Rosie Douglas’ premature demise after only eight months in office has sparked a flood of soul searching unprecedented in the history of Caribbean politics. Amidst the groundswell of mourning and eulogies, epigraphs and commentaries, one theme seems to reverberate in the analysis about the late Prime Minister’s life. As echoed by correspondent Charles Harding, in an article printed in the Tropical Star on October 4, 2000, Rosie Douglas has left without stamping his mark on Caribbean politics and with little to show in his own country. Warming to his theme, Harding proceeds to compare the achievements of other Prime Ministers, most notably Robert Bradshaw of St. Kitts, Dr. Eric Williams of Trinidad and Tobago, Grantley Adams of Barbados and Forbes Burnham of Guyana, all of whom had similarly become deceased while in office with Douglas’s seeming lack of accomplishments. Douglas comes up short even with a comparison with Dame Eugenia Charles who Harding credits for inspiring the US intervention, which restored political order and democratic rule in Grenada in 1983.
Harding’s assessment of the legacy of Rosie Douglas is unfair on a number of counts. Bradshaw, Williams and indeed Burnham enjoyed such longevity in their respective domains as to establish an autocratic rule within the democratic traditions they purported to espouse. Grantley Adams’ tenure as Barbados Prime Minister was relatively short, but he became deceased in the second five-year term in office. Furthermore, many of these leaders enjoyed political power during a period of great political change in the region, most notably, the formation of a West-Indies Federation in the 1950s or the attainment of political independence in the 1960s and 1970s.
Furthermore, the legacy of Prime Minister Douglas must be measured not by comparing his goals while in office with the accomplishments of other Caribbean leaders but by his initiatives within his brief tenure in political office. The vision adumbrated within this short period; that of a closer association with Europe, the enfranchisement of expatriate Dominicans in the Diaspora, the propagation of the island as a tourist destination for African Americans, open relations with Cuba, the solicitation of funds from non-traditional sources of aid such as Libya, represents an unprecedented desire to move the island forward. The recognition that the miniscule island states do not and cannot enjoy a modicum of comfort without some accommodation with the International community. If Rosie Douglas did not live long enough to reap the harvest of these initiatives, he similarly did not possess the unmitigated desire to remain in office at any cost, which accounts for the longevity of many Caribbean leaders.
The legacy of Douglas cannot therefore, be measured by the two hundred and forty days he spent in office. To do so would be to ignore the twenty four years he endured, from 1976 to 2000, in which he was inextricably intertwined with the political developments of the island. Douglas left an indelible mark on the island’s landscape, from the attainment of independence in the 1970s, the cultural renaissance in the wake of political independence, the realignment of political forces in the 1980s and 1990s to the ascendancy of the Dominica Labour Party in the year 2000.
THE 1970s:
Douglas returned to the island in 1976 at a propitious time in the island’s history. The Black Power Movement in the early 1970s had led to a serious questioning of the island’s hierarchical social order, trade union activism had almost ground the island’s economy to a halt and the Dread crisis posed, in the eyes of the political establishment, a serious threat to the social order. In 1974, the Eugenia Charles led opposition, teamed up with Premier Roland Patrick John to give the notorious Prohibited and Unlawful societies Association Act (The Dread Act) and the Pradial Larceny Act unanimous passage in the island’s legislature. To adequately protect private property interests against the perceived insurgency from the left, the island’s securities forces were beefed up with new personnel and equipment.
Gratuitous violence against adherents of the Black Power Movement and state sponsored killings of members of so-called unlawful societies paved the way for Patrick John’s electoral victory in 1975. The Dominica Labour Party captured 16 of 21 seats in the island’s House of Assembly, and under the guise of socialism, the John regime set upon the task of first consolidating and then perpetuating itself in power. In April 1975, it proposed a number of policies ostensibly designed to lay the groundwork for a more equitable society. These included:
An effective system of price and supply control
A system of import substitution
The establishment of a Comprehensive Social Security scheme
The development of a 200 low-income housing scheme in the Bath Estate area.
