Amidst the sound of conch shells and beating drums Dominica’s president Eluid Williams untied the knots of a green cloth, unveiling a statue which has been described as a symbol of the fight for freedom, triumph over adversities and a sign of resilience and strength.
The unveiling of the Neg Mawon Emancipation Monument took place on Thursday afternoon as part of Dominica’s 2013 Emancipation Celebrations.
The monument, which has been erected at the roundabout on the corner of Turkey Lane and Victoria Street and Castle Street, pays homage to the African slaves who were brought to Dominica, more so to those who resisted slavery.
Historian Dr Lennox Honychurch, stated that the monument recalls negre maron chiefs such as Bala, Jacko, Pharcel and Qwashi amongst others, who resisted slavery by taking to the bushes and who lost their lives in the battle against slavery.
According to Honychurch, the monument was erected near the area the slaves knew as their Babylon; the Roseau Old Market. It is said that the Old Market signified a place for public punishment and execution, for the slaves.
Minister for Information Ambrose George, who represented Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit at Thursday’s celebration, told the gathering that the monument pays tribute in a tangible way, to those who desperately fought for freedom. He added that it is because of those maroons that we are able to enjoy freedom today.
“This monument serves to ensure that the story of our ancestors remains in our collective memory now and in the future. This monument contributes to the task of nation building; it reflects our maturity as a nation,” George said.
He pointed out further that it is important to pay attention to nation building and urged Dominicans to join forces in rewriting their history and not regurgitate the stories that perpetuate the Eurocentric views of the stories that demonize Dominica’s heroes.
George added that it is imperative that Dominicans pay tribute to the island’s heroes since their actions assisted in putting Dominica on the path that they are today.
Chief cultural officer Raymond Lawrence said, “the monument is a symbol of freedom and emancipation and pays homage to slaves and maroons, and celebrates powerful and lasting influence of the slave and maroons.”
Lawrence noted that the slaves contributed significantly to the culture that Dominica celebrates today.
The monument was built by Franklyn Zamore.
August 1st, 2013 marked the 175th anniversary of Dominica’s emancipation from slavery.
Listen;THAT NEG MAWON;thing needs to change!!
These were RUNNERWAY SLAVES;Freedom Fighter,
Not guys paraded after captured at the same area,where he spend his last days,
It should have the same body ‘fit as a bull’with a cutlsaa in his hand, on the run.
All other countries commemorate their freedom fighters with Guns in their hands,
WHY IS IT, THAT IS A CHAIN he is breaking through,while they are trying to put it on our minds.BE Politically correct in this day and age.
LOVE the monument and the placement; and I especially love the location. It is a reminder to the everyone who passes by to go to the statehouse that we are the sons and daughters of the maroons. Chinese take note…we don’t play dat!
FREE MAROON;that is the right name for the black leberators,they fought against oppression and in justic,just like today;
Free dem Skerritt, free dem. Set dem free Skerritt, set dem free. Emancipate dem Skerritt, emancipate dem. Doe bo-bol dem Skerritt, doe bo-bol dem. Doe shackle dem Skerritt, doe shackle dem.
Israelites were slaves, indians were slaves, trust the negroes to glorify slavery in Dominica. Geez!
By the way Dominicans are still slaves, we are economic slaves we are not free!
Mr thought or Madame thought. You are such a plonker.
I bet with all what you wrote the time you spent writing that long essay it goes to show that you have nothing else to say. It appears that you are still one of them that would hang yourself to go abroad is the same people that you are stating that Skerritt sell out DA to. Patrick John was doing worst he was going to sell all you to KKK sort. How comes no one says a dicky bird about him
I belive that it is a great statue ride on Skerro. the next thing the gov should do is to build a school where people can graduate with common sense at presence is pure idiots
People hungry but y’all spending money on Statues????????
BRUTALITY OF SLAVERY
Freedom, is a priceless commodity
I know, because I as once in captivity
Shackled my feet and hands
Extracted from my land
Shipped, like sardnes, across the ocean
Millions died at sea
Treated inhumanely
Against our will, was forced to toil for free
WHO’S GONNA PAY?
By the color of my skin, declard me property
Blind to the living being,traded me like commodity
Beast of burden I had become
Rights, priveleges, I had none
Cruelty unleashed, with hard labor whip and gun
Children born into slavery
Innocent knowing only cruelty
Choosing death over their reality
WHOS GONNA PAY?
