CRITICAL dialogue on a new initiative which will benefit women and girls in the contexts of the prevention of Gender-based violence, migration, and human trafficking was held last week between Representatives of the Organization of American states (OAS) and officials of the Departments of Home and Gender Affairs.
OAS Resident Representative in Saint Lucia Ms. Lilly Ching says the project entitled “Strengthening frameworks on the prevention of sexual violence against migrant women and girls in countries of the Americas” represents Phase One which covers Saint Lucia and Panama.
She remarked that “historically women have faced greater challenges and continue to struggle for equal rights. The OAS is committed to working towards equal political, economic, and social rights and opportunities for all peoples of the hemisphere regardless of gender and has taken a leading role in supporting women movements throughout the Americas. This project is particularly relevant as it deals with migrant women and girls who could often face risk factors that render them in an extraordinary situation of vulnerability.”
Ms. Ching further commented that “the concept of public security has to be understood from a more complex perspective than in decades past. Security threats go beyond the traditional security sphere to include problems that have a direct impact on people’s lives such as gang violence, cybercrime, trafficking of illegal drugs, firearms or human beings. The OAS works on many fronts to ensure that people of the Western Hemisphere are protected from the numerous threats of the modern world.”
The Government of Saint Lucia and the Organization of American States (OAS) have expressed gratitude for funding from the United Kingdom for the implementation of this project.