These initiatives continued in 1976, the year of Douglas’s return to Dominica. Increased taxes on the wealthy, import substitution, the establishment of a national service along the lines of that in Guyana were all, in the words of Finance Minister Vic Riviere, necessary and urgent in order that the worker, the little man, may be able to gain substantial control of the economic structure, concomitant with his political influence and participation. John formally declared his government to policy embraces the philosophy of socialism not of communism; nor of confiscation of property or land. This was followed by the DLP’s famous Salisbury Declaration in 1976 to keep the ball of independence rolling into the appointed day of self determination in 1977.
THE ADVENT OF ROSIE DOUGLAS
Into this ideological and political fray, Douglas descended in 1976. The left was reeling from the cumulative attacks from the Patrick John government and from the right. They were left splintered and uncertain about the appropriate response to the labour government. Many were supportive of the rights to self-determination of all colonial peoples but others had serious and justifiable concerns about the John government. Political Independence with John at the helm seemed unpalatable even to the most hardened radical while to others, it was an objective to be pursued regardless of who held the reigns of power.
Douglas’s arrival on the island led to the ascendancy of the latter view among the island’s radical intelligentsia. His views on the John question were simple. John was at best an irritant; someone whose significance paled in comparison with the inevitability of political independence. Ideologically, Rosie, in his book Chains or Change, had lamented how the majority of the island’s arable land was in the hands of a few big landowners including his father. That John specifically rejected any systematic land distribution schemes did not really matter. To Douglas, political independence was a historical necessity, which transcended any other consideration.
To many, Rosie Douglas’s focus on this question was the result, ideologically speaking, of an infantile disorder. A good socialist focuses on the class struggle and fought for the day when the proletariat would supersede the ruling class on the island. Without resolving the class question, political independence would do nothing to ameliorate the working class from the thraldom of the island’s bourgeoisie. Seeking independence before addressing the class question was an act of ideological heresy, according to some of Douglas’s critics.
The ideological justification for Douglas’s support of political independence as soon as possible can perhaps be found in C.L.R. James’ brilliant 1948 essay, The Revolutionary Answer to the Negro Problem in the USA. In that essay, James took issue with the orthodox view among the radical intelligentsia in the U.S. that the independent struggles of Negro people had only an episodic value, which had to be subordinated to the struggles of the labour movement. Rather, he relied on Lenin to advance the view that the dialectic of history is such that small independent nations which are powerless in the struggle against imperialism, nevertheless can act as one of the ferments, one of the bacilli which will bring on to the scene the real fundamental force against capitalism – the socialist proletariat. Political independence for former colonized peoples was therefore the precedent to unleashing the socialist revolution on the Dominican society.
THE DRIVE TOWARDS POLITICAL INDEPENDENCE
Douglas was the prime architect in mobilizing island wide support for political independence for Dominica between 1976 and 1978. Along with Bernard Wiltshire, Pierre Charles and other political adherents, he established a series of Peoples Independence Committees around the island with the main bastions of support for independence being Portsmouth and Grandbay.
These committees were successful in politicising youth on the island, to a degree unprecedented in the island’s history. Issues of the Granma became common reading fare among the disenfranchised segment of the island’s population while lectures, meetings and discussions about the anti-colonial struggle in Africa garnered support for independence to a degree previously held to be unimaginable.
In Roseau, a study group, Cadre #1, based at the home of Hilarian DeJean, established a political beachhead in the island’s capital and with its own newsletter, engaged in ideological warfare with its nemesis, the Young Freedom Movement. At the Sixth Form College, where Bernard Wiltshire served as resident tutor at the UWI Extra Mural Department, proselyzing of students was conducted in student meetings, the school’s news magazine and lectures by the charismatic Wiltshire.
The groundswell of support for political independence engendered by these efforts ultimately paved the way for the granting of political independence in 1978. Even the conservative New Chronicle, grudgingly conceded in 1978 that the activities of Douglas made independence a little more palatable to many Dominicans. Indeed in July 1978, an advisor to the British government visited the island to assess public opinion and concluded that he met no more than one or two people who were opposed to independence.
