Bahamas S/GWI Project Proposal

UNCLAS NASSAU 000166 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM KWMN KPAO BF SUBJECT: Bahamas S/GWI Project Proposal REF: 10 STATE 12531 ¶1. Post proposes the following two projects from The Crisis Centre and No Excuse Bahamas for consideration for Secretary Clinton's Global Women's Issues Small Grant Initiative. Both projects address the theme of gender-based violence. The grants will be managed by the Political Section. ¶2. Proposal One as submitted by The Crisis Centre (no editing other than grammatical) -------------- Statement of Problem -------------- Gender-based violence is a major problem affecting all areas of The Bahamas. Statistics of the numbers of cases of both domestic violence and child abuse are not readily available. A United Nations report has ranked The Bahamas among the top nations in the world with domestic violence fatalities, referring to the 42 percent of murders in 2000 that fell under this classification. Another UN report states that The Bahamas has the highest number of reported rapes (per 100,000) in the world. Police report that more than fifty percent of homicides in 2001 were the result of domestic violence. A hospital survey in 2000 to determine lifetime prevalence of domestic violence in females presenting to the accident and emergency department found that; forty percent reported physical abuse, twenty percent sexual abuse, and thirty-seven percent verbal and emotional abuse. In June 2009, the Government proposed an amendment to the Sexual Offenses Act to prohibit marital rape. This was a giant leap in the fight for women's rights and equality; however, the outcry from many sections of this society was unprecedented. This response demonstrated the misinformation that many Bahamians have been exposed to; many conservative elements opposed the Sexual Offenses Act on religious grounds. They argued that the marriage bed is sacred and undefiled according to the bible and such legislation will only cause dissension within many homes and communities while at the same time sending innocent men to jail as a result of "false accusations by vindictive women." Bahamian women appear to be seen by many as having no rights over their bodies within the confines of marriage and are exposed to sexual and physical violence that is silenced by the social norms of a society, which sees the husband as having authority over the wife's body and encourages male sexual aggression thereby perpetuating violence against women. The need 
is therefore vital and urgent for a more aggressive awareness campaign that is culturally sensitive; a campaign that spreads awareness in New Providence and to the Family Islands of The Bahamas. -------------- Summary of Proposed Program -------------- This project aims to increase awareness of gender-based violence among youth, church groups, and men's and women's groups within the islands of The Bahamas through a series of community meetings, workshops, and distribution of educational leaflets and posters. In addition, community based workers including social workers, nurses, police officers, community leaders, and teachers from the Family Islands will be trained on the dynamics of gender-based violence inclusive of intervention strategies and referrals. In order to reach the wider general population public service announcements for television and radio and informational materials on gender-based violence will be produced. The prevention of gender-based violence requires advocacy and sustained public education which would work toward a change in a culture that accepts and perpetuates violence against women and children by developing the capacity of community-based advocates to deal with issues of sexual and domestic violence. This project will increase awareness and knowledge about the different forms of gender-based violence including physical, emotional, sexual, and financial abuse, how to recognize the signs of such abuse, understand the effects of this abuse on victims and how and where to get help. At the end of the project a cadre of community-based workers will be trained on how, when, where, and why to intervene when they suspect an adult or child is a victim of gender-based violence. Providing this group with this information about gender-based violence will greatly increase their capacity to provide vital assistance to victims. -------------- Project Description -------------- Project Activities * To conduct a major workshop for up to 100 persons from the Family Islands, to ascertain the situation of gender-based violence in their immediate communities/organizations as well as to ascertain the needs of the individual islands. * To develop, produce and broadcast 30 second public service announcements on gender-based violence to be played on Prime Time radio and television slots. * To reproduce posters, brochures, and fact sheets to be distributed to New Providence and on the Family Islands. * To implement pilot projects on three major Family Islands through monthly visits by two members of a team of counselors and facilitators. * To facilitate a series of workshops/meetings on gender-based violence in the community. We are not aware of any major risks that could affect the successful implementation of the project. The project will depend on the availability of the health sector workers, police officers, social workers, community leaders, and teachers on the Family Islands. There may be minor scheduling challenges given the different projects being implemented within these various sectors. Program Objectives The goal is to raise awareness at the community level by sharing the information and transferring skills needed to enable early intervention. We believe that educating and providing support for survivors reduces the long term effects of domestic and sexual violence. * To increase awareness