Persons operating bars or shops near cemeteries and having a Class 3 license to sell alcohol need not worry about the Bill to amend the Public Order Act expected to be dealt with at the next scheduled Sitting of Parliament beginning tomorrow, May 9.
According to Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves, the focus – from the government’s standpoint – will remain on the procession.
Gonsalves said on the radio on May 8 that the amendment dealt principally with the consumption of alcohol at funeral processions, which according to him had now become quite terrible.
And although the proposed Bill also addressed what usually takes place in cemeteries.
“The only problem with that part of it (Bill) and I have asked the drafts persons to look again at that because when you have a law, you need it to be precise,” Gonsalves explained.
And although a cemetery has boundaries, they are not usually marked.
“So, if you are going to make a law in that regard, you have to make sure I believe to help persons to know at which point they can do what.”
The Bill, Gonsalves explained, focuses on the central problem – people consuming rum and other alcoholic beverages at funerals with some individuals getting intoxicated to the point where they behave badly.
This country has a tradition of a funeral procession blocking the main streets, something that is not seen in some of the major cities around the world according to Gonsalves.
“But we have that tradition and people, motorists and other users of the road are satisfied that they will go along with the inconvenience and wait a while,” he said.
“But you do not want to be waiting a while for what is a Carnival jump up, well you would probably jump up because it is a celebration, you can play music and all the rest of it and beat the drum if you want to do that.”
“This drinking of alcohol in the procession, and the icebox behind the hearse, people selling 3 for $10, surely, in our civilization I think you go down the road and 8 or 9 of every 10 persons will tell you that is wrong,” Gonsalves continued.
He said that it was unfortunate that the situation had gotten to the point where it needed to be regulated rather than good sense prevailing because there has always been the singing and dancing and music in the procession to the cemetery.
“And long may that continue, but you can’t turn it into an excuse even though we are celebrating…you cannot have it as an excuse for bacchanalia,” he contended.
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