Bahamas PM distressed over death of four-year-old child

Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis is promising that justice will be served in the death of a four-year-old child over the last weekend and called on Bahamians to ensure that no other child suffers the same fate.

“The thought of any child being harmed is deeply distressing. I’m sure each and every one of you feel my distress. That a child should die in the circumstances being reported rightly stirs up the most profound feelings of disbelief, revulsion and profound sadness,” said Davis as he addressed an event at the National Training Agency.

“As we grieve with her family, and do all that we can to ensure that justice is served, let us honour her memory. Let us find ways to cherish how she lived, that her name means more than just the way that she died.”

Earlier this week, several organisations, including Rise Bahamas and the Bahamas Crisis Centre, said the death of the child sheds “light on the inadequate preventative measures and laws we have in respect to child protection in The Bahamas”.

Police have said that two people are assisting their investigations into the death of the child, who was brought to the Princess Margaret Hospital over the weekend with severe injuries to her body.

They said initial investigations showed that the child, a resident of a major sub-division, sustained several injuries to her body.

In a statement, the organisations, which also included Families of All Murder Victims (FOAM), Organization for Responsible Government (ORG), Silent No More, and Smart & Strong Sisterhood (SASS), said they were saddened at the “brutal assault” that led to the death of the child.