of gender-based violence among young women and men within the islands of The Bahamas. * To train a cadre of community-based advocates specifically police officers, social workers, and nurses from the family, islands to become public educators of information on gender-based violence: its signs, effects, how to deal with it and who to turn to for help. * To facilitate a network of organizations - faith based, police, youth groups, government and non-government - who would work to increase awareness of gender-based violence and its degenerative effects on the quality of life. * To create access to psycho-social support for victims of gender-based violence to three major Family islands of Abaco, Eleuthera, and Exuma. Target Audience * Youths Groups * Police Officers * Teachers * Social Workers * Men's Groups * Nurses * Church Groups * Women's Groups Strategy * Improve consciousness and heighten awareness of gender-based violence * A three day workshop held in New Providence for three to four delegates from each island * Establish pilot clinics in three major islands Abaco, Eleuthera, and Exuma via monthly clinics supported by staff from New Providence * Production of awareness raising materials to increase awareness of gender-based violence including spousal rape, teen relationship violence, and child sexual abuse. * A manual which can be used as a resource by advocates on Family Islands Work plan/timeframe First Quarter * Preparation of resources * Preparation of manuals, brochures, posters, etc. * Family Island training workshop * Community meetings in New Providence Second Quarter * Follow up activities on the three major Family Islands * Media campaign via radio Third Quarter * Media campaign via television * Family Island outreach clinics Fourth Quarter * Impact assessment * Evaluation Output * Improve consciousness and heighten awareness of GBV which should set tone for passage of spousal rape amendment * Trained cadre of resource persons for populated Family Islands * Establish Centres on three major Islands Monitoring and Evaluation This will be achieved by pre and post assessment of participants at workshops, public educational sessions, and by sampling section of community -------------- Budget -------------- * Workshop in New Providence (100 participants) $3,000.00 * Travel from Family Islands (round trip) $6,792.00 * Accommodation for Family Island participants $5,000.00 * Workshop materials $1,000.00 * Stipend for counselor/facilitators $5,000.00 * Travel/accommodations for counselor/facilitators $5,000.00 * Manual preparation $500.00 * Community Meetings $5,000.00 * Printing (posters, brochures, flyers) $10,000.00 * Production of PSAs $10,000.00 * Media and Public advertising on radio and t.v. $10,000.00 * Laptop and projector $2,016.00 Total $63,308.00 -------------- -------------- Description of Recipient Organization -------------- -------------- The Crisis Centre is a registered, non-profit organization that provides services to people who are the victims of physical, sexual and emotional abuse. The Centre was opened in 1982 with the primary aim of sensitizing the community to the devastating effects of all forms of abuse; in addition to advocating for legislative and societal protection of survivors and raising public consciousness. Our services cater to both males and females of all ages from all socio-economic levels. The Centre is committed to the elimination sexual and domestic violence in The Bahamas. We also aim: * To promote the safety and healing of survivors of sexual and domestic violence and their families. * To raise the consciousness of all communities throughout the Bahamian Islands to the adverse effects of violence on the quality of life. * To fight for legislative change to protect victims of aggression and challenge relevant agencies to foster appropriate and sensitive response to these issues. * To improve our service delivery through continuing education of all Crisis Centre personnel and share our professional expertise with the country at large. * To provide a resource centre of family violence literature, with specific reference to national data, prevalence and trends, so as to facilitate the development of effective programs. The Crisis Centre has a staff of one and a number of volunteers who provide a wide scope of services to the community. Our volunteers include psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, volunteer counselors, and attorneys. They provide the following services: Initial intake, crisis counseling, individual therapy, couples therapy, family therapy, group therapy, 24-hour Hotline, rape victim advocacy in hospital, court advocacy, and domestic violence advocacy at selected police stations. ¶3. Proposal two as submitted by No Excuse Bahamas (no editing other than grammatical) -------------- Statement of Problem -------------- Haitian-Bahamian communities are challenged in accessing post secondary education and in acquiring jobs because of the time it takes to become legally naturalized. This is a huge barrier to overcome and many of the women become unwed mothers during this period of no work and no school. Most of these residents live in over-crowded shanty towns with houses which lack the basic utilities and tenable infrastructures. This creates much of the social and economic tensions facing the country. -------------- Summary of proposed program -------------- ¶1. Our program will examine the transition from high school to the work force or college for the displaced Haitian/Bahamian. We will examine the social and economic divide in our country. Our focus is on sexual and domestic abuse with an aim to empower our youth economically, socially and academically. ¶2. We will target the grass-root communities in the eastern District of New Providence with special emphasis on the displaced Haitian-Bahamian youth. These