Dear Editor,
In a multicultural society like ours, ethnic groups share their own evolving narrative based upon their history and cultural experiences. As a developing nation-state, we are therefore navigating between competing expressions of our ethnicity or cultural identity (Indian, African, Indigenous, Chinese, etc) and our national identity or citizenship (Guyanese). Our challenge is wedded to a continuing search for mechanisms to create a balance between fissiparous cultural extremism and common elements of a unifying nationalism. The indigenous communities, together with international (NGOs) support are becoming much more integrated into the national space. There exists a vibrant African Guyanese narrative expressed and sustained via social media by the memory warriors who insist on equating their particular cultural nationalism with the national one like David Hinds, Henry Jeffrey, Eric Phillips, et al, who have weaponized “race” to new levels.
On the Globespan platform on Wednesday, we discussed the consequences of the absence of a national dialogue and the lack of a common narrative that can move us closer to the construction of one nation and one destiny. It is within this context that one must view Eric Phillips’ continued obsession with an obscure “Colonization Scheme of 1919” (“Nunan-Luckhoo Scheme”) of more than 100 years ago, which he argues is the basis for an Indian mindset to “dominate Africans” today. I addressed the circumstances behind the scheme in a previous letter (8/13/24).
Phillips is no historian. Whether the scheme was spoken about by British Guiana East Indian Association members like Joseph A. Luckhoo, W. Hewley Wharton or Parbhu Sawh, it was a plan supported and promoted by the plantocracy to solicit “colonists from India, China, Africa, and the West Indies” to meet the labour shortage on the plantations. The Sugar Planters’ Association facilitated a second Nunan-Luckhoo deputation sent by the colonial government to India in 1924. I repeat: Neither the British Government nor the Government of India approved of the idea of “gifting” British Guiana to British India as an Indian Colony. The idea was picked up in British Guiana by J.A. Luckhoo, Dr. William Hewley Wharton and others eager to protect Indian self-interests at a time when an Indian middle class was emerging in British Guiana and Indians were developing an interest in colonial politics.
The idea was never viable. Gandhi and the Indian National Congress opposed any such plan because Gandhi had been instrumental in ending the indentureship system, primarily because of his South African experience, coupled with Rev C.F. Andrews’s documentation of atrocities committed against Indian women on the sugar plantations in Fiji. Gandhi was engaged in an anti-colonial campaign, which had at its core, condemnation of the immoral dimensions of the indentured system. He was therefore disinclined to support any immigration scheme. In fact, Dwarka Nath, a civil servant, presented statistics in his book which showed that between 1920 (the official ending of indentureship) to 1929, 607 Indians arrived in British Guiana, compared to 1,729 Africans who migrated from the West Indies to fill the labour gap.
Regarding the outrageous statement that Indian Guyanese own 97% of the economy, which is designed to inflame primordial passions, except for pioneering research on wealth distribution conducted by economists Collin M. Constantine, Tarron Khemraj and Ramesh Gampat, there are no studies of which I am aware of, that presents credible data showing Indians and their acolytes “own 97 % of Guyana’s economy.” Yet, our former White House Fellow, finds legitimacy in anecdotal statements made by an accountant. What utter nonsense!
No Indian Guyanese that I know have any problem with African reparations and demands for the colonial powers to compensate Caribbean nations for the horrors of slavery. Despite Eric’s admonition that it is “Black people business,” we have been supportive in previous discussions with Verene Shepherd (director of the Centre of Reparation Research at The University of the West Indies) and endorsed the CARICOM Ten Point Plan for Reparatory Justice and the initiatives of The Repair Campaign. However, while Phillips is patiently waiting on the Dutch and British to fulfill a reparatory debt payment of “US 50 billion” and “US 3 trillion” respectively to people of African descent in Guyana, he should encourage young Africans to take advantage of the abundant economic opportunities available to them, instead of trying to begrudge others who have successfully done so.
Sincerely,
Baytoram Ramharack
