‘Enough is enough’

In a passionate address to senators yesterday, Senate President Lashell Adderley denounced marital rape and challenged legislators to act immediately to protect victims of domestic violence and put an end to gender-based violence.

“The status quo must be challenged and changed for the better,” she said in the Senate.

“I submit that we must move swiftly.

“The many victims who now lay in their cold graves did not have the luxury of time, and neither do the emotionally, psychologically, and mentally devastated survivors and their families.

“The best time to enact, amend and enforce legislation is now. Enough is enough.”

Gender-based violence has been at the forefront of national discussion in recent weeks, following several incidents, including the murder of four-year-old D’Onya “Bella” Walker, and a viral video that depicted a man running over a woman with a vehicle.

Adderley issued her plea as members of the Zonta Club and Carissa Culmer, a domestic abuse victim, sat in the gallery.

“The continuous courage and fortitude demonstrated by vulnerable women like Carissa Culmer, who stand and say a resounding no to the traumatic stress and pain of domestic violence, must be supported by the enforcement of legislation, policies, and procedures to eradicate gender-based violence,” Adderley said.

“The abuse Carissa has sustained also 

painfully reminds me of Marco Archer, Baby Bella, and the lady who was attacked with her child in hand and rolled over by a vehicle.

“These are only a few incidents that have rocked the national psyche – many more exist and, unfortunately, there are many more stories we will never know.

“The president of the Senate and the Senate body as a whole denounces and stands in complete and total solidarity against any form of violence and, in particular, domestic violence, violence against the elderly, women, children, and marital rape.

“When passing or creating legislation, the Senate body must ensure that the gender-based violence scourge facing our democratic nation is addressed with robust, pragmatic, and common sense holistic legislation which is buttressed by policy initiatives that protect all Bahamians.

“The empowerment of women cannot be exclusive to or solely focused on socio-economic celebratory accomplishments but must equally include the provision of practical and efficient safety nets for the vulnerable.”

According to data from the Child Protection Unit, sexual abuse accounted for more than 20 percent of reported cases since January 2021.

Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Garvin Gaskin recently told The Nassau Guardian that more than one in every three sexual offenses that went before the Supreme Court in the last decade was discharged because, in most cases, the long wait time for trial discouraged victims from wanting to move forward.

And, Bahamas Crisis Centre Director Dr. Sandra Dean-Patterson estimated that three out of every four victims of sexual violence do not report the matter to police. She said many do not report the offenses as a result of shame, fear, guilt, and “the belief that they are going to be talked about or stigmatized”.

On the issue of marital rape, Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis, who was elected in the September 2021 general election, said it was not a priority issue for his government.

However, he walked that statement back and said he believes marital rape is wrong and a national conversation is needed on the issue.

Recently, in the House of Assembly, Minister of Education Glenys Hanna-Martin said it is the responsibility of elected officials to act to eliminate violence against women and children. 

She also called for men in Parliament to state their stance on the issue of marital rape legislation.

The government has not yet signaled whether it intends to bring legislation criminalizing marital rape to Parliament.

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source https://thenassauguardian.com/enough-is-enough-2/