The possibility of legislative changes to the Prevention of Discrimination Act (1997) is still very much alive, says founder of the the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD), Joel Simpson.
In fact, the current administration, according to Simpson, is open to the idea of revising the law to include LGBTQ+ persons. But the current draft, even though still viable, will need more work before it is tabled in the National Assembly.
It was the previous Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams who welcomed the change to the legislation and gave approval to SASOD to draft the amendment to the act to include LGBTQ+ persons. Unfortunately, the turbulence that characterized the 2020 General and Regional Elections affected the momentum on the key amendment to the law.
Simpson told the Guyana Standard that SASOD met with Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Gail Teixeira who welcomed the idea of the draft amendment but suggested a few more changes, including more consultation, before it is tabled
“We have taken note of the suggestions made by the minister and we are currently working on those. We have been given the assurance that once this is done, the amendment can be tabled and we look forward to that,” Simpson said.
He continued, “It may take another year or two before it is actually ready to be tabled. I know that it is still some more time but we have a clear direction as to what we need now to make a strong case in this draft amendment,” Simpson said.
The SADOS Founder believes that his entity and other partner associations are now better positioned to up their advocacy and lobbying efforts for much-needed legislative change.
Simpson said SASOD intends to engage the Minister of Labour, Joseph Hamilton and Minister of Human Services and Social Security, Dr. Vindhya Persaud to have further discussions on the current act, as there is no legislation catering for the prevention of hate crimes.
SASOD has been lobbying for an amendment to the 1997 Act to protect vulnerable persons within the LGBT community with the inclusion of “sexual orientation” which will legally protect LGBTQ+ persons.
The current 1997 bill prohibits only discrimination in the workplace based on “race, sex, religion, colour, ethnic origin, indigenous population, national extraction, social origin, economic status, political opinion, disability, family responsibilities, pregnancy and marital status or age.”
