Dr. and Mrs. JB Singh with family and friends at their home, “Ayodhya,” at 273 Lamaha Street (purchased in 1923), North Cummingsburg, Georgetown, British Guiana (Guyana), circa. 1928. From left to right: (standing) Pratap Narine, “Tappie,” their fourth child and third son; Indal, JB’s youngest brother; Pitamber Doobay, JB’s closest friend and confi- dante; Mrs. Singh; and Victor Ramsaran; (sitting, back row) young lady (name unknown) and Efreda Chandrawati, “Moon,” eldest daughter; (sitting, front row) young lady (name unknown) and Gangadai,“Nelly,” JB’s only sister. The copyrighted pictures of Alice Singh were provided by Karna Singh and were taken from the 'Heritage Collection of Dr. and Mrs. JB Singh'. Courtesy: Dr. Baytoram Ramharack Edited by Somdat Mahabir & Ramesh Gampat 180 YEARS OF INDIANS IN GUYANA (1838-2018) Edited by Somdat Mahabir & Ramesh Gampat Caribbean Hindu Network (CHN) Published on May 5, 2018 Suggested citation of this publication Citation of the entire publication: Somdat Mahabir and Ramesh Gampat (Editors), 180 Years of Indi- ans in Guyana (1838-2018), Caribbean Hindu Network, 2018. Citation of specific papers: Baytoram Ramharack, Remembering Alice Singh of Guyana: Notes from her Diary in Guyana (1838-2018). In: Somdat Mahabir and Ramesh Gampat (Editors), 180 Years of Indians in Guyana (1838-2018), pp 23-33, Caribbean Hindu Network, 2018. Cover picture Dr. and Mrs. JB Singh with family and friends at their home, “Ayodhya,” at 273 Lamaha Street (purchased in 1923), North Cummingsburg, Georgetown, British Guiana (Guyana), circa. 1928. From left to right: (standing) Pratap Narine, “Tappie,” their fourth child and third son; Indal, JB’s youngest brother; Pitamber Doobay, JB’s closest friend and confidante; Mrs. Singh; and Victor Ramsaran; (sitting, back row) young lady (name unknown) and Efreda Chandrawati, “Moon,” eldest daughter; (sitting, front row) young lady (name unknown) and Gangadai,“Nelly,” JB’s only sister. The copyrighted pictures of Alice Singh were provided by Karna Singh and were taken from the 'Heritage Collection of Dr. and Mrs. JB Singh'. Courtesy: Dr. Baytoram Ramharack. Disclaimer: This publication is for educational purposes only and not for sale and the contents are not copyrighted except where indicated. Information contained in this publication is from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reasonable efforts have been made to publish reliable data and infor- mation, but the publisher, editors, and authors cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all ma- terials or the consequences of their use. 2 CONTENTS Acknowledgement …………………………………………………………………………………..………………….. 4 Contributors ………………………………………………………………………….……………………………………... 5 PART I: Did you know? Our Indian Ancestors by the Numbers (1834-1880) ………………………………………..……………...6 Data on Crimes Against Indians (Dec. 1997 to Dec. 1998) ……………………… ……………….……..8 Indian Guyanese Test Cricketers ………………………………………………………...… ……………………..9 Voice of our Ancestors and their Children: Struggles, Impact, and Survival …………………...10 Indian Resistance for Human Rights in British Guiana and Guyana (1869-2003)……………..12 PART II: Articles about Indian Guyanese Indians in Guyana From Indenture to Independence (1838-1966) Notes on Useful Dates, Events and Personalities in Print Memory — Rampersaud Tiwari ……...………..…...16 The Demise of Arrival Day? — Ramesh Gampat ………………………………………………………….….23 Arrival is Not Geographical — Ravi Dev………………………………………………………………………....30 Remembering Alice Singh of Guyana: Notes from her Diary — Baytoram Ramharack …...32 Taan Singing 180 Years After Indian Arrival in Guyana — Somdat Mahabir …………..……….43 From Hut Temples to Mandirs: What Meaning? — Ramesh Gampat ……………………………..52 The East Indians And Their Plague — Rakesh Rampertab….…………………………………………..64 Indians Attitude To Education During And Immediately After The Indentureship Period In British Guiana (Now Guyana) — Harry T. Hergash…………………………………………...67 Status Indian Guyanese After 180 Years: What Shall We Celebrate? - Rishidew Pooran... 