Funds Dry Up For Local Human-Rights Lobbies

Says the headline in today's Gleaner, some of us like smaller lesser known entities like GLBTQ Jamaica or Aphrodite's P.R.I.D.E Jamaica rely on individual donations from readers or funding from the FCO as was the case with the APJ Enterprise Training Project activities. There maybe some local donations by kind individuals via cheque or even cash as well especially for special requests for crisis interventions but those are drying up as hard times or belt tightening becomes more the norm.

I am wondering what is the purpose of this article though as there have been some push-back on human rights groups especially since the JFJ sex ed fiasco of so called foreign imposition of values via money and funding by some of the same persons ironically named in the piece below such as Betty Ann Blaine and even the acting public defender hinted to it HERE. Then there is the mischief making by first time MP Damion Crawford (same one who belittled Portia's Buggery Review/Conscience Vote suggestion) and his take on rights organizations and agendas.

Now to the story:

The reluctance of one local human-rights lobby to push the agenda of overseas backers has resulted in the curtailing of its operations, and the futures of similar organisations are in jeopardy as the ability to secure international funding to fight for citizens' rights has become increasingly difficult.

Yvonne McCalla-Sobers, who chairs advocacy group Families Against State Terrorism (FAST), told The Sunday Gleaner that the non-government organisation (NGO) has been unable to fulfil its mandate in recent times because of a lack of funding.

The group was started in 2001 following the alleged extrajudicial killing of two citizens by police in separate incidents.

"It was supposed to seek justice for family members who have been killed by the police or suffered in some way from the State," McCalla-Sobers said.

But McCalla-Sobers noted that apart from the fact that the families they represent had started to become weary of delayed justice for their relatives, "there is also the issue that where you get your funding sometimes can dictate what you do or don't do".

She noted that, at times, advocacy groups such as FAST were being asked to make compromises in order to secure funding.

She said that in the beginning, her group was primarily getting funding from Jamaicans within the diaspora but, following the recession, it was necessary to seek funding from international agencies primarily based in the United Kingdom (UK).

"The compromise would have been in, let us say, other persons far away deciding on the action that should be taken here," said McCalla-Sobers, who did not want to elaborate on the types of compromises her group was being required to make.

"The requests were nothing that would have been unethical, but it's just not in the direction that we saw the need here," she quickly pointed out.

Last week, Opposition Leader Andrew Holness called for the establishment of a commission of human rights to assist in safeguarding the rights of citizens.

His call came following the killing of construction worker Mario Deane, who died on Independence Day as a result of injuries sustained while at the Barnett Street Police Station in St James.

STRENGTHEN EXISTING INSTITUTIONS

However, legal luminary and former chairman of the Independent Jamaica Council for Human Rights (IJCHR), Dr Lloyd Barnett, believes the focus ought to be on strengthening existing human-rights institutions rather than creating a new one.

"I would like to see what it is that he is proposing because we sometimes react to problems by creating new posts rather than strengthening existing posts, and you get a multiplicity of positions, each underfunded and inadequate for the task," he said.

Much like FAST, he said the IJCHR is currently challenged to carry out projects because of a lack of funding. He said the council's last major project for which it received funding dates back to two years ago.

Most of the IJCHR's focus now, he said, is on education rather than advocacy, which can be very expensive.

"In order to conduct a human-rights advocacy or human-rights programme, money is needed, both for staff and material. You have to provide staff to interview people to receive their complaints … . That requires money. You have to pay rent, pay telephone bills, pay for all the normal things that you require to run an office and to provide a service. In addition to that, you would have to carry out investigations or to employ persons to advise on technical matters," he said.

Barnett said that although in the past the group got funding from a number of agencies, including USAID and the Commonwealth Secretariat, today, "a lot of the funding is based upon specific programmes".

Last year, parliamentarian Raymond Pryce suggested that it be made mandatory for interest groups to disclose their sources of funding and publish their financials.

He told The Sunday Gleaner that while these organisations help to keep democracy robust, "many times, they can receive funds in a subversive way that has hidden agendas, and many times those sources of funds come from agencies that are inimical to the way of life of the wider society".

Checks made by The Sunday Gleaner with at least 10 of the country's more prominent interest groups showed that while several were 100 per cent locally funded, there were many others that received the majority of or all their funding from overseas.

J-FLAG LOOKS TO US, UK

"We have to apply for grants much like any other NGOs and they are largely out of the United States and we have one donor in the UK," said Dane Lewis, executive director of the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG).

The group's donors are listed on its website and include organisations such as Freedom House, Frontline Defenders, the Mac AIDS Fund, and Open Society Foundation.

Funding for the organisation primarily comes from overseas, and much of it is used for public education, Lewis said.

Lobbies such as Citizens Action for Principles and Integrity (CAPI), the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) and National Integrity Action (NIA) are among those that receive both local and international funding.

Co-convenor for CAPI, Dennis Meadows, said while the group's four executive members are the ones primarily financing its advocacy work, persons locally and overseas have been making donations through the group's website.

He said his organisation was a virtual one and membership at last check stood at around 4,500 persons, with donations from the diaspora amounting to no more than US$1,000 per year.

"From a NGO standpoint, you have to build a foundation before you can seek to approach international agencies," he said when quizzed about his funding sources.

Diana McCaulay, JET's chief executive officer, said her organisation receives grant funding from overseas, but the work it does is also possible due to the help of local sponsors and membership fees.

The 24-year-old organisation currently has about 400-500 individuals on its mailing list and, of this number, about 200 persons pay fees annually.

MAINLY LOCAL FUNDING

"There have been years where we have had larger foreign amounts, and then that year, it would look like the foreign donation was greater, but if you look the whole of JET's life, I would say local funding is, by far, the majority," she said.

Professor Trevor Munroe, executive director of the NIA, said his group was primarily funded by USAID and the Department for International Development, but gets technical support from the Jamaica Civil Society Coalition and Flow.

Flow has, for example, given NIA free cable advertisement space valued at more than $2 million per month.

"They provide funds, but we are the persons who decide how those funds are utilised. They don't tell us," said Munroe in regard to NIA's international partners.

The groups that rely primarily on local funders include Hear the Children's Cry, the Lawyers Christian Fellowship and the recently convened Churches Action Uniting Society for Emancipation (CAUSE).

Co-founder of Hear the Children's Cry, Betty Ann Blaine, said the group was heavily reliant on charitable donations and grant funding from the private sector to carry out its work.

"We operate on a very small budget. Our budget is not more than $2 million per year," she asserted. "We have no overseas funding. All of our funding, right now, is from within Jamaica."

She lamented the fact that several NGOs have been forced to close their doors in recent times because of the inability to secure funding.