Deposit we in the Caribbean, centuries ago
Worked for generations,still have nothing to show
We enriched you more
Yet you kept us poor
Our pleas for freedom, you ignored
A people born free
Robbed of their dignity
Denied, their right to liberty
WHOS GONNA PAY?
Who’s gonna pay? for stealing my gold and diamond
Who’s gonna pay? for destroying black civilization
With your triangle of death
You amassed empires of wealth
With your stolen resources
You built concrete and glass cities
Who’s gonna pay? for keeping we in captivity
Who’s gonna pay? for distorting black history
Who’s gonna pay? for releasing we in poverty
For the brutality of Slavery
Copyright(c)2013 Pellam Jno Baptiste
Long live the memory of the greatest maroon chief the Caribbean has seen JACKO who came into Dominica via the Old Roseau Boys School ( in Newtown 1784 ) as a Slave Soldier. He and others was detached to BeauBois estate near Newtown and subsequently escaped and set up station in BELLES. Its known that many of the descendants of Jacko are now located in areas such as Newtown and Belles and Warner and many parts of the south and south east of Dominica particularly Delices,Grand Bay, Belle vue Chopin , etc. While Jacko was assassinated in 1814 his seed continued in the WILLIAM aka “PAYWIN” MITCHEL- who is said to be a most direct descendant of JACKO/JACO. William Paywin Mitchel is said to have fathered 100 kids spreading from the communities of Delices, Grand Bay and environs, Giraudel/Eggleston,Loubiere,Pte Mithel,Morne Prosper,Mahaut, St Joseph, Morne Rachette,Warner, belles,Newtown,Kingshill, Roseau valley etc etc etc.
JACKO LED MANY MAROONS WARS AGAINST THE COLONIALIST AND AGENTS OF THEM. Many of our ancestors were ceremoniously and brutally murdered on the NEWTOWN SAVANNAH; do you know that some of them were drawn between horses and their bodies torn into shreds to a horrifying brutal death…the ADIEU WILLIAM OH generation and descendants of JACKO and WILLIAM PAYWIN MICHEL fought against elements of colonialism; this time a white south African born chief of Police ( Leyton ) Who clashed with the most feared BAND MAUVE IN DOMINICA ( NEWTOWN ) and he died from his injuries sustained from the eventual impasse on carnival day……( adieu William oh … )
It would nice if one could access Lennox’s speech at the unveiling it was very good and something I would like to listen to when I have the time.
Emanmcipater Your Minds You are as much a European as You are African!Do Not delude Yourself and live in Denial of this . We are the Descendants of African and European, Slaves and Sailors respectively.The First Children sold into slavery were the progeny of Africans impregnated by European Captains and Crew.500 Years later we can add Kalinago ,Chinese,Indian ,Middle Eastern and others to the mix.
We are West Indians!
That Monument frankly scares the Hell out of me .Beware of Dictators and their agents who want to free You .Example Kadaffi freed Libyans from Italy but His prize was ownership of the Libyan People.
Support this very much. Long overdue. There are similar monuments in Haiti and Barbados. But the “round about” should have been raised. It’s too vulnerable to traffic as it is right now. An out of control semi trailer for instance could do some major damage. Just saying.
THE TRUE HOROES ARE THE SINGLE PARENTS WHO GO THROUGH HELLS TO ENSURE THEIR CHILD IS FED.WHEN AID IS GIVEN IT IS MENT TO HELP THE PEOPLE OF THAT COUNTRY AND NOT FOR THE SO CALLED TOPS TO USE TO THEIR ADVANTAGE.YOU CAN FOOL SOME OF THE PEOPLE BUT NOT ALL OF THEM.NO BANANAS,NO JOBS,WE SURVIVE ON BUSH TEA,NO DOCTORS AND NOW THE ONLY MEANS OF SURVIVAL IS THE DRUGS AND YET YOU ARE TAKING IT AWAY FROM THEM,THIS IS A FORM OF SLAVERY.PEOPLE, DON’T HAVE GOES AT EACCH OTHER THINK.LITTLE DOGS CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE BIG DOGS
Mr Zamore is so gifted, well done,,,congrats…and congrats to Mr Lawrence and the Cultural Division…great work…
This is a brilliant idea but can someone please tell me how much this cost and where the funds came from?
