The Following is a text of a statement delivered by the Hon Jerome Roberts on International Day of Violence Against Women dated November 25 2013.
The United Nations General Assembly has designated November 25 as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The premise of the day is to raise awareness of the fact that women around the world are subject to rape, domestic violence and other forms of violence; furthermore, one of the aims of the day is to highlight that the scale and true nature of the issue is often hidden.
Historically, the date is based on date of the 1960 assassination of the three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic; the killings were ordered by Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo (1930–1961). In 1981, activists marked November 25 as a day to combat and raise awareness of violence against women more broadly; on December 17, 1999, the date received its official United Nations (UN) resolution.
In his message for 2013 under the theme UNiTE to End Violence Against Women, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon noted that “This International Day to End Violence against Women is an opportunity for all people to recommit to preventing and halting all forms of violence against women and girls”. I share those sentiments.
Violence against women and girls is a violation of human rights. It is violence against families, communities, nations and humanity. It is a threat to peace and security and it demands proactive action from all of us, young and old, women and men, community leaders and Government.
We are being proactive– in training our Police Officers. This week marks the final session of an eight week training programme aimed at building institutional capacity within the Royal Anguilla Police Force to implement the Domestic Violence Bill when enacted. This would assist Anguilla in meeting its long term obligations under CEDAW of which Domestic Violence is an optional protocol. This is in the process of being extended to Anguilla.
On behalf of the Government and people of Anguilla we must thank the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for providing the funding to undertake this training. It is significant that the cadre of Trainers are drawn from within the ranks of the Force. This is a local resource that can be used to further train officers as well as other persons within the public and private sector when the need arises.
We are being proactive in putting our national gender machinery in place. This has taken a considerable time to come to fruition but 2014 will see the commissioning of this Unit to be headed by a Gender Development Coordinator. This will allow us the opportunity to give Gender the breathing room it deserves and allow for the needs of women – and men – to be fully realized on the national agenda.
We are being proactive by the various gender training initiatives for teachers, Counsellors and social workers among other sectors carried out by the Gender Working Group over the past year. This is a grouping spanning the Ministries of Home Affairs and Social Development, the Attorney General’s Chambers and the Governor’s Office and now the Royal Anguilla Police.
We are being proactive by working with our NGO Community in building once again a vibrant National Council of Women, which is the umbrella organization spanning women’s groups across the island. More broadly, I also want to include civil society, by which I mean the entire range of organized groups and institutions that are independent of the state, voluntary, and at least to some extent self-generating and self-reliant. Their contribution is a key plank of nation-building.
In closing I wish to underscore the following
? Violence is not just a woman’s problem. Men and women must all be involved in prevention.
? Violence is global. It affects everyone regardless of location.
? Violence results from structural gender inequalities which all societies need to address.
? Violence prevents women from realizing their full socio-economic potential.
? Violence takes different forms. It can be physical, psychological, economic or socio-cultural.
? Everyone is responsible for taking action to prevent violence.
November 25th also kicks off the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, whereby individuals and groups mobilize and call for the elimination of violence against women and girls. This year’s official theme is “Orange the World in 16 Days. A number of activities will be taking place and I would encourage all to support these in whatever way we can.
Each one of us have to play our part, individually and collectively to eliminate violence against women.
Thank you for listening.
(Published without editing by The Anguillian newpaper.)
