A group of children being instructed by a teacher in an inner-city community. She has painted blackboards on walls to continue her lessons in the pandemic after schools were closed. Credit: Kate Chappell
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Dec 16 2020 (IPS) - In Jamaica, school playgrounds are deserted, filled only with phantom shrieks of delight. Blackboards remain devoid of arithmetic and uniforms hang wrinkle-free in closets. When the first case of Covid hit Jamaican shores in early March, the government closed primary and secondary schools and over 500,000 children transitioned to remote learning. The majority of schools have yet to resume face-to-face classes since the March 13 closure.
By Kate Chappell, Thomson Reuters Foundation
6 Min Read
KINGSTON, Nov 16 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Early each morning, Pamelita Dann arrives at her farm in eastern Jamaica hoping thieves have not stolen any of her crops. She carefully checks the onions, watermelon and papayas - more often than not, something has been snatched overnight.
Over the 14 years Dann has been cultivating her 2-acre (0.8-hectare) plot in Poor Man’s Corner, a rural community an hour east of the capital, Kingston, the 60-year-old farmer has had about $3,500 worth of crops, fertilizer and tools stolen.
“It happens every other day. As long as (the produce) is there, they will steal it,” she said.
Jamaican women worst hit by livestock and crop theft in pandemic reuters.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from reuters.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Jamaica is part of this planet, existing in an era of unprecedented environmental concerns. Climate change, pollution, resource depletion, and loss of biodiversity threaten our planet and life as we know it. In our perennial campaigns to expose corruption and other forms of white-collar crimes, the transgressions of those who violate our laws to protect the environment and human healthcare are often overlooked.
Admittedly, enlightened citizens who are championing to preserve our natural treasures like the Cockpit Country, and our forests, mangroves and beaches, have trumpeted their concerns. However, the nature and scope of environmental crimes on this land of wood and water can extend well beyond disregarding environmental laws, and may include other fraudulent acts that can range from schemes such as falsification of data, inflation of invoices, concocted environmental impact studies, bribery of officials, and fraudulent insurance claims.