DOMESTIC VIOLENCE UNIT DOES NOT DESTROY RELATIONSHIPS - DSP TETTEH

(Daily Graphic, Jan 12, 2012, page 18)

DSP Tetteh

MANY victims of domestic violence in Tamale and other parts of the Northern Region feel reluctant to seek redress at the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) due to the fear of causing a break up of their relationships.

This fear is fuelled by the perception among many people that when perpetrators of domestic abuse are penalized for their acts, it tends to sour the existing bond between the offenders and their victims, as well as other close family and friends.

It is not surprising, therefore, to see a woman or man remaining in an abusive relationship just to protect his or her marriage or family ties.

However, the Northern Regional Co-ordinator of DOVVSU, DSP Stephen Anane Boye Tetteh, dispels the notion that DOVVSU destroys relationships.

In an interview with the Daily Graphic in his office in Tamale, DSP Tetteh noted that what many people did not know was that DOVVSU’s mandate had both criminal and social support dimensions.

He pointed out that whiles the criminal aspect involves the prosecution of perpetrators of domestic abuse, the social support dimension focuses on helping create a safe and violent-free environment for domestic relationships to thrive.

DSP Tetteh explained that one way DOVVSU does this is by counselling both abusers and those abused to co-exist cordially in an atmosphere devoid of abuse.

He said, for instance, that when a parent is reported to the unit for neglecting his or her responsibilities to the child, DOVVSU does not proceed straight away to arrest the parent, arraign him or her and put the person behind bars.

“What we do is that we get this irresponsible parent to commit to fulfil his or her parental responsibilities and to avoid any future breaches of the law,” he noted.

DSP Tetteh said the unit had, on many occasions, counselled couples whose relationships had become sour due to one or several incidents of abuse and these couples resolved, henceforth, to stay together, although they had initially sworn to stay apart.

“DOVVSU works to promote reconciliation among people who are in domestic relationships. We let them see the effects of violence in the domestic set up and the need to shun violence of all forms,” he stated further.

DSP Tetteh noted that DOVVSU was not established solely for the police, since other institutions were needed to help pursue the social support dimension.

He said apart from the police, the unit had personnel from the social welfare department and other professionals, including psychologists.

Unfortunately, the apathy towards DOVVSU is one the factors that has led to the unit recording few cases in the Northern Region, even though many people are abused in their homes, workplaces and other domestic set ups regularly.

In 2010, the region recorded only a single reported case of exposing a child to harm and another single case of actually causing harm.

Twenty-two (22) of its cases constituted defilement, whiles 21 were classified as rape.

In a region where forced marriage is very rife in many rural communities, only five cases of compulsion of marriage were reported at DOVVSU. This is surely not the reality on the ground.

As expected, non-maintenance cases were among the highest as 40 of these cases were reported.

DSP Tetteh said the unit would intensify its sensitisation campaigns to get more victims to come out of their shelves and seek assistance, stressing that “DOVVSU does not destroy relationships.”