Date post: | 02-Jun-2018 |
Category: |
Documents |
Upload: | kumar-mahabir |
View: | 214 times |
Download: | 0 times |
of 84
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
1/84
trinidad
&
tobago
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
2/84
A new land
A new home
A new destiny
Through the kalapani
During that long journey
Thinking
W ith little.
Hop ing. d reaming
N ow stand a people.
proud and pros
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
3/84
DIVERSITY ..
THE KEY TO
LIFE
I f there is one lesson in diversi ty , i t is the impor tance
of the individual to the whole, of each member to
the family, o f each group to the community, o f each
island to the reg ion, o f every reg ion to the socie ty
of man.
A company that knows and be lieves this will itself
be characterized by the diverse skills of diverse
people, build diverse assets, create diverse products
that fit the world it serves, find diverse ways to be
an active participant in the communities it calls
home, always invest ing in li fe today
ANGUILLA' ANTIGUA' ARUBA' BAHAMAS' BARBADOS' BELIZE' BERMUDA' CAYMANISLANDS' CURACAO' DOMINICA' GRENADA' GUYANA' MONTSERRAT
NEVIS' PANAMA STKITTS ST LUCIA' SI MAARTEN ST VINCENT SURINAME TRINIDAD
s
TOBAGO' TURKS
s
CAICOS U.S.VIRGINISLANDS
A Member of the C L FINANCIAL GROUP
P e o p le C e n t re d
utu re riven
CUCO HEAD OFFICE
2951. V incent S t ree t, Port 01Spa in , T r in i dad , Wes t Ind i es .
T el : ( 86 8) 6 23 -1 42 1 F ax : ( 86 8) 6 27 -3 82 1 E -m ai l in lo@ ci rc o. com
Websile
IWIW
cuco.com
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
4/84
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
5/84
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
6/84
Prime Minister
Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Indian Arrival Day Greetings
On behalf of the Government and People of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, wish to extend greetings to
National Community as we celebrate Indian Arrival Day, 2004.
It is now
159
years since the arrival of the first group of East Indian immigrants aboard the Fath AI Razak.
subsequent evolution of the East Indian community in Trinidad and Tobago has proven to be a constructive engagemen
Our people of East Indian descent continue to make an invaluable contribution to the development of our nation, and
are grateful for the preservation and passing on of various aspects of their traditions, cultural norms and institutions.
Appreciably, too, as with other groups among us, there have been many positive adjustments and adaptations, so muc
that after more than one and one half
r:
nturies our East Indian fellow citizens are as integrated as any other into
aspects of our national life.
It is indeed remarkable and to be commended therefore, the extent to which East Indians in Trinidad and Tohago
joined other groups, largely of immigrant background themselves, in working out a model plural society in which fo
most part our institutions are increasingly being shared and relations are growing more and more connected and positi
inextricable.
Today, rare is the citizen who does not feel or see himself or herself as part of our nation. This is not to say that there
no challenges. Notwithstanding that these are common to groups living in plural societies, the people of Trinidad
Tobago have long been exceptional and exemplary in the manner in which we have been forging before the world
nation out of the disparate social elements bequeathed by our colonial experience.
The pe-ople of our beloved country have long been more united than this and we can only sell ourselves short with
such approach, having already progressed far beyond that stage. After so many years of integration and interac
following our various arrivals we are now at that point where our ethnic diversity, for example, should he cherished
the colour, quality, character, resilience and strength that it can and has provided for our nation.
Let us therefore celebrate Indian Arrival Day this year as a nation in which all our people have truly come to terms
the fact of our diversity. Let us show ourselves as a nation fully appreciative of the merits of our cosmopolitan mak
and determined to demonstrate to the world that groups of different backgrounds can both live together and progres
peace and harmony, on the basis of genuine understanding, appreciation, and love and respect for each other.
Patrick
Manning
Does not the
Ramayana
exhort us as follows?
Jahaa sumatee tahaa sampatee
nana
Through unity, prosperity and progress flourishes unceasingly.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
7/84
NO.8 Bolai T r. , I .D .C . Estate,
Chase V illage , T ri nidad , W. I.
Tel:
868 672-5329/3980
Fax: 868 672-5330
E-mail: [email protected]
AUTHORISED DISTRIBUTOR ~
~~tV\t~
hat ouots _
\~Iil\)\\t
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
8/84
MINISTRY OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, CULTURE AND GENDER AFFAIRS
51 - 55 FREDERICK STREET
PORT OF SPAIN
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
I bring warm greetings to all citizens of Trinidad and Tobago as we commemorate Indian Arrival Day. I
very special greetings to the descendants of those of our citizens of Trinidad and Tobago who made that long
perilous journey from India to Trinidad and Tobago many times from 1845 to 1917.
As I give these special greetings to our Indo-Trinidadian citizens, I wish to remind you. that your history.
contribution is a matter of interest and importance to all citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. This is why [ sinc
congratulate those who had the foresight to produce this ex~c1lent magazine.
I am especially pleased that it will be distributed in our schools. It is in the sharing of information that we
dissipate ignorance: that ignorance that breeds fear and hostility. So that by disseminating information pertinent t
history and contribution of our Indian brothers and sisters throughout the society. and in our schools we arc r
cementing the tolerance that still remains a hallmark of this multi-ethnic. multi-religious society. This tolerance,
ability to live in unity, cannot ever be taken for granted. The dysfunctional of many other societies warns us. alerts
treasure what we have here, to guard it. and protect it. It provides really. the underpinnings of all succe
development in our society. For without it. our society will be seriously at risk.
As we learn about and celebrate our Indian brothers and sisters, let us look towards a future, in which Trin
and Tobago will continue to shine as an exemplar of a truly harmonious society, a society in which we will recog
and applaud that harmony. We arc free to also celebrate our plurality, our diversity.
Happy Indian Arrival Day.
HONOURABLE MINISTER
JOAN YUILLE WILLIAMS
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
9/84
SPAN
VACATIONS
www.travelspan.com
Chaguanas:665-3383
Portof Spain: 625-0800
San Fernando: 652-4789/2888
Valpark: 645-1604
MRAL S
RAVEL~
www.amralstravel.com
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
10/84
~
mGR COMMISSIONER
~ba:u:abn
-mzSlfm~
~U5
HIGH COMMISSION OF INDIA
P.O. BOX 530
PORT
~f.SPAIN
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO, W.I.
TELEPHONE: (868) 627-7485/80/81
TELEX NO.: 22514 mCOMIN WG.
FAX NO.: (868) 627~985
SMAIL:
May 17, 2004
RINIHC/98104
MESSAGE
I extend my heartfelt felicitations to all nationals of Trinidad Tobago on the
occasion of the Indian Arrival Day.
This day serves to remind us of the many sacrifices made by the Indian
indentured workers who came to this country more than. 150 years. It was only
through their resilience and firm determination to strive against all odds and
hardship, that the East Indian community in this country has been able to achieve
success. The East Indian community deserves accolades for having set the highest
standards in different fields and for tremendous contribution made by it towards
multifaceted development of this beautiful country.
I am also happy to note that the members of the East Indian community have
carefully preserved the customs and traditions as well as the core Indian values
brought by their ancestors with them giving them a sense of continuing connectivity
and emotional attachment with the rich Indian cultural traditions.
This year once again, as in the previous year, the High Commission of India
would be embarking on a series of cultural and business promotion activities through
May-June to mark the indian Arrival Day celebrations in this country in a fitting
manner with the twin objective of creating greater awareness of Indian culture here
and enhancing the level of interface and friendship between our two countries. I
wish to take this opportunity to thank all those who have been associated with us in
organizing these celebrations.
(Virendra Gu
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
11/84
Leadership
Allantic Ocean
Car
i
b b e a n
5
e a
INDIA
We join the rest of the nation
in celebrating Indian rrival Day
Y O U R \N A Y A H E A D
h ttp ://www .rb tt.c om E-Mail: in [email protected] btt.c om
Bqy
of
Be n g a I
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
12/84
The 1884 Hosay massacre - to die for one s culture
By Dr. Kumar Mahabir
, never before was such a large, armed force assembled in colonial Trinidad, or the Caribbea
at any cultural event.
