In Dominica the deaths of great citizens are mourned even by the heavens. So it was on the morning of Saturday, January 17, 2004, with a dim sun swaddled in gray clouds. The colorfully painted houses of Roseau seemed awed by the darkly staring blue-green mountains that loomed in the background. A light drizzle came and went in spurts. The normal hustle and bustle of shoppers with busy feet, or the beeping horns and metallic clamor of pick-up trucks laden with fruit, was hushed on what should have been an otherwise bright market day. The Honorable Pierre "Pierro" Charles had died suddenly of heart failure on January 6, 2004, and his people were about to wish him adieu! Farewell!     At Police headquarters, Commandant of the Dominica Cadet Corp, Captain Francis Richards busied the Roseau and Portsmouth units for the funeral march that would soon take place. The police officers, with Commissioner Lestrade, Inspector Ferroll, Superintendent George in the lead, made haste to assemble the firing party that would provide the fallen leader with a 21-gun salute. The brisk crunching of police boot leather on the gravel of the courtyard, accompanied the medley of gently clashing cymbals, the clatter of drumsticks and the dull thumps of drums being packed for doleful duty.     The young Cadets, their faces gleaming with pride, stood out amidst the buzz. A youth leadership program started by the British colonial authorities at the Dominica Grammar School in 1910, the institution had been revived in 2000. Their community work and disciplined deportment had won popular acclaim from a respectful island society increasingly challenged by juvenile delinquency and misguided youth enmeshed in the cable TV-influenced thug life. Just the October past, the Prime Minister had inaugurated the first Grandbay unit in Dominica Cadet Corp history. A former Cadet leader himself, He had placed the red berets on the heads of nineteen students of the Grandbay Secondary School; the vast majority being young women. He had asked that they answer their country's call to duty; that they should serve their community and engage in volunteerism. He had urged them to be nation builders, and that they be disciplined, timely in all things. Little did he know then that he was passing the torch to a new generation of the island's leaders. Soon, it was time to go. Grandbay beckoned. The road to the southern mountains ran through the settlement of one and two storey houses of Newtown and Louibiere; people leaning out their windows with sad faces, as the caravan of uniformed groups swept by. Upwards now, the heavily laden vehicles groaned, their engines straining against the gravitational pull occasioned by the steep incline as they moved toward the villages of Bellevue Chopin and Pichelin. A green cascade of bromeliads, ferns, lianas, wild grass and heliconias encroached on the twisting road which made its way along the precipitous incline. On both sides of the road, villagers had placed ferns, and flowers. The pressing crowds wept, others waved banners, some burying their faces in their hands as they welcomed Pierro, their hero, to the cradle of the revolution. Grandbay: The Cradle of the Revolution     Pierro, had led L'Echelle (The Ladder) as the vanguard of a new movement for black pride, community development, land reform, and national independence. Marcelle Fontaine, Crispin Gregroir, Bernard Wiltshire, Willie Fevrier, Bonty Liverpool, Armour Thomas, John Fabian, Paul Alexander and many others also played their part in the passionate 1970's Caribbean revolutionary surge for self-determination that established deep roots in the fertile soil of Grandbay. That soil had been nourished by a history of slave rebellions in the 1800's, to include La Guerre Negre (The Negro War) of 1844, when Stowe estate at Grandbay was caught up in an uprising by the recently freed Africans. One hundred years later, in 1974, Grandbay would again revolt against the tough praedial larceny laws and the inequitable land holding system dominated by Geneva Estate, little changed since the darkest days of slavery. Insurrection in deed, gave way to defiance in music as the Midnight Groovers band emerged from that milieu, giving birth to the famous song "Coco Sec" (dry coconut) which lamented the arrest and jailing of bandleader Chubby, community activist Grell and others, over their taking of dry coconuts from the estate. In Grandbay the embers of revolt still glowed and it had become the flag bearer of the Dominican independence movement; indeed the cradle of the revolution. Now, it was welcoming a favorite son; one who had been an acolyte at the Catholic Church, a member of the Young Christian Workers movement, a teacher, a basketball player, a village council member, a scout, a cadet, a parliamentary representative for almost two decades, a father, husband and son. Grandbay was aglow with banners strung:     "Pierro, always Our Hero!" "Pierro Our Forever Love!" "Rosie and Pierro, God Embraces You-Our Angels" " Pierro-Gone But Not Forgotten, The Struggle Continues". The casket was placed at Ma Tutu's Park, with mourners streaming by. At noon, the throngs headed to Tetre Lalay, starting point of the funeral march. Grandbay, like many Dominican villages, lies on the slope of a massive and thickly forested mountain range, with the settlement wending its way to the rock strewn beaches of the choppy Atlantic Ocean. Lalay is the winding road down the center of the village. The "Tetre" (or head) Lalay, near the cross carved out of a solid block of granite, is where the final march would begin.     