‘Proper consequences’ for incitement in media being considered

May 09, 2016 in Regional

peter-1Attorney General, Levi Peter, has said he is concerned over certain utterances being made in the media,especially the airwaves, that incite violence and the government needs to make sure there are proper consequences in place to deal with them.

He said although there are provisions in Common Law that deals with incitement, law enforcement officials are hesitant to proceed with them and hence consideration must be given to creating “a statutory offense that is written and is clear that everybody can see what that offense exactly is, what constitutes it what defenses are and in what circumstances one may be found liable for it.”

“I am also concerned about incitement,” he said last week. “I find that I hear too much incitement as far as I am concerned particularly on the airwaves and it has become in my view, the view of many, that it has become that you can say whatever you want and claim that it is an opinion.” Peter argued that he does not agree with that position since, in his opinion, it is not in “concordance with the law.”

“The law is that you can speak freely, that include things you shouldn’t say but there is a consequence and therefore we need to make sure that there is a proper consequence,” he noted. He said the government cannot prevent people from saying what they want, “but if you say something that is contrary to the law or that is inciting an offense, then you should be held accountable for it and I think we need to ensure that our legislation properly reflects that.”