Minister Perinchief: Defence Act To Be Amended
Soldiers will now have the right to elect for their disciplinary trials to be heard outside of the normal chain of command and in Magistrates Court, Minister of National Security Wayne Perinchief said this morning [Aug 20].
Government has undertaken to comprehensively modernize three pieces of legislation relevant to the Bermuda Regiment: the Defence Act 1965, the Bermuda Regiment Governor’s Orders, and the Cadet Act 1944, together forming the essence of the Defence Amendment Act 2012.
The Bill has been drafted and will shortly be approved by Cabinet, and the amendments will be tabled in this next Session, the Minister said.
Minister Perinchief said: “One of the hallmarks of these amendments is that soldiers will now have the right to elect for their disciplinary trials to be heard outside of the normal chain of command and in Magistrates Court rather than the normal internal discipline process.
“Having this option serves to remove any allegations of bias and ensures that soldiers are guaranteed a fair and impartial trial.
“It is not the intent of this legislation for harsher penalties to be imposed on those soldiers who are found guilty after electing a Magistrate’s Court trial; Magistrates will have full discretion within the parameters of the law in regards to sentencing.
Minister Perinchief continued: “Similar to the amendments to the Defence Act 1965, the Cadet Act 1944 has also been updated with a clarified discipline process for adult staff. The Commanding Officer of the Regiment has been inserted into the chain of command of the Bermuda Cadet Corps, and will be the head of the cadets and their adult leaders.”
Minister Perinchief’s full statement follows below:
The people of Bermuda will recall that the 2011 Throne Speech promised an improved framework for internal military discipline that will provide for an election of mode and venue of trial in certain circumstances where soldiers of the Bermuda Regiment find themselves subject to disciplinary procedures.
I am pleased to inform the public that this Government has fulfilled that promise and has further undertaken to comprehensively modernize three pieces of legislation relevant to the Bermuda Regiment: the Defence Act 1965, the Bermuda Regiment Governor’s Orders, and the Cadet Act 1944, together forming the essence of the Defence Amendment Act 2012.
The Bill has been drafted and will shortly be approved by Cabinet. The amendments will be tabled in this next Session and bring Bermuda’s defence legislation in line with the current British Military (Armed Forces Act 2006), ensuring that the Regiment’s governing legislation is compliant with the European Convention on Human Rights. Updating these three pieces of legislation will modernize and reform the Bermuda Regiment, positioning the organization for a new and enhanced role in modern Bermuda.
One of the hallmarks of these amendments is that soldiers will now have the right to elect for their disciplinary trials to be heard outside of the normal chain of command and in Magistrates Court rather than the normal internal discipline process.
Having this option serves to remove any allegations of bias and ensures that soldiers are guaranteed a fair and impartial trial. It is not the intent of this legislation for harsher penalties to be imposed on those soldiers who are found guilty after electing a Magistrate’s Court trial; Magistrates will have full discretion within the parameters of the law in regards to sentencing.
With this Amendment Act, there will be more options for disciplining Officers and Senior Non-Commissioned Officers. Options for discipline must be fair, equal and constant across all ranks of the Bermuda Regiment. These Amendments will ensure that the most senior members of the Regiment are held accountable and subject to disciplinary procedures comparable to those imposed on soldiers of a lower rank.
In the same vein, prudence dictates that with improved discipline procedures, it is imperative that fines are also revisited. As such, the prescribed fines for offences against the Defence Act have been updated. In many cases, rather than a specific dollar value as a maximum fine, these amendments stipulate that soldiers, if found guilty, are fined a prescribed number of days pay; a practice that is now standard in the UK.
These amendments address some of the issues raised in those quarters opposed to certain Regiment practices. Careful attention has been given to ensuring that the legislation is gender neutral as far as possible. There has also been clarification on which organizations are considered “exempted services”.
Similar to the amendments to the Defence Act 1965, the Cadet Act 1944 has also been updated with a clarified discipline process for adult staff. The Commanding Officer of the Regiment has been inserted into the chain of command of the Bermuda Cadet Corps, and will be the head of the cadets and their adult leaders.
These amendments are subject to the negative resolution procedure and will be gazetted in due course.
This Amendment Act significantly modernizes the legislation governing the Bermuda Regiment. This Government is fully committed to ensuring that the Regiment is provided with sufficient legal resources and provisions to carry out its mandate effectively. We will continue to provide the platform to allow the Regiment to enhance its mission and to broaden the scope of its involvement in the security of Bermuda and her people.
Thank you.
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More grand ‘announcements’ just before an election of legislation that was promised long long ago.
The koolaid drinkers must be estatic.
8 months is long ago ? Sounds like record time to me.
Be careful of what you wish for. Now that soldiers will have this option, instead of dealing with your issues internally, you will have a court appointment. If you miss this appointment, an arrest warrent MAYBE issued. Not to mention other issues may arise in your court appearence (i.e. child support, outstanding fines, etc). Again, this could have been dealt with internally.
Excellent, give even more work to an over stretched magistrates court who’s judges aren’t interested and are continually not administering appropriate sentances for people found guilty of offences.
The Fact,
Sounds like you’re scared now that you can’t pass judgement on your own, biased terms. I would love to hear the threats the regiment is giving to the young idiots who fill the ranks. “If you appeal to the courts they’ll lock you up for XYZ reasons!” and the like. All non-conscripts up there should be embarrassed of themselves. I certainly am ashamed of you.
As an aside; anyone who is facing conscription this year DON’T GO UP THERE! They are facing budget cuts and enough clowns show up on their own free will so they need not chase down any no-shows. You’re welcome.
So it has taken 8 months to put this legislation together. Howcum it has taken 15 years to get the Human Rights Amendment through? NOt to mention other legislation that was promised but has yet to get here.
Having an option means having a choice. That can’t be a bad thing, especially when you know you have no children or outstanding fines/warrants.
Actually Pastor, aligning the Regiment with the European Convention on Human Rights will mean that the Regiment will have a more comprehensive human rights regulation than the rest of he island. Although the Convention does not mention sexual orintation, the European Human Rights Court, who enforce these regulations, have ruled in favor of freedom of sexual orientation.
What would PATI think?
Wish we could ask, but alas, PATI is still just a figment of our imagination.