Dear Editor,
In the explanation of her refusal to apologise to MP Jaipaul Sharma, which we saw on Wednesday, the Minister of Education, Ms Priya Manickchand said that if she apologized she would be betraying the victims of rape and paedophilia: “I cannot abandon them just to keep the National Assembly happy,” she explained.
The victims of rape and paedophilia are not supported by grandstanding declarations.
Rather than use Mr Sharma as a vehicle for her commitment not to betray victims of rape and paedophilia, we would urge the Minister to use her good offices and considerable influence and knowledge of the sexual offences laws within her party and government to ensure that the Sexual Offences Act is enforced fully throughout Guyana.
The victims of rape and paedophilia in Guyana urgently need to have the backlog of sexual offences cases which fall under both the old and new sexual offence laws fast tracked.
Special courts should be set up for this if needs be. We know that the majority of survivors of sexual offences in Guyana are children, many of whom have been waiting for over five or even ten years to have their cases heard. Is this the justice they deserve? Up to the time of the amendment to the SOA 2010, there was already a backlog of over one hundred cases.
The victims of rape and paedophilia in Guyana need professional and proper investigations of sexual offences cases and the courts need access to DNA evidence, which will do more to instil confidence in the justice system than the poor and questionable police investigations that often lead to dismissals of matters. They need comprehensive services from special units set up in every hospital or, where no hospitals are available, other appropriate venues, where services are centralized and victim-centered, with nurses trained in the gathering of forensic evidence and treatment of rape and sexual assault survivors, trained counsellors to address the psychological and physical trauma, and trained police officers to take statements in a humane and professional manner. They also need court advocates to attend to their and their families’ needs throughout the court process.
The victims of rape and paedophilia need to have the Sexual Offences Task Force convened and resourced without delay so that the national plan of action for the prevention of sexual offences can become a reality, and more importantly, be enforced without fear or favour regardless of status and income, sex, sexual orientation, ethnicity, geography, age or disability.
The victims of rape and paedophilia need to have ongoing education about the provisions of the Sexual Offences Act organized so that the population is informed about the law, including the wider definition of rape and consent, and the inclusion of new sexual offences, special orders for the safety of survivors, and compensation for survivors of sexual offences.
It is true that, as Minister Manickchand has said, the psychological and physical effects of sexual violence on survivors are far reaching and severe. They sometimes result in damage that may be permanent, including anxiety and depression; post-traumatic stress and panic disorders; fear; shame; inability to trust and form lasting relationships especially for young persons; high risk sexual behaviour; a high risk of perpetrating sexual violence (for boys), and a high risk of experiencing subsequent sexual violence (for girls). Some rape survivors have to undergo reconstructive surgery as a result of brutal rapes. Other victims are raped and killed. The victims of rape and paedophilia in Guyana need those in authority, armoured with this knowledge, to ensure that the demands we have outlined above are implemented. This would be the very best way of ensuring that the victims of rape and paedophilia in Guyana are not abandoned.
Yours faithfully,
Danuta Radzik
Denise Dias
Josephine Whitehead
for Help & Shelter
Karen de Souza
Andaiye
Wintress White
for Red Thread
