PHILIPSBURG--Shocked at the "alarming" number of rape cases committed against minors in the community, seasoned trade unionist Claire Elshot is calling on authorities to urgently put mechanisms in place to protect and counsel minors, who are victims of rape.
This should go hand-in-hand with facilities and programmes to deal with minors who commit rape, Elshot told reporters at the Windward Islands Chamber of Labour Unions' bi-weekly press briefing on Thursday.
Elshot, WICLU First Vice President and Windward Islands Teachers Union President, said she has already been confronted with about three cases of rape in the past months, two of which occurred over the past two months. One of the cases, she said, was one in which six boys between the ages of 11 to 13 raped another minor.
She declined to go into details of the matter since it involved youngsters, but she said this is a serious and alarming matter that authorities need to address post-haste. "It was most shocking on Monday to learn that six boys in the ages of 11, 12 and 13 had been involved in raping a little girl. If children of this age-group can commit something like this, then what will they do when they are older?' she asked.
In an invited comment on this specific incident involving multiple boys, Police spokesperson Ricardo Henson said he was aware of the incident, but noted that he could not give any details. He confirmed that the Police Youth Department is investigating the incident and that one boy had been taken into custody for questioning.
Elshot is a strong proponent of preventative approaches to addressing this issue, rather than addressing the symptoms after it has occurred.
While there are several programmes in the community and in schools targeting youths, the union president believes these are not sufficient to address the challenging issues facing young people as it relates to sexual abuse. "We lack corrective institutions and institutions that focus on a preventative approach," Elshot stressed. "I have noticed that we are losing many of our young people because of this. The number of boys and girls being raped in our system is alarming and facilities to address these should be created.
She said rape involving minors is a "well-kept secret" amongst families and the community, and it does not usually make headlines since it involves minors. She said, however, that young victims should be afforded proper counselling so that they can cope with the trauma of sexual abuse. The justice system should also be adequately equipped to deal with young culprits of rape.
WITU will be calling on Parliament to work towards protecting children from ages zero to 13 as part of the issues it will be championing for World Teachers Day, which will be observed on October 5. "We have compulsory education in place for children from ages zero to 18, but we need special protection for our youngsters from ages zero to 13 to ensure that they are well rounded," she said.
