Shakir aims to instill it in Bermuda's youth, particularly males, by way of making their lives a positive, productive experience.

Only Mr. Shakir's newly formed group spells it a little differently: Resppec...t.

"The spelling reflects the various aspects the group will address: Religious/spiritual, Educational, Social, Physical, Psychological, Economic/financial, Child, which, when put together, is a Team,'' Mr. Shakir explained.

"Re means back to, and sppc..t draws on specs, a colloquialism related to vision,'' he added. "We want to take Bermuda's children back to a proper vision of where they should be going. Their vision seems a bit cloudy at times.'' Indeed, Resppec...t sums up its mission as: "Committed to total growth and development of our youth.'' The group arose out of a shattering personal experience for the Shakir family, which led to a broader look at youth on youth violence in the community.

"My son was attacked at the Hamilton bus terminal one afternoon after school, and my mind went first towards wanting to seek justice for my child,'' the concerned father explained. "But I found that after the emotion left me there was a certain sympathy for the perpetrator. Yet at the same time I wanted that person to understand that they had committed an unacceptable act.'' In the aftermath of the trauma, Mr. Shakir decided to research the background of the person who had assaulted his son in the hope that it would help him to understand why such an act had taken place, and what caused youth on youth violence generally.

"In my research I found that most of the youngsters caught up in this do not have a comfortable environment in which to develop, so most of them get caught up in negative habits and practices,'' Mr. Shakir explained.

His son's attacker, for example, had come from a broken home where one parent had a history of drugs and imprisonment and the other had been absent since the boy was five. So he was in the care of a grandparent who, now elderly, was unable to cope with his difficult teen years and provide the necessary guidance.

"I couldn't help but pity the young man; my heart went out to him,'' Mr.

Shakir said. "He didn't have the example of a father and mother to give him the proper values, and choices in decisions. The result is that, having been through all the juvenile court system throughout his teens, he is now in jail.

I also discovered that this child is just a link in a chain of boys like himself. He goes to prison and someone takes his place.

"So, rather than pay lip service to the problem, my family found a need to try and break the cycle of violence and negative behaviour by helping perpetrators like this young man achieve a frame of mind where they could feel good about themselves and not want to perpetrate violent acts upon others.'' First, Mr. Shakir turned to those who had supported his family throughout their ordeal and discussed his thoughts. He found that they, too, shared similar concerns about the growing menace of youth on youth violence, and recognised the need for a community effort to combat it.

"We saw that we had to try and turn the negative into a positive, and in doing so we wanted first to target the problems of our children and maybe find assistance through the community to address these problems,'' Mr. Shakir explained. "If we are serious about wanting to help the children we have to call a halt and see, as a community, exactly where we went wrong -- not where the children went wrong. We need to question our values.'' The first step was to hold a public forum based on the theme: To enhance the total growth and development of our youth. Arising out of the positive response to that came stage two: a broader appeal to anyone concerned about youth on youth violence to join forces and work together as a helping youth group.

"The criteria was being able to identify and work with the children who were willing to do something for themselves, or who were looking for help,'' Mr.

Shakir related. But he also warned: "Some of these children will not come to you -- you have to be willing to find them and let them know you are there for them.'' To Mr. Sharkir's delight, the response was immediate, and Resppec...t, co-founded by Mr. Radell Tankard, is now well on its way.

"It's been phenomenal,'' Mr. Shakir exclaimed. "So many people have volunteered their assistance. It's really going great. We now have an interim committee steering the group towards implementing solutions. We are trying to work on immediate needs so we can have the children focus on keeping active in a positive way.'' Before addressing the overall problems of youth, however, Resppec...t plans first to listen to their needs and concerns.

"Sometimes adults are guilty of not listening. We need to understand the type of frustrations that our children are faced with. We may be surprised at what they are thinking,'' Mr. Shakir said. "Resppec...t wanted to do something a little different -- that is, to hear them, and after hearing them, to assist them as a help group. And if Resppec...t cannot supply their needs, it will steer them towards the appropriate sources.'' One thing Resppec...t will not be, however, is a soft cushion for so-called "problem'' children to fall back on.

"We want to help these children to understand that they have the ability to deal with some of the problems themselves through developing their own potential rather than asking Government or any other source to give, give, give,'' Mr. Shakir stressed. "We don't believe material requirements are what's needed here.'' To this end, Resppec...t had formed a mentor system within its ranks, whereby each adult will "adopt' one or more youngsters and hopefully develop a relationship which encourages them to achieve better things in life.

"We feel the children need to have a better value system, a better focus, and be not just educated but properly educated,'' Mr. Shakir emphasised. "We are not talking about institutionalised education but the value of oneself, and understanding one's place in society.'' Answers to questions such as: What is your decision? How do you get there? Where do you need to go? will come through positive guidance.

"We want our children not just to hear these questions, but to understand them,'' Mr. Shakir said.

The co-founder was also at pains to stress that Resppec...t was not a "black'' youth group.

"We are a multi-racial group addressing a societal problem,'' he said. In its first major step towards establishing more peaceful relations between all of the Island's youth, Resppec...t will hold a Youth Day at Warwick Secondary School on July 24 with the theme, Community through Youth. The event will target youngsters aged 13-20, and run from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. It will include a mixture of sports and debate.

"Tournaments will include six-a-side soccer, basketball, softball and possibly netball, with teams from neighbourhood and youth groups,'' Mr. Shakir promised. "After a break for refreshments, we will have an Oprah Winfrey-style reasoning session, whereby participants will be given 90 minutes to air their views on a particular theme. It will be designed to stimulate positive thinking.

"We feel that once youth can play together, enjoy themselves, and be able to discuss matters of concern together in a reasonable way, they will start to treat each other in a better fashion, rather than resort to the youth on youth violence that Bermuda is currently experiencing.'' Anyone wishing to find out more about Resppec...t or to assist in its work should contact Mrs. Elizabeth Shakir at 292-3041.

NEGATIVE INTO POSITIVE -- Through the newly-formed group, Resppec...t, co-founder Mr. Cromwell Shakir has turned a negative family experience into what he hopes will be a positive community force to end youth on youth violence.