Is not your db where we get our money
Always negative; always asking questions and about money. It came from somewhere.
In terms of funds, tell us what have you contributed to Dominica to be bold enough to requisition this?
that should be the last thing u should think about.
Not your d**n business!…All all you there for is to put politics in everything that’s happening in Dominica.
From your pocket.
Why is it important to know the cost and where the money came from? I am sure it came from a proper place. We should learn to appreciate the good things that happen in our country without making insinuations. Great, great idea! Let’s keep our history alive.
i hope us strong black people come ro realise the fact that it was actually our black brothren in africa that sold us to the white man in the first place untill we come to accept that fact we will never truely be free
me;you make me laugh;just look at what is happening in Dominica today;you can see the parten,DOMINICANS are slowly sliping down that same slope.fast forward 10 years later,what would be the demographic if something positive is done to stop this trend in Dominica.Our children will be cursing us for the state they they would be in.So think befor you make such statement.
U na c u not free still
I am free, I have always been free.
If someone tries to sell you something you don’t have to buy. If someone offered you a slave right now would you think it was ok because it was for sale? Obviously not. Not only were Europeans not forced to buy slaves, they were not forced to make slavery so inhumane and were not forced to institute a system of degrading racism.
If the white man did not “create a market” then we would not have been sold. Long and short they are still to blame!
Very Good Concept, today we as the Tribe of Benjamin are free in a fertile Land of Dominica thanks to YAHWEH and our forefathers. We holdno allegiance to any foreign power but we have fostered good relations with our brothers,the Chinese, Venezuelans and Cubans whose humanitarian mannerisms look into the best interest of 3rd World countries unlike the former slave masters of the USA and UK (EGYPT).
Good idea but I don’t like the monument. Why dint they depict one of our heroes breaking the chains that bound them against their will. I don’t like the idea of the chains around his neck. If we are proud of them emphasize what they did which was breaking the chains and emancipating themselves and many others. I think that would have sent a stronger message about the level of heroism in our history.
If you look you will see that all the chains have already been broken. Why do you want the exact same slave magically breaking iron shackles that you see everywhere else. I like this depiction, not only is he liberated but he is blowing the conch shell, alerting everyone else to do the same. he stands strong and unafraid. I can go on and on.
They shouldve given you the job todepict the statue lol atleast we have sensible people here.
There should be NO chains at all. This is what freedom means.
That is the image of my 10th Grandfather.
I am proud of the fight they fought,so I can write my thoughts today.As I see it we are slipping back into darkness,they feeding us with white powder,while they burn the green herb jah gave us.We need a black moses today.
Very good. Congratulations to Raymond Lawrence and all those involved in presenting a real monument. It really looks good.
Now that we have learnt how to build a proper monument, can something be done to the travesty of E.O. LeBlanc next to the Mahaut toilet? The little picture in a glass frame on cheap ceramic tiles are not deserving to the father of the nation.
Oh my! Near a toilet? He was not the father of the nation. He was a Chief Minister. To find out who is the father of this nation, you will have to do a research and in the archives. Lennox Honeychurch could help you out about that. However, wherever his statue or picture is placed it should be in a worthy area and certainly not near a toilet.
Could they not have found a better place to put it or a different one far away from the toilet? Placing it near a toilet or building a toilet near it sounds extremely inconsiderate and disrespectful. He deserves better than that. You should also report this to the MP who represents Mahaut.
A people of wisdom knows and understands its history and heritage. We must avoid the confusion and errors of the past, less we be enslaved all over again, good job Raymond and the cultural Division, remind us, less we forget and remain lost for too long…..
What’s in a monument? The mind needs to be free from enslavement. A new form of slavery is crippling our land. When patriots express concern about those new forms of slavery, corruption, or speak about our rights as human beings according to our Constitution, those Dominicans are ridiculed, victimized, cast aside.
Emancipation from whom? the bad governance of that DLP Cabal? passports sales, sovereignty gone. Chinese awarded contracts to build, although Dominicans could do the job and have to pay back the loans? Public Works evicted from where they operated for decades. The entire area sold to Chinese to build hotel. How much, nobody knows that. Emancipation Mr. Skerritt?
