THE PUBLIC ORDER MANAGEMENT ACT, 2013
An Act to provide for the regulation of public meetings; to provide for the duties and responsibilities of the police, organisers and participants in relation to public meetings; to prescribe measures for safeguarding public order; and for related matters.
2. Principle of managing public order.
(1) The underlying principle of managing public order is to regulate the exercise of the freedom to assemble and to demonstrate together with others peacefully and unarmed and to petition m accordance with Articles 29(1)d and 43 of the Constitution.
(2) For purposes of this section the word, “”regulate”” means to
ensure that conduct or behavior conforms to the requirements of the
Constitution.
PART II-REGULATION OF PUBLIC MEETINGS
3. Power of the Inspector General of Police or authorized officer.
The Inspector General of Police or an authorised officer shall have the
power to regulate the conduct of all public meetings in accordance
with the law.
4. Meaning of “”public meeting””.
(1) For purposes of this Act-
“”public meeting”” means a gathering, assembly, procession or demonstration in a public place or premises held for the purposes of discussing, acting upon, petitioning or expressing views on a matter of public interest
(2) A public meeting does not include-
(a) a meeting convened and held exclusively for a lawful purpose of any public body;
(b) a meeting of members of any registered organisation, whether corporate or not, convened in accordance with the constitution of the organisation and held exclusively for a lawful purpose of that organisation;
(c) a meeting of members of a trade union;
(d) a meeting for a social, religious, cultural, charitable, educational, commercial or industrial purpose; and
(e) a meeting of the organs of a political party or organisation, convened in accordance with the constitution of the party or organisation, and held exclusively to discuss the affairs of the party or organization
(3) For the avoidance of doubt, a public meeting convened by a group, body or leader in a group or body at-
(a) the ordinary place of business of that body, group or leader;
or
(b) any other place, which is not a public place, in the course of lawful business of the group, body or leader, is not a public meeting under this section, unless that meeting spills over into a public place.
(4) For the purpose of subsection (2), a public body includes Government or any department of Government, a local government, a body established by the Constitution or an Act of Parliament, a registered political party or political organisation or a registered trade union.