Govt to table new Bill to include harsher penalties for criminals – AG

 …says Govt “not comfortable” with level of crime, violence

Determined to address the crime situation in Guyana, the Government will soon table a new Bill in the National Assembly which will see harsher penalties being handed down to persons who engage in petty theft, burglary, armed robbery, and murder, among others.
This was according to Attorney General, Anil Nandlall who stated that the relevant stakeholders are currently reviewing the penalty provisions for these crimes with a view of increasing penalties that are already in place.
He disclosed that this intervention is one of many being implemented through Guyana’s Legal system to deter individuals from committing such offenses.
During his televised programme ‘Issues in the News’, the AG expressed the Government’s displeasure with the country’s crime rate, noting that is a potential threat to public safety.

“Let me say that the Government of Guyana is not comfortable with the level of crime and violence in the society and that is no secret. We have repeatedly accepted that fact and we are assiduously working to address the situation…We have to have a multifaceted approach. So, we will take to the parliament shortly a bill that will increase penalties for different categories of offenses,” Nandlall said.
He noted that focus is already being placed on increasing penalties for those responsible for road deaths and other traffic-related offences. He added that this coupled with enhanced community policing can comprehensively and successfully address the phenomenon.
“We are constantly training our police officers to make them better qualified and better suited to deal with crime and criminality in the country. More forensic approaches to investigations are being pursued. Thus, we have equipped our forensic laboratory with a skillset of highly qualified personnel that we have recruited from overseas. We now have modern equipment and we are acquiring more to equip the lab as we move into forensic examination”.
“In terms of the law, the Attorney General Chambers continues to partner with the Guyana Police Force in doing educational interventions with a view of educating our policemen and women on issues of the law that we feel they should be more familiar with,” the Attorney General disclosed.

Road fatalities
In June, the Guyana Police Force’s Traffic Department reported that 97 individuals lost their lives in road accidents on Guyana’s roadways so far this year. This total includes 42 fatal accidents and 55 road incidents.
When compared to the same period last year the figure reflects a 19 per cent decrease in fatal accidents, some 47 fewer accidents.

Serious crimes
Police Commissioner, Clifton Hicken two weeks ago reported an 18.9% reduction in serious crime for this year while emphasising the success of 361 community policing groups across regional divisions. Additionally, 75 firearms were taken off the streets.