communities lack the basic skills and confidence to advance in society. ¶3. We will engage the services of the Ministry of Labour and Social Development, Education, Foreign Affairs (Passport & Visa sections),Financial Service (Domestic investment Board) and Youth Sports and Culture, Superior Driving School, Legal Aid Clinic, Bahamas Family Planning Clinic, Male Health Initiative, Aids Secretariat, Atlantis Hotel, Baha Mar and College of the Bahamas for training the participants and offering incentives. Also, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Department of statistics, for the purpose of gathering statistics on the state of affairs to get a more accurate picture of what we are faced with. ¶4. No Excuse Bahamas will partner with International Organization for Migration (IOM),Bureau of Women Affairs (Ministry of Labour and Social Development),Legal Aid Clinic (Attorney Ellsworth Johnson),UNFPA, Exuma Chamber of Commerce, Bahamas Chamber of Commerce, Local church groups, private sector groups (Bani and Nitroz Film, etc.),Crisis Centre, Students of the College of the Bahamas, local volunteers, and Cancer Society Grand Bahama. ¶5. We chose this project as a result of direct interaction in the Haitian-Bahamian communities and listening to their complaints. This was also done by watching the alarming rate of babies born to young un-wed mothers at the Princes Margaret Hospital. We have visited that area and met with many of the Haitians in the communities and the concern of their displacement is a major issue to them. Most of the basic academic, inter-relationship and social skills in both low income areas are also noticeably missing. There is also a recognizable level of intolerance of ethnic groupings in both communities. We would like to further examine this problem through a survey of the Eastern District of New Providence where we plan to initiate this program. There is not as high a concentration of these persons in this particular area which therefore makes it easier to implement, manage, monitor and assess the initial impact of this initiative. The recent Haiti earthquake has further exasperated this problem and exposed more elements of human trafficking. -------------- Project Description -------------- ¶1. This project will involve a comparative study of 10 Bahamians, 10 Haitian migrant women and 10 Haitian/Bahamian born in The Bahamas awaiting status between the ages of 18 - 25 who meet the criteria of being victims of domestic or sexual violence, human trafficking or who are displaced due to an inability to become naturalized. ¶2. The goal will be to: a. Document over a one year (12 month) period their (Young women) challenges and the assistance given b. Create a documentary of the process undertaken for television c. Create PSA's and posters d. Provide legal and psychological counseling e. Examine the impact as it relates to sexual violence, human trafficking and human servitude f. Submit recommendations to Government/relevant agencies for action g. Provide education on human trafficking and sexual violence to community and church leaders h. Focus on two New Providence communities, and one community in Exuma, Freeport and Abaco ¶3. No Excuse Bahamas will canvass the two communities to find candidates for this program. We will examine the surveys from the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce to determine how each program should be tailored to meet the specific needs of our initial participants. Based on a social assessment by a social worker and a basic education, medical and psychological assessment (information will be solicited through a form and examined by a professional) to determine mental capacity and physical health, we will determine who will enter the program and how it will be tailored to meet their specific need. ¶4. We are seeking other organizations to partner with us financially, including, the United Nations Population Fund's Regional Office (UNFPA, Jamaica) [No Excuse Bahamas registered with this organization (UNFPA) and met with the National Program Officer during her visit to the Bahamas]. ¶5. The short term success of this program will depend largely on the level of participation by the sponsors, including the government's involvement. Strong mentors and volunteers will be needed to realize short term success. However, we anticipate reaching out directly to 30 individuals for the twelve month period. We also intend to indirectly, through this program, reach out to thousands of young men and women on the issues of sexual violence and human trafficking. ¶6. This project is unique and we are not aware of any other programs past or present that directly addresses this social ill in The Bahamas. Focusing initially on New Providence, we believe this will be a program that can be replicated in each grass-root neighborhood with much success. ¶7. Not only is this project feasible but it is practical. No Excuse Bahamas staff and volunteers have worked with youth in this country and know that if given an opportunity and if equipped with the right tools they can empower themselves to rise above mediocrity. This program is designed to be sustainable and easily replicated not only in other Bahamian communities but in other countries that have a similar challenge. ¶8. Our biggest challenge to achieving our goals is to coordinate all of the relevant corporate, government and volunteer participants. We will have to begin the process early and be able to show not only the benefits of this program but the urgency in getting it started. We may have to initially start with fewer than needed personnel and add more as we progress. Language may be a barrier initially; therefore, the assistance of Creole interpreters will be sought. Undocumented Haitians may not want to openly participate so this may present an additional challenge. ¶9. An assessment of