As the time drew near, the police officers in their black uniforms of mourning, grew stern and reversed their rifles beneath their armpits in respect. The Cadet drummers and cymbalist, drawn up in massed band formation with the Music Lovers Government Band, readied their equipment. The venerable horn player, Norman Letang who, as a customs officer in 1978 interrogated and searched the returning delegates from Cuba joked and engaged in small talk. We had all come a long way. Bandmaster Casimir, at 83, was quick on his feet and flitted about in anticipation-his conductor's wand twiddling. Other horn players blew softly on some trial notes. The Scouts and their renown leader Rawle, took their places in line, as did the Wardens of the State Prison, the Fire and Ambulance Service, and the nurses in resplendent whites who came in special honor to their sister, Nurse Justina Charles-the Prime Minister's wife. Higher up the hilly road the lapeau cabrit (goat skin drum) band Sarkis, lined up in white t-shirts emblazoned with Pierro's face and camouflage fatigue pants.     At the signal of the bandmaster's mace, the funeral procession began. The funeral dirge of Handel's Saul, with the slow rap-rap of the side drums, and the hollow boom of the bass drums, merged with the horns, leading off a majestic slow march downhill to the Grandbay Roman Catholic Church. Crowds pressed in behind the hearse. Notables fell-in, Crsipin Gregroir, Pierro's boyhood friend and Dominica's United Nations Ambassador, Jeff Joseph of the legendary band Grammacks, Austel Anselm of the Dominica Labour Party, Cuban trained professionals, Architect, Mckenzie and Veterinary doctor Corbette; criminology professor Dr. Peter St. Jean from the state university of New York at Buffalo, who had researched community policing in Grandbay, and representing the Dominica Academy of Arts and Sciences, snapped photos as he joined the cortege; U.S. Virgin Island Senator, Patrick Hill, all moved gracefully toward the seaside church. The service. The 21-gun salute. The incense and prayers. The gravesite.     Prime Minister Skerrit from his vantage point atop the hill where the official mourners were arrayed, was dignified and projected an image of calm resolve. His cabinet colleagues were solemn and steady. The Cadets stood at "present arms", rifles erect, as the mahogany casket was borne uphill atop the shoulders of six struggling police pall bearers. Among the crowd, Prime Ministers Owen Arthur of Barbados, Dr. Keith Mitchell of Grenada, Lester Bird of Antigua and Barbuda, Dr. Kenny Anthony of St. Lucia, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Denzel Douglas of St. Kitts, Chief Minister of Tortola, Orlando Smith, Chief Minister (Acting) of Montserrat, Margaret Dyer-Howe President Jean-Bertrand Aristide of Haiti, and representing President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela Justice Minister, General Rincon, flanked by Venezuelan security men. Also among the thousands of Dominicans who descended on Grandbay from around the island and its far-flung Diaspora, were dozens of dignitaries to include representatives from Nigeria, South Africa, Taiwan and France.     As the Last Post blared forth from the trumpet of Bing Casimir, Pierro's grieving family hugged each other, closely. His eleven year old boy, Camilo Che Charles, stoic in his embrace of his weeping mother, Justina. His teenage daughter Faiza, full of grace, looking on. With the towering outline of the Martinique coast and Mount Pelee in the distance, the hastily built concrete tomb on the beautifully terraced slope welcomed a worthy servant. One whose heart had inspired a passionate life of service to the humble and oppressed was still. Indeed, a heart which may have succumbed to the pressures of a new world economic order and a spiteful habit of corrosive criticism bereft of meaningful contribution. No Epitaph of Stone     Epitaphs for revolutionaries are not written on the face of cold marble or stone. Rather they are engraved in the consciousness of a people. Pierro's life was larger than his three years in office. He was not a politician in the traditional self-serving role; service to the people had been his life. It can only be meaningfully measured by his leadership of numerous civic projects in Grandbay, his struggle to find markets for farmers, his robust spirit on the basketball court, his involvement in the campaign to banish illiteracy, and his role in the independence struggle as a leader of the Popular Independence Committees. A founding member of the Dominica Liberation Movement, he led the merger of that organization into the Dominica Labour Party; the bedrock of Dominican nationalism and the party which had sought to build an equal opportunity society. His tenure as President of the National Youth Council was a break with business as usual, when he led the mission of the valiant eleven delegates to the 11th World Festival of Youth and Students Cuba in 1978. They were detained upon their return, their solidarity with Cuba scorned. That hastened the opening to the Cuban Revolution so today diplomatic relations exist and 400 Dominican students study there.     