Dear Editor,

A Guyanese court recently sentenced an ex-army man to time in prison for illegal entry to his ex-girlfriend residence, which led up to him stabbing her new boyfriend to death during a scuffle.

What was remarkable about the case was that the court considered the ex-army man’s fatherlessness and considerable lack of guidance in his upbringing in its deliberation.

Certainly, everybody in lock-up has a ‘story’. So what really does that mean to us and the victim that his specific story should be considered at sentencing for a brutal crime.

However, before we develop a solution to a problem there has to be an acknowledgement of the problem. This awareness, then, needs to be translated into policies which seek to mitigate against the occurrence of such offences in the first place, and not just the judge’s post-offence sentencing.

Most importantly, the man and woman relationships, whether intimate, acquaintance-based, or not, need to be worked on as if our lives depend on it.

For example, how does a woman who is taken to be a wife by a faithful and loving man end up, without jest, threatening to kill that husband if he were to be unfaithful? How can that same wife, whose first intimate relationship as a teenager was with an abusive partner of more than twice her age, express fond sentiments toward that man, subsequent to their break-up — the same who had made her fear for her life?

As alluded to earlier, many of us need ‘fixing’ before sharing in another’s life, whether as an intimate partner, a parent, a preacher, politician, or other professional. How many of us, though, would admit to being ‘broken’, much less accept offers to becoming ‘repaired’?

Andre O Sheppy

Norwood, St James

astrangely@outlook.com