ENDS

Why did the author not get more information from JCHS, LCF or Jamaica CAUSE on their budgets or funding sources? I find it a bit strange as they have or seem to have millions at their disposal with all the full paged ads they have managed to put out in the same paper that can sometimes run into millions of dollars literally dependent on the day in question they are published. The paraphernalia as well in their Bain protests does not come cheap either and therefore must be coming from another source of funding, I say foreign ones that were not disclosed. I has well been established that homophobic or anti gay groups outside the US and as far as Africa such as Uganda have all benefited from funding from US based religious linked groups and personalities who cannot do their hate in the US so they export it.

Yet we are to believe that these groups are so lowly they only receive local funding!?

Did the author or editor of the Gleaner did not want to ruffle the feathers of their largest customer with their full paged ads so no pressure or questions were brought to bear as to the real state of affairs of their funding? given that one of the criticisms towards gay activism is so called imposed values and beliefs funded by foreigners yet we see the very same strategy in their camp and when such overseas funding for LGBT groups do not come easy as one has to prove and write proposals etc. if it were so easy as I wish it was groups like mine and others would have been fat with cash and able to do far more work than how snails pace we are.

Anyway I still want to encourage you my readers to continue your support as it is crucial for smaller frontline groups and individuals like me. Donations are accepted via Paypal securely where the donations buttons are located or

Tel: 1-876-813-4942 if any difficulties or email: lgbtevent@gmail.com

Thank You

Peace and tolerance 

H

National Children’s Summit for Jamaica Conference Centre for August Excludes Sexuality Issues

The following press release came to had via email from a reader originally from the Child Development Agency, CDA and it struck me that the core issues of sexuality, early initiation and sex that have bee raised via various incidents (JFJ sex manual matter included) and by numerous public commentators and private citizens yet this upcoming conference seems to nicely ignore those realities. In light of the recent announcement Youth Ministry to develop programmes to address LGBT youth, homeless, destitute and vulnerable children a conference of this type would at least begin to look at some of these issues affecting teens even as none state actors also shrug their ow responsibilities in a sense while passing them off to government.

Just saying ..........

The release said:

Nearly 600 children from across Jamaica will converge on the Jamaica Conference Centre on August 21, 2014, for the Child Development Agency’s first National Children’s Summit.

Being spearheaded by CDA’s Children Advisory Panel (CAP), under the theme, “Creating Opportunities for Jamaica’s Vulnerable Children- Opening Doors to Securing a Brighter Future,” the Summit is part of the CDA’s 10th anniversary celebrations being observed from June 1, 2014 to May 31, 2015.

CAP is a 15-member grouping pulled from different sectors of the society which was established in 2012 to provide child-friendly advice to CDA’s Executive Management Team and the CDA Advisory Board..

In addition to CAP members, those to attend the Summit include children nominated from youth organizations, church groups; children who are in the care of the State and representatives of the Office of the Children’s Registry Child Ambassador corps, the Office of the Children’s Advocate Children’s Advisory Group and the National Centre for Youth Development, among others.

CDA’s CAP Chairperson Charles Young explained that the team had identified the need for the Summit as part of its general itinerary of activities and is primarily an extension of its mandate to seek and represent the views of children, especially those who are in the care of the State on matters affecting them.

“The objective of the Summit is to create an environment in which children ages 9 to 17 can interact and share experiences and views on critical issues affecting them in Jamaica, and to make recommendations on how these issues can be addressed,” Mr. Young said, pointing to a number of issues which have been impacting children and young persons, including child abuse, neglect, general violence permeating the society, bulling, and general lack of respect for others and their properties, and other socioeconomic factors impacting almost every individual.

“Our goal is to give these children a voice. During the Summit, we will encourage them to have open and honest discussions on the matters affecting them, and to come up with solutions that we can share with the leadership of the CDA,” Mr. Young said.

Giving details on the features of the Summit, Kinshashia Johnson, PR Officer for the CDA CAP said that the event will feature an official opening ceremony, with speeches by the Minister of Youth and Culture, the Hon. Lisa Hanna, and CEO of the CDA Rosalee Gage-Grey and child representatives; topical workshop discussions, and interactive sessions on technology, art and craft, and career development.

Workshop sessions will include discussions on Managing Conflict; Knowing Your Rights as well as Your Responsibilities; Helping Children Transition from the Primary to Secondary Education System; Success for Today, Tomorrow and Beyond; Developing Entrepreneurial Skills and Abilities and Technology for Kids and Teens.

Ms. Johnson further disclosed that interactive features of the Summit will be an art and craft room called Art Expression Centre which will allow children to creatively express themselves by participating in painting of a mural; a Spa Oasis facilitated by HEART/NTA to provide beauty treatment services and demonstrations to the children, while appealing to their professional development; a play therapy area; a Robotics Display that will allow children to participate in assembling Lego robots; computer games, as well as a feature titled ‘Exploring the Musical You’.

She pointed out that adults who will be in attendance as chaperones or as specially invited guests will not be neglected as sessions are also planned for them Parents and caregivers who will participate in a workshop session called Good Parenting versus Bad Parenting, Success for Today, Tomorrow and Beyond and Knowing Your Rights as well as Your Responsibilities, the latter of which will be delivered with a special focus on child participatory rights.

In preparation for the Children’s Summit, the Children’s Advisory Panel members are currently carrying out a number of pre-summit meetings with children in different parishes across the island. Miss Johnson indicated that this was necessary because “the issues to be explored and discussed are so many and we had to find creative and cost effective ways to cover a number of areas, which could ordinarily not be possible in a one day event.

The Summit is seeking to achieve a number of specific outcomes including, developing a document outlining recommendations for improvements in service to children in Jamaica; giving children a greater understanding of initiatives being carried out by both State and Non-State actors; creating an avenue through which children can share their experiences.

The children will also be reviewing and providing a report on issues of importance affecting them and assessing the Children’s Declaration which was developed during the 2012 UN Regional Meeting on Violence against Children, to determine if the recommendations have been achieved, and if not, what they believe would be necessary to move the process along.

CDA CEO Rosalee Gage-Grey congratulated CDA CAP on the staging of the first National Children’s Summit, noting that the Agency is keen to hear the views of the children and to work closely with them in finding workable solutions to some of the issues they face.

“Since CAP was established two years ago to provide policy advice to the CDA Executive Management Team and the CDA Advisory Board, the group has been consistent in undertaking initiatives that have helped us in advancing the matter of child protection in Jamaica,” Mrs. Gage-Grey said.

ENDS

Typical sanitized approaches to looking at issues yet sexuality is ignored for the most part and as the investigations or witch hunt for the so called culprits responsible for the sex educational manual from Jamaicans for Justice continue I think as that has gone suddenly so quiet despite an interim report from the child development agency and an interim board of JFJ becoming active and vocal as of late.

I would have thought 16 year olds to 17 or 18 who are at the legal age of majority would have not been included in this as "children" as they are teenagers with much more issues to contend with; seeing that the age of consent is 16, yet the age of majority is 18 when it comes to getting married but to adopt a child one has to be 25 years of age and older under our laws. These weird gaps in age and legal definitions of a child versus how we treat with teens issues is of great concern.

