“Why would anyone doubt that a region has produced Hugh Wooding, Norman Manley, Telford Georges, three Nobel laureates -- Arthur Lewis for economics, Derek Walcott and Vidia Naipaul for literature; Elsa Goveia, CLR James, Bob Marley, Usain Bolt and Trinidad Carnival -- why would anyone doubt that a region with such a tradition of culture and greatness could produce a final appellate body that meets at the highest international standards of competence, independence and impartiality,” he asked.

Judge Robinson said that the CCJ was efficient in determining matters before it, pointing out that of 192 matters filed, 180 of them had been disposed of within one year. He noted its accessibility to Caribbean citizens, the majority of whom cannot afford the 5,000 mile trip to the Privy Council which is, “utilised by those who are relatively well off and those accused of murder who receive pro bono representation from English lawyers”.

The Jamaican continued that the best way to express sovereignty is through identity and self image. “By far, the worst relic of enslavement, indentureship and colonialism is that they have left Caribbean people with a muddled sense of identity. We must not wait for others to liberate us from this complex. Marcus Garvey, a Pan African freedom fighter was right when he said, ‘None but ourselves can free our minds’.”

“If the Privy Council has served Trinidad and Tobago well, the CCJ will serve it better,” Judge Robinson quipped. Out of a population of 1.3 million in the country, some 44 per cent are of East Indian extraction, whose forefathers were sourced from India (principally from what is now Uttar Pradesh and Bihar between 1845 and 1917) to work on enhancing the agricultural capacity of the then colonial country.