Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: Update to VCT34703.E of 23 June 2000 on violence against children, including by the child's father or mother's former partner, and the protection available

The President and Chief Magistrate of the Family Court in St. Vincent and the Grenadines provided the following information on violence against children and the protection available to victims in 7 May 2003 correspondence.

Children who are victims of domestic violence by [the] father or [the] mother's previous partners do not have any real protection other than that of the Criminal Law. The Domestic Violence Law does not stipulate any specific protection measures for children who are abused. However, our Juvenile Act make[s] provision for police officers or probation officer[s] to bring before a Juvenile Court any juvenile in need of care and protection. The court may then commit him into the care of any fit person, place him under the supervision of any probation officer or commit him to an approved school (St. Vincent' only has an approved school for boys).

The agencies and services that exist for a child victim of violence are primarily the social service department or the Family Court Counselor. We have limited facilities and financial means to provide any alternative care or protection for child victims.

Additional information on protection available to children who are victims of violence, including mechanisms in place and initiatives by government to combat violence against children, can be found in the electronic attachment below taken from the October 2001 report submitted by Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to the United Nations' Committee on the Rights of the Child. A response by the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Human Rights Association to some of the contents of the state report to the UN is found in the second electronic attachment.

Please consult VCT41518.E of 6 May 2003 for information on violence against women, including police response to complaints, and on the effectiveness of the judicial system in prosecuting cases of domestic violence in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Reference

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. 7 May 2003. Correspondence sent by the President and Chief Magistrate of the Family Court.

Additional Sources Consulted

IRB Databases

LEXIS/NEXIS

World News Connection

Internet sites, including:

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2002

The Daily Herald [Kingstown]. Search engine

Human Rights Internet (HRI)

Isis Internacional

Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women's Rights (CLADEM)

MADRE

Panamerican Health Organization (PAHO)

Women Watch

Search engine:

Google

Electronic Attachment

United Nations. 10 October 2001. Committee on the Rights of the Child. Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 44 of the Convention: Initial Reports of States Parties Due in 1995: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. [Accessed 7 May 2003]

2. Government assistance in the care of children

161. One major constraint facing the Government in its assistance in the care of children is the absence of any facility for the care and protection of children who are abandoned, abused or who require a temporary or permanent place of safety.The Liberty Lodge Training Centre, managed by the Ministry of Education, was not developed for this purpose and its limitations have already been discussed. The St. Benedicts Children's Hospital, a private institution managed by the Catholic Church, is heavily utilized by the Social Welfare Division in placing children who cannot be left within their homes or who are found abandoned or need care. The Government pays for the care of the children sent there on the recommendation of the Division.

and the more informal nature of the court allows for more sensitivity in dealing with certain cases. Sittings of this court take place both in Kingstown, the capital, and in outlying rural areas, which provides greater access to its services, although these sittings are not on a daily basis in these outlying locations, nor in Kingstown.

163. A probation officer is always available for consultations at the court and the process of applying for and collection of maintenance payments has been improved. In most cases the Family Court seeks to encourage out of court settlement of disputes through counselling. The shortage of trained counsellors working with the Family Court does, however, present a serious limitation.

164. The challenges facing the Family Court include the need for support services to be put in place to make more effective orders in addressing certain situations; the need for more counsellors attached to the court; and the need for a remand facility for juveniles. There is also a need to examine the legislation which has to be administered by the Family Court to assess whether the mechanisms for enforcing such legislation can be improved. The Family Court was developed without an accompanying family law reform process.This process is still necessary in order to ensure that the possibilities presented by the Family Court can be fully exploited.

C. Separation from Parents (art. 9)

1. Provisions for Separation

165. Under the Domestic Violence and Matrimonial Proceedings Act (cap. 165, sect. 4), either party to a marriage may apply to the court for an order to prohibit the other spouse from occupying the matrimonial home, based on the spouse's acts of violence to the wife or children of the marriage. Under this order the offending spouse is separated from the children whom he may be abusing. The law specifically construes the term "parties to a marriage" to include references to a man and a woman who are living with each other in the same household as husband and wife.

166. There are other circumstances where a child can be legally separated from both parents when the court considers that it is in the best interests of the child. The Juveniles Act (cap. 168) provides for a magistrate to issue a warrant for any police officer to search any house for any juvenile or to remove any juvenile with or without search or to enter any house by force to remove a juvenile who is being assaulted, ill-treated or neglected in a manner likely to cause the juvenile unnecessary suffering or if one of several offences outlined in the Criminal Code have been committed against the juvenile. These offences, as specified in the first schedule to the Juvenile Act, include a range of sexual offences such as rape, buggery, indecent assault, etc., as well as others such as choking, etc. Once the juvenile in these circumstances is removed, the law provides that he should be kept in a place of safety until he can be brought before the Magistrates Court (sect. 10).

