Senate passes pepper spray bill

THE Opposition joined with the Government in the Senate on Tuesday to pass legislation to regulate the use of pepper spray, the Firearms (Amendment) Bill, 2021, piloted by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi.

The bill says a person may only "manufacture, produce, import, export, divert, sell or distribute" pepper spray with an import permit from the Commissioner of Police or "purchase, acquire or have in his possession" pepper spray only if he holds a permit.

Two Independent Senators abstained on the bill, Anthony Vieira and Deoroop Teemal.

The bill was passed by 22 votes for, none against and two abstentions. It now heads to the House of Representatives.

The bill came after a huge public outcry for more to be done to protect women and girls after the brutal murders of Ashanti Riley, 18, last November and Andrea Bharatt, 23, last January/February, after each woman had got into a PH taxi, in San Juan and Arima respectively.

In committee stage, Opposition Senator Wade Mark complained about clause 30, which says anyone now with pepper spray in their possession will have six months to apply to the CoP for a permit. Mark alleged that people have imported hundreds of thousands of pepper spray bottles and that by this clause the AG intended to give such people a free pass.

Mark proposed the clause be limited to an individual's possession of just five pepper spray devices, saying, "It is wrong for this Parliament to give cover to illegal activities."

Al-Rawi said clause 30 was a transitional provision, as he recalled his surprise to learn how many people have pepper spray.

Earlier the AG explained that individuals applying for a pepper spray licence would be disqualified if they were facing criminal charges listed in the schedules of the Bail Act or Firearm Act, which are usually very violent offences.

Opposition Senator Jayanti Lutchmedial complained that these measures constituted an automatic denial of a permit, even to a victim of domestic violence against whom cross-charges had been filed by her partner. Al-Rawi said the bill did not cover the provisions of the Domestic Violence Act.

However, he affirmed that anyone charged with rape would not get a pepper spray permit.