WASHINGTON, DC - Jamaica’s former representative to The Organization of American States (OAS) and Ambassador to the United States, the Late Richard Bernal, was on January30th 2023 hailed by the OAS as not only an economist, a diplomat, and a regionalist but also an educator and a consummate negotiator.
Jamaica’s Permanent Representative to the OAS and Ambassador to the United States, Audrey Marks pays tribute to Jamaica’s former representative to The Organization of American States (OAS) and Ambassador to the United States, Richard Bernal, during a Speaking at a special sitting of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States in the Hall of the Americas in Washington DC. Sitting directly behind the ambassador is Jamaica’s alternate representative to the OAS Mrs. Nicholette Williams. (Photo by Derrick A Scott)Jamaica’s Permanent Representative to the OAS and Ambassador to the United States, Audrey Marks said “Ambassador Bernal, who has had a long and distinguished career in business and in academia, counts among his many other signal accomplishments, his appointment as Ambassador of Jamaica to the United States, and simultaneously, as Permanent Representative of Jamaica to the Organization of American States, recording one of the longest tours of duty in that jurisdiction, from 1991 to 2001.”
“He was unstinting in the service he gave to the Government and people of Jamaica, representing the country in many regional and international engagements, always with keen insights and avid interest in preserving the integrity of diplomacy. He earned an admirable reputation for his clinical analyses on regionalism and for his commitment to promoting the higher virtues of regional integration,” Ambassador marks said.
Barbados Ambassador to the US Noel Lynch speaking on behalf of the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors, described the late Ambassador Bernal as a committed and unapologetic regionalist who “believed strongly in CARICOM and the story of CARICOM. He also believed in the process and power of regional integration and multilateralism, in determining the social and economic improvement of people the world over,” Ambassador Lynch said.
Speaking at a special sitting of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States in the Hall of the Americas today, Ambassador to the OAS Francisco O. Mora said Ambassador Bernal will be remembered as an outstanding diplomat, educator, public servant and a friend of the people of the United States.”
“I knew him as Professor Bernal as we worked on several projects, he was a teacher to me, and I will miss him very much. The US diplomatic community offers our deepest condolences to his wife and family. His service was a legacy and example to many generations of Jamaicans,” Ambassador Mora said.
In his tribute, OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro said, “Ambassador Bernal embraced the OAS as an institution for the “promotion and consolidation of democracy, the protection of human rights, and the fostering of economic and social development throughout the Americas.”
He said Dr. Richard Bernal was a visionary in many respects, whose indelible economic and trade development policies continue to serve as a reference point for his fellow countrymen and the peoples of the Americas.
The OAS Secretary General pointed out that “Dr. Bernal played an intrinsic role during negotiations as a member of the Core Group on the Situation in Haiti, noting that the restoration of democracy in Haiti in 1994 was one of his greatest highlights observed during his diplomatic career at the Organization.”
Tributes were also delivered by the representatives to the OAS from Belize, Brazil, Canada, and Mexico as well as an Observer from the Holy See and other Latin America representatives.
The OAS extended sincerest condolences to his wife, Margaret Bernal, his children, and his cherished friends.
