elder 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 & Director, CREDI

“Where there is no honour to the elderly, there is no future for the young…We must reawaken our collective sense of gratitude, appreciation and hospitality, helping the elderly know they are a living part of their communities and sources of wisdom for the younger generations” (Pope Francis).

Tomorrow, June 15, is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.
As the UN states: “Virtually all countries are expected to see substantial growth in the number of older persons between 2015 and 2030, and that growth will be faster in developing regions. Because the numbers of older persons are growing, the amount of elder abuse can be expected to grow with it. While the taboo topic of elder abuse has started to gain visibility across the world, it remains one of the least investigated types of violence in national surveys, and one of the least addressed in national action plans. Elder abuse is a global social issue which affects the health and human rights of millions of older persons around the world, and an issue which deserves the attention of the international community.”