Dear Editor,
It was with shock and deep sadness that I learnt on Saturday morning of the passing of David de Caires.
I first met David in 1973 during the course of the elections of that year. I had just returned home from studies abroad and was appointed a member of the Elections Commission and engaged in a futile exercise to prevent election rigging.
Then, as later, he had a passionate commitment to democracy in general and free and fair elections in particular. His interest in public affairs was first deployed in the 1960s as a member of the New World Group of young intellectuals seeking an enlightened path out of Guyana’s political divisions.
During the 1970s he was busily engaged in the stirring political events of that decade during which the judiciary was once again challenged on the fraudulent charge of murder against Arnold Rampersaud, a PPP activist, the WPA made a major impact on our political life and Walter Rodney was assassinated.
He launched legal proceedings in 1980 challenging the validity of the electoral roll. The case fell through because of filibustering as the elections came and went while the case was being heard, with no effort by the court to conclude it in time even though he had completed his arguments a week before.
After the elections he was a member of the Compass Group which was launched by a number of professionals in the city to commence a discourse once again, on the way out of Guyana’s economic and political difficulties.
He never gave up even though Compass floundered and when the opportunity arose in 1985 to make a direct impact, he seized it and started the Stabroek News. By then he had been jaded by the fading capacity of the judicial system to dispense justice. He poured his considerable intellect and organisational talent in the creation of Stabroek News.
David’s irrepressible commitment to democracy drove Stabroek News’s dedication to the restoration of free and fair elections and press freedom in Guyana. Thereafter, Stabroek News has been a fixture in the daily life of Guyana and plays an important role in shaping opinion and discourse.
David was not above criticism and accepted that he was not. When offered, even aggressively, he was unfailingly courteous in his response. He bore criticism stoically and knew that it was a part of his life as a journalist. He never harboured malice towards his critics, across the political spectrum, including me. We had sharp differences on some of Stabroek News’s reporting and editorialising in relation to the government from time to time but it never harmed our good relations.
He was captivated by the message and personality of Barack Obama from the day he launched his campaign. With a true of gambler’s instinct, he supported him with the same zeal that he brought to anything he did and convinced me to do so early on, before I had made up my mind.
I hope that his passion will be rewarded.
Please convey my condolences and that of my family to Doreen, their family and the staff of Stabroek News.
Yours faithfully,
Hari N. Ramkarran SC MP
Speaker of the National Assembly
