The Dominica minister of education said that homosexuality and anti-social behavior is a large scale ‘problem’ in the country’s school system, 'bigger than previously thought'.

Education minister, Petter St. Jean, said that due to these large scale ‘problems’ the government was forced to ‘broaden its task force to deal with the matter’.

The Caribbean island’s state government announced several months ago that the former principal of the Dominica Grammar School, Simeon Joseph, will spearhead a task force to crack down on homosexuality and ‘other deviant behaviour’ in the island state's school system.

The task force is also responsibile for ‘investigating and identifying the root causes of deviance and the increasing incidents of homosexuality among our student population’.

Following the initial results of the investigation, announced last week, the minister said that the ‘problem’ of ‘deviance, misbehaviour and homosexuality’ is greater than what was previously imagined and necessitated extra measures.  

St. Jean stated: ‘Simeon Joseph has been engaged as the point persons but the problem is much bigger than we first thought. Consequently, I had given instructions that we should look at bringing in two other individuals to work along with him.’

St. Jean also added that a committee will be formed and ‘mandated to put measures to address the problems as they surface and also to mitigate the spreading of crime, violence, homosexuality and deviant behaviors in school.’

‘I have instructed that additional people be brought in so that we have a team that can really go out there and face that problem head on. We must save the young people of Dominica.

‘…we must be proactive and get into the schools. Development of a behaviour policy by officers of the ministry is currently underway.’

The policy has been dubbed ‘Child Friendly Schools Programme’.

UK based LGBT rights activist and GSN contributor, Omar Kuddos, said he was ‘very concerned when hearing the homophobic statements of Domicia’s education minister.

'I am worried about the effects such a policy would have on anti-gay hate and bullying in the Island’s schools and the consequent effect on LGBT pupils’ self-esteem and well-being'.

Homosexuality is illegal in the small island state of Dominica, which use the British colonial law against buggery (meaning anal sex) punishable by 10 years of imprisonment and psychiatric ‘treatment’.

An attempt to commit buggery is liable for four years imprisonment and psychiatric ‘treatment'.

A person who commits an act of gross indecency (any sexual arousal of the genitals for gratification) is liable for a five years prison sentence.