Dear Editor,

So Prime Minister Andrew Holness and shadow of education minister, Ronald Thwaites are at one thought regarding their anti-corporal punishment stance. I’m here wondering if they know that the majority of their supporters, including myself, are pro-corporal punishment.

I strongly believe that not all parents or teachers who issue out physical discipline use ‘murderous’ forms of discipline like the extreme cases of cutlasses and belt buckle-type abuse.

So the question I want to ask both the Government and Opposition is, since they are following UNESCO and the United States, did they know that 19 US states still have corporal punishment in schools?

I’m asking the Ministry of Education to please do their research on the 19 states who still have corporal punishment and seek to find out if the children in the other states are more disciplined, or even more educated, than the pro-corporal punishment states.

Further, some schools use the term “spanking” as a loophole to say they don’t administer that type of punishment.

Only 52 countries have a clear ban on corporal punishment, so why do we have the UNICEF telling Jamaica and Jamaicans what laws we should have and how to live?

I’m a young Labourite who is pro-corporal punishment, but I, like many, are open to changes, but not getting rid of it totally.

The abortion issue is now alive again. We have seen the minister of health saying we should revisit the discussion on the legality of this issue. Many Jamaicans are not pro-choice, we are pro-life. So my concern in questioning the Jamaica Labour Party is, how left are you willing to go?

I hope you all know that the base of the Jamaica Labour Party has conservative values, so be careful of moving left on social issues in a conservative society, because we’ve seen where recently Minister of Justice Delroy Chuck had to make some clarification regarding his statements on the Buggery Act.

I am here ready to take on my party on these issues.

Teddylee Gray

Ocho Rios, St Ann

teddylee.gray@gmail.com