Dear Editor
COMBATING the brutal war against our womenfolk, as so many have pointed out over time, requires police capacity, necessary reforms and political will.

The current widespread perception that going to the police is a waste of time is based on the far too many instances of the police refusing to act on complaints and/or coercing victims to not take legal action. More often than not, bribery dictates such attitudes. Thus building police capacity entails oversight to eliminate these behaviours, provision of sensitivity training, including empathic communication and first-responder skills.

Another impediment is the two-fold roadblock– otherisation of the call to action and a culture of double victimisation. Otherisation says that abuse is ‘not my business’ and/or ‘I know what needs to be done, but somebody else has to do it’. Double victimisation encompasses the victim believing that she deserves the abuse, that abuse is normal and may reflect spousal love, that being abused is a shame that must be hidden and/or that walking away is not an option because of fear.

Thus, reform must include widespread information dissemination to combat otherisation and double victimisation and provide a roadmap of to dos: a ladder of contacts starting with the local police and including counselling access — welfare officers, psychologists and social workers. In this respect, lay counsellors can be the critical first responders and so once again we urge the return of the Gatekeepers’ Programme.

In fact, TCV has been offered the free services of a lay counsellor trainer from India through the auspices of the NGO, Seva International. To cover the trainer’s living cost and cost of the training programme, we have launched a gofundme account at https://www.gofundme.com/lay-counsellor-training-programme. The account can also be accessed by logging on to our website–www.caribvoice.org – and clicking on the gofundme link at the top of the cover page. Please support this effort by donating, so that we can institute the training as early as possible.

Reform also must include a national support network so that women do not continue to stay in abusive relationships because of economic dependence, or children or family and societal pressure. In fact, the Ministry of Social Protection’s Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Policy Unit (MSSODVPU) seems to already offer such support: shelter and

temporary accommodation, financial assistance, rehabilitation, skills training, counselling, social work services, legal aid…but are these services accessible nationwide? And are Guyanese generally aware of these services? Neither seems to be the case currently. Thus, there is URGENT need to set up satellite offices countrywide and engage in a national sensitisation campaign, so these services can be taken advantage of by all victims of abuse to preempt femicide and other fatal consequences.

Other components of reform should include establishing a database of all stakeholders on the social landscape to build much-needed collaboration and a national stakeholders’ conference to activate a national intervention and support network; bipartisan legislation mandating that all cases of abuse be prosecuted, even if the victim withdraws the complaint and/or refuses to testify; setting up a domestic violence unit in the police force with members posted at all stations and stringent application of the law, instead of disdainful dismissals and/or mere slaps on the wrist.

Additionally, there is need for mechanisms to enable abused victims to break the silence by sharing their experiences and publicly calling out abusers as well as seek help. A hotline would be one such mechanism. Or perhaps the Suicide Helpline can be expanded to include abuse. Also, the government should facilitate the creation of an app that would also enable sharing and reporting of abuse.

Meanwhile, the Caribbean Voice continues to offer mental health workshops that address gender-based violence among other issues. This month, a workshop was held for teachers of the Buxton Branch of the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) at Friendship Government School, where 126 teachers were in attendance. This is the fourth teachers’ workshop held this year, with two previously held in Region Six and one at Leonora in Region Three, as part of an ongoing series of workshops for teachers through an MoU with the GTU. The attendance at each workshop has been in excess of 100 and at all workshops, teachers have been very appreciative of the fact that TCV is helping to address their ‘psycho-social’ needs, as one teacher puts it.

Additionally, a second workshop was held this month at the Buxton Technical Instruction Technical Centre for parents and students and the attendance exceeded 50. This year too, workshops targeting fired sugar workers have been held at Rose Hall, Canje and Corriverton with another one billed for Albion next month. An initial workshop was held at Wales last year. These workshops have been supported by GAWU, GUYSUCO and various local businesses.

Previous workshops have been held in Regions Two and Four, including at schools, while others are being planned for Regions One, Three, Six and 10 this year.
It must be pointed out that TCV is a fully voluntary, self-funded NGO with no external funding from any source. Yet our services are free. To arrange for workshops please contact The Caribbean Voice by email at caribvoice@aol.com, hussainnazim18@yahoo.com or by phone at 646-4649 or 644-1152. On our website – www.caribvoice.org – are links to all of our social media pages, through which coping information and strategies to tackle violence against women can be accessed.
Regards
The Caribbean Voice