71 Fall of Sanatana Dharma, Rise of Plantation Hinduism — Ramesh Gampat …………………….74 Conversion: The Caribbean Challenge In The Next Century — Ramnarine Sahadeo ………..87 Struggle for Indian Arrival Day in the Caribbean — Vishnu Bisram ………………………………….90 3 Acknowledgement As we celebrate the 180th anniversary of the arrival of Indians in Guyana, reflect on our cultural heritage and future, we would be remiss if we do not express deep and humbling gratitude to our ancestors. The first batch of 246 Indians set sail in the Whitby from Calcutta on January 13, 1838 and, after a journey of 112 days at sea, they arrived in Guyana on May 5, 1838. Five Indians died at sea during the journey. The Whitby headed for Berbice where it landed 164 Indians in Berbice at the estates of Davidson, Barclay and Company in Highbury and Waterloo. Inter- estingly, the Hesperus sailed from Calcutta on the 29 January 1838 with 165 pas- sengers and arrived in Guyana also on the 5 May but lost 13 Indians during the voyage. The remaining 135 men, 6 women and 11 children were distributed to plantations Vreedestein, Vreed-en-hoop and Anna Regina. Between 1838, when Indian immigration began, and 1917, when it ended, a total of 238,960 Indians came to Guyana. We pay tribute to our ancestors and hope that this publication does justice to the vast legacy they have bequeathed us. We would also like to express our gratitude to all the authors and coauthors of ar- ticles for this publication. Somdat Mahabir & Ramesh Gampat May 5, 2018 4 Contributors Somdat Mahabir, PhD, MPH Ramesh Gampat, PhD Epidemiologist/Scientist Economist Maryland, United States Retired from United Nations Develop- ment Program (UNDP) Georgia, United States Rampersaud Tiwari Baytoram Ramharack, PhD Retired Senior Executive-level Political Scientist Guyana Public Servant New York, United States Scarborough, Ontario, Canada Harry T. Hergash Ravi Dev, JD Retired Administrator Attorney and Activist Ontario, Canada West Coast Demerara, Guyana Rishi Pooran, MS Rakesh Rampertab, Esq. Electrical Engineer Attorney New Jersey, United States New York, United States Vishnu Bisram, PhD Ramnarine Sahadeo, LLB Columnist and Pollster Attorney New York, United States Brampton, Ontario, Canada 5 Our Indian Ancestors by the Numbers (1834-1880) Table 1. Indians taken to overseas European territories (excepting those of Southeast Asia) in the 19th and 20th centuries. Indian population Colony (Country) Period Indian Immigrants 1980 est. Mauritius 1834-1912 453,063 623,000 Guyana 1838-1917 238,909 424,400 Natal (South Africa) 1860-1911 152,184 750,000 Trinidad 1845-1917 143,939 421,000 Reunion 1829-1924 118,000 125,000 Fiji 1879-1916 60,969 300,700 Guadeloupe 1854-1885 42,326 23,165 Kenya 1895-1901 39,771 79,000 Jamica 1854-1885 36,420 50,300 Surinam 1873-1916 34,000 124,900 Martinique 1854-1889 25,509 16,450 Seychelles 1899-1916 6,319 St. Lucia 1858-1895 4,350 3,700 Grenada 1856-1885 3,200 3,900 St. Vincent 1861-1880 2,472 5,000 TOTAL 1,361,431 2,950,515 (Source: Swami Aksharananda, Hinduism in Guyana: A study in traditions of worship, PhD Thesis, 1993). Note: Table 1 excludes those who were taken to Burma (2.5 million), Malaysia (2 mil- lion), and Sri Lanka (1.5 million). Table 2. Areas from which Indians were taken to overseas British and French colonies between 1842 and 1871. East- NWP & Destination Orissa Western Bengal Bihar Others Total ern Awadh British Gui- ana 719 14,028 2,166 238 24,681 25,681 1,164 68,547 Trinidad 378 8,396 1,305 176 11,278 16,027 853 38,413 Jamica 147 3,214 341 106 4,496 4,654 377 13,335 W.I. Colo- 28 1,461 266 46 2,405 2,076 100 6,382 nies 3,116 33,131 8,951 1,118 108,156 47,286 3,619 205,377 Mauritius 2 216 24 356 370 16 984 Natal 19 1,667 171 29 4,027 4,469 262 10,644 Reunion TOTAL 4,409 62,113 13,224 1,713 155,399 100,433 6,391 343,782 PERCENT 1.28 18.08 3.85 0.49 45.22 29.22 1.86 100 Source: Swami Aksharananda, Hinduism in Guyana: A study in traditions of worship, PhD Thesis, 1993. 