Freedom from what? Try protesting/ exercising your right to assemble peacefully against increased corruption, bribery, illegalities for so or demonstrate for Free and fair elections/electoral reform and you’ll see.
The country has been sliding into dictatorship, big time. Independent Institutions like IPO, Electoral Commission, Police Service, judiciary et al are all heavily influenced by political operatives.
Freedom of information continue to elude us. Secret deals, kick backs, greed could set us free.
Balla, Congoree, Pharcelle, Angelique and all Neg Mawons must be turning in their graves. Many have betrayed the ideals of those freedom fighters. They were never involved in corruption like our present day Cabalists. They fought with their blood to free us from the scourges of slavery and the clutches of the colonialists.
Today, a many in authority have nothing to do with freedom/struggle/love for country. They are interested in their amassing of quick wealth, doh matter what. Freedom from what? the stalling of the case of 42 charges of fraud filed by a lawyer against another lawyer? The stalling of the heinous case of fire bombings of innocent citizens? Freedom from whom? The incompetence of a group of politicians bent on staying in power for as long as it takes, knowing that if they are out of Govt. they would be in serious HOT Water?
Whose fools are we? Struggles of Neg Mawon? That’s the last thing on the mind of those who continue with MASSA thinking. The gap between the haves and have-nots is widening everyday. Engagement in Agriculture, which helped make the rural folks more self-reliant, have been neglected by Skerritt’s DLP Govt. Poverty has increased ten-fold under that DLP govt. Begging is the order of the day.
Let us Evoke the spirits of our Neg mawon, now not later. Fight back like our Neg Mawon. Take your country back from corruption and crimes of all sorts.
Whoever you are, many accuse others as the government of what they assume. They do not consider themselves and their overall attitude towards others. Keep in mind love and respect for others, your nationals, your neighbor and others whom you come into contact with, whether in person or over the Internet, according them their due right, dignity, freedom and to practice their faith in whatever manner is taught by their Hierarchy. Prior to giving others advice and calling them all sorts of derogatory names, make an examination of conscience. How well do you treat others? The world would be a better place if more people have loving ones.
I want to thank You for Your comment ! Bang on!
My Thoughts also
Man, you are so right, we are in bondage again. Sold out by our own to foreign interests for a few trinkets and baubles. Can we honestly say that that statue reflects our pride and sense of achievement.
This should also portray the black family unit… because we were all enslaved. Man, woman, child. The statue is a good start but it can be looked at by the unknowing eye as an escaped prisoner. A woman and child would show that the people themselves were enslaved and put into bondage because of race. Let us represent ourselves a whole unit, show the entire picture so the full story can be told and understood.
me likey…looks like a real strong black brotha!!! respect!
It’s ironic that we are commemorating emancipation yet folks don’t seem to pause, before forming an opinion- and worse, expressing it (Throughout DNO comments and particularly the case of Gay rights)
Many of life’s virtues were once illegal or considered an abomination… folks, it’s time to move on from being so provincial… We need to emancipate ourselves from mental slavery!!!
who is preventing you from having sex with who you want? do people come to your bedroom or invade your privacy and tell you who you should sleep with?
How tall is it? Who funded it? Is Franklyn Zamore a Dominican? …just curious.
Go and find out.
Statue has no height.. it was not funded… Franklyn Zamore is certainly not a Dominican..
What is negative about trying to find out information? I am sure those thumbs-down are politically motivated. Ridiculous to politicize motive behind these questions.
and now the ancestors of these Africans that we celerbrate are sitting in our jail for planting or smoking weed,,,,,crazy,,my goverment truly emancipate us and stop putting brothers in jail for weed
ps the real drug cocaine do what ever it takes to control it ,,,i am a herb smoker not a druggie time to make the distinction
We need to be emancipated MENTALLY now
Yes! Love for one another; being kind to others in words and deeds. Never taking advantage of them and harming them. Respectfor their private and personal property.
In any case, those who speak of emancipation should consider The Ten Commandments of God and live it. No further explanation is necessary.
It’s high time that we give honour to our ancestors. Now it’s time to remove the shackles from our minds. The same Europeans who captured and enslaved our forefathers enslaved their minds by forcing their religion on them. It’s time that these religious shackles be removed.