On October 30
th
1884, 22 Indian indentured labourers
died, and some 120 others were wounded in Trinidad's
most violent and devastating movement since the
emancipation of the slaves in 1838. This day marked the
observance of the annual Hosay or Muharram festival of
the Indian indentured immigrants in Trinidad. Indians,
both Hindus and Muslims, were not the sole participants in
Hosay in Trinidad. Many historians who have studied the
event claim that Africans were also very much involved in
the Hosay observances. They witnessed the spectacle
firsthand, and even participated in the commemoration by
carrying large tazias on their shoulders, or playing drums
in the procession along the streets. Onthis shocking and
horrific day in 1884, the English authorities emphatically
demonstrated their determination to control Indians on the
colony by denying them what they believed was their right
to religious observance.
According to Neil Sookdeo in his book,
Freedom,
Festivals and Caste in Trinidad after Slavery (2000),
Hosay in 1884 was regarded, as a grand, island-wide,
multi-racial festival led by Indians. This ten-day religious
celebration culminates on the tenth day with a large,
spectacular street procession involving music, song, and
mock theatrical combats. The most attractive element of
the festival is the immense tazias (model mausoleums of
Muslim martyrs) which are elaborately decorated and
paraded though the streets. In the months preceding the
'Muharram Massacre' of 1884, the English had set legal
restrictions upon the observance of the festival. Hindus
and Africans were not allowed to participate in the festival,
and processions were banned from leaving the estate to
join other processions from other estates.
Many reasons have been given by various researchers
and historians for the restrictions which were placed on the
festival, but the fundamental idea which surrounds them
all remains the need for the colonists to control the new
and rapidly-growing Indian population on the island. The
laws were meant to prevent the Indian communities in
sugarcane estates across the island from consolidating.
Hosay allowed the Indians throughout the island to form a
tremendous gathering, which the colonists believed, could
at any time attack the colonial government. It has also
been argued that there was also the need to prevent the
continuance of the 'heathen' practices of these people, and
the desire to Anglicanize the Indians, which led to the
formulation of these restrictions. The colonial militia was
alerted, armed and placed at different locations across the
island to ensure that the celebration was not performed, In
_Port of Spain, the capital,
about 40 armed policemen were stationed, and up to
were positioned in San Fernando (where the larg
processions on the island were usually to be found). In
M.A. Thesis on Hosay (1984), Dr. Kenneth Parma
notes that never before was such a large, armed fo
assembled in colonial Trinidad, or the Caribbean; at
cultural event.
Many Indians viewed the new restrictions as a di
infringement on their freedom to worship. Defying
restrictions placed upon them, Indians, Hindus
Muslims alike, from over 30 estates and villages, c
together to commemorate Hosay. Kelvin Singh's deta
account of the occurrences of October 30
th
1884 in
book,
Bloodstained Tombs
(1998), reveals the horror of
situation that took place in San Fernando that day.
In the midst of celebratory tassa drumming, sing
and shouts of joy, came screams of shock, confusion
terror as the authorities fired volleys of bullets at the l
procession gathered to worship at San Fernando that
The government had indeed kept their word to elimin
anyone who defied their authority. They hastened
ensure that the horrifying details of the Muharr
Massacre did not reach Colonial India.
The events of this significant day in the history
Trinidad are known by very few people. Sadly; this
has been overlooked in many of the texts that chronicle
nation's experiences during colonization. Our 30,
Hindu and Muslim foreparents who defiantly took to
streets on October 30
th
1884 to fight for their freedom
worship, knowing that their fate could be death, have b
all but forgotten. .
On the final day of Pitri Paksha last year, H
activist, Ravi-ji, led a procession to Mon Repos
Fernando, the site of the massacre, to commemorate
119
th
anniversary of the Muharram Massacre in Trinid
There, offerings were made to those 22 valiant men
women who risked all and lost their lives in orde
preserve their heritage in this new land. This initiative
Ravi-ji and his colleagues should act as the first step
movement towards national recognition of these b
martyrs' sacrifice. We have gone too long with
acknowledging what occurred on that tragic day
October 1884.
Dr. Kumar Mahabir is the President of the
Association of Caribbean Anthropologists (ACA).
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
13/84
FROM THEIR HEARTS CAME A NEW BEG INNING
To those who had the courage to fulfill their dreams in a new land. ..
WE THANK YOU
To those who carried the torch for a new generation ...
W E ARE FOREVER INDEBTED TO YOU
q~c:ll.c:n,
Clyyl.vQt 1::>Qy
~yeet:.l.~gs
t:.o t:.ke
1=
eopte of c--r
yl.
~l.c:lQc:lQ~c:l c--r obQgo.
---
---
---
.
GUARDIAN
HOLDINGS
LIMITED
~
Skill
Insi~h
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
14/84
Testimonies from court records of the 1884 Hosay massacre
Two Coolies ... on horseback from another estate carried swords. These men have bee
convicted and imprisoned for inciting us to come out by saying, 'The Philippine people are
women; if you won't take your tadjahs, we will.'
GOO TIE, a Mahometan Manetee from the Goorgoan
district, states:
I am an indentured Coolie and have been on the Usine
estate for three years. I went in the procession as one of
those who played with a fencing stick, but I carried no
other stick or arm of any sort. I had never heard the
procession was forbidden. I am employed on the engine.
The old Coolies said, 'there will be no trouble about this.
If you do not interfere with the Sahibs they will not
interfere with you.' I had not been with the procession in
former years, there was a general report that we were not
allowed to go in procession on the Queen's Road, but
some Coolies said that this was a lie. On the way down, a
sowar rode up and told us not to go down as it was
forbidden. Then the old Coolies said the Government will
not interfere with us if we do no harm, 'it looks upon us as
its children.'
I did not hear on the way down that there had been
firing in the other procession. When we came nearly at the
spot where we were stopped I saw a policeman trying to
persuade the people to stop, but I saw no gentleman doing
this. I was in the middle, playing, surrounded by Coolies.
After the first volley the old Coolies said, 'They are only
trying to frighten us, the ammunition is blank.' I was hit
myself but did not know it at the time, then I saw that men
had dropped and that I was bleeding; the Coolies then ran
away. Some of them bound up my wounds and I was put
into the police cart and taken to the hospital. Processions
went out on the two preceding nights. I went out with them
at night and then we went about two miles towards San
Fernando.
I have been at the Mahurum in India at Goorgoan. The
processions were regulated by the police. There the
processionists are not allowed to carry sticks, if they
carried them they would be taken away. In this procession
no big sticks were carried, only small fencing sticks.
GUNDUR, a Hindoo of the Ahir caste, states:
I come from near Monghir and have been for 25 years
on the Philippine Estate. On the 30
th
October I joined in
the procession and have always done so, although a
Hindoo. I go to join in the fun. I had heard that orders had
been issued that we were not to go on the public roads or
into San Fernando and that if we did we might be
imprisoned for six months or fined 20, but we were not
told that we would be shot. I did not believe we really
would get punished if we went. We had always
allowed to do so before and I thought we should
allowed to do so again this year.
When we got near San Fernando we saw the p
and soldiers drawn up. A policeman and some one
came up and stopped us. We were shouting, 'Ho
Hosea ' and immediately after that we were fired u
Some of the wounded men fell and all the others ran a
I was shot in the hand. I was sent to San Fernando hos
and was there for one day.
SHEIKH WAGUR, a Mahometan states:
I come from Chupra and have been on the Philip
Estate for 16 years. On the
so
October I was in
procession and I always go right up to the sea with
tadjahs. I had heard about the orders concerning
procession and I knew we were liable to a penalty of
or six months imprisonment for infringing them. Ever
went and so I went too; I was in the front of
procession. Mr. Child, the magistrate, and Gunpot,
interpreter, told us to stop. We would not stop, but
shoving on shouting, 'Hosea Hosea ' The police
almost immediately after Mr. Child had told us to st
did not hear the magistrate give the order to fire. Afte
firing the people began running away and I ran into
cane piece. I was not hit.
i
carried a long stick, and
always done so. I was about 10 or 11 when I cam
Trinidad, but I have seen processions in villages in
where there were no police and no restrictions. M
others carried big sticks, but I saw no cutlasses.
Coolies, however, on horseback from another e
carried swords. These men have been convicted
imprisoned for inciting us to come out by saying,
Philippine people are all women; if you won't take
tadjahs, we will.'
