Stabroek News Aug 18th, 2010

The lack of proper socialization, the glamourised image of alcohol and music lyrics have been identified as contributing factors to domestic violence and areas which must be urgently addressed in order to curb the problem.....read article...

Gender-based violence workshop underway

                                                            TO ALL GT LIME MEMBERS

I am encouraging all to come out in support of our charity drive to bring awareness to violence against children and women.  I am particularly appealing to my fellow men to come out in support of this cause because we all have a stake in this situation.This is not just a woman’s issue, it is also a man’s issue and there is much we can do as a community to help change attitudes, atmospheres and lives.  We still live in a sexist society of domestic violence which can breed in a culture where male dominance and sexism, power and control are very prevalent.  

Let us decide to be a part of the solution and get behind the mothers, sisters or daughters.  Let us help them to help themselves .   So please come out and join with others to have fun while we support CCADA’s  after lunch fete on August 1, 2010. Flyer with details below

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to reach out to Carol Fraser thru this  website or directly thru www.ccadac.com

Thank you,

Mark Bannister

This is the official after party for Gt lime 9 reunion. Please come out to support a great cause which will benefit all the abused women and children at the Help & Shelter foundation in Guyana.

Security reform is very important to facilitate change in several social issues.

Jagdeo spars with UK envoy over security reform

Killing of Kelvin Fraser is another example of the failure of promised police reform

Schoolboy protest moves to city

While I think it is a wonderful idea for the children to advocate for change I am concerned about the consideration(s) behind the chant "no justice, no school"

Great song and tribute to the children of Guyana by Slingshot

http://www.youtube.com/tropicalwavesprod

Wayne, first please excuse my rough response and second, I am happy to see that you are broaching the subject of domestic violence.  We certainly need our men discussing the subject here and in Guyana. 

Violence against women is certainly a global problem and can happen to anyone regardless of race, age, sexual orientation or religion.  I agree that governments must play an integral part in driving social and institutional change and on that note I will suggest that you read the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women which is an international bill of rights for women adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly.

I will jump right into the mud and suggest that abused women can be found in several countries around the world, but predominantly in poor countries and countries in conflict because of the systematic discrimination they face in education, health care, employment, and control of assets.  

In Guyana women are abused daily and sometimes killed at the hands of their partners.  The problems facing Guyana are several including inadequate laws, lack of education and other weaknesses in the policing system which continues to undermine any real success at eliminating violence. 

Having read an article in the Stabroek News this week by the Minister of Human Rights I am surprised that the Minister did not appear to make the connection between empowering women and a developing country.  Women are the most important agents of change, they are the main providers of food for families and they understand how to preserve natural resources; and in a developing country reduced poverty depends on reduced population growth and that can only be achieved through education and financial independence.  

So I say all of that to suggest that government must play an integral part in driving institutional and social change and they can start by educating men and young boys on the subject of violence.  They must invest in the rehabilitation of perpetrators while actively encouraging, supporting and implementing programs in schools and other institutions aimed at increasing the knowledge and understanding of the causes and consequences of this behavior.  For democracy to work anywhere the needs and interests of women must be taken into account.

I close by suggesting that the folks at Help and Shelter and apparently Red Thread understand what is needed and are diligently working to aid in the elimination of violence but they need all the help they can get hence the creation of CCADA.   I use the word "apparently" in reference to Red Thread because I truly spent my time in Guyana with the Help and Shelter organization but did inquire of Red Thread and concluded that the organization is a very solid one. 

More information with regards to CCADA alliance with help and shelter see the following link

http://www.hands.org.gy/

Concerned Citizens Against Domestic Abuse Corp ("CCADA") with the full support of GT Lime will be launching its first fundraiser in Toronto per the attached flyer.  The organization is in the process of obtaining its 501(c)3 status and that information with all other information relative to the organization will be available on their website when they roll out at the end of April 2010.  Domestic violence against children and women is not acceptable ....period. 

 
The planned fund raiser on Sunday, Aug 1st will help to support the CCADA and will be the official "after party" for our Reunion this year with great food, "goodies" and more of best music ever.

See flyer below with details and we look forward to seeing you all.

Mark

I need your help to ensure this organization stays open and continue to do the job they are doing.  I have had the opportunity of spending a week with Help and Shelter and I can assure you they are doing everything possible to help women and children in crisis.    Accordingly, I have also formed an organization in America to work with Help and Shelter.  While this is not the manner in which I intended to roll out CCADA unfortunately we are now forced to move forward and faster.   CCADA will have its first fundraising event in Toronto on August 1 and its launching in Atlanta in October.  A flyer with the event details will be circulated shortly and our website should be up and running by the end of the month.  

The article posted speaks clearly to the issues faced by Help and Shelter. 

Help and Shelter at risk of not being able to continue crisis centre counselling services

We must help to empower our women and most definitely protect the children. 

I look forward to your support on this venture.