Decisions of police in case of 14-year-old girl are a significant point of concern

In the period of observing the 16 days of activism, many civil society organizations and government agencies engaged in public education activities to raise awareness of gender-based violence and child abuse. During this period of heightened awareness, a number of cases of child abuse and abuse of women were reported but the case being highlighted here in this piece, is that of the teenage girl who was arrested and taken into police custody during the period of 16 Days of Activism. The arrest resulted from the search of her home which uncovered various quantities of an illegal substance. Although there are various issues around the incident, it is of pertinent importance the efforts of the Acting Chief Justice in resolving the matter in a manner that reflected the understanding of how delicate the matter is.

This delicacy, however, was not reflected by the leading newspaper that reported on the situation. Instead, the series of events that were reported, reflected the overall lack of proper care, by several key service providers, for safeguarding children. Of course, it would be easy to allocate blame and give recommendations but the fact of the matter is, that Guyana is filled with such matters and service providers are faced with difficult decisions on a daily basis. Given this fact, it is possible that some cases will be mismanaged, thus the room for improvement is yet great among service providers with the greater responsibility resting with the public to demand a good standard of service and to raise awareness where and when service providers do not respect the rights of those whom they are providing the services for. The public also has the responsibility and right to demand a greater level of expectation in connecting with the protection of all children. 

 The first matter of concern is the inadequate level of supervision afforded that fourteen-year-old girl by her caregiver/s. Illegal substances were kept in the home and, if that couldn’t be an indicator of poor parenting, these substances were kept in the child’s personal space in the home. There are many negative effects that can result from such actions. The grooming of the child into a life of crime, for example, is a major area of concern.  The situation also reflected negatively on the caregivers since the availability of the illegal substances could also encourage the fourteen-year-old girl (or any child) to be involved in drug use/abuse. While it is obvious that illegal substances should never be in one’s possession, it should also be noted that it is not at advisable to have children in the same surroundings as such, given the severity of its negative effects on children.

 The report reflected that the arrival of the police was greeted by the presence of one person who claimed to be the older sister of the girl, (aged twenty-seven years). The reports also indicated that the girl was questioned about whom else was in the residence with her, a question to which she answered that her mother who was in her forties was out of the home at the time. Afterward, the teenager was escorted away from the premises by the police who sought to hold her in custody given the illegal substances that was found in the home.

Supervision issues aside, the decisions of the police are a significant point of concern.  This is a 14-year-old girl and there are new juvenile justice laws to guide the police role in any matters with children. Why arrest the teenage girl? Why not wait for the parent to return? Why not take the person who claimed to be the older sister into custody instead? Why not take the older person who claimed to be the sister into custody along with the teenager? The answers to these questions should not be difficult, there needs to be greater levels of transparency to build trust in police hence, everyone should have clarity on the process of this case. Services providers (particularly the Guyana Police Force) have greater responsibilities to safeguard everyone and the general public should expect more humane services from all our Police Officers.  There is, without a doubt, room for improvement here.

 For all we know, the mother was deeply concerned when she arrived home again and noticed her child missing, leading to her filing a missing person’s report or even initiating public outcry via social media. The child, on the other hand, may have been scared and possibly traumatized being in police custody for days.

Improvement in services including training, coaching and exposure to new legislation and policies is what is needed to curb the frequency of such events as this.  Educating Police Officers on how to deal with situations involving abused (emotionally, psychologically etc.) young girls or boys or even minors that are involved in illegal activities can also help the process along. Improvement also includes developing skills to approach recipients of the services in a more considerate and supportive manner. The average teenage girl is not trained to be involved in the trade/use of any type of drug. There must be some reason why this girl was exposed and there must be someone who is responsible for exposing her. More than likely, she needs adult support to be removed from the situation and perhaps even more support to not be entangled with this type of situation again. When children and vulnerable families come into contact with service providers it is generally because a protective environment does not exist and thus, service providers have a greater responsibility to give hope and excellent service also. The education of parents and guardians on how to properly supervise and provide child-friendly care for minors will help the process along.

ChildLinK, the Childcare and Protection Agency and several NGOs provide parenting skills education sessions that have helped many parents to improve their communication and care for their children.

ChildLinK is working to create a Guyanese society where every child grows up in a loving, safe and secure family and community. The Recovery Safeguarding Reintegration initiative is supported by the Delegation of the European Union to Guyana and partners with the CPA and several agencies to reintegrate children to safe families and educate the wider society on the prevention of child abuse. Please write us with your comments and questions. Let us know how you would like to get involved in protecting children in your community by emailing us at admin@childlinkgy.org. Report child abuse by calling the CPA on 227-0979, the closest Police station or ChildLinK on 233-3500 or email: admin@childlinkgy.org. Altogether the decision to be better as a nation is our greatest strength. We can do better, together.