A place of sorrow and grief
The Editor, Sir:
Some weeks ago, I awoke with a sense of foreboding. I felt the presence of evil covering this land like a large cloud of volcanic ash. As the recent Icelandic experiences showed, they produced fear and trembling, loss of income and uncertainty. It affected people from all corners of the world, some directly and some indirectly.
Increasingly, I awake each morning searching for the joy which is becoming hidden in this land, as I realise that the killings have afflicted at least three generations of Jamaicans in those places now described as garrisons. We see the effects of intergenerational trauma in the psychology and behaviour of our citizens. I am wondering if the development of these enclaves is one of the unintended consequences of Independence.
For some citizens, Independence has meant more dependence on Government and
Bereavement and sorrow now plague thousands of families, with the experience of loss becoming the norm. I grieve when I realise that the daily scandals and the avalanche of lies being fed to us by our leaders are symptoms of a very sick society. These problems have been growing for decades, but the absence of will has allowed them to thrive. Imagine if we had been able to develop a consensus about the
Tarnished reputation
Instead, we have had ad hoc policies, cutting a piece here and a piece there. This results in
Too many people's tears are on this place and we are rapidly running out of solutions. My grandmother would have said "puh", an old time expression of disgust. Do we look to ourselves, run away or form some new coalitions? I wish that I had the answer in this time of collective failure.
It is my hope and prayer that we will rise from these ashes as so many have invested their lives and resources for generations. Our elders, children and grandchildren deserve a better future.
I am, etc.,
Hilary Robertson-Hickling
UWI