Dominica NGO wants sex offenders registry established

ROSEAU, Dominica, CMC –President of the Business and Professional Dominica Chapter Rhoda St John is calling for the establishment of a sex offenders registry as part of a regional initiative to protect women and children.

“Every individual name per country that offends children and has sex with children, rapes women…we are going to put a list together and make it public. So in every island that list would be done once you are prosecuted and that list would be made public,” she said on the state-owned DBS radio Monday.

St John said that the list would allow for a sexual offender to be known in the community so that residents can be aware of that individual.

“If it is going to be approved by the government is another question that is left to be answered, but we will be advocating that our laws and the government that be look at the sex offenders registry as we would like every Caribbean island to implement it.”

Several Caribbean countries have passed sexual offences legislation and in September, the Trinidad and Tobago parliament unanimously approved legislation providing for a National Sex Offender Register.

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi said the purpose of the legislation is to provide more protections for children against crimes of sexual abuse.

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