20th Feburary 2010
WANTED: Intellectual Stimulation in South....

Two items of equal newsworthiness caught my attention last week. Both were positive and deserving further examination and elaboration. The first was that by First Caribbean Bank to the proposed ‘life-size’ monument of the late John Compton to be erected in Castries. The second was the larger than usual attendance at the annual ‘Laureates Lecture’ honouring Hon. Derek Walcott (and Sir Arthur Lewis). The Laureates celebration (and in particular the ‘lectures’) is a matter I long ago decided deserved comment but I held back because I was reluctant to share an opinion which could be interpreted as offensive to persons genuinely proud of the island’s Nobel Laureates and who do what they think best to honour them and also because I did not want it said my comments were partisan instead of a search for ways to spread and improve debate nation-wide in the name of these great men. I chance this exposure at the thirty-first anniversary of independence partly because it may be more widely appreciated today and also because it matters less to me now how those who may disagree with my point of view, really think.
Take the proposal for the placement of a monument to honour John Compton in Castries, for example. Those who know anything about this island’s politics would readily agree that it was the south/eastern constituency of Micoud which was largely responsible for the long unbroken record of parliamentary service the young John Compton rendered to the citizens of this country – and to Micoud (and Dennery) in particular. Micoud supported and voted for Mr. Compton every election since 1956 and up to his final run in 2006 – together, twelve consecutive electoral victories in forty years of elective politics. It would therefore not be too much to ask that at his passing something special be done for Micoud – a sort of permanent tribute if you will – in memoriam. After his passing the people of Micoud North constituency voted handsomely for his daughter in the by-election called to replace the departed, long-serving parliamentarian. Everyone agreed those votes belonged to the deceased John Compton. Throughout his years of service - from the fifties to the early twenty-first century - the people of Micoud remained loyal to ‘Daddy’ Compton. (Sir John). They now honoured his family, his political party, and his legacy. The question therefore begs itself: Is Micoud deserving of some sort of monument or memorial (tribute) to the great man? Yes, he served in Castries the capital, but it was to Micoud (and Mahaut) he returned each Wednesday for his weekly political clinics and where every one, friend or foe, was guaranteed a listening ear. In return Micoud empowered him in a way this island and the wider Caribbean watched in awe and amazement. If the placing of the proposed monument, to which the above named bank has contributed financially, is cast in stone and cannot be changed, it cannot be too late to do something specific for Micoud and Desruisseaux. It is also well to remember that many persons in the south of the island believe Compton’s long association with that part of the island is still relevant, still revered and still greatly respected. Besides, a monument to the memory of John Compton does not have to be cast in stone or iron. It can be a school or a centre for the performing arts, (which he often promised) and which can become a venue for an annual Laureates lecture and/or another, remembering the former Parliamentarian (and Prime Minister).
The seeming knee jerk desire to focus the celebrations of the laureates (and John Compton) in Castries may be understandable to many but it does not make it correct, especially for those living and working outside Castries. True enough Castries is the capital; the seat of government and the birth place of both Saint Lucia laureates. But Castries is not Saint Lucia. Besides, it was to their wider international focus and studies these two intellectual giants finally placed this little island on the global laureate stage. One recalls clearly that, when Sir Arthur and Hon. Derek Walcott received the Nobel Prize there was almost an embarrassing detachment and lack lustre acknowledgment of what these sons of Saint Lucia and the Caribbean had achieved. The island and its leaders seemed at first in shock not knowing how to celebrate or how such monumental achievements were to be used to further instill pride and industry into the hearts and minds of the youth of Saint Lucia and the rest of the Caribbean. Of course, there must have been the quiet cocktails and self congratulations from the few. If so, it did not appear to filter down to the rest of the population. For a few it was fascinating to observer the almost muted manner the island’s Nobel Laureates were first celebrated. It was as if the island did not have the intellectual capacity to hoist these native sons into the air for all to see and applaud. Perhaps those responsible at the time felt they were not sufficiently competent to tell how this island became deserving of such high honour as that which crowned Sir. Arthur and Hon. Walcott. On reflection what else could one have expected of a people who were then emerging from years of poverty illiteracy and ignorance?