– in Reg. Ten, other outlying communities

By Vanessa Braithwaite

THE Region Ten (Upper Demerara-Berbice) branch of the Ministry of Social Protection (MoSP) is taking a proactive, multi-agency approach in tackling social ills, particularly sexual abuse, affecting outlying communities in the region.

A sensitisation campaign commenced last week in the Sub Region Two district, and the communities of Kwakwani, Hururu and Aroaima were targeted by the various departments within the ministry, among them the Department of Child Protection; Early Childhood Development; the Labour Department; and the Recruitment and Manpower Department.
The purpose of the campaign was to shed light on the importance of speaking out on child sexual abuse, which is the first hurdle of bringing the perpetrator to justice. At a community meeting in both Hururu and Kwakwani, residents were sensitised on the importance of speaking out, and saw CPA officer Huette Moore highlighting that given the prevalence of sexual abuse in Kwakwani, the aim is to get people to talk.

Not only were the adults in either communities sensitised on the subject, but the children as well, from nursery to secondary level. This was done by way of school visits, and saw them being encouraged to speak out and not be afraid to share their stories of abuse with trusted individuals.

The conversation on the prevalence of child sexual abuse in these communities was heightened during Child Protection Week 2019, where stakeholders from these outlying communities spoke out on the challenges they face in dealing with sexual abuse, and the need for a proactive approach to be taken, rather than to wait for a case to be reported.
One of the most vocal of them all was Toshao of Rock Stone, Flagran Carter, who spoke on the prevalence of these cases in these communities and the importance of nipping it in the bud. In addition to MoSP, the Guyana Police Force Region Ten Division, Sexual Offence Department, has also embarked on community outreaches and sensitisation exercises, as part of the strategy employed in fighting this category of crime, which has seen an upsurge of late.

In addition to sexual abuse sensitisation efforts, the team also focused on early childhood development by visiting daycare centres in these communities and saw officials of the Department of Labour also meeting with workers to discuss the various issues they might be faced with. Moore said that this will be a continuous effort, and that other communities will be visited in the near future. “We are hoping that this could be a continuous collaborative effort,” she said, “with the offices of the Ministry of Social Protection so that we can bring the information needed to the residents of Sub-Region Two, as well as we can better be able to address the reported cases of abuse in the community.”

In 2017, Region Ten had the highest incidents of abuse in the country. Moore, however, said that while the latest statistics for the region is still being tallied, there has been a decrease in the number of reported cases of abuse, and therefore Region Ten no longer so categorised.