Abiela laid to rest

Dawn John Durity, Abiela’s grandmother, said her granddaughter had a bright future before her life was cut short as the 15-yearold, who represented the country on the under-15 TT national team and was a Form 3 student of Signal Hill Secondary School displayed signs that she was determined to succeed and be all that she said she would be.

“I just want to say to my fellow Trinbagonians, we need to get up and fight, let us fight to save our country. Our women are being murdered, raped and trafficked daily, this has to stop. And to you men… we are not objects, that you can do with as you please. We are your mothers, we are your sisters, we are your aunts, your grandmothers and your girlfriends. We have a right to free choice, we are not your property, absolutely not your property. God made you stronger so that you can protect us, not slit our throats when you don’t have your way and though we are to make wise choices as far as humanly possible,” the grandmother said.

She appealed to the nation to do their part in this fight to protect women and root out gender based violence. “We need our Government, our Police, our Judiciary and our communities to protect us within their respective capacities.

Remember that the issues of violence against women is much more complex than what you think you see or you think you know about the victim. Let us not turn a blind eye or bash the victims and their families on matters we don’t know the truth about but rather come together, put things in place and fight the real monster that is raging in our midst and stealing the lives of our women.

“It is time for all of us to stand and fight back, we need to fight, gender based violence has to stop and the power is in our hands, all of us from the highest office to the lowest to take control and stop another woman, another mother from going missing or from turning up dead,” John-Durity said.

Pastor Vincent Allen warned the family against revenge as according to him, “vengeance is God”.

“Don’t allow this is come over here in Tobago from Trinidad, ask God to reverse it. When people do things on this earth, and feel that they get away with it, that’s a lie.

God is going to fix it and the Bible tells us that all things work together for a good to them that love the Lord, so out of this is going to come great things for you. Leave it in the hands of God,” he said. He noted that the society has to come together to fight the current ills.

“We have to come together and take back our land, we have to set an example. I want to advise the Government to do a carpet search of Trinidad and Tobago, North, South, East and West, it will inconvenience a lot of people but it is aimed at taking back our land.

“Get the guns off the streets, get the criminals and deal with them and that is what has to happen right here in Trinidad and Tobago, it is not right that God give you 70 years to live and somebody take it out at 15, it is not right.

“Only God can solve it, the police cannot do it, the Army cannot do it, the Coast Guard cannot do it, they are limited, they cannot do it, it is only we, when we get to know Lord Jesus and when we take the Lord Jesus as Lord and Saviour of our lives because he said when a nation is living for God, no devil, no evil will take over that nation and that is what we need,” he said.

Abiela’s funeral service was held at the Mt Pleasant Recreational Grounds. Among the people at her funeral was Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Chief Secretary Kelvin Charles as well as a number of other Assemblymen.

Following the funeral service, there was a procession from the Recreational Grounds to the cemetery at Buccoo where the teenager was laid to rest.

Abiela’s body was discovered at about 3.30 am on February 11 on the roadway, near a pile of garbage, at Solenn Lane, Fedilis Heights (North), Courland after she was reported missing to the Old Grange Police Station by her mother, Katherine Gill at 12.15 am.

In an autopsy conducted by Forensic Pathologist Dr Valery Alexandrov, it was confirmed that Abiela died as a result of injuries to her neck. Newsday Tobago was told the girl left home in the company of a 19-year-old male friend, but never returned. He told relatives he dropped her off at a shop near her home around 8 pm. Police are yet to ascertain a motive for the killing, as no one has been charged.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Joanne Archie when contacted confirmed that the investigation into the murder is of top priority and progress is being made.

“One man has been released and one is still assisting police in their investigations. A file has not been sent to the DPP (Director of Public Prosecutions) as yet as that investigation is still ongoing,” Archie said.