167. The juvenile can also be brought before the Magistrates Court under the Juveniles Act by "an authorized person" (sect. 11).In both these circumstances, the court can consider the welfare of the juvenile and either commit him to the care of a fit person, whether a relative or not, who is willing to take care of him, or commit him to an approved school (sect. 12). In both these situations the juvenile would be separated from his parents.

168. Once the juvenile is removed from his parents' care in these circumstances and placed in the care of a fit person, the person to whose care the juvenile is committed will have the same rights and powers and is subject to the same liabilities in respect of the juvenile's maintenance as if he were his parent and the juvenile so committed shall continue in his care notwithstanding any claim by a parent or any other person (sect. 37).

169. At present in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines there is a serious constraint in that there is no "approved school" nor is there any place of safety. What the Social Welfare Division is forced to do on some occasions when confronted with this situation is to find foster homes for the children or to leave the children in the home where the abuse occurred until suitable fostering arrangements can be made.

170. The Criminal Code (cap. 124, sect. 143) provides that if a man is convicted of the offence of incest against a female under the age of 18, the court has the power to divest from him all authority or rights of guardianship over that female.

171. The Law of Minors Act (cap. 169, sect. 27) provides that, where the parent of a minor has abandoned or deserted a child and then later makes an application to the court to get that child back from the person in whose possession the child is, the court may refuse to return that child to the parent. In a case where the parents are before the court with respect to the issue of custody of their child, the court may, if it considers both of them unfit, entrust the care of the minor to an institution (sect. 13). Similarly, under the Maintenance Act (cap. 171, sect. 9) once a maintenance application is before the court, the court also has the power to make an order with respect to the legal custody of any child under the age of 18 and the court may give legal custody to a person other than a party to the marriage or a parent of the child. In this case the court will attempt to ensure that some or all of the parental rights and duties comprised in legal custody (other than the right to actual custody of the child) are retained by the party to the marriage who is not given the legal custody. These rights and duties will be exercised jointly with the person who is given legal custody. This is one of the few laws that specify the right of the parent to joint custody with someone who is not a parent. This would allow the parent to have continued access to the child.

172. In custody proceedings relating to divorce or judicial separation of parties to a marriage, the Matrimonial Causes Act (cap. 176, sect. 65) provides that, even if such divorce or judicial separation proceedings are dismissed, the court has the power to make the child a ward of the court. In addition, where the court does grant the divorce or judicial separation, it can make an order that either party to the marriage is unfit to have custody of the children of the family under 18. In these circumstances a child may be legally removed from the care and custody of a particular parent against the will of either the child or the parent.

173. The other set of circumstances where the child and the parents are separated sometimes against their will are those which flow from the consequences of the child's unlawful behaviour or unacceptable behaviour. Under the provisions of the Juveniles Act (cap. 168, sect. 24), when the child is convicted of a criminal offence he or she may be sentenced to be kept in a place of safety. Even before he or she is tried, bail may be refused, depending on the nature of the offence, and the child forced to remain in police custody.

I. Abuse and neglect (art. 19), including physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration (art. 39)

1. Legislative measures against child abuse

217. Abusive behaviour towards children is prohibited by various legislative enactments under the laws of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, however in no act or legislation is child abuse clearly defined.The existing legislation is outlined below.

218. The Juveniles Act (sect. 8) makes it an offence to wilfully assault, ill-treat, neglect, abandon or expose a juvenile in any manner likely to cause that juvenile unnecessary suffering or injury to health. Neglect is defined as failure to provide food, clothing, rest, medical aid or lodging. Neglect is also involved in those cases where a child under the age of three suffocates by disease or choking while the child is in bed asleep with someone who was under the influence of drink or drugs. It also includes giving or selling to any child under the age of 10 any intoxicating liquor and leaving a child 7 years or younger alone in a room or yard containing a stove or fireplace which injures or kills the child. Under this Act, the parent, teacher or any person having control of the juvenile is entitled to administer punishment to him or her, as long as it is reasonable.

219. The Domestic Violence (Summary Proceedings) Act, 1995 empowers the Family Court to make an occupation order prohibiting any party who has abused any child of the family from continuing to reside in the matrimonial home or any part thereof.

