Bustamante’s 125th Anniversary Celebrated at Heroes Park
February 26, 2009The Full Story
The life and work of National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, were celebrated in a brief ceremony at National Heroes Park , in Kingston, on Tuesday (Feb.24) to commemorate the 125th anniversary of his birth.
Governor-General, His Excellency, the Most Hon. Professor Sir Kenneth Hall, Prime Minister Bruce Golding, and Opposition Leader, Portia Simpson Miller, were among the dignitaries, diplomats, officials, and other guests who attended the function, held at Sir Alexander’s shrine.
The occasion was marked by a number of floral tributes, reflections on Sir Alexander’s life and performances in song and poetry.
A smiling Anthony Meade (left), a member of the Vauxhall High School Culture Club, gets his programme autographed by Governor-General, His Excellency The Most. Hon. Professor Sir Kenneth Hall, during the floral tribute ceremony, commemorating the 125th anniversary of the birth of National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, at the National Heroes Park, in Kingston, on February 24.
Floral tributes were laid by Sir Kenneth, Mr. Golding, and Mrs. Simpson Miller. They were joined by President of the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU), Kavan Gayle; Mayor of Kingston, Senator Desmond McKenzie; General Secretary of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), Karl Samuda; Founding Chairman, and member, respectively, of the Bustamante Foundation, Dr. Victor Page, and Dr. Joyce Robinson; and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps/Cuban Ambassador to Jamaica, Gisela Garcia Rivera.
Sir Alexander Bustamante, buoyed by the labour upheavals of 1938, formed the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU), through which he advocated for improved working conditions and wages for labourers.
In 1943, he formed the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), through which he lobbied for self-government, leading up to Jamaica’s independence from British colonial rule. He was Jamaica’s first Chief Minister, after Adult Sufferage, in 1944, and Jamaica’s first Prime Minister, at independence on August 6, 1962.
Sir Alexander retired from active politics in 1967, and was conferred with the honour of National Hero by the government two years later. He is the only recipient to receive the award during his lifetime. He died on Independence Day, August 6, 1977, at the age of 93.