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Page 8 ISSUE 147 Friday 11th MARCH, 2016 CARICOM explores… NEW PLATFORMS IN FIGHT AGAINST YOUTH CRIME, VIOLENCE Each year, approximately 200,000 youths aged 10 to 29 die, and many more sustain serious injuries because of violence across the world. Youth violence is a global challenge that the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) knows only too well: its young people are both the main perpetrators and victims. But CARICOM is accelerating its fight. Its most current initiative is a two-day youth forum in Georgetown, Guyana. The forum begins on Monday, with an opening ceremony to be chaired by CARICOM Secretariat director for human and social development, Myrna Bernard. Guyana’s vice president and minister for public security, Khemraj Ramjattan, will deliver the address. The Forum The forum, funded by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the government of Spain, is an outcome of the two-year CARICOM/Spain Project: Youth on Youth Violence in the Caribbean. This project which aims to reduce youth on youth violence, particularly in schools, is now being piloted in five member states: Antigua and Barbuda, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago. New platforms for transformation will be explored to break the cycle of youth crime and violence. Specifically, CARICOM policy-makers, the media and other stakeholders will be sensitised on the major elements of youth crime and violence and on the responses to break the silence. Good practices will be shared with a view to replicating the lessons learned. At the same time, strategies for a multi-sectoral ‘whole of society’ response to the challenge will be examined, as well as the means for greater collaboration among institutions and development partners to sustain CARICOM’s response to youth crime and violence. Approximately 100 participants from across CARI- COM will engage in interactive sessions centered on four main topics/issues: violence against children; school violence; gender based violence; and youth gangs and violence, together with the cross-cutting themes of gender, culture and other social determinants. The forum will employ a mix of feature presentations, panel discussions and video presentations, with participation from a wide range of stakeholders including policymakers in all sectors: law enforcement, the private sector, labour, development partners, civil society, academia, faithbased and community organisations, youth, reformed nontraditional leaders and special interest groups. Youth Violence in CARICOM Crime and violence has negatively impacted the quality of life of CARICOM member states. It has placed pressure on limited resources, reduced local and foreign direct investment and threatened the achievement of the developmental goals of these states. According to the CARI- COM Eye on the Future Report of 2010, the number one concern of youth is crime and violence. Sixty percent of CARICOM’s population is under the age of 30. The main perpetrators as well as the victims of crime are young people. Moreover, violence is the lead cause of death among males aged 15-24 in the Caribbean. Not only is the incidence of youth violence increasing, but according to a 2010 regional survey in seven member states, the pattern indicates: a gender dimension to violence in which violent acts are carried out mainly by young males against other young males, and females are the main victims in situations of domestic abuse or sexual assault. It also indicates increasing school violence, with a close connection between youth violence and violence in the community. Victimisation of youth by peers and adults is shown to often lead to more violence and a resort to violence out of fear, or in response to a perceived threat. For the Caribbean, school remains one of the key socialising environments for their youth. According to the IADB 2012 report, “class attendance of the region’s share of elementary and secondary school-age children stands at 95.0 per cent and 73.0 per cent, respectively”. One of the outcomes of the Youth on Youth Violence Project was an assessment of risk factors, threats for violence, protective factors and school bonding factors in the pilot schools of the selected member states. To date, 520 students have been surveyed and have also participated in various focus group discussions, with the majority of them (90%) between the ages of 11–16 years. Many were victims of bullying, classroom theft and robbery from other students. Information from the survey revealed that violence in schools was perceived to be related to gangs moving into the schools and communities (27%); easy access to drugs and guns (14.8%); and a lack of positive activities (13.2%), among other factors. The challenges being faced in the schools and communities were very similar across states and, in many cases, pointed to issues that had to do with boredom in school, poor conflict resolution skills and a general lack of discipline. According to the students Youth on Youth Violence Group surveyed, strategies to reduce violence in schools should include