Background
On the November 24 2007, Help and Shelter in commemoration of International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women had a booth next to Guyana Stores in Georgetown to provide information on the services that Help and Shelter offers, resources such as flyers, brochures and provide answer questions to the public on domestic violence, trafficking of persons and child abuse.
Help and Shelter staff and volunteers utilized this opportunity to administer 182 questionnaires to capture information on the following:
1. Knowledge of Help and Shelter services offer and location

On International Women’s Day 2008, Help & Shelter salutes and extends warm greetings to all those women from all ethnic groups throughout Guyana who continue to fulfill their numerous roles as mothers, grandmothers, wives, sisters, daughters, caregivers and breadwinners . We especially extend our support and solidarity to those who lost their loved ones in the massacres of Lusignan and Bartica.

Help & Shelter is inexpressibly saddened and appalled at and condemns unequivocally the massacre in Bartica of more innocent people: Edwin Gilkes, Dexter Adrian, Irving Ferreira, Zaheer Zakir, Shane Fredericks, Ron Osborne, Deonarine Singh, Ronald Gomes, Ashraf Khan, Abdool Yasin, Errol Thomas and Baldeo Singh.

We extend our deepest sympathy to the families, relatives, friends and colleagues of those who were cruelly gunned down and call - as we did following the Lusignan massacre less than a month ago - for those responsible to be brought to justice.

Help & Shelter and Red Thread joined to make submissions on the Draft Education Bill.

One key issue was the removal of corporal punishment from the Bill.

The second submission deals with other matters pertaining to the administration of education.

The theme for the 2007 International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women is "Demanding Implementation, Challenging Obstacles: End Violence Against Women".

Help & Shelter recognises the following obstacles to alleviating violence against women:

1) The failure of the Government to implement of the Policy Recommendations submitted by the Domestic Violence Task Force

2) Delay in the introduction of a Family Court

3) The degradation of women in advertising and popular culture

Help & Shelter has been in existence since 1995 and the production of this manual consolidates the experience and knowledge gained in trying to manage an NGO with challenges of human and financial resources.

This manual can be downloaded here. It is available as part of our commitment to accountability to the public.

Help & Shelter and the Ministry of Education with the support of the British High Comission have embarked on a project to conduct some workshops with Fourth Form students in secondary schools across Guyana.

The objective of the project is to equip the students with knowledge and skills which could alleviate the risk of domestic violence, suicide, alcohol abuse and child abuse in their lives.

This will done through several interactive sessions. The attached documents are resources which facilitators will use as part of the workshops.

5 December, 2006 and reissued 2 June, 2007

Open Letter to all Honourable Members of the Ninth Parliament, National Assembly of Guyana on the removal of corporal punishment from the Education Act .

Dear Member

Help and Shelter hereby makes recommendations with respect to:
1.Corporal punishment
2.Truancy and absenteeism
3.Access to education

The full document can be downloaded.