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New Agenda for the Americas in Mental Health Announced by PAHO 

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By Rashaed Esson

Staff writer

 

June 18, 2023 – As mental health continue to experience an elevated profile as a global health priority, PAHO reports, “A New Agenda for Mental Health in the Region of the Americas,” was launched on June 9th, 2023, and it highlights recommendations to better address mental health in the Americas following the COVID-19 pandemic which has worsened mental health issues.

The report comes following the establishment of the High-Level Commission on Mental Health and COVID-19, in May of 2022, which comprised 17 experts from Government, civil society, academia as well as those with lived experience of mental health conditions.

Their job was to give guidance to PAHO and its Member States on how to advance mental health in the Region during and after the pandemic.

The report provides countries with ten recommendations to improve mental health care and they are:

  • Elevate mental health at the national and supranational levels.
  • Integrate mental health into all policies.
  • Increase the quantity and improve the quality of financing for mental health.
  • Ensure the human rights of people living with mental health conditions.
  • Promote and protect mental health across the life course.
  • Improve and expand community-based mental health services and care.
  • Strengthen suicide prevention.
  • Adopt a gender transformative approach to mental health.
  • Address racism and racial discrimination as a key determinant of mental health.
  • Improve mental health data and research.

In light of this, Dr. Jarbas Barbosa  Director of the PAN American Health Organization (PAHO) called leaders and decision makers to take action, making sure mental health is placed at the top of political agendas and woven into all sectors and policies to better address the growing issue especially after the pandemic.

PAHO expressed that even though mental health has historically been a significant source of disability and mortality in the Americas, responsible for almost one-third of all years lived with a disability, the pandemic increased the risk factors including, grief and loss, unemployment and financial insecurity, and this was emphasized by Barbosa speaking at the launch. He maintained that COVID-19 severely impacted the mental health of the population of the Americas; hence the importance of the recommendations in the report.

In addition to the increase in mental health issues, the preponderance of those with a condition do not receive the necessary care whether that be therapy or medication.

PAHO reports that in 2020 more than 80 percent of those with a severe mental health condition, psychosis included, did not receive treatment.

This partly due to a lack of access to services to help with mental health and Barbosa expressed this is due to a variety of factors before the pandemic including: “low investment, only 3% of countries’ health budgets are allocated to mental health; a reliance on long-stay hospitalization when the majority of mental health problems can be resolved in the community; a chronic shortage of trained mental health personnel; and reduced access to services for those living in vulnerable situations.”

Considering the report as well as the facts highlighted, investing in mental health is key to bring about the best result in mitigating its impact on people of the Americas, and Dr. Epsy Campbell Barr, Chair of the Commission and former Vice-President of Costa Rica, spoke to this saying, “Investing in mental health is crucial to promote equitable and sustainable human development for all to live with well-being and dignity,” further fingering that mental health is a public issue, not private, which requires urgent and immediate attention.

In continuation, Dr. Nestor Mendez, Co-Chair of the Commission and Assistant Director General of the Organization of American States, expressed that mental health is now in their hands, that is the leaders in the region, to change how they approach handling it.

PAHO made reference to mental health statistics throughout the Americas, further highlighting the importance of addressing it in the best way possible.

Some of the statistics say:

  • In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, major depressive disorders increased by 35 percent  and anxiety disorders by 32 percent .
  • 65 percent of countries reported disruptions to essential mental health and substance use services in 2020. This number has decreased to 14 percent  in early 2023.
  • 8 our of 10 individuals with a severe mental health condition do not receive treatment
  • Suicide claims the lives of nearly 100,000 people each year.
  • The regional age-adjusted suicide rate increased by 17 percent between 2000 – 2019.
  • Depressive and anxiety disorders are the third and fourth leading causes of disability.

Mental health should not be taken lightly and should be treated like any other illness as it is in fact an illness and is just as dangerous as visually physically conditions.

Caribbean News

“We have a Responsibility”; Outcry and Outrage expressed by Lisa Hanna

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Garfield Ekon

Staff Writer

 

December 11, 2024 – Jamaican legislator Lisa Hanna is urging young people of her homeland, to be concerned and be active against the “worst underbelly” of fascism that is emerging on the global stage.

According to Hanna, Jamaicans have always stand on the sides of the oppressed and marginalised, and she is irked to see comments from young people that Jamaicans should not be concerned with things “over there,” such as the Gaza war, and other happenings across the global community.

Noting that in her lifetime, the Berlin Wall fell, the Cold War ended, and “I have seen the end of Apartheid,” the signing of the Oslo Accord, between then  Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and  the late former Chairman  of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO),Yasser Arafat.

