DECOLONIZATION COMMITTEE DELEGATION Concludes visit TO BERMUDA

 

NEW YORK, 4 April (Department of Political Affairs) -- A delegation from the Special Committee on decolonization led by Julian R. Hunte of Saint Lucia, ended its four-day visit to Bermuda on 31 March 2005.  The invitation was extended by the United Kingdom, as the administering Power, on the request of the Bermuda Independence Commission, and supported by the Government of Bermuda.

During its stay, the delegation held several meetings with the Bermuda Independence Commission, a government-appointed body mandated to encourage debate on the subject of independence.  In public meetings organized by the Commission in several locations, members of the delegation shared the experience of their countries’ transitions to independence, and responded to questions from the general public.  The delegation was received by the Premier of Bermuda, Alex Scott, and the opposition United Bermuda Party, and its leader, Grant Gibbons, as well as by the Governor of Bermuda, John Vereker.

In addition to the Ambassador of Saint Lucia, the delegation included the Deputy Permanent Representative of Bolivia, Erwin Ortiz Ganadarillas; the Deputy Permanent Representative of the Congo, Luc Joseph Okio; the Permanent Representative of Dominica, Crispin S. Gregoire; the Deputy Permanent Representative of Papua New Guinea, Jimmy Ovia; and the Permanent Representative of Timor-Leste, Jose Luis Guterres.  The delegation was accompanied by a Deputy Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) office in Jamaica, Ann-Marie Ali, an independent expert, Carlyle Corbin, and two staff members of the Secretariat.

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