Both vaccinated and unvaccinated people have a right to choose as they see fit, however, according to attorney-at-law, Gregory Delzin, no right is absolute especially during uncertain circumstances such as a pandemic.
“When you say the person has a choice not to take a vaccine that is true but no one believes that freedom to choose must necessarily mean that a person who has been vaccinated must expose themselves to the chances of death,” Delzin said during an interview with Guardian Media.
He was responding to concerns over the Government’s public sector safe zone policy with some saying it is an infringement on their rights.
Delzin stated, “In any society there are no absolute rights that exist. All rights that exist are so in the existence of the society and at all times rights have to be balanced among individuals. In the particular case of Trinidad and Tobago and the rest of the world right now, we are in an unusual circumstance that threatens human life and human existence and we live in a community therefore we all as individuals of this community owe obligations to each other and not just to ourselves.”
He explained that the Government was obligated to engage in a balancing exercise to ensure the safety of all citizens.
“Employers and anyone who operates a space or business place are obligated in law to create a safe system of space or work or safe environment for those who come off the streets and enter those buildings.
“They in fact could be sued by persons if they fail to operate in such a way as a safe zone so that people will be protected when they come in to do their business,” Delzin explained.
Asked how this system would work legally without a vaccine mandate in effect, Delzin noted that it had worked in other countries.
“I think it’s going to work out fine because it was already tested in other countries. There have been cases in other countries. In fact, there’s a recent case in Canada where a union attempted to get an injunction against a company for the same vaccine mandate but the court refused to grant the injunction and that has been consistently applied in many courts around the world,” he said.
