The document discusses gender based violence in the Caribbean from the perspective of BPW Barbados. It introduces Patricia Seale, the director of the BPW Shelter for Abused Women, and Marrianne Burnham, the president of BPW Barbados. It provides background on BPW Barbados and its work advocating for women's rights and operating services like a crisis hotline, shelter, and most recently, a one-stop crisis and resource center to address gender based violence through a multidisciplinary approach. Statistics are presented on the high levels of gender based violence in the Caribbean region and the challenges of combating it through strategies like national action plans and changing social norms.

1. A Look At Gender Based
Violence:
A Caribbean Perspective
Presented by BPW Barbados–
Marrianne Burnham, President
Patricia Seale – Shelter Director

2. Marrianne Burnham
President, BPW Barbados
MarBurn Health & Communications
Patricia Seale, BPW Barbados
Clinical Psychologist
Patricia Seale has been a domestic violence advocate for over
18 years in USA, and Barbados providing services as a
clinician, supervisor, administrator, researcher and
educator/trainer. She had worked in the mental health field
with experience in assessment and treatment of psychological
trauma in inpatient and community based programs. She
has served as Director of the BPW Shelter for Abused Women
and a member of BPW Barbados since 2001. She has
represented Barbados and has been a trainer at regional and
international conferences on domestic violence, sexual
violence and human trafficking. She was part of the Barbados’
team who won the Gertrude Mongella Award at the 2008 BPW
International Congress and hosted the “Say NO to Violence
Workshop at the Congress”. She advises on issues relating to
“at risk” individuals and is wholly committed to mentoring and
empowering adults and youth to overcome obstacles through
their victimization and ultimately regain their self-esteem. She
is a Barbadian registered Counselling Psychologist, a US
Certified Counselor, trainer and educator who holds a
graduate degree in Counseling and diplomas in public
administration and education.
Since 2008, Ms. Burnham has been a member of the
Business and Professional Women's Club of Barbados (BPW
Barbados), an affiliate of BPW International which develops
the professional, leadership and business potential of women
on all levels through advocacy, mentoring, networking, skill
building and economic empowerment programmes and
projects around the world. President for the 2012-2015 term,
the extensive work of BPW has become a new calling for her
with a special personal interest in gender and health. Ms.
Burnham is a member of Barbados’ National Task Force on
Human Trafficking and plays an active role in the flagship
Gender-Based Violence projects of the organization. She is
proud to be overseeing the opening of the BPW Crisis &
Resource Centre as part of a Reduce GBV & HIV project; the
first walk-in multi-service centre of its kind in Barbados. Ms.
Burnham is looking forward to “getting back to business” with
a strong focus on women’s economic empowerment.

3. About BPW Barbados
The Business & Professional Women’s Club of
Barbados (Est. 1966), is a “status-of-women”
organisation and a chapter of the International
Federation of Business and Professional
Women. BPW Barbados focuses on elevating
the status of women, through training &
development, business & entrepreneurship,
improvements in health & freedom from
violence. “Empowered Women Leading
Business” is our theme for the 2012-2015 term.
Current programmes focus on advocacy &
capacity building to promote economic and
social empowerment in women and girls.
Gender-Based Violence is a speciality of BPW
Barbados having operated Barbados’ only
Crisis Centre & Shelter for many years.

4. BPW Barbados
Accomplishments
 2014: Opened a One-Stop-Shop Crisis & Resource Centre - USA PEPFAR-GBV/
HIV Grant; Awarded HR Development
 2012: Appointed to National Task Force on Human Trafficking; Collaborated with the
local artistes in the UN’s UNiTE Campaign.
 2011: Implementation of Children’s Counselling & Intervention Programme: individual
and group therapy for children accompanying their mothers in the Shelter.
 2005: Lead agency chosen to partner with the Barbados Bureau of Gender Affairs &
International Organisation on Migration for an island-wide Human Trafficking Awareness
Campaign trafficking
 2003: First annual collaboration began with The Albert Schweitzer Institute of Quinnipiac
University, Connecticut,USA to host faculty and graduate students for volunteer capacity
building seminar with local law enforcement,social workers, crisis intervention workers
and individuals in the pertinent areas of Gender Based Violence.
 1998: Shelter for Abused Women opened with the assistance of the Barbados
Government. Shelter provides a safehouse for women & children with various
counselling & intervention services.
 1997: Crisis Centre is created in response to the need for further community outreach,
education & intervention services in the area of Gender Based Violence.
 1986: Crisis Hotline established for victims of rape. Today it is a 24-hour hotline for
victims of all forms of violence.

