• Text size  | | |
• Email this document
• Printable version

Jamaica: Domestic violence, including police responses to complaints (2001 to April 2003)

The Caribbean Association of Feminist Research reported that there had been an annual increase of 30 per cent in incidents of sexual assault, incest and domestic violence since 1990 (The Voice 9 Dec. 2002). According to Hilary Nicholson of Women's Media Watch, the widespread social tendency in Jamaica is to accept domestic violence (ibid.). This tendency "'comes out of a mindset...of myths. A Jamaican man thinks he is the head, the provider and in control. Unfortunately, this control sometimes means violence'" (ibid.). The Jamaica Observer states that the police do not "attach much significance to domestic violence" (20 Feb. 2002).

With reference to services available to victims of domestic violence, the non-governmental organization Woman Inc. provides support to "victims of rape, incest, domestic violence, domestic crisis and sexual harassment in the workplace" (Woman Inc. 21 Apr. 2003). Woman Inc. operates a crisis centre, shelter and 24-hour hotline; develops public education campaigns for schools and community groups; lobbies government for legislative changes; and provides gender sensitivity training for officials of the Jamaican Constabulary Force (ibid.). Additional information on all the above-mentioned services and activities undertaken by Woman Inc. is provided in one of the electronic attachments below.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights reports that Jamaica has yet to submit its report to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which was due on 18 November 2001 (UN n.d.).

The Seventh United Nations Survey on Crime Trends and the Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (1998-2000) reported that, of the 39,188 recorded crimes for 2000, 1,304 were rapes (3 Dec. 2002, 187). For the same year, the source stated that, of the 33,387 persons suspected, arrested or cautioned by Jamaican police or the justice system, 684 were rape suspects (UN 3 Dec. 2002, 188).

Please consult the electronic document for information on domestic violence in Jamaica. Provided by the government's Bureau of Women's Affairs, it offers answers to specific questions asked by the Research Directorate regarding police responses to complaints of domestic violence, as well as services and legal redress offered to victims.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Jamaica Observer [Kingston]. 20 February 2002. Hughlin Boyd. "Women and Our Economy." <http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/html/20020219t210000-0500_21578_obs_women_and_our_economy.asp> [Accessed 15 Apr. 2003]

United Nations. n.d. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. "Reporting Status: Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women: Jamaica's Reporting Round: 5." <http://www.unhchr.ch> [Accessed 14 Apr. 2003]

_____. 3 December 2002. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Prevention. The Seventh United Nations Survey on Crime Trends and the Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (1998-2000). "Jamaica." <http://www.unodc.org/odccp/ crime_cicp_survey_seventh.html> [Accessed 14 Apr. 2003]

The Voice. 9 December 2002. "Conrad the Barbarian! TV Guest Makes Shocking Claim That All Jamaican Men Are Wife-Beaters." (Ethnic NewsWatch/NEXIS)

Woman Inc., Kingston, Jamaica. 21 April 2003. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate from the public education and legal reform coordinator.

Additional Sources Consulted

IRB Databases

LEXIS/NEXIS

World News Connection

Internet sites, including:

Human Rights Internet (HRI)

Isis Internacional

Jamaica Gleaner [Kingston]. Search engine

Jamaica Observer [Kingston]. Search engine

Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women's Rights (CLADEM)

MADRE

Panamerican Health Organization (PAHO)

Women Watch

Search engine:

Google

Electronic Attachment

Jamaica. 30 April 2003. Bureau of Women's Affairs. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate from a policy analyst.

For police personnel who have received training in domestic violence, there has been increased awareness of the impact of domestic violence on families and heightened response from police. However, it is important to note that there are a number of factors as to whether the survivor of domestic violence will undertake formal proceedings. (Please refer to question two and three for further information.)

2. What resources are the Jamaican government deploying to address the issue of domestic violence in your country? Is it providing training to police on gender sensitivity, providing funding for shelters, counselling and legal aid resources or other resources?

At present, there is no National Action Plan to eliminate violence against women and girls. There are various programmes and initiatives in place, which involve the participation of non-governmental organizations, community based organizations and governmental agencies. The closest attempt towards a national effort can be evidenced through an Inter-Agency Campaign on Violence Against Women and Girls involving a collaborative approach with a number of agencies which included government, women's NGO's and international funders.

The objective of the campaign was to raise awareness and increase sensitivity in relation to violence against women and girls in Jamaica and its deleterious effect on society with regard to social as well as economic costs in order to promote an environment where women and girls have alternatives- to live a life free of violence.

The programme entailed:

Sensitization of justice system personnel to a gendered perspective on violence against women. Participants included judges, police, and clerks of courts, lawyers, probation officers and social workers. These workshops were conducted by the Bureau of Women's Affairs. The Bureau of Women's Affairs is a governmental organization, which aims to enable women to recognise and actualize their full potential as individuals and to create avenues for their full integration into National Development.

