ARTEFACTS

A crisis of domestic violence

 Jan 10, 2020

AS a singular contributing factor to the nine murders reported in Trinidad

and Tobago in the first ten days of 2020, three of these incidents were
listed as marking the violent and tragic end of domestic relationships.

The latest was Thursday’s murder in Avocat of 28-year-old Gabriella

Dubarry, who had ended a relationship. And as she prepared to
welcome her pupils back to school on Monday in Port of Spain, principal
of a privately-run pre-school, 48-year-old Jezelle Philip-Fournillier, was
set upon and stabbed to death by a man with whom she had a
relationship, who then walked into a police station and gave himself up.

Earlier that morning, the decomposing bodies of a woman, her brother

and their uncle were discovered in a house in Arima, all strangled.

The woman, Polly Ann Chuniesingh, 31, was apparently murdered by a

man with whom she once shared a relationship.

Between 2005 and 2015, the Trinidad and Tobago Coalition Against
Domestic Violence has reported that 300 women were murdered in this
country. In 2017, 43 of the 52 women killed were victims of domestic
violence. Also, up to 2015, the Coalition had listed 7,000 cases of
domestic violence that were reported to the authorities.

These statistics tell only part of the harrowing presence of domestic

violence in our midst, a social ill which continues to warrant much more
action and attention than has been apparent.

Figures from the tracking of this monster in the United States, as an

example, expose its psychological effects on children who witness such
incidents, the huge number of hours women as victims must be absent
from work, as well as the numbers of them who have lost their jobs, “due
to reasons stemming from abuse.”

It has been established that domestic violence co-relates significantly

with higher rates of depression and suicidal behaviour among victims,
while less than 50 per cent of them receive the medical attention that
often becomes necessary.

Speaking on the prevalence of the issue in T&T, gender relations expert

Prof Rhoda Reddock said in 2017, “we feel our State agencies need to
begin to think deeply about the factors contributing to this crisis and to
go beyond what has been done before.” She called then for “a
comprehensive strategy” to address issues of prevention and to shape
behaviour among men. Prof Reddock, a member of the Coalition Against
Domestic Violence, said this element of the “social order” ought to be
given more and greater focus, as the society continues to expand the
budget for national security.
 Finding Freedom, A Poem on Violence against
Women
November 27, 2017 

Written by Wadia Samadi

I wake up every morning scheming my escape

But what about my children?
Who will believe me?
Who will give me a home?
Years go by and I am still waiting
When will this end?

My makeup does not cover my bruised face

My smile does not hide my haggard visage
Yet, no one comes to help
They say: it will get better
They say: don’t talk about it
They say: this was my fate
They say: a woman must tolerate
Don’t air your dirty laundry, they say.
When will this end?

Once again, he drags my body to the floor

He chokes me and I beg him not to kill me
Once again, he demands my silence
Once again, he tells me I don’t deserve to live

I have had enough

I will not be silent
I will live
I will find freedom
This will end today.
SONG
STOP THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
BY CHRIS MARTIN
I can't live without a woman Tell me can you?
I would never hurt a woman
All who believe in prayer We all need to pray
Can’t believe what is happening These must be the last days
Times are getting scary the devils in a rage
Women and children are a target now We need to see a change
We loosing too many women Stop the violence against women
We need to love our women, and take care of the women
Stop abusing the women We loosing too many women yeah
Stop the violence against women We need to love our women
Take care of the women Stop abusing the women
Young girls beware There are predators out there
Don't trust people Oh ooh ooh oh oh
They act as if they care They are wolves in sheep clothing
They are evil Oh ooh ooh oh oh
So don't just go pon any taxi, no
And don't just go pon any bus, no no no Don't just trust loose faces, no
Sus dem out first Don't make night catch you too far from home
Don't get your love ones nervous Just think before you act now pretty
Time is so evilous
Now, to me big woman friend dem Stop stay wid the mad man dem
If every day him a beat you Him na ill-treat you
One day your life inna problem Girl nuh make tru money you stay and
fight
Because it better you leave if him nah treat you right
Don't disrespect and stay out at nights Bun well hot these days you will
lose your life
We loosing too many women Stop the violence against women
We need to love our women and take care of the women
Stop abusing the women
We loosing too many women yeah Stop the violence against women
We need to love our women Take care of the women
Stop abusing the women
Me never see nuttin weh hurt me so If you waan find God dem seh a
church you go
But the one weh fi lead you Weh fi teach you
Can't believe seh him dirty so 63 minus 15 no, nuh 48 dat
Dem say we nuh fi judge but if I had to say, that Pastor would get 48
bap! bap!
Hey and dem the criminal dem weh deh pon the taxi route
Kidnap the little girls and thief dem forbidden fruit
Me have a bag a stone no me nuh waan shoot
Mi waan dem feel a lot of pain, pain, absolute
We loosing too many women Stop the violence against women
We need to love our women and take care of the women
Stop abusing the women We loosing too many women yeah
Stop the violence against women We need to love our women
Take care of the women Stop abusing the women
I can't live without a woman Tell me can you?
I would never hurt a woman no no
We loosing too many women Stop the violence against women
We need to love our women And take care of the women
Stop abusing the women We loosing too many women yeah
Stop the violence against women We need to love our women
Take care of the women Stop abusing the women
Stop the violence against women...
English