The abuse of tees the nightly lists of missing kids seems not important for this conference and as for sexual orientation embedded in sexuality where that is nowhere to be seen. The topic on children knowing their rights one wonders if that is to supposedly bump he JFJ version of it and present a more comfortable version excluding same gender sex issues and avoidance of abuse by other tees as well as adults; owing to the fact that only church groups seemed to be the ones invited.

Let us see how this one goes.

Also see:

Youth Minister Lisa Hanna's conflation of same gender sex & abuse responded to part 2

Concerned sources claim that ... Boys kissed, fondled by male teacher

Children’s Advocacy & LGBT Agencies inconsistent approach to Homeless MSM Youth

Urgent need for sex & sexuality to be discussed nationally and Part 2 2012, not much has changed eh?

also see Dr Heather Little-White's take recently prior to her passing: Sexuality Education ... To Teach Or Not To Teach? 

UPDATE

Peace and tolerance

H

Interim JFJ Board Has Full Authority says Barry Wade

In this April 7, 2014 photograph, Kay Osborne, executive director of JFJ, shares pleasantries with JFJ directors Alexis Goffe (right) and David Silvera. Three months later, the organisation imploded, as a criticism over a sex-ed programme triggered a spate of resignations. - Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer

Barry Wade, Guest Columnist

In an editorial titled 'Tell us more, Dr Wade' on August 1, 2014, The Gleaner asked me, as the newly appointed chairperson of the interim board of directors of Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), to explain "the process by which [I] and the rest of the board were chosen, including whether those members of the board who were in place up to Wednesday resigned en bloc, paving the way for new elections".

It also stated: "It would be useful, in the circumstance, to explain if, and how, the JFJ's constitution addresses this, especially in the context of his announcement of a planned vote for a new board in three months' time after 'a nomination process and election of the paying members' of the organisation."

The following sets out the process by which the current directors of the board came to their positions and the relevant clauses in JFJ's Articles of Association governing this process.

JFJ was incorporated under the Companies Act on 15 October 1999. The Companies Act and, more specifically, its Articles of Association are the relevant governance instruments. The relevant Articles of Association are Clauses 31, 45, 48 and 49.

Clause 31 provides that the minimum number of directors shall be seven, unless otherwise determined by a general meeting of the company.

Clause 45 provides that the directors may appoint any person to be a director, either to fill a casual vacancy or as an additional director. A director appointed under this provision holds office until the next annual general meeting and he or she shall be eligible for re-election.

The quorum for directors meetings is fixed by the directors but shall, if not fixed by the directors, be three. (Clause 48).

During the course of the weeks and days leading up to the extraordinary general meeting (EGM) held on July 29, which had been called by the board at the request of members, the number of directors fell below the minimum number of three. The resignations did not take place en bloc, but rather at different points in time, all prior to the date of the EGM. Clause 49 of the Articles was invoked.

Clause 49 provides:

"The continuing directors may act notwithstanding any vacancy in their body, but, if and so long as their number is reduced below the number fixed by or pursuant to the articles of the company the necessary quorum of directors, the continuing directors or director may act for the purpose of increasing the number of directors to that number, or of summoning a general meeting of the company but for no other purpose."

In circumstances where the members of the organisation were determined to repair the damage done by recent internal and external developments and adverse publicity, and following lengthy discussions of these developments, the two remaining board members asked the members assembled at the EGM to indicate whom of their number were prepared to serve on an interim board.

The purpose was to ensure a democratic input into the decisions that only the remaining two board members could exercise under Clause 49 of JFJ's Articles of Association. The members present at the EGM indicated their preferences. The EGM was suspended and the board deliberated and made the appointments recommended by the members present at the EGM. The eight additional directors appointed brought the number of directors up to 10, above the minimum seven required for the full functioning of the board.

The board is an interim one because the provisions of Clause 45 limit the tenure of all of the members appointed by the remaining two directors till the next annual general meeting of JFJ.

The board will consider the steps to be taken over the next three months to (a) review the recent developments, (b) steady the organisation, and (c) arrange for the holding of an annual general meeting in view of the provisions of Clause 45 of the Articles of Association.

The current board is properly constituted under JFJ's Articles of Association, with the full authority to conduct the business of the organisation until the next annual general meeting, which in the normal course of events would be held in March or April next year.

However, it was the view of the membership at the EGM and the decision of the current board that it would be prudent to hold an AGM at the earliest possible date to allow for the election of a new board of directors.

Barry A. Wade, PhD, is chairperson of JFJ. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and admin@jamaicansforjustice.org.

You may also want to check out the bizarre hit that the public defender took at the entity in a recent speech HERE and other articles on the JFJ war of words 

JFJ Critics have Lost Their Soul Carol Narcisse of JCSC

Clearing Narcisse's Fog On JFJ Support

Sodomy is an Issue for Teens says Jamaicans for Justice Interim Chairman

As Jamaicans for Justice settles itself and the pending police investigations which to me is going too far in a witch hunt to punish someone continue the interim chairman has spoken again on the issue of sodomy, early initiation and youngsters as highlighted in today's Gleaner below. He had spoken to it in a radio interview in a previous post on this blog via RJR's Beyond The Headlines.

See that post here: Jamaicans for Justice Slowly Recovers & Appoints an Interim Board

Ryon Jones, Staff Reporter today reports:

Dr Barry Wade, the interim chairman of Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), has declared that a controversial education programme introduced in six private children's homes by the under-fire human rights lobby was justified, arguing that many of the nation's children are being exposed to anal sex.

"A lot of the children in Jamaica are sodomised. That's the reality," Wade told The Sunday Gleaner shortly after his appointment was announced last week.

"What we were doing was helping the children with how to deal with it; first of all, how to avoid it, then how to report it in instances of it happening, and how to manage themselves in a sexually safe and sound way."

Copies of the course outline obtained by The Sunday Gleaner showed where the wards at these homes were taught that "vaginal sex, anal sex and oral sex are forms of sexual penetration".

actual slides from the instructor's version of the JFJ manual (not included in the article) 

The course outline went on to state: "Anal and oral sex have traditionally been frowned upon, but with time, these practices are becoming more accepted."

The children were urged to "use a condom and lubricant during anal sex" to protect themselves against HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

Despite Wade's utterances, chairman of the Jamaica Coalition for a Healthy Society, Dr Wayne West, believes information of that nature should not have been included in a course geared towards children.

"I would suggest that probably the more important thing is to make people aware of the risk and of the harm that persons who seek to do that to them are in fact doing to them, both physically and psychologically," West said.

"Sodomising children is a criminal offence, and if you are seeking to protect them, you seek not to make it safe, but tell them how to bring the perpetrators to justice. But I am not hearing Jamaicans for Justice doing that."

