Indian Arrival Day is a special day for Indians in this country. As Ryhaan Shah reminded us, it was the determined efforts of members of ROAR and GIHA who lobbied a reluctant government to set aside a special day in recognition for Indians and to pay tribute to their contributions to the development of Guyana. There were many opponents to such a demand. While ignoring the fact that other major ethnic groups have had their own day (or month) of recognition, the PPP bowed to pressure and declared what was to become known as “Arrival Day” in 2004. They were deliberate in their intention to drop the word “Indian” from Indian Arrival Day. As they say, that is now history. Indians will be celebrating Indian Arrival Day on May 5th.
When Indian Arrival Day is celebrated, Indians remember the occasion that marked the arrival of the first two indentured Indian cargo ships to the New World, the Whitby and the Hesperus. As they embarked on a journey across the “kalapani”, they unwittingly became part of the “Gladstone experiment” that was designed to keep the sugar economy profitable for the plantation owners.
The Whitby sailed from Calcutta on January 13, 1838 with 249 Indian immigrants, and after a voyage of 112 days, arrived in the British colony on May 5. Five Indians died on the voyage before arriving at their destination. The ship immediately sailed to Berbice where 164 immigrants were recruited by the Highbury and Waterloo plantations. The Whitby returned to Demerara and between May 14 and 16, the remaining 80 immigrants disembarked and were taken to Belle Vue Estate. Out of a total of 244 Indians who arrived on the Whitby, there were 233 men, 5 women and 6 children. (Dwarka Nath has compiled a remarkable record of Indian achievement in the country).
The second ship, the Hesperus left Calcutta on January 29, 1838 with 165 passengers and arrived in the colony late on the night of May 5, the same day as the Whitby, with the loss of 13 Indian immigrants who died on board. The remaining 135 men, 6 women and 11 children were distributed between May 8 and 10 to the Vreedestein, Vreed-en-Hoop and Anna Regina sugar plantations. This year marks 178 years since the first generation of Indians landed in Guyana.
But we should be clear about what the celebration entails. It is not only a celebration of Indian arrival or the adverse social and economic conditions and hardships Indians experienced under indentureship between 1838 and 1917. It is more of a celebration of their ability to overcome the many challenges they faced in the country.
Among those Indians who came to Guyana were labourers with many skills including those skilled in pottery, jewellery and tailoring. There were Christians, Muslims and Hindus, all of whom brought their religious beliefs and cultural values that contributed to the rich cultural mosaic of Guyana. Economically, they helped to develop the economy of the colony by keeping the sugar and rice industries afloat. As independent entrepreneurs today, Indians have contributed in large part to the development of the Guyanese economy. To quote the Barbadian writer, George Lamming, “…those Indian hands – whether in British Guiana or Trinidad, have fed us all. They are, perhaps, our only jewels of a true native thrift and industry. They have taught us by example the value of money; for they respect money as the only people with a high sense of communal responsibility can.”
Adaptation has not been easy for Indians in the colony. Seen as interlopers, recalcitrant and as transient migrants who did not belong in the ecumene, Indians were forced to defend their reason for existence and they had to deal with every stereotype that was thrown at them. The one stereotype which brands Indians as thrifty and wealthy seems to linger on. Resentment against Indians continues in places like Guyana, Trinidad and Suriname because they have a keen desire to use their entrepreneurial skills to improve themselves.
Today, the Indian community in Guyana is facing many social, political and economic challenges, some old and some new, as they struggle to secure their rightful place in Guyanese society.
