This update covers developments relating to the freedoms of expression, association and assembly in Saint Lucia from October 2025 to August 2026.
Context
International observers praise general elections but urge reforms to strengthen participation
On 1st December 2025, Saint Lucia held general elections in which Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre’s Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP) retained its parliamentary majority, winning 14 of the 17 seats in the House of Assembly, the country’s elected lower chamber. The opposition United Workers Party (UWP) won one seat, while independent candidates secured two, giving Pierre a second term as Prime Minister. The campaign focused on economic issues, violent crime and public security, and Saint Lucia’s Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme, which grants citizenship to qualifying foreign investors.
On 5th December 2025, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) observers reported that campaigning included broader debate over government policies and development initiatives, alongside personal attacks and accusations between political actors, but recorded no election-related violence during the campaign.
Likewise, the Organisation of American States Electoral Observation Mission (OAS/EOM) reported that voting proceeded in a generally orderly and peaceful manner. Party agents were present at polling stations, voters cast ballots without significant incident and electoral officials conducted the count transparently. Ahead of the election, political parties and several independent candidates also signed a joint declaration committing themselves to refrain from violence and intimidation and to respect their opponents’ freedom to campaign.
The OAS raised concerns about the size and accuracy of the electoral register, as “the current register does not accurately reflect the country’s eligible voting population.” Long queues affected the advance poll, while on election day the electronic voter-verification system failed across much of the country due to a server outage, requiring electoral officials to use manual procedures. Some polling stations located on upper floors also created accessibility barriers for elderly voters and persons with disabilities.
Women also remained underrepresented among candidates, accounting for eight of the 43 candidates despite their prominent participation as voters and electoral officials. The Mission recommended adopting campaign financing legislation, strengthening electoral remedies, improving accessibility and introducing measures to address political violence against women.
US-Saint Lucia agreement on third-country nationals raises human rights concerns
On 31st August 2026, External Affairs Minister Alva Baptiste announced that Saint Lucia expected to receive its first six third-country nationals transferred from the United States during the following week. The group, comprising five men and one woman, would be the first accepted under a two-year arrangement permitting the transfer of up to 10 people per quarter. Baptiste stressed that the transferees would not be treated as prisoners and said that the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) would work with them following their arrival. He also acknowledged that their immigration status would require a “special dispensation” and that the government had yet to determine the arrangements that would apply if any transferee sought to remain in Saint Lucia for a longer period.
In January 2026, Prime Minister Pierre announced that Saint Lucia had agreed to enter into a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the United States concerning the potential transfer of third-country nationals removed from US territory. Pierre also stated that the MOU created no legal obligation to accept transferees, and that Saint Lucia would retain discretion over whether to admit individuals proposed by the United States.
In response, the Third Country Deportation Watch, a joint initiative of Human Rights First and Refugees International, has raised concerns about the risks associated with the agreement, particularly regarding the procedures available to identify people who would likely face persecution or torture in their home countries. The organisation reported that the MOU had not been made public. Saint Lucia is not party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 Protocol and has not enacted domestic asylum legislation.
Saint Lucia is bound by the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) (see Association). Under Article 3 of CAT, Saint Lucia “shall not expel, return or extradite a person to another state where there are substantial grounds for believing that [they] would be in danger of being subjected to torture.”
UPR’s recommendations urge reforms to protect fundamental freedoms
In January 2026, Saint Lucia underwent its fourth-cycle Universal Periodic Review (UPR), the UN Human Rights Council’s peer-review process for examining states’ human rights records. The Human Rights Council adopted the outcome during its 62nd session in July 2026. The recommendations focused largely on legal and institutional gaps affecting human rights and civic freedoms, including the absence of an independent national human rights institution compliant with the Paris Principles.
For example, Spain recommended decriminalising defamation and removing criminal penalties to help ensure a safe environment for journalists and human rights defenders. When the UPR documentation was prepared, Saint Lucia remained outside several core human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which it signed in 2011 but had not ratified. Australia recommended that Saint Lucia become a party to the ICCPR, which protects rights including freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association. Other states also called for ratification of outstanding treaties. Shortly after the review, Saint Lucia acceded to the CAT.
Recommendations also addressed policing and criminal justice reform and stronger legal protections against discrimination. The death penalty remains available in law, although Saint Lucia has observed a de facto moratorium on executions since 1995. Several states recommended its formal abolition.
Expression
Prime Minister obtains default judgment in Facebook defamation case
On 30th January 2026, Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre obtained default judgment in High Court Claim No. SLUHCV2025/0332, arising from allegedly defamatory material published through the Facebook page Good Morning Saint Lucia - Vibes at Sunrise. According to media reports, Pierre’s claim concerned posts which he alleged accused him of corruption and misconduct connected to the Citizenship by Investment Programme (CIP) and also drew his daughter into the allegations. The claim had been filed in August 2025.
