The video that has been circulating since this morning on Twitter detailing the alleged abuse of the two girls and the timeline in which it happened. (Photo by Regina Thomas)
By Regina Thomas on Wednesday, 27 April, 2022 at 07:44 PM
Two minors, who made claims of abuse at the Government Industrial School (GIS) were denied the motion to be rehoused to another facility.
On April 16, 2022, two girls were said to have fled GIS after allegations of abuse by their caretakers at the institution.
Their photos and addresses were circulated in an attempt to capture them. The girls turned themselves in and were returned to the GIS on Tuesday night.
The girls appeared in court today alongside their attorney, Anya Lorde, who filed the motion to have them rehoused.
The judge presiding over the case did not grant the motion, stating she wanted the lawyer to provide more cases, so she had jurisdiction to overturn the Lower House’s ruling that the girls go to GIS.
Marsha Hinds, who has been an advocate for the two young girls and was the past president of the National Organization of Women of Barbados, when asked what is the next step, said the system is broken but we [herself, Anya Lorde, and the girls’ parents] will “try our best to use it and hope we can get an outcome that is in the best interest of these girls”.
She continued to say the Government Industrial School is a problem and has cases of abuse documented that date back to 1967.
She wishes to bring attention and raise awareness about the treatment of children at GIS because "we [Barbadians] shouldn’t “discard people”, “put people in solitary confinement” or treat them “inhumanely”.
“What is happening to the children at the Government Industrial School is wrong and it won’t stop until the people of Barbados get so outraged that the government has no choice but to pay attention”, she concluded.