Gareth Manning, Sunday Gleaner Reporter

Whittingham

There has been strong support from civil society for the peaceful conduct of the general election that is constitutionally due in the last quarter of this year.

"The law must prevail. No (corrupt) method must be used to stifle the people and the nation," remarks central Kingston community activist Dunstan Whittingham.

He is reacting to Commissioner of Police Lucius Thomas' warning last week that the country could be sinking into another bloody national election based on what, he said, were signs of increased movement and accumulation of guns in some communities.

"All measures should be put in place to ensure the people exercise their democratic right," Whittingham, who is chairman of the central Kingston Task Team, told The Sunday Gleaner yesterday. He is also calling for the collaboration of state agencies and communities to protect the electoral process and make suggestions on ways in which peace can be maintained in the society.

Echoing a similar theme, Charlene Sharpe-Pryce, political commentator and lecturer at the Northern Caribbean University, said the key to preventing violence was more dialogue with all stakeholders.

"As a society, we need to emphasise the importance of building relations, not simply through peace marches etcetera, but have increased numbers of forums (at the community level) where both parties' personnel will share the stage/spotlight in a positive light - not a clash of cultures," argues Sharpe-Pryce. "We need to seriously equip persons with the skills to manage conflicts."

Peace-building Initiative

She notes that everyone has a part to play in the peace-building initiative and all groups of the society should see themselves as having a part to play.

"There is a view within the society, especially within the working class, that questions the role of the ordinary citizen in any peace-building process. Many are of the view that their fate and life are in the hands of two sectors - government and the business class. Everyone else is a 'victim', simply 'on-lookers' and they may get a direct role if they are provoked into participating via demonstrations, etcetera," Sharpe-Pryce opines.

She adds that young professionals in particular, who often make up the bulk of the uncommitted voters, do not see themselves playing a role in peace building, but that should change.

In addition, she says people are of the view that politicians and even the Electoral Office are underestimating the importance of the upcoming general election. As a result, she says, there is some worry about whether the election will be conducted credibly.

"The view on the street is that more is at stake in this upcoming election than was at stake in the 1980 election. The lines drawn this time are not simply ideological (socialism versus capitalism) but they cut across various sub-cultural cleavages of class, gender, race and even religion," explains Sharpe-Pryce.

Upcoming Election

"There are cries from many middle-class communities in east and central Jamaica for a boycotting of the process as people are literally afraid! Persons are questioning whether or not the police can handle anything else on their plate, thus, can they manage realistically the challenges expected in this upcoming election," she argues.

In his reaction to the fear of election violence, churchman and president of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, Senator Norman Grant, says while the country has matured over the last 25 years, it needs to reaffirm hope that it will not take a step backward. He says the political Code of Conduct established by the Private Sector of Jamaica will play an important part in this.

"It should be used in the churches and in the communities to inform and educate people so they know that they don't have to go back to the past," he says.