Trinidad & Tobago chapter of Int’l Women’s Resource Network pleads “PROTECTION ORDERS FAILING OUR WOMEN”
The IWRN is again appealing to the Twin Island Republic’s Attorney-General Faris Al-Rawi to please re-visit its recommendations submitted on January 28, 2020 to amend the Domestic Violence Act in relation to Protection Orders.
This plea comes on the heels of the gruesome murder of 33-year old mother of four Amanda Leid who was stabbed to death by her common-law husband last Friday. Based on investigations Leid was in an abusive relationship for a number of years and had a recent hearing for a protection order.
Through its work with both victims and survivors of domestic violence, once perpetrators are aware that victims are either applying for a protection order and/or are in possession of one, their anger increases, they engage in stalking of the victims and carry out their criminal acts. Trinidad & Tobago lost a number of women over the years who were in possession of protection orders, and in most of those instances affected children have become orphaned.
It is time for the authorities to stop operating reactively towards incidents of domestic violence and instead, begin reviewing the numerous recommendations advanced by civil society groups including the IWRN to protect our women as statistics would continue to be outrageous. The IWRN would be renewing its efforts with the Attorney-General later this week on these matters and in particular its recommendations on dispensing of protection orders.
