Dear Editor
THIS is the fourth and final of our letters to mark the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence Despite the APNU + AFC manifesto promise, so far as we are aware, no code of conduct for the public service relating to sexual harassment, gender discrimination, sexual violence and other forms of discrimination against women has been put into effect. Sexual harassment prevention policies for all public and private sector entities including ministries, security agencies, schools, businesses and other education institutions should be introduced and made enforceable with penalties for those who transgress.
Similarly, the introduction of tax credits for companies providing in-house day-care facilities for their employees promised in the APNU + AFC manifesto has, so far as we are aware, not materialised or even been discussed in the private sector,  nor has the government increased funding for child-care centres to support women, especially estranged mothers, single mothers, and victims of various forms of abuse, apart from a Georgetown Public Hospital day-care centre, which, according to the 2017 budget, is to be established. The continuing use of corporal punishment in schools and the unbelievable stripping and caning of students at an interior school highlight the need for the abolition of corporal punishment in schools, as corporal punishment teaches and mainstreams the use of violence as an acceptable means of solving and resolving problems.
We welcome the calls by top officials in the APNU + AFC government, such as the president and the minister of education, for the ending of corporal punishment in schools. But this is not enough and must be followed by accepting the recommendation of the Guyana Teachers Union, NGOs and Civil Society Organisations and individuals to replace the use of corporal punishment with training programmes for teachers on new disciplinary measures and classroom management techniques that do not violate the rights of children. This is an achievable goal, but lack of political will seems to be allowing the status quo to continue.
We acknowledge that it is the responsibility of all Guyanese to ensure that women, girls, men, boys and members of the LGBT community live lives free from all forms of gender-based violence, discrimination and abuse. But multi-sectoral and representative responses that involve collaboration among all sectors of society must be fashioned in order to achieve this and the government is crucial for effecting this goal.
We salute all social service providers who work tirelessly and often above the call of duty to offer help, protection, support and services for the many victims and survivors of gender-based violence and their families. We know that this valuable and at times transformative work is often not acknowledged and that confidentiality often does not permit it to be accorded the appreciation it deserves. We recognise the genuine attempts on the part of sections of the APNU + AFC government to improve the conditions of women and girls, especially through expansion of skills training programmes. But this in itself is not enough to transform the structural and ideological barriers to gender inequality.

We also recognise the work done by all NGOs, civil society organisations and Constitutional Commissions towards the elimination and reduction of gender-based violence.
In particular, we salute all those women and girls who have had the strength to overcome their experiences of abuse and violence by transforming their lives and the lives of their children. Their struggles are a testimony to resilience and offer hope to all others still struggling to free themselves from gender-based violence. In ending, we call on the APNU + AFC government to ensure that another year will not pass with little or no progress made in the realisation of the human rights of women and girls to live lives free from violence and the threat of violence.
Regards
Danuta Radzik
Kevin Massiah
Karen Shaw
Petal Baboolall
Carol Inis-Baptiste
For Help & Shelter