Members of the public will get a chance to denounce domestic violence during a “purple night” march and rally which comes off on Friday, May 22, 2009.

Participants are being encouraged to gather at the General Post Office, Cheapside, from 5:00 p.m. and 30 minutes later, will walk up Broad Street and converge in Independence Square, where speeches and entertainment will follow.

Minister of Youth, Family and Sports, Dr. Esther Byer Suckoo, will deliver the feature address, while Director of the Bureau of Gender Affairs, John Hollingsworth, and Chairperson of the SAVE (Service Alliance for Violent Encounters) Foundation, Liesel Daisley, will give remarks.

Entertainers will include John King, Toni Norville, Shane Forrester, and students of the University of the West Indies, who will perform dance, poetry and drama. There will also be a candle light vigil in remembrance of victims and survivors of domestic violence. The Cricket Legends of Barbados will participate in this activity.  The organisers are encouraging supporters to wear purple clothing and bear a purple candle. 

The inaugural march and rally will be sponsored by the SAVE Foundation, in collaboration with the Bureau of Gender Affairs. It is designed to assist men and women to find more peaceful ways of resolving conflicts.

Signatures will be collected for petitioning government to intensify efforts to eradicate domestic violence from these shores. “We want government to amend the Domestic Violence Act to include a mandatory arrest clause,” said Ms. Daisley.

saustin@barbados.gov.bb

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