Picking up the mantle of another fallen hero, Prime Minister Rosie Douglas on October 2, 2000, Pierre Charles faced adverse conditions wrought by falling commodity prices, scant investment in local productive enterprise and an anemic tax base from which to derive government revenue. In dealing with that crisis he had his critics. A committed exponent of socialist values, the Prime Minister found privatizing of state assets such as shares in the National Commercial Bank, a bitter pill to swallow. Slashing the once untouchable public service was a difficult IMF prescription he felt compelled to stomach. Some of us at home and in the Diaspora were cognizant of the need to reduce government expenditure, but thought more innovative income earning measures in energy, information technology, agro-processing, water products, eco-tourism could have been simultaneously embraced. Our ideas did not always find a prompt receptive response and, bedeviled by disunity, we were often misunderstood. In tribute to the Prime Minister's rich legacy of patriotic service the Roosevelt Douglas Foundation declared him a National Hero, and bestowed the Order of Merit on his wife on the evening of January 24, 2004. Later that night Grandbay erupted with drums and dancing in the street, as the villagers sought to dispel the gloom that had descended from the passing and console each other with music. The Way Forward     During my visit home for this farewell it was apparent that Roseau was humming with the commercial activity of a new business class. On King George V Street, the stores once owned by the old mulatto elite and Syrians, are now busy with Chinese or East Indian faces. While many Dominicans remain hostage to lives ensnared in idle and vitriolic partisan chatter, they are being further marginalized by those who apply their time to unity of purpose, networking and enterprise. The way forward requires that we cease such misconduct and marry our resources and relationships to build the beloved homeland. We can take a page out of the book of our Asian guests, and exert ourselves meaningfully as they have done. Developing countries like Dominica are often saddled with large external debts in the form of loans and interest payments made possible by lending institutions like the IMF. If we want to develop and reduce unemployment, speed economic improvement and reduce our indebtedness, we need capital and investment. These dynamics often force governments like ours into a 'race to the bottom', as we lower labor, health, and environmental standards-the very gains we seek via 'development'-in order to meet the conditions of investors and lenders. Whether these are private, or institutional like the International Monetary Fund, investors and creditors exact a terrible price from our people in exchange for their investments, the benefits of which somehow elude the population. We find it difficult to build outside that so-called global economy when certain global powers apply sanctions, pressures, blockades, or interrupt assistance, as has been our fate and that of some of our neighbors.     We have strengths in our institutions and a resilient people, and we must nourish and respect that. Opposition United Workers Party leader Edison James, Norris Prevost and Ron Green were statesmanlike in their disposition at the funeral and events surrounding the farewell. President Liverpool oversaw a transition that went smoothly. His call for national unity was eloquent in delivery as it was wise. Though a small country, we have given the world a fine display of stability and dignity under stress, which commends itself to a world too often wracked by dissension. When I told many of my U.S. colleagues of how smoothly the transition went, they were pleasantly surprised-jaded as they are by nightly news reports of leaders being replaced by turmoil in the streets. Such tranquility born of our Christian faith, and robust institutions, offers a haven in a troubled world. In that fashion, we can attract many more persons to share in our bounty.     In our foreign affairs, we can circumvent our current difficulties where our sovereignty and dignity is misunderstood, misused or dismissed by those who we consider our long time friends. Begging alms from the powerful has never constituted a development plan. Using our native intelligence we can do it ourselves with the help of the new networks we build. We are a proud and resourceful people, spurred to survive the post-emancipation difficulties by our spirit of Koudmain-or community self help. Therefore, we must work for new relations in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America. For a start, we must continue to celebrate Martin Luther King Day as part of the outreach plan to the 40 million strong African American community that Rosie Douglas started. Our Carib people must continue to build productive links with the indigenous movement in North, Central and South America. The government, opposition and wider society must work even more closely with the Diaspora. And the Diaspora must move beyond merely sending home barrels of food and clothes, to building self-sustaining businesses in partnership with their fellow Dominicans at home.     With a small relatively well-educated and healthy population, and thousands of Diaspora Dominicans willing to contribute we can spawn new investments in housing, tourism, science, arts, agriculture and innovative enterprise. Some first steps have been taken in the area of wind energy, to supplant our dependence on imported fuel.     God helps those who help themselves; so too, He will help us. And He will gather others unto us, in this charge forward for a better country. Let us therefore commit to renewing our faith and redouble our efforts to build Dominica. If we continue along that path, Pierro's death and the hard work of thousands of conscious Dominicans, will not have been in vain.      And to you Pierro, my old comrade, adieu! Adios! Farewell! Gabriel J. Christian DAAS Vice-President.

