OUR society is wounded, and the first place to start the healing must be the home. Justices of the peace (JP) islandwide were called on by Justice Minister Delroy Chuck to engage communities in the prevention of child abuse at last Thursday’s online discussion. Children’s Advocate Diahann Gordon-Harrison, Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) head Rosalee Gage-Grey, and Centre for Investigation of Sexual Offences & Child Abuse (CISOCA) head Senior Superintendent of Police Charmaine Shand walked us through the rights of children and the responsibility of adults to ensure their safety.

Gordon-Harrison noted that Jamaica ratified the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child (1989) as early as 1991, highlighting four areas of focus — survival, protection, developmental, and participatory. I remain ever grateful for her helpful slides. She gave details on all four categories:

* Survival rights — the right to life, shelter, food, and clothing;

* Protection rights demand the establishment of policies, practice, and legislative framework to ensure children are protected – Jamaica’s Child Care and Protection Act (CCPA) is indeed a model;

* Developmental — the right to spiritual and moral guidance, an education, reasonable health services, consistent with the age and needs of the child; and

* Participatory — the right to participate in the decision-making process in matters that may impact upon him or her.

The right to participate took me back to an account of Bob Marley’s childhood in his biography Catch A Fire by Timothy White. White reports that, as a small child, Bob was taken from his home by his father Norval to live with the Marley family in Kingston. Cedella Booker saw in this the promise of a better life for her son. However, instead of staying with them in the Hillcrest area, he was sent to live with a Miss Grey on Heywood Street in downtown Kingston. Ms Booker was distressed that her letters enquiring about her child remained unanswered. A relative spotted the six-year-old buying coal on Spanish Town Road. He begged her for his mother, who subsequently went in frantic search of her son. When she found him, little Bob hugged her, and in tears asked: “Mumma, why yuh nuh come look fi me?” She took him back to her family homestead in Nine Miles, St Ann.

The children’s advocate emphasised that any incident, or even suspicion of child abuse must be reported, noting that the Children’s Registry in the CPFSA will receive reports of child abuse confidentially at 1-888-PROTECT (1-888-776-8328), after which they will be referred to partner agencies. She noted that the CCPA requires that “any person who has information which causes him to suspect that a child’s right has been infringed, or a child is at risk or in a vulnerable situation” has a “mandatory obligation to report as soon as is reasonably practicable”.

She listed the consequences of not reporting: Liable for prosecution; summary criminal proceedings in the parish court; maximum penalty of $500,000 fine or six months’ imprisonment (or combination of both), and penalties also for making false statements.

Since 2007 there has been a yearly increase in the number of children reported as being abused. She said girls continue to be more at risk compared to boys, and data show that the number of abuses taking place right there in the child’s home is double those that happen at the offender’s location.

The novel coronavirus pandemic has also had an emotional impact on children, as revealed by a UNICEF survey of 505 homes. These include boredom (63 per cent), overeating (57 per cent), frustration (41 per cent), clinginess (39 per cent), anxiety (23 per cent), sadness (23 per cent), fear (21 per cent), and uncooperativeness (15 per cent).

Gordon-Harrison appealed to us to get “back to basics”: Have simple but important conversations about morals and values, and a sense of caring; focus on supporting parenting activities and working with children in nearby communities.

The launch of “Safe Spot”, co-sponsored by UNICEF and private sector bodies, is imminent. It is a 24-hour child and teen helpline which is toll free and will be manned by qualified professionals. There are several ways that children can reach Safe Spot — call 888-SAFE-SPOT (888-733-3776), WhatsApp 876-439-5199, or direct message on Instagram @safespotja.

Charmaine Daniels, CEO of Digicel Jamaica Foundation, a co-sponsor of Safe Spot, describes it as “a godsend for Jamaica’s children”. I hope fellow JPs will share this information far and wide as there are children who are in need of urgent help.

Staying prepared

We give props to the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), our Meteorological Service Division, and the Ministry of Local Government for helping us track and prepare for Hurricane Elsa over the past days. However, as the old saying goes, “God helps those who help themselves,” and too many of us are casual about putting ourselves in order and quick to blame “di Govament” when we are affected.

At the time of writing, thankfully, we have been downgraded from a status hurricane warning to tropical storm warning — still serious, as this comes with a great deal of wind and rain.

We have been specially focused on the elderly as they should have a stock of prescription meds in addition to the usual necessities. Family members should remember that a sad aspect of elder abuse is neglect. They may have been energetic in their time, but age has its challenges and dear grandma and grandpa do need more support. Please do not wait until the last minute to help them prepare for emergencies; visit at least monthly and check on their supplies.

Many younger relatives live abroad, but there are trusted neighbours, church family and friends who you can engage to help you do a physical check. Remember, some elders try not to bother their children, so if you do not get in-person checks done you may not know their true situation. There are inexpensive camera systems that can also assist you to monitor wherever you are.

As the National Works Agency tries to keep abreast of road repairs, municipal corporations should ensure that new builds are in accessible areas. Rural folks are suffering because of terrible road conditions, with the authorities trying to play catch-up. There is so much potential in every parish in our beautiful country. Let us get a handle on our built environment so we do not have the population overload in some places and sparse, struggling communities in others.

Congratulations, retired education officers

Last Thursday saw the launch of the Association of Retired Education Officers (AREO) at Bethel Baptist Church Hall. Currently, the affairs of the association are overseen by an interim committee comprising Chair Marjorie Gaynor, Vice-Chair Dr Delores Brissett, Secretary Viris Clarke Ellis, Assistant Secretary Beryl Jengelley, Treasurer Patricia Davies, Assistant Treasurer Dr Ann Hall, and Public Relations Officer Rudyard Ellis. An executive will be elected when their first general meeting is called.

AREO is a non-profit membership organisation with a mission to promote healthy lifestyle, wellness and fellowship, and to improve the quality of life and ensure the dignity of members through networking, collaboration, sharing of information, promoting opportunities for self-development, and fostering volunteerism.

Congratulations to these dedicated public servants who are well-equipped to play important roles in the governance of our education system.

lowriechin@aim.com

www.lowrie-chin.blogspot.com