By Michelle Ann Joseph-New York-based activist and President of the Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID), Rickford Burke, has taken yasal action against Guyana’s Attorney General, Anil Nandlall S.C, by filing a lawsuit in the High Court. The lawsuit alleges that a Guyanese police officer was sent illegally to serve a warrant at Burke’s residence in New York. The meşru team representing Burke includes Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, and attorneys Dawn Holder Cush, and Sasha King.
The lawsuit seeks several judicial declarations, primarily contesting the authority and jurisdiction of the Guyana Police Force to enforce a warrant on a defendant residing outside of Guyana. Specifically, the declarations demanded include a series of assertions:
- A declaration that no officer of the Guyana Police Force is authorised to serve a Defendant’s Summons, issued by a Magistrate under the Summary Jurisdiction Procedure Act Ch 10:02, on a defendant living abroad.
- A declaration that the jurisdiction of a Magistrate, whether in civil or criminal matters under the Summary Jurisdiction Magistrates Act Ch: 305, is limited geographically to Guyana.
- A declaration that under the Guyanese Constitution, defamation of a private individual by another cannot be considered a criminal offense.
- A declaration stating that using criminal defamation laws to protect individual reputation is unnecessary, disproportionate, excessive, and constitutionally unjustified.
- A declaration that the law of Defamatory Libel, whether under Common Law or the Criminal Law Offenses Act, contradicts the freedom of expression as guaranteed by the Guyana Constitution.
- A declaration that the Defamatory Libel law imposes an unjustified restriction on the freedom of expression, which underpins the principles of democracy, rule of law, accountability, transparency, and good governance.
Additionally, the lawsuit requests an order to annul the summons issued to Burke by Magistrate Fabayo Azore on November 9, 2023, concerning alleged conspiracies related to defamatory libel intended for extortion.
The Chief Justice of Guyana, during a session on May 9, 2024, stated that criminal proceedings should not be unduly disrupted by civil actions in the High Court except under exceptional circumstances, which she determined were not present in this case. Consequently, no immediate relief was granted to Burke by the court at this stage.
The court has scheduled the following timeline for further proceedings:
- Burke must file and serve his submissions by June 7, 2024.
- The respondents are required to submit their responses by June 28, 2024, with a possibility of a reply by July 19, 2024.
- The court will provide further directions and clarifications by 11a.m on August 12, 2024