The Ministry of Legal Affairs today hinted that the government will likely move in the direction of decriminalising defamation and a series of other offences.
Decriminalising of defamation here has been urged for a long time by local groups and press freedom bodies.
A statement by the Ministry of Legal Affairs follow:
On Monday October 8, 2018 The Honorable Minister of Legal Affairs, Mr. Basil Williams and his team met with consultant, Mr. Peter Pursglove S.C, who is contracted under the Support for the Criminal Justice System Programme (SCJS) to review the existing legislation and propose recommendations of amendments for Summary Jurisdiction (Offences) Act, Cap. 8.02. It is envisaged that these proposed amendments will include the decriminalization of some current offences and the recommendation of alternatives to imprisonment in respect of certain summary offences, particularly those of a minor and non-violent nature. These objectives will be achieved through both amendments to existing legislation and the drafting of entirely new legislation.
In these discussions it was rationalized that the criminal law of Guyana contains several categories of offences that in other jurisdictions have now been decriminalized. Many of these offences carry a sentence of imprisonment if found guilty. For example: offences concerning roguery and vagabondage, vagrancy, obeah and witchcraft, incorrigible roguery, attempt to commit suicide and criminal defamation are now decriminalized, in whole or in part, in many jurisdictions thus reducing rates of imprisonment. In such cases, decriminalizing the behaviour and dealing with it outside the criminal law has not resulted in any negative impact on public safety. Other offences may no longer warrant the imposition of a sentence of imprisonment and may now be dealt with by way of fine or other non-custodial sanctions.
The Attorney General highlighted that a prison sentence is usually an inappropriate sanction, especially for non-violent, minor offenses. Various alternatives have been implemented in other jurisdictions, such as bail, seizure of travel documents, periodic reporting to police or other authorities, electronic monitoring or curfews, and conditional and suspended sentences.
These activities are intended the impact the Criminal Justice System by increasing the use of Alternative Sentencing in the Criminal Justice System.
