Page 38 - KPA 6 Feb"15

University of Aruba Social Work Students train police in
domestic violence

Thursday, 05 February 2015 15:50
Comparti

The prevalence of domestic violence in Aruba is a growing concern to the police in Aruba. Fundacion Pa
HendeMuher den Dificultad recorded 109 new cases of domestic violence in 2013, while as of October
2014 there have been 112 new cases.

In Aruba, Latin American women particularly those from Columbia appear to be at highest risk
according to SW&D students research from service organizations in Aruba. In order to renew the
competencies of the Aruban Police, a domestic violence workshop was held with 25 Police Officers on
Friday 30th January 2014. This workshop was facilitated by final year SW&D students Tatiana Pena and
Keyla Rojas along with the Head of the Department, Clementia Eugene.

The objectives of the workshop were as follows:
1. To assist police officers to better understand the nature of domestic violence, current trends, its causes,
warning signs and best practices for police response;
2. To inform police officers of the services available in Aruba to support victims and perpetrators of
domestic violence; and
3. To provide competencies to handle cases of domestic violence.

In order to achieve these objectives, the room was decorated with the T-Shirts from the Family Violence
Clothes Line Project held in observance of International Day of Violence Against Women and Children
held in November 2014 at the University of Aruba and was well attended by many community
organizations that work in the field of domestic violence.The team of students and lecturer facilitated
interactive sessions on definitions, types, situational analysis of domestic violence in Aruba, the cycle of
domestic violence, theories of domestic violence, why women stay, agencies and services and programs
available. The workshop terminated discussing best practices for police interventions and the guiding
principles for interviewing victim, abuser and children.

Some of the highlights of the workshop were the group work in which police officers developed their own
definitions of domestic violence; analyzed video case studies and engaged in role play exercises
interviewing victims, children and abuser. The workshop terminated by engaging participants in
reflecting on some key questions. These include: What do you do if you as a police officer is an
abuser?orwhere there is domestic violence in your own family?How do you cope with the post-traumatic
impact of domestic violence in your personal life? Officers were therefore encouraged to engage in a
process of debriefing after every case, and to make maximum use of the internal support services
available in the police force.The Social Work and Development Department and students are always
willing to assist organizations in creating a better community.