Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

The law of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines does not specifically criminalise HIV transmission, however there are general provisions which can be used to this effect.

Section 291 of the Criminal Code prohibits “negligent acts likely to spread disease”. It states that “any person who unlawfully or negligently does any act which he knows, or has reason to believe, to be likely to cause the spread of any infectious or contagious disease, is guilty of an offence and liable to imprisonment for one year.”

In addition, there are general provisions criminalising the infliction of grievous bodily harm under the Criminal Code. Section 173 penalises wounding or grievous bodily harm with intent with a penalty of life imprisonment, while section 174 criminalises the same harm where there is no intent with a penalty of fourteen years’ imprisonment.

It was confirmed in 2019 by the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) that those who wilfully transmit HIV to others are liable to criminalisation under section 173 of the Criminal Code. This statement was made in response to the deportation from Canada of a man born in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, after he was convicted of aggravated sexual assault due to not disclosing his HIV status to a number of women who later tested HIV-positive. 

While no such prosecutions have ever taken place in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the DPP’s office explained that the provisions criminalising the infliction of grievous bodily harm could be used where a person was aware that they were living with HIV and continued to have sex that resulted in the transmission of HIV.