Tag: Domestic Violence Act

Let’s have a progressive agenda for Jamaica’s newly established Parliamentary Bicameral Women’s Caucus

February 3, 2023

So far this year, Jamaica’s news has been a little – what is the word? – dispiriting. Bleak, even, at times. However, I was very much cheered by news that the Parliamentary Bicameral Women’s Caucus (which I referred to in my last blog post) will actually become a reality – and very soon. The women … More Let’s have a progressive agenda for Jamaica’s newly established Parliamentary Bicameral Women’s Caucus

Sixteen days to put violence against women on the activist agenda in Jamaica

November 26, 2022

Today (November 26) is International Day Against Violence Against Women, which begins the Sixteen Days of Activism. As always, this issue will be high on the agenda among human rights activists across the island. Violence against women haunts us. In August, I wrote about the case of a young woman whose body has never been … More Sixteen days to put violence against women on the activist agenda in Jamaica

Gender-based violence and the young Jamaican woman

October 24, 2022

I wrote recently about the Caribbean Observatory on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, based in Antigua. According to their CEO, the group “continues to work with partners, CSOs, state entities to critically address the linkages between gender-based violence (GBV) and SRHR with the aim of transforming the environment, including the engagement of men and … More Gender-based violence and the young Jamaican woman

“There is no freedom where violence exists”: Emancipation Day 2021 Message from the Prime Minister of Jamaica

August 5, 2021

As I mentioned in my last news update, I found this year’s Emancipation Day message from Prime Minister Andrew Holness hit the right note. It is very well written, weaving in the legacy of violence from slavery days and looking at the dire situation our society finds itself in now. While noting that violence “in … More “There is no freedom where violence exists”: Emancipation Day 2021 Message from the Prime Minister of Jamaica

Women’s voices raised on gender-based violence in Jamaica

April 29, 2021

The viral video that surfaced earlier this month, and subsequent calls for the alleged perpetrator, a Member of Parliament, to resign, continue to reverberate. Many statements and concerns expressed by various organizations have spoken out strongly on the issue. Here are the voices of some women from a grouping of ten women’s organizations and some … More Women’s voices raised on gender-based violence in Jamaica

Justice Delayed, Denied for Domestic Violence Victims

November 18, 2020

I have not mentioned the recent case of a woman who, after suffering violence at the hands of her spouse, went to a police station and was turned away because she was violating the COVID-19 curfew. She was refused help. Domestic violence is insidious. It eats into your very soul. It is not only the … More Justice Delayed, Denied for Domestic Violence Victims

Jamaica AIDS Support for Life is Disappointed with Parliamentary Committee’s Report on the Sexual Offences Act

December 21, 2018

I did mention that a few heavy-duty topics have been in the Jamaican news over the past few weeks. Here is one that I had not touched on at all (and, in fact, it has not had great prominence in the news either, since our local media has been preoccupied with politics and scandals. More … More Jamaica AIDS Support for Life is Disappointed with Parliamentary Committee’s Report on the Sexual Offences Act

Human Rights Day in Jamaica: Against a Background of the Arts, Much to Be Done

December 11, 2018

Human Rights Day this year was particularly significant for the world. We have to think “world” on Human Rights Day, and then get out our magnifying glasses and zoom in on a map of Jamaica and the Caribbean. For all of us, it was the 70th Anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of … More Human Rights Day in Jamaica: Against a Background of the Arts, Much to Be Done

Violence Against Women: There’s a Lot of Work to be Done, Says Senator Kamina Johnson Smith

December 6, 2015

Senator Kamina Johnson Smith has been advocating consistently for the rights of women and girls for some time now, in various fora. The Senator is particularly concerned  with how the law is (or is not) keeping up with the struggles of the 21st century Jamaican woman for equality and justice. As the Sixteen Days of Activism continue, … More Violence Against Women: There’s a Lot of Work to be Done, Says Senator Kamina Johnson Smith