Trinidad and Tobago's general elections will take place on August 10, and as much as electioneering in the time of COVID-19 has had some voters calling for campaign ingenuity, the substance of the messages has, for the most part, been more of the same.

The nonprofit Womantra, which educates and advocates for policy reform around the issues of women's rights and gender justice, has put out a statement about patriarchy — yet another source of dissatisfaction in the elections [...]

GENDER AND sexuality often become weaponised in electoral campaigns, providing a chance to observe contesting values in democratic life.

[...] Weighing in, Womantra and allied feminist organisations called on “all political parties to give an undertaking that persons who are accused of domestic violence and sexual offences, including sexual harassment, will not be nominated as candidates pending their exoneration by the relevant authorities.” If nothing else, understand young women’s fear that these could be the men who hold power over them and to whom they must pay respect, like those abusive uncles who somehow retain their place and authority in the family.

The NGO Womantra on Saturday questioned why there are candidates contesting the August 10 general election who are alleged to have committed offences against women.

In a post on its Facebook page, the group said, "We have witnessed the nomination of a candidate currently before the courts on charges of rape and sexual assault."

Womantra alleged an interim protection order had been granted against another candidate. It also said there were serious online allegations involving sexual offences being levelled against another candidate.

Advocacy group Womantra is criticising a new song released by soca artiste Erphaan Alves, which it says promotes misogyny and makes light of sex trafficking of Venezuelan migrants.

In a statement yesterday, Womantra condemned the song and the visuals in the official lyric video released earlier this week.

Support for the protestors and their communities has been robust with organisations speaking out and activists insisting that the voices of those most affected must be heard and their stories shared. The intersectional feminist organisation WOMANTRA joined forces with the newly formed Black Lives Matter Chapter in Trinidad and Tobago. Together they launched a social media campaign offering messages of solidarity for the protestors and #AllBlackLivesMatter graphics that include all the neighbourhoods/communities that are often singled out by the Police and Government as “hotspots” where “criminal elements” are harboured or reside, and therefore police violence becomes justified.

THE NGO Womantra says it stands in solidarity with protesters in Morvant, Laventille, Beetham Gardens, Sea Lots, and East Port of Spain.

Protests over threepolice killings on Saturday continued in Port of Spain and around the country on Tuesday.

The Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs said the disturbances began from 8 am at East Port of Spain.

And some (especially those of us in social justice and human rights activism) argued that in the Caribbean we have much work to do to affirm all Black Lives – poor, working class, women, LGBTI+, with disabilities, and otherwise on the margins. The intersectional feminist organisation WOMANTRA issued a statement in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and participated in a protest in front of the U.S. Embassy with demands of local policy accountability. They held up signs with the names of people killed by police since 2013. The human rights organisation, Jamaicans for Justice, has long been calling for police accountability and investigations into police violence and killings particularly in poor and working class Black communities.

Stephanie Leitch, director of the feminist organisation Womantra, shared similar sentiments. She said the team appears to have been selected solely to secure economic recovery, but is neither gender neutral, nor “confined to the remit of economics.

“Gender equality is not simply a women’s issue but a business issue, and is essential for economies and communities to thrive. While similar numbers of men and women may be affected by losing paid employment, women’s unpaid work has increased exponentially as a result of school closures and the increased needs of other members of the household requiring care, including the elderly.”

Johannah Rae Reyes, of WOMANTRA, said T&T has made advancements toward gender equality because there was no longer a choice to remain the same. She said the feminist fore-mothers and other allied movements are to be praised for their efforts so far.

But she said there is still concern about the way society and the government prioritise the needs of women.

“We are also concerned with the way decisions are made about our lives and the general lack of meaningful dialogue or formal mechanisms between women’s rights activists and the state; a relationship that has not changed very much over the past 50 years,” Reyes said.

Today, Womantra now has an online petition demanding that Government respond to gender-based violence. The petition, which can be found on change.org, had a target of 1,500 signatures – as of Saturday it had 1,215.

The six demands they have are: increased effectiveness, accountability and transparency of the State; sufficient financial and organisational support and resources; amending the Domestic Violence Act; establish a social fund to support NGOs; create a multi-stakeholder co-ordination mechanism to work together to end gender based violence and investing in social reformation programs to teach non-violent communication.