Jubie and the Prince

November 2, 20261 min read

Dear Editor,

The movement of time allows those whose objective is to be right, and veer away from truth, an opportunity to do so. This week, I have held my peace in the run-up to and during the visit of His Gracious Majesty King Charles III. His previous visit in February 2000^[1], was pleasant, as Mayor, along with fellow councillors we were happy to welcome the royal visitor and grant him, the traditional freedom of the city, the Golden Key.

I recall the official ceremony at City Hall to welcome the royal visitor to the capital^[2], and will share this anecdote. My wife Doctor Jennifer Basdeo-Green could not be present, so I was accompanied by my last daughter, Jubilante-Deo Sundiata Green. Her task was to assist in handing over the Golden Key to the Prince. Just a few days away from her sixth birthday, Jubie was well known to say the wrong things, and to make trite remarks, sometimes to the amusement and embarrassment of her parents. So, on this and other occasions she was told of the value of silence, in the presence of VIPs. While the programme was proceeding, I do not know how Jubie was able to utilise her recently acquired dancing skills, and found herself facing and making eye-contact with the prince, unabashed after making eye-contact, she said, “Prince, how is your mother?” After a split-second recovery, the prince looked at Jubie with her thick, bushy hair, and with regal elegance, replied, ‘Thank you, she is alright.” The rest of the programme proceeded according to protocol.

Sincerely,
Elder Hamilton Green

References

BBC News | UK | Charles mobbed in Guyananewsimg.bbc.co.uk ↩
Charles charms Caribbean hostswww.theguardian.com ↩

BBC News | UK | Charles mobbed in Guyana

newsimg.bbc.co.uk, Feb 25, 2000

Friday, 25 February, 2000, 19:36 GMT Charles mobbed in Guyana The Prince toured one of the poorest districts in Guyana Prince Charles was mobbed by eager crowds when he visited one of the poorest areas of Guyana on his Caribbean tour. The Prince who walked through the streets of the Albouystown area of the capital Georgetown, was even hugged by a young boy. Not a squawk: Marlon the parrot kept his beak shut --- Charles shook hands with some of the hundreds of onlookers, who were waving Union Jacks and Guyanese flags, known as the Golden Arrows. He stopped to talk to several people along the way including 12-year-old Andrew British who had brought his parrot Marlon to see him. Andrew said later the Prince had asked him the bird's name. "Marlon didn't say anything as he doesn't speak to people he doesn't know," he added. New street name Albouystown is one of the most poverty stricken areas in the former British colony with matters made worse by dilapidated housing and a high crime rate. It is a no-go area for many Guyanese but local community leader Randolph Thorne said the Prince's visit would "help to change the image of the area and work against the stigma attached to this community". Mr Thorne also said a road may be renamed Prince Charles Street in memory of the event. Later the Prince visited the Help and Shelter centre for victims of domestic violence in Georgetown. 'Explosion' of violence As he entered the shelter, chairwoman Denise Dias showed him pinboards covered in photos of injuries suffered by different women and newspaper clippings with headlines such as "Man charged with rape of 12-year-old mum". "Do you deal with a lot of rape?" the Prince asked Ms Dias. She told him it was a big problem, partly because rum is so cheap in Guyana. "It is terrifying, these problems. It seems to be something that is exploding," Charles said. The Prince is conducting his first official visit to the Caribbean taking in a nine-day tour of former British colonies, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and Jamaica.

Charles charms Caribbean hosts

www.theguardian.com, Feb 25, 2000

Prince Charles has been keen to stress his commitment to the Commonwealth during his Caribbean tour over the past week, but he was given a sharp reminder of Britain's colonial failings when he was welcomed to south America's only English-speaking state. Hamilton Green, the mayor of the Guyanan capital Georgetown, bestowed the freedom of the city upon the prince. Referring to his own family's slave heritage, he said: "Who could have imagined that the descendants of an African slave could, with sincerity and warmth, welcome a member of the royal family to a territory which we now claim to control?"" The comments, made at ceremony yesterday, were an important marker for the prince, who has achieved recognition during his visit to the former colonies as a champion of the black and Asian cause in Britain. Earlier, in Tobago, the opposition leader in the island's assembly praised him for his work through his Youth Business Trust. "With the assistance of your charity, many people -

Source

Jubie and the Prince in Kiskadee Watch, November 2, 2026