Parliamentarians pay tribute to Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

As parliamentarians reminisced on their encounters with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, the debate surrounding her relevance to this, an independent country, seemed to be the underlying theme of their discourse.{{more}}

At a special sitting of the House of Assembly on Friday, June 1, Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves, along with Deputy Prime Minister Girlyn Miguel, Opposition Leader Arnhim Eustace and Parliamentary Representative for Central Kingstown St Claire Leacock paid tribute to the Head of State of St Vincent and the Grenadines, the United Kingdom and fourteen other sovereign states, on the occasion of her Diamond Jubilee, the 60th anniversary of her ascension to the throne of England.

The Prime Minister reflected on his childhood, when he marched through the streets on June 2, 1953, on the day of the queen’s coronation. He said that at that time, “something just didn’t seem right”, in his mind.

“I was at the time a pupil of the Colonarie Roman Catholic School. I was one of two boys from the school chosen to carry a coronation banner ahead of a march through the village, up to the top of ‘Colonarie long stretch’.

“Students, teachers and villagers sang lustily ‘God Save the Queen’, and other patriotic or presumably, character building songs.

“Since my entry into the House of Assembly in 1994, I’ve been forced to encounter Her Majesty with my oath of allegiance to her and her successors.

“Upon becoming Prime Minister… I’ve had to recite other oaths of office and secrecy which summon up her name. Strangely, the law does not impose upon me an obligation to swear allegiance to the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines who have elected me, and whom I am duty bound to serve under God.”

Dr Gonsalves said that upon meeting the Queen on a number of occasions, he has found her to be an “intellectually curious, warm, well informed and gracious sovereign’, whose spiritual focus and humanity are palpable.

He said he holds the Queen in the highest respect.

“Still, Mr Speaker, as I participate fully in the commemoration of her reign and her Diamond Jubilee, I must continue to be honest and true to the people of my country…. I sincerely hope that one day in the not too distant future, St Vincent and the Grenadines will have its own home-grown head of state to replace Her Majesty….

“In the meantime, I continue to bear true allegiance to Her Majesty and her successors as required by the constitution; the law of our land… I shall to continue to respect Her Majesty; I wish her continued health and happiness.”

Opposition Leader Arnhim Eustace also wished Her Majesty the best on her Diamond Jubilee, as he stood to pay tribute to the monarch, who holds the second longest reign to date in British history.

“Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, she has served faithfully, and she has done well in the context of the times.

“There are many today who don’t really believe that we need to have a monarchy, and that is why I am of the view that in the future, it is unlikely that we would have persons serving for as long as sixty years.”

Eustace said that although many of the countries which were colonies of Great Britain have still kept the queen as head of state, other countries have opted for a republican status.

He said that in the case of St Vincent and the Grenadines, the status quo remains, following an attempt to move to a republic state, which was rejected after a constitutional referendum.

“Her Majesty remains the queen of St Vincent and the Grenadines and should be recognized and respected as such.

“So while in a political sense, we sometimes speak on this issue on whether one should pay allegiance or not to the queen, I think basically, what we do is, through her, pay allegiance to the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines.”

The parliamentary representative for East Kingstown said his first encounter with the queen was when she visited St Vincent and the Grenadines in 1986, and they had a brief chat.

“She did have some pretty strong views, which I believe is tied up with her own concern and sensitivity for the plight of peoples in different parts of the realm, who are struggling day after day to improve their own conditions.”

Queen Elizabeth II ascended the throne on February 6, 1952, following the death of her father King George VI.

Her coronation took place on June 2, 1953.(JJ)