Street Protest

The main opposition in St. Vincent the New Democratic Party (NDP) says it will hold a protest march and two public protest meetings in support of legislator Vynette Frederick, who was arrested last week.

Frederick was slapped with nine charges relating to making false declarations, swearing falsely, and fabricating evidence, hours after a magistrate dismissed six charges against her.

The initial charges stemmed from a private complaint that Frederick had made against Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves following the December 2010 general elections. Frederick will appear in court on July 31 in relation to answer the new charges.

NDP and Opposition Leader Arnhim Eustace said that the events will highlight the “erosion of rights under our Constitution … and the constant, constant decline of our rights under the Constitution”.

The first public meeting is scheduled for Saturday and the other on Tuesday next week and Eustace said the meetings will focus on Frederick’s arrest “and one or two critical issues, but our main concentration would be on the erosion of rights and in fact, the persecution of some people in our society”.