CATEGORY:SPECIAL EVENT ------------------------ INSIDE GRENADA THURSDAY August 9,2007 GRENADA: Yesterday, leaders of three rival youth groups on the island met with Minister for Ecclesiastical Affairs, Senator Ann David Antoine, members of the Royal Grenada Police Force and a representative from the religious fraternity. The meeting was held to share and discuss concerns surrounding the desire for a violent-free carnival season and the need for peace in the months and years ahead. Many Grenadians have been expressing concerns about the actions of some of these rival ‘youth groups’ in the country. In recent times, information/ rumors about planned violence for the Carnival season involving members of rival groups - especially for J’ouvert morning - have been circulating. The meeting with these leaders could be viewed as an attempt by authorities to address these concerns. The meeting came about as a result of the efforts of Senator Antoine and DeLeon Felix, who acted as a mediator and got the leaders of the rival groups to agree to a meeting. The leaders of the groups claimed that they, as well as their members, were unable to travel through certain areas in the country because they feared that they would be attacked. Two of the leaders welcomed the opportunity created by the meeting to end the hostilities between them and gave their commitment towards behaving peacefully for the carnival season and the period ahead. The leaders also promised to go back to their communities and encourage other young people involved in hostile conflicts to stop the fighting. In addressing the media, Senator Antoine said “...they have made a commitment, they asked for the media to be present so the world can know about their commitment, and we are prepared to support them.”