220. The Criminal Code prohibits killing an unborn child (sect. 171); infanticide (sect. 164); failing to supply the necessities of life to a dependent, including a child (sect. 197); abandoning or exposing a child under two (sect. 198); intercourse with a girl under 13 (sect. 124); intercourse with a girl under 15 (sect. 125); incest by a man (sect. 142); incest by a woman (sect. 144); indecency with a child (sect. 128); and rape (sect. 123). In addition, there are other offences which could be committed against children, as well as the general population, such as wounding and murder.

2. Administrative measures for the enforcement of provisions against child abuse

221. The Social Welfare Division of the Ministry of Housing is charged with the task of responding to all reports of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse of any child. The role of the Social Welfare Division has been discussed earlier in this chapter; however, its administrative responses to reports of abuse will be highlighted here. These responses include home visits, referrals to other agencies, counselling and preparation of investigative reports for the courts.

222. The Social Welfare Division can refer the matter to the police for action at the Family Court level. The limitations and constraints faced by the Family Court have been discussed in chapter VI, section 2.2. There are also cases sent by the police to the Social Welfare Division for investigation. The relationship between the Social Welfare Division and the police is critical to the investigation and pursuance of cases of child abuse.

223. The Social Welfare Division is legally empowered under the Juveniles Act (cap. 168, sect. 11) to bring before a juvenile court any juvenile in need of care or protection. However, it is not empowered to seek a warrant to remove any juvenile without search to a place of safety or to search for any juvenile.Only a police officer may carry out these acts (sect. 10). There is a need to review this aspect of the law to examine whether the Social Welfare Division should not be given some wider legal authority. Such authority would include the right to present and prosecute cases in the courts, as well as the power to remove a child from a parent in an emergency situation where the child's life or well-being is in jeopardy. Consideration, in the interim, should be given to measures which can be put in place to reduce the length of time taken for a court order to be made with respect to a child.

224. The Social Welfare Division has sought to strengthen its relationship with the Police Department. The Division is involved in a limited way in the training of police recruits. However, there may be a need for refresher courses for police officers or specialized training for those already on the job in order to sensitize them to the issues related to child abuse. There may also be a need for a person trained in social work to be located within the police force in order to address situations which often crop up in relation to child abuse. There is also a need to consider making the reporting of child abuse mandatory by medical practitioners, school authorities and other agencies. This could assist in the documentation of cases of child abuse.The Social Welfare Division has established a child abuse register which should also improve documentation.

225. Counselling is carried out both at the main office of the Social Welfare Division in Kingstown and in outreach sessions in the rural areas. The Ministry of Health also provides a social worker who does counselling at the Kingstown General Hospital, where many child abuse cases are referred for treatment. At the Family Court, a probation officer is always available to provide counselling to clients, but the Family Court has recognized the need for more trained counsellors. There is also a need for further training in this and other areas of social work for probation officers within the Social Welfare Division.  

226. Once a case is before the court investigative reports or home studies are conducted by the probation officers when requested by the High Court, the Family Court or any of the magistrates' courts. The need for strengthening the support system available to families and victims of abuse who must face the public and media attention has also been recognized.

3. Social and educational measures against child abuse

227. The available statistics indicate that since 1993 over 200 cases of child abuse, including sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect and abandonment, have been reported. Given that many such cases go unreported, one can only surmise at the real extent of the problem. In the Criminal Assizes at the October 1998 session and at the January 1999 session almost half the cases before the High Court were for sexual offences, many of them involving minors as young as six years old who had been sexually abused.

228. The increasing number of street children, i.e. those who live and survive on their own, particularly in the urban area of Kingstown, is a growing phenomenon. These children, most of whom are boys, are the subject of neglect, physical abuse and sexual abuse. There is no programme in place to deal with their needs.

229. The activities during Child Abuse Prevention Month serve to highlight some of the issues and to provide some education to the public on the rights of the child and the measures that should be taken to prevent child abuse. However, social workers involved in these types of cases have indicated that the problem is also caused by deeper issues relating to changing value systems in the society whereby money and access to material comforts are seen as justifiable reasons for encouraging children to become involved in abusive behaviour with adults. Some parents have allowed their children, particularly adolescent girls, to offer sexual favours to male adults for payment or other reward in order to improve the economic situation of the family. These parents or guardians have sometimes arranged these liaisons themselves. On the other hand, some adolescents seek out or become involved in these relationships independently of their parents' consent. The economic deprivation in which many families in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines find themselves has reinforced the tendency to look the other way.

