THE EDITOR Sir, THE SCENE is a tertiary institution in Portmore. The students are middle class. The accounts class has just ended. A student hurries from the class leaving an expensive cell phone on his desk. A fellow student takes up the phone in full view of the class. Minutes later, the owner of the phone returns, searches frantically; then inquires of his classmates if they had seen his phone.
The student who has taken the phone, questions the hapless student as to whether he left his phone there. Girls in the class, who saw the phone being stolen, make comments which support the posture of the thief. No member of that class was prepared to say what they had seen, neither to the school authorities nor to either of the boys involved.
When my young relative, an eyewitness to the theft, brought it to my attention, she vigorously resisted my efforts to get her either to confront the thief or to report the matter to the school's authorities. She feared for her physical safety, despite my assurances.
There is a lesson here for law enforcement officers, educators and for the media. The police should recognise that this 'code of silence' has seeped into our national psyche. Long before this trend is reversed the police will need (if they are to successfully prosecute cases) to rely heavily on forensic evidence.
For the media, the lesson appears that there is a need to be more critical of their sources. For the educators, they must attempt to do what the family and church have failed to do, that is to impress upon these youngsters that they are primarily responsible for the kind of country they will live in. No Government, no police force or agency can secure their fundamental right to 'peace and good order' in the absence of their full participation.
I am, etc.,
PETER CLARKE
Greater Portmore
lenmithcus@yahoo.com
