National Heroes' Day

Ministerial Statement
To The House of Assembly

By
The Hon. Dale D. Butler, JP, MP
Minister of Culture and Social Rehabilitation

National Heroes’ Day

Date: May 8th, 2009


MR. SPEAKER, IN OUR QUEST TOWARDS ESTABLISHING OUR NATIONAL IDENTITY THERE WILL BE TEETHING PROBLEMS.  YOU HAVE AN IDEA AND YOU CONSULT AND AT THE END OF THE DAY YOU MAKE A DECISION.

THE RENAMING OF SCHOOLS AND GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS HAS LARGELY BEEN DONE WITHOUT CONTROVERSY, BUT ONE OR TWO HAVE BEEN MET WITH ROADBLOCKS.

IN ATTEMPTING TO RECOGNIZE BERMUDA’S HEROES WE ESTABLISHED A NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY. OUR FIRST NATIONAL HERO BEING DAME LOIS BROWNE-EVANS.  OUR CONSTANT REVIEW OF THE “CRITERIA” TO GET IT RIGHT OR NEAR RIGHT HAS ALMOST DELAYED THE NAMING OF A SECOND HERO IN THIS OUR 400TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR, BUT THAT IS WHAT PEOPLE SEEM TO WANT “THE CRITERIA”.  WE WILL THEREFORE FORGE ON AND ATTEMPT TO GET IT DONE WITH ALL “I”S DOTTED AND “T”S CROSSED.

THE INITIAL THRUST WAS TO HAVE BERMUDA DAY RENAMED; NATIONAL HERORS’ DAY.  THAT WAS REJECTED BY THE PUBLIC JUST PRIOR TO IMPLEMENTATION. IN AN EFFORT TO CHOOSE OUR OWN HOLIDAY THE GOVERNMENT ESTABLISHED THE SECOND MONDAY IN OCTOBER AS NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY.  THIS HAS NOT GONE DOWN WELL AND WE HAVE HAD FEEDBACK FROM ALL QUARTERS OF OUR SOCIETY, AND AS REPRESENTATIVES WE HAVE BEEN BOMBARDED TO RECONSIDER.  TO BRING ABOUT A CHANGE IN SUCH SHORT ORDER WOULD BE WELCOMED, I BELIEVE, BY ALL QUARTERS AND AS THE MINISTER RESPONSIBLE FOR THAT CHANGE IN PUBLIC HOLIDAYS, SOME MIGHT SAY WE ARE PLAYING PING PONG. BUT AS A GOVERNMENT WHO LISTENS AND AS A LEADER WE HAVE TO RECONSIDER. I, AS THE MINISTER, APOLOGIZE FOR THE DATE WHICH HAS PROVED TO BE UNPOPULAR.

THE GOVERNMENT HAS HEARD ALL OF THE FEEDBACK AND HAS NOW RECONSIDERED.

MR. SPEAKER, I RISE THIS MORNING TO INFORM MEMBERS OF THIS HONOURABLE HOUSE AND THE PEOPLE OF BERMUDA THAT THE GOVERNMENT OF BERMUDA INTENDS TO CHANGE THE DATE WHEN NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY IS CELEBRATED.

MR. SPEAKER, HONOURABLE MEMBERS WILL RECALL THAT LAST YEAR THE LEGISLATURE ENACTED A NEW PUBLIC HOLIDAY ENTITLED NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY, TO BE OBSERVED ON THE SECOND MONDAY IN OCTOBER OF EACH YEAR COMMENCING IN 2008. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY PUBLIC HOLIDAY IN OCTOBER WAS ACCOMPANIED BY THE ELIMINATION OF THE QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY HOLIDAY (WHICH HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN CELEBRATED ON THE THIRD MONDAY IN JUNE). AT THE SAME TIME, IT WAS DECIDED TO HOLD THE QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY PARADE ON THE SATURDAY BEFORE THE THIRD MONDAY IN JUNE OF EACH YEAR.

MR. SPEAKER, SINCE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY, THERE HAS BEEN STRONG PUBLIC SENTIMENT TO CELEBRATE THAT PUBLIC HOLIDAY IN JUNE RATHER THAN OCTOBER. THIS WAS BORNE OUT DURING A SERIES OF FOUR (4) TOWN HALL MEETINGS HELD ON MARCH 5TH, 9TH, 12TH AND 26TH 2009 AT MY REQUEST TO GATHER PUBLIC INPUT ON HOW TO CELEBRATE NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY IN 2009. DURING THE TOWN HALL MEETINGS, PUBLIC OPINION WAS UNANIMOUS THAT NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY SHOULD BE CELEBRATED IN JUNE RATHER THAN IN OCTOBER. I HAVE ALSO HAD NUMEROUS CALLS FROM MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC EXPRESSING SIMILAR SENTIMENTS.

MR. SPEAKER,    THIS GOVERNMENT LISTENED TO THE PEOPLE, AND HAS NOW RECONSIDERED ITS POSITION ON THIS MATTER.

CONSEQUENTLY, MR. SPEAKER, WE WILL SEEK TO AMEND THE PUBLIC HOLIDAYS ACT 1947 DURING THIS PARLIAMENTARY TERM IN ORDER TO CHANGE THE NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY PUBLIC HOLIDAY FROM THE SECOND MONDAY IN OCTOBER TO THE THIRD MONDAY IN JUNE OF EACH YEAR COMMENCING IN JUNE 2009.

MR. SPEAKER, WE BELIEVE THAT CHANGING THE HOLIDAY TO THE THIRD MONDAY IN JUNE, STARTING IN 2009, WOULD ENHANCE BERMUDA’S 400TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS DUE TO THE PLANNED DEPARTURE OF TALL SHIPS FROM BERMUDA ON MONDAY JUNE 15TH 2009. 

MR. SPEAKER, WITH RESPECT TO THE PUBLIC HOLIDAY CALENDAR FOR 2009, I WISH TO MAKE IT CLEAR THAT THE EFFECT OF CHANGING NATIONAL HEROES’ DAY TO JUNE 2009 IS THAT THERE WOULD BE NO PUBLIC HOLIDAY CELEBRATED ON THE SECOND MONDAY IN OCTOBER 2009.


THANK YOU, MR. SPEAKER