5. Dame Maizie Barker-Welch
Past Regional Coordinator, BPW
International
The Hon. Maizie Irene Barker-Welch, BCH, CHB,
(Barbados Centennial Honour, Companion Honour of
Barbados), and avid promoter of women's causes, was
born in Barbados on September 17,1927. Her teaching
career spans the St. Bernard's School, the St. Gabriel
Girls' School; the Foundation Girls' School; the Ursuline
Convent and Codrington High School. She was a
Dorothy Cadbury Fellow at Selly Oak University in
Birmingham, UK, in 1982-83. Hon. Barker-Welch was
Vice President and President of the Barbados National
Organisation of Women (NOW) founded in 1970; NOW's
representative in the Caribbean Women's Association
(CARIWA) and Barbados' representative at the first UN
Conference for Women on Population Development in
1973. She was Barbados' delegate to the Inter American
Commission of Women in 1986-1994, President of the
Business and Professional Women's Club of Barbados,
and Regional Coordinator for the English speaking
Caribbean and USA, Canada - attending its worldwide
conferences. In 1986, Hon. Barker-Welch entered
Parliament as the Democratic Labour Party (DLP)
representative for the St. Joseph Constituency. She was
appointed Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of
Labour and Community Development, also serving in
other ministries including the Ministry for Women's
Affairs. She was appointed Senator from 1991-1994.
Past President, BPW Barbados

6. Who We Work With
 The Government of Barbados
 The Royal Barbados Police Force
 Social Service Agencies/ NGOs
◦ Family Planning, C’bean HIV Alliance,
National Organisation of Women
 Gender Institute, University of the West
Indies
 USA Embassy
 European Union
 UN Women, UNFPA

7. Presentation Outline
 Gender Based Violence (GBV) in the
Caribbean
 Challenges and similarities of doing work
around GBV
 Barriers to seeking services & the challenges
that arise when they do.
 The Barbados One-Stop-Shop Model -
multidisciplinary, coordinated response to
GBV & other Models in the Caribbean
 The Economic Impact of GBV - VAW Cost
Calculator
 New Trends in Prevention
 Useful online resources

8. Definition of Gender Based
Violence
 “Any act of gender-based violence
that results in, or is likely to result in,
physical, sexual or psychological harm
or suffering to women, including
threats of such acts, coercion or
arbitrary deprivations of liberty,
whether occurring in public or in
private life.”
 UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against
Women (DEVAW) adopted by General Assembly 1993

9. Gender Based Violence
 GBV may constitute
 A violation of women’s human rights,
◦ the right to life,
◦ the right to equal protection under the law
◦ the right to equality in the family
◦ the right to the highest standard
attainable of physical and mental health.
Source: CEDAW General Recommendation No. 19 on VAW

10. Types of Violence
 Verbal
 Physical
 Emotional
 Psychological
 Sexual
 Financial

11. Factors related to GBV
 Pattern of abusive behaviours in any relationship
 Used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another
intimate partner.
 Include physical, sexual, emotional, economic, spiritual or psychological abuse
 Purpose is to intimidate, manipulate, humiliate, isolate, frighten, terrorize,
coerce, threaten, blame, hurt, injure, or wound another person
 Varies in frequency and severity
 Occurs on a continuum, one hit that may or may not impact the victim to chronic
severe battering.

