Nine o’clock Community Houses of Justice that operate in the same localities of the country could close due to lack of economic resources, for which their leaders and community advocate for greater support from the government, the business sector and the mayors’ offices to be able to continue offering services to people in need in neighborhoods and communities.
This Non-Governmental Organization was created more than 15 years ago with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (Usaid), to offer legal and psychological assistance, family and community mediation, institutional strengthening, municipality, conciliations and education in Rights and homework.
During those 15 years they have managed to impact the lives of more than half a million people in La Ciénaga, Santo Domingo Oeste, La Vega, San Francisco de Macorís, Santiago, Santiago Oeste, Mao, Moca and Puerto Plata.
Erika Valera, manager of the Community House of Justice of La Ciénagareported that in the six years they have been in the sector they have worked with 38,604 people in conflict resolution, including 20,654 women and 17,950 men.
“If a solution is not found to the technical-financial sustainability that threatens the existence of this program, it would stop benefiting those most in need of justice and peace”Valera said.
He recalled that the emergence of that house and the other eight has boosted access to Justicethe prevention of violence and peaceful coexistence in the vulnerable sectors of each locality, contributing to social peace.
He indicated that the psychologists offered services every day, but that before the economic conditions that it has, it is necessary to limit it to only two days.
“Our main resource is received from USAID, they help us maintain the operability of the houses through a subversion that they carry out, the city councils also help us, in a particular way they contribute a lot to us, the District City Council and in each house the mayor’s office makes an important contribution, as do some businessmen, the Judiciary and the Attorney General’s Office, because the service we provide is comprehensive”.
In the case of the Community House of Justice Las Caobas, directed by Amelfy Echavarría, as manager, and Carmen Victoriano, technical management director, has been offering various types of services to the community for 15 years.
During those 15 years, 142,681 people have been impacted, 75,464 women and 67,217 men who have received support in different areas. Echavarría urged both the business sector and the mayor’s office to support the house so that it does not close its services that have given so many benefits to residents in that area.
“The fact of losing the Community House of Justice Las Caobas is to snatch from the most vulnerable sector of Santo Domingo Oeste, everything it has to give in and do JusticeEchavarria said.
While Victoriano said that the request for support was made simultaneously in the nine houses because they are in similar situations, which cannot be self-sustaining. He clarified that the users of the services do not pay anything for them.
“We make a local call to the public sector, let’s say to the municipality, to businessmen to make a contribution, that corporate social commitment, that commitment of the mayors of the towns where each of these houses are”Victorian maintained.
Roberto Gómez, a community member from La Ciénaga, urged the authorities not to allow them to close the House because there they solve many problems without having to go to the Justice and others that are costly in other instances.
Adrín Tejeda, president of the El Palmar de Herrera Neighborhood Council, said that they are in solidarity with the House of Justice because it is the heart of the municipality, it is a gift that God has given them because all problems such as gender violence, intra-family, psychological, these services are offered free of charge.
“Here none of the professionals in the matter charge a peso for the service, you do not have to pay any type of consultation, that is, this house has been the matrix of the municipality, where all the problems that the Prosecutor’s Office cannot solve , here they are resolved free of charge and without having to pay for lawyers”, he indicated.
Similarly, José Joaquín Ramírez called the president Louis Abinader and the senator Anthony Taveras that the money from the barrel is needed in communities like Santo Domingo Oeste.
Another community member, Juana Pichardo, from the Las Golondrinas Women’s Federation of Santo Domingo, said that they support this just cause because most of the problems are solved in that space that has given well-being to the people.
Ángela Estrella, from the Neighborhood Council Everything could be done in the Duarte neighborhood said: “I want to make a call to the president, to our institutions, aldermen, deputies, to the senator that we have, that so much money is being spent in the municipality behind nothing, this is a 911 case, which deserves attention because people come here and leave with their problem solved,” he said.
