As part of its pledge to amplify every voice and ensure victims receive the necessary support, the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security (MHSSS) has intensified efforts over the years to protect children from perpetrators, regardless of their location.
Human Services and Social Security Minister Dr Vindhya Persaud
Human Services and Social Security Minister Dr Vindhya Persaud has reaffirmed that that ministry remains dedicated to tackling child abuse, child sexual abuse, and statutory rape nationwide, working tirelessly to address these critical issues.
In an interview with Guyana Times on the sidelines on an event on Tuesday, the minister highlighted that many cases do not reach the public domain because of reasons of confidentiality.
In recent times, reports have surfaced of incidents of children being exploited sexually. In January, a 16-year-old girl from Baramita in the North West District was murdered by a 40-year-old man with whom she had shared an intimate relationship.
In February, a 25-year-old man of New Amsterdam, Berbice was charged with rape of a 13-year-old girl who had reportedly run away from her Georgetown home after being sexually abused by her stepfather.
According to the Human Services Minister, the ministry has several programmes that have been effective in addressing these issues.
“Some of those are already in effect and would have been in effect since 2021. And that would include Every Child Safe program, where, in addition to intervention, we are very heavily focused on prevention through awareness education. So, the Child Care and Protection Agency would have — across the country, including myself on outreaches — been doing awareness sessions in communities, in schools, in homes,” she detailed.
“And we are working also in care centres as well to ensure that people are aware of the Act, aware of the penalties and repercussions. And what we have started to do is work very, very much intensively with young people and children, and this is expanded beyond the Child Care and Protection Agency through the Family Enhancement Services Unit (and) the Sexual Offenses Domestic Violence Policy Unit. All of these entities within the Ministry of Human Services would have gone out there, letting children and young people understand their rights,” she added.
In fact, the Minister revealed that the Ministry, in collaboration with the Guyana Police Force (GPF), has launched a new initiative which will see agents from the ministry synergizing with police from each region to conduct investigations.
“We are looking at ramping up our way in which we intervene. We have done several things. We have started the Clean Sweep programme, where we have teams going into every region, working with the police station and communities, ensuring that we gather all the cases. You’ve seen a lot of cases. It didn’t come by coincidence. The Child Care and Protection Agency went into many of those regions, including Region 1, and would have garnered the information and all of the complaints and the allegations. And they have been, I would say, accelerating the momentum on it.”
To address the backlog of cases, the minister revealed that the ministry is moving to establish its own forensic interview unit.
“Remember, the Child Care and Protection Agency is responsible for the forensic interview for children. That’s done in partnership. We are working to have our own forensic interview unit, to address any backlog and have the capacity to be able to do forensic interviews more often. And so, all the cases of sexual abuse against children, they have to have a forensic interview. That’s our responsibility. Then a report has to be prepared by us. Those are being prepared, and we are working to increase the rate at which these reports are being prepared,” she explained.
The minister also highlighted a new initiative for child protection services that will provide stakeholders with important information.
“We are developing a referral pathway, mirroring the gender-based violence referral pathway, for child protection services. So, when any case happens, internally by stakeholders, they have all the information on who they need to contact and what the process entails. Because many times it is stuck somewhere, and we are working to ensure it’s not stuck at us,” she explained.
