Neither the pending tough legislation that will carry harsh penalties for persons who abuse senior citizens nor any other single solution will be enough to stamp out the scourge, says Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, Kirk Humphrey.Speaking during the Barbados Association of Retired Persons (BARP) online discussion on Elderly Abandonment: Solutions to this Issue, on Monday, he said that while targeted legislation is on the way to provide more protection for seniors, more will be required.“The penalties and so on written into the legislation to prevent a person from doing a misdeed is not where we need to start. If we are serious about protecting elderly people, it cannot be the legislation. We have to have a much more holistic view as to the challenges facing older people,” Humphrey said.“I feel this is a conversation we need to be having within our schools, in relation to how you treat people generally, and how do you treat older people more specifically. I feel that this is a conversation we need to be having with families.
