Letter of the Day | ‘I am 13, and I no longer feel safe in Jamaica’

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I am a 13-year-old Jamaican high-school student and I love my country. Our rich culture, formidable spirit and great people make me proud to be Jamaican. Although I love this country, I have recently began seriously contemplating migrating to Barbados.

Why would I want to leave this lovely country? Crime has made it very difficult to remain safe as it is out of control. I don’t have to read the newspaper to hear about crime in Jamaica, as it has showed up in our schools. Students are being robbed and killed on their way to school, and I no longer feel safe. On a recent visit to Barbados, I was impressed with the condition of the roads and the lack of pollution in the capital city of Bridgetown. On my daily journey to school, the view in Kingston is piles of garbage and large potholes on the roads.

If I woke up tomorrow and the issues were fixed, I would definitely change my mind and stay in my home country. However, to fix the problems, we have to be united and work together to get it done. If our government and opposition members could come together to work out a crime plan, rather than fight each other, maybe we could show the criminals that we are a united to fight back against them. If all citizens took pride in our country and cared about it enough, we could stop the pollution and take better care of our communities.

I hope and pray that our beautiful Jamaica would be back to the country it was.

CONCERNED

JAMAICAN STUDENT