The enormity of this political achievement cannot be overestimated. Between 1976 and 1978, Roseau remained the cradle of conservatism on the island. The New Chronicle adhered to a consistently anti-independence stance while the Roman Catholic Church’s leadership, in an unholy alliance with then Governor Sir Cools Lartigue and government minister Henckell Christian, sounded dire warnings about the encroachment of communism on the island. The Dominica Freedom Party published a 1977 booklet Think It Over, in which it cautioned that the island would remain stagnant if independence is attained under the Labour Party Leadership.
The Left, and more specifically the leadership of Rosie Douglas, was able to deliver the one condition precedent to Britian’s acquiescence to granting independence to Dominica – widespread public support. Despite holding the majority of seats in the island’s legislature, the DLP had only garnered 49.32% of the total votes cast in the 1975 general elections. In October 1977 and again in April 1978, the House of Assembly voted in favour of independence with a margin of 16 to 5 but those results did not reflect any popular support for independence. In May 1977, the British government ruled out the holding of a referendum to gauge public support for independence. The groundswell of public support generated by Rosie Douglas broke the back of the anti independent forces in Dominica and persuaded the British government to accede to the demands for political independence in 1978.
The British government did not need much persuasion. Colonialism in the 1970s was an anachronism. Dominica had little economic value to the metropole and instead engendered an insatiable need for colonial assistance. The island had little or no strategic value and was at best a vestigial part of a bygone age. Independence would stanch the flow of horrid colonials to the mother country from one other Caribbean country. Public demand for independence paved the way for Britain’s assent to the prospect of independence in Dominica on November 3, 1978.
Even before that milestone however, the John government showed how little it was committed to the formation of a new society along equitable lines, following political independence. In early 1978, it dismissed Ferdinand Parillon and Mike Douglas, two of the most progressive members of its government. It placed members of the left under police surveillance and adopted a distinctive pro investment stance. By 1979 this would culminate in the sale of 45 square miles of land in the Portsmouth area to a Texan, Don Pierson, and it was only through the mass protest and rebellion engendered by Rosie Douglas and his brother Michael, that this unconscionable contract was rescinded.
It is clear therefore, that Rosie’s legacy should not be assessed by his brief tenure in office but by his impact on the political and social landscape of the island. In the 1970s, he had a significant impact on the independence movement. In the 1980s, he would focus, through his linkages with the Castro government, on educational opportunities for a significant number of Dominican students.
Editor’s note: This article was first published by the Dominica Academy of Arts and Sciences. It is republished here with permission on the occasion of the 12th anniversary of his death.
rip mr. Douglas, great man
I want to Live for my Grandchildren
May Rosie memory be a blessing and guidance to all Dominicans, no matter what your position in life …..Dominicians are so caught in the slavish mentality, they would kill their brother because he DREAD. With tears in memory I asked what is Dread?
Did not Rosie Douglas want to make Dominica–after Independence–an Overseas Department of France? I remember that absurd proposal of his while he was in office!
Nonesense…Rosie wanted Dominica to be granted “special relationship” status in order to be granted easier access to the European Union through France which is only 50 miles away, which is a no-brainer when you think about it…
Justice Andre, this is a well written article. Thank you for remembering my father on this day.
He was truly a great man, who lives behind a remarkable legacy.
May his soul rest in peace.
Debbie Douglas
Superb article. I’m very glad for the opportunity to read it. I have to admit I had to consult my dictionary a couple of times. All good. Great work.
YA ALL THE HYPOCRITES WHO WANT TO COMPARE ROOSIE” S LEGACY WITH THE PRESENT ADMINISTRATION…ALAS BE THOU NOT ASHAMED;;;;THE PRESENT CRWE WERE WITH ROOSIE IN HIS STRUGGLES,,,WHERE WERE YOU ALL???
Really . You have no idea. Who it was that struggled with Rosie? Charlo , Tim Tim, SKERRIT, Fertilizer minister, Darroux,? Please name the people that struggled with Rosie. The people that struggled to restore the labor party were booted out by the gang of criminals in the party right . The people who worked are not the ones in the circle of milk cheese and butter
I wish I could like your comment and trillion times!!!!
