The Editor, Sir:

I am in full support of the Letter of the Day, "Abolish all children's homes! Put them back into families" published January 17. I would like to commend this forward- thinking Jamaican for elevating us to a whole new level of thinking. The writer is absolutely right! Children's homes should be a thing of the past.

Like many of my fellow citizens, I am saddened by the number of children who are left to roam our streets daily and I am constantly in search of the right answer to this problem.

I stand apart from the majority, who believes that street children should be swept up and whisked off to children's homes. Whose best interests would be served by doing this?

Surely, we ought to know that this would merely hide the problem, not fix it. Are we too ashamed to admit that we are failing our children? Is it a case of 'wha eye nuh see, heart nuh leap'?

Come on Jamaica, open your eyes! Let's go back to basics and start looking at what has gone wrong in the family and pour all our energy into its revival. After all, I am sure I have heard before that the Child Care and Protection Act cites the family as the best environment for a child to be raised.

I remember as a child growing up in rural Jamaica. My upbringing was not only in the hands of my family but it was the duty of the entire community. In those days, the saying held true: "It takes a village to raise a child." It worked then and it can work now. It's about time we stop being spectators and commentators and start getting involved in a meaningful way.

I am, etc.,

NOEL SIMPSON

noel.simpson@yahoo .com

Montego Bay

Via Go-Jamaica