A RECENT survey conducted among 300 children by Sharlene Sharpe-Pryce, faculty member at Mandeville-based Northern Caribbean University (NCU), shows that the majority do not trust the political system and state entities such as the police.
Her research found that 64.7 per cent of the children polled did not trust politicians, 34.6 per cent did not trust the Church, 61.8 per cent did not trust the police and 44.1 per cent did not trust the soldiers. Fifty-two per cent believed that, in general, adults were liars and could not be trusted except for their parents and sometimes teachers.
In addition, Mrs. Sharpe-Pryce said over 50 per cent of the children interviewed wanted to migrate and only 35.3 per cent believed life would be better when they grow older.
"We need to stop and listen," said Mrs. Sharpe-Pryce, who was speaking recently at the W.D. Carter Lecture Series held at NCU. The chair of the Department of History, Geo-graphy and Social Sciences called on government to create a system based on "cooperation trust and mutual understanding".
Mrs. Sharpe-Pryce was responding to presentations made at the lecture series by Opposition Senator Bruce Golding and the People's National Party chairman for the Campaign for Transformation, Paul Burke, under the theme 'Ensuring Democratic Commit-ment, 60 years after Universal Adult Suffrage'.
LACK OF POLITICAL VALUES
Mrs. Sharpe-Pryce said her primary concern was the lack of positive political values being passed on to the young, adding that in her research she found that over 60 per cent of children between ages 10 and 14 did not trust politicians. She said that with about 40 per cent of the population being children and youth, and 39.8 per cent living in extreme poverty, urgent attention needed to be paid to their situation.
Mrs. Sharpe-Pryce added that there were nearly 30,000 working children in Jamaica with 10 per cent of that number being street children.
