Where is the Outrage?

The hysteria that has engulfed my nation over the dehumanizing photos of a 16-year-old girl posted on Facebook, I posit, was deserved. However, there is a real problem associated with the photos that has not received the outrage it should have. I am speaking of the sexual abuse of our women and girls.  

The reactions to the photos showing up on Facebook called upon the government to intercede and do something about the photos being on Facebook, which they heeded. Immediately the government announced a Bill called the “Electronic Crime Bill,” which seeks to hold people criminally liable for posting “offensive” material online – Electronic Crime Bill section 6.

The Bill itself triggered a backlash on the government. According to many Grenadians, the Bill appears to be too vague and far-reaching. Many argued that it seems to attack our constitutional right of freedom of speech; an attempt, by the government, to silence dissent, and quiet media and journalists from critiquing the administration.

Indeed, the initial outrage over the photos on Facebook and the subsequent push back on the government’s attempt to use the outrage to push through this ambiguous Bill is certainly warranted.

There is, however, the criminal act of sexual abuse of minors that this child fall victim to, and needs to receive the same, and/or even more outrage, and it has not. For that, I am outraged!

A headline posted on January 24, 2013, in The New Today reads “Bus Drivers Charged with Rape.” The story went on to point out that “Statistics provided to this newspaper by the Criminal Records Office of the RGPF show that from January to October 2012 there were 24 cases of rape, 78 cases of incest, defilement of a female 43, and indecent assault 77.” It went on to state that “From among the 25 sexual offenses that were on the case list for October 2012 Criminal Assizes, there were 12 cases of rape.”

I site these statistics to demonstrate what our country is dealing with. Crimes against women, some argues, are on the rise. It is known that Grenada has an epidemic of adult males sexually violating young school girls, (boys too); committed mostly by bus drivers (of course not excluding male school teachers and fathers). 

There is a story in Caribbean News Now, posted June 19, 2013, that speaks of a ten-year-old girl child sexually abused by her father, who, according to the story, was left in the custody of the father by the Chief Magistrate, after hearing the facts of the case. Yes, you heard right. The Chief Magistrate left the child in the hand of the sexual deviant! Is this the justice we have in store for our minors?

As I have mentioned in a previous post on the Facebook photos issue, I engaged some Grenadians, home and abroad, in an attempt to get different prospective on the issue. Quite interestingly, no one brought up the issue of sexual predators preying on minors. I had to ask the question, and I was taken aback by many of the comments I received. Like the Chief Magistrate, it seems to me that no one (both male and female) was really concerned about the minor, as much as they shown about the photos being on Facebook for the world to see. In my understanding, the public image of Grenada was their main concern; thus, the outrage.

Because of the deafening silence concerning the abuse of the minor, one can only conclude that if the photos were not posted on Facebook, then there would not have been any outrage. Which brings me back to a Grenadian event I attended where a government official literally asked Grenadians, who critique what they view as wrongs going on in the country online, not to expose our dirty laundry to the world. His words were that you are putting a bad face on Grenada.     

This position of course does not speak for all Grenadians, and I hope not for the majority. But it does speak to a much bigger problem in Grenada; the ongoing concern whereby Grenadians remain silence about sexual abuse of minors – and woman in general. Here we have a minor who has been sexual violated by an adult man, who then thinks it was cool to take and post sexual explicit photo of her on Facebook, and people is only upset about them being posted on Facebook.  No discussion about the elephant in the room, the sexual abuse of our woman and girls (boys and men included).

As reported in the New Grenada on May 1, 2013, “The Caribbean in general is grappling with an extremely high prevalence of child abuse in our island. In Grenada, news media has reported that the problem is grievous, and increasing.”

Yes, abuse of minors is increasing in Grenada. As a result, our job is to aggressively push our government to crackdown on these child predators, and women abusers. The outrage over these sexual explicit photos on Facebook is deserved, and so to is the push back on the government over the Electronic Crime Bill. However, this incident should have also ignited a national outrage over the issue of abuse of minors and women. Their concerns should have been part of the ongoing discourse; if not the priority issue.