The judgment was entered after the defendants failed to file an acknowledgement of service or otherwise defend the proceedings, rather than following a contested trial of the underlying allegations. Under Part 12 of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court Civil Procedure Rules, a claimant may obtain default judgment where a defendant fails to acknowledge service or file a defence. ECSC jurisprudence establishes that such a judgment is conclusive as to liability as pleaded, unless subsequently set aside, while questions of damages remain to be assessed. The judgment should therefore not be characterised as a judicial finding, following a contested trial, that the underlying corruption allegations were false. Liability arose procedurally because the defendants did not defend the claim.
However, the default judgment may have a negative impact on freedom of expression, because a serving Prime Minister obtained civil defamation liability over allegations concerning public affairs without the merits or public interest defences being tested, and the eventual chilling effect will depend heavily on the damages and other remedies imposed.
Section 10 of Saint Lucia’s Constitution protects freedom of expression, while permitting restrictions reasonably required to protect the reputations and rights of others, provided that such restrictions remain reasonably justifiable in a democratic society. Prime Minister Pierre, despite holding the country’s highest political office, retains legal protection against defamatory statements. At the same time, allegations concerning corruption, the operation of the CIP and the conduct of a serving Prime Minister concern matters of substantial public interest and ordinarily attract a high degree of freedom of expression protection.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights’ Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression states that civil sanctions concerning public officials or matters of public interest should require proof of intent to cause harm, knowledge of falsity or gross negligence in determining whether the information was true.
Deputy Prime Minister charged over alleged assault on journalist
On 20th October 2025, the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force charged Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investment, Creative Industries, Culture, and Information with assault in connection with an alleged incident involving journalist Eldrise Charles at the parliamentary compound on 19th August 2025. Charles alleged that Hilaire placed a hand on her back and pushed her while she was attempting to question government ministers. Hilaire denied assaulting her and said that video footage did not support the allegation. On 4th December 2025, authorities summoned Hilaire to appear before the First District Court, a lower-level criminal court.
Hilaire described the prosecution as politically motivated and questioned the conduct and impartiality of the police investigation, including the actions of the investigating officer. He nevertheless said that his lawyers would address the criminal proceedings and that he would not seek to intervene with the Commissioner of Police.
The case was recorded by the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. In its 2025 Annual Report, the Rapporteur noted reports that Hilaire had allegedly physically confronted Charles while she was attempting to question him in Parliament, and recorded both his subsequent charge for unlawful assault and his denial of the allegation. The Rapporteur included the case in its analysis of risks faced by women journalists and recalled that states should ensure an adequate legal and institutional framework to respond effectively to violence against women journalists in the course of their work.
Association
Hospital staff raise intimidation concerns over Labour Act notices
On 18th August 2026, staff at the Owen King European Union Hospital (OKEUH), the country’s main public hospital, raised concerns that the Millennium Heights Medical Complex (MHMC), the public body that manages the hospital, was using notices that could be intended to discourage workers from taking collective action amid ongoing labour disputes involving doctors and nurses.
The notices, displayed prominently in hospital wards, reproduced provisions of Saint Lucia’s Labour Act governing industrial action in essential services, a category that includes hospital services. They warned that anyone who incites, encourages, persuades or influences an essential service employee to take industrial action contrary to the Act could face a fine of up to EC$5,000.
Under section 393(1) of the Labour Act, MHMC was legally required to display the relevant provision in a conspicuous place. However, some employees questioned the timing and prominence of the notices during a period of heightened labour tensions involving doctors and nurses. They expressed concern that, although the law required MHMC to display the provision, the manner in which management circulated the notices could discourage workers from participating in trade union activity or lawful collective action.
Government consults civil society on proposed CSO regulatory reforms
On 25th March 2026, the Ministry of Equity, Social Justice, Gender, Older Persons, Labour, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs held a national consultation with civil society organisations on proposed amendments to the 2006 Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) Act No. 36. The government said the reforms were intended to modernise the regulatory framework for NGOs and strengthen transparency and compliance with international obligations relating to money laundering and terrorist financing.
The proposed reforms included a seven-member Non-Governmental Organisations Council responsible for registration, certification, investigations and compliance, and a three-member Appeals Committee to review decisions. Civil society representatives were invited to examine the draft legislation, propose changes and nominate candidates for the two bodies.
As of August 2026, available official records did not indicate that the amendment bill had been enacted into law.
Unions secure agreements after prolonged labour disputes
On 8th April 2026, according to media reports, the National Workers Union (NWU) notified Labour Minister Emma Hippolyte that members employed at the Millennium Heights Medical Complex (MHMC) intended to begin strike action in May 2026 over unresolved workplace concerns. The union cited uniform allowances that it said had remained unpaid for four years, protracted negotiations with management, and an unresolved application submitted in December 2025 seeking recognition on behalf of Emergency Medical Technicians.
