Ebenezer Joshua

Ebenezer Theodore Joshua (May 23 1908–March 14 1991) was the chief minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from 1956 to 1967.

Joshua was born in Kingstown, Saint Vincent, which would later become the capital of the country. As a young man he worked on the nearby island of Trinidad where he became interested in trade unionism, believing that the exploitation and bad working conditions of workers on sugar plantations and other places should be stopped. He entered politics on Saint Vincent and was elected to the island's assembly in 1951. In 1952 he founded the People's Political Party, the first political party in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. He and his party had a socialist agenda, focusing on gaining independence from the United Kingdom and getting better working conditions and wages for poor workers.

In 1956, when Saint Vincent and the Grenadines gained more autonomy, Joshua became the first chief minister. The People's Political Party continued to win elections, and Joshua was said to be much loved by the poor workers. He supported the unsuccessful Federation of the West Indies. In 1967, his party lost the elections, and he was forced to give up the position of chief minister. He was succeeded by Milton Cato, leader of the more moderate Unity Labour Party, which succeeded in gaining independence for the nation. Joshua remained in Parliament, but the PPP began a slow decline, as the conservative New Democratic Party emerged to compete with the PPP and the Unity Labour Party for the government of the country. In 1979, Joshua and all other PPP members of Parliament lost their seats, and the party dissolved itself in 1984.

In 1980 Joshua became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ["2008 Deseret Morning News Church Almanac" (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Morning News) p. 457.]

Joshua died in Kingstown.

The international airport in St. Vincent is named after Joshua, using his initials: E. T. Joshua Airport.

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