College guilds unite to address security concerns on campuses
Published:Thursday | March 31, 2022 | 12:05 AMAsha Wilks/Gleaner Writer
Members of the Guild of Students at the College of Agriculture, Science, and Education (CASE) are working to develop proactive solutions to address security concerns among the student population.
Following the devastating abduction and rape of a female student on the college campus on March 10, Guild President Christopher Honeyghan, with the support of Danielle Mullings, guild president of The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona campus, and other members from student guilds across other tertiary institutions, met on Monday to strategise new ways to ensure the safety of students, particularly the heavily targeted female student population, while on campus.
According to Honeyghan, Felicia Francis, first vice president of the CASE Student Guild, reached out to Mullings to facilitate the exchange of ideas. The meeting he said was a huge success.
Mullings told The Gleaner that in her capacity as UWI Mona Guild president, she assembled a team of presidents to discuss campus safety with a specific focus on women’s safety.
Honeyghan also noted that during the meeting, a staff adviser was present and that he is looking forward to bringing the proposals to the administration and into action.
As a result of the meeting, the group of students brought forward three specific proposals. One is a request for individuals at the university to be resocialised, with seminars on gender sensitivity, sexual harassment, and assault prevention.
COLLABORATION
“We call on all schools to begin to develop or refine their security protocols in collaboration with student leaders to reflect the present challenges,” said Mullings.
The guilds are also pushing for more widespread publication and knowledge of incident reporting procedures to be made available to students, as well as hiring qualified counsellors that can engage in group therapy sessions for victims.
The guild representatives also suggested for students to have swipe cards to have access to different areas of the campus as a means of being accountable for all those who are on campus.
Another approach shared, which had been created by a group of UWI students, was utilising a mobile application called ‘RUSH’ where both students and employees can download and use it.
The application works where if an individual is making a trip on campus from point A to point B, their location would be pinpointed, and if along the way they run into any trouble, the app has a panic button that sends an emergency alert. It can also be used while taking public transportation.
Through use of the app, individuals can also request a campus escort service.
The March 10 incident at CASE, which occurred around 5 a.m. when the student was on her way to the farm, sparked outrage among students who demanded that more safety measures be implemented.
Honeyghan was pleased to disclosed that the scheduled meeting with CASE guild by the college’s administrators, which was held the same day of the incident, had gone well and that the student body was now at ease since the incident.
FARM PRACTICES
He explained that security had been immediately increased and that farm practices that would begin as early as 2 a.m. were rescheduled for 5 a.m. when the campus would not be as dark outside.
The students are also benefiting from a transportation system implemented by the school in order to prevent any reoccurrence of the incident.
“Basically, we got what we wanted as the student population. In society we are more reactive than proactive, so right now, we are basically trying not to be reactive any more [but] proactive so that we can prevent anything from happening as best as possible,” he said.
Kenneth Chin, superintendent of police for the Portland Division, told The Gleaner that one suspect has been identified and is being held in custody. He emphasised that, because the inquiry is still ongoing, forensic evidence has yet to be examined by police experts in order for a match to be established.
He added that the police have met with the college’s leadership and have also given talks to the student population in relation to safety measures.
A similar incident occurred in June 2021 where a female student who took a shortcut was abducted, gagged and raped in a tunnel on campus. This prompted administrators to seek funding to construct a perimeter fence for the safety of students.
The Gleaner was informed by woman sergeant Green of the Portland division that the investigation into the case is still active as no suspects have been identified.
“The investigation continues. This gentleman is still in custody and I am quite sure that persons are being questioned to see if it has any relations to this recent case,” she said.