On 12th August 2026, the NWU and MHMC signed an agreement following a process facilitated by the Department of Labour, Co-operatives and Consumer Affairs, the government body responsible for labour relations and conciliation. The government said the agreement concluded a lengthy period of discussions over workplace concerns, with both parties expressing satisfaction with the outcome.
The agreement formed part of a broader period of collective bargaining in Saint Lucia. On 27th July 2026, the Saint Lucia Medical and Dental Association (SLMDA) and MHMC signed a collective agreement after earlier disputes had prompted medical professionals to threaten industrial action. Under the agreement, doctors and physicians began receiving negotiated allowances and other benefits from July 2026.
On the same day, the Water and Sewerage Company Inc. (WASCO), Saint Lucia’s public water utility, and the Civil Service Association (CSA) concluded a separate collective agreement providing employees with a six per cent salary increase for the 2022–2024 bargaining period, alongside negotiated allowances and other benefits.
I am extremely pleased with the successful signing of these two collective agreements, both of which address matters that have been outstanding for some time. These outcomes demonstrate what can be achieved when employers, employees, trade unions and government engage in meaningful dialogue and negotiations in good faith. The amicable resolution of these issues not only benefits the workers involved but also contributes to the continued stability and peaceful industrial relations climate that Saint Lucia enjoys.
- Minister for Labour, Co-operatives and Consumer Affairs, Emma Hippolyte.
On 31st July 2026, the Soufrière Marine Management Association (SMMA) and the CSA signed another collective agreement after protracted negotiations. Employees began receiving negotiated wage benefits from July 2026, while the parties agreed to begin negotiations on the next bargaining period later in the year.
Saint Lucia strengthens international human rights and labour standards commitments
On 12th February 2026, Saint Lucia acceded to the CAT, which entered into force for the country on 14th March 2026. Accession significantly expanded Saint Lucia’s binding international human rights obligations and followed recommendations made during its January 2026 UPR process to strengthen the country’s international human rights framework.
By joining CAT, Saint Lucia assumed obligations to prevent and criminalise torture, investigate allegations, hold perpetrators accountable and provide redress to victims. The Convention also strengthens protection against refoulement. However, Saint Lucia did not accept all of the Convention’s international oversight and dispute-settlement mechanisms.
Upon accession, it entered a reservation stating that it does not recognise the competence of the Committee against Torture under Article 20 to conduct confidential inquiries where reliable information indicates that torture is being systematically practised. It also declared that it does not consider itself bound by Article 30.1, which provides a procedure for resolving disputes between states over the interpretation or application of the Convention, including possible referral to the International Court of Justice.
Saint Lucia has also not joined the Optional Protocol to CAT (OPCAT), which provides for independent international and national monitoring visits to places of detention. Nor has it made a declaration under Article 22, which would allow individuals to submit complaints to the Committee against Torture alleging violations of the Convention.
The country also strengthened its international labour rights framework. On 29th April 2026, it ratified the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144) and formally established a National Tripartite Advisory Committee (NTAC) bringing together representatives of government, employers and workers. The Convention will enter into force for Saint Lucia on 29th April 2027.
The Committee provides a permanent mechanism for consultation on international standards and national labour priorities. During the same period, the government launched the Cabinet-approved process for developing Saint Lucia’s first Decent Work Country Programme, with government, employers’ organisations and trade unions participating in its design. The ILO also provided collective bargaining training to trade union representatives as part of efforts to strengthen their participation in the new tripartite structures.
Meanwhile, two other ILO instruments ratified by Saint Lucia on 5th June 2025 entered into force for the country on 5th June 2026: the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) and the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187).
Peaceful Assembly
Vigils and marches demand action against femicide and gender-based violence
On 21st May 2026, dozens of people, mostly women, gathered outside Gros Islet Police Station, northern Saint Lucia, for a candlelight vigil calling for justice for Joy St Omer and stronger action to address gender-based violence. The gathering took place one day after the 24-year-old mother was killed in Marigot. Police confirmed that a protection order, a court order intended to restrict contact or abusive behaviour, against St Omer’s estranged husband remained in force at the time of her killing.
Mobilisations to denounce femicide continued in the following weeks. On 2nd June, the newly established Voices Beyond Violence SLU, a community-led movement campaigning against gender-based violence and femicide, organised an End Femicide Peaceful March through Castries, Saint Lucia’s capital, from Derek Walcott Square towards Serenity Park.
The purpose of this march is so that we can stand in solidarity as a collective against gender-based violence in St Lucia so that we can remember the lives that have been lost and the voices that have been silenced and essentially just to show that we refuse to look away, and we demand justice.
- Christa St Ange, Co-founder of Voices Beyond Violence.
