Statements

Help & Shelter salutes all women on International Women's Day 2003.

The UN Secretary General notes in his International Women's Day message that “When women thrive, all of society benefits, and succeeding generations are given a better start in life”. International Women's Day is used to celebrate the achievements of women around the world and to draw attention to the issues which prevent women from thriving.

Help & Shelter wholeheartedly agrees with the Guyana Human Rights Association, APNU, Red Thread
and all those who regard acting Chief Justice’s ruling in the Henry Greene matter a travesty and joins in
the calls for the DPP to appeal the ruling and for Mr. Greene to be immediately removed from office.

We need not repeat what has already been said regarding the flaws in the ruling, including the judge’s
disregard for the provisions of the Sexual Offences Act and failure to acquaint himself with how women
may react to the trauma of being raped.

Seventeen years ago today, Help & Shelter formally launched its crisis service to provide
counselling, referral services and other support to victims of domestic and sexual violence and
child abuse.

The date, 25 November, was chosen as it is International Day for the Elimination of Violence
against Women (IDEVAW), and women and girls comprise the overwhelming majority of
victims of the violence we dedicated ourselves to working against.

Help & Shelter has been conducting domestic violence and child abuse sessions and workshops across Guyana for over sixteen years. These sessions/workshops are aimed at raising awareness of the effects of domestic violence on individuals and communities, identifying its causes and prevention strategies. Many of our projects were school based and over the years we have made several interventions for students affected by violence both directly and indirectly.

The statement of Dr. Madan Rambarran, Director of Medical Services, in relation to Vishwamintra Persaud (SN of 13/11/2010), must have every concerned parent, child and citizen in Guyana outraged, fearful and dismayed.
It would appear that the murder of Neesa Gopaul, which exposed the glaring deficiencies in the system for the protection and safety of children, has been utterly unheeded by Dr. Rambarran, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and possibly the Guyana Medical Council.

Help & Shelter condemns the horrific assault on the family whose members were robbed, stripped and physically and sexually assaulted outside a Sheriff Street night club on Monday 26 March 2007.

We demand that the full force of the law be brought to bear on these criminals as quickly as possible and that the Guyana Police Force treat this matter with the urgency it demands and devote as much attention to the investigation of this matter as to the Cricket World Cup security arrangements.