POLITICAL analyst Derek Ramsamooj secured a significant legal victory before the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) yesterday after the regional court ruled that his detention in Suriname in 2020 breached rights guaranteed to Caribbean Community (Caricom) nationals under the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas (RTC).

In a judgment delivered by CCJ president Justice Winston Anderson, who was supported by Justices Maureen Rajnauth-Lee, Denys Barrow, Peter Jamadar and Chantal Ononaiwu, the court upheld Ramsamooj's claim that the conditions under which he was detained were unlawful. The court awarded Ramsamooj US$30,000 in non-pecuniary damages and ordered costs against Suriname.

Summarising the ruling, Justice Anderson said Ramsamooj had argued that he was 'arbitrarily detained in Suriname without access to court or to counsel' and that the restrictions imposed on him violated his treaty rights to freedom of movement and the right to provide services within the Caricom region.