-Minister Persaud says services quietly transforming lives through counselling, legal aid, economic support
THE Ministry of Human Services and Social Security has assisted almost 150 persons through its free weekly legal advice programme, as it continues to expand support systems for vulnerable citizens across the country.
Minister of Human Services and Social Security, Vindhya Persaud, in a Facebook post on Thursday, said the initiative forms part of a broader network of legal, counselling and economic-empowerment services being provided, often behind the scenes, to survivors of violence and abuse.
Highlighting the weekly initiative, Minister Persaud explained the scope of the programme and the number of persons already assisted. She explained that the programme, which is hosted every Thursday at the ministry’s office, first began in October and has today grown into a service that more than 100 Guyanese have benefitted from.
“The Ministry of Human Services has embarked on a very impactful programme and that is the provision of free legal advice to members of the public every Thursday at the Lamaha Street office of the ministry. To date, we have seen almost 150 persons and helped and supported them through this measure,” she said, adding, “This is done directly by our Attorney-at-Law at the Ministry of Human Services and it is something that we have been consistently doing from October to now and we will continue to do it.”
She encouraged members of the public to take advantage of the service, noting that it complements other legal support mechanisms already in place. “Persons have been helped in a wide variety of cases, so we are really, really hoping that you will utilise this service.”
This service, she explained, is part of a wider framework of legal support and solutions offered by the ministry, adding, “This is in addition to our free legal services that are provided through our Legal Pro Bono Unit to persons who experience violence and abuse. Hundreds of persons have benefitted from that programme.”
Referencing a recent public case involving a survivor, the minister outlined the layers of assistance provided through various ministry programmes. “I know you would have seen a case where one of the survivors would have posted and I want to let you know too, that person would have been [sic] helped and supported through the ministry in numerous ways, including counselling through the Survivor Advocate Programme.”
Moreover, Minister Persaud added that the ministry provides support for domestic violence and gender-based violence survivors to rebuild, adding, “ That person is enrolled in our WIIN Programme and is also going to be helped with [a] small business. That person has been helped through the legal channels that we have, the Legal Pro Bono Initiative.”
Minister Persaud further emphasised that much of the ministry’s work is conducted discreetly due to the sensitive nature of the cases being handled. She noted however, that while done discreetly, it is a service that more Guyanese should take advantage of, adding, “Many times these things are done very, very quietly and these things are done consistently because of the nature of what these things are. They’re very sensitive things, cases of abuse, cases of violence, especially involving minors.”
While emphasising the range of sensitive issues the ministry tackles, she said, “I assure you that behind the scenes, our processes and systems continue to work and we continue to work every day to improve them because wherever there are gaps, wherever there are inadequacies, wherever there are insufficiencies, no one is ignoring those things. We are making sure that we put all systems in place to be as helpful and supportive as we can.”
