Arima woman can come home, but still challenges closed-border policy

On the eve of a parliamentary no-confidence motion against National Security Minister Stuart Young over TT’s closed-borders policy, a woman who threatened to take him to court says although she now has an exemption to return home, she will still do so, for the thousands who are still stranded outside.

Last week, attorneys representing Radhikar Ramoutar, 74, from Arima, gave Young and Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh until midday on Friday to respond to her threat of legal action.

Ramoutar, who applied for an exemption in July, is represented by attorneys Rhea Khan, Stefan Ramkissoon, Kiel Taklalsingh, led by Dinesh Rambally.

On Monday, an attorney from the Office of the Attorney General wrote to Khan, telling her Ramoutar fell within the priority group of people who left TT just before the borders closed and “because the minister was anxious to deal expeditiously with what he views to be a deserving case,” instructions had been given to grant her an exemption.

The attorney also suggested resolving the process before legal proceedings are filed, and said Ramoutar’s request for exemption could not be found.

But in a reply on Tuesday, Khan said while Ramoutar was making arrangements to return home, and was grateful for the exemption, she still disputed the lawfulness of the public health regulation which requires nationals to seek permission to return home.

“Her acceptance of the exemption is based upon the desperate position in which she now finds herself and is not to be construed as a waiver of her right to continue with these legal proceedings,” the letter said.

Khan said the requirement has “caused immeasurable hardship to thousands of citizens.

“Therefore, unless your client is also in active negotiations with each and every stranded citizen, we do not see how this matter could have been ‘resolved’ through the regular pre-action protocol process.

“Our client is of the resolute view that the use of this regulation, which has resulted in the exile of herself and her fellow citizens, from their country is an unforgivable atrocity which could only be resolved with the immediate revocation of regulation 10,” Khan said in her response.

She added that the minister’s “capitulation” under the threat of legal action in Ramoutar’s case “offered little comfort to her concern for her fellow citizens experiencing similar hardship."

In response to a request for two weeks for senior counsel’s input, Khan defended the urgency with which the attorneys had acted, saying Ramoutar was elderly, suffered from various medical ailments and can no longer financially sustain herself in Canada.

But since the exemption was granted, it was no longer a matter of urgency, so she and her lawyer will give the minister 14 days to respond to the claims that neither minister had the statutory power or legal authority to create a regulation to close all sea and air ports without parliamentary scrutiny and oversight.

““We contend that the use of these regulations, without parliamentary scrutiny, oversight and approval, to limit the fundamental rights and freedoms of our society is directly repugnant to our society’s constitutional norms and values.

“It is anathema to our identity as a sovereign democratic state,” said the original pre-action protocol letter, dated January 18.

Ramoutar left TT last February to visit her daughter in Canada.

On Friday. Young announced a new computerised online system for exemptions which went into effect on Monday.

It features an ID number that will be assigned to each application.

Young explained that the new system will help with prioritising people with good reason for wanting to return home. He said the number of applications for exemptions had increased significantly in recent months. As of Friday, there had been 19,941 applications, of which 11,682 had been granted.

The Opposition, in its motion of no confidence in Young, has said its focus is "the draconian and authoritarian decision to keep TT’s borders closed.

“The closure left tens of thousands of nationals stranded abroad, making TT the only nation in the world where nationals require an exemption directly from a government minister to return home,” the motion alleges.