Sex Offenders Registry Cometh

For years now, there have been talks about compiling and maintaining a sex offenders registry. An official move from the government was taken back in 2014 when the National Assembly passed amendments to Belize’s Criminal Code. This made it possible for the creation of the National Sex Offenders Database. The registry will contain the name, address, date of birth and other information of the convicted sex offender. That information will be viewed by persons who have been given clearance by the minister or Commissioner of Police. According to C.E.O. in the Ministry of National Security (Home Affairs), Retired Colonel George Lovell, the registry aims to promote awareness to the key agencies and ministries on the potential threat that sex offenders pose to the public.

George Lovell

(Ret.) Col. George Lovell, C.E.O., Ministry of National Security

“Every individual has a constitutional right and so while we will be recording all those sex offenders in this registry or this data base that we will have, we will have to make sure that all those individuals who would have access to it, it is cleared in accordance with the legislation that had been passed. It is cleared that those people who will have access, will have access based on the approval of the Minister and or the Commissioner of Police.”

Andrea Polanco

“So people who are on this list are they going to be categorized based on the level of offence that they have committed?”

(Ret.) Col. George Lovell

“There is a number of reasons or a number of, and it’s all in law, conditions under which one would be considered to be a sex offender.  Yes we will definitely have to look at what category of sex offenders because you have those who are repeat sex offenders and those who may have in certain case just because they have touched someone that is an assault actually been have been convicted and so they themselves may have fall in. But it may be not as grave one who is has committed a rape fort example or committed acts of a more grievous nature. But yes, we definitely have to look at category if these sex offenders while we are maintaining the registry.”

A sex offender’s information will be kept on the registry for ten years.