A March 5 concert will be staged at the Flankers Primary and Junior High School, an inner-city community located on the outskirts of Montego Bay, to mark this year’s observance of Peace Day.

The event is being staged by Peace and Love in Schools (PALS), in conjunction with the Social Conflict and Legal Reform project (SCLR). It is one of two concerts being staged across the island, with the other being held at a Kingston school.

According to general manager of PALS, Janilee Abrikian, this year’s concert at Flankers will mark the first time the event is being held outside of Kingston.

“The concert is the highlight of the Peace Day celebrations and this year we are pleased to be working with the SCLR project, which is an initiative of the governments of Jamaica and Canada to bring the message of peace to the community through this event,” she said.

The concert will feature top Jamaican artistes Lloyd Lovindeer, Roy Rayon and writer/actress Adziko Simba. There will also be performances by students from Flankers Primary and Junior High, Corinaldi Primary and Herbert Morrison High schools.

“The entire community is excited that they will be involved in this concert to commemorate Peace Day,” said the SCLR’s community component coordinator, Sharlene McKenzie.

She added that the event is also being supported by Sandals Montego Bay, a number of social service organisations as well as students, teachers and parents from Flankers Primary and Junior High.

In addition to the concert, Peace Day is usually marked by a programme of activities undertaken in all primary schools. These events usually get under way in December of each year, and include exhibits, art and poetry competitions, essay contests, marches to the community and church services. A major aspect of the scheduled events includes awards to peacemakers from within the school community.

The first Peace Day in schools was held in 1996 and its objective is to create awareness among schools and the public that there is need for peace.

This year, the SCLR’s collaboration with PALS to stage the concert in Flankers highlights the efforts that are now being made through the Dispute Resolution Foundation (DRF) and PALS to assist Jamaicans in adopting more positive conflict management methods. Like Flankers, the Trench Town community in Kingston is a participant in the DRF.