Folade MutotaWomen’s Institute for Alternative Developmentwww.winad.org

Sixth Meeting of the Committee of Experts (CEVI) .

Hosted by: Organisation of American StatesMESECVIInter-American Commission on WomenINAMUSan Jose, Costa RicaAugust 23-25, 2010

2002 (Mar) - national stakeholders’ conference on armed violence

2002 (Oct) – hemispheric conference on armed violence

2004 – No guns for Christmas media campaign

2004 – Meeting with local gang leaders 2006 – Caribbean Coalition on Armed

Violence 2008 /2009 – Women’s Conversations on

Armed Violence (national and regional)

Antigua and Barbuda Belize Dominica Dominican

Republic Grenada Guyana Haiti Jamaica St Kitts and Nevis St Lucia Turks and Caicos Is Barbados St Vincent and the Grenadines Trinidad and Tobago

In the very gendered nature of crime, there are chunks of the complexity of crime that we are missing by the absence of a gendered analysis.

Understanding of notions of security, power and protection

Provision or non provision of security Access and security of material

resources Commoditization of violence Legal and illegal gun ownership Sense of powerlessness and insecurity

Traditional masculine response Shifting gender roles Socio-economic, class, colour, race,

power Transport, trans-shipment, legal mis-

use Guns for drugs

Social and cultural – development undermined (poverty; community insecurity; collective trauma)

Economic – priorities re-aligned to meet challenges; stagnation versus growth

Political – survival is dependent on ability to control crime and violence; politicians anihilated

Environmental – infrastructure damaged or not maintained; disaster preparedness becomes more urgent

Aim: To fill a void for evidence-based research & planning on the impact of small arms on women and communities.

The intention is to add a gendered dimension to the discourse on security, peace and good governance.

To hear the perspectives of women on the issue of armed violence and its implications;

To gather recommendations for the alleviation and prevention of armed violence;

To analyse recommendations to inform future interventions;

To provide advocacy training and capacity building opportunities around peace building;

To create resource data of women’s narratives on armed violence.

Creation of gender-sensitive strategies in developing anti-crime/anti-violence initiatives;

Provision of a policy framework for integrating women into decision making in conflict resolution;

Implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325;

The creation of a space where women, from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, share their experience on the impact of armed violence in their lives

15 geographic and social communities were targeted by the intervention:

→12 geographic locations e.g. Arima, Chaguanas, Debe/Penal, Diego Martin, Fyzabad, 3 communities in Laventille, Mayaro, Scarborough, Speyside and Tunapuna

→ 3 social groups - Awake Deborah, Professional Women and St. Jude’s school for girls.

Communities were selected on the basis of:

History of violence;

Geographic diversity;

Emerging trends of crime and violence;

Low levels of crime.

Establishment of a steering committee which comprised of women:

→ representing private sector and labour movement→law fraternity and politics→ women’s organizations, FBOs, Education sector

Forged relationships with women, community organizations and government through partnerships with ‘actors/agents’ to mobilize session participants

The conversations took the form of facilitated, yet casual discussions. A guide was drafted to ensure synergy in the information extracted from the discussions. Key components of the discussions were:

→Perception of violence →Causes of violence

→Personal and community impact of violence

→Opinions on the profile of victims and perpetrators

→ Recommendations for violence prevention

Personal level:Use of guns; rape; hurtful language; child abuse; domestic violence – physical, emotional and sexual

Community level:◊presence of guns in the community ◊drug use/abuse◊ fear of young men ‘liming’ on the block◊drug trade

State Level:police brutality lack of responsepolice corruptiondecision-making

without citizen participation

→Absentee fathers

→Low self esteem

→Declining importance of faith and religion in family life

→Poverty

→Corruption within the protective services

Fear of navigating around the community/ country;

Fear permeating gated communities;

Stigmatization of communities to the degree that they have irregular access to goods and services;

Fear of establishing small business initiatives within the community;

Loss of respect and lack of trust for members of the protective services;

Loss of confidence in the capacity of formal systems to protect victims;

Anger and disenchantment of youth;

Young, single mothers fearful of engaging in relationships.

Emerging issues - girls, young women and crime:

→The involvement of girls in the planning and conducting of violent acts e.g. setting up of gang rapes, violence in schools;

→The ‘ranking system’ and girls’ navigation through the rank;

→The role of parental neglect, child-abuse and how it impacts on the likelihood of girls becoming involved in criminal life.

Men get ranked for having killed someone Men are ranked by the number of

territories they control Men get ranked for having violent sex

with women and girls Girls get ranked for having gangster men Female gang leaders are highly ranked Women get ranked by who their men kill

Having gangster men Female gang leaders are highly ranked Who their men kill Having a domineering man Freakiest lesbians Bling Passa passa Having respect from law enforcement

officers

Women Talking with Women: Crime and Violence in the

Caribbean

Mobilising Caribbean women for discussion and analysis

Promoting UNSC 1325 Building a network of activists Agreeing a regional agenda

The value of these discussions highlighted:

The need for women to begin to assess how crime and violence impact their lives;

The importance of women hearing and sharing strategies to reduce the impact of crime and violence;

The need to continue activism to end gender-based violence;

The emerging introduction of guns in gender-based violence;

The importance of including women in policy development, planning, analysis and evaluation of violence prevention and alleviation initiatives.

The importance of policy oriented research

The increasing numbers of women who are direct victims

Need for rehabilitation of child perpetrators

Absence of research on women’s lived experiences

Women’s Institute for Alternative Development

WINAD House11 Meyler Street

BelmontPort of Spain

Trinidad and Tobago868-621-2495www.winad.org