I conclude with this. Apart from calling for the sexual violation of minors and women to be included in our outrage, I am also demanding that my government respond rationally and appropriately. Instead of using the public outrage to push through a Bill that seeks to silence its critics, focus on the real issues. Protect our minors, and women from these sexual deviants. The sexual explicit photos of the minor posted on Facebook were indeed a criminal act, but they are, in addition, more so a road sign to the large criminal acts going on in the country. “Grenada is being labeled dangerous for women and girls. This is evidenced by one third of all criminal High Court trials, being for sexual offenses,” – Now Grenada. 

WATCH: Air Me Now: Violence Against Women - Taking Back Our Voices 

Wrong Direction

The carnival season is over and, as far as I can tell, the fiesta was enjoyed without any major criminal incidents. As a result, for our safety, we commend the Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF) for doing such an outstanding job for keeping the carnival revelers safe especially coming on the heals of the spike in violent crimes just weeks leading up to the festival.

Within this backdrop, we are reminded that, for a society to function properly, safety is paramount. Societies constantly improve their rules and regulations in an effort to meet the best collective needs of its people. Since this carnival season has passed without any major incidences; this has pleased us so greatly, constantly sustaining such a safe society should be our major goal moving forward. No! I am not speaking of creating a utopia. I am saying the as a nation, we must find ways so that each citizen, without being restricted or being afraid, can explore and live fulfilling lives.

Since, however, creating an ideal society with the perfect socioeconomic, political and legal system seems out of reach, societal problems will continue to be with us for sometime or forever. Knowing this means, that finding real solutions to the seemingly inescapable problems that will surface within our society must become one of our main concerns. But, how do we achieve such a goal? Certainly, appealing to pre-enlightenment, dark-ages solutions of appealing to a god or gods, for instance, is not an option. As I have alluded to above, we can accomplish this by each of us accepting our duty to be responsible moral agents - good citizens - and contribute positively to our immediate society and, of course, to the world at large. Kirani James has indeed demonstrated this to us during the past London 2012 Olympic games. This is indeed one way, and a very important one at that; being good for goodness' sake. However, despite each citizen, on an individual and community level, doing his or her part, acting on a national political level is also extremely important. We must seek to be informative citizens and exercise our voting rights in order to place the right people in the positions that are designed to solve the problems we face. Our elected officials must have the ability to properly diagnose these problems. They must be able to understand or at least be capable to identify the root causes of societal ills. Thus, we must critically evaluate actions taken by our elected officials at all times.
Take the call put fourth by Her Majesty's Opposition Party, The New National Party (NNP), for  National Days of Prayers, as a case in point. As a concerned citizen, I am very interested in knowing whether these elected officials sincerely believe that the prayer option is a real, viable solution to the problems they are trying to solve. In other words, do these officials actually believe, as objective facts, that praying will provide a change in our experience. Can they provide certainty of change. My vote is at stake here! Indeed, the fact that these officials are calling for prayer as a means to solve real problems appears to expose them as not having the slightest understanding of the source of societal ills. To this position, however, I am desperately trying not to adhere. But this knee-jerk reaction taken by supposed intelligent men and women in an effort to quell what appears to be an increase in killings leading up to the carnival celebrations, seems to confirm my fears. Society's safety must be among our ultimate concerns, but reverting to the old adage of appealing to God as a valid policy to contend with very real problems isn't very reassuring. Therefore, as a citizen working for the best of my country, here is what I believe the source of some of these crimes are. 

Taking the recent crime wave as the point of diagnostic entry – and I am concerned here with what is normally classified as “crimes of passion”, a category most of the crimes in Grenada seems to fall into – some troubling characteristics become apparent.

• The sexual relationship between adult males and teenage females. These relationships are normally built on male control. Indeed, much work is being directed into preventing child abuse. However, many parents, who suffer financially, continually allow older men, who can provide them with well needed funding, to sexually bond with their underage daughters. As a result, these predators exhibit high level of control over these young girls. However, if these young girls mature and gain an education and sort to sever themselves from the illegitimate,abusive relationship, the men becomes angry and act out in often deadly and gruesome ways.
• Domestic violence in almost all cases of these "crimes of passion" are a noticeable factor, and highlights the relationship between many Grenadians – old and young couples alike. Take the killing of Marsha Cherman of Pearls, St. Andrew, which happened in August, making her the 4^th woman to be killed for 2012, as an example. Her relationship appeared to have been riddled with instances of domestic violence. However, according to police “it’s a problem where we have the victims start the process (of persecuting the abusers), we encourage them to continue by all means and then they decide that they should not continue because they would ‘make up.’ (The killing of Marsha Cherman)
• Insecurity. Many of these men exhibit lack of self-confidence, a problem that is exacerbated when someone losses his or her means of income. This then means that his or her relationship with his wife/husband or girlfriend/boyfriend becomes strained. Indeed, women that find themselves in these situations normally revert to removing themselves from the situation by either getting rid of the husband/boyfriend or sometimes she will secretly cohabit with another, as it appears to have been in Marsh Cherman’s case. Thus, not being able to cope, many of these men because of their insecurities and inability to cope with rejection react in extremely violent ways.
• The abuse of alcohol. Grenadians are living in a society where the consumption of alcohol is pervasive.  Alcohol use is vigorously promoted in Grenada, leading to its abuse, mostly done by men - both underage young male and adult male- creating a high amount of alcoholics, which contribute to the domestic violence, which certainly leads to other crimes.  

