The attempt by Barbados to introduce the Cyber Security Bill, 2024 has attracted international attention. The government recently had to defend the Bill before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACH). Although recommendations by the IACH are non binding, the Barbados government will want to avoid the international embarrassment of finding itself on the wrong side of the Commission.
The other point has been the heavy social media attention generated by the attempt to pass the Bill. The struggle between defending the personal rights of citizens and the state is real. It is important that both actors in civil society nurture an environment to determine a harmonious state between actors in civil society.
It seems the more significant opposition to the Bill is linked to a large fine of $70,000 and 7 years prison sentence that can be imposed on users deemed to have “publish, broadcast, or transmit data that is offensive” for the purpose of causing “annoyance, inconvenience,” “embarrassment, anxiety” or “substantial emotional distress.”
The government may argue that the content of the Bill aligns with international best practices, BUT, the nuance of how we want to live in our small country must be the deciding factor how laws are designed.
The scholarship on these matters that would have come from the late Jeff Cumberbatch is missing at this time. A pity with so many lawyers registered in Barbados.
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