CRIMINAL LIBEL ABOLISHED

By Linda Straker

Grenada’s Director of Public Prosecution, Mr. Christopher Nelson, has explained that decriminalising libel removes the police from taking action for another person who feels aggrieved by an act of libel, but seditious libel, which provides the police to take action for and on behalf of the State, continues to be part of the criminal code.

“Sedition is close to treason, and provides for action to be taken if a person or a group causes to publish false information that will ignite public nuisance, disorder or provoke rebellion on the State,” he said.

Using an example of how someone can be charged for the offence of seditious libel, he said: “Someone who published false materials calling for public rebellion or accusing the State or the Government of anything without proof can be charged with the offence.” 

“The Stanley Charles matter was a classic example of seditious libel, because he publicly broadcast that the Government had plans to take a certain action on another person and he was unable to prove what he broadcast,” he said.

In July, both Houses of Parliament approved amendments to the Criminal Code which, among other things, decriminalises libel. “Those who feel aggrieved by an act of libel will not now seek justice in the Civil High Court,” said Nelson. Despite the removal of criminal defamation, Nelson said that seditious libel still exists in the law and the police still have the authority to take action for matters of an inflammatory nature.

Last week, the International Press Institution (IPI) congratulated Grenada on becoming the first Caribbean state to decriminalise defamation, but urged the Grenadian government to further abolish seditious libel.

According to Grenada’s Ministry of Legal Affairs, a July reform to the country’s Criminal Code included the repeal of Section 252, which regulated “negligent” and “intentional” libel. The provision had provided for prison terms of up to six months and two years, respectively.

Section 253, which established the circumstances under which criminal defamation could be committed, was also repealed. 

The move came amid lobbying by IPI and the Association of Caribbean Media Workers (ACM), an IPI strategic partner. IPI and the ACM launched a campaign early this year to abolish criminal libel laws across the Caribbean, and urged Grenada Prime Minister Tillman Thomas to remove libel offences from the Criminal Code in a letter sent last May.

Grenada Attorney General Rohan A. Phillip explained to IPI over the phone, “This Government, even in opposition, felt, as a wide percentage of the world does, that having criminal libel on the books is a formal hindrance to freedom of expression and of the press. We were of the view that civil responsibilities and forms of redress are adequate.”

Asked about the broader implications of repeal, the Attorney General commented that the abolition of criminal libel “helps to keep democracy alive and keep those who hold the reins of power in check”. 

Speaking to IPI, Rawle Titus, president of the Media Workers’ Association of Grenada (MWAG), said he cautiously welcomed the news of repeal. “We have to commend the Government and see this [repeal] as a step in the right direction,” he said. “We hope they go further and remove seditious libel.”

“We are thrilled that Grenada has decriminalised defamation, setting an example that we hope the rest of the Caribbean will follow,” expressed IPI Executive Director, Alison Bethel McKenzie. “I want to thank Prime Minister Tillman Thomas for following through on his stated intention to abolish criminal defamation before the end of the year.”

Bethel McKenzie continued: “This is an important day for press freedom, not just in Grenada but also for the greater Caribbean. Criminal defamation laws are archaic, redundant, and a threat to democracy and the free exercise of journalism so long as they remain on the books.  We call upon all other Caribbean states to follow Grenada’s lead and consign these laws to the dustbin of history.”

Wesley Gibbings, ACM president, added, “This is a singularly important moment in recent Caribbean history for those of us who yearn for conditions more conducive to unfettered free expression. The challenge is now extended to other members of the Caribbean Community family who say they wish to move in this direction, but have yet to find the political will or confidence.”

The decriminalisation of libel in Grenada is particularly significant, given that the country was one of the few in the Caribbean to have applied the law in recent years. In 1999, George Worme, then editor of Grenada Today, was arrested and charged with criminal libel after writing an editorial that accused then-Prime Minister Keith Mitchell of bribery. 

The case ultimately reached the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, which serves as the final court of appeal for much of the English-speaking Caribbean. In George Worme and Grenada Today vs. Commissioner of Police of Grenada (2004), the council ruled that Section 252 amounted to a reasonable restriction on the freedom of expression guarantees provided in the Grenadian Consti tution.