Police Awareness Workshops, which involved training of police and police trainers. The training focused on a) assisting the police to recognize their role in protecting victims of domestic violence, rape, incest and sexual harassment; b) assisting them to enforce the laws and bring to justice the perpetrators of violence against women and c) helping them to recognize their responsibilities under the Domestic Violence Act.

Training men and women in the health sector in order to enhance service delivery to women and girls who have been victims of violence and abuse.

Training for selected inner city and rural communities, girls in homes of safety, and women's centres in order to sensitize them on the issue of gender-based violence.

Crisis Centre/Safe Houses

In addition, there are two Women's Crisis Centres, one in Kingston and one in Montego Bay, which offers counseling and telephone hotline services which deal with problems related to rape, incest, and domestic violence. But, there is only one shelter facility, which serves the entire island and can only house eight women. This facility is funded by a non-governmental agency.

The Centres' main function is to operate a programme for adolescent mothers, in order to allow them to be reintegrated into the school system after the delivery of their babies. The Women's Centre also offers

A walk-in counseling service for women

Counseling for baby fathers and parents of teenage mothers

Skills training for both males and females in the age group 17-25 yrs.

The Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF)

The JCF runs several programmes to deal, either directly or indirectly, with the problem of violence against women, the chief of which are the Sexual Offences Investigative Unit (formally the Rape Unit) and the Mediation Unit. Indirectly, the JCF can also influence attitudes towards violence through their Youth Clubs.

The Sexual Offences Investigative Units are established throughout the island and they investigate reported incidents of rape and other sexual offences and provide treatment and counseling for victims. There have been increases in the reporting of these crimes, not due to an increase in the number of cases but to the fact that persons now have somewhere to go to seek redress.

The Mediation Unit provides counseling in alternative dispute resolution methods. The core group of specially trained police personnel works with other members of the force, schools, colleges, youth clubs and churches to sensitize them to these techniques.

Separate from the police training workshops that were part of the Inter-Agency Campaign on Violence Against Women, the JCF has a programme on training police on domestic violence. The programme is expected to last for three years with 5,000 front-line members of the JCF and its Auxiliaries trained.

In addition, “Domestic Violence Intervention” as a topic was added to the Training Syllabus of the Jamaican Police Academy Basic Training and Probationer Training.

Arrest of perpetrators has been on the increase through the initiation of the mediation process at the local police level as well as through referral from the courts. However, training has been lagging because of the need to fall within the police work schedule and there are limited financial resources for continuous training.

Legal aid is available for women who experience domestic violence. The lack of funding and lengthy delays in the court process deters some women from filing formal charges against the perpetrator.

The Domestic Violence Act 1995: The Act was devised to address the increase of violence within the home and the traditional criminal law approach was unsatisfactory. Therefore, the government decided to enact legislation to provide remedies to victims of domestic violence, which are [in] addition to those available under criminal law. However, there are some notable problems with the current Act. For instance, the definition of the child should specify the age of the child (18 years of age) and a section should be included making a legal obligation for medical practitioners, nurses, and other health personnel to report all cases of abuse to the police or the court. The Domestic Violence Act is currently up for amendment to rectify these problems.

Currently, there is no recognition of sexual harassment in any of the Jamaican laws. Sexual harassment in the workplace, educational institutions, health institutions, prisons and nursing homes frequently occurs in Jamaica and has to be legally addressed for protection of women who are largely the victims of acts of harassment. Later this year, a Sexual Harassment [Bill] will be brought before parliament.

3. How effective is the judicial system in terms of prosecuting domestic violence offences? Do many cases result in prosecution?

In Jamaica, there are two courts, the Lower Court and the Higher Court consisting of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. Cases of domestic violence are heard in the Family Courts, but in parishes where there are no Family Courts, cases have to be heard in the Lower Courts. This leads to a lack of privacy. In contrast, all cases brought before the Family Court is heard in camera as also are all cases of sexual assault.

Special problems associated with cases of violence against women and children arise in cases where the accuser and accused know each other. The accuser maybe unprepared to go ahead with the trail. In cases of domestic violence, the parties involved often withdraw charges, the accuser claiming that they have made up their differences.

The police often do not wish to be involved in issues of domestic dispute because they know only too well that if they arrest the accused, the woman is likely to drop the charges before the trial. The same obtains in cases of rape where the victim is known to the accused.

Other limiting factors of the judicial system in terms of prosecuting domestic violence offences include:

– Limited support from social agencies (e.g. shelters/homes to place victims, counselors)

– Victims residing at homes with perpetrators refusing to follow through with reports, not pressing charges

– Economic pressure not to testify against the abuser. (Often, women depend on their male partner as the only source of income, and the abuser may discourage the woman from pressing charges)

– Inadequate investigative procedures from the police

– Fear of the victim/victims to attend court

At present, there is no available statistics on how many domestic violence offences are successfully prosecuted.

4. Do you know the number of domestic violence complaints that have been made to the authorities in Jamaica in the last two years?

It is important to note that domestic violence in Jamaica is not confined strictly to violence in individual households but includes any act of violence committed by persons associated with the victims who may not be related by blood or a wider kinship.