I am not contending that the points highlighted here are the only aspects that contribute to crimes and other problems. The stellar job done by the RGPF  this carnival by ensuring that everyone entering a celebration area was stopped and searched, revealed the melancholy nature of many Grenadians. Hundreds of weapons were found on individuals who certainly intended to cause harm on others. What this shows, is that the human being's ability to personify negative characteristic for no apparent reasons is certainly a factor. But these points I have pointed out here are obvious ones, which, I believe, are the major underpinnings for most of these “crimes of passion”. Moreover, they all seem to point to one common denominator - economics; the lack of sustainable living, and this, my friends, prayer cannot and will not fix. My argument, of course, is not that if we happened to create a society where  one hundred percent employment exists, crimes will disappear. Certainly not! What I am saying is this; our elected officials are looking in the wrong direction. I am  certain that there cannot and will never be any direct causal effect of positive change on societal problems that can or will be, as a result of prayer. Calypsonian Elimus Gilbert - The Inspector - reminded us in 1989 that we were going the wrong way - the title of one of his calypsos that year. This is a warning, I will argue, is relevant here. This is, the wrong way; we are looking in wrong directions. These officials should stop the knee-jerk reactions; refrain from engaging in wishful thinking, and instead, take the time to properly diagnose and understand the cause of our problems, then real solutions can be developed. Certainly, as highly religious people, they are moved by their religious faith in their God. However, to invoke the word of the American inventor, journalist, printer, diplomat and statesman, Benjamin Franklin, "the way to see by faith is to shut the eye to reason".   

Circumcision Should be a Choice an Adult Makes for Himself

There are many religious people and religious organization that are actively working to keep what is clearly inhumane acts of religion alive. Circumcision, for instance, is one of these inhumane acts. The state of California, for example, has just banned local authorities from outlawing male Circumcision. “Religious groups applauded Governor Jerry Brown’s signature Sunday of a bill, which prevents cities and counties from interfering with parents wishing to circumcise their sons.”

“Matthew Hess, an activist behind the attempted ban in San Francisco, said Sunday that California had “taken a big step backward. … Circumcision is elective surgery that an adult should be allowed to choose for himself.”
In this video proponents of Circumcision gives reasons why this inhumane acts should continue.

Commentary:

Indeed, to mutilate one’s penis is a choice an adult individual should choose for himself. A child should not have to endure this.  It certainly does not matter if one is following “TRADITION” or some directive given by a God, child circumcision should not be allowed. There is no health benefit enjoyed by a circumcised boy over one who is not. This assertion that there are health benefits is false. Here is some simple facts about what circumcision denies individuals. It takes away 15-square inches of skin that helps protects the male pines against abrasion, drying, and contaminants of all sorts. It takes away lubricating glands, which protect both male and female sexual organs during intercourse. Circumcision  has no benefit to the individuals, not as a child nor as adults.
Indeed, the adults who are carrying out this act are more interested in fulfilling their religious fantasy. The idea, as put forth in the video above, that putting a child through this traumatic ordeal is so that he knows that the community accepts him is asinine and certainly insane. Will you not accept your child into you community if he is not circumcise. I doubt that you will

Moreover, the idea that this sadistic act should be allow because it is “TRADATION” and/or of God’s command is ludicrous. We have done many things in the past that was part of tradition and/or commands of God; however, we have chosen to abandon many of these acts and for good reasons. No longer, for example, do we stone people to death. No longer do we force raped women to marry the perpetrators of the crime. Why, the answer is simply, these acts are antithetical to a moral society.

