Guardian ( Trinidad and Tobago )
14 December 2023 ( Page 11 )
UWI, CADV join forces against domestic violence
By Carisa Lee
The University of the West Indies (UWI) and the
Coalition Against Domestic Violence (CADV) have
joined forces in the fight against domestic
violence, with the signing of a memorandum of
understanding (MoU) on Tuesday at the Office of
the Campus Principal in St Augustine.
“We seek to bring our strengths together to work
to confront, mitigate, prevent and eliminate
gender inequality, gender-based violence in
general and more specifically domestic violence,”
said outgoing CADV president Roberta Clarke.
CADV will work with UWI’s Institute for Gender
and Development Studies (IDGS), the School of
Education and the Department of Behavioural
Sciences.
Clarke said there are many benefits to bringing
together government, civil society and academia
to deal with domestic violence, which they
started doing in 1985.
She said back then, there were only a few bodies
protecting women and children against domestic
violence compared to now when there are dozens
but yet the problem remains.
“The problem is overwhelming and it’s also
aggravated and exacerbated by a more
generalised increase in violence everywhere,”
she said.
Clarke is confident the collaboration will bring
about a better understanding of the increase and
changes in domestic violence throughout the
years.
“We need to understand how to change
institutions, we need to know how to capture
attention, we need to know how to engage
influencers to ensure accountability of state
actors.
“We need to transform self because all change
starts with self and how to transform
communities, we need to have tools to do all of
this and importantly changing culture,” she said.
Clarke said CADV is pleased with the UWI
partnership, which gives them access to
research, outreach programmes and space for
students to do internships or practicals. In turn,
UWI will get access to communities and the
CADV’s active client base.
“We think it’s a space for your students to learn
and grow also to test pilots based on evidence,
particularly around changing the culture,” she
said.
CADV’s first president Diana Mahabir-Wyatt and
incoming president Dr Camille Samuel were also
present.
PICTURE ANISTO ALVES-
UWI Principal Professor Rose-Marie Belle
Antoine, right, and CADV’s outgoing president
Roberta Clarke sign the MoU at the Office of the
Campus Principal UWI on Tuesday. Looking on,
from left, are School of Education director Dr
Rawtee Maharaj-Sharma, incoming CADV
president Dr Camille Samual and Institute for
Gender and Development Studies head Dr Sue
Ann Barrat.