Over twenty Parliamentarians from across the Caribbean will meet in Jamaica at the Terra Nova hotel from November 9-10, to discuss the problem of violence against women and identify ways that parliamentarians can contribute to ending the scourge.

UNFPA, The United Nations Population Fund says the persistent failure to prevent and redress violence against women and girls, leads to the continued violation of their rights and stunts the contribution that they can make to international development, peace and progress.

UNFPA in association with the United Nations Secretary General’s Campaign, UNiTE to End Violence against Women in the Caribbean, the Inter American Parliamentary Group (IAPG), the Caribbean Network of Parliamentarians (CNPPD) and the CARICOM Secretariat will collaborate to host the meeting. Director, UNFPA Sub-Regional Office for the Caribbean, Geeta Sethi, says violence against women reflects and reinforces deep rooted inequities between men and women and compromises their dignity and health.

“Parliamentarians are important leaders who have the power to influence public opinion, resource allocations and implementation of laws, policies and programmes that can end violence against women and girls. This meeting provides a forum for Caribbean Parliamentarians to be in dialogue about this important issue that impacts so many lives and the achievement of internationally agreed goals,” she explained.

The meeting of Parliamentarians supports initiatives being carried out under the Caribbean UNiTE Campaign that was launched in Barbados 11-12 October 2010. On that occasion,  Ministers of government, members of the judiciary, participants from governmental agencies, representatives of organizations working on gender-based violence and the UN system, met to discuss strategies for accelerating the work towards preventing and eliminating violence against women.

The upcoming  meeting will present facts on violence against women in the Caribbean, examine the root causes, some of the strategies now being employed to address the problem, identify some of the steps that parliamentarians can take to contribute to the process, and ways in which the UN system can support them in their efforts.

The meeting will be opened by Honourable, Olivia Grange, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture who also has responsibility for Gender Affairs. Other presenters include, Arun Kashyap, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative, and other representatives from the UN system.

Representatives from the Gender and Development Studies Unit of the University of the West Indies, Mona and Cave Hill campuses, CARICOM Secretariat, CARIMAN, the IAPG, CNPPD and UNiTE, Latin America and the Caribbean will make presentations throughout the two days. Parliamentarians, present and former, from across the Caribbean will present country reports and experiences.

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CONTACT: 

Mrs. Althea Buchanan, Advocacy & Communication Advisor,

UNFPA, Sub-Regional Office for the Caribbean

Tel: 906 8591/ 322 6874

Email: buchanan@unfpa.org