By Sue-Ann Wayow
THE body of 21-year-old Keithisha Cudjoe found in the Heights of Aripo has opened up fresh wounds for the family members of Andrea Bharatt whose body was found in almost the exact same spot, one year ago.
The Candlelight Movement issued a press release on Wednesday again voicing their concerns on the safety of women and questioned why more has not been done for their protection.
Public relations officer for the movement Kandace Bharath-Nahous stated, “One year later and the bodies of our women continue to be dumped in a forest. One year later and despite many conversation, vigils, marches, protests and promises by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, our women have not been given a chance to protect themselves from the evil roaming the land and today are unable to obtain permits for the use of pepper spray.”
She stated that the Firearms Department of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) remained closed since the departure of former Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith last year and no new licenses have been issued and the country still remains without a substantive police commissioner.
Bharath-Nahous also raised the issue of ‘PH’ taxi drivers being responsible for the murder of Ashanti Riley and the sexual assault of countless women. She said they continue to operate totally unregulated while families must wear masks in their own vehicles because the police will not know the difference between a private taxi and a family car.
She said since December 7, 2021, the Candlelight Movement served a national petition carrying over 128,000 physical signatures, calling on Parliament to better protect women and citizens but “since then, the calls of concerned citizens continue to fall on deaf ears.”
“As heartbreaking and traumatic as this situation is for all law-abiding citizens and women in our country, it is clear that violence meted out against our women will not be important enough to engage the attention of those democratically elected to protect our citizens.
“We again call upon the Parliament to give the safety and protection of our women the priority it deserves so that innocent lives will not continue to be snuffed out,” Bharath-Nahous said.
From Friday, the Movement will be lighting candles for nine nights at all their offices to remember Andrea’s tragic passing as well as for the other women who lost their lives due to violence.