Rosie, gone too soon but God has his reasons. It is said that God protects us from something worst than death. No doubt God protected him from that which only He knows and can only be seen by God Himself. On the inevitable day, it may be revealed to all those who especially mourned his loss and miss him as primarily his family.
Thought:
It has been said that we bring nothing into the world and we take nothing with us when we depart. But that was written of material possessions. All of us bring with us the need to love and be loved and take with us, in spirit, the knowledge of having loved and having been loved. So I wish for the ability to remember the good things and to forget the rest, to create new memories and to be sustained by trust and hope and courage; and always, to try, to understand.
The Lord would like us to do just that and remember one as Rosie who has done much for many people. To some it was not much; to others, he did nothing; yet still others he did a lot. The latter will never forget him for what he has done. God knows the extent of what he did especially during his short tenure as Dominica’s PM. If only he was given much more time, he could have done a lot for Dominica. Therefore, I reiterate, let us all remember him lovingly. May God be praised!
Rosie did not live in vain. God knows this better than anyone of us mortals.
I will do so later in the week.
I remembered clearly the day he died. I was getting ready for church to go to The Shrine of St. Theresa on October 1st. The Catholic Church honors St. Theresa Lisieux – Little Flower of Carmel and that day, Sunday, October 1st, was her Feast Day. St. Theresa is one of my favorite saints from childhood.
I was pressing an outfit to wear to the church, a former parish, I had resided in when the telephone rang and I answered it. The caller told me that Rosie died. Oh my! How shocking it was to hear this sad news. We spoke for a few minutes. I told the person I was getting ready to go to church. Well, this was the end of going to that church which is far from where I reside. I thought that I would be late and so I decided to go to the church nearer to where I reside.
While at Church I prayed for the repose of his soul and also asked St. Theresa to pray for him. When I returned I telephoned his sister, one of whom resides in Ontario to offer my condolence. It was a sad day for us Dominicans in Canada. We mourned his loss.
Some months later a Memorial Mass was held for him in Toronto which was well attended by Dominicans, some dignitaries and others also some non-Dominicans who knew him.
I remembered his anniversary. I meant to telephone his sister again, I got busy and this thought slipped my mind.
We celebrate the life of loved ones and we remember them especially on the anniversary of their passing. Let us do so for Rosie, be it by a prayer, a kind word or other observance. He deserves it.
May the soul of Rosie Douglas rest in peace. Amen!
Rosie Douglas represented “The Dominica United Labour Party”, Today we have a Fake Labar Party under the disguise of Skerrit.
Let us unite, let us pray. Blessed is the nation whose God is our Lord. Let’s Pray, and Love more. A house divided against it’s self cannot stand. Haitians have sold their souls to the devil, and china is communist, and they are in Dominica. Solve the puzzel. God Reighs Forever.
Pray, Pray, Pray, Love Love Love.
“Roosie” rest in peace. Since Roosie died, Dominica has gone in decline. Haitians and Chinese has taken over. Dominica- wake up Haitians have sold thier souls for the devil, and China is communist.”Blessed is the nation whose God is our Lord.” We need to turn against sin and live for God. Dominica was never poor, having all these and those coming and corrupt this blessed country of ours. No matter what “God Reigns. We need to unite and pray. A house divided aginst itself cannot stand. United we stand divided we fall. “God Bless All Dominicans”
You did not die for us immediately, but remain bathed in a sort of aura of life which bears no relation to true immortality but through which you continue to occupy our thoughts in the same way as when you were alive. It is as though you were traveling abroad. We miss you sir. It took alot of faith to come to terms to your departure.
Thanks for your simple and good life. If you were to resurrect to save your country, you would be surprised to see the French man standing by with his dagger in the wee hours of the a.m. Greed and absolute power is being worn as a badge of honour, however the code that you will see is T.L.A.R.$$$$.
May the soul of my dearly beloved brother rest in peace. He was a great man.
Rosie you are missed,remembering the good old days,your legacy will live on.Love forever.R.I.P.
The question that remains is: Did the CIA really have this man killed, and if so, what prompted it?