The sex-education programme, which started in the homes in October 2013 and wrapped up earlier this year, saw children as young as 11 years old being taught about what many consider controversial alternative sexual practices.

An interim report by the Child Development Agency (CDA) stated that a review of the content of the JFJ training programme found that sections were "inappropriate for the age cohort and a departure from that approved by the Ministry of Education for use in public schools".

NECESSARY COURSE

But Wade, who was last Tuesday co-opted as chairman of a provisional 10-member board, believes the type of information the children were exposed to was necessary.

"The youngsters who we were engaging with, many of them were already sexually active, and that is a problem in many of the children's homes. These children - willingly or unwillingly - are being exposed to these things," Wade argued. "The purpose of the programme was to indicate to them that these things were there, how they could handle it, and how they could protect themselves in such situations. They weren't being introduced to something that they either had no knowledge of or that was outside of the so-called Jamaican culture. This is reality for many of the youngsters in the children's homes, so the context in which it was being taught was a very real one."

West is, however, of the view that if Wade and the other interim board members continue to sing from the same hymn book as the previous board, and do not get back to the organisation's roots, the JFJ will struggle to regain the confidence of Jamaicans.

"When they (JFJ) came into being, they were protecting the right to life, which would be of the citizens, and they were very good at that, and what they were doing was a good thing," West said. "The question of sexual rights is a whole new concept, which does not have international support and which, from the perspective of culture, may be something that the vast majority of Jamaican persons will not embrace. The concept that young people 10 years old have a right to sex as they choose is a cultural phenomenon that Jamaicans may not accept. So, to the extent that Jamaicans for Justice plans to include that in their mandate and continue to pursue it, it will, I think, give them a challenge to their image."

The training programme, titled 'Realising Sexual and Reproductive Health Responsibly: JFJ's Pilot Intervention in Children's Homes', was undertaken without the knowledge of the CDA or the relevant ministry at Alpha Boys' Home, St John's Bosco, Jamaica National Children's Home, Sunbeam Home for Boys, Elsie Bemand Home for Girls, and Best Care Children's Home.

The police are currently carrying out investigations into the programme to ascertain whether the Child Care and Protection Act and the Offences Against the Person Act were breached, and if anyone should face charges.

ENDS

Frankly the JCHS will do anything to oppose "homosexuality" as it were alongside the recently formed Jamaica CAUSE as as well og which Dr Wayne West is a founding member so I am not surprised at the well crafted rebuttal that really means nothing in the final analysis.

Even when common sense should prevail we see rubbish before us, this course is needed the only thing that has and still bothers me is the bypassing of the constituted authority which is the Child Development Agency, CDA as is legally required and the fact that they with all the proxy and monitoring powers they have of children's homes with abilities to not seek permission from their administrators to access the wards of the state did not see or hear of this seven month long course, someone is not speaking the truth.

Let us watch this development, I hope the JFJ regains its position of trust and the principles which it has come to be known via public advocacy, transparency, good governance and accountability.

A letter in the Jamaica Observer August 4 challenges the legality of the board which raises more questions of in-fighting:

It Read:

Dear Editor,

It is necessary to challenge by what authority do Dr Barry Wade and other members of the newly announced Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) board of directors act.

Only two board members remained following the children's homes 'scandal' that caused the majority of board members to resign.

It is written in the JFJ Board of Directors Manual, Item 2(f) iii that the board shall consist of no less than seven persons. Therefore, new elections should have been held at the recent JFJ extraordinary general meeting to select new directors to direct the affairs of JFJ. This did not happen.

The so-called new board of directors has no authority to act on behalf of JFJ. A properly constituted board of directors needs to be elected forthwith.

Beverly Sinclair
sinclairbv311@yahoo.com
Kingston 8

I am sure this is not the end of this as some persons seek to de-legitimize the work of JFJ apparently. 

And as sure as I gave the last update above here comes another:

August 4
KINGSTON, Jamaica:  Wade Insists JFJ Board is OK

Interim chairman of Jamaicans for Justice, Dr Barry Wade is today insisting that the interim board of the human rights lobby group was constitutionally appointed.

JFJ has been plunged into crisis over its unauthorised implementation of a sex education course in six privately-run children’s homes.

The human rights group has also been facing a leadership meltdown following mass resignations and counterclaims over who is responsible for the introduction of anal and oral sex content as part of the course.

The interim board was appointed last week during an emergency meeting of JFJ’s membership.

However, following the announcement, questions have been raised in some sectors about the constitutionality of the board.

According to the Interim Chairman, the group’s constitution gives remaining board members the authority to co-opt to the JFJ.

He says this is what was done for the interim board.
Peace and tolerance

H

Jamaicans for Justice Slowly Recovers & Appoints an Interim Board

Dr Barry Wade 

The very foundation of human-rights lobby group Jamaicans For Justice was jolted by the public condemnation of a controversial sex-education programme which was introduced into six private children's homes and the subsequent resignation of four board members, including long-time faces Dr Carolyn Gomes (Carolyn Gomes resigns as JFJ Board Member, JFJ Apologises For controversial Sex Education Course) and Susan Goffe (Influential Susan Gofffe Resigns from JFJ .............New ED "If I Was Aware Of Sex-Ed Programme 'I Would No....)and executive director Kay Osborne in recent months.

The fallout prompted members of the 15-year-old organisation to call for an extraordinary board meeting, and it is coming out of that meeting that Dr Barry Wade and other interim board members were co-opted.

The other members of the board are Christine Dalrymple, Horace Levy, Michael Lumsden, Allan Martin, Carla Gulotta, David Silvera (treasurer of previous board), Clifton McKenzie (also a member of former board), Roje Malcolm and Susan Mah Leung Evans (who had both resigned from prior board).

Wade has cited the first order of business as being that of repairing the organisation's tarnished reputation.

"An advocacy group has to have credibility; it needs the support of civil society," Wade, who is the former general manager of the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica and the chairman of Environmental Solutions Limited, told The Gleaner. "If civil society are unsure of what we are about, then they won't support us. The present controversy has thrown a spanner in the way people see us and so rebuilding our image clearly is what we have to pay attention to. But it is not an event, it is a process."

Upcoming election

The appointment of a full board is expected to be undertaken within the next three months, when there will be a nomination process and election among the paying members, who currently stand at approximately 50 despite the number of persons on roll standing at somewhere in the hundreds. In the interim, however, Wade and his team will seek to get the organisation's house in order.

"This is a transitional period, so other than arranging for the election of a full board, it will be to steady the organisation and make sure that we fulfil all our obligations to our funding agencies and that we have the staff in place to continue," Wade shared. "With the resignation of the ED (executive director) there is a big gap in the organisation, and members of the organisation have volunteered to come in and help get things going again."

Wade, who is seriously considering offering himself up for the post of permanent chairman, believes the organisation will have to work feverishly to make up for lost time, but is confident that they can get back on course.

