3 weeks ago
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In May 2021, one year after Jean ‘Sister Jean’ Watt – the wife of iconic reggae singer Neville ‘Bunny Wailer’ Livingston – went missing, her stepson, Abijah ‘Naki Wailer’ Livingston told The Sunday Gleaner that even though the family was then planning the final send-off for his father, it was important to pause what they were doing to in order to “keep the awareness of Sis Jean going”.
“A lot has been going on, but we must keep her search at the forefront because finding her will surely help our family to heal. We’ve been all over the island putting up posters and responding to sightings. The media and persons on social media have greatly assisted us with our search, but as time goes by, we have to try other measures to keep her at the forefront,” Abijah said at the time.
Five years later, he and the family are still feverishly searching for their beloved Sister Jean, the soulmate of Bunny Wailer, affectionately called Jah B. Abijah noted that the search has been made more emotional through the many calls they received, only to go to the location and find out that it was a Sister Jean lookalike.
Sister Jean wandered from Bunny Wailer’s home in Washington Gardens in St Andrew on May 23, 2020. The dreadlocked Watt, who was then 70 years old, suffers from dementia, a condition that affects her short-term memory. Bunny Wailer died on March 2, 2021, at the Medical Associates Hospital in St Andrew. His family believes that her disappearance took a toll on his health, especially considering that he had suffered a minor stroke in 2018 and a second in July 2020.
Last Monday, Abijah organised a protest outside the headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) on Oxford Road in St Andrew.
“This protest is aimed at keeping the awareness in the public space that Sister Jean is still missing after five years and to agitate for a police investigation as quite a number of the family fear that the disappearance of Jean Watt, the wife of Bunny Wailer, might be as a result of foul play,” Abijah told The Sunday Gleaner last week but did not elaborate on the possible “foul play” aspect.
MISSING PERSONS UNIT NEEDED
“We understand through communications with members of the police force that there’s no department specifically dedicated to missing persons. With our peaceful protest, we would like to highlight the need for a unit in the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) dedicated to investigating and finding missing persons,” the father of two added.
It was a deliberately small group that gathered at the location, quietly holding up pictures of Sister Jean and grabbing the attention of passers-by, whether on foot or in vehicles. Abijah said the protest “went well”.
“We were able to raise international awareness of the public, as some persons told us they thought Sister Jean was found. We did also get positive engagement from the JCF and the CIB, which was the purpose of the demonstration. I organised it to be small because we wanted to ensure it was conducted peacefully and wouldn’t force the police to remove us as we planned to occupy the front entrance of the building,” he shared.
Abijah, a singer, who goes by the stage name Naki Wailer, is the only son of Bunny Wailer and is the executor of his father’s estate. Bunny Wailer and Sister Jean, a fashion designer and a member of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, were together for 50 years, and although their union did not produce any children, she mothered all 12 of Bunny Wailer’s children. Abijah, who is close to his own mother, still credits Sister Jean for the positive impact she had on his life.
Reflecting on Bunny Wailer, Abijah focused on the reggae icon’s love for people and the extent to which he was “grounded by his Rastafari faith” and cared for his family.
“He never placed emphasis on money or material things. Instead, he valued people. Bunny Wailer lived a philanthropic life and has given more to the people than he kept for himself, thus receiving a label he truly embraced ... Don Dada.”
In addition to hiring private detectives and offering a reward of $1 million for information leading to the safe return of Sister Jean, the family, in a move spearheaded by Abijah, produced a documentary titled WailNSoul Searching for Sis Jean. It was released in recognition of International Women’s Day 2021 and focused on mental health issues and missing women in general. The video has amassed 33,000 views after four years.
“We are hopeful that an investigation will be launched, but if not, we will protest again, possibly at the Ministry of Justice. Although we seek justice for Jean Watt, we also see the need for systemic change. We want answers, we want a probe, we want closure,” Abijah declared.
English (US) ·