The Christian Council is concerned about the recent development reported in the media where the Prime Minister, Dr the Honourable Ralph Gonsalves was injured during a demonstration outside The House of Assembly on August 5, 2021. While our democracy allows for the freedom of expression which derives from our dignity as human person, freedom brings with it responsibility – personal and social. The injuring of the PM by one of the crowd, demonstrates a certain intolerance of divergent views, opinions and positions. The Council continues to abhor violence and urges those who choose to protest to do so peacefully and responsibly. We encourage those who organize protest to make every effort to ensure they are peaceful and ask that all our leaders avoid incendiary language. We are also concerned about the immaturity that has pervaded our society and its politics where the justification of one wrong is another which often leads to both sides of the political divide pointing to the short-comings or previous actions of the other as excuse from responsibility.
We encourage our political leaders to be clear and unambiguous in discouraging violence and to act responsibly in navigating differences and the leadership they provide in these challenging times.
We pray for healing and recovery for the Prime Minister. We pray for wisdom and discretion by the protesters. We pray for a spirit of contrition and reconciliation in the perpetrator. We pray that we will find mature ways to express and respond to grievances. We pray for collaboration, cooperation, camaraderie, and godly fear as we seek to build our nation together.