You stated a lot of nonsense. You must be careful what you state. Think! The Africans of those days would make the identical comment about their ancestors.
Today, there are people, too many of them who go about indoctrinating others who already have a religion and aggressively influence them to renounce their Faith and join their religion. Is this not forcing their beliefs and practices on others and shackling them?
I hope we build one for linton who is liberating us from skerrit.
Please don’t compare crooked politicians to a race that struggled and is still struggling for survival and justice.
Among some of the struggling race in the past there were crooked people. Among the present ones there are crooked people. Furthermore, their own race were paid to catch their own for the Americans and bring them to foreign lands as in Dominica, in chains and shackles and under subhuman conditions. Many did not survive.
I do think we should consider this and contemplate on their misery of those days and being slaves. Thank God, in his time they were emancipated. Even then it was a struggle to be truly free.
The situation of Dominicans today is non to be compared with what they experienced. We reside in a free world where we have the opportunity to be what we want to be. It is left up to us what we want to make of our lives.
Those ancestors did not have that opportunity. You know they were not allowed to learn to read and write. If they were caught doing that, they would be beaten. They had no freedom and were not masters of themselves, not even in their private lives. Think about that and be fair and broadminded.
Crooked Politicians that erected it ! Right in front the Palace built by Chinese depriving a Dominican from eating bread !How deluded can we be ?
And We are paying for it (Vat)everyting You eat ,drink ,work and buy .
hahahahaha
DNO, I can always count on you to… Make-My-Day!
Wise people never count their chickens before they are hatched. They are never presumptuous.
A tribute to a our ancestors
A freedom bought with blood, sweat and tears
A monument, lest we forget the bravery and courage of OUR fore fathers and mothers! A monument for the generations of Dominicans to come.
GOD BLESS DOMINICA!!
It’s amazing we are putting a monument to recall the past, but the walls at Massacre, the botanical gardens and ministry have all been painted over.
Skeritt is a freedomite lest we forget !
He infiltrated the DLP so out of convenience we must forget only what He wants us to remember .
You forgot who repainted the Treasury building?
Proud to be a descendant of a resilient race.
Not to spoil the occasion but do we ever question why black people never got compensation for slavery and the Jews did for HOLOCUST. Just wondering. Happy day though..
EMANCIPATED FROM D WHITE MAN… RECOLONIZED BY THE CHINESE.
And the Facilitators of this recolonization are putting on a show to make us believe they are our Liberators.What is the price we pay for this ?They enrich themselves in our name .it might have appeared more honest to simply sell us back into slavery
Let us look at the wisdom and fortitude of others and apply those in the 21st century.
From an Islamic perspective, it closes all doors to polytheism thus we do not believe in making statues of any kind. With this said, I accept the noble intentions of the Dominican people as it relates to this symbol of the fight against oppression.
May this deed be a way to bring all people irrespective of their beliefs, gender, race etc. identify the crucial problems in our society on all levels and work together to combat those ills in order to enjoy our existence on this earth together before going to our Maker who is the Supreme Judge of all.
Go join jihad somewhere else. Leave Dominica & Dominicans appreciate their history & culture. You clothe self hate with an Islamic mask.
when it come hope u can deal with it
Really… what you typing on by definition of a stature by Islamic standards IS A STATUE. it’s an object made by man, it’s in your home, you sit and spend more time with it than you do with God, you read from it, type from it, speak into it, it speaks back to you, it shows you images of all and any kind, you use it to pay your bills, to get information, it has a head, body and source of power. The computer is your statue!
Do you mean to tell me in everything I wrote, the only part you understood was about the statue?
Yes the Muslims must also learn to stop Killing and hating even their own Muslim God Brothers then come see if we are interested in joining up. Thank You for Your effort!
I will be making a few rounds around that round-a-bout. I love monuments, it shows us that we have a love and respect for history. I love this!! We need more.
And for UNICEF who led the the Geneva Uprising in GrandBay almost 40 years ago.
…
VERY GOOD
I rephrase…MONUMENT…
I want a photo next to that statue for sure…
Hi fellow dominican what a proud day for us all. I am glad to read some possitive memiors about our proud people.
