The Editor, Sir:

I am writing this letter in wake of the recent brutal killings of children in our country. Now, most people are quick to blame fathers for their lack of support for their children, when in fact, the society needs to take a closer look at some of the mothers.

I have a two-year-old son whom I haven't seen since late January and his mother has made sure I don't get to see my son as since May 11 this year, I haven't heard from her.

She has not answered my calls and I went to where she lives on several occasions only to find no one home.

For the last two years, I have sacrficed my own needs to support my son, and in April of this year his mother sent me a text message saying I wasn't his real father. When I demanded a DNA paternity test, she refused and told me to stop calling her as it was affecting her current relationship.

Wants paternity test

I got a lawyer friend of mine to call her and she called me saying I have my woman calling her. I told her I wanted to do a paternity test to determine if she is telling the truth or not. I asked her if I wasn't the boy's father then who was, she declined to tell me. I asked where he was and she said she didn't know. At the time, she was living in Rock River, Clarendon.

All my efforts to contact her have been futile. Right now, I'm being denied my rights as a father and my son is being denied his father. When I was struggling to support my son, it was me alone, no one else. I made sure he had everything.

When you check all around, you find agencies dedicated to women all across Jamaica, What about the rights of fathers? Are we not important or should not have any say in our children's lives? This situation is not uncommon in Jamaica because I know for a fact more than 20 persons who were denied their rightful fathers. Most men just give up as it is the easier thing to do. I promise this, I will not rest until I find my son.

I am, etc.,

CURTIS BARKER

alexcbark@hotmail.com

Via Go-Jamaica

_