Dominica is a parliamentary democracy and has been governed by the Dominica Labor Party (DLP) since 2000. While the country is committed to democratic governance and civil liberties are generally upheld, several concerns persist; these include effective management of elections, judicial efficiency, and government corruption—notably relating to the country’s Citizenship by Investment (CBI) program.

• In July, Dominica’s government increased the price of CBI passports and implemented transparency measures and new due diligence checks to the program. The same month, authorities revoked 68 CBI passports they said were obtained fraudulently. In December, Bloomberg News published an exposé about how several prominent Iranian nationals had used Dominican citizenship obtained through the program to bypass sanctions and gain access to the international banking system.
• The government introduced a package of electoral reforms into parliament in December. The Electoral Reform Coalition, a nongovernmental organization (NGO), expressed concerned that the prime minister had not sought out adequate public consultation on the new rules, and criticized them for failing to include campaign finance reform and provisions for the adequate maintenance of voter rolls. Those were among measures recommended by the Organization of American States (OAS) after polls in 2019.
• In April, the country’s high court struck down two sections of the Sexual Offences Act that punished homosexual acts, saying the language was incompatible with constitutional rights including “the right to liberty, freedom of expression, and protection of personal privacy.” The ruling effectively decriminalized same-sex relations in Dominica.
• In March and April, the country’s leading judge, High Court Judge Colin Williams, and the Dominica Bar Association and criticized inefficiencies and delays in the criminal justice system. They noted that delays occur at almost every stage of criminal justice processes, including in conducting preliminary inquiries, preparing case files, and summoning witnesses. They added that defendants awaiting trial spend long periods on remand, which flouts their constitutional rights to a fair and timely trial. The latest figures, from March, indicated that out of a total prison population of 260 people, 119 were on remand.

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For additional background information, see last year’s full report.