During a Joint Select Committee meeting, while discussing a draft of the Sexual Harassment bill, - Minister of Justice Delroy Chuck crudely invalidated the traumatic experiences of sexual assault victims by asserting that claims which are not reported within a year of the occurrence are invalid. Chuck's disgustingly "jovial" statement went as follows, "We don't want the situation that now happens in the #MeToo Movement in the US, where 30 years later you talk about I was harassed in the elevator." The minister chuckled before going on to add, "If you don't complain within 12 months, please, cut it out."

The minister's response to well deserved backlash was an action-less public apology in which he deflected accountability and made no plans to remove, or at least, extend the statute of limitations for reporting assault.

Due to Chuck's inappropriate language that perpetuates a dangerous stigma of victim blaming, we demand that he resign from his position as Minister of Justice. Jamaica's most vulnerable communities should not have to rely on a representative who refuses to enact change to champion their rights due to ignorance. Shifting Chuck's portfolio is not a viable method of change - his rhetoric and beliefs will seep into yet another essential facet of Parliament. Chuck's ministerial reappointment poses a direct threat to victims' rights.