SJEOKH-AB-DOOLA, a Mahometan on the Usine Es
states:
This is the first time I have been here during the Mahu
procession; I accompanied it. I had heard it was forbid
to go into San Fernando. I was in the rear of
procession. The procession I was in went in by the n
entrance, where Captain Baker was. I was following
procession in rear when I heard the musketry fire,
crowd pushed back and I ran away.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
15/84
Magic
magic mist
~
We care for Your Health
nsing Unit
tone
Duke Streets, West Port-of-Spain Trinidad W.I.
'i:'~h=.::on=e(868) 624-2964/3008. (868) 627-6692, Fax: (868) 627-6691
E-Mail: [email protected]
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
16/84
The Hosay massacre in Trinidad in 1884
By Dr. Neil A. Sookdeo
That the elites believed Indians posed a threat in 1884, unleashed the full barrage of police
power upon Indian celebrants, killing 16 on the roads and wounding well over a 100 more.
Opponents of Hosay who were acting in Christian
conscience failed to understand the vital role the festival
played in the monotonous, dreary lives of the indentured
and indenture-free Indians alike. Hosay made the year's
suffering and exile tolerable for isolated Indians. (Some,
though, perhaps not all, made a comparison between their
fate and that of the beleaguered Shi'ites. Historian Kusha
Haraksingh reminds us that Hosay was also a healthy
antidote to strained headman-labourer (or Indian-Indian)
relations. To the extent Hosay was therapeutic to various
levels of the estate labour force, the plantocracy failed to
see how they benefited from Hosay.
The authorities in Trinidad set out to prevent a
continuance of Hosay as a grand, island-wide, multi-racial
festival led by the Indians. In July 1884, with the Governor
in London, but with the connivance of the Protector of
Immigrants, an ordinance was introduced to prevent
Hindus and blacks from participating in Hosay festivities.
The idea was to reduce Hosay to a Muslim observance in
the privacy of the estates, although traditionally; the
tadjahs were deposited in a waterway. In 1884, Indians
were not seeking to do anything different from what they
had done at previous Hosays in Trinidad. Like all rules
governing indenture, they could be changed when it suited
anyone colony; in Trinidad we saw a dramatic and tragic
consequence of such unexplained changes only because a
very large group of Indians were involved.
The latest restrictions on Hosay were met with dismay
and indignation. A petition was drawn up under the
leadership of Sookoo, a headman of the Phillipine Estate.
The petition was summarily dismissed: Sookhoo was told
that Hindus had no reason to resent being excluded from
what was a Muslim festival. This idea that Muhurram was
purely Islamic was not true in undivided India in the
nineteenth century. Historian Hugh Tinker, in treating the
entire question of Indian interaction with plantocracies,
said: It was an absolute principle of the indenture system
that no Indian labourer become a recognized leader. ..
Their only recognized role was that of petitioners, and
humble petitioners too. Sookhoo was being told what
Indians in India did when he had been born Indian; he may
very well have felt deeply humiliated.
The brusque treatment of their petition angered many
of Sookhoo's colleagues on the estates. A groundswell of
feeling against the unjust restrictions asserted itself among
some of these Indians. Sookhoo was reported to have
declared: We will have no more petitions; we will fight it
out with the strength of our hands. It came exactly to that,
despite Indians having
hakka
sticks which were necessar
for the staged fights.
While Sookhoo displayed some leadership in 188
there is no evidence that he sought (or succeeded)
convincing Indians on other estates to his point of vie
The established prestige which the Philippine Estate h
earned in previous Hosays was at stake for Sookhoo a
his brethren, but the estate management's general hostili
to the labourers precluded clear thinking. In ninteent
century Trinidad, where the plantation had not as y
succeeded in destroying important non-western ways,
elites saw a potential serious threat posed by the Indian
The old fear of slave-masters about slave rebellions in t
thick of night was exhumed; no one rationally examine
how prepared Indians or blacks were to take over Trinid
in the 1880s. That the elites believed Indians posed a thre
in 1884, unleashed the full barrage of police power up
Indian celebrants, killing 16 on the roads, and woundin
well over a hundred more.
Subscribers to the
Times
of London read a letter fro
a Trinidadian on 8 November: About 14 or 15 were kill
and about 87 wounded, some of them will probably
before long. The details of this atrocious massacre,
narrated to me by trustworthy eyewitnesses, are so ghas
that, although it took place a week ago, ever since
sleep has been very disturbed, and my blood has been
fever heat at the idea that such an paralleled atrocity [h
been] committed at the present day under the British fl
The nation was stunned; Colonial Office scrambled
prevent British India learning about the gory details; Ind
Trinidadians themselves still live the trauma of that eve
generation by generation, as Hosay quietly continues
spread its message of the dignity of the downtrodden. Th
Hosay was diminished yet refused to die may be seen a
victory for the victims of indenture, and for those who d
on the battlefield of the estates on 30 October 1884 ...
The San Fernando Gazette assumed, arrogantly as
turns out, that Hindus had no role in Hosay: The Hindo
only join in the fray on the same principle and for the sa
motives as the Port of Spain [Carnival] bands, to enjoy
excitement of the day, and, too often, to payoff
grudges. The only plan would be to forbid Hose
processions entirely on the public roads ... Asiatics
easily cowed ....
Extract of the book by Neil Sookdeo
Freedom, Festiva
and Caste in Trinidad after Slavery (2000). Published
Xlibris Corporation. Website: www.Xlibriscom
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
17/84
Happy Indian Arrival Day
from BG Trinidad Tobago
A~toc ,o
SO l/icos
g
Accossol ios
IIi2.4~TOdd Street EI Socorro Road San Juan
Per n n d d
to Perf rm ngine,
Underwa
h
& To change il ilt r.
Mu
t
be Knowl dg a 1
wh nit c m t
ar
&
how th y w rk.
More than
20 year
in th Bu in
Contact: Sarika or Aklima
@
674-0978
BGTRINIDAD
8cTOBAGO
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
18/84
Protesting Indentured Indian women
By Moses Seenarine
Some were actively resistiIig various forms of domiIiation through emigration, and most
engaged in resistance on the estates.
Historical materials relating to Indian women under
colonialism in Guyana is extremely rare and inadequate.
This problem is complicated by the fact that until recently,
research on the Caribbean has focused on a predominantly
male model of a plural society divided by race, gender and
assumptions of cultural persistence and similarity within
ethnic categories. It is true that Guyanese society is
divided by race. Nevertheless, gender and cultural
categories need to be viewed not only as part of race, but
also in relation to issues of power and dominance in the
region.
The central argument pursued in this article is
that South Asian indentured emigration had diverse
effects on the population in Guyana based on issues of
gender, culture, class, caste, race, location and age. This
paper explores how some of these processes occurred
with relevance to women during recruitment,
migration and the indenture period (1838-1917).
Indenture means a contract, and indentured Indians
signed a contract before they left India, which bound
them to accept certain conditions. During their period of
indenture, female laborers were not free.
This article - extracted from the book
Sojourners to
Settlers (1999), edited by Mahin Gosine and Dhanpaul
Narine - disputes the myth that the shortage of Indian
women on colonial plantations during the early period
of indenture resulted in an improved status and mobility
for the majority of South Asian wqmen, relative to that in
India. This myth ignores women's subjection to control
under various forms of male domination and oppression
during the early period, including violence and abuse.
Further. it is argued that the process of male control
intensified during the later indenture period. In both
periods, the triple burdens of wage work, childcare, and
housework were excessive for most women who had to
work harder to fashion a new life for themselves and their
families in colonial Guyana.
This article explores some of the gendered-
outcomes of being a South Asian migrant labourer in
Guyana by examining the contributing factors that made
women's experiences different, in particular what
occurred in relation to labor, culture and caste. Gender
refers to the culturally defined modes of behavior deemed
appropriate to the sexes. The paper is loosely organized
ascording to the history of indentureship, and divided
into four broad areas that contributed to making women's
experiences different: (i) social and economic facto
(ii) culture, (iii) family aspects, and (iv) women's resi
ance to various structures of power, authority a
control.
