The members of the National Council on Education (NCE) note with grave concern and are deeply saddened by recent acts of violence perpetrated against some of the youngest citizens of our nation. The most recent incident occurred on Monday, November 6, 2023, when two young boys, seven-year-old Justin Perry and nine-year-old Nahcoliva Smith, both students of Chetwood Memorial Primary School in Montego Bay, St. James were brutally slain. The youngsters were on their way home from school when their lives were viciously snuffed out by a senseless adult. According to Jamaica’s Children’s Advocate, Diahann Gordon Harrison, there are now at least 24 children who have been heartlessly slain in our country since the start of 2023.

It is indeed difficult to imagine, not only the immense pain that these young children had to endure but also the sense of loss and bewilderment for their parents and other loved ones. Losing a loved one is a painful experience, and even more so if the loss of life was attributed to an act of violence, which could have been avoided. The National Council on Education extends its sincerest condolences to the bereaved families, the students and staff of Chetwood Memorial Primary School and the other families of the many children who have been brutally murdered or ill-treated. May the good Lord provide them with the strength to carry on as they mourn the loss of their loved ones.

The Council views the recurrence of these incidents as a worrying trend in which there is a flagrant disregard and disrespect for the sanctity and constitutional right to life. The literature and research findings indicate that children who benefit from intellectually stimulating and caring home environments often develop into worthwhile citizens of their countries. Research also indicates that the more children receive empathy the more likely they can offer empathy to others. The concern is that young children who are murdered in Jamaica are robbed of this opportunity to grow, develop and contribute to the development of a more caring society. It seems reasonable to assume that only senseless and uncaring individuals, who, perhaps, were not beneficiaries of empathy, would choose to murder innocent children.

While the Council is of the view that the perpetrators of this heinous crime should be severely punished, a greater concern is what could be the cause of this violent action. Efforts must be made to know why or to determine the motive. The Council is also of the view that one of the ways of tackling this problem could be to determine the perpetrators’ motives to engage in these insidious actions. This is critical in tackling these crimes, which continue to haunt our society. The Council, therefore, is encouraging well-thinking Jamaicans to coalesce around a common goal of ascertaining the why or the motivation behind these senseless killings. The Council stands ready to support the country in its quest to find the root cause of these unimaginable crimes and how we can go about creating a more caring, tolerant, compassionate, and kind society.