Twitter in uproar after Holness blames dancehall for ‘culture of violence’
Gavin Riley / Our Today
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Prime Minister Andrew Holness is today (March 31) facing mounting criticism from Jamaican Twitter users for comments made in Parliament that seemingly slammed dancehall musicians as contributors to the island’s violence epidemic.
Holness, speaking in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, felt that for too long the country had been “ambivalent” to the disturbingly high levels of violence.
The Jamaican Twitterati, however, called out Holness for being a hypocrite, when for months he publicly accepted the ‘Honourable BroGad’ moniker and used it for political leverage.
Others were critical of the fact that PM Holness and the security forces are no closer to taming Jamaica’s crime monster, opting instead to rail against dancehall music as a larger influencer.
While there were some who agreed with the prime minister, having found his argument to be reality staring the society in the face.
In his address, Holness, who initially advocated for parents to desist from beating children willy-nilly, defended women’s rights and stood up for the sanctity of life, later argued that musicians had a role to play in the ‘permissibility’ of violence.
“When will we reach the point as a society, where we come to the understanding that in our music and our culture—in as much as you are free to reflect what is happening in the society—you also have a duty to place it in context?” he asked.
“That to tek up the AK47 and dun it in a man head; that is not right! And though you have the protection of the [Jamaican] Constitution to sing about it, you also have a duty to the children who are listening to you,” Holness added.
The prime minister, continuing, contended that until Jamaican society comes to the understanding that “all forms of violence is wrong”, however, he ended the point abruptly, noting that the country is “not there yet”.
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He said he was expecting “to be in the headlines tomorrow”, as well as arguments to “leave it alone” but concluded that Jamaica was “not yet serious”, adding he would be “happy to see the outrage”.
“It tells me there is a change happening in the society. Unfortunately, it is for nine days at a time, it not sustained. And I’ve recognised that, I am not new to this wicket of speaking about violence, ” Holness remarked.
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