To provide some background, the paper starts with
brief note regarding colonization and slavery in Guyan
followed by a short discussion on the methods a
concepts used in the paper, and an outline of
paper's limitations. A breakdown of caste, class a
gender distribution of South Asians in Guyana com
next, followed by a brief summary of the position a
status of women in colonial and present day India. Th
background provides a context for discussion of issu
within the main body of the paper.
Starting with a discussion on recruitment of Indi
women to labor colonies, the causes of indentured Ind
emigration to Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean are th
explored. A short description of the caste and class stat
of female indentured emigrants follow, along with
exploration of their experiences at the emigration dep
and during their voyage to the Caribbean. This
presented as a way of delving into a major factor
difference among the indentured population, the shorta
of Indian women compared to Indian men, and
consequences. Throughout the indenture period, t
population of East Indian females was less than half
population of Indian men in the colony.
The women who emigrated were not passive
docile coolies Some were actively resisting vario
forms of domination through emigration, and m
engaged in resistance on the estates. Murders a
transfers of many Indian women on the estates was a s
of their resistance' J to oppression by South Asian m
families and cultures in the colony. Women also resis
exploitation as cheap laborers, and being treated
sexual objects, by European men. A claim is made t
women's sexual exploitation was a contributing factor
South Asian resistance movements on the plantatio
throughout the indenture period. As a result, during
later period of indenture, the importation of Indi
females into the colony was viewed mainly in terms
them having a stabilizing effect on the predominantl
male labor force.
Moses Seenarine is a professor of Caribbean history
at Hunter College, City University of New York.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
19/84
here 's an electric util ity in the Caribb
that powers world-scale steel, methan
and oil production, as wel l as the highes
concentration of ammonia producers
anywhere in the world. ..
Offering efficient, reliable and economical energy,
supported by a f irst-rate professional work force
dedicated to helping you exceed your business
objectives.
.
We a re - ~d '[);on the cutting edge of technology,
prov id ing qual ity serv ice our customers have grown to
depend on. .. the kind of service you too can expect
from us.
Thepower to make it work
Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission
63 FrederiCk Street, Port of Spain
Trinidad, West Indies
Tel: (868) 623-629116 or 623-2611/7
Website:www.ttec.co.tt
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
20/84
I NEW BOOK RELEASE
Simbhoonath Capildeo
He was for his day, the single intellectual genius of Hindu Trinidad ... He laid the foundation
the most powerful Hindu organization in the history of Trinidad ... _
Simboonath Capildeo: Lion of the Legislative Council,
Father of Hindu Nationalism in Trinidad and Tobago.
By Darius Figueira
263 pages. 2003.
London: iUniverse, Inc
The book is a deconstruction of the political discourse
of Simbhoonath Capildeo the progenitor of Hindu
nationalist discourse in Trinidad and Tobago.
Capildeo's Hindu nationalism is premised _upon .a
rootedness in Trinidad and Tobago, a fervent praxis
premised on bhakti (devotion) towards rating a discourse
of Sanatan Dharma that was relevant to life in the west as a-
Hindu that was sustainable, and finally a political praxis
that was demonstrably anti-racist and egalitarian in the
tradition of democratic socialism.
Such is the poverty of intellect and the paucity of
recorded history in primitive papier-mache educational
institutes of Trinidad that there is no history of the man
who was and is the crucible of orthodox Hinduism in
Trinidad.
Few, if there are any alive know that Simbhoonath
Capildeo was the second of three sons born to Pundit
Capildeo and his wife Soogie of Main Road, Chaguanas.
The first son Omkar died in his infancy and Simbhoonath,
the second assumed elder son status. The youngest was
Rudranath. How would have Trinidad reacted to three
Capildeo brothers is left to the imagination. Simbhoonath
was born in 1914. His father, Pundit Capildeo left for India in
1926 after building what is the authentic statement of the
Indian indentured immigrant in Trinidad, the Lion House
(website thelionhouse.com) on the Main Road, Chaguanas.
At age 12, Simbhoonath became the patriarch of
Capildeo clan, the scion of Lion House. Although guided by
his mother Soogie, Simbhoonath was essentially self-taught.
Although fluent in Hindi and Sanskrit, encyclopaedic in the
knowledge of Hinduism and its rituals, Simboonath was
also conversant with the great philosophers of western
civilization. His greed for books has been immortalized in
V.S. Naipaul's, his nephew,
Mystic Masseur.
In a nine-line
biographical sketch of Simbhoonath in The Indian
Centenary Review
1845-1945 his hobby is listed as
Reading.
He rapidly assumed intellectual leadership of an
impoverished Hindu Society and from an early age,
beginning in 1928, he set about creating the structure of
It supine state. He was for his day, the single intellec
genius of Hindu Trinidad. He laid the foundation of
most powerful Hindu organization in the history of T
dad and simultaneously prepared the way for
Hindu society attempting to put spine, bone and muscl
evolution of the Hindu politician. His recorded speec
- in
Hansard
demonstrate the breadth, width and d
of his vision and thinking, but there is an untold s
of what provoked Simbhoonath into action.
It was crop time, early thirties Simbhoonath was a y
cane farmer. Perched on his bison cart loaded with
Simbhoonath was ambling down the narrow, d
Chaguanas Main Road on his way home to the Lion Ho
one foot dangling, the other propped on the cart, hat a
on his head, a blade of grass twirling between his
Simbhoonath was a typical cane farmer doomed to the b
life of sweet sugar. Suddenly, there was a noise of what
unmistakably a motorcar, a rarity on the main road at
time. The noise grew closer, and he looked up. To
surprise, the car stopped in front of the Lion Ho
Sitnbhoonath reigned in the bison, spat out the grass
straightened his hat. A fair young Indian man had alig
from the car and was leaning on the door looking at the
Is that you Simbhoo?
The young man was Dalchant Harripersad Sin
(Dixee), a classmate at Naparima College, recently retu
from studying medicine. in Ireland. The cane farm wor
Simbhoonath went up in flames. He who had a
Cambridge Certificate with distinctions, had the distinc
of driving a bison cart. He went to Soogie. He wanted
a Profession, a University, anything but cane. Soogie
not have the wherewithal, but she suggested as a tempo
measure that he take up where his father left - becom
pundit. In desperation, Simbhoonath agreed. The first
was easily arranged and it seemed as if the who
Chaguanas came to hear him recite the sacred scripture
did not disappoint, he was word-perfect, and murmu
approval greeted him. After all, it was Pundit Capil
son reciting. Simbhoonath looked forward to receiving
first payment as a
pundit.
This was the new beginning;
he too would be in a car.
When it was over, he discreetly looked at the ta
Then he looked all over. There were five copper pieces o
brass plate. His fee was the grand sum of five cents (a
wage at that time was 24 cents). Eventually Simbhoonath
articled to a San Fernando Solicitor Irwin Cameron
passed his finals as a Solicitor and Conveyancer in 19
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
21/84
A..-
to --.-
,
,
,-
Unit Trust Corporat ion Head Quarters, Port of Spain, Trinidad.
As pioneers of innovative, dependable building
products, ABEL and Bestcrete continue to be the
preferred choice of residential and commercial
projects everywhere.
That's why for over 60 years we've led the way for
the building industry in this country and throughout
the region.
windows' doors' masonry blocks
clay roofing tiles' curtain wall glazing'
alumini'um cladding'
retaining wall systems'
decorative blocks pavers'
Whatever the building challenge -
trust us to provide the most
constructive solutions.
ABELlBes tc re te , Longdenville , T rin id ad & Tobago
Tel: (868)
665-5221/2/3
Fax : (868) 665 -9673
e-mai l: [email protected]
Websi te : www.abel .co.U
MEMBER ansa meaL GROUP
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
22/84
Indians in football
By Satnarayan Jaggemauth H.B.M
There was no Indian player in first-class football in the city then, but in South there were ma
Ahamad Charles (Forest Reserve), H.Balladin (Carlton), M. Ali, the Hassanali brothers (Spitfir
the Phillip brothers, and B. Siboo ...
There were few Indians in football in the early days of
the game, and then there were a few hundred. This opinion
is unofficial, and is just the view of our football
correspondent who thinks that the best Indian soccer
eleven that could have been put on the field were Esau
Mohammed (East St. George); M. Ali. S. Lokhoor (South) M.
