Jamaica must do serious soul-searching
Published:Saturday | July 13, 2013 | 12:00 AM
THE EDITOR, Sir:
1. The truth shall make you free. (John 8:32)
2. Truth never damages a cause that is just. (Mohandas K. Gandhi, Non-Violence in Peace and War)
3. A truth that's told with bad intent beats all the lies you can invent. (William Blake, Auguries of Innocence)
4. Truly, to tell lies is not honourable; but when the truth entails tremendous ruin, to speak dishonourably is pardonable. (Sophocles)
5. There are truths which are not for all men, nor for all occasions. (Voltaire)
'JUSTICE, TRUTH, be ours forever' are the words of our national anthem. Truth-telling is honourable and noble. But if all truths were known, there would be no peace on earth!
It is commonly accepted that there can be no peace without justice and that truth facilitates the latter. But the presence of one does not necessarily ensure the other. The opposite has often been the reality.
History is replete with numerous instances of feuds lasting many generations, revenge resulting in destruction of property and murders, and sometimes all-out war with countless loss of life, simply from the truth coming to light. World War I comes to mind.
Truth is like a sharp machete; a very useful tool and a most destructive weapon and should, therefore, be handled very carefully.
FACT-FINDING MISSION
A commission of enquiry will be held into the Tivoli uprising of May 2010 which resulted in more than 70 deaths. It is a fact-finding mission aimed at unravelling the truth of one of the most unfortunate periods in modern Jamaican history.
'Tell the truth about what happened in Tivoli and let there be justice and compensation for the victims' is the proclamation of many.
This enquiry may prove to be another staging of the matching of wits of attorneys representing the Government and Opposition. Conflicting interests will no doubt surface. It is not inconceivable that the truth will be presented and obscured with half-truths and lies.
But there is an uncomfortable truth which we do not need any commission of enquiry to inform us of. How long from now, or what will prevent another uprising, if the socio-economic conditions, political structure and culture remain intact in those constituencies referred to as zones of political exclusion?
Our political leaders seem to be in denial. It is not only a commission of enquiry which is needed, but also time for us to start some serious soul-searching.
DAIVE R. FACEY