Human rights in the British Virgin Islands
In practice, basic human rights in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) appear to be respected. Reports of repression of freedom of speech, interference with democracy or the rule of law, and arbitrary arrest and torture are generally non-existent. The BVI have been described as "generally free of human rights abuses". However, the laws in the British Virgin Islands do openly discriminate against people who do not hold what is called “belonger status.” This form of discrimination is expressly preserved in the BVI constitution, which excludes non-belongers from the full scope of its non-discrimination protections. Belongers and non-belongers share unequal rights to employment and to the right to purchase property, and in certain cases non-belongers are made subject to higher rates of taxation.[1] Also, expats in certain professions, their families and children, are subject to exploitation and abuse which their status makes it more difficult for them to challenge.[2]
Orders-in-council
HRRCC
The BVI government established the Human Rights Reporting Coordinating Committee (HRRCC) in 1999 to monitor and report on human rights conditions on the islands. Since 2001, the HRRCC has also published pamphlets, held public meetings, and pursued other means of informing the people of BVI about their rights.[3]
Belonger status and the right to work
While belongers have an automatic right to work on the islands, non-belongers, as a rule, require work permits. Under the Labour Code 2010, a prospective employer faced with choosing between a belonger who is minimally qualified for the job and a non-belonger who has far higher qualifications must choose the belonger. Non-belongers are not permitted to remain in the BVI unless they are working and have a work permit. Such permits must be renewed every year. A non-belonger who changes jobs must apply for a new work permit, which the Commissioner of Labour may or may not choose to grant. Non-belongers in relatively unskilled jobs undergo various kinds of abuse and exploitation, including being forced to pay for the renewal of their work permits and being denied new work permits for prospective new jobs. The lack of unions for non-belonger workers in many areas restricts their ability to complain effectively about mistreatment.
Belonger status and the right to buy property
While belongers have an automatic right to buy property on the islands, non-belongers may purchase property only after the seller has undergone an extensive process of demonstrating that he or she has made a serious but unsuccessful effort to find a belonger interested in buying the property. Also, any belonger wanting to buy property is subject to an investigation by authorities before the sale may go through. In addition, permission for the non-belonger to buy a piece of property may be subject to certain conditions, such as a ban on renting out the property.
The acquisition of belonger status
Since 2001, it has become more difficult under BVI law to acquire belonger status. A person born in the BVI with one or two belonger parents is automatically considered a belonger and is also a BOTC. Persons born in the BVI before 1983 are considered belongers and BOTC. Persons born in the BVI in 2001 or later to parents who are not under Immigration Department control are belongers and BOTC. Persons born in the BVI before 2001 to parents who are Commonwealth citizens are considered belongers. A person born in the BVI to a BOTC mother or (legitimately) to a BOTC father is considered a BOTC but not necessarily a belonger. A person who enjoys BOTC status by virtue of parentage but who was not born in the BVI is not necessarily a belonger. A person born or resident in the BVI who does not fall into any of the above categories is not considered a belonger or a BOTC and is regarded as a temporary immigrant, although belongership and BOTC can be acquired through marriage or application, as described below. Non-belonger women married to men who are belongers by birth, immediate descent, or naturalisation, or who received a belonger certificate between 1967 and 2001, also become belongers, unless they were divorced before 2001. A non-belonger who married a belonger in 2001 or later may apply for belonger status after five years of marriage and BVI residence in the BVI. Persons who have spent a year or more in prison for committing a criminal offense are denied this status in such cases, however. Non-belonger individuals who wish to acquire permanent resident status (that is, to hold a Certificate of Residence), must apply to the Immigration Department. The ensuing bureaucratic process may take years. An individual over age 18 who was born in or is a resident of the BVI may apply to the governor for belonger status after living in the BVI for at least 10 years and holding a certificate of residence for at least one year. The governor has no obligation to confer belonger status in such situations. A person who has not been under Immigration Department control for at least one year and who has lived in the BVI for at least five years (three if married to a BOTC) may apply to the governor for BOTC status, which would also carry with it belonger status. The minor children of parents who have been granted a certificate of residence or belonger status may also be granted the same status as their parents.
Footnotes
- ↑ For example, under the Land and House Tax Act (Cap 207) belongers pay land tax assessed at US$3 for the first acre of land; non-belongers pay US$50 for the first half-acre of land.
- ↑ "Concern raised about tension, abuse of expats in BVI". BVI News. 24 April 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
- ↑ "Caribbean Development Bank" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 August 2018. Retrieved 15 December 2012.