this program will be undertaken by Reverend Fr. Elvado Turnquest, a trained psychologist, sociologist and Catholic Priest. Assessment/Evaluation forms will be designed to meet the program's requirement. Fr. Turnquest was selected because of his professional and academic background and his ability to be objective in his evaluation as he has no ties to the government or No Excuse Bahamas. a. Each phase will be evaluated b. The overall initiative will be evaluated. -------------- Budget -------------- No Excuse Bahamas anticipates a total cost of USD 91,690.00 to complete this project. A complete breakdown of costs is outlined below. Cost Quantity Total Legal $2,000.00 1 $2,000.00 Chester Chamber Manage Grant $23,750.00 1 $23,750.00 No Excuse Bahamas Airfare $166.00 5 $830.00 Exuma Per Diem $80.00 5 $400.00 Hotel $120.00 15 $1,800.00 Venue $500.00 1 $500.00 Lunch $200.00 2 $400.00 Flier Distribution $50.00 10 $500.00 Airfare $186.00 5 $930.00 Freeport Per Diem $80.00 5 $400.00 Hotel $130.00 5 $650.00 Venue $500.00 1 $500.00 Lunch $200.00 2 $400.00 Flier Distribution $50.00 10 $500.00 Airfare $186.00 5 $930.00 Abaco Per Diem $80.00 5 $400.00 Hotel $120.00 5 $600.00 Venue $500.00 1 $500.00 Lunch $200.00 2 $400.00 Flier Distribution $50.00 10 $500.00 Survey $1,200.00 1 $1,200.00 COB Students Legal Aid Clinic $3,500.00 1 $3,500.00 10 Women Venue $500.00 1 $500.00 Meals $200.00 2 $400.00 Transportation $100.00 2 $200.00 Flier Creation $2,000.00 1 $2,000.00 Flier Distribution $500.00 1 $500.00 Billboards $750.00 6 $4,500.00 Educational/Training Series $1,000.00 10 $10,000.00 selection of ten women to be monitored for 12 months Permanent Posters $350.00 30 $10,500.00 Port of Entry in Exuma, Abaco, Grand Bahama, New Providence Assessment $5,000.00 1 $5,000.00 Documentary $5,000.00 1 $5,000.00 PSA's $250.00 10 $2,500.00 Counseling $150.00 10 $1,500.00 Documents $500.00 1 $500.00 Website $2,000.00 1 $2,000.00 Advertising $5,000.00 1 $5,000.00 Total $91,690.00 -------------- -------------- Description of Recipient Organization -------------- -------------- The mission of No Excuse Bahamas is to raise the consciousness of at-risk youths in their environment through positive developmental programs. In keeping with our mission we employ a four prong principle: Commitment No Excuse Bahamas wants to inspire pro-social friendships, strong interpersonal skills, and instill a sense of hope in the future. Responsibility The focus of No Excuse Bahamas is to empower youth in establishing goals and following through on commitments. Possibility No Excuse Bahamas wants to expand the perspective of young people to make them aware of life's possibilities. Support An individual is dramatically influenced by their support system. No Excuse Bahamas wants to surround young people in a caring, inclusive learning environment and where this is not practicable, show care in their environment. No Excuse Bahamas is a Non-Governmental Organization that hosts programs geared to form synergies with other local NGOs and international and Bahamian government agencies. Using positive entertainment and community activities, at-risk youth can be introduced to pro-social partnerships as opposed to anti-social alliances with negative influences like gangs. Their personal relationships can aid in developing or reestablishing a greater sense of individual responsibility that will give youth the commitment to follow through on the path to adulthood with a sense of personal and national pride and accomplishment. Through inculcated negative vices, (sexual, domestic and community violence) repeated social, academic and religious failures and reinforcement of destructive habits, at-risk youth have lost faith in 'the system' and any possibility of successfully putting their lives together. The goals of No Excuse Bahamas are to identify such at-risk youths in our community who are in potentially violent hot-spots (schools and neighborhoods) and offer positive support systems. The idea is to empower the young person not to glorify and emulate local criminal behavior but to make positive changes in his/her life. We are currently registered and actively involved with numerous youth and Women organizations locally and internationally including: Ministry of Youth, S.C.A.N. (Ministry of Health Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect Unit),Bureau of Women's Affairs, UNFPA (United Nation Population Fund, Jamaica),WWSF (World Wide Summit Federation, Switzerland),Commonwealth Foundation, (England) and the Chamber of Commerce. We have worked and formed alliances with Dr. Patterson of the Crisis Centre and have been supported by the Bahamas Family Planning Association (Executive Director, Judith Cooper) and Mr. Ezekiel Munnings of the Male Health Initiative, Ministry of Health and as a member of the National Child Protection Council. Two of our staff including the chairman, have completed the IOM training on human trafficking and the training of trainers in Grand Bahama. Our organization has hosted many national week long awareness activities which included bringing in international speakers and local and international artists to raise awareness of child abuse and sexual violence against women. For two years an annual resource booklet, which was supported by the U.S. Embassy and the IDB, has been produced and distributed free of charge. This booklet contains both local and international articles on domestic violence and child abuse and addresses made by Minister of Social Services, SCAN, Crisis Centre, Bureau of Women Affairs Police Sexual Offence Squad, Williamae Pratt Center for Girls, Prisoners, and many others. Articles cover: Sexual abuse in clergy, homes, school, true stories locally and internationally, homosexuality and abuse. We host a one week event annually during the month of November in recognition of Child Abuse Day/Week. AVANT