Mental Health Caribbean island manager for Saba and Statia Jacco Vaders (second right) with Mental Health Caribbean staff members at their information stand at the Women’s Expo.
ST. EUSTATIUS–A large crowd turned out for the official launching of a new domestic violence campaign organised by the public entity of St. Eustatius’ Department of Social Support. International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women was observed Monday with a Women’s Expo. The theme for the campaign is “Doing Nothing Isn’t An Option.”
Victim Support, Caribbean Netherlands Police Force KPCN, Mental Health Caribbean (MHC), Youth Care Caribbean Netherlands JGCN and Social Support were all on hand at Mike van Putten Youth Centre/Lions’ Den during the expo, which was made possible with the support of the public entity and the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sport.
Many booth-holders sold food, drinks, scrubs, art and other items. The night also featured giveaways from the Victims Assistance Office and Violent Crimes Damage Fund.
MHC’s island manager for Saba and Statia Jacco Vaders said the organisation, which provides mental healthcare to children and adults, is “very happy” that it is involved, because domestic violence is a “huge” problem worldwide.
“If you are suffering from domestic violence for a long period of time, no matter what age group you are in you eventually can develop a mental disorder. If you have a mental disorder – for instance, because you are suffering from domestic violence – we at the organisation can help you,” Vaders said.
The MHC staff includes a community nurse, a social worker and a psychologist, and if the need arises a psychiatrist can be visited as well as a medical doctor.
Director of tourism Charles Lindo (left) striking director of the St. Eustatius Historical Foundation’s Simon Doncker Club Misha Spanner during the dramatization performance at the domestic violence campaign launch.
Seventh-Day Adventist (SDA) Church Pastor Earl Esdaile Jr. said that domestic violence causes higher rates of depression, sleep disturbances, anxiety and other emotional distresses, and can contribute to chronic conditions such as heart disease and gastrointestinal disorders.
“Domestic violence causes the expenditure of billions of dollars each year in law enforcement, legal work, medical and mental health treatment and productivity loss at companies. This is just an overview of the negative effects of domestic violence,” Esdaile said. “As a pastor of the SDA Church, I would like everyone to understand that God stands for those who are abused and as such He is against the notion that one individual inflicts abuse another person.”
He said that Christ-like behaviour leaves no room for violence against family members or persons outside the family. That is why he appreciated the efforts of the Social Welfare Department to bring awareness to the “heinous reality” of domestic violence.
“As Christians who believe that God is love and that we all have an inherent value as God’s children, we cannot stand quiet in the face of injustice, but we join voices with our brothers and sisters, whether they are Christian or not, in arms to speak against this reality,” Esdaile said.
He said that domestic violence is not only perpetrated by men. Women and children can be abusers too and they all need to know that inflicting abuse, whether it is physical, verbal or financial, is wrong, no matter who commits it.
There were several performances, including a moving dramatization by the St. Eustatius Historical Foundation’s Simon Doncker Club under the leadership of Misha Spanner that featured a husband abusing his wife on a daily basis. The performance had everyone in attendance enthralled, especially the young children in the audience.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/92892-large-turnout-for-launch-of-domestic-violence-campaign
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