Arthur Chung

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In this
His Excellency
Arthur Chung
OE
1st President of GuyanaIn office
17 March 1970 – 6 October 1980Prime MinisterForbes BurnhamPreceded byPosition establishedSucceeded byForbes Burnham
Personal detailsBorn
Arthur Raymond Chung

(1918-01-10)10 January 1918
Independent
Spouse
​
(m. 1954)​
Children2Alma materMiddle Temple

Arthur Raymond Chung, OE (10 January 1918 – 23 June 2008) was a Guyanese politician who was the 1st President of Guyana from 1970 to 1980.[1] He was the first ethnic Chinese (Chinese Caribbean) to be head of state in a non-Asian country.[2] A leader in Guyana's fight for independence during the British colonial era, he was honoured with Guyana's highest national honour, the Order of Excellence (O.E.).

Early life and career

Chung was born into a

West Coast Demerara in British Guiana; he was the youngest of Joseph and Lucy Chung's eight children.[1] Arthur was educated at Windsor Forest, Blankenburg, and Modern High School. In 1954, he married another native of Windsor Forest, Doreen Pamela Ng-See-Quan, with whom he had one daughter and one son.[1]

Before civic service, Chung was an apprentice surveyor and sworn land surveyor. In the early 1940s, Chung entered the

London, England and qualified as a barrister in 1947. He returned to Guyana and was later appointed an acting magistrate. He became a magistrate in 1954 and a senior magistrate in 1960. Chung also served as Registrar of Deeds and of the Supreme Court. He then became a puisne judge and finally an Appeal Court Judge in 1963.[3]

Presidency

When Guyana became a republic under the leadership of Forbes Burnham in 1970, the Guyanese

Governor-General of Guyana, while Prime Minister Forbes Burnham
was the head of government.

During his presidency, on June 27, 1972, Guyana established formal diplomatic relations with China, making Guyana the first English-speaking Caribbean country to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China.[5] In 1977, President Chung of Guyana visited China and met with officials and ambassadors.

Presidential Standard under President Arthur Chung

Later years

Chung died aged 90 on 23 June 2008[1][4] at his home at Bel Air Springs, Georgetown. In the two months prior to his death he had been hospitalized a number of times, and he was last released from the hospital on 20 June.

A week after his death, he was buried at the Seven Ponds in the

Botanical Gardens.[6]

Legacy

In 2015, it was announced that the Guyana International Conference Centre (GICC) would be renamed the "Arthur Chung Convention Centre" to commemorate President Arthur Chung, and newly elected President

Arthur Chung Convention Centre was recommissioned in June 2018.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Guyana's first President dies"Archived 14 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine, GINA, 23 June 2008.
  2. ^ "Obituary - Arthur Chung". 29 June 2008. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  3. ^ "270 PERSONALITIES CARIBBEAN - PDF Free Download". docplayer.net. Archived from the original on 30 July 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Guyana's first president Arthur Chung dies" Archived 26 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Starbroek News, 24 June 2008.
  5. ^ "Visit to China by H.E. Raymond Arthur Chung, President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, 1977". Embassy of Guyana, Beiijing. Archived from the original on 17 December 2015.
  6. ^ "Guyana's first president laid to rest at Seven Ponds". Stabroek News. 1 July 2008. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 19 April 2020. Yesterday ... with full military honours just after noon, following a state funeral at the National Cultural Centre.
  7. ^ "International Conference Centre to be renamed in honour of first President" Archived 8 August 2022 at the Wayback Machine, Guyana Times International, 22 May 2018.
  8. ^ "Rehabilitated Arthur Chung Centre recommissioned", Ministry of Public telecommunications, 8 June 2018.

External links

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