Article by David Harris

Retired Justice of Appeal and High Court Judge in Barbados and the region Mr. Christopher Arthur Blackman. G.C.M, S.C, deputy president of the Senate and Ambassador Plenipotentiary Senator Hennrietta  Elizabeth Thompson, and engineer and contractor Richard Edgehill are the recipients of Barbados’ highest National Honours the Order of Freedom in this year’s Independence Day Honours List.   

Justice Blackman has been awarded for his distinguished career as a Justice of Appeal and High Court Judge in Barbados and throughout the region. 

He qualified as a solicitor in 1970 was the Managing Partner of the law firm of Carrington and Sealy. Justice Blackman was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1987, he severed as the president of the Barbados Bar Association (1986-1990) and as an Independent Senator (1986-1990) in the Senate. 

Justice Blackman served as a High Court Judge in Barbados (2003-2008) and Belize (2001-2003). He is a former non –resident Justice of Appeal of the Belize Court of Appeal having been appointed to that position on October 1, 2014 for a period of three years. 

Prior to that he was a Justice of the Court of Appeal of Bahamas serving from March1, 2008, to December 5, 2014.  

Justice Blackman is a former chairman of the Nation Publishing Company and director of CIBC (West Indies) Holdings Limited. He was the first chairman of the Employment Rights Tribunal. In the 2000 Barbados Independence Honours he was awarded the Gold Crown of Merit for law and public service. 

Senator Thompson, 63, was born on November 22, 1961, an attorney at law, she was elected to Parliament representing the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) for the St James South Constituency from 1994 to 2008. 

During that time, she served as Minister of Health, Minister of Housing and Minister of Energy and Environment and Environment. She joined the United Nations in 2010 first serving as an assistant Secretary General (2010-2013) special adviser to the President of the General Assembly (2013-14) and the Secretary General senior adviser on Sustainable Energy (2014 – 2015). In 2018, she was appointed Permanent Representative to the United Nations.    

Senator Thompson has been recognised for her stellar contribution as an international public servant and her contributions to combat the climate crisis and promote the sustainable development of small island developing states. 

Edghill has made a sterling contribution to Barbados and throughout the Caribbean as an engineer and contractor. A civil engineer, he founded Caribbean Consultants Ltd (CCL0) with his brother Augus. 

They were awarded contracts to construct bridges warehouses, hotels and offices buildings in Barbados, and expanded throughout the region specializing in marine projects during the 1970s and 1980s. In subsequent years, CCL began to construct its own portfolio of corporate and industrial real estate development. 

The Honorary Order Of Freedom Of Barbados which is bestowed on distinguished individuals who are not citizens goes to Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and international Guyanese/British entertainer Edmond “Eddie” Grant. 

Modi is being honored for his leading role and” reputation of responsiveness and care as the government of the Republic of India, under his strategic leadership, took urgent action to assist countries like Barbados with Covishield vaccines that changed the course of the COVID-19 pandemic and minimised its social and economic impacts. 

Grant is being cited for “exceptional achievements as a global cultural icon, innovator of unique genres of music, including soca, and ringbang music, vociferous promoter of indigenous music, socio-political commentator, his matchless talent as a singer, song writer, and multi-instrumentalist, and his excellent contributions to the development of local, regional, and international artistes”. 

The three recipients of the Order of the Republic Barbados’ second highest order are retired journalist, public relations executive, and entertainment promoter Anthony  Altureo “Al” Gilkes for illustrious career as an investigative; Dr Joel Cumberbatch, a spiritual advisor and educator, and businessman Jeffrey Hoyte.