12. Tension
Building Phase
Explosion
Reconciliation
Honeymoon
Fear
Denial
Abuser apologies, blames
victim, gives excuses, denies
it happened or its not that bad
Incident
finished,
calm,
idealised &
romantic
Verbal,
physical,
emotional,
sexual,
financial
actual
abuse
Minor verbal/physical abuse,
victim feel tension,
breakdown in
communication, feels like
walking on eggshells, tries to
control situation, longest
phase
The Cycle of Violence (Walker)

13. STATISTICS
Globally, 1 out of every 3 women
(35%) will experience sexual and/or
physical abuse in her lifetime, and
30% will experience violence at the
hands of an intimate partner.

15. A Note on Economic Impact

16. Country Cost of Domestic
Violence
 U.S. economy more than $5.8 billion
 United Kingdom £23 billion per year
 Australia - A$8.1 billion
 Canada - CAN$4.2 billion,
 Caribbean Cost - ??????

17. Cost of Violence
 Estimates of the costs of violence
against women are so high that a lower
percentage of some countries’ Gross
Domestic Product is spent on primary
education than on domestic violence
costs. According to the report, the costs
of intimate partner violence are driven up
by factors like lost income and
productivity, health care and police
services.
 World Bank Report April 2014, Violence against Women

18. Costs to the Employers -1
 Severe financial and economic burden
that domestic violence imposes on
victims, households, the public sector,
private businesses, and society as a
whole.
 Domestic violence significantly
impedes economic growth and
development

19. Costs to the Employers -2
 Increased security requirements
 Legal fees/liability issues
 Decreased productivity
 Damaged property
 Secondary victims are traumatized or
harmed
 Administrative/human resources

20. Impact on Productivity
 Increased Absenteeism
◦ Physical abuse victims miss an average of 3 days per
month
◦ 46% of victims have gone home sick due to stress of
victimization
 Reduced efficiency
◦ 71% report difficulty concentrating while at work
◦ 63% say they are unable to perform the job to the
best of their abilities
◦ Increased tardiness
◦ Use of pain medication for physical injuries
 Increase in Job loss/Turnover rate
◦ 5-27% of victims report job loss as a direct result of
IPV
◦ Reasons: shame, fear, child care issues or forced by
abuser to resign

21. Direct Costs of GBV
 Measure the value of goods and services
used to respond to domestic violence, for
which there is typically a monetary
exchange.
 Direct costs
◦ healthcare services,
◦ social and welfare services,
◦ counseling,
◦ police and criminal justice services,
◦ legal services,
◦ replacing property damaged by an abuser

22. Indirect Costs of GBV
 Capture the effects of domestic
violence with no direct monetary
exchange
 Most prominent –
◦ Reduced earnings and lower productivity
◦ Victims tend to earn approx. one-half to
two-thirds of what non-abused women
earn

23. Gender Based Violence in the
Caribbean
 700 islands
 English-speaking Caribbean – stable
democracies & independence
 Former colonies
 Slavery - major part of our history
 Violence is part of our culture
 30-50% of murders in Caribbean – DV
(UWI Gender Studies)

24. GBV in the Caribbean
 “Traditional socializing agents of family,
church, and school are being replaced by
technology and a popular culture, which
promote gratuitous violence and legitimize
highly stereotypical models of aggressive
masculinity. This aggressive masculinity and
homophobia feed into the existing high levels
of violence against women, and encourage
men to exhibit aggression as their badge of
masculinity. The impacts of these trends are
exacerbated by the very small size of the
islands. Gender based violence seems to be
on the increase. A positive trend is that more
men are challenging the model of aggressive
masculinity.”
 Dr. Rosina Wiltshite, UN Gender Advocate,

25. Combatting Gender Based
Violence
 Strengthening post education
opportunities
 Advocate for equal pay
 Campaign for equal representation on
national and local levels
 Increase public awareness to the legal
and human rights of individuals
 Initiate public awareness campaigns
on reproductive health issues and
gender-based violence.

