Caiso mourns Keithisha Cudjoe

The Coalition Advocating for Inclusion of Sexual Orientation (Caiso) is asking how many more women must die before gender-based violence (GBV) is declared a national emergency.

This came as the organisation expressed condolences to the family of Keithisha Cudjoe whose decomposing body was found dumped in The Heights of Aripo on January 28.

In a media release on Tuesday, Caiso’s director Cathy Shepherd said, "We are angry and heartbroken at this loss and echo her family’s call for swift and thorough investigations.

"It seems that the discovery of the bodies of two murdered women in Aripo within the past year, elicited mere promises from elected officials, to address community concerns for street lights, security cameras and a recreation ground."

However, streetlights were in fact installed in July last year after the body of court clerk Andrea Bharatt was found down a precipice there six months before.

The 32 LED streetlights and 14 electricity poles were installed in two phases and cost $296,786.11 the Ministry of Public Utilities said in a statement.

In February 2020, Caiso was among 18 civil society organisations which wrote and delivered six demands to the government to eliminate violence against women and girls in the country.

The organisation updated the list after the murders of Bharatt and Ashanti Riley.

These included: Make immediate changes to the public transportation system; increase effectiveness, accountability and transparency of the State; ensure sufficient financial and organisational support and resources; establish a social fund as a national budgetary priority to support NGO-led shelters and civil society members providing services to persons affected by GBV; and invest in social reformation programmes to facilitate cultural change.

Caiso is urging people who are fed up of gender-based violence to join in a letter writing campaign to their respective MPs.