This update covers developments relating to the freedoms of expression, association and assembly in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from October 2025 to September 2026.
Context
2025 general election brings change of government after 24 years
On 27th November 2025, voters in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines participated in a generally peaceful general election that resulted in a victory for the New Democratic Party (NDP), led by Godwin Friday, which won 14 of the 15 elected seats. Official results recorded 103,524 registered voters, with the NDP receiving 37,207 votes and the ULP 27,152. The following day, Friday was sworn in as Prime Minister, ending almost 25 years of government by the Unity Labour Party under Ralph Gonsalves, one of the world’s longest-serving democratically elected leaders as prime minister.
The campaign was largely peaceful, although several incidents raised concerns about political tensions. For example, on 9th November, two men reportedly threw stones at an NDP whistle-stop campaign event at Rillan Hill, damaging a vehicle carrying party supporters and the windscreen of a police vehicle. Police took two men into custody in connection with the incident. Earlier in the campaign, on 23rd October, Commissioner of Police Enville Williams had called for restraint, stressing that political expression was a protected right but should not involve violence or intimidation: “No election, no political contest, and no difference in opinion should ever lead us to raise a hand, a stone, or a voice in anger against our fellow Vincentian.”
On 4th November, the ULP and NDP signed a Code of Ethical Political Conduct developed by the St Vincent and the Grenadines Christian Council and the National Monitoring and Consultative Mechanism (NMCM). The non-binding code committed parties and candidates to peaceful campaigning, respect for human rights and civil and political liberties, tolerance of divergent political views and non-interference with opponents’ meetings and campaign material.
The general election also marked a positive development in women’s political representation. Laverne Gibson-Velox, elected for East St. George, and Shevern John, elected for North Windward, became the first women to enter Parliament as newly elected constituency representatives since René Baptiste in 2001. Both represented the NDP. Women accounted for seven of the 23 members of the House of Assembly. This included two of the 15 directly elected representatives, three of the six appointed senators, Speaker Ronnia Durham-Balcombe, and Attorney General Louise Mitchell, who sits ex officio.
The new House of Assembly first met on 23rd December 2025. Under section 48 of the Constitution, Parliament ordinarily continues for five years from its first sitting unless dissolved earlier, meaning the current Parliament would ordinarily stand dissolved in December 2030.
Dual citizenship dispute tests electoral rules as government proposes constitutional amendments
On 18th December 2025, unsuccessful ULP candidates Carlos Williams and Luke Browne filed election petitions challenging the election of Prime Minister Friday and Foreign Minister Dwight Fitzgerald Bramble. The petitioners argued that Friday and Bramble were constitutionally disqualified from standing for election because they had voluntarily acquired Canadian citizenship.
The petitioners contend that Friday and Bramble voluntarily acquired Canadian citizenship and passports and that this constitutes acknowledgement of allegiance to a foreign state within the disqualification causes for representatives and senators under Sections 25 and 26 of the Constitution. Section 26(1)(a) disqualifies a person who, “by virtue of his own act”, is under an acknowledgement of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state.
The respondents acknowledge holding Canadian citizenship but dispute that this automatically triggers the constitutional disqualification, pointing in part to Canada’s status as a Commonwealth country and the Constitution's express use of Commonwealth citizenship as a qualification for parliamentary membership. No ruling had been delivered by August 2026.
The dispute has also sparked debate after the government proposed amendments to the same constitutional and electoral provisions now under consideration by the court. In April 2026, the government placed a Constitution of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (Amendment) Bill 2026 and a Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill 2026 on Parliament’s agenda. Prime Minister Friday said the legislation was intended to clarify the meaning of a foreign power or state and that the government would undertake broad public consultation before proceeding.
Opposition representatives argued that amending the relevant provisions while the petitions were pending risked interfering with questions already before the judiciary, particularly because the proposed amendments were reported to have retrospective effect. In April 2026, Prime Minister Friday said that “the Government will not move forward with proposed amendments to the Constitution and the Representation of the People Act until there has been full public debate.” The two bills were again listed for consideration when Parliament met in early July 2026, but were deferred.
Peaceful Assembly
Union leader reports threat after announcing possible protest
On 23rd March 2026, within 24 hours of a teachers’ union leader warning of nationwide protest, a Facebook user threatened to shoot him. A post published under the name “Doug King Howard” called for Oswald Robinson, first vice-president of the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Teachers’ Union (SVGTU), to be met with “real bullets” if the union took its protest to the streets. Robinson said he regarded the post as a serious threat and reported it to police after seeking their advice.
The threat followed comments Robinson made on 22nd March 2026 during the SVGTU’s Teachers’ Talk programme. Robinson, a former president of the union, and other SVGTU leaders criticised proposed changes affecting teachers’ benefits and working conditions. He warned that the union would organise protests and mobilise nationally if the government interfered with those established conditions.
Full salary restored to educator and activist Adriana King
On 31st March 2026, the Public Service Commission restored the full salary of educator and social activist Adriana King, who had been receiving half salary since her interdiction from teaching duties in 2021. King was interdicted on half salary in August 2021 after criminal proceedings were brought against her in connection with protests held in Kingstown on 29th July and 5th August 2021.
King, a teacher and union member, had participated in demonstrations involving the Teachers’ Union, Public Service Union and other groups opposing proposed public-health measures, including legislation that paved the way for mandatory COVID-19 vaccination requirements for sections of the public service. She faced several charges under the Public Order Act relating to the organisation of and participation in public processions without prior notification to police, as well as a separate charge alleging that she obstructed then-Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves from reaching Parliament.
One of the criminal proceedings remained contested several years later. In May 2024, a magistrate stayed the prosecution concerning the alleged obstruction of the Prime Minister, finding that the lengthy delay in bringing the case to trial had been excessive. The Director of Public Prosecutions appealed the stay, leaving the proceedings unresolved. The Public Service Commission’s March 2026 decision restored King’s full salary but did not lift her interdiction, which remained in effect pending the final outcome of the legal proceedings.
ILO raises continuing concerns over trade union legislation and the right to strike
In June 2026, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR), which monitors states’ compliance with ratified labour standards, raised concerns that Saint Vincent and the Grenadines’ proposed Labour Relations Bill could unduly restrict the right to strike and leave some workers without adequate protection of their trade union rights.
Under the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), the CEACR examined a provision that would classify “sanitary and waste management services” as essential services and restrict workers in those sectors from withdrawing their labour. The Committee recalled that authorities should generally restrict or prohibit strikes only where an interruption of services would endanger the life, personal safety or health of all or part of the population. It noted that workers should normally retain the right to strike in services such as refuse collection and asked the government to review the proposed provision.
Protesters oppose proposed electoral and constitutional amendments
On 2nd July 2026, protesters carrying placards gathered along the Calliaqua main road, near the temporary Parliament building, to oppose the proposed Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill 2026 and Constitution of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (Amendment) Bill 2026. Parliament had scheduled both Bills for their first reading that day but deferred them for a second time (see Context).
Labour Day rally calls for stronger workplace protections
On 1st May 2026, the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines National Labour Congress (NLC) organised a Labour Day march and rally in Kingstown to mark International Workers’ Day. Participants assembled at Peace Memorial Hall and marched to Solidarity Car Park, with workers, trade unions and members of the public invited to take part. The NLC held the activities under the theme “Safe Minds, Strong Workers, Better Workplaces”, focusing on workers’ well-being, occupational safety and stronger workplace protections.