Dookie (City), Ahamed Charles (Forest Reserve). L.
Jaggernauth (South): K. Jaggernauth (City), P. Khalu,
(South), B. Goolcharan (City), N. Asgarali (City), and H.
Balladin (South). This team had been selected from
performances of players in North-South Indian matches,
Indian - Chinese matches and the Indian League games of
recent dates.
East Indians with the exception of Ahamad Charles,
who had represented the colony in British Guiana,
Barbados, and at home, had not made any spectacular mark
in Trinidad football. An all - East Indian combination
called Invincible played in the TA.F.A second-class
competition in the 1930s and with such players as Norman
and Bernard Sookrarn. Manie Dookie, Aurthur Dymally,
Bernard Goolcharan, Sonny Cassy, Eric Morgan and
Robert Stephens carried off the Governor Wilson Cup.
Here and there, has been a good Indian player, but chiefly
because there has been no organised Indian soccer until last
year to help the standard of play, no real player of class
except Charles, has been unearthed.
There was no Indian player in first-class football in the
city then, .but in South there were many: Ahamad Charles
(Forest Reserve), H. Balladin (Carlton), M. Ali, the Hassanali
brothers (Spitfire); the Phillip brothers, and B. Siboo, who
lined up for the now defunct Commandos outfit, S.
Lookhoor, L. Jaggernauth and T Sahadat (Naparima) and P.
Khalu (St. Benedicts).
East Indians started their North and South Soccer
series in 1943, and it was continued in 1944, but due to the
death of Mr. Joseph Phillips, who always took a keen
interest in Indian sports, and particularly this fixture, the
1945 game was postponed. Just before his death Mr. Phillip
offered a cup to be contested between these two bodies, and
it has been decided now to call that trophy the Joseph
Phillip Indian Centenary
1945
Football Cup.
Of the two games contested, South won the first and
North the other. In 1943 South beat the Port of Spain
combination by three goals to one at Skinners Park, due
chiefly to a brilliant display by Ahamad Charles, who
smashed home two goals, while Balladin netted the other for
the winners; Bernard Goolcharan scored the lone North
goal. The second fixture was played on Casual Ground,
Queen's Park Savannah in 1944, and North returned
compliments to the visitors, also winning 3 - 1.
Goolcharan, C. Smith and Nyron Asgaralli were the
scorers for the city team while F. Hassanali found the
for the Southerners.
The IRC A team won the A division
comfortable margin, unbeaten in five games with a to
26 goals for and 5 against. In the final of the B div
Tailors Combine lost a thrilling game by one goal to no
Vallots while Australian Youths put up a splendid
against I.R.c. in the A division, but lostby 2 goals to 1
A review of the performances of some of the pla
in the league resulted in Bernard Goolcharan of the I
A team winning the goal average with 11 goals t
credit and next in order are Boysie Williams of Ta
Combine with 9, Latchman Jaggernauth of Ta
Combine with 8, S. Taylor of Australian Youths wi
F.B. Singh of Young Destroyers with 6, R. Ramchara
Young Destroyers 5, S. Maraj of Australian Youths w
and L. Joseph, N. Asgaralli and T Stephens of I.R.c. w
each. Helping Vallots to their victory were the McK
brothers, Sammy, Samnadda, Errol and C. Williams. H
scoring came from Australian Youths, who beat I.R.c.
10 goals to none; Young Destroyers who whipped St. J
Indians 10-1; I.R.c. A who scored 9 against Rosehil
and 8 against National's 1: Tailors Combine 7 ag
National's 1: Tailors Combined against India Club's 2
7 against St. James Indians' nil.
Other brilliant performances came from C. Sulle
Maynard, F. Khan, S.M. Ali, C. Smith, S. Akal. M. Do
G. Guppy, D. Williams, K. Jaggernauth, H. Akal, K
Maraj, D. Williams, H. Ramcharan, H. Bedeshi, R
M. Williams, C. Lewis, and R. Francis, while accor
to their performances in the various engagements a
of those who have exceptional promise are H. Ramcha
Young Destroyers; H. Mitchell, National; Boo
Tailors, Combined; Lionel Howard, I.R.c. - B, W
Vallots, Henry, Bedeshi, Chambalsingh, St. J
Indians. Victor Goolcharan, I.R.C B, H. Gri
Australian Youths: Boysie Beharry, Australian Youths
Roy Ali, National.
This has really been a selection from boys who
played and the majority of them are below twenty
Most of the popular footballers when they retired tu
their attention to being referees of the game.
Satnarayan Jaggernauth is the author
of the book
Indians in Sports
(1900 - 1945).
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
23/84
Ono hunded and lifbJ- nino
pes
a[p, tho liestgroup
ot Cast Indians came to Trinidad, bringing withthem
their own uni9ue culture .
. ..Over the ~ears , the~ have made a signi ticant
contr ibut ion to the r ichFabr ic ot l i' in idad and
Tobago lite.
The Nat iona l Gas Compan~ ot Trinidad and
Tobago Limited takes this oppor tuni t~ to salute
these Trinidadians and Tobagonians who, b~ dint
ot the ir hard work and creat ivit~, have helped to
make the Trinidad and Tobago weknow and love.
THE NATIONAL GAS COMPANY
OF TRINIDAD
AND TOBAGO
UMIT
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
24/84
Discover your Indian roots
By Satish Rai
Slowly the descendents of brave Indians, who left India but were not able to return to their
families, are completing the journeys on their behalf: by returning to their villages after 100-
odd long years.
The concept of Discover Your Indian Roots was first
developed in 1994 by Satish Rai after his return to his
home in London from India. In this trip Satish Rai hoped
to locate the roots of his paternal grand parents in the
district of Balrampur in Uttar Pradesh (UP). Satish had
gone to UP armed with some information which he had
managed to obtain from his uncle (father's elder
brother).
His trip took him up to Lucknow and Basti. But as a
first-time visitor to India. he came up with a number of
difficulties. mainly due to unfamiliarity with the area,
lack of knowledge of assistance and services available.
and companionship of a familiar person. After several
days he returned to Delhi, without even getting close to
his ancestral village.
Upon his returned to London his failure in Uttar
Pradesh inspired him to write a paper 'Discover Your
Indian Roots' in which he outlined the benefits India.
especially Uttar Pradesh, could get if the central
government of India and the State government of Uttar
Pradesh (as well as Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh), could
get if they assisted the descendents of indentured
Indians. (some I million of them were taken to European
plantations from 1838-1916), to trace their roots and visit
their ancestral roots in India. Today some 10 million
descendants of Indentured Indian labourers live outside
India.
In 1995 Satish Rai made another visit to India but
was unsuccessful in getting near to his ancestral village
once again. He posted information to the central Indian
Govermnent for valuable assistance. The eight-day
information session provided leads on tracing Indian
roots to over 800 people and was able to trace roots of
over 80 people. The support provided officers of India
Tourism. Sydney, the local media, the organisers of
India Week, and the national Archives in Fiji was great,
and contributed enormously to the success of Milaap
information project.
Encouraged by the success, Milaap hopes to return
to Fiji later in the year to assist thousands of others who
wish to trace their ancestral villages in India. Milaap also
plans to hold information days in Sydney, Brisbane,
Melbourne and Auckland.
However. the next project of Milaap was another
documentary film shoot in India. The project started on
11
th
September and finished on 29
th
September 2003.
The documentary shoot consisted of documentation of
visits of several Indo-Fijians to their ancestral villages in
Rajasthan, Basti, Balrampur and Jabalpur. It also docu-
mented interviews with UP government officers. service
providers and opinion-makers. The team will also try to
trace villages of some 80 indentured Indians whose
immigration passes were extracted during Milaap week
in Fiji. Visits to villages found were also to be
documented. Government and the State government o
Uttar Pradesh in 1995, Satish Rai migrated from UK to
live in Sydney Australia. While living in Sydney, h
promoted Discover Your Indian Roots via local Indian
media.