I am quite annoyed that no one gave good feed back about the day Hmm maybe it is because there is no mapwee
To our Freedom Fighting Forefathers: Your sacrifices will never be forgotten.
The write up was good but I would have appreciated a full image, perhaps how it stands at the roundabout. Some of us are unable to take a bus to town anytime soon to see it.
ADMIN: https://dominicanewsonline.com/news/homepage/features/photo-of-the-day/photo-of-the-day-remembering-the-past/
At last! This was long in coming. Lest we forget.
Forever blow the Freedom Shell so your generations can remember and strive.
Let us now remove the mental chains that are still holding us back.
All men are created equal by God, and we should look at ourselves as no lesser than any man.
Good monument and I hope we always rememebr the struggles that our ancestors went through in order for us to be out of the chains.
Slavery was the worst crime perpatrated by one group of human beings against the next. We will never forget. 400 years is a long time.
DOE GIMMI DAT! GOD MAKE BLACK MAN FIRST
Hmm…what about the Jews who were were slaves since in the time of the Pharoahs?? Even before Jesus came??
Slavery is not endemic to the Caribbean or even Blacks.
Do some reading and research.
That is what the jews tell us by twisting the bible story,they are now enslaving the world financially.Doe let me tell you more.
If the Egyptians actually enslaved the Hebrews, there is little historical evidence for it other than the bible: http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/the-jewish-thinker/were-jews-ever-really-slaves-in-egypt-or-is-passover-a-myth-1.420844
Very good
Honour those slaves ,s but I am tired of people making excuses for there circumstances because of slavery. What has happened in the past does not define your future . Remember 6 million jews were murdered and you never see them seeking compensation or blaming anyone for there circumstances. By holding your head up and being a productive member if the communityis the way you honour the memory of your forefathers
Of course it does. Dire black poverty & dysfunctional social habits was created by this legacy. And it is that poverty and dysfunction that drives a lot of today’s problems. Jews are not close to same boat. They were even wealthier & encultured than the Germans who persecuted them.
sir/ madame: I kindly beg to differ. what happens in the past definitely affects the future. for example if you a born into a wealthy family your chances of being a productive member of society is much better than someone born in poverty who has to steal to make ends meet.using the jews is a very bad example. you cant compare what happen to Africans to the jews. slavery lasted for couple hundreds years. while the so called holocaust lasted only a couple of years.so multiply that 6 million by 20 for the number of Africans that perished. we should be compensated. we built the so called new world. and have noting to show for it. but kill six million jews they were allowed to STEAL an entire country and are now killing of them people by the thousands. we blacks are the most hated race on the earth.all systems of government and socity have been designed in such a way to prevent the black man from rising. look at the television that brainwash us every day.they have even succeeded in making blacks hate their own.i can tell from your comment you are not black. so you will never understand our struggle. so keep your comments to yourselves.
the jews were compensated.and are still being compensated.
Sorry person…obviously, you only read the headlines. It might help you to understand life if you read contemporary works, talk about it to a few of your Jewish friends or travel to Germany or whever Jewish people live/congregate/socialize. Jewish people still feel the pain of the Holocaust. In every work of life, they work together to ensure that it will never reoccur.
What are you doing as a collective to ensure that some form of ‘slavery’ is not occuring on your island?
The effects of slavery are still being felt today my friend.
The policies and actions by the Europeans have not changed. It is becuae the world has enlightened , they are pretending to be nice , but deep down and behind the curtains the jealousy is still there. It is this jealousy of the Black-Skin that brings the hatetred.But don’t ever say that systematically the minds of those people have changed.
Just becasue we getting a little job in high places does not mean its over.
What they are doing is not right but it is still around.
RIGHT ON! ROSEAU.
Jews bread butter on all side even the crust. Jah say he will bless those who help Israel and as such Jews will always be prosperous.
But who are the Israelite that the Bible talked about?
Are they the same ones we recognize today?
Research that!
They are not seeking compensation because they have already been compensated!
Remuneration to all Afticans at home and abroad!
The Jews were compensated. They got ISRAEL. And they most certainly talk about it, constantly. They never let anyone forget what happened. And rightly so. Blacks should be compensated as well.
Nice!!!!!
175 years! Well done Dominica and Dominicans at home and abroad! Give thanks for our ancestors. Congratulations and God be with us as with strive!
libaration
i love it