Our National Anthem! Saint Vincent, Land so beautiful!

When Julien Alfred and Thea LaFond representing St. Lucia and Dominica, stood on the podium to receive their Olympic Gold Medals, the flags of their nations were hoisted, and their country’s national anthem played. This goes back to the Olympic charter of 1920 which stated, “The national anthem of this nation is then played during which time the spectators remain standing.” Flags of all medallists are displayed, but only the national anthem of their country would have been played. The melody is played but often winning athletes and spectators from their countries would sing the lyrics. What a proud moment it would have been for Alfred and LaFond. Traditionally too, the anthems of teams participating at International Sporting events would enjoy the privilege of having their national anthems played before the start of the events. At the last T20 World Cup, I sat near to visitors from Bangladesh who stood up and lustily sang their national anthem. I believe it might have been Bangladesh, but I heard someone saying that she didn’t know there was another anthem as long as that of SVG.

But let us divorce this from the Olympic and Sporting events generally; what is the point of the national anthem? One source stated that anthems symbolise and evoke eulogies and traditions of a country or nation. This took on special meaning for countries which began gaining their independence from the 1960s, a period of decolonization and Independence for African and Caribbean nations. Using British colonies in the Caribbean, its citizens grew up singing the British Anthem, “God Save our gracious Queen (King). Our heroes were British heroes including those who enslaved us. The anthems try to evoke a feeling of patriotism, to be a source of pride and a reminder of past struggles and of our rich heritage. Some former colonies have produced what really amount to songs geared to tourists.

Kenya which became independent in 1963 states in the last stanza of its anthem “Let all with one accord, In common bond united, Build this our nation together, And the glory of Kenya, The Fruit of our labour, Fill every heart with;” Belize which gained its independence in 1981 labels its Anthem “Land of the Free”: “O, Land of the Free by the Carib Sea, Our manhood we pledge to thy liberty! No tyrants here linger, despots must flee, This tranquil haven of democracy. The blood of our sires, which hallows the sod, Brought freedom from slavery oppression’s rod, By the might of truth and the grace of God. No longer shall we be hewers of wood.” Its chorus; “Arise! Ye sons of the Baymen’s clan, Put on your armours, clear the land! Drive back the tyrants, let despots flee – Land of the Free by the Carib Sea!”

Barbados states “In plenty and in time of need, When this fair land was young, Our brave forefathers sowed the seed, From which our pride is sprung, A pride that makes no wanton boast, Of what it has withstood, That binds our hearts from coast to coast-The pride of nationhood.” Chorus “We loyal sons and daughters all, Do hereby make it known, These fields and hills beyond recall, Are now our very own. We write our names on history’s page, With expectations great, Strict guardians of our heritage, Firm craftsmen of our fate. . .”

Now for St. Lucia, “Gone the times when nations battled for this ‘Helen of the West’! Gone the days when strife and discord Dimmed her children’s toil and rest Dawns at last a brighter day Stretches out a glad, new way. May the Good Lord bless our Island Guard her sons from woe and harm! May our people live united, Strong in soul and strong in arm, Justice, Truth and Charity Our Ideal forever be!”

SVG- “Hairoun, our fair and blessed isle, Your mountains high, so clear and green, Are home to me, though I may stray, A haven calm serene” Verse III “Our little sister islands are, Those gems, the loverly Grenadines. Upon their seas and golden sands, The sunshine ever beams” The anthem is for St. Vincent and the Grenadines but yet we see the Grenadine as “Our little sister islands”; “Those gems . . . Upon their seas and golden sands, The sunshine ever beams”

Where are our people? All we are left with is our faith! “Whate’er the future brings, Our faith will see us through.” Belize calls on the sons of the Baymen’s clan to put on their armours, drive back the tyrants and let the despots flee. Barbados sees its people as “Strict guardians of our heritage, Firm craftsmen of our faith” Their brave forefathers sowed the seed from which their pride is sprung. Dominica labels its anthem “Isle of Beauty” and speaks about its rivers, valleys, hills and mountains, “with a clime benign and bright . . .” But it ends with a call to its people, not to wait on faith to see us through, but “Come ye forward, sons and daughters, Of this Gem beyond compare, Strive for honour sons and daughters, Do the right be firm be fair. . . We must prosper! Sound the call, In which everyone rejoices, All for Each and Each for All”

“Saint Vincent, land so beautiful”! There is no doubt about that, but others also declare their land to be beautiful. Our people have been told simply to depend on our faith. There is no sense of heritage, of history. Our people fought for centuries to keep out the colonisers and you are telling us today, that” Whate’er the future brings, Our faith will see us through!”

• Dr Adrian Fraser is a social commentator and historian