WILLEMSTAD - The Ministry of Justice in Curaçao has failed. That is according to Aliansa, the umbrella organization that stands up for victims of domestic violence in a press release. Aliansa recently received information about a situation in which a mother had filed five complaints against the abusive father of her children. Several organizations became involved in the case, including the Public Prosecution Service (OM). According to Aliansa, the OM has set the wrong priorities in this case. "Nothing was done with the five complaints of abuse, but the victim had to cooperate in the right of the father to visit the children," said Aliansa. The victim was even detained four times because she did not want to cooperate with the visiting arrangement with the father.
Aliansa says she is aware of several cases where the priority is not with the help of the victim, but rather with the rights of the perpetrator. That is a major problem for tackling domestic violence, Aliansa said. The organization says it is concerned about children growing up with violence and wonders whether this is taken into account when tackling problems.
Since 2018, the government has signed a National Plan to combat violence against children and young people. According to Aliansa, this plan is not used by the Public Prosecution Service and other organizations involved.