The Gender Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs was in focus at United Nations House in Hastings, Christ Church recently – in a special Lighting Ceremony to celebrate the relaunching of the Partnership for Peace programme.

The MPEA Minister recalled his childhood in the Pine where most residences were headed by single women and visiting men were either boyfriends, fathers, or stepfathers. Mr Humphrey feels the old lifestyle, which had cases of the same women abused by those males, should lead to new conversations to be held with the next generation of Barbadian men so they learn their use of power and ability to control shouldn’t be channelled into aggression against women.

The Minister summed up his contribution by pledging, “I give the assurance now that the Bureau of Gender Affairs and (my Ministry) will work with you tooth and nail, hand in hand until we bring a better society for women in Barbados.”

The United Nations’ Resident Coordinator for Barbados & the Eastern Caribbean, Didier Trebucq, confirmed the world body continues to mobilise Member States against Gender Based Violence (GBV).

First in Laws, then Working with Institutions, thirdly for Prevention (behavioural norms), fourth – Law Enforcement & Judiciary, fifth – Reporting of Cases and sixth – Civil Societies.

The evening concluded with a lighting Ceremony of the outer façade of the Hastings complex in orange light, signalling awareness to eradicate GBV and the Relaunch of the Barbados Chapter in Partnership for Peace.