They saw him as a communist.
u see they got kadafi,maurice bishop,they still fighting mario in stcroix,if ur really kno what going on u wouldnt ask that question,the cia is the biggest criminal entity alive,isnt it ironic that rosie first vist as pm was to libya by his boy kadafi,then boom couple months later dead,and a horse shit explanation is given to thee domincan people
may his soul continue to rest in peace.and all those who is praising him now he can’t hear. i wonder if you all use to let him now how great he was. pm could never be him, only if he was incanated who would be exactly like him. pm is his own self and ever man has his own way of thinking and doing things. was really a peoples person. god be with you in your final rest. one love
now all u sayin he was a good man when he was alive it was rosie travellin to much where is the prime minister all he can do is go overseas dominicans tongue kill rosie now the same set of people singin a diffrent song all u to hyprocrite wicket fire will burn all u
i remember that Sunday morning,how sad it was by the market and DBS and Kairi keep rocking John Lennon “candle in the Wind” for the whole week
Rest well my brother I did not know you personally, but you made us proud to be Domincans. My hope during this time of remembrance is that some of us do like you, and “think a little more of others and a little less of ourself.”
Dr Honnychurch emphasis on his mouth is appropo. He spoke well and at great length. Thank God he was relieved of his burdens very early. He was unable to manage and lead the country and was constantly running about and flying away, all over the world, from the many and dificult problems and burdens that were the legacy he was handed by the governments before him.In that light History may be kind to him. The socalled ‘international contacts ‘ he said he had provided nothing.
WHAT REEEEAAALLY KILLED ROSIE?
I remember that day…it was a cloudy and gloomy day…atmospheric premonition…foul play was in the air in more ways than 1…death of Roosie Douglas was the day Dominica died…R I P
The labor party is just as guilty as the Douglas family for not bringing dignity to the burial locations of RBD, Mike and Rosie. After all this is despicable and repugnant. Every year we discuss the same issue and nothing is done. If the government won’t do it then the family should. People much much less fortunate than the Douglas family try to make a decent memorial monument for their families. RBD left a fortune , Rosie gave himself to so many, Mike fought to keep the labor party alive and it is sad to see their graves.
Dominicans in Canada who may want to take your Canadian born children to see the tomb of a Dominican who stood up for the rights of every Blackman in Canada , forget it , not even a foot trail can get you to the site. Magwais ca.
It is my humble opinion that Rosie’s Legacy remains his tenure at the now defunct Sir George Williams University in Toronto Canada. If we must give credit where credit is due, the focus here must be also on his activities during his tenure at the university in the 1970’s, as what he claims to be a political science major.
Whatever his reasons, whatever purpose they serve, we must never forget he was arrested, charged and convicted for a crime in Canada and was incarcerated for such crimes.
We must never forget that after his release from prison in Canada, he was escorted out of the country with shackles, handcuff on his hands, ( chains) on his feet, he was treated worst than a common criminal, until he arrived and landed in Dominica.
Murderers are arrested in Canada, however, within the process their hands and feet are not shackled simultaneously.
The mentioned of encouraging African American to visit Dominica, could have never produced any significant fruit, since Black Americans seldom travel, and when thy do most of the time they are found going on some cruse, or traveling to Jamaica, and the Hawaiian islands.
That gesture was more or less a total waste of time, since black Americans do not travel as most whites do. His second thought of appointing a Black Muslim known to be a thug, a gun welding thug at that, one who on occasion threatened to overthrow the legitimate government of the United as ambassador to our country, simply did not help to change the characteristics of Mr. Douglas.
If anything it help to maintain Rosie’s status as a radical political figure, and caused Dominica to be shady in the sight of the powers that be at the time in the United States.
Let us not forget Mr. Douglas own words when he said ” the closest he ever came to holding a regular job, was when he headed some ……. camp in Libya! ” He was indeed in Libya, we know for a fact he afforded more than three hundred Africans with Dominica passport, and got them into Libya to be trained as ………
He impressed Momma that they were Dominicans, until the now demised dictator, president of Libya found out he lied, thus for the rest of his life Rosie could not enter under any of Momma’s Tents, nor any of his Palaces.
Gaddafey would not speak with him in person, because of his lost of trust of Rosie, that is why shortly after that, the Libyan dictator replaced Mr. Douglas of Dominica, with the late Tim Hector, as his point man in the Caribbean.
