caribbean (2018)

United Nations (Click here for Full list of documents in the Treaty Body Database)

- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Universal Periodic Review (2016)

- Human Rights Committee Concluding observations on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the absence of its second periodic report (2019)

- Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families Concluding observations on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the absence of a report (2018)

- Committee on the Rights of the Child Concluding observations on the combined second and third periodic reports of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2017)

- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women Concluding observations on the combined fourth to eighth periodic reports of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2015)

- Concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (2003)

UN General Assembly Resolution and Reports

- On Disability Rights

Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

Every year the Commission publishes annual, thematic, and country reports on the Human Rights situation in the region, including SVG. Click here to read the annual reports, click here to read the thematic reports, and click here to read the country reports.

The Commission also publishes Compendiums and Practical Guidelines.

ISSUES

1. Neglect of Implementation of International Human Rights Treaties at the Domestic Level

SVG has signed, acceded to, or ratified various international human rights treaties. However, the State needs to do more than this. It needs to implement these treaties at the domestic level. So far, SVG has failed to implement most international treaties at the domestic level.

2. Neglect of OAS/Interamerican Human Rights System

The Interamerican human rights system was specifically created to address human rights issues in the Americas and the Caribbean. However, SVG has failed to sign, accede to or ratify some important human rights treaties under the Interamerican human rights system such as the American Convention on Human Rights and the Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ("Protocol of San Salvador"). Additionally, so far it has failed to take the necessary steps so that the Interamerican Court of Human Rights can have jurisdiction over it.

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