January 15, 2008No. 1/08 - G NEWS RELEASE CDB to Host Discussion In St. Vincent on Domestic ViolenceThe issue of domestic violence will be the focus of a discussion to be hosted by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) in St. Vincent and the Grenadines on Wednesday, January 23. A recent news report from the independent media institution, PANOS, identified the need to reduce domestic violence as a pervasive one throughout the Caribbean. It stated that "More than a decade after many English-speaking Caribbean courts were granted the power to issue restraining orders to victims of domestic violence, and other laws have been crafted to reduce the phenomenon, the murder and disability rate attributed to domestic violence is still a troubling problem."Unmasking Domestic Violence: Building Equality, Peace and Development is the title of the CDB-sponsored programme, which is part of the Bank's public outreach series entitled a Special CDB Discussion Forum. Dr. Diane Douglas, a prominent clinical psychologist from Trinidad and Tobago, will be the keynote speaker. She is currently an Assistant Clinical Professor at Yale University School of Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry, a lecturer in the Departments of Behavioural Sciences and Psychiatry at the University of the West Indies, a Research Affiliate at UWI's Centre for Gender and Development Studies, a regional consultant for UNIFEM and the immediate past President of the Trinidad and Tobago Association of Psychologists. Mr. Winston Parris, Probation Officer, Family Court of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Mr. Tyrone Buckmire, a child activist from Grenada, will be the panellists.The discussion will take place at Peace Memorial Hall in Kingstown, St. Vincent, beginning at 10:30 a.m. It is open to members of the general public.