The brutal murder of 10-year-old Shani “Kaidra” Coke in Troy, Trelawny, last month plunged the nation into another period of deep mourning and again brought to the fore the issue of protecting our children.

According to a police report, as well as the account of residents, Shani was walking home from a shop along a road near her home when she was abducted.

Later, a farmer, who had gone in search of his cow after hearing strange sounds from bushes, found Shani’s partially nude body with her throat slashed and raised an alarm.

Police said, following the discovery of the child’s body, a mob attacked a father and son in the community. Angry residents, who claimed that the two men are Shani’s relatives, accused the son of raping and killing the child. He was beaten, chopped, and stoned to death, while his father, who was also attacked by the mob, was admitted to hospital.

While we understand the anger flowing through that community, we cannot condone mob rule as a replacement for lawful pursuit of justice for aggrieved action.

It is very human to seek revenge for cruel and horrific actions taken against one’s loved ones. History is replete with crimes that turn the stomach of decent human beings, triggering an emotional rush to mob rule.

We have, in the past, seen people in residential communities, fed up at being targeted by thieves, take the law into their own hands and lynch individuals either caught in the act or merely suspected of guilt. Additionally, Jamaicans in rural areas where praedial larceny has been a painful but common occurrence have been known to catch thieves and beat them to a pulp, sometimes fatally.

However, as we reiterate that jungle justice cannot be the way forward, even for a country ravaged by murderers, some of whom are so callous that they do not hesitate to wipe out entire families, including babies and senior citizens.

Parents losing children, and especially in the most gruesome circumstances, is not unique to Jamaica, for there are evil people in every country around the world who spare no thought in taking life, leaving families and communities torn and asking, after each vile act: Why?

There is never an acceptable answer, and the torment can last a lifetime. Nothing, we hold, can excuse the murder of anyone, moreso that of an innocent child.

Unfortunately, Jamaica has been down this road too many times before. In all these cases, parents are left to endure the great sense of loss comes with the death of their offspring. It can’t be easy, but that, unfortunately, is one of life’s cruel realities for some people.

These acts of violence are not normal, and what is most disturbing is that there are, in this society, people who remain silent in the face of these atrocities, but are extremely vocal on a range of other issues.

To be fair, a number of measures have been taken by the authorities to protect our children. But even as we move to keep them safe, we cannot ignore the possibility that these brutish acts are a manifestation of the epidemic of violence that we have regrettably come to accept as normal.

That, we believe, is the overarching issue here, as there are still too many people who firmly believe that the only way to solve a dispute is to resort to violence, most times leading to the taking of life.

It will take a lot of effort to correct this problem, but we cannot afford to give up.

As we have argued before, one of the key elements to reinstating self-respect, and value for human life is for communities to recognise and accept that they have a role to play in making this a more peaceful society. That requires a drive led by the Government, with the support of the Opposition, so-called civil society, the Church, and others to organise communities and build leadership in those communities.