Dragonfly Centre: Does our Society Love its Women?

Mission

Non-Profit, 501(c)(3)

Mission: The Dragonfly Centre is committed to the elimination of domestic violence against women and their children by providing victim friendly services that promotes the empowerment of survivors; through advocacy, public awareness and education and community based initiatives.

Vision: The Dragonfly Centre envisions a world free of violence against women and their children and social justice for all. We are founded on the vision and belief that every person has the right to live in a safe environment free from violence and the fear of violence and strive to work collaboratively with the community to provide victim friendly services to support domestic violence victims, survivors to the stage of thriving.

Now on Facebook:

Thursday, April 3, 2014

Does our Society Love its Women?

Story Created: Apr 1, 2014 at 8:40 PM ECT

Story Updated: Apr 3, 2014 at 9:12 AM ECT

Two men holding public office are alleged to have perpetrated abominable acts of violence against women in the past few weeks. These incidents are symptomatic of a deep sickness that pervades Trinbagonian society at all levels.

A deep lack of love for our women and girls is manifested time and again, and little is being done to change it.

In 2012, there were 2,517 female victims of violent crimes in Trinidad and Tobago (rape, assault, etc). For the 2009/2010 law term, 12,106 new domestic violence applications were filed in the magistrate’s courts. These numbers are just the tip of the iceberg, due to the fact that most of these crimes are not reported.

As a society, we must work together to combat this problem and mitigate its effects. This requires both the Government and NGOs (non-governmental organisations) to implement strategies to combat this violence.

UNIFEM’s (United Nations Development Fund for Women) “National Accountability Framework to End Violence against Women” recommends a holistic approach, combining Government services, such as public health and law enforcement, with educational institutions and other actors such as trade unions and NGOs.

In effect, everyone has a part to play in ending violence against women. We must continue to develop a no-tolerance policy towards this problem. Violence against women must not only be condemned but punished at every opportunity. I urge everyone reading this to become your sister’s keeper; if you know of a woman who is abused, do not turn a blind eye but rather offer a helping hand.

Trinidad and Tobago, since 1996, has ratified the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence Against Women. Why is it that 18 years later, we are still struggling with this problem?

Article 8 (b) of the convention provides for the undertaking of programmes to modify the social and
cultural patterns of conduct to counteract prejudices which legitimise violence against women.

In truth, the very culture of Trinidad and Tobago needs to change. It seems to me that we have a full-blown culture of violence that must be transformed into a culture of peace and loving kindness.

Husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies, and people ought to love their neighbours as themselves. Do we truly love our women as a society? Then we must protect them.

Jonathan Bhagan
via e-mail

Source: http://www.trinidadexpress.com/letters/Does-our-society-love-its-women-253475051.html

No comments:

Post a Comment

A Little Background…..

In 2007 I was introduced to the twin island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is a beautiful tropical country located in the southern most part of the Caribbean archipelago. However, the opportunity to travel to this part of the world would not present itself until March of 2009. It was an incredible experience to be able to visit a country where I had never been before and I literally knew no-one. I had the privilege to experience a new culture and meet many wonderful people who made my trip an amazing experience. Although the purpose of my visit was recreational, something happened that changed all of that. One evening while on a hike with my tour guide and one of the locals at The ASA Wright Nature Centre, one of the men asked me where I was from and what I did for a living. It was at that moment that I disclosed that I was a Domestic Violence Advocate. He paused, looked at me and replied,… “we need you here”. At that moment I did not fully understand what he meant or how I could help.

A few days after this I visited one of the local court houses to learn about how someone could obtain a protection order. What I discovered disturbed me greatly, to say the least. The process by which abused individuals could obtain legal protections left much to be desired. This sparked grave concern for victims coupled with a desire to learn more about the local system and services. After I finished my travels all I could think about was the need of the people in Trinidad and Tobago. It was shortly after my return to the United States that the Dragonfly Centre for Women’s Empowerment and Transformation began to take form. While completing my Bachelors degree at Evergreen College, I developed an Individual Learning Contract entitled “Domestic Violence in Trinidad and Tobago” and was awarded The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship. This allowed me to return to Trinidad and Tobago for my final quarter at the end of December of 2009 for my nine week study. My focus was on services addressing domestic violence. What I came away with was the echoing cries for help by the people who freely shared their personal views and stories. Although I wasn’t quite sure what, I knew I had to do something. As a consequence, it was these cries that gave birth to and helped shape the Dragonfly Centre to be what it is, a multifaceted institution with a focus on public education, shaping public policy and providing direct victim friendly services to support families dealing with domestic violence.