By August 2026, the campaign had expanded from vigils and street demonstrations to stronger calls for formal scrutiny of the authorities’ response. On 18th August, St Omer’s family petitioned the Governor General and wrote to the government seeking an independent Commission of Inquiry, a formal investigation into a matter of significant public concern, to examine how police, courts and other state institutions responded to her requests for protection before her death.
Mobilisation against gender-based violence also extended beyond groups established following St Omer’s killing. On 22nd August, the Saint Lucia Mission of Seventh-day Adventists organised peaceful marches in the north and south of the country under the theme “One Island. One Voice”, calling for stronger action, accountability and support for women and others affected by violence.
On 6th January 2026, a small group of people gathered at Bideau Park in Castries to protest US military action in Venezuela and express solidarity with the Venezuelan people. The interim Saint Lucia/Venezuela Association organised the rally, where participants carried placards and called for the Caribbean to remain a “zone of peace”, for US military forces to withdraw from the region and for negotiations to resume. Saint Lucian protesters participated alongside the Venezuelan and Cuban ambassadors to Saint Lucia.
A second solidarity rally took place on 3rd February. Members of the Saint Lucia Solidarity Movement with Venezuela gathered at Serenity Park in Castries to mark one month since the 3rd January US operation in Venezuela. Participants again opposed US military intervention and called for the return of Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores, who had been taken into US custody during the military operation. Organisers said the gathering formed part of coordinated international solidarity actions.
Other Developments
Court finds state liable for police negligence amid wider justice sector reforms
On 25th June 2026, High Court Justice Alvin Pariagsingh found the Attorney General liable for negligence in Marley Simeon & Troystan Jn Pierre v Attorney General of Saint Lucia, a civil case arising from a February 2023 police shooting in Laborie in which Eric Thomas was killed and Simeon and Jn Pierre were seriously wounded. The Court found that police officers breached their duty of care by recklessly firing into a crowd. It awarded Simeon EC$80,000 in general damages, as well as special damages, lost earnings and care costs, and awarded Jn Pierre EC$50,000 in general damages and EC$10,000 in aggravated damages, with special damages, interest and costs.
The judgment established the state’s civil liability for the officers’ conduct but did not determine the criminal responsibility of any individual officer:
“Before leaving this judgment, I consider it necessary to express grave concern about aspects of the police response and the accountability measures revealed in this case. These observations do not amount to disciplinary or criminal findings against any individual officer. They arise because two innocent members of the public suffered serious injuries from police gunfire in a public place. Where State-issued firearms are discharged, particularly in a crowded area, there must be a clear and dependable account of the firearm carried by each officer, the ammunition available before the incident, the rounds discharged, the rounds remaining and the prompt securing of the weapons for investigation. That did not occur in this case […].”
The Court directed that copies of the judgment be sent to the Commissioner of Police and Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for review. On 20th August 2026, Police Commissioner Verne Garde affirmed that he had reviewed the judgment but had not yet completed his assessment of the action required. He confirmed that the three officers involved remained serving police officers.
The judgment came amid a series of reforms intended to reduce delays and improve the administration of criminal justice. On 2nd February 2026, the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (Criminal Procedure) Rules 2026 entered into force in Saint Lucia. The Rules introduced a common procedural framework covering areas, including case management, electronic court records and filing, adjournments, expedited hearings and other aspects of criminal proceedings.
On 19th March 2026, the government formally opened a dedicated Criminal Backlog Reduction Court under its Swift Justice Project to expedite long-running criminal cases before the High Court. The initiative combines case management and scheduling reforms with additional administrative and technical support and closer coordination among justice sector institutions. By late May 2026, the government reported that approximately 100 matters had been disposed of between February and May 2026.
Authorities also established a dedicated Coroners Court within the Magistrates’ Courts. On 18th May 2026, the government announced the appointment of Desma Charles as Saint Lucia’s first dedicated Coroner, replacing the previous arrangement under which magistrates performed coronial duties alongside their other responsibilities. According to the government, the court will examine deaths occurring in unnatural but non-criminal circumstances, including deaths in custody, fatal accidents, suspected suicides, and other matters affecting public safety.
The reform is particularly relevant against a background of longstanding concerns over investigations into deaths involving law-enforcement authorities. Chacadan Daniel died while in police custody in 2013, and a coroner’s inquest in 2015 found that his death amounted to an unlawful killing. His family subsequently pursued accountability amid prolonged delays in the investigation and concerns over the handling of evidence. On 19th July 2026, the High Court awarded Daniel’s mother, Frances Daniel, EC$75,000 in constitutional and vindicatory damages over the State’s prolonged failure to complete a prompt, effective and reasonably transparent investigation into his death. The Court also ordered the State to complete the investigation within six months or provide a report explaining the reasons for any further delay and the anticipated timeframe for completion.