Marcella Liburd | |
---|---|
5th Governor-General of Saint Kitts and Nevis | |
Assumed office 1 February 2023 | |
Monarch | Charles III |
Prime Minister | Terrance Drew |
Preceded by | Tapley Seaton |
Speaker of the National Assembly | |
In office December 2004 –18 April 2008 | |
Preceded by | Walford Gumbs |
Succeeded by | Curtis Martin |
Personal details | |
Born | Basseterre,Saint Kitts and Nevis | 10 July 1953
Education | University of the West Indies (BA) |
Website | Official website |
Dame Marcella Althea Liburd GCMG JP [1] (born 10 July 1953 [2] ) is a Kittitian politician who is the fifth governor-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis,serving since 2023. Trained as a teacher and then as a barrister and solicitor,Liburd was the first woman to serve as both the Speaker of the National Assembly of Saint Kitts and Nevis and the Governor-General,as well as the first Governor-General appointed by Charles III (rather than being carried over from Elizabeth II's reign). She has served in various Ministerial positions including Acting Prime Minister and Chair of the Opposition for the Labour Party. She was the first woman to serve as Chair in the 81-year-old organization’s history.
Marcella Liburd was born on 10 July 1953 in Basseterre,Saint Kitts,St. Kitts and Nevis [3] to Anne Eliza (née Martin) and Clement Liburd. [4] After attending Basseterre Girls School,Liburd graduated from Basseterre High School. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of the West Indies in 1976. [3]
Liburd returned from abroad and began teaching at Basseterre and Cayon High Schools. She returned to her own studies,obtaining a Bachelor of Law with honours in 1992 from Norman Manley Law School (NMLS) where she continued her education,earning a Legal Education Certificate from NMLS in 1994. After Liburd's admission as a barrister and solicitor for the Eastern Supreme Court in 1994,she began a political career. She was appointed as Secretary of the Labour Party in 1997. In 2004,she became Speaker of the National Assembly, [3] the first woman to serve in that capacity in the country. [5] Liburd served until 2008,when she ran as a candidate for Constituency No. 2,St. Kitts and was elected as a Member of Parliament. [3]
Liburd has drafted legislation that includes the Domestic Violence Act and Equal Pay Act. [3] She has served as the Minister of Health,Social Services,Community Development,Culture and Gender Affairs, [6] as well as Acting Prime Minister. [7] In 2011,Liburd was featured in an exhibit promoted by various departments of the Government of Saint Kitts and Nevis to highlight prominent women's accomplishments. [6]
In 2013,Liburd became the first woman elected as Chair of the Labour Party in its 81-year history. [8] In 2015,the Labor Party was removed from office for the first time in twenty years,making her a member of the Opposition. [9] She became the first woman deputy leader of the National Labor Party in 2018 and was appointed as Governor-General’s Deputy in 2022. [10] Liburd was installed as the first woman to become Governor-General for the Federation of St Kitts and Nevis on 1 February 2023. [11] Later that week,she was appointed Dame Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG). [12] [13]
Saint Kitts and Nevis,officially the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis,is an island country consisting of the two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis,both located in the West Indies,in the Leeward Islands chain of the Lesser Antilles. With 261 square kilometres (101 sq mi) of territory,and roughly 50,000 inhabitants,it is the smallest sovereign state in the Western Hemisphere,in both area and population,as well as the world's smallest sovereign federation. The country is a Commonwealth realm,with Charles III as King and head of state.
Saint Kitts and Nevis have one of the longest written histories in the Caribbean,both islands being among Spain's and England's first colonies in the archipelago. Despite being only two miles apart and quite diminutive in size,Saint Kitts and Nevis were widely recognized as being separate entities with distinct identities until they were forcibly united in the late 19th century.