As claimed by religious people, the call to band child circumcision and make it something an adult chose for himself is not about infringing upon a parent’s “right to decide”. Parents do decide for their children and they should always have that right, but some parents’ decisions are very detrimental to their children’s well-being. Should we then just stand aside and say, it is the parents’ child; thus, they can do whatever they want, even when their decision is clearly harming the child. I think not.

This is about protecting human beings who otherwise cannot protect themselves. I recently ask a Christian friend of mine this question. Do you think that parents should be allowed to engage in “FAITH HEALING”, denying their child medical attention in hopes that God do the healing instead?  The answer I received astonished me. She said that she is aware that almost all of these children die because of the lack of medical attention, which, if allowed, would have saved their lives, but, she insisted, God had a better plan for these children. My question then becomes, why allow these children to be born in the first place, only to die a painful death. Is this how God works? My point here, however, is not to compare faith healing with Circumcision, they are two very different things. However, look at how my friend evaded the real issue. She side step the children well-being and make tries to rationalize the parents neglect. She is trying to justify why these children should be allowed to die and not give an opportunity to live a fruitful life, all by invoking the supernatural. I strongly doubt the children will share the same view; he or she will certainly want to live.  Indeed, “FAITH HEALERS” are parents exercising their “right to decide”. Sadly, however, it is to their children demise. Circumcision too is hazardous to these children, and, like faith healing parents, circumcision parents convince themselves that their children somehow agree with them. These parents and rabbis do not care about the pain and trauma these young children suffers. It is all about their faith in a supernatural being, and Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, in the video, is speaking as if the children is enjoying ever minute of having their penis cut. Are you kidding? Research has shown that the pain experienced by infants alters the entire lifetime pattern of response to pain. Why then are you putting these helpless children through the trauma. Please, stop cutting the little ones. Let God cut his own penis.

Pastor convicted of sexually assaulting 14-year-old member of congregation

I have been following and reporting on the abuse the clergy has visited upon the most venerable in our society, our children. For those of us who keep a watchful eye on religion, its adherents and how they affect the general  public has seen that almost everyday some member or members of the clergy, whether it is a Catholic priest or  pastors from other churches, are being charged with molesting, in some form or another, our children.

Here is another story of such evil committed by those claiming to have been chosen by some supernatural male power living in a place call heaven. Isaac K. Aryee an pastor of a Christian church name “Praise Chapel International Ministries” was convicted of sexual assault on a child. According to the report, he is charge for using force to sexual assault the child. He is also charged with pattern of abuse and, with three counts of sexual assault on a child.

According to the Denver District Attorney's office, the victim, who was born in Sierra Leone, was a member of Aryee's church and the assaults began when the victim was 14 years old in 2008. The victim gave birth to a baby girl in March 2010 and paternity tests showed Aryee is the father.

Disgraceful as Aryee’s action is, the defense this criminal mind put up will turned your gut inside out. “During the trial, Aryee, testified and denied the allegations. His attorney argued that the victim was not a child, based on the fact that a birth certificate was never issued in Sierra Leone as it was in the middle of a civil war at the time.”

Aryee faces an indeterminate to life sentence with a minimum of eight to 24 years in prison when he is sentenced on Sept. 26.

Source - 9news.com

Church pastor jailed for 11 and a half years for trafficking children into the UK

 Lucy Adeniji brought two children and a 21-year-old woman to the UK from Africa illegally and used them as servants. She was convicted of 17 different counts at Isleworth Crown Court. The mother-of-five is the first person to be jailed for trafficking children into the UK for domestic servitude. In a case that has been likened to modern-day slavery, Adeniji smuggled the three victims into Britain on false passports, and used them as servants at her home in Ray Gardens, Barking.
An illegal immigrant herself, Adeniji, 44 - originally from Nigeria - had told the victims' parents they would have a better life in the UK, but instead viciously beat them if they failed to please her. The abuse only came to light when one of the victims escaped from Adeniji's home after being beaten.  
Source-BBC News London

Commentary: 
Around the world children are being abuse in the name of religion. Children have been denied medical attention, left for dead, just because of some supernatural belief. Pastors and Priest have been molesting our children and continues to. In Africa, Christian evangelists have been running a muck. Children are being accused of being witchcraft workers. As a result, they are thrown out of their homes, villages and many are killed by these “enlighten” Christians. Tell me! Who is look out for our children? If there is a God, is he busy revealing miracles to fanatics? Are God, Jesus, and Allah just sitting on their thrown watching the abuse of those that cannot defend them selves?
Or, maybe; just maybe, there is no body there. Maybe we are the ones to protect our children and ourselves. And that, I believe, is the fact. We are the ones, and unless we standup and demand the protection of our children from these superstition nuts, these religious people will continue to commit these crimes. There is no God out there waiting to help us. The helping hand we are look for is at the end of our own arm.