"We have to play catch-up because we have lost some time with all that has been going on and the resignations, but I have no doubt that we will be able to settle down pretty quickly," Wade reasoned.

Speaking on Beyond The Headlines on RJR yesterday Dr Wade also cleared up the controversial sex education fiasco in a sense that caused the implosion in the first place the perception that they were a cloak for gay organizations, he denied that allegation and went on to explain in a sense the materials delivered were for the instructors firstly then to selected teens for the cohort, also he went on to elaborate that there were sections of the materials that spoke to the illegality of buggery and the law but they recognized that the cohort may have children who were abused so they needed the course. "The material stated what was illegal ....... including what people find offensive anal sex" he said.

Dr Wade also said he did not believe the course was not inappropriate given the above reasons ".....the program was designed to help them avoid, protect themselves and of by chance and how to deal with it thereafter, how to report it." "It is a reality for children in Jamaica that many of them are buggered by adults and they have no recourse in institutions to adequately deal with it and it's that reality Jamaicans for Justice delivered a program with the help of the institutions to help the youngsters.

As for the CDA he said the remit of JFJ was to deal with the boards of the institutions and its their responsibility via the memorandum of understanding with the homes' management. Here I will have to disagree with Dr Wade as the law is clear on the vetting of courses and outsiders entering homes under the aegis of the CDA, the question that must be asked as I have done before if the Sunbeam Home as said publicly submitted in their monthly report the course activity then why did the CDA miss that to arrive at a conclusion of ignorance of a six month long course and why didn't the monitoring officers via conversations with the wards as the have direct access to them and can bypass the homes' management to do so could not ferrett any information regarding the course?

Did the CDA lie to the public when they claimed ignorance of the 6 or 7 month long course by JFJ?

Meanwhile some of the antigay voices who created mass hysteria about this via Jamaica CAUSE and the Professor Bain issue were obviously cautious and most hypocritical in my view in answering a question as to reestablish trust in Jamaicans for Justice in their answers, they steered clear of the sex education course as the facts slowly come forth despite it was not cleared by the constituted authority that being the CDA - Child Development Agency as required by law.

Daniel Thomas, president of the Love March Movement: A lot of damage has been done, so the group might even have to consider a name change. However, I won't dispute that the organisation has done some good work over the years, and nothing is impossible. It is critical that transparency and collaboration are ingredients that the new board will be willing to employ in the interest of the Jamaican people.

Betty-Ann Blaine, an advocate for children: This is a gentleman (Dr Barry Wade) who I have some knowledge about and I think has a reputable image. From my experience, I know that he is very passionate about social issues, including the plight of the poor, among other social ills. Clearly, he has a big job on his hands in restoring the trust of the Jamaican people and restoring the image of the organisation, but I am confident that it can happen. also see: The Deliberate Misuse of the “Sexual Grooming” Term by Antigay Fanatics to Promote Their Hysteria and Betty Ann Blaine Deliberately Conflates Same Gender Attraction & Child Abuse at Christian Anti Gay Mass Rally

Clifford Blake, deputy commissioner of police: I don't know much about the board ,so I wouldn't want to comment much on that, but we (Jamaica Constable Force) have worked well with past boards and we have no problem working with this current board, once it is in the best interest of the Jamaican people.

Bishop Rowan Edwards, immediate past president of the Jamaica Association of Full Gospel Churches: I thank God for this new board. I would hope that the leader has prepared himself to be scrutinized, to be guided and to collaborate. Everyone deserves a second chance and despite the damage that has been done, there is room for restoration. I also call on the Jamaican people to cooperate.

The funders Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition, CVCC of the sex education course are quiet as a mouse as Mrs Carolyn Gomes is their new Executive Director from as early as December 2013 I would have thought that despite the aura of the JFJ being lured or smoothered by a gay lobby that they would have categorically denied such claims but the incestuous nature of these coalitions once again makes identity separation near impossible. Thanks however to an active membership of JFJ they have taught us that transparency, fiduciary responsibility and good governance the very principles which made the JFJ what it is has won in a sense, some LGBTQ groups and individuals in Jamaica could learn a thing or two from all this.

I hope the JFJ does not flinch though from working with LGBT groups and individuals from now on but will be careful in its scrutiny and adaptation of areas they may want to cover. I Hope they can get over this perception as painted and set by the Gleaner when the story broke: Back-Door Deal - Gay Lobby Funds JFJ Sex Education Course, Slipped Into Children's Homes says Gleaner

also see:
More Overreaction to the Jamaicans for Justice Sex Education Course & Media Senationalism

Former JFJ Head Carolyn Gomes Distances Self From Controversial Sex Ed Material

Old Guard vs New Guard War of Words at JFJ on Sex Education Course that bypassed CDA

UPDATE August 4

KINGSTON, Jamaica:
Interim chairman of Jamaicans for Justice, Dr Barry Wade is today insisting that the interim board of the human rights lobby group was constitutionally appointed.

JFJ has been plunged into crisis over its unauthorised implementation of a sex education course in six privately-run children’s homes.

The human rights group has also been facing a leadership meltdown following mass resignations and counterclaims over who is responsible for the introduction of anal and oral sex content as part of the course.

The interim board was appointed last week during an emergency meeting of JFJ’s membership.

However, following the announcement, questions have been raised in some sectors about the constitutionality of the board.

According to the Interim Chairman, the group’s constitution gives remaining board members the authority to co-opt to the JFJ.

He says this is what was done for the interim board.

ENDS

UPDATE Press Release from JFJ on Interim Board 

Tuesday, August 5, 2014, Kingston, Jamaica

The interim Board of JFJ has been publicly challenged to state whether it is legitimately constituted. The following sets out the process by which the current directors of the Board came to their positions

JFJ was incorporated under the Companies Act on 15 October 1999. The Companies Act and more specifically its Articles of Association are the relevant governance instruments. The relevant sections of the Articles of Association that guided the process are Clauses 31, 45, 48 and 49.

Clause 31 provides that the minimum number of directors shall be seven, unless otherwise determined by a general meeting of the company.

Clause 45 provides that the directors may appoint any person to be a director, either to fill a casual vacancy or as an additional director. A director appointed under this provision holds office until the next annual general meeting and he or she shall be eligible for re-election.

The quorum for directors meetings is fixed by the directors but shall, if not fixed by the directors be three. (Clause 48)

During the course of the weeks and days leading up to the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held on July 29, which had been called by the Board at the request of members, the number of directors fell below the minimum number of three. The resignations did not take place en bloc, but rather at different points in time, all prior to the date of the EGM. Clause 49 of the Articles was invoked.

