THE MULTI-PRONGED approach to ending violent clashes between rival gangs in Central Kingston's inner-city communities of Southside and Tel Aviv is an important one that's worth studying and emulating.
As reported in yesterday's and today's editions, both communities have recorded a dramatic decline in the number of murders from 79 in the first six months of 2002, and 40 for the same period last year to two since the start of the year.
Representatives of non-governmental organisations, police, business operators and residents have all attributed this reduction to a sustained effort to have persons across the various divides talking to each other and ironing out their differences peacefully even as they attempt to address specific social needs. This commitment to dialogue is supported by the work of the staff and management of Grace, Kennedy and Company, through their Staff Community Development Foundation.
Among the objectives and activities of the Foundation are youth education, mentoring, health clinics and Food Distribution Programmes; business counselling projects, job exposure (including holiday job placement) and managing funds from donor agencies. These types of programmes are not peculiar to Central Kingston.
There are many socially and economically-depressed communities across the island close to established businesses the industrial belt along Spanish Town Road, Kingston, and Spanish Town, St. Catherine, being two examples that benefit to some extent from similar projects. The evidence is clear whenever people get a sense that the businesses around them take an interest in their welfare, and not only in the form of hand-outs, they too develop a sense of ownership or attachment to enterprises. Not everyone will buy into the programme but if more people do, then the incidence of criminality will likely be much reduced.
Fighting crime in Jamaica requires sustained action, determination and money. Financing is needed to train the police in non-aggressive techniques, to purchase more and better equipment as required, and social intervention programmes for residents. There is room for more private sector firms to get involved in underwriting similar programmes and fostering dialogue among warring factions. Good corporate citizens working alongside people of goodwill will most definitely contribute to a further reduction in the levels of crime across the island. We need more of the Southside-Tel Aviv initiative in other crime-plagued communities across Jamaica.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
