Profession diplomat Ambassador Elisabeth Anne Harper has died on the age of 67, following a interval of sickness. She handed away on Saturday.
– Commercial –
Harper, who final served as Guyana’s Ambassador to the Caribbean Neighborhood (CARICOM) and Everlasting Secretary within the Ministry of International Affairs and Worldwide Cooperation, additionally held the place of Director Basic within the ministry.
President Dr. Irfaan Ali, in a press release Saturday night, described her as one in every of Guyana’s most excellent residents and foremost diplomats.
“Her distinguished profession within the International Service was marked by excellence, dedication, and an unyielding dedication to the development of our nation’s pursuits… Guyana has really misplaced an impressive citizen, and our International Service has misplaced one in every of its most interesting ever,” he mentioned.
He famous that Harper was an especially educated diplomat whose insights enriched each sphere of her work. “Ambassador Harper will probably be remembered not just for her skilled brilliance but in addition for her participating persona and the heat with which she approached all these round her,” Ali added.
Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, Basic Secretary of the Folks’s Progressive Occasion/Civic (PPP/C), additionally paid tribute, recalling his shut working relationship with Harper throughout his presidency. “I had the privilege of working intently along with her throughout my presidency and witnessed first-hand her professionalism, knowledge, and dedication to advancing Guyana’s nationwide pursuits,” Jagdeo mentioned.
Harper was the PPP/C’s prime ministerial candidate within the 2015 Basic and Regional Elections, operating alongside then-president Donald Ramotar.
The Ministry of International Affairs, in its announcement of her demise, mentioned Harper joined the ministry in 1976 and “devoted her life to the International Service, throughout which she served with distinction in each place.”
Tributes additionally got here from throughout Guyana’s political spectrum and past. Opposition parliamentarian Ganesh Mahipaul described her as “one of the crucial skilled and excellent profession diplomats.” The Alliance For Change (AFC) hailed her as a “trailblazer” who performed a pivotal function in safeguarding Guyana’s sovereignty and representing the nation in regional and worldwide fora. The Ahead Guyana Motion mentioned she exemplified “integrity, professionalism, and love for nation.”
Worldwide recognition of Harper’s service additionally poured in. The British Excessive Fee in Georgetown famous that her “devoted service to Guyana leaves a long-lasting legacy.”
Barbados Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley additionally expressed condolences:
“Guyana has misplaced a real daughter of the soil and the area has misplaced among the finest examples of a real public servant. I’m sadden to study of the passing of Elisabeth Harper, the Guyanese Everlasting Secretary within the Ministry of International Affairs whose public service profession spanned over 4 many years.
Lis was the consummate skilled and diplomat; somebody who understood that efficient diplomacy combines each competence and real human connection. My relationship along with her began on the flip of the twenty-first century whereas I used to be Minister of Schooling, Youth and Tradition and infrequently attended COHSOD conferences in Guyana. She was at all times nice and jovial and greeted everybody with a heat smile. Lis’ advocacy for Caribbean integration was a imaginative and prescient that prolonged past nationwide boundaries to regional cooperation and solidarity. Her loss will probably be felt not solely in Guyana however throughout all the Caribbean Neighborhood. Could her household, President Ali, and the folks of Guyana and CARICOM discover consolation in figuring out how deeply revered and appreciated she was by her colleagues throughout the area.”
Born on October 2, 1957, in Kitty, Georgetown, Harper was a religious Christian, married to Mark Harper, and the mom of 5 kids.
She started her International Service profession in 1976 as a clerk within the registry and rose via the ranks, serving in a number of divisions earlier than changing into Director Basic in 2001. She additionally served as Counsellor on the Guyana Excessive Fee in London, Director of the Division of the Americas and Asia, and later as non-resident Excessive Commissioner to a number of Caribbean nations.
Her distinguished service included participation in CARICOM, the Amazonian Cooperation Treaty Organisation, the United Nations, the Commonwealth, and different regional our bodies. She was a part of Guyana’s delegation for the Guyana-Suriname Maritime Arbitration and contributed to quite a few negotiations on behalf of the nation.
In 2011, she obtained one in every of Guyana’s highest honors, the Golden Arrow of Achievement, for her lengthy and distinguished service. From 2016 to 2020, she served as a guide on border issues and acted as co-agent for Guyana within the ongoing case on the Worldwide Court docket of Justice concerning the border with Venezuela.
Harper’s profession, which spanned greater than 4 many years, left a mark on each Guyana and the broader Caribbean.
