Minister opposes racial division

MINISTER of Community Development, Joan Yuille-Williams, is opposed to persons funded by her ministry spreading ethnic division. At a post-Cabinet news conference on Thursday, she said some kind of education programme may be required to stop people using national festivals like Emancipation to create divisiveness. She was replying to questions asked concerning what guidelines her ministry was using to stop organisations which get funds from her ministry from using a national celebration as a vehicle to create division.

She said, “The ministry tries to get the true meaning of all festivals.” Leaflets could be produced for schoolchildren to learn about the festivals, she added. Told that it was not children, but rather the leaders of certain groups who seemed to create divisiveness, she replied, “we try to talk to some of these people. We can’t give up.” She said she intended to meet with persons hosting events to mark such festivals, to talk about the content of such events.