#BTColumn – UBUNTU: I am because We are

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by this author are their own and do not represent the official position of the Barbados TODAY Inc.

by Pamela Jones-Goodridge and Liz-Anne Taylor

March 16th 2021 was a day celebrated internationally as World Social Work Day, the slogan to mark the day… “UBUNTU, I am because We are”…we are…change agents, social activists, social justice warriors, the voice of the voiceless….but are we really?….As social workers with 35-plus years between the two of us, the events unfolding at the beginning of this week has led us to raise that question …The social work profession is guided by a core set of ethics that as social workers we are called upon to maintain and uphold and to this end we strongly condemn any abusive practices or injustices documented and or highlighted in this country.

Currently the situation at GIS speaks to an egregious act of injustice and abuse against a child, someone’s child. Our professional code of ethics calls upon social workers:

1. To promote the well- being of clients

2. To respect and promote the client’s right to self- determinate

3. To recognise that clients have the right to refuse or withdraw consent and not be penalised or punished for doing so 4. To not take unfair advantage of or exploit others for their personal gain or benefit

5. To under no circumstances infringe on a client’s physical space to the point of causing discomfort; this covers the issues of physical abuse and sexual misconduct, sexual harassment and advances, inappropriate sexual banter, communication, striking a client or any unwarranted conduct with or towards their client, that can be classified as an abuse of their power.

Based on the unfolding event over the past few days there is no denying that there has been a breach of these ethics, while we do understand that these ethics are only relevant to the social workers within this organisation, it calls into question if these ethics were indeed being followed and adhered to by said individuals?

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child clearly states in Article 19:

States Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has care of the child.

It further goes on to state that such protective measures should, as appropriate, include effective procedures for the establishment of social programmes to provide necessary support for the child and for those who have the care of the child, as well as for other forms of prevention and for identification, reporting, referral, investigation, treatment and follow-up of instances of child maltreatment described heretofore, and as appropriate for judicial involvement.

There are a few key phrases in the wording of these two paragraphs that are of special significance to the situation at the Government Industrial School:

1. The first paragraph makes reference to “any other person who has care of the child.” In this child’s case that would be GIS, therefore one can reasonably conclude that the dictates of the Convention which is to protect the child from all forms of violence, injury, abuse, neglect, sexual abuse etc, applies to said Institution, which leaves us to ponder – Whose responsibility is it to protect our children if the State’s agencies charged with this task are also the ones perpetrating the violence and abuse, be it physical or sexual, against them?

2. The second paragraph details the avenues in which the protective measures are implemented, among the extensive list is identification of abuse, reporting, investigation and if needed judicial involvement…Why then is it that we have a Minister [of Home Affairs Wilfred Abrahams] who appears to be visibly upset and angered by the fact that incidences of abuse were investigated, identified by means of pictorial evidence, and was subsequently reported?

At this point shouldn’t we in compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child be making the necessary referrals of any and all abusers regardless of position or rank to the police and ultimately the judiciary?

As two of the vanguards of this profession we are calling for this matter with this child to be addressed and a thorough probe by private sector social workers or an international body of  independent investigators into this particular child’s circumstances and all of the other wards past and present over the past ten years; as well as the Institution, so that moving forward we can be assured that best practices are maintained, and the institutionalisation and criminalising of children for infractions such as wandering will be a thing of the past

We recognise that many posts within our system are filled by individuals that lack the requisite training, skills and qualifications needed to do the job effectively, that said, we are also mindful of the fact that they are some among us that even with the required qualification and training are still not suited to the positions which they hold.

Social work is a calling, it is not just a job, it is what we are, it is who we are, it is what we breathe. There are many among us that lack this understanding.

We are strongly and boldly advocating for a complete revamp and overhaul of social service organisations, that will see the emergence of avant-garde social workers dedicated and ready to fight against injustices and to represent the vulnerable, disadvantaged and disenfranchised.

We stand committed to ushering in the change that we need to see.‘Ubuntu, I am because We are’….. Social Justice Warriors and Change Agents.

Pamela Jones-Goodridge is the holder of a dual MSW from Fordham University NY, her clinical concentration is in Crisis Intervention and the Administrative Component focuses on Programme Development and Implementation.

Liz-Anne Taylor is a practising Attorney at Law who also holds a Bachelors in Social Work from the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill.