Address delivered by
Her Honour Mrs. Deborah Thomas-Felix
President of the Industrial Court of Trinidad and Tobago
at the Special Sitting of the Industrial Court for the 2021/2022 Law Term
Welcome to the second virtual Special Sitting of the Industrial Court.
When this chapter of the world’s history is written it will be an era of a global pandemic, real time and rapid communication, misinformation, social media dominance and great challenge as we struggle to cope with the onslaught of the COVID 19 pandemic and its attendant, social and economic consequence.
It will also be viewed as a time when the rule of law, which plays a crucial function in our democracy, is challenged.
No civil and modern society can function properly and maintain peace and order without adherence to the rule of law. While it is clear that the COVID 19 pandemic has highlighted the close links between the responses of governments against the crisis and the rule of law, I think it also highlights the weaknesses in existing governance systems, globally, and it has placed the spotlight on areas in need of improvement especially the health care system and the education system.
However, the pandemic should not only be seen as a challenge to the rule of law and human rights but also as an opportunity to better articulate and strengthen international standards and the laws of dealing with such crises.
As I stated earlier this year, there is a temptation sometimes to put international labour standards and good industrial relations practices aside and treat them as not important in times of crisis. We must never forget that fairness, equity and natural justice are principles on which the foundation our societies were built and which have assisted in stabilising our economies and countries over time.