Mr. Chairman, Dr. Clarence Henry
Prime Minister, Hon. Lester Bird
Hon. Gaston Browne, Minister of Planning, Trade, Industry, Commerce and Public Service Affairs
Father Charles Willock
Ambassador Lionel Hurst
Mr. John C. Charles and colleagues of the Secretariat
Members of the media
Ladies and Gentlemen
SALUTATIONS!
I am proud today as Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community to welcome you all to CARIFESTA VIII in Suriname. This pride is heightened by the fact that this is the first time since my assumption of office in 1992 that this major Community event is being held in a non-English speaking country. Indeed it is only the second time in its 31-year history that CARIFESTA is being staged outside the English speaking Caribbean, having been held in Cuba in 1979.
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Your Excellency Ambassador Elisabeth Harper |
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Salutations: |
When CARIFESTA VIII – the Caribbean’s premier cultural event - winds down on August 30th in Suriname, organisers hope they would have found the answer to one of the most important questions_ “where do we go from here.”
CARIFESTA is returning to the mainland in August 2003, in a year when both host country –Suriname- and its CARICOM sister states have a lot to commemorate - CARICOM marked its 30th anniversary and Suriname commemorated the 140th anniversary of slavery abolishment, 150 years of Chinese immigration, 130 years of Indian immigration and 115 years of Indonesian immigration, the cultural richness of the Caribbean will fall in the spotlight.
Caribbean youths have reached several milestones in recent years; one of the most important is the growing recognition that they are better able to bridge the gap between themselves and adults. There are still a lot of challenges to overcome though. Some of these challenges will be discussed during the youth symposium that will be part of CARIFESTA VIII, scheduled for 24 to 30 August in Suriname.
The Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat presents his compliments to the Secretary-General of the United Nations Organisation and wishes to express his shock at the bombing of the United Nations offices in Baghdad, and the death of Special Envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello and other United Nations officials who lost their lives or were injured in pursuit of the noble goal of peace.
The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat presents its compliments to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federative Republic of Brazil and has the honour to convey the following message.
“The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat expresses its deepest condolences on the tragic passing of United Nations Special Envoy Mr. Sergio Vieira de Mello, who died in service for humanity.
The process of inaugurating the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) before the end of 2003 has taken two significant strides forward with the finalisation of the membership of both the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission and the Board of Trustees of the CCJ Trust Fund.
The Agreement Establishing the Court sets out in Article V (1), the composition of the Commission, as nominees from the regional entities or, in two cases, representatives of permanent organs of Member States.
“There is hereby established a Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission which shall consist of the