The politics of Saint Kitts and Nevis takes place in the framework of a federal parliamentary democracy. Saint Kitts and Nevis is an independent Commonwealth realm with Charles III as its head of state,viceregally represented by a Governor-General. He acts on the advice of the prime minister,who is the majority party leader in the National Assembly,and who,with a cabinet,conducts affairs of state.
Saint Kitts,officially Saint Christopher,is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea,and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis constitute one country:the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis. Saint Kitts and Nevis are separated by a shallow 3-kilometre (2 mi) channel known as "The Narrows".
Dame Calliopa Pearlette Louisy is a Saint Lucian academic,who served as governor-general of Saint Lucia from 19 September 1997,until her resignation on 31 December 2017. She is the first woman to hold the vice-regal office.
The governor-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis is the representative of the monarch of Saint Kitts and Nevis,currently King Charles III. The appointed governor-general,currently Marcella Liburd,lives in Government House,Basseterre,which serves as her official residence.
Government House,also known as Springfield House,is the official residence of the governor-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis,currently Dame Marcella Liburd.
Sir Clement Athelston Arrindell was the first governor-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis,serving from 1983 to 1995,and also served as the country's final colonial governor,from 1981 to 1983.
Dame Louise Agnetha Lake-Tack DNH GCH OM DStJ is a former Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda. She was the first woman to hold the office.
The 1997 Caribbean Cup was the ninth edition of the Caribbean Cup hosted by Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Kitts and Nevis.
The monarchy of Saint Kitts and Nevis is a system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Saint Kitts and Nevis. The current monarch of Saint Kitts and Nevis,since 8 September 2022,is King Charles III. As sovereign,he is the personal embodiment of the Crown of Saint Kitts and Nevis. Although the person of the sovereign is equally shared with 14 other independent countries within the Commonwealth of Nations,each country's monarchy is separate and legally distinct. As a result,the current monarch is officially titled King of Saint Christopher and Nevis and,in this capacity,he and other members of the royal family undertake public and private functions domestically and abroad as representatives of Saint Kitts and Nevis. However,the King is the only member of the royal family with any constitutional role.
General elections were held in Saint Kitts and Nevis on 25 January 2010 for eleven of the fourteen or fifteen seats in the National Assembly. The other three or four members of the National Assembly will be appointed by the Governor-General after the elections.
The Norman Manley Law School is a law school in Jamaica.
Sir Edmund Wickham Lawrence was the third governor-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis from 2013 to 2015. He was sworn in at midnight on 1 January 2013. Sir Edmund is Methodist. Sir Edmund taught in elementary schools in St. Kitts between 1951 and 1954. He graduated from the University of London in 1966 with a degree in Economics.
Sir Samuel Weymouth Tapley Seaton,was the fourth governor-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis from 2015 to 2023.
Mary Charles George O.B.E. was a Kittitian educator. She taught school in St. Kitts for 43 years before moving to the Virgin Islands,where she taught for another decade. She was the first woman in St. Kitts and Nevis to run for public office. For her contributions to education in the Caribbean,she was honoured with the Order of the British Empire from Queen Elizabeth II and granted a life membership in the Caribbean Union of Teachers. A hospital in Molyneux,Saint Kitts,and the teaching excellence award of the St. Kitts Teachers’Union are named in her honour.
Ada Mae Edwards was the first woman Speaker of the St. Kitts National Assembly.
Anne Liburd also known as Ann Liburd was a Kittitian women’s rights activist and community organizer. She served as president of the National Council of Women in St. Kitts and was the first and then three-time president of the Caribbean Women’s Association. She headed several programs to develop women's entrepreneurial skills and then served as the first president of the Federation of Labour Women,a political affiliation of the Saint Kitts and Nevis Labour Party to help women gain leadership and communication skills.
Dame Constance Viola Mitcham,is a politician in Saint Kitts and Nevis. She was the first woman elected to the National Assembly for that country. She was also the first woman to serve as acting prime minister for the country.
Events from the year 2023 in Saint Kitts and Nevis