The following table lists the different classifications of sexual offenses occurring in 2001 and 2002.

2001 2002

Source: Jamaica Constabulary Force

Note: Under reporting and an inadequate collection and compilation of statistics make it difficult to get an accurate picture of the extent of violence against women in Jamaica.

Key Definitions:

Electronic Attachment

Woman Inc., Kingston, Jamaica. 21 April 2003. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate from the public education and legal reform coordinator.

The Crisis Centre has been in existence since February 1985. It provides professional and specialised advice and outreach support to women, (and men), that have, or are experiencing matters concerning rape, incest, domestic violence and domestic crisis.

The Centre seeks to assist women in working toward self-empowerment and to gain the necessary insights to handle their particular crisis. As women are empowered, they become more self-assured and this contributes to positive self-esteem and independence.

The Crisis Centre in Kingston offers walk-in counselling services from 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. and telephone counselling 24 hours per day every day of the year. The Crisis Centre in Montego Bay (1991) is generally open 9-a.m-5 p.m. Mon. -Fri. Unfortunately the Montego Bay location does not have a 24-hour hotline or a shelter.

THE HOTLINE

The Crisis Centre provides a twenty-four (24) hotline service, which has been in operation since 1985. Walk-in counselling service is provided from Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 is available on the telephone. The Hot Line Counselling Service is an ongoing and very important aspect of the overall counselling services. This hotline operates solely with volunteers who give of their time to further the work of Woman Inc. All hotline volunteers are provided with in-house training prior to serving. They are also required to undergo an annual recurrent training session in order to maintain their active duty status. A Hotline Manual is provided to all active volunteers.

All one in need has to do is to call the hot line number 929-2997 or if in the Montego Bay area call:952-9533-34.

CRISIS SHELTER

The Crisis Shelter functions as a temporary residence for women in crisis. The location is kept confidential to protect the safety of the women. The cases are usually abused women, incest, rape, or temporary homelessness due to domestic violence. The maximum stay is two weeks. In many cases small children and babies are involved. The victims are generally seen at the Crisis Centre, the cases assessed and then sent to the Shelter. When the incident occurs during the night, the Volunteer on the Hotline, with the agreement of the 'Back-up' counsellor, may refer the victims to the Police who will escort the person to the Shelter, providing there is space. A housemother attends to the smooth running and supervision of the Shelter that was opened in 1988 and continues to be the only one of its kind in Jamaica.

PUBLIC EDUCATION

The organisation initiated its public education programme in 1989, aiming to raise the consciousness of the nation regarding the high incidence and impact of rape, incest, domestic violence and other forms of abuse to women in the society. Along with carrying this message, the committee delineates the variety of circumstances in which abuse occurs, explores the emotional and physical damage it inflicts, and presents measures to prevent the behaviour and to heal the damage.

Since 1989, the Committee has reached a large cross-section of the society through workshops in schools, churches and community groups, as well as through media presentations.

Presently, the focus is on 3 (Three) major projects:

[1] "Domestic Violence Intervention" for Police Officers and other Front-Line workers: The Domestic Violence Intervention Project highlights the problems which survivors of gender-based violence experience, when they seek Police Intervention, and applies developed strategies with the aim of engendering greater sensitivity to victims and ultimately, eliminating violence against women.

[2] Male Attitudes : titled "MEN Let's Talk"

(a work in progress- sponsored by UNIIFEM) a series of workshops designed to focus on attitudes and values that give rise to violent behaviour particularly to, (predominantly male), violence against women and based on the findings of a questionnaire designed to measure those attitudes. Concepts of gender equality are explored.

[3] Under the "I BELIEVE I CAN FLY" theme; this is an intensive programme aimed at raising self-esteem, self-respect and facilitating positive gender relations at the primary through Grade 7 level students. This programme is slated for implementation at the Children's Homes, as well. Previously, funding from UNDP had been requested to continue this work in the schools, and to expand as described herein. Without funding, all activities for this particular schools campaign have been extremely limited. Once it is strengthened, there will be continued utilisation of the media through radio messages, and the use of posters and flyers.

The Public Education Committee is continuing its efforts in working with community and school groups. Any groups wishing the use of this service are asked to contact Woman Inc at 7 Denehurst Avenue, Kingston 10, telephone 929-9038.

The Public Education Committee, dedicated to the idea that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure is proud of its accomplishments, and highly motivated to do even more.

LEGAL REFORM

This committee is mandated to:

– Lobby and advocate for legislative change as it affects women in the society

– Educate women through workshops and seminars on the laws affecting women and their rights

– Provide legal aid services to the women who visit the Crisis Centre

RESOURCE ROOM

A Resource/Reading Room is available at the Centre for the use of Secondary/Tertiary level students, Practitioners, Academics, Researchers, Staff, Members and the general public.

The Resource Room will have:

– Books/Magazines/Articles/Videos etc. pertaining to women - predominately violence against women.

– An Internet service with identified relevant links is an integral part of the future plan.

Topics: Domestic Violence, Violence against women, SGBV,