Anthony Thomas Aquinas Carmona (born 7 March 1953) is a Trinidadian politician who was the fifth

President of Trinidad and Tobago The president of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is the head of state of Trinidad and Tobago and the commander-in-chief of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force. The office was established when the country became a republic in 1976, before w ...

, from 2013 to 2019. Previously he was a High Court Judge at the Supreme Court of Trinidad and Tobago, and he served as a Judge of the International Criminal Court from 2012 to 2013.

Early life and education

Anthony Carmona was born on 7 March 1953 in

Fyzabad Fyzabad is a town in southwestern Trinidad, south of San Fernando, west of Siparia and northeast of Point Fortin. It is named after the town of Faizabad in India. Colloquially it is known as "Fyzo" by many people. History Fyzabad was founded ...

, in South Trinidad, eldest of six children of Dennis Stephen and Barbara Carmona. He is of

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

Mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...

and

Cocoa Panyol The Panyols are a pardo (tri-racial) ethnic group in Trinidad and Tobago of Afro-Indigenous descent, primarily of mixed South American Amerindian, Trinidad and Tobago Amerindian, Afro-Trinidadian and Spanish descent. The name is a derivation ...

descent. He graduated from Santa Flora Government Primary School and

Presentation College, San Fernando Presentation College San Fernando is a selective, government-assisted Roman Catholic Boys’ Secondary School located in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago. It claims to be the first Catholic secondary school in South Trinidad, having been establ ...

. He attended the

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 17 English-speaking countries and territories in th ...

and the

Hugh Wooding Law School The Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) is a law school in Trinidad and Tobago. History Named for Trinidad and Tobago jurist and politician Hugh Wooding, HWLS is one of three law schools empowered by the (Caribbean) Council of Legal Education to award ...

between 1973 and 1983.Curriculum Vitae
. ICC. Retrieved 13 December 2011.

Career

After graduating from Hugh Wooding Law School in 1983, Carmona worked as a State Counsel. In 1989, he became a Senior State Attorney. From 1994 to 1999, he was first Assistant then Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions. From 2001 to 2004, he was an Appeals Counsel at the Office of the Prosecutor at the

International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to try their perpetrators. The tribunal ...

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

the

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR; french: Tribunal pénal international pour le Rwanda; rw, Urukiko Mpanabyaha Mpuzamahanga Rwashyiriweho u Rwanda) was an international court established in November 1994 by the United Nation ...

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. Carmona received World Peace Culture Award on 4 May 2019.

High Court Judge

In 2004, he was appointed a High Court Judge at the Supreme Court of Trinidad and Tobago.

International Criminal Court

On 12 December 2011, he was

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a populatio ...

as a

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

of the

International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals ...

. He won the office in the first ballot in the

Assembly of States Parties The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals f ...

with 72 of 104 votes; 70 votes were needed. Carmona took office on 11 March 2012.

President of Trinidad and Tobago

Nomination

On 3 February 2013, Prime Minister

Kamla Persad-Bissessar Kamla Persad-Bissessar ( ; born Kamla Susheila Persad, 22 April 1952), often referred to by her initials KPB, is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian lawyer, politician and educator who is the Leader of the Opposition of Trinidad and Tobago, politica ...

announced that the ruling party would nominate Carmona to succeed outgoing President

George Maxwell Richards George Maxwell Richards (1 December 1931 – 8 January 2018) was a Trinidadian politician who served as the fourth President of Trinidad and Tobago, in office from 2003 to 2013. He was the first President of Trinidad and Tobago and hea ...

. The following day,

Keith Rowley Keith Christopher Rowley (born 24 October 1949) is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian politician serving as the seventh prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, first elected into office on 9 September 2015 and again following the 2020 general electi ...

, leader of the opposition

People's National Movement The People's National Movement (PNM) is the longest-serving and oldest active political party in Trinidad and Tobago. The party has dominated national and local politics for much of Trinidad and Tobago's history, contesting all elections sinc ...

, indicated that his party supported Carmona's nomination. However, following this announcement, the People's National Movement questioned Carmona's eligibility to serve as President, given his work outside the country between 2001 and 2004. (To be eligible to be elected president, a person must be "ordinarily resident" in the country for the ten years prior to election.)

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Anand Ramlogan Anand Ramlogan is a member of the Bar of Trinidad and Tobago, England & Wales and the British Virgin Islands. He is the founder and head of Freedom Law Chambers which is based in the city of San Fernando, Trinidad. He served as junior counsel to ...

responded by saying that the government had consulted with legal experts who expressed the opinion that Carmona met this requirement.

References

External links