Clause 49 provides: “The continuing directors may act notwithstanding any vacancy in their body, but, if and so long as their number is reduced below the number fixed by or pursuant to the articles of the company the necessary quorum of directors, the continuing directors or director may act for the purpose of increasing the number of directors to that number…

Following lengthy discussions of the developments in JFJ, the two remaining board members asked the members assembled at the EGM to indicate whom of their number were prepared to be co-opted to serve on an interim board. The purpose was to ensure a democratic input into the decisions that only the remaining 2 board members could exercise under Clause 49 of JFJ’s Articles of Association. The members present at the EGM indicated their preferences. The EGM was suspended and the existing Board members deliberated and made the appointments recommended by the members present at the EGM. The eight additional directors appointed brought the number of directors up to ten, above the minimum seven required for the full functioning of the Board.

The Board is an interim one because the provisions of Clause 45 limit the tenure of all of the members appointed by the remaining 2 directors till the next annual general meeting of JFJ.

The Board will focus on the following steps to be taken over the next three months to (a) review the recent developments, (b) steady the organisation, and (c) arrange for the holding of an annual general meeting in view of the provisions of Clause 45 of the Articles of Association.

The current Board is properly constituted under JFJ’s Articles of Association, with the full authority to conduct the business of the organization until the next annual general meeting, which in the normal course of events would be held in March or April next year. However, it was the view of the membership at the EGM and the decision of the current Board that it would be prudent to hold an AGM at the earliest possible date to allow for the election of a new Board of directors.

ENDS

The current board members are:

Dr. Barry Wade (Chairperson)
Christine Dalrymple (Secretary)
Susan Evans (Treasurer)
Horace Levy (also of JCSC)
Rodje Malcolm
Allan Martin
Michael Lumsden
Carla Gullotta (formerly of Amnesty Europe & CVCC)
Clifton McKenzie

Peace and tolerance

H

Jamaicans For Justice Crumbles - Osborne Latest To Resign Amid Sex-Ed Controversy

The headline that blared in the Gleaner today and as the noble institutions unfolds right before us the silence from the funder of the sex education course Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition, CVCC and JFLAG allies are silent as a lamb when the bigger principle of bypassing the Child Development Agency which is the legally constituted authority that was to have been consulted seems lost in all this. Like them or not it is what it is and just as how the CVCC was quick to point out the conflict of interest on the part of Professor Bain and the expert witness testimony in Belize going against the greater imperative of HIV prevention in MSM in the Caribbean so too must the fault be accepted here in some respect by all concerned bearing in mind that Mrs Gomes former head and founder of JFJ is now Executive Director of CVCC, how coincidental?

So much effort was spent to get this sex education course into children's homes while bypassing the CDA and indeed the CDA should have picked up on it with its internal monitoring of the homes (one wonders if they lied to the public of knowledge of the activity) when so many homeless MSM/Transgender need assistance and programs but does the CVCC and others care, it would seem that they do not.

The Gleaner carried this:

The leadership of Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) continued to collapse, yesterday as the human- rights lobby's Executive Director Kay Osborne resigned with immediate effect after less than five months into the job.

Osborne's resignation came less than two days after JFJ Chairman Lisa Lakhan-Chen indicated she would be resigning, following the controversial sex-education programme that was delivered in six privately run children's homes.

Osborne stressed in her resignation letter to Lakhan-Chen that JFJ's review of the controversial 'Healthy Sexual Growth and Development in Marginalised Youth: Rights, Responsibilities and Life Skills' course implemented in the homes had explicitly exonerated her from having knowledge or oversight of the programme.

"The board of directors having clarified that the children's home programme was a HIV/AIDS-prevention intervention has led to my decision that I cannot work as executive director of a human-rights advocacy organisation that does not advise me that it is implementing a programme in children's homes to decrease the spread of HIV/AIDS," her resignation letter read.

Osborne has maintained that she was unaware of the programme, tellingThe Gleaner/ Power106 News Centre less than two weeks ago that she would not have taken the job if she had been aware of the sex-education course.

"I was unaware that JFJ was engaged in a sex-education programme. It never came up in the interview and it did not come up in any part of the interview process and confirmation of my appointment," she had said on July 7.

However, Dr Carolyn Gomes, the former executive director of JFJ, under whose tenure the project was initiated, has argued that Osborne was aware of the project and even spoke about it on television and in a press release.

Specific details

In that episode of CVM TV's 'Live @ 7' current affairs programme, which aired in early June, Osborne gave specific details of a programme dealing with sexuality being delivered by JFJ in children's homes.

"We just completed 75 and will complete 100 workshops in children's homes where we are helping children learn more healthy ways of engaging with their own bodies, learning about their sexuality, about self-esteem and so on, helping them to become better citizens," she said on the programme, which aired days before the controversy over the sex-education course and its content first came to national attention.

She added: "We are at fault in that we have not tooted our horn as much as we could."

In a response to Gomes' claim that this was further proof that she was aware of the programme, Osborne yesterday asserted that during that interview she thought the initiative she was speaking of was more in line with JFJ's other programmes.

Expectation

"I mentioned the programme during my 'Live @ 7' interview and in my press release to the Honourable Lisa Hanna, minister of youth and culture, as being among JFJ's ongoing projects. Like Jamaicans everywhere, my expectation was that the children's home programme was similar to one of the different types of human-rights advocacy programmes JFJ is well known for engaging in over many years," Osborne said.

The sex-education programme is now the subject of an investigation by the police, Child Development Agency and the Attorney General's Department, as it is said to have exposed children to inappropriate material.

Lakhan-Chen said JFJ has since sought legal advice in light of the investigations and has conducted its own internal review.

In addition to Osborne and Lakhan-Chen, Gomes recently resigned as a board member of JFJ.

After Gomes' departure, JFJ directors Susan Goffe and Rodje Malcolm also resigned. The Reverend Sean Major-Campbell, deputy chairman of the lobby, is also expected to tender his resignation soon.

See Jamaica Observer's take HERE and their take on 

Dr Carolyn Gomes misrepresenting me, says Osborne

ENDS

My opinions remain the same as espoused in my podcast on the matter when it first broke:

Buggery, Bain, Bullshit & Buffoonery in Jamaican LGBT Discourse 

The principles on which JFJ was founded has since been forgotten it seems hence this fallout as exampled with other NGOs that of transparency, accountability and leadership yet JFJ seemed through Mrs Gomes even as she reported on the course's activity did not go further to point out same to a new board albeit they too are at fault in not reviewing the materials they have been presented.

Sad to watch this go down like this, why did JFJ take on folks in the first place that were clearly incompetent to begin with and why didn't the old guard be more scrupulous in such appointments are even bigger questions, meanwhile Outgoing chairman of Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), Lisa Lakhan Chen, says it has sought legal advice in the wake of at least two investigations into the explicit sex education programme it implemented in six private children’s homes this year.
The JFJ chairman told The Gleaner-Power 106 News Centre that to date she has not received any official notice from the police to participate in any probe.

