In a major decision likely to have huge implications, the Privy Council has ruled that all children born out of wedlock to foreign women and Bahamian men are Bahamian citizens at birth.

Up until this point, the constitution had been interpreted as providing a right to apply at age 18.

In making this important ruling, the Privy Council upheld the decision of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the earlier decision of Supreme Court Justice Ian Winder, now Chief Justice Sir Ian Winder.

The attorney general had appealed the Court of Appeal's decision with the current and former attorneys general both taking the position that the highest court needed to settle the matter once and for all.

Shannon Tyreck Rolle and four others were respondents in this case.

At the heart of the matter was the interpretation of two articles of the constitution.

Article 6 states: "Every person born in The Bahamas after 9th July 1973 shall become a citizen of The Bahamas at the date of his birth if at that date either of his parents is a citizen of The Bahamas."

Article 14(1) states: "Any reference in this chapter to the father of a person shall, in relation to any person born out of wedlock other than a person legitimated before 10th July 1973, be construed as a reference to the mother of that person."

Justice Winder found that the use of "parents" in Article 6 was not an economy of drafting but intended to convey "the biological father or mother of the child unaffected by the artificial construct envisioned by Article 14(1)".

In his view, it was ultimately not a question of counting words but of meaning, the Privy Council noted.

In her judgment, Court of Appeal Justice Stella Maureen Crane-Scott determined that Winder was correct to employ a generous and purposive approach to the interpretation of Article 6.

The Privy Council said if it had been the intention to exclude from Bahamian citizenship a child born in The Bahamas whose Bahamian father was not married to the child's non-Bahamian mother, it would have been easy to have said so expressly as opposed to employing such a convoluted approach.

Moreover, the Privy Council added, if it had been intended to achieve that result by the modification of Article 6, it could have been achieved with much greater clarity by expressly referring to the child's father in Article 6 or, alternatively, by including a provision which expressly qualified the reference to "parents" in Article 6.

The Privy Council concluded that the reference to "parents" in Article 6 is a reference to biological parents and that Article 14(1) does not import a requirement of legitimacy into Article 6.

Responding to the Privy Council's ruling, Prime Minister Philip Davis, who is in London for the coronation of King Charles III, said, "I would like to express my support and commitment to ensuring that our country's laws and policies are fair and just for all Bahamians.

"This ruling affirms that children born out of wedlock in The Bahamas to biological Bahamian fathers and foreign mothers are citizens of The Bahamas at birth and do not have to wait until 18 years old to apply for citizenship.

"The Privy Council's decision marks an important step towards ensuring equal citizenship rights for all children, irrespective of their parent's marital status. It is expected to impact the lives of many individuals in our nation positively.

"As prime minister, I am dedicated to building a more inclusive and equitable Bahamas. My government will work diligently to implement the Privy Council's decision and review the existing citizenship legislation to align with this new development."

Attorney General Ryan Pinder also released a statement this morning.

Pinder said, "The ruling is an important step towards ensuring equal citizenship rights for all children, irrespective of their parent's marital status. It is expected to impact the lives of many individuals in our country positively.

"The Attorney General's Office will work diligently to ensure the implementation of the Privy Council's decision and to review the existing citizenship legislation in light of this new development.

"We would also like to take this opportunity to remind the public that the government remains committed to addressing other citizenship issues, including granting automatic citizenship to children born abroad to married Bahamian women and their foreign husbands.

"The government will continue its efforts to create a fair and just citizenship framework for all Bahamians."

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian