The latest victim of domestic violence, Ms. Shaneeza Mohamed, has made a startling revelation alleging that police ranks requested $10,000 from her, claiming that “they have to be paid to duck the story.”

According to her, this happened three months ago after the man had severely beaten her to the point that her head required stitches. The woman said that police at Turkeyen Police Station started the process to have the man charged and placed before the courts but she begged for him.
The question that immediately arises is why so many victims of domestic abuse and violence opt not to allow the law to take its course after enduring such agony for so long, and instead they ask for mercy for the perpetrators thereby continuing to risk the safety of themselves and children. Ms. Mohamed is not the first victim who has made such a request. In fact, it’s a frequent occurrence in our society.
Is it a case where these victims do not have an alternative and therefore are prepared to continue living with an abusive and violent partner or is it the humanitarian touch inherent in all of us, which influences such a response. This may be a complex and difficult question to answer definitively and only behaviourial experts may be able to shed some light.
Some people believe domestic violence occurs because the victim provokes the abuser to violent action, while others believe the abuser simply has a problem managing anger. In fact, the roots of domestic violence can be attributed to a variety of cultural, social, economic, and psychological factors. As a learned behaviour, domestic violence is modelled by individuals, institutions, and society, which may influence the perspectives of children and adults regarding its acceptability.
What is evident though is that domestic violence is seriously affecting both developing and developed countries but it may be more pronounced in the former which do not have the adequate human and financial resources to deal with the problem and where poverty levels are much higher.
Every year one in ten women in the UK is subjected to physical abuse from a partner or ex-partner, while one in four experiences such abuse at some point in their lives (Mooney, 1993; Morley & Mullender, 1994a). Domestic violence is one of the most pervasive of all social problems, affecting most of the population directly or indirectly. I cannot think of a single close friend or colleague whose life has not been touched by this largely hidden problem.
However, in Ms. Mohamed’s case, if her allegation against the police is true, and based on circumstantial evidence and the reputation of many of our police ranks few would doubt her because her allegation is not an unfamiliar one but a very disgraceful one indeed, would only serve to continue tarnishing the image of the Guyana Police Force and further erode the confidence of people in the institution which unfortunately is already at a very low ebb. As a result of the low level of confidence of the public in the police as well as the attitude of some ranks, many malpractices and infractions of the law go unreported. And who knows how many reported cases of domestic violence have been improperly dealt with or not dealt with at all? We may never know the answer to such a question, but what we are certain of is that domestic abuse and violence is a huge problem on our shoulders and if the current trend continues then it may reach frightening proportions.
Therefore, as a society we need to act now in a decisive and swift manner to help stamp out this societal scourge which is threating the fundamental unit of society-the family.