Guarantee Shelters to Victims of Domestic Violence

Project Report | Nov 10, 2020
WE ARE RUNNING OUT OF SAFE SPACES

By Catherine Sealys | President

Since lockdowns first began in April of 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were fearful that domestic abuse victims would have been at additional peril because of the limited number of safe spaces and services provided even during normal times. While we sounded the alarm prior and during calls to stay home regarding the potential increase cases of intimate partner violence no attention was given to the matter by central government, now, those fears are coming to fruition. Reports of domestic violence have spiked in many communities and women and children have no additional resources to access.

We do not have the necessary capacity as an NGO to house all those who request help, therefore in our daily interventions with victims who still reside in the same dwelling as their abusers we encounter:

Abusers attempt to further isolate and control victims;
Abusers frighten victims by promoting fear of contracting COVID-19 if the victims seeks help outside the home;
State Shelters are full and unable to assist victims most of the time;
Victims also expressed fear of going into shelters for fear of being exposed to COVID-19;
Restrictions ennacted due to COVID-19 impacts victim’s escape and safety plan.

We work with victims who we cannot house due to limited capacity by

Assisting victims to create a safety plan to outline ways to remain safe while they are in the same space as their abuser
An escapte plan if they have alternative shelter and are planning to leave
We provide assistance to them if they get alternate shelter by providing food and in some cases utilites and short term rental support;
We encourage self-care as much as possible, such as meditation, music, etc
We maintain constant daily contacts and we encourage social connections through phone calls, texts, emails, and social media platforms as much as is practicable.

The pandemic has limited our ability to arrange fundraising activities and it is practically impossible to acquire additional rented space on our current budgets. More donations will allow us to do so but we cannot prevail without your help and donations.

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Jul 14, 2020
COVID-19 TEMPORARILY CHANGED OUR GAME PLAN

By Catherine Sealys | President

Packaging food parcels bought with grant from GG

While our mandate is to advocate and provide support services for victims of gender based violence and lack of access to justice; COVID-19 arrived with challenges that was unforseen and unplanned which required us to diviate from our scheduled programs to provide basic food support to our clients:

Over the last 4 months we have had to:

Seek donations to procure basic food items and packed 1142 food packages and the same quantity of personal hygiene packs for our clients who had lost their jobs and in some instances their homes;
Set up remote counseling via IPAD to safe houses
Obtained a special pass from the NATIONAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY (NEMO) to distribute food and hygiene pack and also respond to GBV incidents during State of Emergency and Curfew;
Suspended group Counseling;
Suspended physical home visits and instead done face time just to reassure clients;
Suspended the completion of our office space and counseling room;
Received a Grant from GlobalGiving which allowed us to provide 320 food and hygiene packs to our clients.

COVID-19 has escalated the many challenges of GBV victims as the country shut down, GBV spiked and abusers used this time to escalate abuse, with school being closed and over 30K students at home so did sexual abuse.

The greatest challenge now is for food, rent and utilities with internet connection being key as most marginalized homes has no water, electricity, internet connection or digital devices for children to participate in E-Learning.

Disparties between the middle and upper class versus the poor and marginalized are more visible as the hospitality industry, small businesses, and self employed enterprise shut down and thereby shutting down paycheck to paycheck jobs leaving many unable to support basic needs.

“Safety planning is still our number one priority and we have integrated new applications on smartphones that alerts 6 people either via text, call or alert to signal the person needs help. We have created safe people and places to go for individuals who are still in the abusive home and as always, each situation is unique so all plans are tailored to the specific case

And above all else we continue to practice safety to avoid the spread of the corona virus.

We thank you for your support thus far and continue to ask for your donations to assist those who are unable to provide food and E-learning support for their children.

Volunteers packing food parcels

Volunteers measuring non perishable food.

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Mar 19, 2020
GBV VICTIMS ARE NOT INCLUDED IN COVID-19 PREP

By Catherine Sealys | President

Saint Lucia is a Tourism destination and the COVID-19 has had a very devastating effect on the tourism industry, but most importantly the thousands of women who work at the various resorts no longer have independent livelihoods as the resorts are closing down as travel restrictions take effect in Canada, USA, Europe, etc.

The Prime Minister’s address to the Nation did not include any relief or arrangement for gender based violence victims, special needs children or marginalized groups, therefore, women and children who do not have disposable income are left to fend for themselves in this crisis.

As women lose their jobs their partners threatens to throw them out onto the street if they cannot find a job to contribute to the bills, for women who are experiencing domestic violence, mandatory lockdowns to curb the spread of COVID-19 (the disease caused by the new coronavirus) have trapped them in their homes with their abusers, isolated from the people and the resources that could help them.

A growing number of callers to our organization’s line say that their abusers are using COVID-19 as a means of further isolating them from their friends and family, threatening to throw their victims out on the street and some are withholding financial resources and medical assistance.

The very way we are protecting people from the virus is impacting victims of domestic violence, we absolutely support the need to follow these measures of social distancing and isolation, we also recognize that it provides an opportunity for abusers to unleash more violence on their victims.

One out of three women in the world experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime, according to the World Health Organization, making it “the most widespread but among the least reported human rights abuses.” But during times of crisis—the risk of gender-based-violence escalates.

Providing nonperishable foods, disposable diapers, wipes and medication to our clients is our most important concern at this time while continuing to provide support services via alternative medium to ensure their safety.

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