The Dominica Bar Association (DBA) is set to consider the question of a sex offenders register on the island. The debate will hold at the UWI Open Campus on Thursday, November 21 in the evening. It is scheduled to be organized for students of the Dominica State College (DSC).
Secretary of the DBA, Yakima Cuffy, revealed that the association has many activities outlined for raising awareness for child abuse, and the debate for DSC students is only one of them. The association had initiated the Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) project before this time, and it centres on sensitizing Dominicans on the evils of maltreating or abusing children.
According to Cuffy, DBA is aware of the rising threats of child abuse in the island, and has been working tediously to de-escalate the trend. She said the association has gotten several stakeholders involved in preventing the physical, emotional and sexual harrassment of children, and schools as well as relevant agencies are also part of the activities.
Cuffy disclosed that the overall objective of DBA with the CAP project is to bring about the prevention of abuse cases with a view to protecting children in the country. She said children are the future of the nation and they must be protected at all costs against abuse and related neglects.
She maintained that the bar association is committed to seeing children treated with love and respect, so that they can grow into healthy adults. She cited Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa, who stated that the health and wellbeing of a society is determined by how well their young ones are treated and cared for.
In a related vein, the recent World Children’s Day celebrated a few days back also highlighted the importance of protecting children against abuse, with the relevant ministeries and agencies in Dominica carrying out several programmes to sensitize the public on the evils of maltreating kids at home and in schools.
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