Shelter for abused women opens in the Corporate Area

A domestic abuse survivor shelter was opened in the Corporate Area on Thursday. The facility is equipped to provide shelter for five women and their children. It boasts five bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, living room and training room.

Joyce Hewitt, executive director of Woman Inc, which owns the property, said that were it not for the need to maintain physical distance due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the house would have been able to accommodate 10 women and their children.

"We were gonna have 10 because we were gonna do two to a room, but with COVID, we had to keep it singular until such time that that threat passes," Hewitt said.

The domestic abuse survivor shelter complements the three that have been earmarked by the Government, which has enlisted the help of donor agencies to establish shelters for women who need help to leave violent relationships.

Tamika Peart, director of the National Shelter Programme in the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, said that the facility that was opened on Thursday is the first to be established across the island.

"The Government is slated to open three shelters, there is one that is operational at the moment, one that is 80 per cent completed and the other one we're working on it," Peart said.

COLLABORATIVE EFFORT

The facility, which was opened yesterday, is a collaborative effort between Woman's Inc, the Woman's Leadership Initiative, the British High Commission and the ministry with responsibility for gender. It was funded to the tune of $14 million by the Japanese embassy under its Grassroots and Human Security Projects Programmes.

Hewitt told THE WEEKEND STAR that the Corporate Area-based house is ready to start receiving residents as early as next week. She said that the women at the shelter would be provided with skills training as part of a plan to help them become independent.

"Our classes will depend on their level. There are some women might come who don't need any training at all. There are some who have no skills. If they have no skills at all, we'll do things like basket making, things that they will be able to do to earn a living. Of course, it's going to be up to them, what their interest is as well as their desire because we're not going force anybody," Hewitt said.

Established in 1984, Woman Inc's mandate is to provide a place of solitude for women who need to escape their situations not just for the moment, but long term.

"There are so many women who return to their abusive situations, only because she has nowhere to go. We're hoping that this facility will be the first in many, whereby, women who need to escape for their lives and far too often their children, will have the opportunity to get away from the abusive situations and to be able to live in peace and to be able to be exposed to whatever kind of training we're able to provide," Hewitt said.

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To seek asylum at this or other residencies operated by Woman Inc. or to volunteer with the organisation, persons may call (876) 929-9038 or send an email to wicrisiscentre@yahoo.com