|
IWTC
WOMEN’S GLOBALNET #347 ACTIVITIES
& INITIATIVES OF WOMEN WORLDWIDE PASSAGES:
LUCILLE MATHURIN MAIR February 3, 2009 Anne S. Walker |
|
Lucille Mathurin Mair died in her 85th year
on January 28, 2009 in Kingston, Jamaica. She was a diplomat, an artist, a
writer and a recognized historian of some reknown
but for so many women in countries around the world who were swept up in the
tumultuous years of the UN World Conferences on Women, Lucille will be
remembered as the Secretary General of the Mid-Decade UN World Conference on
Women that took place in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1980. Those
were heady years when women were pushing the boundaries and staking out a
number of “firsts.” Lucille was in the forefront — as Jamaica’s first Advisor on Women’s
Affairs, subsequently establishing a Women’s Bureau in the Office of the
Prime Minister, then as the first ever woman to be appointed Under Secretary
General in the UN, an appointment that followed her term as Secretary-General
of the 1980 World Conference on Women. She was one of the first to undertake
research on the role of women, and writing of Lucille’s work as a historian
and scholar, Professor Verene A. Shepherd,
Department of History, UWI said: “In 1974, Lucille submitted and defended
successfully a doctoral dissertation in history at UWI. In it, she posed new
questions and rejected old answers with respect to the experiences of women -
free and enslaved, black, brown and white - in the slave system of Jamaica
and in the first decade of freedom. Over a period of three decades, it became
the most sought-after unpublished work among students and scholars of
Caribbean history and culture. I am not aware of any other dissertation, anywhere
within the libraries of the university, more persistently pursued.” Lucille
was a woman of many interests and skills. She served as Warden of the Women’s
Hall of Residence at the University of the West Indies, Jamaica from
1957-1974. In a tribute from UWI it was stated: “She was the epitome of human
decency, kindness and charm. The quality and style of her wardenship
at Mary Seacole Hall could be seen in every aspect
of life in the hall from the fine paintings, which graced the walls to the
cultural and literary events, which took place there. She also shared her
artistic ability with the UWI and her artwork continues to live on the walls
of Mary Seacole Hall.” Lucille
had a distinguished career as a public servant in Jamaica. In addition to
being the first Advisor on Women’s Affairs, she was head of the Jamaican
Information Service in 1974, and then was appointed Deputy Head of Jamaica’s
Permanent Mission to the United Nations in 1975. She was subsequently
appointed as Jamaica’s Ambassador to Cuba Following
her work for the United Nations, Lucille returned to public service, first as
a Senator and Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jamaica,
and in 1992 as Permanent Representative for Jamaica to the United Nations.
She also served as member of or representative on several international and
regional boards and committees including the Board of Governors of the
International Development Research Council in Canada, the Population Council
(U.S.A.) and the International Conference on Apartheid in Nigeria. She
continued to work on impacting in positive ways the lives of women in the
Caribbean as as Regional Coordinator of the Women
and Development Studies Programme, UWI.. Her career
of committed service and extraordinary achievements in the realms of
diplomacy, development and women’s advancement won her local, regional and
international recognition. Among the awards she received were the OAS Women
of Distinction Award in 1987 and the national honours
of Commander of the Order of Distinction and the Order of Jamaica. She was
conferred Honorary Doctorates from three universities, the University of the
West Indies, the University of Florida and the University of Ulster in
Ireland. But
beneath the public tributes to Lucille’s many accomplishments, I remember her
on a more personal level as a charismatic, beautiful, energetic, visionary
woman who fought so fiercely on behalf of women’s rights. When I first met
Lucille, she was Jamaica’s Deputy Representative to the UN and was delighted
to see the beginnings of an information, technical assistance and training
task force (later to become IWTC) coming out of the 1975 International
Women’s Year Conference and NGO Tribune in Mexico City. We talked about my
early work with the Fiji YWCA where Marjorie Stewart had been a mentor and
support. As a teenager, Lucille said, she had walked into the YWCA in
Kingston and Marjorie was there! She had encouraged her to take part in
leadership development workshops and this early initiation undoubtedly led to
her life-long support and encouragement of the work of NGOs and women’s
rights activists. The YWCA was to become a pioneering NGO for cultivating
interest and lifetime activism among Jamaican women of many generations. Lucille
is survived by her daughter Ambassador Gail Mathurin
who is the Permanent Secretary in the Jamaican Foreign Ministry and sons,
David and Adrian Mathurin. Women
worldwide extend their deepest sympathy and gratitude to them all. (Additional
information from press releases from the UN Secretary General, Jamaica
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, UWI and The Gleaner (Jamaica)) |
|
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IWTC
Women's GlobalNet is a production of: PLEASE
NOTE: WOMEN,
INK. Contact Women, Ink. at
777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017, USA. Tel: 1.212.687.8633 ext. 204. Fax: 1.
212.661-2704. E-mail: wink@iwtc.org.
To subscribe to the Women, Ink. monthly bulletin "BookLink", which features new titles constantly
being added to the Women, Ink. collection, write to: wink@iwtc.org WOMEN, INK. IS
A SERVICE OF IWTC |