Defamation remains a criminal offence in St. Kitts and Nevis (punishable with imprisonment).

The following are criminal offences under the :

Malicious defamatory libel (Art. 6) is punished with imprisonment for up to one year and a fine.

Malicious defamatory libel known to be false (Art. 5) is punished with imprisonment for up to two years.

Libel with intent to extort (Art. 4) is punished with imprisonment for up to three years.

Provisions on the books.

Seditious libel is a criminal offence in St. Kitts and Nevis under the .

According to the Act, any person who:

•  commits or prepares to commit an act with a seditious intention;
•  utters any seditious words;
•  prints, publishes, sells, offers for sale, distributes or reproduces any seditious publication; or
•  knowingly imports a seditious publication

faces, upon first offence, imprisonment for up to two years with or without hard labour and/or a fine of $5,000. Subsequent offenders face imprisonment for up to three years with or without hard labor.

Seditious intention is defined in the Act as an intention:

i. to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the person of Her Majesty, Her heirs or successors, or the Government as by law established; or
ii. to excite Her Majesty’s subjects or inhabitants of St. Kitts and Nevis to attempt to procure the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any other matter in St. Kitts and Nevis as by law established; or
iii. to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the administration of justice in St. Kitts and Nevis; or
iv. to raise discontent or disaffection amongst Her Majesty’s subjects or inhabitants of St. Kitts and Nevis; or
v. to promote feelings of ill-will and hostility between different classes of the population of St. Kitts and Nevis.

The possession of seditious publications is punishable, upon first offence, with imprisonment for up to one year of a fine of $3,000. Subsequent offenders face imprisonment with or without hard labour for up to two years.

Provisions on the books.

Seditious libel is a criminal offence in St. Kitts and Nevis under the .

According to the Act, any person who:

•  commits or prepares to commit an act with a seditious intention;
•  utters any seditious words;
•  prints, publishes, sells, offers for sale, distributes or reproduces any seditious publication; or
•  knowingly imports a seditious publication

faces, upon first offence, imprisonment for up to two years with or without hard labour and/or a fine of $5,000. Subsequent offenders face imprisonment for up to three years with or without hard labor.

Seditious intention is defined in the Act as an intention:

i. to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the person of Her Majesty, Her heirs or successors, or the Government as by law established; or
ii. to excite Her Majesty’s subjects or inhabitants of St. Kitts and Nevis to attempt to procure the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any other matter in St. Kitts and Nevis as by law established; or
iii. to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the administration of justice in St. Kitts and Nevis; or
iv. to raise discontent or disaffection amongst Her Majesty’s subjects or inhabitants of St. Kitts and Nevis; or
v. to promote feelings of ill-will and hostility between different classes of the population of St. Kitts and Nevis.

The possession of seditious publications is punishable, upon first offence, with imprisonment for up to one year of a fine of $3,000. Subsequent offenders face imprisonment with or without hard labour for up to two years.

Provisions on the books.

Seditious libel is a criminal offence in St. Kitts and Nevis under the .

According to the Act, any person who:

•  commits or prepares to commit an act with a seditious intention;
•  utters any seditious words;
•  prints, publishes, sells, offers for sale, distributes or reproduces any seditious publication; or
•  knowingly imports a seditious publication

faces, upon first offence, imprisonment for up to two years with or without hard labour and/or a fine of $5,000. Subsequent offenders face imprisonment for up to three years with or without hard labor.

Seditious intention is defined in the Act as an intention:

i. to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the person of Her Majesty, Her heirs or successors, or the Government as by law established; or
ii. to excite Her Majesty’s subjects or inhabitants of St. Kitts and Nevis to attempt to procure the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any other matter in St. Kitts and Nevis as by law established; or
iii. to bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against the administration of justice in St. Kitts and Nevis; or
iv. to raise discontent or disaffection amongst Her Majesty’s subjects or inhabitants of St. Kitts and Nevis; or
v. to promote feelings of ill-will and hostility between different classes of the population of St. Kitts and Nevis.

The possession of seditious publications is punishable, upon first offence, with imprisonment for up to one year of a fine of $3,000. Subsequent offenders face imprisonment with or without hard labour for up to two years.

No provisions.

No provisions.

No provisions.

Art. 31 of the Small Charges Act punishes the publication of any indecent matter with a fine of up to $3,000.

In addition, Art. 14 of the Electronic Crimes Act 2009 punished the sending of threatening, obscene or menacing communications online that cause the recipient or subject to feel harassed, intimidated, molested or threatened with imprisonment and a fine. In 2012, a bill was published that would amend Art. 14 to add communication that causes “substantianal emotional distress”. It is unclear whether the bill was passed.

The information contained in this database is for informational and advocacy purposes only. If you are a journalist facing a defamation claim, you should seek legal advice from a qualified attorney. However, if you are unable to find such an attorney, IPI may be able to assist you in doing so. Please contact us at ipi[at]freemedia.at.

Information on St. Kitts and Nevis was last updated in September 2015.