6 Table 3. Emigration of Children by Gender to British and Foreign Colonies, 1842-1870 Country Adult Males Adult Females Children % of Children Total Mauritius 243,853 63,459 44,089 12.54 351,401 British Guyana 53,323 16,983 9,385 11.77 79,691 Trinidad 28,030 9,280 5,209 12.25 42,519 Jamaica 10,022 3,233 1,914 12.61 15,169 Natal 4,116 1,463 869 13.47 6,448 St. Vincent 1,008 395 234 14.29 1,637 St. Lucia 1,333 401 209 10.75 1,943 St. Croix 244 60 17 5.29 321 Grenada 1,810 626 323 11.70 2,759 St. Kitts 192 113 56 15.51 361 Reunion 10,751 2,939 1,315 8.76 15,005 Guadeloupe 5,813 2,331 738 8.30 8,882 Martinique 3,667 1,336 520 9.41 5,523 French Guiana 1,320 421 165 8.65 1,906 TOTAL 365,482 103,040 65,043 12.19 533.565 Source: Swami Aksharananda: Hinduism in Guyana: A study in traditions of worship, PhD Thesis, 1993. Table 4. Indians Immigrants who Returned to India from British Guiana (1835-1928) Immigrants Period Arrived Returned % Returned Portuguese 1835-1882 30,685 * * West Indians 1835-1928 42,512 * * Indians 1838-1917 239,756 75,792 31.6 Africans 1838-1865 13,355 * * Chinese 1853-1912 14,189 * * Others * 1,282 * * TOTAL 341,799 Source: Dwarka Nath: A History of Indians in British Guiana, 1970. Table 5. Distribution on Estates of Indians who Arrived on Whitby and Hesperus (1838) ********************************* Males Females Vreed-en-Hoop (John Gladstone, Esq.) 65 5 Vriedestein - - Ditto 31 0 See “Acknowledgement” Anna Regina, (Messrs. Moss,) 46 3 section of this publication Belle Vue, (A. Colville, Esq.) 79 3 to know how many on the Waterloo, (James Blair, Esq.) 47 0 Whitby and Hesperus died Highbury, (Messrs. Davidsons & Co.) 117 11 at sea. 385 22 7 Comparative Data on Crimes in Guyana by Ethnicity (Dec. 1997 to Dec. 1998) Note: The following data on crime in Guyana was extracted from the two national newspapers of Guyana - the privately owned Stabroek News and the government-owned Guyana Chronicle. Both the Internet editions and actual hard copies of the newspapers were used for purposes of data extraction. The time period of the study and data covers the period December 1997 to De- cember 1998. Violent crime reports = 155; Total number of victims = 313; No gender was iden- tified for 103 victims. Table 1. Characteristics of Victims of Violent Crimes (Dec. 1997 – Dec. 1998) INDIANS AFRICANS OTHERS TOTAL Victims 236 (75.4%) 60 (19.2%) 17 (5.4%) 313 Average age of victims 31 32 24 Total number of male victims 98 43 9 150 Total number of female vic- 37 17 6 60 tims Source: Somdat Mahabir, Presented at the Guyanese Indian Foundation Trust (GIFT) Symposium on “Structural and Institutional Considerations to Foster Ethnic Harmony, May 28, 2000, Le Meridien Pega- sus Hotel, Georgetown, Guyana. Table 2: Victims by Type of Violent Crimes (Dec. 1997 – Dec. 1998) INDIANS AFRICANS OTHERS TOTAL Robbery and Assault 189 (83.6%) 32 (14.1%) 5 (2.2%) 226 Assault 12 (48%) 7 (28%) 6 (24%) 25 Burglary 6 (85.7%) 1 (14.3%) -- 7 Murder+ 32 (59.25%) 18 (33.3%) 4 (7.4%) 54 Source: Somdat Mahabir, Presented at the Guyanese Indian Foundation Trust (GIFT) Symposium on “Structural and Institutional Considerations to Foster Ethnic Harmony, May 28, 2000, Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel, Georgetown, Guyana. • At a lower level of detail, of the 21 murders committed during robbery and assault, 13 (61.9%) were execution-style murders. • Of these 13 execution-style murders 12 of the victims (92.3% were Indian- and 1, or 7.7 percent was African-Guyanese. 8 Indian Guyanese Test Cricketers Sonny Ramadhin Rohan Kanhai * Charran Kamkaran Singh Ivan Madray * Joe Solomon * Allvin Kallicharran * Nyron Asgarali Leonard Baichan * Raphick Jumadeen Rangy Nanan Imtiaz Ali Inshan Ali Sewdatt Shivnarine * From left: Ivan Madray, Basil Butcher, Clyde Walcott, Sonny Baijnauth, Ro- Faoud Bacchus * han Kanhai and Joe Solomon; 1956 picture. Dave Mohammed (Source: Ranji To Rohan) Suruj Ragoonath Shivnarine Chanderpaul * Ramnaresh Sarwan * Ravi Rampaul Mahendra Nagamootoo * Dinanath Ramnarine Narsingh Deonarine * Sewnarine Chattergoon * Rajindra Dhanraj Daren Ganga Denesh Ramdin Sunil Narine Ryan Ramdass * Assad Fudadin * Devendra Bishoo * Rohan Kanhai Alvin Kallicharran Adrian Barath Rajendra Chandrika * Veerasammy Permaul * * Guyana