The Right of the Child to Freedom of Thought

2001: The Right of the Child to Freedom of Thought, Conscience and Religion in the Cayman Islands

In 2001, the Grant family prevailed in its struggle for their son to attend school in the Cayman Islands, whilst freely manifesting his right to religious freedom.  The Grant family challenged the decision to exclude their son from school, for so long as he wore his hair in dreadlocks.

Upholding an appeal, the Cayman Islands Court of Appeal not only recognised the Rastafarian religion but also protected the wearing of hair in dreadlocks as a manifestation of that religion.  The right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and to manifest his or her religion or beliefs is also enshrined in Article 14 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Whilst the provision of human rights in the Cayman Islands would undoubtedly improve with the inclusion of a Chapter of Fundamental Rights in a new Constitution, this would be a supplement to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which, although not directly enforceable, has been extended to the Cayman Islands since 1994.  The Convention on the Rights of the Child is premised on the fundamental principle that the best interests of the child should always be the primary consideration and contains rights such as the right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and the right of the child to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health.  With continuing concerns about the conditions in which juveniles are detained locally, the Convention on the Rights of the Child is therefore distinctly relevant to the Cayman Islands.