KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Senate today paid tribute to former trade union leader and parliamentarian, Hopeton Caven, who died at his home in Kingston before dawn this morning.

Government Senator Lambert Brown opened the tributes, recalling Caven, a former People’s National Party (PNP) nominated member of the Senate and General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), as a mentor of current Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller.

Caven contested the South West St Andrew seat on a PNP ticket in 1967, but lost to former Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) housing minister David Clement (DC) Tavares by 3,333 votes. Tavares died after losing out in the race to succeed Donald Sangster as prime minister and leader of the JLP in 1967. Simpson Miller won the seat for the first time for the PNP in 1976 defeating the JLP’s Joseph McPherson. She has retained the seat since.

Simpson Miller also honed her trade union skills under the tutelage of Caven who was then general secretary of the TUC.

Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate, Thomas Tavares Finson, a nephew of DC Tavares, also paid tribute to Caven, in recognition of his contribution to the trade union movement.

Also paying tribute was former general secretary of the National Workers Union (NWU), Senator Navel Clarke, and President of the Senate Floyd Morris, who reminded the Upper House that Caven’s first bid for political representation was in St Mary.

President of the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU), Senator Kavan Gayle, was absent from sitting, but the union’s senior vice-president, Wesley Nelson, issued a statement remembering Caven as  “visionary leader” who advocated for the working class throughout his lifetime.

Caven was born in Spanish Town, St Catherine on December 13, 1927. He was educated at Calabar Elementary School and St George’s College Extension School. He joined the TUC, which was then affiliated to the PNP, as an organiser in 1952.

He was a Senator, 1972-80, and a member of the PNP Executive, 1964-80, as well as local representative for the New York-based Jamaica Progressive League 1972-80. A Roman Catholic, Caven, who was honoured with both the Order of Distinction (OD) and the Order of Jamaica (OJ), is survived by three sons and a daughter.

Balford Henry