In 2022, Jamaica recorded a homicide rate of 52.9 per 100,000 inhabitants, Trinidad and Tobago – 39.4 per 100,000, while The Bahamas, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines all recorded homicide rates above over five times the global average. This epidemic of crime and violence in the region range from organised crime and gangs involved in illegal drugs and arms trade and human trafficking, to petty theft, burglary and home invasions, revenge murders and domestic violence and femicide. Such high levels of sustained violence place strains on healthcare, educational and social support systems. In 2021, at least 4,473 women were victims of femicide (also known as feminicide) in 29 countries and territories of the region, according to the latest official data that countries reported to the Gender Equality Observatory for Latin America and the Caribbean (GEO) of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). This represents at least 12 women per day who die violent, gender-based deaths in the region, the institution warns.
To further address this topic, CIWiL hosted a regional webinar entitled, Feminist Perspectives on Crime Prevention & Peacekeeping on May 16, 2023. The webinar featured the following presenters:
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Dr. Armstrong Alexis – Deputy Secretary General, CARICOM, CARICOM Secretariat
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Folade Mutota – Coordinator, Caribbean Coalition for Development and The Reduction of Armed Violence; and Executive Director, Women’s Institute for Alternative Development (WINAD)
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Dr. Deborah McFee – Outreach and Research Officer, Institute for Gender and Development Studies, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus; and Chair of the Board of Directors, WINAD
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Marlon Bascombe – Representative, Caribbean Male Action Network (CariMAN)
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Dr. Leah Cleghorn – Lecturer in Criminology, Nottingham Trent University (Moderator)
To view the full webinar, click here.