Building a Better Jamaica

BY KIMMO MATTHEWS Observer staff reporter matthewsk@jamaicaobserver.com
Friday, August 20, 2010

Courtesy of Jamaica Observer

THE Tredegar Park All-Age School in St Catherine will be reopened for the start of the new school year in September, Education Minister Andrew Holness said yesterday.

Holness, who made the announcement during a tour of the violence-plagued community where gunmen shot dead eight people last week Friday, said discussions were being carried out to send additional resources to the school and to ensure that programmes were put in place to ensure that students affected by violence received special counselling.

Holness toured the community a day after National Security Minister Dwight Nelson visited and announced the assignment of a mobile police post to the area.

Minister Holness said the Government was committed to not make the actions of gunmen or criminal elements stop the operations of the school.

"The school definitely is a starting point for us to correct what has gone wrong in the society, so we're not going to close the school," said Holness.

He said his ministry, along with other support staff, would also discuss, strategise and work out a programme to encourage parents to continue sending their children to school despite what had happened.

Yesterday, officials of the Social Development Commission (SDC), Victim Support Unit, Child Development Agency, Ministry of Labour and Social Security and the Peace Management Initiative also visited the area.

"The purpose of our visit here is to just talk to residents and carry out an assessment to find out what are their needs and to see how best we can help," said one SDC representative.

Head of the Peace Management Initiative Bishop Herro Blair said it was unfortunate that the team was in Tredegar Park because of such s tragic incident.

Blair gave the assurance that he would be working closely with residents to bring back some level of hope to the community.