This I am certain of, no need to explain but to say Tim and I were more than just crossing political paths, I was married to one of Tim Hectors aunts daughter, and at one time I was also a member of the African Liberation Movement, at the very top at that, until I was able to discover I was into something which was more or less a criminal organization, which involved people such as Mogabe, and Ortega, the communist, then leader, president, gestapo, or whatever he was called In Nicaragua.
Some of us will remember the ” Motamboo” gang.
My purpose here is not to assassinate the character of Mr. Douglas, however, we need to remember the man as he presented himself, we need to remember the good as well as the bad, I will remember him as how he was the first day I met him on the campus of the St. Mary’s Academy in Roseau.
I will remember him when he came to The West Indies Oil Company in Antigua, and informed us the workers, and explained to us what transpired at Sir George Williams University which started the riots, thus caused the fire to be set in one of the university’s buildings.
I will remember him as we sat in the home of Tim Hector’s mother on Newgate Street in St. Johns, Antigua, good or bad I must remember him for everything, and not actually as some may wish to portray him.
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
First of all, the computer centre incident took place in Montreal NOT Toronto.
Secondly, Sir George Williams University is not “defunct” it simply changed its name to Concordia University and among the leading english speaking institutions in Montreal today.
Thirdly, most black leaders in the 60’s and 70’s were imprisoned – it was a right of passage for leadership in those days – we were living in the area of segregation in the US, colonialism in Africa and the Caribbean, and white supremacy was the order of the day…
If you fought for dignity/equality for black people you ended up in jail just like Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, Kwame Toura and Canada’s leading civil/human rights activist the Honourable Rosie Douglas, just to name a few…
And what gives you the right to call minister Farrakhan – a man who has spent his life in the trenches cleaning up the black community..?
What have you ever contributed to the upliftment if Black people?
Finally, every Dominican should be proud of the fact that they contributed in some small way to the freeing of Nelson Mandela and the toppling of Aparthied in South Africa the last bastion of racism and white supremacy…
Emancipate your self from mental slavery my brother, its not too late…
Rest in peace Rosie. You are surely missed
Live and let live. He was only a few months in office. Let him rest in peace.
What have you done for Dominica and what are your plans for doing something for Dominica?
I wonder if rosie was on a scale with our current PM who would weigh more..
IMHO this PM light like FLO, he has no weight. that’s why his opinion is always the only opinion that matters to him… rosie was a statesman….this is NO STATESMAN AT ALL.
IN MY HUMBLE “UNWORTHY” OPINION!!
Generally, the PM has the last say. What are your credentials and expertise? You have an opinion and you may not be well known.
He as PM has an opinion for the betterment of Dominica and it should be respected. 
Stick to your original name Justice and Truth, do not fake another name
“PRIDE GOES BEFORE A FALL”…..
how much can you deduce from that quote????
He as PM (GOD, THE PERFECT BEING, THE EMBODIMENT OF ALL THAT IS RIGHT) has an opinion for the betterment of Dominica and it should be respected…
LMFAOTIROTF
lord help Dominicans…..
May our Real Prime Minister soul rest in perfect peace.
I cannot beleive that all what Rosie did for Dominica while in opposition and getting Labour into power, that the GREEDY people in Government now who are there for ME, MYSELF and I, will not put a proper tomb for him.
I as a citizen of Dominica feels that the Government of Dominica should be proud of giving him a proper tomb.
I am amazed that Ambrose George, has not made that happen yet. He is the only one left in the lobour party, when lobour was KA-KA-RAT in long time days.
Skerrit did not even know who was Rosevelt Rosie Douglas in those days. When he did get to know about him, he young freedom.
Skerrit, Rosie was a special that you cannot be compared too but please give him a PROPER TOMB.
I am looking forward in seeing you giving your former leader a PROPER TOMB.
If you reside in Dominica, you could commence a fundraising for that purpose so that next year on the anniversary of his passing a proper tomb could be erected.
Oh boy!!!! Looking at things today you almost want to forget that Rosie Douglas was ever in the picture, especially part of DLP.
