By Shawn Seabrookes
Staff Reporter, SKNVibes.com
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(Basseterre; St. Kitts): The annual Children’s march took Basseterre by storm, creating an almost carnival-like atmosphere, as an estimated 5000 plus children testified of the increased local human resource as well as presented the hope of positive options for St. Kits and Nevis’ future.
Under the wings of ignorance, I would have estimated the number of children to be in the tens of thousands, but taking into consideration the laws of proportion, I knew better. However, such was the vast throng of children that participated in the march.
At one point the front of the march was on Church Street, while the end was still in Greenlands, the.jpg)
starting point!
June has been branded as Child Month annually, and this year the operative theme was “Make the World Fit for Children”. There was also a special appeal linked to the theme that implored parents and guardians to invest in early childhood education.
It was very reassuring to see many parents and guardians take some time off from their various jobs to share in the moment with the children, which underscores the need for parental involvement in the development of the children.
The children displayed placards sharing tips that will positively impact their upbringing and wore costumes drawing attention to various cultures while others were quite content to just share the moment with their family and dance to the music.
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There was the steelband, the Hi Fi and drum corps, all of which played a critical role in producing an environment conducive to good, clean fun.Coordinator for the March, Mrs. Vanta Walters said she was very pleased with the turn out to the march and took the opportunity to re-emphasize the need to educate children on various pertinent issues in the local community.
She indicated that it was not too early to educate the children about literacy, crime and violence and health issues such as HIV/AIDS.
One interesting feature in the march was the presence of the Police recruits which was indicative of the emphasis being placed on law and order.
In addition to Mrs. Vanta Walters at the front of the march, there were several resource teachers who accompanied her including Valerie Dolphin, Jacquelyn Morris, June Wallace and Rosalind Otto.
The march was certainly exciting as it highlights a very important component of our society- family building- but in another perspective it raised several eyebrows when one realizes that there are so many children in St. Kitts- and those who were absent from the march and the expectant mothers were excluded!
As usual, the march culminated at the Independence Square. It was filled to capacity as many of the parents, guardians and children stayed around to enjoy an afternoon of picnicking.
