Standing resilient amid economic & social challenges

The Women of Wales

By Shemuel Fanfair

An Wednesday last, much of the world joined in celebration of International Women’s Day which highlighted the many achievements and outstanding goals to attain true gender parity. However, with the closure of operations of one of the country’s oldest sugar estates,

women in several lower West Bank Demerara communities have seen their lives significantly altered over the last year.

It has been over two months since the official end to sugar processing at Wales, and this to a large degree has started to show its impact on the lives of sugar workers and their families with the female population standing to be greatly affected. However in the midst of the recent celebration, many women told Guyana Times that in spite of their prevailing challenges, they are not prepared to sit idly by and be consumed. Rather, they will take charge to support their families as many of their spouses have encountered difficulty in finding consistent

employment.

Many noted the expense of paying bills, reduced earnings to go shopping and financial setbacks from sending their children to school. Greens vendor Marilyn Weekes who has sold at a small market at her native village Patentia for the past four years makes the arduous task of traveling from Stewartville a few times a week in hopes that her customers will continue supporting her. Weeks who joined her mother, who is also a vendor, noted that over the past year since the closure was announced, much of her produce takes considerable bouts of time to get shifted. She doesn’t know for how long she can continue to travel such long distances but the mother of two finds it necessary to maintain herself and support her husband.

She added that the reduction in finances has affected her ability to attend church as often as she intends. Weeks pointed out that her mother assists her financially to support her daughter and the child even lives at her grandparent.

A school seller, who is a single, working woman, offered her perspective on the

impact of the Estate’s closure. Samantha Lall has plied her trade at the Wales primary for the past 20 years, taking over from her mother who became advanced in age. When this newspaper sought to interview her, she was busy attending to many school children who were buying her snacks but the woman noted that indeed, it would be quite difficult when the school shuts it doors for the holiday season.

“I deh long in this business so I’m not finding it so hard unless school close, then me out of crop,” Lall stressed. She noted that estate workers had supported her buying her polourie, plantain chip and cassava chips; among many other snacks she normally sells.

“You can see dullness, everything at a standstill,” were the words she uttered with the estate in her eyesight. She however pointed out that the women of the area have to utilise their skills to earn for themselves.

“They got to get themselves more involved. Instead of them being home doing nothing, they should try and get themselves organisied…they can’t sit down their whole lives because life take a different turn; who got them lil skills, show it out…sewing, knitting, Lall indicated.

The hardworking woman explained that she tends to some cows to support her

upkeep on her off days. In a lighthearted reference, the seller remarked that she may even have to seek out a partner with the forthcoming challenges.

“This time, I probably will gotta get a husband and marry,” the vendor noted amid much laughter.

Gail Garnett, a housewife from Patentia highlighted the challenges her family has faced. She explained that her son narrowly escaped the many severance payment related issues that arose from the closure of Wales. This is because the young man left to work as a prison guard around 2 years ago.

She however added that her husband, Donald Garnett who served the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) as a cane cutter for the past 28 years but he is still waiting to paid his severance package. He was one of the many who refused to go Uitvulgt, noting that he could leave his wife and family members for so many hours unattended.

Mrs. Garnett noted the impact of the lack of finances.

“Since December when this Estate close, it affecting us [because] we husband can’t go to work; they threatening to take them off de pay list. It especially affects us who have children to go to school; it really hard,” she noted, but stressed that the women of the community have no choice but to adjust to the situation that faces them.

“Most of the women will start looking for jobs, doing things to help because we [cannot] sit down and wait and nothing an doing. We might get fight down but we still got to try, we can’t give up so easy. I think if the estate didn’t close, it wouldn’t be so hard but it close now and you got to see things in a different way, a different aspect as now we got to start adjusting to the system what going on,” she highlighted.

The mother while expressing that the local economy is “slow, but steady”, had a optimistic outlook for the future: “One thing for sure is that it gan tough pun we in here but we’re holding up, we’re keeping faith because I believe that with God, all things are possible.”

Jenny Yessuf, a seller outside Patentia Secondary commenced operation less than 2 weeks ago. She said that the majority of the challenges are not affecting her directly as she lives outside the community. As she stands to face indirect consequences of the closure, the mother of three highlighted many of the prevailing issues that she has recognised.

“When you got to the market, it was so packed [but] I went to the market Friday and you could walk in the stand and pick up anything because the workers aren’t there, the people don’t have money,” she noted, pointing out that he is depending on the secondary school to get sales.

“As parents we try to give our best to children, no matter how hard it is,” she added.

Based on her assessment of the challenges that females in the area would face, the seller reasoned that women have no other choice than to seek employment to support them, rather than just depending on their spouse.

“They got to out and look for a job, you have nothing else to do. If the husband not bringing enough money, you got to get up to do something,” she posited.

Housewife Roshini Budhram noted the many challenges her family has faced due to the closure of the estate. She highlighted that it was only this March that her husband of 8 years was able to gain a job after some months of being out of employment at Wales Estate.

She noted that her husband had received an offer to transfer to Albion Estate but due to their children’s education, current house loan and having to pay house rent in Albion, they decided to remain at Patentia.

She said her family encountered much difficulty when her husband, Gowtam was out of work.

“It was tough because since we start paying the mortgage, we don’t get no big sort of savings because we got bills, the 2 kids to look after.”

She also noted that over the past year she sold broilers at home to offset their expenses. However with the official closure of the estate, many persons in the community cut back in their purchasing which affected her business.

The mother of two – a toddler, and Ravindra, 7 – noted that women have a future in the world.

“Women got future, women these days don’t sit down because when I had my son alone I used to work,” she said, adding that she opted not to continue working after giving birth to her second child.

It was in early 2016 that the decision to close the entity was confirmed. As a result, hundreds of workers their families, and the local economies of several lower WBD communities, including Patentia, Vriesland, Wales, Good Intent, Sisters’ and Bellvue have faced the brunt of the impact.