Nassau, The Bahamas --- Domestic violence/relational disputes are a major cause for the surge in violent crime in the region, accounting for an astonishing 25 per cent of the murders committed in the Caribbean.

Minister of National Security, Dr. the Hon. Bernard J. Nottage, said statistics indicate that almost 1,200 cases of domestic violence are reported annually within The Bahamas.

"However, according to the Bahamas Crisis Centre, the number of cases are actually higher when reports that they receive from other sources...