This update covers developments relating to the freedom of peaceful assembly and LGBTIQ+ rights in Dominica from 1st November 2024 to 1st September 2025.
ASSEMBLY
Protest against electoral reforms repressed
On 19th March 2025, the House of Assembly passed three bills related to electoral reform: the Registration of Electors Bill, the House of Assembly Elections Bill, and the Electoral Commission Bill. These Bills include provisions on a range of electoral matters. According to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, that has monitored Dominica's electoral reform efforts since 2018, the content of these Bills omitted important provisions to protect political rights, including measures related to campaign financing and safeguards to ensure the independence of the Electoral Commission.
As the bills were being debated, protesters gathered outside the Parliament in Roseau. Citizens were responding to a call from the opposition leader and leader of the United Workers Party (UWP) Dr Thomson Fontaine to demand electoral reform. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets and physically attacked protestors. State forces explained no “permission” had been granted to anyone to stage a protest outside the Parliament building.
During the protest, EmoNews journalist Soana Benjamin was harassed by police officers and her equipment grabbed. Reporters Without Borders contacted the Dominica Police Force but received no response and asked for an investigation into this incident.
No one should suffer mistreatment at the hands of law enforcement — especially a member of the free press. We demand full accountability, a thorough and impartial investigation, and justice for Soana Benjamin. Furthermore, we call for urgent reforms to prevent such violations from recurring and to protect both the public’s right to know and our right to report the news.
- Emerline Anselm, CEO, EmoNews Ltd
From 19th March to 9th April 2025, at least 24 persons, of which four were women, have been arrested, including opposition leaders, lawyers and human rights defenders. The chairman of the Electoral Reform Coalition, Johnson Boston, was among those arrested. The protesters were reportedly charged under the Riot Act, an 1897 Act (amended in 1939 and 1974) stating that if “twelve or more persons being…riotously assembled together to the disturbance of the public peace” refuse to disperse after being lawfully commanded to do so, they are guilty of an offence and liable to punishment.
On 9th April 2025, attorney and United Workers Party (UWP) member Ronald Charles, who has been representing numerous individuals previously detained for their peaceful participation in these protests, was himself arrested and charged. He was later granted bail.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights expressed concern over the content of the bills and the restrictions imposed on the exercise of freedom of assembly, reiterating that social protest should not be conditioned on prior authorisation or on disproportionate requirements that hinder its execution.
On 26th May 2025, the Dominica Bar Association issued a statement to express its grave concern regarding the events surrounding the 19th March protest, including the arrests made and charges brought in the aftermath. The Association expresses doubt at the constitutionality of the Riot Act 1897 in a modern democratic framework. This Act states that if law enforcement gives orders to disperse but people remain gathered for more than one hour, then law enforcement can seize and arrest those individuals. Moreover, if during the process of dispersing or arresting the group, any of the individuals resisting are killed or injured, the authorities will not be held liable. The Dominica Bar Association further notes that the arrests made in the aftermath of the protests may have the appearance of being politically targeted, as some of the arrested persons were not present during the protest but were organisers, a situation not envisaged by the Riot Act.
We call on the government to urgently review and update the Riot Act to address its glaring deficiencies and issues, or areas needing greater scrutiny and clarification.
- The Dominica Bar Association, 26th May 2025
LGBTIQ+
Still no comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation to protect LGBTIQ+ people
On 7th November 2024, the human rights record of Dominica was examined for the fourth time by the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group. Among the points raised was the situation of LGBTIQ+ individuals. While several countries commended the April 2024 High Court’s decision decriminalising “buggery” and other sexual activities between consenting adults, various stakeholders noted the absence of comprehensive legislation providing protection against discrimination in all spheres. The Committee expressed concern that discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity was not prohibited by law and recommended that Dominica take appropriate steps to address discriminatory attitudes and stigma towards LGBTIQ+ individuals, including through comprehensive awareness-raising activities.