Director of Public Prosecutions Meeting Tomorrow; I Love the Caribbean Accent

Today, what a pleasure to receive a call from the Director of Public Prosecution's (DPP) office and hear......(and you have to imagine this in that distinctive Caribbean, Jamaican-like accent).... "Ms. Trotter, Ms. Branker-Taitt would like to inform you that she can indeed visit with you and Attorney Moore on tomorrow at 11:15a.m."

I had to ask her to repeat it for me, as the Belizean accent is a bit difficult for me to understand still. However, I have really grown to absolutely love and adore their unique style of the English language. Their accents are so beautifully pronounced.

So, tomorrow is a really big day for my project. At 7:30a.m., Atty Moore & I will fly (a 20 minute flight) from Dangriga to Belize City to meet first with Ms. Icilda Humes, National Director of the Women's Department. Ms. Humes is familiar with the goal of our project, however, we will discuss the possibility of the Women's Department and the National Gender Base Violence Committee taking the lead role in pushing this national human and women's rights project forward. Shortly after that, we will visit with DPP Branker-Taitt to inform her of the project's goal of developing a special unit within her department that focuses on sexual assault claims.


This all sounds simple enough, but when you consider some of the dynamics involved, you will understand why having these 2 meetings within this short period of time that I have been here is so very amazing and important. First, this idea has been talked about for several years in the legal community as Belizean attorneys have become concerned about the disproportionate increase in sexual assault crimes over the past 10 years. Second, just like in the states, there are usually a handful of people to do the lion's share of the work in most organizations/ communities. Many of those who have hoped to get this idea moving towards reality are simply swamped with tons of other immediate social work to be done and have not had the time to put into researching data and preparing proposals. Third, the DPP was recently named about 2 weeks ago. Her making time for this project idea, which would require the most initiative on her department's part, at this time is commendable, considering the full roster of duties and inquiries that she is no doubt bombarded by right now.

Finally, one of the lessons I have learned with this project is..... and I really can not emphasize this one aspect strongly enough.........the problem with not addressing social ills swiftly and effectively is that all arms of society can become desensitized to the ruinous dangers of not acting appropriately with all diligence. Not that it is intentional, but at all levels of society, the wheels of justice can almost stop for victims of sexual assault crimes if it is not taken seriously.

From family members who may know about the crime but stay silent; to police officers who look upon it as just domestic squabble and do not investigate thoroughly; to prosecutor's with heavy case loads who see these cases as easily disposable....what is left is a society where girls and women (as the majority of sex crimes are committed on females) feel diminished and subservient to the whims of the male society (be it good or, in these cases, evil). It devalues the dignity of the life that women and girls should be able to live in this world. That desensitization tells young girls that their bodies are not their own and that they, as a child, have no rights to protection from sexual exploitation and abuse.

I can only hope that the little offerings that my project is able to give while here will be a start to something that will bring justice for girls and women in Belize and create a more conscientiously sensitive grassroots society willing to adhere to the tenets of human dignity and rights.