Child Killed in “Exorcism”

A woman accused of killing her 3-year-old daughter earlier this week believed God had instructed her to stick a rose in the young girl’s throat to ward off the devil, according to documents filed in Nantucket, Massachusetts District Court. The police were called to the family’s home at about 12:40 p.m. Monday. Officers found Pleitez’s daughter, Nicole Garcia, lying on a table inside the home and attempted to resuscitate her until paramedics arrived. The girl was taken to Nantucket Cottage Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at about 1:18 p.m.
“During an interview shortly after Garcia’s death, Pleitez, who is originally from El Salvador, began singing and praying, telling investigators through a Spanish interpreter that the Holy Spirit could speak through her.” “Pleitez said she stuck a rose down her daughter’s throat because God told her to...” She put the rose in her daughter’s throat because demons were inside the girl, according to the translation, the officer said.
Source –Religiousnewsblog 

Commentary:
Obviously the initial inclination is to charge this lady with just being crazy, and maybe she is. But, is Pleitez’s justification any different from the justification given by the many people in the Bible who committed mass murder claiming that “God told me to”. Is her justification not in line with Abraham following the direction of a voice, which he assumed was God’s, to go sacrifice (kill) his son (Isaac)? Of course, he was stopped when a goat showed up in the nearby bushes which he substitutes in place of his son. However, because he was willing to follow the direction of a voice he heard makes it no different. In fact, in today’s time, Abraham would be seen in the same light as Ms. Pleitez, insane, someone suffering from schizophrenia. Certainly, this craziness did not just happen; it is derived from her intense belief in her religious worldview, and this is what religion does to people, especially the most enthusiastic. The only way she could see and interpret the real world is in this bizarre tunnel vision of superstition.

NDC Political activist on alleged rape charge

Curtis Baptiste, an NDC activist from Victoria, St. Mark is alleged to have entered the house of a Victoria resident and had sex with an 11-year-old minor. According to reports, Mr. Baptiste waited when the grandmother of the 11-year old went out to tether her sheep and entered the home.

Commentary:
Certainly, this is an alleged charge. But so many of our women and children do not receive justice for crimes committed against them that run an array of reasons, which include, but are not limited to further intimidating the victims to the point of fear, thus refusing to come to court to the powerful links to people in authority sometimes enjoyed by the accused, it is shameful. Certainly, this NDC administration talks of making changes to the Criminal Justice procedures and intends to implement new ones that will hold criminals accountable, and not slip through the cracks. Other citizens of Grenada present their own suggestions for dealing with crimes and criminals. For example, retired High Court Judge, Justice Lyle St. Paul said that we must hold mothers accountable for their children who fall victim to sexual offenders; a statement I took issue with for many reasons. This case is a case, I believe, justifies my position on Justice Lyle St. Paul's statement. Here are some more relevant questions for Mr. St. Paul. Do you think we should charge, as you have suggested, “punish” the grandmother/guardian for this crime? Do you really think that her grandmother and maybe her mother are responsible for getting her rape? Indeed, within the content of your statement as presented by The New Today online news report, no mention was made of any specific crime you intended to charge or "punish" the mothers for. You are a smart man, sir; I am not going to insult your intelligence. However, I will point out one possible reason to take action against the parents, and or guardians. Was this 11-year-old-minor left alone in the house? If she was, then the parents/guardians’ action left her venerable to criminals. That is called child endangerment, and endangering the wellbeing of a child is a crime, isn’t it? I sure hope so.
All in all, I hope this case does not fall through the cracks of our criminal justice system as so many those. I hope justice will be served; in fact, one meaningful change I, and many others I am sure would like to see implemented in the justice system for these types of crimes is, instead of seeing Curtis Baptiste Vs. 11-year-old –minor and her family; it should be Curtis Baptiste vs. The Government of Grenada, period! ‘Nuff said!