Child advocates urge Parliament review after Trelawny killing of Shanae Coke

Advocacy organisations are demanding swift national reforms after the killing of 10-year-old Shanae Coke in Trelawny, arguing the case exposes serious weaknesses in Jamaica’s child-protection framework.

Grief and anger have spread across the island as the country absorbs the child’s death. In a statement, the Office of the Children’s Advocate (OCA) said the tragedy again underlines the threat posed by sexual predators and the shared duty to shield children from abuse, exploitation and violence.

The OCA also denounced the mob killing of the person accused in the case, stressing that people who harm children must face investigation and the courts, not street justice.

Separately, the Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network (JAN) is pressing for an immediate joint select committee of Parliament to examine laws, policies and how agencies charged with safeguarding women and children are performing. The network says current statutes are scattered and incomplete, creating overlaps and holes that blunt enforcement and leave vulnerable people at risk.

The appeal comes as national crime debate remains heavily fixed on gangs, while violence inside families and gender-based abuse draw less focused attention. Through its 2025 Youth Against Violence Campaign, JAN reports that young people named family violence and abuse as urgent problems that deserve national priority.

Among its proposals are wider public-education drives, stronger support for survivors, and specialised training so teachers, health workers and social-service staff can spot and respond to abuse. JAN is also seeking more funding for programmes aimed at boys and young men to curb harmful conduct and build positive role models.

The network argues Jamaica must move from responding only after tragedies strike to preventing them in the first place.