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OAS Permanent Council Holds a Minute of Silence for the Death of Barbados Prime Minister

The Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) today honored the memory of the recently deceased Prime Minister of Barbados, David Thompson, with a minute of silence and a unanimously approved resolution in his memory.

The Assistant Secretary General of the OAS, Albert R. Ramdin, said the death of the Barbados politician on October 23 is “an acute loss for the people of Barbados but also for the Caribbean community as a whole, because Prime Minister Thompson was a champion of democracy and justice in the Caribbean.”

“He was a very firm believer in democracy and in regional integration,” Ambassador Ramdin added. “Barbados has lost a leader; the Caribbean region has indeed lost a committed regionalist, an intellectual and a loyal son, and the Americas have lost a friend and a committed partner in democracy and human rights.”

In the name of the members of the Permanent Council, the Chair and Permanent Representative of El Salvador, Joaquín Maza, expressed “our most heartfelt condolences to the people and government of Barbados for the passing of Prime Minister Thompson.”

“The early death of Prime Minister Thompson is a great loss, of a dedicated statesman and a distinguished public servant, not only to Barbados but to the entire hemisphere,” Ambassador Maza added, calling for a minute of silence “in honor of an extraordinary life of sacrifice and work for the people of Barbados.”

The resolution approved by the Council described as “fundamental” the role carried out by the late politician as a “leader and statesman,” and mentioned his “tireless commitment to the economic, social and cultural development of his country, and his dedication to regional integration.”

Through its declaration, the Permanent Council expressed “profound sorrow” at his passing, and sent its condolences to his family and to the people and Government of Barbados. The permanent Representative of Barbados to the OAS, John E. Beale, thanked the show of support on behalf of his Government and paid homage to Prime Minister Thompson upon saying, “Most of his relatively short life was spent at the service of the people and the nation he loved so dearly.”

The representatives of Jamaica (on behalf of CARICOM), Ecuador (in representation of the ALADI Group), Belize (in the name of SICA), the United States and Canada also spoke during the Council meeting.

OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza, who will attend the funeral of Prime Minister Thompson next Wednesday, lamented that “not only Barbados, but all of America, has lost a dedicated statesman and a distinguished public servant.”

A photo gallery of the event will be available here soon here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-405/10