Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley said Barbados National Day on November 30, allows the country to celebrate both the attainment of Independence and becoming a Parliamentary Republic with a native Barbadian as President.
In a short statement on Tuesday night following the announcement earlier that November 30 would now be Barbados National Day, Mottley said: “I have seen and heard the comments this afternoon on social media. Irrespective of how the Government has felt about this issue last year and the decision we made, there is the reality that there has been confusion as to how the election of the first Barbadian Head of State would be celebrated without undermining the significance of November 30, 1966. It is not either one or the other. Both are milestones in our journey. And as a 56-year old country we must act with our minds focused on the future,” the Prime Minister said.
“Barbados National Day on November 30 allows us to celebrate both the attainment of Independence and the attainment of becoming a Parliamentary Republic with a native Barbadian as President. The fact is, our Independence from Britain is not being rewritten from our history,” she continued.
“We can allay the fears of those who are concerned about that. But equally we have to celebrate the election of our first President. We expect that some will continue to refer to both events as the day, but for the avoidance of doubt, we settle on an overall rubric that encompasses both events. And that is why we have settled on Barbados National Day – to celebrate two significant events in the life and journey of the sovereign State.”
Mottley urged Barbadians to focus “on what we must do as a nation to be the best that we can be”. She said it involves building on the past, but focusing on the future. (PR/CM)