26. Combatting Gender Based
Violence
 Develop policies that address
◦ discrimination against women,
◦ promote gender equality,
◦ The safety of women
 Changing cultural gender norms
 Improving economic and social
opportunities for women.
 Multi-sectoral response.
 One-Stop- Shop Response

27. Gender Based Violence in the
Caribbean

28. GBV in the Caribbean
 Global average rape: 15 per 100,000
 Three C’bean comprise the top 10
countries with the highest rape
incidence worldwide
 133 per 100,000 Bahamas
 112 per 100,000 St. Vincent
 51 per 100,000 Jamaica
 25 per 100,000 Barbados (not in top
10)

29. Tackling GBV in the Caribbean
PROGRESS, PROCESS &
CONSTRAINTS
STRATEGY– COUNTRY ACTIONS
PLANS

30. Context
 Until the 1990s only general assault
laws protected women from violence.
 Since 1990s increase in legislation to
qddress domestic violence, sexual
violence and abuse;
 Few countries have legislation
against sexual harrassment.
 Statistics:

31. Countries with Action Plans…
 Antigua and Barbuda,
 Belize
 Grenada,
 Jamaica,
 St.Kitts-Nevis.
 St. Lucia (not yet finalised).
 Bahamas ( Preparation just initiated)
 Barbados (working on National Policy
on Gender)

32. UNIFEM/UN Women support
 To women’s groups to support advocacy
 To governments for reviews of policing and prosecution of
sexual offences
 To governments (through National Machineries for Women)
for the preparation/revision of legislation
 To governments (through NMWs)for the preparation of
Country Action Plans (9)
 Collaboration developed with regional bodies (OECS,
CARICOM, Judicial Education Institute of the Eastern
Caribbean Supreme Court, Association of Caribbean
Commissioners of Police (ACCP) and Caribbean
Ombusdsmen Association.)
 Support to development of national protocols (Grenada,
Belize)
 Men as Champions for Change
 Behaviour change interventions for male offenders

33. Constraints to Implementation of
Country Action Plans
 Inadequate institutional capacity of implementing
partners (State, civil society)
 Variable political will in a context dominated by
patriarchal values
 Cost of access to justice to affected women and
girls (including time way from work or care of
children, loss of jobs etc)
 Socio-economic and cultural constraints
(dependency on abusers, access to female
bodies as cultural norm etc.)
 Sex disaggregated data and statistics are
lacking;
 Financial resource constraints highly indebted
Middle-income countries (all Caribbean except
Haiti).

34. Lessons learned
 GBV CAPS when developed in a participatory mode provide
focus to efforts and strengthen coordination between groups
and across sectors;
 Public education and media outreach strengthen advocacy
and use of services;
 Cultural transformation is the most fundamental and most
difficult challenge;
 Data and documentation of cases of domestic and sexual
violence and abuse is needed to improve evidence –based
approaches;
 More research is needed into underlying causes of both
negative and positive behaviours;
 Sharing best practices, models and approaches helps create
a multiplier effect;
 Monitoring and evaluation and reporting need greater
emphasis.

35. BPW Barbados: Anti-GBV
Strategies
 1986: Rape Hotline
 1992: Domestic Violence Legislation
 1997: Virtual Crisis Centre
 1999: Shelter for Battered Women
 2003: Human Trafficking Advocacy
 2012: Human Trafficking Task Force
 2012: Domestic Violence Legislation
Review
 2014: Crisis & Resource Centre – One
Stop Shop Model

36. Barbados Model: Crisis &
Resource Centre
 NGO led model – grant funded
 Coordinated community response (CCR) model which engages
the entire community in efforts to develop a common
understanding of violence against women and to change social
norms and attitudes that contribute to violence against women.
 Integrated public and private services
 Public Health Services: Hospital, Polyclinics
 Private Health Services: Private Clinics, Doctors’ Offices
 Victims’ Support Services: Hotline, Shelter Services
 Law Enforcement
 Legal: Legal Aid & Clinics
 Social Services: Welfare
 Faith-Based Organisations

