Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill: “Any register of sex offenders must be public” – Pres Ali

…instructs that proposed Bill to be sent to Select Committee

Following criticism over the proposed legislation that seeks to establish a National Sex Offender Database that would be disclosed to the public, President Dr Irfaan Ali has intervened and asked that the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill be sent to the Parliamentary Select Committee with the aim of reviewing the proposed laws.
This was announced by Vice President (VP) Dr Bharrat Jagdeo in a social media post on Wednesday.

According to the VP, the Guyanese leader and his Cabinet believe that any sex offender registry that is established in Guyana must be made public.
“President Dr Irfaan Ali has instructed that the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill, presented in the National Assembly on June 5th, 2026, be sent to a select committee. He has also indicated that it is his view, and that of the Cabinet, that any register of sex offenders must be public. I strongly share this view,” Jagdeo said.
This move comes after days of public criticism online over the proposed Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill 2026, which seeks to establish a National Sex Offender Database that would not be accessible to the public and includes stiff penalties for public officials who leak unauthorised information about convicted sex offenders.
Only on Tuesday, the Human Services Ministry had defended the move to have a closed registry, explaining that it was the widespread public consultations that overwhelmingly advocated for the establishment of a closed model registry – something which subject Minister Vindhya Persaud, who tabled the proposed legislation, reiterated on Wednesday.
In a brief statement on her Facebook page, Minister Persaud noted that “…the Bill was crafted based on the view of the public consultations, which overwhelmingly suggested a closed register.”
Nevertheless, with plans now to send the bill to the Select Committee and having shared the President’s view of an open registry, Persaud indicated on Wednesday that the proposed legislation will now benefit from further scrutiny.
“The President, I and the members of the Cabinet hold the view that this should be an open register… My intention as subject Minister is to propose to have the Bill taken to Select Committee in Parliament to have it further discussed by members. It will benefit from more scrutiny and views at that committee,” the Minister stated.
The Select Committee comprises members of Parliament from both the Government and opposition sides of the House.
This proposed Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill 2026 seeks to amend the 2010 Sexual Offences Act to reform the law relating to sexual offences and to provide for the establishment of a National Sex Offender Database – a centralised system of recording information about persons convicted of sexual offences under this act. It will include Guyanese who are convicted of a sexual offence by a court within or outside of Guyana as of May 2010 and who have completed or are serving their sentence.
The Bill says that the database, which would not be accessible to the public, would be established by the Commission of Police with approval from the Home Affairs Minister. The Police Commissioner will maintain the database and ensure the information is entered accurately as well as implement measures to secure the information against unauthorised access, collection, distribution, alteration, disclosure and disposal.
Section Seven of the Fourth Schedule outlines the penalty for anyone who unlawfully disseminates information from the database. It states: “Any person who, having been granted access to the database, unlawfully distributes, transmits, or reproduces any information contained therein commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of one hundred thousand dollars or imprisonment for three years or both.”
The proposed legislation further noted that an application for information from the database, including about a specific sexual offender, would have to be made to the Police Commissioner and the Home Affairs Minister in writing, outlining the reason for the request. The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is exempted from making an application to access the database.
It was noted that persons attached to a state or non-state institution working with children or vulnerable adults shall be provided with the information relating to a specific sexual offender identified on the database.
Meanwhile, in addition to these new insertions, there are also amendments to the existing law regarding the publication of information for persons not charged with any sexual offences.

Exempted
According to the Explanatory Memorandum of the proposed Bill, Clause Seven amends Section 62 of the Principal Act to prohibit the publication of information that could identify a person not formally charged with an offence under the Act.
Moreover, Section 91B provides that a person who was a child at the time of the commission of a sexual offence would be exempted from being listed on the database, as well as a person suffering from a mental disability that may have substantially impaired that person’s mental responsibility for their actions in relation to the offence.
At Section 91E, it caters for the court to order a person who is convicted of a sexual offence, on or after the commencement of this proposed legislation, to report to an officer in charge of the Police Station for the purpose of registering as a registered sex offender. For those who have appealed their conviction, Section 91F provides for the court to withhold deciding on whether the sex offender shall register or report to Police pending the completion of the appeal.
There is also a provision at Section 91G for a Guyanese to comply with these requirements when entering Guyana if that person does an act in a country outside of Guyana which, if it were done here, would constitute an offence under this Act.