Will the Use of Profane and Insulting Language Also Carry Greater Penalties?

Earlier this month, Cabinet announced that it has approved amendments to the Criminal Code Act and the Summary Jurisdiction Act to upgrade the use of threatening words or behavior from a petty offence to a serious crime, carrying a penalty of up to five years. According to the Summary Jurisdiction Act, threatening words fall within the same category as abusive, profane, indecent or insulting words or behavior. So, will the amendment also place greater penalties on the use of profane and insulting language towards another individual? We asked Minister Musa today in Belize City.

Kareem Musa, Minister of Home Affairs

Kareem Musa

“I don’t believe so. I think whenever this matter goes to a committee level we will have the contribution, hopefully from the press as well as we have seen recently in the news, some of your colleagues have been subjected to being coughed on, some have been punched, cursed out. So all these thinks were what was considered in drafting the legislation. So, if it is that they want to remove insulting words from it that is something that can be considered. But I think you have to look at it from a threatening standpoint. If it does constitute a threat from anyone of those individuals then it would constitute that particular charge.”