Students March for Peace in Gregory Park
By: , March 9, 2023
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Students from the Gregory Park Primary School raise their voices against crime and violence in the community, during a Peace Day march on Tuesday (March 7) under the theme ‘Mek Wi Grow in Peace.’
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Students from the Gregory Park Primary School raise their voices against crime and violence in the community, during a Peace Day march on Tuesday (March 7) under the theme ‘Mek Wi Grow in Peace.’
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Member of Parliament for St. Catherine East Central, Hon. Alando Terrelonge (stooping, right) plants a tree seedling at the Gregory Park Primary School, during a Peace Day march in the community on Tuesday (March 7), which was organised by the school. Guidance Counsellor at the school, Romane Sohan (left), assists in watering the plant, while Principal, Richard Williams (fourth left), students and residents, look on.
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Member of Parliament for St. Catherine East Central, Hon. Alando Terrelonge (right), participates in a tree-planting exercise at the Gregory Park Primary School in St. Catherine, during a Peace Day march in the community on Tuesday (March 7). Others pictured (from left) are Guidance Counsellor at the school, Romane Sohan; Principal, Richard Williams and Vice Principal, Ayodele Taylor-McDonald.
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Member of Parliament for St. Catherine East Central, Hon. Alando Terrelonge (second left), participates in a Peace Day march in the Gregory Park community of St. Catherine on Tuesday (March 7). Others (from left) are Vice Principal at the Gregory Park Primary School, Ayodele Taylor-McDonald; Principal, Richard Williams; Guidance Counsellor, Romane Sohan and Education Officer with the Ministry of Education and Youth, Omar Thomas.The Full Story
Hundreds of placard-bearing students from Gregory Park Primary School in St. Catherine marched in the community on Tuesday (March 7), calling for an end to crime and violence.
The Peace Day event, under the theme ‘Mek Wi Grow In Peace’, was organised by the school and included residents from the area.
It was supported by Member of Parliament for St. Catherine East Central, Hon. Alando Terrelonge; National Integrity Action (NIA); Social Development Commission (SDC); Youth Crime Watch of Jamaica; and several service clubs in the parish.
Mr. Terrelonge hailed the children, who led the march throughout the community, as exemplary young leaders.
He noted that they are “calling for peace, for an end to the strife and surge of violence that has been plaguing Gregory Park and I want the residents to listen to them”.
He said students are sending a message that they want the area to be rid of gangsters, who, though small in number, disrupt community life and “it is time for the residents to rise up against these oppressors, so that they can flee your community. They have no business here”.
“I want the gang members to put down the weapons and take a lesson from these children. Peace costs nothing,” he said, noting that violence destroys.
Principal of the Gregory Park Primary School, Richard Williams, said he was pleased with the number of residents who came out to support and cheer on the students, noting that “we are looking to see what [will come out] of this peace march”.
“We believe that with the critical stakeholders coming together and speaking with one voice, we will send a strong message to the criminal elements that we stand in solidarity for our students to be given an opportunity to grow in an environment that is peaceful and conducive to them,” he added.
Parish Manager of the SDC, Ishiwana Hope, said the agency saw the march as “very important in restoring peace in Gregory Park”, noting that the children have sent a clear message of peace to the adults.
Member of Youth Crime Watch Jamaica, Kerry-Ann Walker, for her part, welcomed the “message of hope” from the children and urged the community to act on the charge given by the students.