?SOMETIMES WE JUST do not want to accept some of the unsavoury things happening in our society. We would rather pretend that the situation does not exist. Unfortunately, ignoring the problems will not make the problem disappear.
Such is the case with the apparent growing incidence of violent confrontation among some of our secondary school children.
Police have had to be called in on a number of occasions recently following a flare-up in violence among students involving knives and pieces of metal. Some have resulted in injuries requiring treatment at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and in cases before the law courts.
Across the Caribbean this level of bad behaviour among school children has also erupted with not only beatings and stabbings but also unlawful killings.
We recognize that bullying, gang involvement and an ill-disciplined home environment can breed all kinds of problems. But violence cannot be the reasonable and only response. We need to hear the sobering reports from our children, both the victims and the perpetrators, recognizing that behind every statistic of violence there is a human being.
We also need to have some type of national programme again, such as that by AJA and UNICEF, designed to promote peace among children, understanding that in our efforts to change the propensity for violence, we have got to start with the youth and must show them how to peacefully resolve conflict.
We may also need to undertake some research or simply revisit the many papers and reports done to get a better understanding of this issue of violence among our school children.
Is it that those caught up in this dangerous trend have been exposed to domestic violence? Are the students in the public primary and secondary schools more prone to commit and be the victims of violence than those in the private schools?
What message does this violence by our students and their apparent appetite for vengeance and a lack of compassion send to the wider public?
We need to find the answers as we confront what is clearly a problem and not wait as some of our educators warn that it pervades the entire society.
Few as the incidents made public have been, the behaviour and outcomes can only be described as totally unacceptable. The rising level of violence among our students is not a mirage.
The family unit needs to work with the schools, law enforcement and the various experts in finding a solution. We must not throw up our hands in despair, offering neither solution nor showing care.?
