Amnesty International wants Haitian girls protected

By Melissa Bryant
Reporter~SKNVibes.com

~~Adz:Right~~PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - HUMAN rights group Amnesty International (AI) has accused the Haitian government of failing to protect the country's girls against rape and sexual violence.

According to BBC Caribbean, Amnesty International released a report yesterday (Nov. 27) entitled ‘Don't turn your back on girls: Sexual violence against girls in Haiti’.

The report reveals that Haiti is one of the few countries in the Americas which does not have specific laws against domestic violence.

Although the international organisation recognised the challenges Haiti faces with the ongoing public security crisis, a succession of humanitarian disasters and decades of entrenched poverty, AI has stated that these important concerns “cannot be allowed to drown out the needs of Haitian girls and the obligation to safeguard their human rights”.

“Sexual violence against girls, particularly rape, is pervasive in Haiti and it can no longer be ignored.

“Haiti is trying to strengthen development, good governance and the rule of law; none of which can be fully achieved without the protection of girls' and women's rights,” said Amnesty Caribbean researcher Gerardo Ducos.

Figures compiled by the Haitian Women's Solidarity Movement indicate that there have been 105 rapes, with 58 of the victims under age 18, in Haiti between January and June of this year (2008).

But AI noted the real scale of the problem is not fully known because of a lack of central figures and a weak and largely ineffectual justice system that fails to condemn perpetrators.

Many girls are encouraged or threatened to keep silent and not identify their assailants.

AI urged Haiti’s leaders to address the lack of confidence in the police and justice system “so girls can rely on them when they’re seeking redress”.