A man who spent one life making Jamaican history and another writing it has been recognised at the highest level. The People’s National Party today congratulated Arnold “Scree” Bertram, historian, author and former Cabinet Minister, on his selection by The University of the West Indies for an honorary Doctor of Laws in recognition of his contribution to Caribbean scholarship and public advocacy.

Mr Bertram is one of four Jamaicans among thirteen honorees approved by the University Council for The UWI’s 2026 graduation ceremonies. His degree will be conferred at the Mona Campus during the ceremonies scheduled for November 5-7, 2026, alongside Damian Marley, Dawn Robinson-Spence and Milton J Samuda.

From the political awakening of the 1970s to the newspaper columns and books of the decades since, Mr Bertram has insisted that Jamaicans know their own story. He served in Cabinet and in Parliament, then turned to the patient work of scholarship, producing historical writing that shaped how a generation understands Jamaica and the wider Caribbean.

Mark Golding, President of the People’s National Party. said the moment carried a lesson for younger Jamaicans. “Our young people should look closely at this life. A cricketer, an organiser, a minister and a serious scholar, all in one Jamaican. It tells our children there is no ceiling on what they may become.”

“Scree Bertram has given this country two lifetimes of service in one,” said Party Chairman Dr Angela Brown Burke “He helped to build the modern movement for social change in Jamaica, and then he made certain its history was recorded honestly. Comrades everywhere will feel this honour personally.”

The PNP extends warm congratulations to all thirteen honorees, and invites Jamaicans at home and across the diaspora to share in this moment of national pride.