Guyana has recorded a 33 per cent reduction in murders caused by domestic violence for the year 2024, according to Human Services and Social Security Minister, Vindhya Persaud.
This was disclosed at an event on Friday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown. However, although the number is small, the Minister described it as “significant” since there was a rise in cases at first.
She noted that the decrease in number can contribute to a plethora of measures, including those that have been implemented by the Ministry.
“When we started with all of our measures there was an increase in cases at first. Now, there has been a decrease and this may be as a result of more people reporting or maybe because more responses are forthcoming. But this does not mean that we should sit around, we still have work to do,” the Minister explained.
Some of the measures implemented by the Ministry thus far include the Community Advocate Network (CAN), the 914 hotlines, the iMatter app and the Hope and Justice Centres.
As it relates to the CAN initiative, the Ministry trains interested persons within various communities to respond to gender-based violence.
Additionally, the 914 toll-free hotline is the Ministry’s main reporting tool for victims to reach out for help. The hotline is operated on a 24-hour basis. For this year, some 6,000 calls were recorded through this medium. Out of that number, 182 calls dealt directly with domestic violence.
On the other hand, the iMatter is another chat-based system to report on any type of violence. According to the Minister, very soon the app will see improvement where persons can chat with not only personnel from the Ministry, but they will also be able to talk with a lawyer, counsellor or survivor advocate.
Meanwhile, the Hope and Justice Centre is a holistic building designed by the Ministry in collaboration with the Ministry of Legal Affairs where any form of help can be found. This includes counselling, police reports and access to an attorney.
With all these measures being put in place, Minister Persaud stressed the importance of the Government in creating a safe country for every gender.
“We will continue to make these significant steps so that we can work to eradicate violence against everyone. We have to make it known what we are doing, so people can utilise these resources,” the Human Service Minister stressed.
She encouraged persons to continue to report on any form of domestic violence.
