abuse – Catholic Commission for Social Justice

By Leela Ramdeen, Chair, CCSJ & Director, CREDI

“We are asking people, stop seeing bad things happen and remaining quiet” —ASP Claire Guy-Alleyne, Head of the Gender-Based Violence Unit, T&T Police Service

Some of the most harrowing scenes I saw on TV at the close of 2020 were the conditions in a Tunapuna home in which a 92-year-old woman lived. As the Trinidad & Tobago Guardian reported: “The house…resembled a dump, with huge piles of garbage dominating the entire property, including the bedrooms, kitchen and bathroom areas.”
Thanks to Latoya Greaves, the elderly woman was finally treated at a hospital for open wounds on her legs and taken to a safe house.

by Leela Ramdeen, Chair, CCSJ and Director, CREDI

Tomorrow the world will observe elder abuse awareness day. One of the foundational social justice principles in our Church is the need for us to recognise and promote the dignity of each human person at all stages and in all circumstances – from conception to natural death.

Archbishop Harris has rightly raised a red flag warning us/our nation about the danger of going down the path of destruction. Let us use our free will wisely and strengthen our own spirituality. Let us also pass on Christian values within our families and in our communities so that we will pull back from the brink of destruction. Elder abuse is part of the destructive ‘mix’ in TT/the world.