Expression
Opposition leader threatens defamation action against radio station
On 19th February 2026, former prime minister and current Opposition Leader Ralph Gonsalves announced that he intended to take legal action against Hot 97 FM, a local radio station, and its owner, Luke Boyea. The dispute concerned comments broadcast about the acquisition by Gonsalves’s son, Storm, of approximately 95 acres of private land at Spring, Bequia. Gonsalves said the discussion had implied that his son had acquired the property through corrupt practices involving him, and described the allegations as defamatory.
Gonsalves acknowledged that, while serving as prime minister, he had signed a 2017 government letter expressing interest in purchasing the land. He said the government did not ultimately acquire it, denied involvement in his son’s later purchase and said he had not known about the transaction when it occurred.
Boyea said he was unclear about the precise basis of the threatened action and would wait to receive formal correspondence from Gonsalves’s lawyer. The following day, commentator Jomo Thomas said that public officials and former officials were entitled to protect their reputations from defamatory allegations, while stressing that this interest had to be balanced against the media’s role in scrutinising matters of legitimate public concern.
Opposition alleges discriminatory withdrawal of state advertising from Star Radio
On 25th February 2026, Opposition Leader Ralph Gonsalves alleged that government agencies and state-owned companies had withdrawn advertising from Star Radio, a radio station owned by the ULP. Gonsalves said that almost all state entities that had previously advertised with the station had stopped doing so following the change of government. He alleged that the withdrawal sought to place financial pressure on Star Radio and weaken a media outlet critical of the governing NDP.
On 7th March 2026, former finance minister and ULP politician Camillo Gonsalves also criticised the withdrawal. He argued that authorities should not allocate public advertising according to whether a media outlet supports or criticises the government. He acknowledged that audience size could legitimately influence how much advertising an outlet receives, but argued that this could justify a proportionate reduction rather than the complete withdrawal of advertising from Star Radio.
The dispute also raised questions about the station’s political affiliation. Some public commentary defended the withdrawal on the grounds that Star Radio belongs to the ULP and openly operates as the party’s media platform, and questioned whether its audience justified the previous level of state advertising. Star Radio describes itself as the “voice of the Unity Labour Party”. However, available reporting provided no independently verified audience figures, comparative data on state advertising expenditure or official explanation setting out the criteria used to discontinue advertising with the station.
Government moves to publish national laws online
On 12th January 2026, Attorney General Louise Mitchell announced that the government was undertaking a comprehensive consolidation and revision of the Laws of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, with the completed collection to be published online. The initiative aims to improve public access to national legislation and will incorporate laws enacted up to December 2025.
Mitchell made the announcement during the opening of the new law year of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, the regional court serving Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and other Caribbean states and territories. She noted that the country’s last comprehensive consolidation and revision of legislation had been completed in 2009 and said that a new revision was overdue. The Attorney General also announced that the Government Gazette, the official publication for legislation, regulations and other government notices, would be available online.
Publishing a consolidated and updated body of legislation online could strengthen access to legal information and support the rule of law by making the legal framework easier for the public and civil society organisations to find, understand and scrutinise.
Searchlight announces end of print publication and pause of digital editions
On 26th August 2026, longstanding Vincentian newspaper Searchlight announced that it would publish its final print edition on 25th September 2026 after 31 years of continuous publication, and would pause its digital editions while its owner, Interactive Media Limited (IML), reviewed the future direction of the media operation.
IML attributed the decision to structural pressures affecting the news industry, including declining print circulation and advertising revenues, rising operating costs and the continuing migration of audiences and advertisers to digital platforms. The company said the review would consider how Searchlight could adapt to the changing media environment and the opportunities presented by digital journalism.
LGBTQI+ organisation continues advocacy for legal reforms
On 17th May 2026, marking the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, Equal Rights, Access and Opportunities SVG Inc. (ERAO SVG), an LGBTQI+ rights organisation in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, launched a National Call for Reparations for LGBT Vincentians at an event attended by LGBT people and allies. The organisation called on the government to repeal criminal provisions concerning consensual same-sex relations between adults and adopt broader legal and institutional measures to address discrimination.