230. The Women's Affairs Department carries out educational programmes in schools and communities related to the issue of child abuse. Marion House and the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Human Rights Association are two non-governmental agencies that have conducted educational programmes on child abuse using various media. The Convention on the Rights of the Child Committee has also done work in this area.In addition, churches, pre-schools, schools and other institutions sometimes organize talks which provide information to students and parents on child abuse. A Juvenile Youth Commission was established in 1995 and some 20 counsellors were trained. This commission has since become dormant, although the need for such a programme still remains important.

231. Despite all these efforts, much more remains to be done in order to make an inroad into the problem of child abuse and to reverse existing trends.

232. The Social Welfare Division, the Ministry of Health, through its outreach at clinics and hospitals, and the Police Department are regularly confronted with incidents of child abuse. In addition, other cases are discovered by school principals in schools and by other non-governmental service agencies which have direct contact with children. A coordinated approach to child abuse education and an administrative response which goes beyond the activities of the Child Abuse Prevention Month needs to be developed by all parties concerned. There should be a comprehensive review of the responses to child abuse which should lead to a 5- to 10-year action plan for reducing the incidence of child abuse and neglect. This review should take on board an examination of the effectiveness of all the other aspects of childcare, including fostering, adoption and institutional care. This is recommended as a task for the Convention on the Rights of the Child Committee, having as it does representatives from all these interested agencies and ministries.

Electronic Attachment

The Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Human Rights Association. January 2002. NGO Initial Report on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Submitted to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. [Accessed 7 May 2003]

Part III

General Principles

C. Standard of Facilities for the Care and Protection of Children

The State Party's Report mentions at page 18 that "the only legal provision for the Standard of Facilities for the Care and Protection of Children are contained in the Juvenile (Approved School) Rules made under the Juvenile Act (Section 15: Cap 168).

In fact no approved schools have been in existence in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines for over thirty years.

One of the outstanding weaknesses for the care and protection of children in this state is that there is a lack of provision for homes for children by the state, or for children with such need. Correspondingly, there are obviously no regulations existing, which can be applied to such homes to care for children (10).

Part IV

Civil Rights and Freedom

E.A Child's Right to Protection From All Forms of Violence

Children are abused in all different ways and forms in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, physically, psychologically, verbally, sexually, and by way of neglect and abandonment.

There are legislative and administrative measures to protect children from violence, injury and other harm. The courts administer laws such as indictments for rape, assaults, incest, carnal knowledge, wounding and other crimes perpetrated against children.

The crimes perpetrated on children are largely within the family, by mother and father, brother and sister. The Criminal Code [of] 1988 provides avenues for criminal prosecution against persons who criminally cause harm in any form to children. The Domestic Violence (Summary Proceedings) Act [of] 1995 provides protection orders for children against abuse.

The problem of effecting social re-integration of children and their families after serious trauma perpetrated on children is seriously lacking. Counseling, though in existence, is not adequate. Of great concern is that crimes and abuses, and physical and mental harm perpetuated on children are often deliberately hidden within the family. This is done to sometimes hide the shame which exposure would bring.

The situation regarding abuse and all forms of ill treatment on children is on the increase.

A register of child abuse has been recently started recording abuse on children and is reproduced in the state party's official initial report. That is not the whole truth. It however is an effort to record some of the sad and unacceptable harm done to the children. Finally, not enough is done by the state party to mount programmes and procedures aimed at prevention of abuse of all forms on children. Continuing education of parents and children and the community at large is necessary (15-16).

Part V

Family Environment and Alternative Care

B.Separation From Parents (Article 9)

It is a natural expectation that children should remain with and be brought up by their parents. Article 9 says clearly that children should not be separated from their parents unless it is in their best interest for this separation to happen and if it becomes necessary to do so then the procedures and reasons for making such a separation must be fair.

Furthermore, there should be regular review of the situation of a child's separated from its parents.

In reality it is estimated that 45% of Vincentian families are headed by women. This is the phenomenon of the one parent family. The men are absent. They may have migrated or may be truant and irresponsible. In quite a number of cases mothers also migrate leaving children to grand parents or older children.

Most children in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines do not have regular contact with both parents. This is because the one parent family is so prevalent. There is nothing in the law to encourage this principle. However, in divorce and custody hearings, courts will in most cases endeavour to ensure access to parents who have not been given custody of children.

Finally, the government has no specific care and protection facility where children could be properly cared for, who are abandoned or are in such need, for one reason or another.

IT IS RECOMMENDED that such a facility be provided (19).