In 1999 while planning his third visit to India he
searched the net to get further information about Utta
Pradesh. During this search he came across Utta
Pradesh Tourist web site. which advertised Discove
Your Roots Project. A great coincidence, he thought and
sent an e-mail to the project. Contact was eventually
made and Satish Rai went to India to shoot footage fo
his documentary, which he named 'Milaap - Discove
Your Indian Roots.' This documentary followed the visi
of former Fijian senator Asha Singh to her maternal and
paternal grandparent's homes in Uttar Pradesh. It also
featured interviews with officers of UP government's
Discover Your Roots Project and visits to severa
villages in Rae Bariely, Gorakhpur and Basti from wher
people had migrated to Fiji, Guyana and Surinam during
the indenture period. The fmal part of the documentary
took Satish to Balrampur, where he documented hi
interview with local press regarding his search for hi
grandparent's village. Subsequently he learned from
contacts in Balrampur that his grand mother's villag
had been traced.
The documentary was shown in Sydney and in 2003
it was shown in Fiji during the India Week, which was
held in August in Suva. During the India Week. Satish
Rai provided information on Milaap - Discover You
Indian Roots - sharing booth with the India Tourism-
Sydney - its staff provided a documentary which
featured Fiji's popular opinion maker Thakur Ranji
Singh, who is a great supporter of the Milaap project
The documentary will be ready for launch in Fiji during
the next Milaap sessions in Fiji.
From its small start in London in 1994, Discover
Your Indian Roots is becoming a popular project. So fa
it has managed to provide information to some 1000
people about tracing the roots of their forefathers in India
If you needmore information about Milaap - Discover
Your Roots Project, or the documentary film, contact
Satish Rai via email: [email protected].
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
25/84
TRUE
COMMITMENT TO QUALlT.Y.
CARIBBEAN STEEL MILLS LTD
Our stee l and roofing products fo r the bu ilding indust ry have been tested
l ime and l im e aga in . g iv in g u s I he r eput at io n r or p ro vi di ng TIUI QUALITY.
Thi s mma ln s o ur c ommi tmen t t o y ou .
OURTRUE PRODUCTS
;;=: \;:
; {~::;f;:@F. ~1II5
Rein forcement Bars Composite Floor Decking
Steel Roofing Kits Light Gauge Steel Framing
R.H.S. ( Reinforced Systems
Hollow Sections) Roofing Profiles
Purlins (available in aluzinc &
Window Profiles prepalnted materials)
I Beams Mild Steel Angles
H Beams Mild Steel Flats
TIDe
Tourism and Industrial Development Company
of Trinidad & Tobago Limited
Tel:,)681613-6011-3. 613-3591-1. 613-1931-4 Fax:18681615-7548.
E-mail :
[email protected]@[email protected]:ht.tp:lIWWN.tidco.co.tt
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
26/84
I poem
I dream t of Caroni
By Khem Harrinarine
I dream't of the lush green stalks waving in Caroni,
A rice land filled with beautiful memories.
The ladies all dressed for the harvest season,
Grassknives cutting the stalks with every reason.
Soon the Christmas breeze will fill our land,
The holiday season and parang
Children busy in the schools preparing for exams,
Discussing with their friends holiday plans.
Land of grace and beauty sublime,
A place now without a reason without a rhyme.
My dream changed into a nightmare,
As 1 looked into my people eyes I noticed their fears.
The tortured grip of a visionless movement,
Propel the nation into decadence.
Wasted resources, wasted minds, futile plans,
Abandoned and lost in this fair land.
Awaken from my slumber,
I stared at the clock's number
T'was past midnight and the dawn soon approaching,
I thought of the sugar cane fields gone forever.
The majestic Caroni plains cleared of sugar,
Housing development started by massa.
Changes that grip the workers heart,
As their life gets a new strange start.
The songs of Caroni whistling in the breeze,
Has now forever ceasedl
Tribute to fallen Jahajis [brothers].
A sudden end, a heartless kill,
Another Jahaji on the ground lay still.
His only crime was his heritage,
As the gunman took advantage.
Guns are the weapons of choice,
Used every day to silence our neighbour's voice.
Yet still, the government and Amnesty says nothing,
Surely this individual's life must worth something.
Thousands cut down in a bloody discourse,
Death devours with no remorse.
When will this tragedy end,
Mortal man cannot comprehend.
The saddened face of the children, tells a story,
Of pain, anguish and an endless misery.
A father, a mother, a brother, a sister gone forever,
Their future determined by an evil murderer.
Voices echo across the nation's homes,
The unbearable pain of loved ones groan.
The tyranny of an evil society locked in racial ignoran
Why, oh why, after all we never intended this existenc
The gift of life was determined for all,
Until the day when our number is called.
When will the violence stop,
This evil started by a wicked despot.
This government has become indifferent to pain,
The blood of Jahaji's across Guyana has stained.
Who will hear our cry, who will hear our voices
Tomorrow an evil gunman will make his choices .....
Arise oh Jahajis and defend your families,
Stop the evil gang from their vengeful hate.
Khem Harrinarine lives in Penal, Trinidad.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
27/84
COMMITTED TO
We are
Trinidad Cement Limited, Readymix (W.I. ) Limited,
TCLPackaging Limited
and
TCLPonsa Manufactur ing Limited,
producing cement, pre-mixed concrete, paper sacks and industr ial
slings. Together we employ 586 people; achieve an annual turnover
in excess of TT$600M, contributing TT$126.9M in national forejgn
exchange earnings in 2003. Each with a lstin~t role ,we are,al the
foref ront of cons truction and manufacturing in he local cB 'n my
J
,. Vo
1I1a~1J81l1(]I6i ,..
I ll: .,,;;;.,,,
v, /~i~~ /
We are Arawak Cement Cofu.panY ~ted empJoyin%,23o{,I-:
the best trained Barbadians. Producing 325,000 tonnes of Portland..
Cement per year, we added BO$23.7M to our nati0n'; foreign
exchange earnings in 2003. A leading playerin building the .ne, , '
Barbados skyline, we stand han~'in-h~.Wit~ the cornnuiniti
OS
around us, supporting education., sport and cur e.
We are
Caribbean Cement Company Limited,
specializing in
the manufacture and sale of Portland Cement; mining and marketing
gypsum and anhydri te. Producing 800,000 tonnes of cement
annually, we employ 274 persons. We are committed to ensuring
quali ty in our products, service and people.
i\niPlilJIa. ..
We are TCLTrading Limited, the distr ibution link through the
Northern Caribbean. Trading in cement and related products, we
provide export marketing support for Trinidad Cement Limited and
Arawak Cement Company Limited, keeping our finger on the pulse
of demand and supply .
oat tcoctng
WE
ARE THE TeL GROUP...
;
, ,...-,....,.
,
tl0,j~
f '::.r .. -
I '
I
{ct
01l0U
9
ONE CARIBBEAN.
ONE COMPANY
~
~
r
14
7CL
~~ EAN
CEMENT
COMPANY
TRADING
~UMITED
~
TRINIDAD
TCl PACKAGING
TCl PO NSA
A RA WA K C EM EN T
READYMIX TCl TRADING
C AR IBBEAN C EM EN T
CEMENT
LIMITED
MANUFACTURING
COMPANY LIMITED (WEST INDIES)
LIMITED
COMPANY L IM ITED
LIMITED
UMITED
LIMITED
www.tcigroup.com
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
28/84
Bombay goes to Broadway
Bombay Dreams
comes at a time when interest in all things Indian is soaring. From authors
such as Pulitzer Prize winner Jumper Lahiri, whose novel
The Namesake
became a best
seller late last year, to the drum-heavy bhangra dance music of Punjabi Me to films like
Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding and the teen soccer hit Bend It Like Beckham, Indian
culture seems to be finding an appreciative audience in the United States.
BOMBAY DREAMS, the successful London musical
centered on India's film industry, arrived April 29 at the
Broadway Theatre. With its young, largely unknown,
predominantly South Asian cast and music by one of
India's most famous and prolific composers, the show's
producers hoped to entice audiences with the promise of a
new expenence.
Still. with its glitzy costumes, over-the-top
production numbers and rags-to-riches story, those
behind Bombay Dreams say it also has a touch of the
familiar: The show is reminiscent of Broadway musicals of
the I930s and I940s.
It harks way back to the old days of things like the
Ziegfeld Follies .... It's showmanship. It's a spectacle
and it's fun, said Thomas Meehan, the Tony award-
winning writer of
Annie, The Producers
and
Hairspray,
Meehan collaborated on the book with original author
Meera Syal for the show's New York run.