Great article, but I concur with Marcus Hill, that Rosie’s contribution towards the advancement and liberation of blacks cannot be seen only in a Dominican context. He was a freedom fighter, global activities who championed the cause of blacks near and far.
SELFLESS!!! Rosie you’re gone but in as much as they are trying their best to destroy everything good that you fought for including the empowerment of all poor people, you will never be forgotten.
Continue to rest in piece sweet Rose. I know ants has already given you all the details of all the coshonie that took place behind your back.
You are in a better place now, because Dominicans certainly, looking at how much blood and sweat you sacrificed they really did not appreciate the hard work you did on their behalf. They could not be bothered one bit about the equity, fairness and honesty that you fought so hard to promote.
I miss you Rosie. I remembered that big smile every time I ran into you, those days when you would come home and sit with my mum to just talk about politics and everything. I remember that faithful morning after UWP declared their election date in La Plaine. I ran into you on the small bridge in Borne and you were so excited and getting mad busy, you said this was it Labour Party has to take it. Today, look at the result of your hard work. greed, corruption, nepotism, everything you stood against Rosie, is now being promoted and supported.
A true hero, a champion, so long my friend so long……..Love and miss you so much!!!
When i look at Skerrit today and the sacrifice Rosie Douglas made for Layba to be in office today it is just a crying shame, as if Rosie life & legacy meant nothing.
But is Skerrit a Labourite? Watch well who controls the party today! He is not only incompetent, but he has killed the once mighty Labour Party.This is simply a Skerrit’s regime and NOT a Labour party.
Skerrit and many of his now members of his parliament are Young Freedom Members, nothing more nothing lest
They are not true labour party supporters, skerrit is destroyi8ng the Labour Party and it’s reputation which the Douglas Brothers fought hard to keep
God is not asleep one day the truth will reveal as to what happened to our TRUE LABOUR PARTY PM, Charles and Douglas, May Their Souls Rest In Peace
Rosie Douglas and Charles were a TRUE LABOUR PARTY ICON not those Young Freedom Movement guys/so call labour ministers
Have you ever wondered that it could all be in your mind? Do you know the saying, “Your mind can make you sick or well?”
WE REMEMBER OUR HERO, ROSIE WILL LIVE ON IN THE MINDS OF PORTSMOUTH PEOPLE. HE WAS THE LEADER OF THE REAL LABOUR PARTY NOT WHAT IS NOW
Rosie had a ‘vision.’ Remember that buzzword? Yeah. That was about it. Harding was right on Q!
Write english so we can understand what you are trying to say.
Let’s not forget his contribution to the liberation of South Africa and to peace in Northern Ireland.
In fact his contribution to politics and the advancement of the black man, I would submit, had a greater impact on the world stage than in Dominica.
His leadership role in the Canadian University riots should be mentioned here.
So to is his hatred of greed and corruption.
On his generosity check with the people of Glanvilia and Zikack in Portsmouth for more details.
One thing that makes Rosie’s legacy stand out in the midst of the current political environment is the fact that Rosie was not about himself. The current labor party and leader is the exact opposite of Rosie’s ideals. Rosie would not have acquired Villas and hide the ownership under the name of people who call themselves christians. People like Tony Astaphan would not be talking down to the people. The blatNt bobols would not have been conducted by Rosie for sure. The tax evasion would definitely not be Rosie’s thing. I could go on and on. The state of our economy would be much much better.
Those who conspired to kill Rosie and feel that Pierro didn’t have a degree and was not worthy of the prime ministership shall pay one way or another. Be it through money laundering, illegal wealth, integrity in office violation etc. No name no warrant
finally .remembering rosis
He was a man with flaws like the rest of us. We cannot deny he leaves an Amazing legacy for his family and Our Dominica. God only knows why he was gone so soon after his role as PM.
It seems so many “greats” die so young. Lord help us remember to do the best we can with the limited time we have for our country and humankind.
Thank you Honorable Prime Minister who was a down to earth Dominican. And thanks to his family for sharing him with us!
This was well stated. I could not improve on it or elaborate on it. He was a legend in his time and will always be remembered.