Jamaica has been through many governments, countless ministers of national security, not to mention assaults on crime. To what end? None of these has served to make the country any safer from violent crimes and an ever-rising murder rate.

The perpetrators of violence can be found among any class, age, or socio-economic community in Jamaica. It is an equal-opportunity scourge in the very fabric of society.

And what has led to a nation of very abusive people? Domestic violence. The breeding ground is the home where men are given free rein to administer beatings on women in plain view of children and the rest of the community. It has become a learned behaviour, passed on from generation to generation. No one knows how to resolve conflicts except by hitting. This has led to the most vulnerable, women and children, paying the highest price.

Unchecked

Why has this gone unchecked for so long? No one wants to take away the right of the Jamaican male to be a man? That would sound like the refrain, "I will not stop Jamaican men from having sexual intercourse." This was in response to a call for legislation against sexual harassment at the workplace.

Someone needs to bell this cat. A woman nine months pregnant or a young mother holding her two-year-old should not have to suffer the indignity of a beating by her so-called lover. A parent should not have to worry if a child will arrive at school, or come home at the end of the day. The very same people who are asked to serve in our security forces are brought up in the same violent homes and communities. Is it any wonder they act the way they do?

A change has to take place if we wish for a better place that future generations can grow up in, and be allowed to achieve their full potential. A zero-tolerance policy on domestic violence must be immediately introduced, and the re-education of the nation is to begin and be sustained.

I am, etc.,

Patrick Roach

pgerry2001@yahoo.com

Toronto, Canada