Minister of Educational Transformation, Senator Chad Blackman, used the rural school of murdered teen Shawnaton Chase as a backdrop to send a message of sympathy over the child’s death from stray bullets in a gun attack at a Silver Hill, Christ Church netball court.
Speaking to reporters outside The Lodge School at Massiah Street, St John, Blackman said he had already conveyed his condolences to the father of the slain teen and called for an end to senseless violence.
He said: “In addition to the condolences I offered, I want to use this time to speak to the country and say to our people, to our young people. We have a great country, we have a country that we all love. Moments like this cause us to reflect on that; we have to stop the violence. We have to bring back love in our communities, and there is no place for violence in modern Barbados.”
Blackman further pledged the ministry’s full support to those affected by the tragedy, stating that counsellors have already been provided to the school to help students and teachers during this difficult time.
“We will offer every level of support that we can, not just to the immediate family, but of course to the school and to any young person or person who would have also seen anything that would have caused dramatic reactions in them to come forward… but we must hold our communities together,” Blackman explained.
BUT President Rudy Lovell.
“I can tell you that the police, of course, are carrying on their investigations, and we will leave that to them, but I also, as a father, cannot begin to express what Mr Chase is going through this morning… we just have to do better. We have to stop the senseless killings and we have to hold ourselves accountable.”
President of the Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT), Rudy Lovell, who also expressed his sympathy to the family and friends affected, described the incident as deeply concerning and highlighted the need for collective action to combat the crime wave.
“The act that led to his death is concerning, as people, especially children, should feel safe when partaking in recreational activities. This death, along with the fact that a 15-year-old has recently been charged with murder, has left me speechless. The problem of violence needs an all-of-country approach. People should not be living in fear,” he said.
Lovell further noted that the incident, along with other reported cases of crime over the last several months, may lead to a rise in fear among citizens, who may hesitate to participate in extracurricular activities.
He explained: “We really need to take stock of what is happening because, if it is that people will have a fear of participating in social activities, sporting activities, you are leaving people to coop up in their homes. This might then lead to other issues like mental health, stress… this is a big issue as far as I’m concerned. I would like to see a national effort to try to address this crime wave that we are experiencing.”
Felicia Dujon, DLP spokesman on education.
Democratic Labour Party (DLP) spokesperson on education, Felicia Dujon, echoing these remarks, emphasised the shooting’s emotional toll on young people.
She said: “It’s important that our young persons, our students, and our youth feel safe in an environment. Could you imagine how young men feel, how young children feel right now? That it appears that a young person who was just going outside to play has lost their life. I think it’s really something that is tragic. We, as adults, have to now start reflecting: is it a safe environment for us to even participate in, because right now what you’d find is a lot of children will not want to go outside and play because of the risk of losing their lives.
“It’s a very serious matter, and this is a matter that, as I said, has happened before, but I think now that the child has died, a young person has died, it has really resonated with persons that this is the likelihood that our children could be killed by just being outside playing.”
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