mentoring programmes for students (18%); gang prevention programmes (14.6%); parenting training (13.1%); and police presence (25%). To date, five schools have been engaged, the smallest with a population of 400 students. Deepening crime prevention initiatives For CARICOM, crime and insecurity remains one of the principal obstacles to social and economic development. Conservative estimates place annual direct expenditure on youth related crime and violence in five CARICOM states at between 2.8 percent and 4 percent of GDP. CARICOM’s Community Strategic Plan for 2015-2019 identifies Deepening Crime Prevention Initiatives and Programmes as an area of focus to build the social resilience of the Community. The Deepening Crime Prevention Initiatives strategy takes on board the CARI- COM Social Development and Crime Prevention Action Plan 2009-2013, which provided a template for addressing the issue through a cross-sectoral and multidisciplinary approach based on five pillars: prevent and reduce violence; foster social inclusion; promote re-integration; empower victims; and protect the environment and economic resources. The prevent and reduce violence pillar provides the basis for the CARICOM/Spain Youth Violence Project. This pillar notes “addressing violence in school settings in the Caribbean is crucial to efforts to prevent violence in the region” and “comprehensive policies and programmes are needed to promote pro-social, non-sexual and physically non-violent environments in classrooms and throughout schools”. The forum, which ends on Tuesday, and its follow-up will accelerate the necessary action, both at the policy and operational levels, to further the prevention of youth violence and crime agenda and help restore the Community to a place where every citizen is safe.
ISSUE 147 Friday 11th MARCH, 2016 Page 9 Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of Labour and Small Enterprise Development Sen. the Hon. Jennifer Baptiste-Primus delivers the Feature Address at the National Tripartite Consultation in NESC, Couva. Energy Chamber CEO, Dr. Thackwray Driver and other participants from the business sector listen attentively to the presentations. Cross section of executive representatives of various Trade Unions deliberate on amendments to be made to the Bill. AMCHAM CEO, Mr. Nirad Tewarie and some employer representatives deliberate over varying views of the Bill. The National Tripartite Consultation The Ministry of Labour and Small Enterprise Development recently hosted its second consultation for the year. This two-day National Tripartite Consultation was held on February 22 and 23, with leaders of the Trade Union Movement, Chambers of Industry and Commerce and Employer Associations. Also participating were the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) Director Ms. Claudia Coenjaerts and her team. The Consultation focused on the Industrial Relations Advisory Committee (IRAC) Report and recommendations as well as reviewing the principles, polices and issues to be considered in the development of legislation to amend the Industrial Relations Act, Chapter 88:01. As such the Minister of Labour and Small Enterprise Development, Senator the Honourable Jennifer Baptiste- Primus gave the undertaking to ensure appropriate consultation to make the appropriate amendments to this piece of legislation. In a rare occurrence, representatives present from both the Labour Movement and Employer Associations have been unanimous in their view that the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill, 2015 had been submitted to Parliament without the necessary consultation with these stakeholder groups. Over the two-day period, participants were presented with recommendations to this Bill from both local committees and international bodies. Participants also worked in groups to generate suggestions and recommendations on the way forward with legislative amendments. These recommendations included the re-definition of “worker”, the rights of workers, legislating procedures and guidelines for layoffs, the re-classification of essential workers and the timeframe for labour disputes and resolution in the Industrial Court. The two-day discourse provided the Ministry with a clear view on the perspectives of the stakeholders on how the Ministry should move forward with this critical piece of legislation. All stakeholders were given a two month deadline to submit further written views to be considered for the amendments to the Bill. Minister Baptiste-Primus stands amongst leaders from various sectors. From left to right: Dr. Catherine Kumar (TTCIC), Mr. Michael Annisette (NATUC), Ms. Claudia Coenjaerts (ILO), Mr. Ancel Roget (JTUM), Ms. Jocelyn Francois-Opadeyi (ECA), Mr. Joseph Remy (FITUN) and Dr. Hyacinth Guy (IRAC). NATUC Representative provides his view on the issues about the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill. Leaders from the Employer Associations take in the feedback from participants. Trade Union members review and discuss the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill.
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