Serving injustice: JPs in post-Emancipation Tobago

Dr Rita Pemberton

During the years after the termination of the apprenticeship system in 1838, the levels of employer/worker conflict in Tobago escalated. The contentious issues were all based on the desire of the planter employers to maintain the operation of the system to which they were accustomed during enslavement and force the free African workers to accept their terms.

On the other hand, it was the ambition of the workers to attain meaningful freedom by removing themselves from planter control, creating alternative employment for themselves and demanding better wages and terms of work.

The ongoing conflict between these two protagonists, which had its base in resistance to enslavement and the apprenticeship system, manifested itself immediately after the 1838 declaration of the termination of the system, but it assumed such magnitude that the planters devised ways to halt what they considered to be a dangerous trend.

Planters remained gripped by the fear, which dominated the organisation of the slave system, the nature of their relations with the enslaved population and infused decision-making about all aspects of plantation life.

Much as they needed a large work force, planters were very sensitive to the reality of their vulnerability as a small white group in the midst of a large black population. They existed in mortal fear of the numerical superiority of the African population, which posed a security risk and which could also damage their property and profits. For their physical and financial security, control of the workforce was considered an absolute necessity.

In order to maintain this control in the post-Emancipation period, they had recourse to law-making. Hence the years after 1838 were marked by the quantum of legislation passed with the express purpose of governing relations between black and white and sterilising the impact of emancipation. The legal establishment was staffed with additional offices and with new roles for the existing ones. At the base of the system were the justices of the peace (JPs), who interfaced most often with the freed men and women as their first port of call in justice-related matters.

One of the express concerns of the administration of post-Emancipation Tobago was to improve the administration of justice, and in this regard, there are two laws of interest which both relate to the JPs.

The first law was proclaimed on January 9, 1854, because the administration felt it necessary to protect the JPs from revenge for actions taken in the course of their duties. This law was stimulated by the intensity of planter/worker conflict and the constant assertion that the JPs acted maliciously and without just cause in decisions on matters before them.

While appeals were possible, the plaintiff was required to prove his case, or else the verdict would be made in favour of the defendant. This put workers making charges against employers at a disadvantage. Appeal was possible only after the conviction was quashed by a superior court, and no appeal was possible if two JPs agreed on the verdict. In that scenario, there was little hope for justice for the workers.

In addition, no action could be brought against JPs for any action they took under powers given by discretionary acts of Parliament or under orders from the court of the Queen’s Bench. The JP was allowed to cite special conditions, such as defence considerations, for his verdict. Thus it was easy for the authorities to interpret worker actions as a threat to security and convict the worker, who might also be required to pay costs to the plaintiff.

Any action against the JPs had to be made within a month of the commission of the act, and served at his place of abode with the name and place of abode of the offending party clearly stated and the name of the party intending to sue clearly written on the back of the envelope. This complicated system reduced the inclination of the offended parties to pursue this course of action.

This law was followed by the law of April 11, 1854, which aimed at facilitating the performance of the duties of the JPs with regard to summary offences. A person could be charged if he/she was accused of committing an offence, suspected of committing the offence, or information given about the offence. The JP could issue an order served by a constable or peace officer at the place of abode of the accused.

Such cases were to be substantiated by credible witnesses, ie people with no financial or other interest in the matter. This, of course, presumed that the offender was of the working class, and it was very easy for planters to have their difficult workers charged and punished on “suspicion.”

Only single complaints were to be made to the JPs and each case was handled individually, making it a tedious exercise to receive redress in court. Complaints had to be made within six calendar months of their occurrence, and such cases heard by one or two justices.

Where there was no law under which the matter could be considered, the case would be determined by the two JPs. If the defendant did not appear in court at the stated time, the JP was free to pronounce a verdict or adjourn the case until the defendant was apprehended. If the case was adjourned, the defendant could be put in jail or a place of security until the new date.

At the hearing, the procedure was outlined to the defendant, who was asked to show just cause why he/she should not be convicted and the judge would hear the defendant and any witnesses he/she could provide.

It was difficult for workers to provide witnesses who were considered credible. These laws were formulated with the underlying assumption that the workers would be the offending parties. They offered little opportunity for worker redress and provided planters with opportunities to use the law to keep workers under their control.

These measures did not help to reduce the tensions in post-Emancipation society in Tobago, but despite their cumbersome nature and their worker-unfriendliness, they accentuated the resolve of the freed African population to carve space for themselves on the island.