However, Lakhan Chen says in the best interest of the organisation, JFJ has sought advice from its attorneys.

The controversial programme created a firestorm over the sexual details it provided to children as young as 13 years old and an internal review conducted by JFJ concluded, among other things, that children may have been exposed to content that might not have been appropriate for their age.

In addition to a probe by the police, Youth Minister Lisa Hanna has asked the Attorney General’s office to review the contents of the programme to determine if they violated any laws.

here is an older interview from the 18th on Nationwide radio:

Nationwide @ 5 Carolyn Gomes, JFJ Board Chair Resigns & Meeting 18.07.14 

Peace and tolerance

H

Old Guard vs New Guard War of Words at JFJ on Sex Education Course that bypassed CDA

This unraveling in the public domain is embarrassing for the JFJ a noble group funded on such strong principles and where is CVCC the LGBT coalition that funded the course in the first place? quiet as a lamb all this while they both bypassing the constituted authority for children's homes, it is one thing to implement a well needed course but it is totally another when the law of the land is passed. The CDA's monitoring system could and should have picked up on the near eight month activity but they claimed they didn't and now this fiasco albeit Mrs Gomes now proudly heads the CVCC, incestuous mess anyone?

The Observer reported 

HUMAN rights lobby group Jamaicans For Justice (JFJ) says after reviewing the controversial sex education manual it has come to the conclusion that the children who were exposed to inappropriate material could have been psychologically harmed.

But the group's claim that its board of directors was not fully informed of the content of the programme has been stoutly denied by Dr Carolyn Gomes, the former JFJ executive director who now heads the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition (CVCC).

In a release on Friday, JFJ accepted culpability for not vetting the material properly and placed the blame squarely at the feet of its board of directors.

"Children in some of the homes may have been exposed to content that might not have been appropriate for their age. This possibility arose from weaknesses in the oversight and vetting process. The board of directors is responsible for the deficiency in the vetting process," the group admitted in a release to the media on Friday.

The controversial Healthy Sexual Growth and Development in Marginalised Youth: Rights, Responsibilities and Life Skills manual, JFJ said, was an educational programme designed to "engender responsible attitudes in marginalised youth towards their sexual and reproductive health in order to reduce the incidence of HIV infections in the adolescent population". The programme was implemented in six children's homes and ran for eight months from October 2013 though to May 2014.

Some 80 caregivers were trained by JFJ facilitators between November 2013 and February 2014.

As many as 176 children were trained between January 2014 and May 2014. Training was conducted by the JFJ facilitators. Several children younger than 13 were exposed to different modules in several of the children's homes, the JFJ admitted.

"We were unable to confirm which module or modules or what content these children were exposed to," the release said.

JFJ also admitted that:

* The programme content and methodology were not vetted by the board of directors of JFJ before being implemented;

* The programme content was not signed off by project partner, Family Planning Association of Jamaica (FamPlan); and

* Some of the content in Module 5 -- Gender, and Module 6 -- Sexuality and Society would be inappropriate if not delivered by someone properly trained to children who were not properly prepared to receive it.

"We were not able to determine conclusively if children were exposed to material not appropriate for their age or development. However, this possibility cannot be ruled out," the group said.

The project, the rights group said, was implemented by it pursuant to a call for proposals from the CVCC/Centre for Integral Orientation and Investigation (COIN) in April 18 2013.

"The then Executive Director Carolyn Gomes developed a proposal to provide marginalised youth in children's homes with rights-based information on sexual and reproductive rights and submitted it in June 2013. The proposal was successful and the contract for the execution of the project was signed by Gomes on behalf of JFJ on October 17, 2013," JFJ said.

"Course content was developed from material provided by FAMPLAN, CVCC/COIN and various other publicly available sources. FAMPLAN did not sign off on the final course content. The content was intended to be delivered to children between the ages 13 and 17," the release said..

JFJ said Gomes delivered three secretariat reports in 2013 to its monthly board meetings and the programme was mentioned. However, the full content was never brought to the board, the group said.

"This is not unusual as programme details were not normally presented at board meetings," the release said.

The group also pointed out that its current Executive Director Kay Osborne was appointed on April 1 this year and had no involvement in the design and implementation of the controversial project.

Instead, JFJ claimed that Gomes designed, developed, negotiated and contracted the project with funding arranged by CVCC.

"The project began implementation in October 2013 under the direct guidance of Dr Gomes. In December 2013 when Dr Gomes demitted office as executive director she did not provide the board of directors with complete information on the project, notwithstanding that she continued to sit on the board until her resignation on June 17, 2014. There were material deviations to the project proposal that affected the development and implementation of the project. The project proposal required that FAMPLAN sign off on the material to be presented to the wards. This was not done."

The group also said the board was unable to determine who actually prepared that material.

"At no point did Dr Carolyn Gomes or anyone else, either in writing or verbally, indicate to Ms Osborne that JFJ was implementing a programme in children's homes to decrease the spread of HIV/AIDS or one in which sex education is taught. We are further satisfied that Ms Osborne was unaware of the content of the said programme modules and no aspect of the same formed any part of her job description since she was appointed executive director," JFJ said.

"Against this background, the board of directors regrets these occurrences and concludes that children in some of the homes may have been exposed to content that might not have been appropriate for their age. This possibility arose from weaknesses in the oversight and vetting process. The board of directors accepts that there were deficiencies in the vetting process and holds itself fully accountable," the group admitted.

But yesterday, Dr Gomes said although she designed the project, the accusation by JFJ that she did not share the information with the board is erroneous.

"After we drew a proposal I shared it with the then chairperson by e-mail before it was submitted. And then every month after that I reported to the board right through until October when we won the grant," Dr Gomes told the Sunday Observer.

Dr Gomes said when there was a call for proposals in April 2013 she discussed the matter with the members of JFJ to include representatives from FAMPLAN.

"We set out some preliminary thoughts and I shared them with the head of the Child's Rights Working Group... because the board of JFJ operates through various groups and teams and they oversee the Child's Rights Working Group," Gomes explained. "And this was by e-mail from April of last year. So they knew what we were thinking of doing before we even did it."

She explained that the proposal was mentioned in the secretariat report but became a full report in the communications report to the board which set out in detail what was to be done regarding the project.

Gomes explained, too, that the full details of the project were included in the November and December reports to the board.

"This was circulated by e-mail and then tabled in hard copy at the board meetings," Gomes said. "So to say that the board was not informed by myself and the team at the office is completely erroneous. If you don't choose to read your reports that are presented to you, then I don't know on what basis one operates. How does one operate other than providing reports? So, for example, in November the headline was CVC COIN project: Healthy sexual growth and development in marginal youth, rights, responsibilities and life skills," she explained.

She noted that during the reporting period activities undertaken were outlined detailing the preliminary organising and training, with official letters seeking permission sent to six privately owned children's homes detailing the goals and objectives of the project.

