There is a statue of Sir John Compton that stands in center of Castries town in St. Lucia. Tourist often just passed it by without knowing much about it. So we want to put that right:
Sir John Compton was the farther of St. Lucia Independence (achieved on 22 February 1979). He was a fiery orator and by all accounts the British had their hands full when he landed on their shores to talk about independence. He had studied law and economics at University College of Wales from 1948 to 1949 and the London School of Economics from 1949 to 1951 and was an able communicator with a powerful vocabulary and a sharp independent mind.
Sir John repatriated the constitution and led St. Lucia to independence from the British in 1979. The negotiations where full of fire as Sir John was an outspoken antagonist.
Apparently he was kept waiting far too long for his liking and when finally called into the ministers offices, he open with a bast that he was no lackey to be waiting on their matters of priority when he had come several thousand miles to meet them, with respect, and he expected nothing less than the same from them. This sort of disdain, he declared, was exactly why St. Lucia needed to break the British ties.
On signing the declaration he pronounced “the colour of our skin is against us and a government, even a one that professes democracy, is pleased to legislate and pronounce the doctorine of second class citizenship for people of another colour.”
That sort of spirited encounter from a man of the people is a story worth sharing.
He is indeed one of the remarkable men of this tiny island. Sir John fits well into the mold of exceptional St. Lucian’s – along with the two St. Lucia Nobel Laureates poet Derick Walkcott and economist Sir William Arthur Lewis.
Resources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Compton
St. Lucia A History of St. Lucia – Amazon
Statue Details
The Castries Statue of Sir John Compton is a bronze sculpture by Ricky George of St. Lucia. It shows him holding the new constitution he received from Briton. It is 9 feet tall and stands on a 6-foot base. The inscription reads: “The Right Honourable Sir John George Melvin Compton / Saint Lucia’s First Prime Minister & Champion of Caribbean Integration / 1925 – 2007. The Statue was commissioned by the Government of St. Lucia and completed in 2011.
City Guide
Castries the capital city of Saint Lucia was established by the French in 1650, Castries now has a population of just over 11,000. Attractions: Castries duty free shopping, Castries Market for fruits, vegetables and handicrafts. Restaurants and ports. Castries look like a city in disarray, but if you take time you will find hidden gems, one is the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception – see Murals local artist inside. See also: Derek Walcott Square. Morne Fortune panoramic vistas of the bay where the French and English battled for the island. More coming soon.
