Delivered at the Third Annual Banquet of the Nevisian-DC Association in Washington DC, on Saturday September 15, 2007
I am most pleased to have this opportunity for sharing a few thoughts with you this evening as we celebrate the life’s work of a Nevisian stalwart, a giant among us.
This year’s Third Annual Awards Banquet is very special to many of us in the NEV-DC family. Our honoree, the Right Honorable Dr. Simeon Daniel, in photo, came from very humble beginnings. But he rose above his peers to emerge as a founding father of today’s ruling National Reformation Party, and later to occupy the highest position in the land as the first premier of Nevis and founder of the modern Nevis.
I ask your indulgence as I share with you what I believe epitomizes the greatness of this genteel man whose life’s work on behalf of the people of Nevis we are assembled here to celebrate this evening.
For me, the essence of his greatness may be captured in one very simple word — courage. Our honoree has demonstrated the courage of his convictions and a willingness to stand up and fight for those causes in which he believes.
What sets him apart is his dogged determination and will to succeed in helping to improve the lives of the people of Nevis and this small slice of paradise — the land that we all love and cherish dearly. His willingness to express dissent in the face of egregious wrongs represents the ultimate form of patriotism.
It was just over 30 years ago on August 18, 1977, when Nevisians were reeling from the onslaught of the vicious rule of the late Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw and his ruling Labor party in St.Kitts, that the Honorable Simeon Daniel conducted a straw poll on the issue of independence for Nevis. On that day, a referendum was organized by his Nevis Reformation Party.
Of the 4,220 persons who voted, 4,193 (i.e. 99.4 percent voted yes in favor of his call for independence for Nevis, There were only 14 persons who voted Nno; and there were 13 spoiled ballots.
Such is the power and influence of this great man in uniting his people and the courage that he possessed in confronting the military might of Mr. Bradshaw and the ruling Labor party of Basseterre.
During the difficult days of battling the Honorable Robert Llewelyn Bradshaw and his Labor party the young barrister at law spoke out against the injustices that were meted out by the central government. He spoke out against its failure to compensate the families of the more than 200 mostly Nevisian victims who perished in the Christena disaster. A generation of our people were forced to grow up poor and parentless because of the gross negligence of the central government.
He steadfastly refused to allow Nevis to be dragged into independence under Robert Bradshaw denying him the coveted prize of becoming father of the new nation of St. Christopher and Nevis. He fought for the betterment of Nevis and its people despite the injustices and the disparate treatment to which we were subjected at the hands of an uncaring central government.
In 1980, when his National Reformation Party formed a coalition government of convenience with the People’s Action Movement of St. Kitts, the two parties were united with the single purpose of removing the Labor government which Dr. Daniel considered to have stood in the way of progress in Nevis.
Dr. Daniel accepted the prestigious and powerful position of minister of finance – the ministry which controls the purse strings. As the two countries moved into full political independence in 1983, there were great expectations and much hope. Notwithstanding, in light of the history of discord that has existed between the two islands, our honoree insisted on a special clause (Section 113) that grants Nevis, in perpetuity, the right to establish itself as a separate and independent state at a time of its choosing. For many, this remains his single most important lifetime achievement.
Our honoree, the Honorable Dr. Simeon Daniel, was a well-respected attorney when he was elected to serve as the premier of Nevis and minister of finance in the Federal Parliament. There, he never lost sight of his obligations to the people of Nevis whom he represented.
He played an important role in the establishment of the Sixth Form College in Nevis and he must be credited with bringing our flagship Four Seasons Resort to Nevis – which has been the single most important and most successful venture in the entire history of Nevis, creating jobs, income and wealth for hundreds of Nevisians.
Notwithstanding his lofty position in the Federal House, the pattern of abuses did not end. Thus, by late 1990, a mere 7 years after the new federation was formed, Premier of Nevis Dr. Simeon Daniel announced his intent that Nevis would secede from the federation by the end of 1992.
During his golden years of retirement, the power of his influence and the courage of his commitment have not diminished. In recent weeks when he expressed his preference for a candidate outside of the very own party that he founded, you could virtually feel the earth move in Nevis; and his party knew it. Their political operation went into overdrive, the attack dogs came out with a vengeance. They called him names that are too unpleasant to repeat on this festive occasion.
Through all the attacks on his patriotism, he has never wavered nor backed down from his strong views. His courage in speaking out has touched us all, and he continues to do so to this very day.
In standing up for his beliefs against all forms of political abuse our honoree, the Honorable Simeon Daniel, embodies the 18th Century political philospher Edmund Burke’s famous words:
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
Our honoree was not a man to do nothing. He spoke out against all manner of wrongs and did something. That is the Simeon Daniel who we have come to know. That is the Simeon Daniel that we know telling it like it is. And, this is the fearless Nevisian stalwart and man of courage who we honor here this evening.
May his courage be an example to us all.