"So to say that I didn't brief them clearly isn't accurate," she said. "And I have proof that they were briefed."

She explained that when she handed over the reins in January this year, the project was still being developed.

"All the way to June of this year, two newsletters were done about it and shared with the board and with the membership, so I don't know how they didn't know about it," Gomes said.

She said the head of the Child's Right Working Group, with whom she shared documents in April before the group wrote the project, reported on it to the Annual General Meeting in April.

"So the members were told from April about information on the project, so not only was it reported on but the chairperson reported on it herself to the membership."

Gomes said Osborne got involved in the project earlier in May when there was a glitch in the delivery and the project implementer asked for her assistance in getting some of the workshops delivered at John Bosco Boys' Home due to a scheduling issue.

Gomes said it was Osborne who asked that the project be continued by a sister at that boys' home when concerns were voiced by a member of the school that time was against them.

"So I don't know how she could have said she didn't know what she was asking the sister to continue," Gomes said. "And then after that she appeared on Live at 7 to talk about how this project was good. And she also drafted a press release to Ms [Lisa] Hanna at the end of May which spoke about our work in children's homes," Gomes said.

Despite being at the centre of the controversy, Gomes said she had no input in the review that was just concluded.

"I have my responses prepared, but I have not shared them with anybody because no one in particular asked for them," she said after explaining that two letters were sent to her on Monday but she was not sure of the authenticity of the requests as they were unsigned.

"So the review proceeded without my input and it proceeded without the input of the chief implementer from the organisation. I am aware that the chief staff person in charge of the project was not questioned about the project during the review period. Nor was the trained social worker, a volunteer posted by CUSO who also worked on the project," Gomes said. "It is unclear who conducted the review but I am aware that there was no meeting of the board to discuss and agree on the findings of the review prior to it being sent to the media."

Influential Susan Gofffe Resigns from JFJ .............New ED "If I Was Aware Of Sex-Ed Programme 'I Would Not Have Taken The Job'

The fallout within Jamaicans for Justice since the sex-education scandal continues with the weekend resignation of influential board member, Susan Goffe.

Goffe’s departure follows last month’s resignations from the board by former executive director Dr Carolyn Gomes and Susan Evans.

Both Goffe and Gomes have been the public face of the organisation for many years.

Goffe says the JFJ’s retreat into silence on issues of national importance has pushed her to take the ultimate decision to leave the leadership of the organisation.

Goffe says her disagreement with the direction of the organisation began even before Kay Osborne was appointed as the new JFJ executive director.

The former JFJ spokesperson says it has also become clear that her opinion is not likely to impact on the JFJ’s approach to national issues.

In a television interview on JFJ’s unauthorised sex education course in children’s homes, Gomes had said the organisation needs to refocus and go back to its core methodology of consultation and treating people with respect. 

Goffe says she agrees with Gomes.

also see:FORMER SPOKESPERSON FOR JAMAICANS FOR JUSTICE SAYS FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HERSELF AND THE TOP BRASS PROMPTED HER RESIGNATION (audio included)

also another PNP member has used the opportunity of the JFJ matter to gain political curry favour obviously as the referendum call would be a definite nail in any chance of amending the law 

Meanwhile the Gleaner reported today that ............

Kay Osborne, the new executive director of the Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) says she would not have taken the job with the human rights group had she known about the controversial sex education course implemented in six children’s homes.

Osborne says she joined the human rights group on April 2.

“I joined the organisation to be executive director of a human rights advocacy organisation, and had I known that JFJ was involved in sex education in any way I would not have accepted the job, I would not have applied for the job, because I have no interest nor expertise in sex education of any kind.”

She replaced Dr Carolyn Gomes who had stepped down in November last year, a month after starting the controversial sex education programme.

Osborne says the programme did not feature in the interview for the job.

The executive director says even after taking over the leadership in April, the programme did not come up in her briefings.

Osborne says her main mandate involves, among other things, the development of a strategic plan as part of efforts to train non-governmental organisations in the region.

The Government is investigating JFJ’s unauthorised sex education course in six privately run children’s homes, which included content that may be deemed to have normalised anal and oral sex.

ENDS

note the actual slides that spoke to anal sex: pages 122, 124-125

And as the FamPLAN Jamaica representative said in a Nationwide interview on June 18th the version for the teens is not the same as the instructor's manual (above) and also by my experience facilitating session one does not present all the materials verbatim to a cohort, one has to feel the audience in question; examine in the presentation time allotted their knowledge base and in this case their comfort level in discussing certain subject matters, so I doubt they target groups got to hear even the so called controversial sections. The fear-mongering as well from so called child rights advocates and experts is also disturbing to suggest that the audiences will be "damaged" by just hearing the content is absolutely absurd.

Some questions arise in my mind:

As for the newbie on the block - So sex education is not a part of human rights for Miss Osborne?

Is her scope or knowledge of human rights so limited?

Is JFJ's new board a bunch of religious fanatics too or have they invaded since the Bain matter erupted?

Did Dr Gomes have to run every detail by the board when it is not corporate practice to do so?

Does the board want to micro-manage every aspect of the JFJ? ........... then what is the point of staffing?

Miss Osborne's comments are frightening owing to the prim and proper television interviews she granted just before the sex ed scandal broke and while I admit that JFJ dropped the ball on not alerting the CDA of the content these courses are needed for young persons with all the madness going on with sexual abuse, grooming and early initiation.

This is the same Kay Osborne by the way who was the head of television Jamaica when the controversial tolerance ad (number 1) was not aired when sent in my controversial gay lawyer Maurice Tomlinson, he sued the station alongside CVM TV & the PBCJ and lost. A recent follow up judgement also fortunately spared Mr Tomlinson from paying costs as is customary in such constitutional cases. See more HERE for the outcome of the main case.

See that second cost judgement here:

What is disturbing to me as of late is that while JFJ unravels the funder and ally CVCC Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition is deafeningly silent nor is JFLAG who is a member of that incestuous arrangement and Mrs Gomes is now its Executive Director, many are now speculating that she was rewarded for the ferreting of the sex ed course which is a potential conflict of interest problem and owing to the fact that it was the CVCC via Ms Gomes who pointed out the COI in Professor Bain's Belizean testimony in support of the retention of the buggery law leading or influencing UWI to end his contract more flames are being fanned by this public unravelling of a once respected JFJ.

Take some of the comments with clear mistrust implied:

I do not like the look and feel of this at all and it is sad that such a noble rights groups is breaking apart before us, I have been critical about ethics in advocacy for many years but not to see JFJ go down like this. Jamaicans for Justice were the ones with Miss Gomes as its face who made Jamaica stood up and take notice on governance, accountability, vigilance with the police and children issues related to state care seems that legacy maybe dying faster than we thought and will they remain as allies with JFLAG which took so many years to do (in my time the board then refused to seen taking on LGBT matters).

Peace and tolerance

H