Hon. Michael Pintard Leader of the Opposition
In celebration of the 96th birthday of Mrs. Eileen Dupuch Carron, it is a happy privilege and occasion to offer her birthday greetings and to recall the extraordinary role she has played in Bahamian life for going on a century.
During her storied and long career as a journalist, editor, and publisher of The Tribune, she helped to safeguard our democracy and to ensure a treasury of freedoms, including freedom of the press.
An advocate of gender equality, she achieved a number of firsts, including becoming the first female pilot in The Bahamas. She has encouraged generations of Bahamian women to achieve other firsts and more.
Following in the footsteps of her grandfather and father, Mrs. Dupuch Carron was a pioneering journalist who championed freedom of expression, transparency and accountability in government, and the open exchange of ideas in a pluralistic society.
Like her forebearers, she courageously swore to the dogmas of no masters, and maintained a commitment to independent journalism. She is the longest serving editor and publisher in The Bahamas.
Among the qualities I have had the privilege of observing first-hand, none stands out more than her unwavering commitment to fairness; a fairness that extended not only to the pages of The Tribune, but to every individual she encountered and every cause she chose to champion.
During the dark days of the state’s monopoly of the broadcast media, The Tribune served as a critical counterweight, forum for a diversity of views, and a check on governmental power.
Following the freeing of the broadcast media from rigid state control and state- sponsored propaganda, in 1993, she became the first CEO of a private radio station.
An exceptional writer, world traveller, and inveterate reader, she has mentored and trained several generations of journalists, editors, and columnists, who recall her devotion to study, research, curiosity, and fine writing.
On behalf of the Free National Movement, my family, and myself, I am honoured to wish her a blessed and happy birthday. May God continue to sustain her in the years to come.