“I have seen also the shift of capital from the West to Asia, and to India. I have seen other things, too, but, somehow, the world” is moving backward on some of the gains made in the past, and “no one is standing up.

“We watch our brothers and sisters in Cuba, suffering without electricity, because of decades of US (United States) sanctions; Haitians are being slaughtered, and trying to leave for a better way of life,” she said in a recent video.

The former Minister of Youth and Culture, and recently Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs, added that Wars in the Middle East, and the “forgotten wars” in the Sudan, and the Congo, as well as the killing of black Palestinians, are being done in the “name of authoritarianism.

“But, worst of all, my blood curdles” with the indifference that Jamaicans are showing to atrocities in other parts of the world. “We have always stood up for protecting the dignity of people globally, we have always been a revolutionary people, destroying contrived dogmas intended to enslave anyone, to the supremacy of others because of their economic might, or geographical size,” Miss Hanna said.

She stressed that Jamaica was the first country in the Western hemisphere to impose a trade embargo on Apartheid South Africa, and it was done through courage, because at the time, Jamaica had not yet gained its Independence from Britain. “Our respect globally, was ear ed by those who went before, it was their courage that allowed us to hold our heads high, with self-respect,” she said.

The stance by Jamaca, was principled, she underscored, including when Jamaican lawyer, Dudley Thomson went to Kenya, and defended Jomo Kenyata against charges leveled on him by the British Empire, and leaders of the island, and musicians helped to tear down injustice in many countries through “dedicated purpose” to recognise the dignity of people. “We have a responsibility continue, activism for our own sake, and for others who are being pushed into suffocation,” Miss Hanna stated.

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Bahamas News

No Call from Trump! Still the Islands make it clear where they Stand on Deportees

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Deandrea Hamilton

Editor

 

 

December 11, 2024 – A misleading story carried by several US news organisations demanded a firm response by both The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands governments, when news reports cited these countries as among those on a list of possible deportation centers being wooed by the in-coming Trump Administration.

It seemed a mischievous attempt to gaslight these smaller nations about the newly elected president and his popular campaign promise to send illegal migrants home, in massive numbers.

Soon, it would be explained that there was no call or direct offer to these governments by the Trump Administration team and, more significantly, no interest by either country to welcome in U.S. deportees.  Still both the prime minister of The Bahamas and the Immigration and Border Services minister of the Turks and Caicos Islands immediately issued firm statements rejecting the idea.

“The Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands categorically states that we will not, under any circumstances, accept deportees from the United States or any other nation who are not citizens of Turks and Caicos. Our country’s immigration policies are clear and firmly rooted in the principles of sovereignty, the protection of our borders, and the welfare of our people,” said Arlington Musgrove, TCI Minister of Immigration and Border Services.

There was a similar reaction from The Bahamas; the Office of the Prime Minister informed also there has been no push from the US regarding the request.

“This matter was presented to the Government of The Bahamas but was reviewed and firmly rejected by the Prime Minister.

The Bahamas simply does not have the resources to accommodate such a request. The Prime Minister priorities remain focused on addressing the concerns of The Bahamian people,” said the Office of the Prime Minister.

The Bahamas in a follow up statement gave some history and offered insight on the origin of the proposal, which dates back to the Summit of the Americas staged in Los Angeles two years ago.

“In June of 2022, Prime Minister Philip Davis attended the Summit of the Americas, where regional migration was one of the items on the agenda.

During the Summit, countries were asked to sign a declaration on migration, which included language suggesting that countries support and host undocumented migrants.

The Bahamas did not sign this declaration, although 20 countries in the region did.

The Prime Minister made it clear to President Biden that our country will not bear this burden. We need to devote Bahamian resources to solving Bahamian problems.”

Both The Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands have added to their initial statements, confirming that no one from president-elect Donald Trump’s office had been in communication on the touted plan.

“To be clear, our office responded to the proposal as characterized by the press, rather than any formal proposal made to us by President-elect Trump’s transition team, with whom we have not discussed the matter,” published The Bahamas.

More accurately, there was a news report carried by the BBC which exposed Panama’s experience in this U.S. procedure, which deports illegal migrants to the country where they entered the United States, despite their nationalities.

The BBC news story said: “The Biden administration said it had agreed to pay for the flights as part of its efforts to deter irregular migration.

A group of 29 Colombians with criminal records were the first to be returned on Tuesday.

