Dear Editor,
In response to D Bhagwan’s letter (28/9/2018) on seeing Indians as Bharatiyas, I think this in itself is a narrow view of who we are. If he cared to ask ‘Bharatiyas’ in their 20s to define themselves (the genetic material of our continuity) I doubt they would consider themselves as an ethic group first but rather as Guyanese – and rightly so.
It is this perennial issue of defining ourselves ethnically, initially by political groups, which has kept this country slightly above Haiti in relation to GDP, whereas the likes of Singapore, Malaysia and indeed Japan, have all prospered economically and seen living standards rise over the decades.
Let’s depart from the racial nonsense and think of a national identity in which all can subscribe to.
Yours faithfully,
Peter Singh