born Shivnarine Chanderpaul Devendra Bishoo Ramnaresh Sarvan 9 Voice of our Ancestors and their Children: Struggles, Impact, and Survival Deaths on Ship Voyage “Against tremendous odds, the immigrants struggled for their very survival on board ship. Overcrowding of the emigrant ships, inadequate food, lack of fresh water, water-borne diseases such as cholera, dysen- tery and diarrhoea, and the long and arduous voyage, made life unbearable. In many instances, the con- sequence was a high mortality rate to as much as 20 to 30 percent. Immigrants consoled themselves through singing, drumming and story telling, and of greater significance was the lasting friendship that developed among the ‘jehazis’ or shipmates.” – Tota Mangar, East Indian Immigration (1838-1917), Guy- ana Chronicle, May 5, 2014. Drastic changes in Hinduism "Whatever public religion was permitted, it was within the framework of the structure and demand of the plantation that Hinduism was confronted with the greatest challenge in Guyana and the Caribbean. It did not remain unaffected and was forced to undergo a series of rapid transformation. Hinduism, of course, was never the "eternal" unchanging entity that it is often made out to be, not even in India. But changes in India were probably more organic and slower against the background of a permanent landscape with its sacred mountains and rivers, its major temples and centers of pilgrimage. Customs, beliefs, and prac- tices, the interplay along the ever porous boundary between the Great and Little traditions, the challenge from and syncretism with Islam, the emergence of bhakti, the encounter with the British with all its con- sequences, and the Hindu reformers who were themselves a product of this encounter, all these were important and permanent changes. But, Kailasa in the Himalayas stood its grounds, the Ganga kept on flowing, and Kasi, the eternal city, continued to beckon to pilgrims across the land. In Guyana and the Car- ibbean, however, these orienting and stabilizing signposts of the sacred landscape were absent and in the absence of its cultural context changes, in Hinduism in Guyana and the Caribbean, were more momen- tous, more rapid, and more drastic." - Swami Aksharananda: Hinduism in Guyana: A study in traditions of worship, 1993. Attack and Rape “In May 1964, the Negroes at Wismar formed themselves into gangs and went to the business places and homes of the Indians and demanded the keys of the safety boxes and drawers in which they kept their cash, jewellery and other valuable articles. Shortly afterwards, a house at Third Alley was set on fire and soon the whole area became an inferno as the gangs roamed looting, burning and terrorizing the 1,600 Indians as they tried to escape. Every man, woman and child was attacked. The men brutally beaten and the clothes of the women and even girls of tender ages were ripped away. The women and girls were raped in full public view by gangs of men.”— Dwarka Nath, A History of Indian in Guyana, 1970. Wismar-Christianburg Massacre “The massacre of Indo-Guyanese in Wismar and Christianburg has remained a well-hidden and well- guarded secret. Not only have Guyanese failed to record and seriously document this important part of our history but also the older generations of Indo-Guyanese have not passed on this information even orally. Up to today these is no accurate figures on the number of Indo-Guyanese that have died during the Wismar massacre. When Guyana’s Independence Day is celebrated on May 26th, Indo-Guyanese should also take time off to acknowledge those who suffered and died in the Wismar-Christianburg mas- sacre...All Guyanese must ensure it does not happen again. How can this be done? Obviously, the Interna- tional Commission of Jurists (ICJ) recommendations which the PNC government agreed to implement must now be reflected in the Guyanese armed forces. Then any "ethnic cleansing" of other communities like Mackenzie will not reoccur again. Never again!” – Rakesh Rampertaub, http:// www.guyanaundersiege.com/History/wismar/wismar%20page.htm (Accessed April 26, 2018) 10