Under an agreement jointly signed by the Panamanian foreign minister and US Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the US has committed to helping Panama with $6m (£4.6m) for equipment, transportation and logistics to “remove foreign nationals who do not have a legal basis to remain in Panama”.

In the case of The Bahamas and The Turks and Caicos Islands, many from these two Small Island Developing States were stunned at the audacity and ramifications of such a plan.

“We are deeply concerned about any suggestion of displacing individuals to countries with which they have no connection. Such policies disregard the cultural, social, and economic implications for receiving countries and the humanitarian impact on the individuals affected.

We remind all stakeholders that Turks and Caicos is already facing significant challenges managing irregular migration and the accompanying strain on our resources. We will not permit external policies to exacerbate these challenges, nor undermine or dictate our national security,” said Minister Musgrove.

One attorney, speaking on a Nassau television show explained that based on current U.S. law, The Bahamas must now do a better job of scrutinising who is allowed into the country, ensuring that these islands are not used as a transit for immigrants who are targetting the United States as their final destination.

Panama’s new president, in a bid to uphold his presidential promise to voters, agreed to end his country being used as a crossing point for Haitians, Venezuelans and Colombians moving from South America into North America.

The BBC said: “Mr Mulino campaigned on a promise to “close” the Darién Gap, the dangerous stretch of jungle which more than half a million migrants crossed last year on their way north from South America.

The Biden administration said it had agreed to pay for the flights as part of its efforts to deter irregular migration.”

It is well known that Haitians, fleeing their poverty stricken island are sometimes successful in making landfall, illegally, in the United States after travelling through the Turks and Caicos and The Bahamas.

If The Bahamas is not careful, it “…could end up being forced to take these immigrants in.”

The Turks and Caicos could heed the same warning.

Statistically though, the number of those departing the neighbouring archipelagos to reside illegally in the U.S. is miniscule, however, it would be well within bounds for ICE (Immigration Customs Enforcement) to deport undocumented individuals back to the country of departure.

Thankfully, most illegal migrants opt to be repatriated to their home country.

It is estimated there are over 11 million undocumented migrants currently in the United States. U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has vowed to start with illegal migrants who are convicted criminals.

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Caribbean News

5.4 Million in Haiti are going hungry as Gangs recruit children, UN calls for Immediate Action

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Garfield Ekon

Staff Writer

 

 

Haiti, December 9, 2024 – The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is warning that as Haiti grapples with escalating violence and systemic collapse, its children are bearing the brunt of a multipronged crisis that threatens their lives, safety, and future.

UN officials and humanitarian leaders used the ECOSOC meeting last Monday December 2 to highlight the direct conditions in Haiti, where violence has severely disrupted life in the  Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.

They have called for immediate action to support its youngest citizens.

The UN said 5.4 million people, half the population are facing acute food insecurity and 700,000 displaced, urgent international intervention is needed to address a crisis compounded by armed groups violence, economic instability, and insufficient humanitarian funding.

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, who took up his post two weeks ago, spoke of the devastating impact of the crisis on children. “The children of Haiti are displaced. They are malnourished. They live in fear, their neighbourhoods controlled by armed groups.”

The Executive Director of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Catherine Russell said “we estimate that children account for 30 to 54 per cent of armed group members while the total number of children recruited by armed groups has jumped by 70 per cent over the past year.”

She also highlighted the collapse of essential services, with 1.5 million youngsters losing access to education and healthcare facilities shutting down due to violence and insecurity.

Despite the challenges, UN agencies and partners continue to deliver aid.  Facing a surge in displacement and food insecurity, the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) has announced an expanded response, targeting nearly two million people with emergency relief.

“We have been delivering record amounts of food assistance to Haitians in Port-au-Prince and across the country these past few months and will do even more in the coming weeks,” said the WFP’s Country Director, Wanja Kaaria.

The WFP also supports local economies by sourcing 70 per cent of school meal ingredients from Haitian farmers, fostering long-term resilience and development.

Yet, the scale of the response is dwarfed by the growing needs as speakers at the ECOSOC session stressed the need for immediate international action to close funding gaps, protect children from exploitation, and rebuild essential services.

UN Special Representative Maria Isabel Salvador, who also heads the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH), urged the global community to address root causes of the crisis.

“The challenges Haiti faces are immense, but one truth is undeniable: no progress can be made without addressing the pervasive insecurity caused by armed gangs.  UNICEF and other humanitarian leaders called on the UN Security Council -backed Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission and Haitian authorities to prioritise child protection during operations, ensuring safe reintegration for children recruited by armed groups.

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