A PROFESSIONAL JOURNALIST WHO CONTRIBUTED SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM)
The news of the passing of Mr. Patrick Denny filled me with as much surprise as with sadness. Surprise, because one does not readily associate someone as vibrant and active as Patrick with illness. Indeed, it is even more difficult for me to accept that the man Denny – the probing, fearless journalist who befriended me throughout a life of selfless and tireless service – is now dead. But we must all remember that, “In the midst of life, there is death.” One writer even went on to say that, “Life is a great surprise and death is an even greater one.” Patrick Denny’s death certainly has that greater surprise.
Many will pay tribute to Patrick in his various roles as a father, family man, editor, writer, and in the various other capacities in which he lived and worked.
I will talk briefly this afternoon about Patrick Denny, the journalist of principle, passion and fearlessness who contributed significantly to the building of the edifice of Caribbean regional integration. He was among other things, a committed regionalist. He had a quiet but steely passion for seeing the Caribbean Community and its people get it right; for encouraging in his own way, the development and prosperity of CARICOM and its peoples; for seeing us assume our rightful place in the world. For that I will be forever grateful.
Patrick will be remembered for his forthright and incisive views, always expressed without rancour but always with great tenacity.
He was never afraid to ask the difficult questions and to stick to the issue, regardless of how uncomfortable it made the interviewee and no matter how high- placed he or she was. He certainly gave me a few uncomfortable moments and I was not unique in that regard. But that was the essence of the man Denny, the journalist.
As a journalist and Managing Editor of the Stabroek News, one of the major newspapers in Guyana , he was instrumental in devoting dedicated coverage to CARICOM issues with the aim of educating the Guyanese people about the regional integration movement.
In recognition of his sterling work in this area, the Caribbean Community formally paid tribute to him in 1995 by selecting him as the journalist in Guyana whose contribution to spreading the message of regionalism was most outstanding.
To that end, he was granted an award, which included the payment of all expenses to report on the CARICOM-Canada Summit held in Grenada in March 1996.
Patrick Denny was a principled professional who gave yeoman service to the field of journalism and public affairs and made an indelible mark on Guyanese society as well as a significant contribution to the wider Caribbean society.
It was the English novelist, D. H. Lawrence who said: “The dead don’t die: They look on and help.” I have a feeling this will be true in the case of Patrick Denny. Certainly, his work in the treatment and coverage of public affairs and CARICOM issues will always serve as an example to others in journalism.
I urge Stabroek News in particular, and journalists in general, to honour the memory of their colleague by constantly striving to meet the highest standards of professionalism, fearlessness and fairness in the discharge of their duties. And to accept that they too have a responsibility, as an integral part or our Community, not only to inform, but also to educate, our people. These were the principles, which characterised the life and work of their colleague, Patrick Denny.
I will miss him; we will all miss him.
I express sincere condolence on my own behalf, on behalf the staff of the CARICOM Secretariat and indeed on behalf of the Governments and Peoples of entire Caribbean Community to Mr. Denny’s family, friends and associates.
May his soul rest in eternal peace.