    More than 3000 persons attended the funeral service of the late Prime Minister, Pierre Charles at the Grand Bay Roman Catholic Church, 11 days after his death.

    Charles passed away on January 6 after collapsing in his vehicle on his way home.

    Bishop of Roseau, Gabriel Malzaire was the main celebrant at the funeral service assisted by eight priests and Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Emil Paul Tscherring representing the Vatican.

    The official arrangements for the State Funeral and Burial Services included, on January 16, a public viewing of the mortal remains of the late Prime Minister lying in state at the State House. There was also an Ecumenical Memorial Service at the Lady of Fair Haven Cathedral by the Dominica Christian Council. On Saturday, the body was lying in state at Ma Tutu’s Park, Grand Bay. An Ecumenical service was held by the Dominica Association of Evangelical Churches, followed by the State funeral.

    On Friday, the hearse arrived at the State House with the body at about 6:40 a.m. under police escort and outriders. Cries rang out from inside the State House and mourners from all walks of life filed past the flag draped casket. The first to do so was the widow of the late PM followed by members of his immediate family.

    Security personnel ordered that television cameras be turned off as family members, overcome with grief, broke down, some apparently hysterical.

    Throughout the day, the grounds of the State House was a bustle of activity as hundreds came to catch a last glimpse and pay their final respects.

    At the Ecumenical Service held at the Cathedral, tributes to the late Prime Minister flowed as his life was brought into focus by his friend, James Henderson; former parish priest Monsigneur Eustace Thomas and the newly appointed Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit.

    Skerrit said he has inherited a road map for the development of Dominica that will be a memorial to Charles, when the nation meets its objectives. He urged the nation to aid in this process in order to “build a peaceful, prosperous new Dominica in which his children and our children can grow up and live.”

    On the following day, the body was taken under police escort from Lyndhurst Funeral Home at Rock-a-Way, through the city of Roseau and the southern communities of Newtown, Loubiere, Bellevue Chopin and Pichelin to Grand Bay.

    Many lined the streets to see the funeral procession. Some waved flowers while others carried banners as they sought to express their sympathies. Black and white flags were tied to utility poles.

    Eventually, the procession arrived at Ma Tutu’s Park where many fainted, including able-bodied men. Many were rushed to the Grand Bay Hospital by the Red Cross and Ambulance Services that were on hand in the event of emergencies.

    Later, just after 1:00 p.m., the procession from the top of the late PM’s home district of Lalee, comprising members of the family, policemen, scouts, nurses, flower bearers and the Government band, among others, made its way to the Grand Bay Roman Catholic Church for the final rites, which began at about 2:30 p.m. The blazing sun did not stop thousands from standing on the sidewalks and following the procession as it made its way to the church.

    Here too, many carried banners bearing slogans such as “Your legacy will live on;” “we will miss you Pierro.”

    Despite the massive crowd, the body reached the packed church just after 2:00 p.m. At the church, dignitaries and foreign officials spanning not only the Caribbean archipelago but as far overseas as South Africa and Venezuela, waited. Some were introduced to the widow by Prime Minister Skerrit as they sought to express their sympathies.

    Many had to listen to the service from temporary tents constructed outside the church.

    Long time friend and Dominica’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Chrispin Gregoire, who read the eulogy, traced Charles’ development from an “unknown kid” from a large family (six brothers and 12 sisters) in Grand Bay to his teaching career and activities in sports, agriculture, cultural development to his entry into revolutionary and parliamentary politics.

    “Even some of his severest critics, while he was alive, now concede that he was a committed, dedicated, honest, hard working and methodical person who was not likely to give up the struggle,” Gregorie said.

    “So now that your work is done, I say so long my friend, so long comrade. Your journey in this world was not in vain. You contributed to the advancement of your people,” he said.

    At the end of the two-hour long service, the body was interred at a freshly constructed grave at the cemetery. The sloping cemetery hills were fully occupied as persons tried their best to get a final view of the late PM’s casket. With the final ritual of blessing performed by Bishop Malzaire, the grief stricken wife of the late PM, clothed in traditional black, could no longer hold back her emotions as she called on God to accept her husband into his kingdom.

    As the casket was lowered, an eerie wail ascended from the crowd of mourners. Not even the sweltering heat could dry the tears of the pall bearers, acolytes and even some policemen as they began to weep along with family members. Charles’ son could no longer maintain his brave face and ran to embrace his mother. The widow placed the first wreath on her husband’s grave and was followed by the President and his wife, Prime Minister Skerrit and other dignitaries and foreign officials.

    Charles, affectionately known as Pierro, was born in Grand Bay on June 30, 1954. He served as Parliamentary Representative for the Grand Bay constituency from 1985 and Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Dominica from October 3, 2000 until his death.

    Among those who attended the funeral service were Chief Minister (Acting) of Montserrat, Margaret Dyer-Howe; Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Lester Bird; Prime Minister of Barbados, Owen Arthur; Prime Minister of St. Lucia, Dr. Kenny Anthony; Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Ralph Gonsalves; Prime Minister of St. Kitts, Denzel Douglas; Grenada’s Prime Minister, Keith Mitchell and Chief Minister of Tortola, Orlando Smith. Over 100 dignitaries attended the funeral.