Universal prayers soon for public schools - says Minister of Education

Universal prayers soon for public schools – says Minister of Education

Dec 03, 2015 News

True to his promise of replacing Christian prayers with universal prayers in public schools, Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine, has said that a draft of a universal prayer has already been made.

Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine

So far, said the Minister, consultations with various religious bodies regarding universal prayers have begun. A draft prayer was done and has been submitted to Chief Education Officer, Olato Sam. It is believed that the prayer “Will satisfy all three of our major religious groups.”
Since his announcement of the change, several religious bodies and organizations have come out in support of the Minister’s plans. Amongst those in favour of the change are the Guyana Presbyterian Church, Guyana Teachers’ Union and the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha.
All were of the opinion that the practice has been going on for too long. President of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha, Dr. Vindhya Persaud, stated that sections of her organization had brought up the issue of having universal prayers in public schools with previous Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand. She recalled that while promises were made, no follow up action was taken by the Ministry.
Initially, the Guyana Secular Association, founded by Ferlin Pedro, had planned to challenge Roopnaraine’s decision of keeping prayers of any form in schools. Keeping prayers within schools, he said, is a “form of imposing religion. This is contrary to our constitutional assurance of freedom of conscience and belief, and that includes the freedom to hold religious views or lack thereof.”
However, he said that after consultations with both local and regional secular movements and organizations, they are now in support of a moment of silence. The reason for this, he states, is that the moment of silence seems to promote, at least politically speaking, the interest of everyone.
When asked if a moment of silence is an option for the Ministry, Roopnaraine said that it has not been put to him but stated that it is his belief that there is room for a national prayer. “Prayers start the day off with encouraging children and instill a belief in their selves. I don’t believe a moment of silence does the same thing,” he said.
Despite the various religions existing within Guyana’s society and the country’s position of being a secular state, most public schools across Guyana see students reciting Christian prayers despite their religious affiliation.
According to the Constitution of Guyana, the practice of having Christian prayers in public schools across the country is in contravention of laws set out in relation to the separation of church and state. The Ministry of Education has over the years never addressed the issue despite many requests for universal prayers.
Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine, had stated that the practice is not one which will be condoned by his Ministry. He made his intentions clear to do away with it and implement universal prayers across the public school system.
He added that the reciting of Christian prayers in schools may be a preference of the teachers and to his knowledge has never been the policy of the Ministry.
“If that’s the practice that is going on in these public schools,” the Minister had said, “It is not a practice we condone. We are a multi-religious country and we have to realize that we have multi-religious children so that whatever prayer is used in schools should not exclude any of the religions.”
Roopnarine said that the practice could possibly be detrimental to social cohesion. As such, he revealed that he will soon start disseminating information countrywide to inform teachers of the need for having universal prayers in the nation’s schools very soon.