By Shauna Jemmott

TWO girls who were rescued from the North West District are in the hands of the Child Care and Protection Agency, and will be returning to school as soon as possible.One of the girls, a 13-year-old, is the mother of a newborn baby, while the other, a 12-year-old, is pregnant and awaiting delivery of her child. They were brought out of the area by the Ministry of Public Health, which worked in a collaborative effort with the Guyana Woman Miners Organisation (GWMO) to ensure they received the necessary care.
Director of Child Care and Protection Agency, Ann Greene, told the Guyana Chronicle on Monday that the two girls, along with the baby, were in foster care and were receiving counselling from social workers attached to the Ministry of Social Protection. They are also receiving medical care from the Ministry of Public Health.

The children were transported from the Port Kaituma backdam on the recommendation of a Medex who discovered that their respective blood pressure was dangerously low.

Greene said the girls were also assisting police with investigations, since they were both victims of statutory rape.
The Guyana Chronicle understands that while the 13-year-old is a victim of statutory rape, the 12-year-old gave to the GWMO statements suggesting that she was a victim of Trafficking in Persons (TIP).
The 12-year-old is one of the children the organisation had expressed concern about since last October, after the father had reportedly raped their mother (his wife) just after she had a Caesarian delivery, and dragged her in their yard after she began to haemorrhage. The children tearfully watched their mother die, and were robbed of attending her funeral.

The story was first reported in the October 23, 2015 edition of the Guyana Chronicle. GWMO President Urica Primus has since been concerned about the children being exposed to the man, whom residents had deemed as “abusive.”

“She was dragged into the sun and left to die in the yard. Her three young children attempted to drag her back into the house, and it was their cries that alerted neighbours of her plight. Unfortunately, by the time they were able to get her to ‘False Top’ en route to Port Kaituma hospital, she died,” the report said.

Reports had also indicated that the children were put into the custody of their grandmother and aunt, but the newspaper is unclear as to how they returned to their father.

The organization has since expressed concern that the man has not been arrested, and with this new development, is calling on police to make the necessary arrest.
Reports are that the pregnant pre-teen told the organization that her father took her and her 10-year-old sister to different mining camps and logging sites, using them as sex workers just to acquire groceries and money.

“A small bag of groceries,” the GWMO President said, “was given in exchange for a sexual session with each child by adult men.”

Police and the Trafficking Department within the Ministry of Social Protection are investigating the matter, the Guyana Chronicle understands.