I am happy to see that the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Federation (BCCEF), the Organization for Responsible Government (ORG) and another 14 civil society organizations have recognized our commitment to ensuring that the Bahamian people have an opportunity to learn about and review the Interception of Communications Bill. Initial consultations with BCCEF, ORG and others led to the decision that further consultation, led by the Office of the Attorney-General (“OAG”), was necessary to inform the public about this important piece of legislation. I publicly thank them for their agreement to collaborate with OAG.

The Interception of Communications Bill is a very important crime-fighting tool in the arsenal of the Royal Bahamas Police Force. It recognizes that the means of communication have changed significantly since 1972. And it protects citizens by placing the decision as to whether the police may intercept a communication solely in the hands of the independent judiciary. Further protections are that a time limit is set for the interception and any extension must be agreed by the Court and the Court dictates how records of those communications should be destroyed. These protections do not exist under the Listening Devices Act (“LDA”).

In the 2014 Maycock Case the Privy Council said “…in the light of the Board’s view that the LDA would not meet current constitutional standards had it been appropriate to apply them, the Bahamian legislature would wish to consider whether the scheme provided by the LDA should now be revisited and revised.”

From the conversations we have already had it has become clear that the more people learn about the legislation, the more they support it. Moving forward, and in partnership with civil society, we will work to answer the questions and address the concerns of the Bahamian people. It is in the spirit of this very same partnership that we ask all fair-minded civil society organizations to discourage the overheated and irresponsible accusations and misinformation that have unfortunately become part of the public discourse.

Bahamas Information Services