Bombay Dreams
comes at a time when interest in all
things Indian is soaring. From authors such as Pulitzer
Prize winner Jumper Lahiri, whose novel The
Namesake became a best seller late last year, to the
drum-heavy bhangra dance music of Punjabi MC to
films like Mira Nair's
Monsoon Wedding
and the teen
soccer.hit
Bend It Like Beckham,
Indian culture seems
to be finding an appreciative audience in the United
States.
There is a sense that the US is now more receptive to
Indian popular culture than it has been in the past, said
Radha Welt Vatsal, who programmes Cinema India - a
touring Indian film festival. Her festival, in its second
year to traveling around the country. has already
expanded from four sites to nine this year.
Set in the city that is also known as Mumbai,
Bombay Dreams
tells the story of a poor young man
who dreams of being a Bollywood star.
Bollywood is India s film industry, which chums
out more than 900 movies every year. Most Bollywood
productions have elaborate song-and-dance numbers
and some sort of heavy-duty, tear-jerking emotional
conflict.
The London version of the musical, which opened in
June 2002. was the brainchild of composer-producer
Andrew Lloyd Webber and Indian movie director She
Kapur. Lloyd Webber enlisted the musical aid of
Rahman, who has scored many Bollywood films.
Bombay Dreams score includes Rahman's hit, Cha
Chaiyya, from the 1998 movie
Dil Se.
Despite mixed reviews, the show has been a h
London, which inspired the move to Broadway.
producers knew that the production would need to ch
in its cross-Atlantic trip.
In London, where there is a much deeper recogn
of Indian culture, the show poked some fun at Bollyw
conventions with its central plot and side stories, an
assumed that the audience would have a certain famili
with the genre.
That approach was not considered workable in
US, where Bollywood isn't quite as familiar, Syal said.
So the story was pared down to focus on the struggl
the hero, some songs were added and the book chan
The result, according to producer, Elizabeth William
something both new and old.
This story is of the hero who has a dream, is te
loses that dream and reclaims it in the end, she s
It's the arschetypal story.
But unlike other works on Broadway. which
range of revived shows, star-driven vehicles or cente
on familiar music, the Bombay Dreams production
blast of fresh air in terms of the music. Syal said.
Lloyd Webber liked the changes so much that
London production is shutting down in June and wi
revised along the lines of the American show b
reopening in another theatre in 2005.
The producers are making a big financial bet
successful outcome in New York. Williams said about
million had been put into Bombay Dreams. which
weekly costs of about $500,000. But there h
already been at least $6 million in advance sales.
Associated Press, New York. April 23, 2004.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
29/84
{)u...Ser-vices Include:
~Digital Printing & Storage From / On:
E-mail.CD. Floppy & Zip Disk,
Negatives, Photographs & All Digital
Media Cards
Large Format Digital Prints:
Banners,
Posters & Back-lit Prints
1 Hour Flim Processing: 35mm & APS Flim
~Cameras & Accessories Sales
Studio Passport Pictures
Cropping, Restorations & Recopies
Located at:
20 Frederick Street, Port-Of-Spain: 623-8070
Starlite Shopping Plaza, Diego Martin: 633-4523
Scarborough, Tobago: 639-4010
VIS IT OUR WEBSITE :
WWW.FOTOMARTONL lNE .COM
Citizen
INSURANCE
COMPANY LIMITED
Motor
Fire Allied Perils
Theft
Home Owner Policies
Accident
Employees Liability
Plate Glass
Head Office: 41 Leotaud Street,
San Fernando
Tel:
652-2531, 657-7016, 657-3260,
657-3545, 657-9259, 657-5059
Fax:
657-3259
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
30/84
The Islamic realities of the Muharram Massacre of 1884
By Daurius Figueira
In the aftermath of the massacre of 1884, Shia Islam retreated from the public view, and in
became an esoteric practice in Trinbago until the 1970s where it resurfaced, prodded by th
Islamic Revolution of 1979 in Iran.
The Shia Muslims of India created, via their annual
remembrances of the martyrdom of the grandson of
Prophet Muhammed (uwbp) during the first month of the
Islamic calendar, Muharram, the syncretic processions of
Muharram. These processions during the month of
Muharram were structured events in which the Shia gave
space to non-Muslim participants such as the Hindu
women who were childless and the dervishes who were
outside the pale of mainstream Islam. What was also
noteworthy of the Shia Muharram processions in India was
the presence of sections of the procession bent on
parodying the colonial Raj and the elements of the Indian
comprador elites who were the vassals of English colonial
domination.
The decade of the 1880s in the colonial history of
Trinidad was one of resistance and armed engagement
with the colonial power over the repeated moves to destroy
cultural expressions of resistance which were expressed
via processions in the streets of the colony of Trinidad.
The white colonial power moved to destroy the
Camboulay procession in memory of the end of African
enslavement in Trinidad. The colonial state in the 1880s
moved to destroy the Muharram procession for the clear
and present danger that the Muharram procession
constituted to the colonial state. East Indian indentured
labour unrest especially on specific plantations on the
plains of Naparima raised the concern of sections of the
society that saw the clear and present danger of East Indian
indentured unrest on the plantations and the threat to
colonial civilization by less than civilized Hindoo brutes.
Both white planters and Afro-Trinidadian interests
sounded the early warning of the clear and present danger
of the Hindoo brutes running riot. It was then simply a
matter of logical progression for these interests to call for
the prohibition of the Muharram procession. For it was the
premier annual event when indentured labourers of various
estates merged into a stream of shouting, jumping,
chanting less than civilized coolies marching through
San Fernando to the sea.
What intensified the fear that was evoked with the
procession of semi-civilized brutes through San Fernando
to the Gulf of Paria in the minds of the colonials were the
lessons the English colonial Raj learned from the Indian
Mutiny of 1857. There was then an abiding fear of the
Islamic base of the Muharram procession which was
worsened by the inclusive syncretic nature of the
procession. This morbid abiding fear of Islam would then
convince the English colonials of Trinidad that they must
fire upon the Muharram procession of. 1884. The
same colonial state refused to fire upon the Cambo
procession instead choosing to engage the people o
Camboulay in hand to hand combat with the bois a
extension of the arm. This colonial strategy was the
most potent indication of the potency of the Muha
procession as presenting the most potent and pr
danger in the minds of the colonial officials in the co
of Trinidad in the 1880s.
In the lead up to October 1884, the Sunni line of
would petition the colonial governor to ban the Muha
procession. The Sunni petitioners insisted to the ka
(unbelievers) that the Shia and the Muharram proce
were outside the pale of Islam and therefore
Moreover the Sunni petitioners insisted that the
procession gave decent and law abiding Sunni Mu
subjects of the British Empire a bad name. The S
Muslims now joined the kafirun interests in calling fo
destruction of the Muharram, which simply legitimised
decision of the colonial state to end once and for a
most concerted and potential threat to the colonial
posed by Indian indentured labour in the history of I
indentureship in Trinidad 1845-1917.
On that fateful day in October 1884 the
procession heading to the Gulf of Paria through
Fernando was fired upon and scattered. In 1885
thereafter the colonial power made it abundantly clea
Muharram processions would again be fired upon. I
aftermath of the massacre of 1884, Shia Islam retr
from the public view, and in fact became an eso
practice in Trinbago until the 1970s where it resurfa
prodded by the Islamic Revolution of 1979 in Iran.
Islam reaped the benefits of October 1884 settling
subservient existence vis-a-vis the colonial state a
drive for hegemony over the Indo-Trinbagonian popul
through their dance with the P..NMsince 1956. Sunni
would since 1884 pursue the elusive holy gra
enmeshing the Hindu population of Trinbago in a
macabre premised upon Sunni political leadership ove
Hindu population of Trinbago clearly seen in the PN
1956-1986 and the UNC 1995-2001. It is inte
noteworthy that among the earliest prominent leade
Sunni Islam in Trinidad were practitioners of Sufi
noted for their accommodation with the kafir colonial
and their unrelenting assault on Shia Islam.
Daurius Figueira is a Ph.D. candidate in the
Department of Government at UWl, St. Augustine.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
31/84
O IlR M O TTO :
O MPASSION
USTOMER
OM PETEN E
Our compassion
takes us the Xtm mHe
to give you Xcellent Customer
Service, highest Quality
Products at the lowest Prfc~.
