Amnesty International Report 2014/15 - Bahamas
| Publisher | Amnesty International |
| Publication Date | 25 February 2015 |
| Cite as | Amnesty International, Amnesty International Report 2014/15 - Bahamas, 25 February 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/54f07e1a6.html [accessed 2 November 2019] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Commonwealth of the Bahamas
Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II, represented by Dame Marguerite Pindling (replaced Sir Arthur Alexander Foulkes in July 2014)
Head of government: Perry Gladstone Christie
There were calls for resumptions in executions. Excessive use of force was reported and sentences had yet to be handed down in cases of torture or other ill-treatment in detention.
Background
A referendum on amendments to the Constitution on gender equality was postponed until 2015. The referendum followed recommendations made in a 2013 report by the Constitutional Commission, and had originally been scheduled for November 2014. There was opposition to these amendments, including from local churches, due to concern that they would allow same-sex marriage.
Violent crime continued to rise. In 2013, police reported the second highest homicide rate since 2000, with 120 murders. No further statistics on homicide rates were published in 2014.
Death penalty
There had been no executions in the Bahamas since 2000. Hundreds demonstrated in 2014 for the resumption of executions in order to reduce crime.
In March, the Bahamas rejected a call for abolition of the death penalty and reiterated its retentionist position at the OAS.
Excessive use of force
Torture or other ill-treatment and excessive use of force by police officers continued to be reported.
In April, Leslie Louis required medical treatment after police attempted to arrest him. He was allegedly beaten, but was not charged with any criminal offence. When his sister asked the police why he was being interrogated, she was pushed and grabbed by the throat.
Deaths in custody
By the end of the year, no judicial sentence had been handed down in the case of Aaron Rolle who died in police custody in February 2013. In May 2013, the coroner's inquest found the death to be an "unlawful killing".
Refugees' and migrants' rights
The sentencing of five marines before a military court in November 2013 was still pending at the end of the year. They were charged following allegations of ill-treatment of Cuban asylum-seekers at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre in May 2013.
A new migration policy put in place on 1 November resulted in dozens of arbitrary detentions of migrants, disproportionately targeting Haitians and Bahamian-Haitian communities with the risk of deportation without due process.
Rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people
In February, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration publicly advocated for greater tolerance in member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) towards LGBTI people. In August, the Bahamas' first ever Pride event was cancelled due to threats and intimidation against the organizers.
Women's rights
Despite promises made during the Bahamas' 2013 UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR) to criminalize marital rape, no legislation had been approved by the end of the year.
