St. Lucia swears in prime minister, who says Caribbean should remain ‘zone of peace’
The Caribbean island of St. Lucia swore in its 12th prime minister, Philip Joseph Pierre, on Friday in a historical ceremony where he thanked voters for returning his St. Lucia Labor Party to office and reiterated the need for sovereignty and for the Caribbean to remain a zone of peace.
“My government will commit to governing under the values of equity, justice and respect for the rule of law,” he said. “Beyond our shores, we will continue active participation in CARICOM and the [Organization of Eastern Caribbean States] and subscribe to the principle of sovereignty and peace in our region.”
The Trump administration’s ongoing military build-up in the southern Caribbean is creating tensions in the region and among leaders, with Trinidad and Tobago and the Dominican Republic allowing U.S. vessels to dock in their territory while others have been quiet. Though Pierre focused much of his address on domestic issues, including the country’s disenchanted youths and gang membership, regional politics and the shift away from long-standing political personalities loomed large during the ceremony.
Sitting in the front row were the prime ministers of Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada and St. Kitts and Nevis. They were also joined by former Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Last week, Gonsalves became the only member of his left-leaning Unity Labor Party in St. Vincent to retain his seat, which he has held since 1994. His party’s sweeping loss to the conservative New Democratic Party in the general elections ended 24 years of leadership at the helm after five consecutive wins at the polls. NDP leader Godwin Friday was sworn in late Friday.
Days later, voters in St. Lucia stopped another once dominant figure in Caribbean politics, Allen Chastanet. Like Gonsalves, he became the only member of his opposition United Workers Party to win a seat in the general elections on Monday. The win was a landslide for Pierre’s Labor Party, which captured 14 of the 17 seats to become the only political organization in the former British colony to win a second consecutive term in the last 20 years — and to expand both its share of the popular vote and its parliamentary majority.
While Chastanet will hold one of the three opposition seats, the other two went to two independents who previously served in Pierre’s first administration.
On Friday, Chastanet — who led his party through three general elections — resigned as party leader, a position he’s held since 2013.
Pierre said he would announce his cabinet for St. Lucia next week. The new administration will have a “mandate to carry out the promises” it made, he said, including investing in the public sector and security. In addition to pledging to continue his party’s development policies, Pierre called for St. Lucians to bring back civility.
“I call for the start of a new ethos,” he said. “Let us all seek to create a society that is characterized by truth, greater empathy and care for each other. Let us seek to create a gentler and more tolerant and patient society. Let us seek to respect the dignity and human rights of each other while we peacefully resolve our conflicts.”
