Andrew Smith/Photography Editor
In this April 2005 file photo, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mark Shields (left), listens as Chairman of the Peace and Love in Society (PALS) programme, Morin Seymour (right), makes a point. General Manager of PALS, Janilee Abrikian, looks on. They are attending the official opening of the Constant Spring Road offices of Jamaica Yellow Pages, which has committed to a multi-million dollar funding programme for PALS over the next three years.

An episode of gunfire and what appeared to be a mother's attempt to intervene, were a real-life reflection of a dispute-resolution session in November, National Parents Month.

A stockily-built young man had reportedly walked through a Kingston church compound firing his handgun.

Inside the church hall, the charity, Peace and Love in Society (PALS), had gathered together parents and children for a workshop to coincide with the month.

Dived to the floor

At the sound of the gunshots, two foreigners dived to the floor while parents and schoolchildren, more accustomed to this kind of action, rushed to the windows and the open doorway to get a better look.

The gunman held his firearm in open view without any apparent care or awareness of his audience.

Crossing on to open land, he was approached by a woman wearing a white house coat. Apparently his mother, she took hold of his free hand and began to remonstrate with him.

Like a moody teenager, he appeared unaffected by this attention.

The two figures were joined by a young woman wearing a colourful dress. The women flanked him while he walked.

He listened to them, replied forcefully, but did not lose his calm or focus. The three then crossed the land and disappeared from sight.

An hour later, at the spot where they had exited the scene, his 'mother' was seen once again. She was sitting in a chair, watching, waiting.

The meeting inside the church hall continued.

Several parents had previously received dispute resolution training from PALS. Some mothers from inner-city communities had given up their day's wages to attend the conflict resolution education workshop for parents.

Giving testimonies, three mothers from a primary school spoke of no longer beating their children. The fourth mother admitted that she tried to find alternatives, but was struggling.

An acid attack

The story of another woman was especially moving. Permanently scarred from an acid attack by another woman 21 years before, her 13-year-old son had once vowed to kill the perpetrator.

She credited her PALS training for not attempting something similar when the other day, she saw the woman - the first time since the incident. She said that she considered taking revenge and called out to the woman.

But she chose to walk away, an action she said that her son understood and respected - perhaps before he became more like that older son, the confident gunman whose 'mother' still watched over him.

- ross.sheil@gleanerjm.com