The banner story of yesterday’s edition is chock-full of reasons to celebrate. But before we hang the streamers and bring out the vuvuzelas, we will await visible signs of action.

Nonetheless, the article — headlined ‘McKenzie, Swaby inform homeless people downtown they’ll be relocated to shelters’ — signposts plans to remedy a long-standing ill in the capital.

It took a while, but after being seemingly ignored — or served with band-aid measures — by successive mayors of city Kingston the eyesore of Justice Square is finally getting the necessary attention.

For years the commuting public has passed by the homeless making life in the environs of the seat of justice, so much so it may well be a strange experience to one day visit the space without them.

Whether it has been their cooking, bathing, or laundering of their articles after a shower of rain, quite a few people have made the area the place they call home for years. The acknowledgement by both Mayor of Kingston Andrew Swaby and Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie that the time has come to improve their lot is a study in social welfare.

Second, the fact that the two elected representatives — from differing political parties — could coalesce around the need to get this done must spark hope among the citizenry in the wake of active and public dissension between their leaders since the September 3, 2025 polls.

What’s more, the recognition in these early stages of the varying reasons for the taking up of residence in the area is heartening.

Many Jamaicans are inclined to believe that all street people suffer from just “madness”, but the reasons are many. Mental health shares company with economics, drug use, abandonment, and sheer lack of access to the welfare system as the reasons for taking a street address.

This latest effort promises to deal with the individuals based on their varied circumstances; a rather enlightened approach.

All of this leads to what we in this space believe to be the overarching achievement — the restoration of dignity.

The Bible tells us in St Matthew 26:11 that the poor we will always have with us, but the preservation of their humanity and self-respect must be pursued.

The leaders have indicated that “brute force” will not be employed to attain the relocation and ultimate compliance of the homeless, which augurs well for the success of the mission.

We know some may be inclined to return to the familiar environs, but if their needs are served, relapse is less likely.

The United Nations (UN) recognises homelessness as a critical human rights issue that requires urgent global action and comprehensive strategies to address its root causes. Here, we are well along the course with the example being set with the initial move by Messrs McKenzie and Swaby.

Said the UN special rapporteur on the right to adequate housing: “Homelessness is stigmatised and often addressed with criminalisation, violence, and aggressive policies that violate, rather than safeguard, the rights of the persons involved… “

This step to address homelessness, if only now at Justice Square, is, therefore, a move for the better.

Yes, we may be wont to revisit the life that these now homeless lived that resulted in their plight, but no good can come of it — save to make sure they walk a different road.

We now wait to see how Messrs McKenzie and Swaby will fuel and fund this thrust, but what is sure, they have our support.