Catholic Commission for Social Justice
On Tuesday, June 26, the world will observe the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. The World Drug Report 2017 states that 29.5 million people globally suffer from drug use disorders, including dependence. Opioids are the most harmful. Read what it says about how drug money affects the economy.
Today is Father’s Day! Let’s take some time to reflect on the challenges and opportunities that our fathers in T&T and in the world face.
I don’t think we need research to tell us how important it is for children to have both parents in their lives. And while the nuclear family is under threat, this does not absolve either parent from ensuring that they play a key role in their children’s lives.
As Krystine Batcho states: “Although both fathers and mothers can be sensitive and effective parents, some theorists argue that fathers serve a special role in their children’s development (Paquette, 2004)….With many fathers living separately from their children, it’s important to remember that the essence of closeness isn’t geography; it’s love. When asked if he and his father had been close, Robert De Niro reflected: ‘You can be close to people and not always see them…it is important to recognise also that fathers are impacted by their children.’”
“We must move much faster if we are to honour our commitment on ending child labour, and we need to do it together” UN.
On Tuesday, June 12, we will observe World Day Against Child Labour on the theme: Generation safe and healthy. Pope Francis has lamented the fact that “tens of millions of children are forced to work in degrading conditions, and are victims of slavery and abuse, harassment and discrimination. I truly hope that the international community will extend children’s access to social protection to eradicate this curse. We all need to renew our commitment, especially families, to protect the dignity of every boy and girl and to offer them the opportunity to grow in a healthy environment. A peaceful childhood allows children to look at life and the future with confidence.”
“…the Church proposes a form of justice that is humanising, genuinely reconciliatory, a justice that leads the wrongdoer, through an educative path of encouraged penance, to rehabilitation and total reinsertion in the community.” (Pope Francis)
A Catholic approach to restorative justice “recognizes that the dignity of the human person applies to both victim and offender” (US Bishops). We live in a violent society. Every day the media assail our senses with news of violence/disharmony/disputes. While we thrash around in an effort to find solutions, there are tried and tested solutions staring us in the face.
As we prepare to observe Indian Arrival Day tomorrow (May 30), let us use this opportunity to thank God for the resilience of our forebears. As Desmond Tutu said, “You don’t choose your family, they are God’s gift to you, as you are to them.” Sadly, many of us have failed to document the history of our ancestors.
My maternal grandfather, Robert Henry Fitzgerald Manning, came to Trinidad from Barbados and my maternal grandmother, Enid Nicome, originated from Venezuela. Though we don’t know much about their history before they arrived here, my family has some knowledge of the history of my paternal forebears.