Brown: Sex offenders list should not be public

TRUSTEE and former co-ordinator of the Network of NGOs Hazel Brown says the proposed Sex Offenders Registry in the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill does not have to be public.

Brown and activist Diana Mahabir-Wyatt were in the public gallery on Tuesday when the bill was piloted in the Senate by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi. She was part of 20 organisations that came together because they were not consulted by the Attorney General and has called for consultations via a joint select committee. Brown added that most of the organisations were involved with the original act of 1986 and the subsequent act of 2000.

During Senate debate Independent Senator Sophia Chote opposed Government proposals to stamp the passport of sex offenders, and to let the general public view a list of sex offenders.

Brown, speaking to Newsday in a telephone interview, said there was no justification for stamping the passports of child sex offenders. She added there would be all kinds of other ramifications rather than the punitive ones. “The passport question will have a great impact which he has not totally considered. You cannot take short cuts with things like that. And in the final analysis it will not work.”

On making the Sexual Offenders Registry open to the public Brown responded that, while this exists in other jurisdictions, this does not have to be the case locally.

“For TT what will be impact of making this public in small communities or societies?”

Brown cautioned that the information could be used for “nefarious purposes” other than people’s safety and people could take the information and use it on social networks. She instead suggested that the information should be on a need-to-know basis and people should have to fill out an application and say what they wanted it for.

“What is available and how it becomes available is a very important consideration not dealt with in the bill.”