37. Barbados Model: One-Stop-
Shop – Services
 Advocates
◦ Domestic violence advocates are experienced in providing
assistance to those victimized by domestic
violence. Advocates understand the criminal justice, family
court, and social service systems and are familiar with other
community resources that might be helpful to
you. Advocates can also provide you practical and
emotional support.
 Intake Assessment
◦ Intake specialist who meets with you to determine what
services you need. Once the intake is completed, the intake
specialist will make referrals to FJC partners and
advocates.
 Safety Planning
 Court Advocacy

38. Barbados One-Stop-Model
 Health Services
◦ Referral to the appropriate medical unit
◦ Private/public
◦ Forensic
 Legal Assistance
◦ Legal clinics
◦ Legal advice
 Sexual and Reproductive Health Support
◦ Counselling, interventions, testing – referral
 Law Enforcement
◦ Collaboration with police at various levels
◦ Interview space for clients
◦ FCIU, Sexual Offences

39. Barbados One-Stop Shop
Model
 Data Collection from various entry points
◦ Disaggregated Data
◦ Collation
 Training /Education
◦ Community
◦ Workplace
◦ Schools
 Prevention Programmes
 Perpetrator Intervention
◦ Partners for Peace
◦ Other

40. Resource Centre
 Provide information on essential public
and private resources pertinent to
GBV, Sexual and Reproductive Health
and related concerns
 NGOS that target males, females,
children, at risk populations
◦ E.g. Homeless
 Information Exchange Funders/
Donors info
 Available programmes & services

41. Benefits
 Targets both males and females
 Walk-in Centre
 NGO-led
 Coordinated response
 Multidisciplinary approach/
Stakeholder engagement
 Victim-centered
 Focus on prevention and mitigation of
GBV

42. BPW Barbados Anti-GBV
Strategies
 UNiTE Campaign – UN Women
◦ Edutainment
◦ Local entertainers – male and female

43. BPW Barbados Anti-GBV
Strategies
 Fantasy Shot Documentary
 Youtube “Fantasy Shot Barbados”

44. BPW Barbados Anti-GBV
Strategies
 School Education & Intervention
 Diamonds Mentorship Programme
 Youth Crisis Hotline Training
 Personal Development Programme
 Clothesline Project
 TRIM – Barbers& Hairdressers
 TRAP

45. BPW Barbados Anti-GBV
Strategies
 Capacity Building – GBV Advocate
Training
 Police Training
 Social Work Training
 Teachers
 Collaborations – Center for Women
and Families, Connecticut

46. Engaging Men as Partners
 White Ribbon Campaign
 Partners for Peace Programme
 School Education & Intervention
 Male Advocates

47. Partners for Peace Program –
UN Women
 Standardized court-based violence
intervention for men – 16 weeks, court-
mandated
 Psycho-educational approach to prevent
male perpetrator from repeating the violence
 Focus on safety & protection of victims
 Accountability & responsibility by perpetrator
 Framework for after support
 Grenada, Trinidad, St. Lucia, Belize, British
Virgin Islands

48. A Note on Human Trafficking in
Barbados
 National Task Force on Human
Trafficking
 Barbados – destination country
 BPW Crisis Centre & Shelter offer
support services
 Legislation
◦ Recognise all forms of Human Trafficking
 International Organisation of Migration
 Government
 Multi-sectoral approach

49. Looking forward
 Police
 Legislation
 Funding
 Walk-In Centre
 Political Will
 Economic Empowerment Programmes
 Women’s Empowerment Principles
◦ Corporate Support

50. Looking Forward
 Social Media
 Crisis Intevention via Social Media
 Walking into Walls
◦ https://www.facebook.com/WalkingIntoWa
lls
 Code Red For Gender Justice
◦ https://www.facebook.com/redforgender

51. Thank You!
 The Business and Professional
Women’s Club of Barbados –
Registered Charity #190
 P.O. Box 381, Bridgetown,
Barbados, West Indies;
bpwbarbadosonline@gmail.com;
bpwbarbados.wordpress.com
 246-836-5070/5068; Facebook –
BPW Barbados Online

52. Thank You!
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Barbados Booth!!!
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