Automotive and Household
Chemical Products'
fO
RAWLPLUC
Fasteners
CHAGUANAS
MON. ntUR:
8 :30AM - 7 :00PM
FRI. & SAT.
8 :00AM 8 :00PM
SUNDAY
8:00AM - 12NOON
GRAND BAZAAR
MON FRI.:
9:00AM 9:00PM
SAT.
9:00AM - 9:00PM
SUNDAY
8 :00AM - 8 :00PM
FRAM
Oil and A ir F ilte rs
Electrical Products
Auto Body Kits
~
~
IJen'mlL,~
Automoti ve and
lndustr ia l Products
Synthet ic and
Semi-Synthetic
Motor Oils
~~~
111~J4 f ~t1
atf1P -iv It ~ CjJ~f'W
1f:1~ (Pl~)
0 ~c4 fM1,d
r:
fo~ ~lt
~f'W.
f~lI
~11&
~~11()~
~4' ,d'
~tJw. @:
1d:
671-78iZ ~)
ClI 67Z-9Z: (11~~)
-
1:1111111
Wiper Blades Power Tools
rectivo
Intakes and Exhaust Systems Car Care Products
Comple te lin e o f Roo fin g, Constr uc tio n and Industri al F as tene rs
Genera l Too ls and Equipment
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
32/84
The clash of cultures in Trinidad
By Parsuram Maharaj
The Maha Sabha has been advocating the need to replace the Ministry of Culture with a m
inclusive Ministry of Multiculturalism ... The Canadian model is worthy of examination
The Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS) in Trinidad
has long held that culture forms an integral component in
the development of a people and a nation. Indeed, in the
book
Culture Matters,
its editors, Lawrence E. Harrison
and Samuel P. Huntington address a difficult question: Are
some cultures better than others at creating freedom,
prosperity and justice, and answers in the affirmative.
Editor Harrison, who pens the book's concluding essay,
states that culture, offers an important insight into why
some countries and ethniclreligious groups have done
better than others, not just in economic terms but also with
respect to consolidation of democratic institutions and
social justice. Culture in Trinidad along with the politics
of discrimination is perhaps the single most influential
factor that contributes to the disharmony within the nation.
Indeed, Samuel P. Huntington's Clash of Civilizations
observed that, cultural characteristics and differences are
less mutable and hence less easily compromised and
resolved than political and economic ones. The SDMS,
for the past two to three decades, has been advocating the
need to replace the Ministry of Culture with a more-
inclusive Ministry of Multiculturalism.
Lord Bhikhu Parekh, in the paper, What is multi-
culturalism? states that multiculturalism is best under-
stood ... as a perspective on, or a way of viewing, human
life. lts central insights are three. First, human beings are
culturally embedded in the sense that they grow up and
live within a culturally structured world and organize their
lives and social relations in terms of a culturally derived
system of meaning and significance. Second, different
cultures represent different systems of meaning and
visions of the good life. Third, every culture is internally
plural and reflects a continuing conversation between its
different traditions and strands of thought. Parekh also
gives the possible reason for the resistance to the SDMS's
lobby for Ministry of Multiculturalism when he states:
The dominant group generally welcomes neither,
recognition not given willingly as a gift or an act of grace.
It needs to be fought for and involves a cultural and
political contestation and sometimes even violence as
Hegel stressed in his analysis of the dialectic of
recognition and which Taylor's sanitized version of it
ignores.
To this end, the SDMS dedicated resources and
personnel to studying Multiculturalism models across the
globe. Of the models studied, the Canadian Model has
been found to be one worth studying with the objective of
adapting it to Trinidad society. In 1971, Canada was the
first country in the world to adopt multiculturalism as an
official policy. By so doing, Canada affirmed the
and dignity of all Canadian citizens regardless of
racial or ethnic origins, their language. or their reli
affiliation. The Canadian Multiculturalism State pol
worthy of further exam ination.
The Canadian Multiculturalism policy clearly
that the Government of Canada (a) recognize and pro
the understanding that multiculturalism reflects the cu
and racial diversity of Canadian society and acknowle
the freedom of all members of Canadian socie
preserve, enhance and share their cultural heritage
recognize and promote the understanding
multiculturalism is a fundamental characteristic o
Canadian heritage and identity and that it provide
invaluable resource in the shaping of Canada's futur
promote the full and equitable participation of indivi
and communities of all origins in the continuing evo
and shaping of all aspects of Canadian society, and
them in the elimination of any barrier to that participa
(d) recognize the existence of communities w
members share a common origin, and their hi
contribution to Canadian society, and enhance
development; (e) ensure that all individuals receive
treatment and equal protection under the law,
respecting and valuing their diversity; (f) encourage
assist the social, cultural, economic and po
institutions of Canada to be both respectful and inc
of Canada's multicultural character; (g) promote
understanding and creativity that arise from the intera
between individuals and communities of different or
(h) foster the recognition and appreciation of the d
cultures of Canadian society and promote the refle
and the evolving expressions of those cultures; (i) pre
and enhance the use of languages other than English
French, while strengthening the status and use o
official languages of Canada; and U) advance
culturalism throughout Canada in harmony with
national commitment to the official languages of Can
Lord Bhikhu Parekh, however, hauntingly remin
that, Although equal citizenship is essential to foster
common sense of belonging, it is not enough. Citize
is about statu's and rights; belonging is about accept
feeling welcome, a sense of identification. The two d
necessarily coincide. One might enjoy all the righ
citizenship but feel that one does not quite belong
community and is a relative outsider ...
Parsuram Maharaj is a
Newsday
columnist.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
33/84
To BE PASSED FROM GENERATION To THE NEXT
The things you enjoy and cherish. The things that matter - like your home - a once in a lifetime investment.
That's why ifyou're building a home to last you should build with concrete from READYMIX.
Readymix is the only company that has been supplying concrete to our country's homes and businesses for over 40years,
earning a solid reputation for quality. Readymix is the leader in premixed concrete in the local market.
That's why the biggest investment in your life - your home - deserves nothing less than Readymix.
Foundations, floors, driveways or deckings - you can always rely on Readymix concrete.
BUILD TO LAST FOR GENERATIONS
Readymix (W.I.)Ltd is the only premixed concrete
company in the English-speaking Caribbean with
ISO 9001:2000 certification
READYMIX (WEST INDIES) LIM ITED
Head Office: Tumpuna Rd.,Guanapo. Sales/enquiries: 643-0462/5844. Tobago Tel:660-2615. E-mail: [email protected]. Website: www.readymix.co.1I
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
34/84
Nyla Marajh, who inaugurated May Indian His
and Heritage Month in 2004 said that the In
community should create smaller educational and
san
-oriented events in the communities, and seek
researchers in the field of Indian heritage such as
Permasad, Kelvin Singh, Brinsley Samaroo and Ku
Mahabir.
After 150 years, the education system in Trinidad
the wider Caribbean still ignores it. In a time when
Caribbean is challenged to make the region an attrac
destination, we are still playing games with the cultur
the region. Many visiting foreigners are still shocked t
so many Indians and samples of Indian culture in
Caribbean. Does the region have a common purpos
making the Indian community a Cinderella soc
Nobody is going to wave a magic wand and tu
koharaa into a chariot and choochaa into horses
Indians to attend the royal ball. We have to discard
aversion to chamaar and make we own jootaa, other
we will continue to walk barefooted. Or will we cont
to sing
Mere jootaa hai japaanee, patloon Inglisthaan
Indians must therefore shape Mayas a month
educating the community on our history and the
scope of our heritage. The Kendra has, over a dec
adopted Mayas a month-long opportunity for this purp
The Kendra's theme for 2004 is 'Milk ki Jai, I an interac
series through which community elders will pass
knowledge and skills of our milk heritage to the you
generation. '
On Sunday, children learnt milk-based traditi
medicine,
kaarhaa
and
sweet-peraa.
There will be a
of all the products made by the children to help with
Ramdila
later this year.
The Kendra is also participating in an internati
project in association with Antal' Raashetreeya Sah
Parished
(International Society for Cooperati
The project will assist 100 families to trace their
in India.
Make May Indian History Month
By Raviji
Many visiting foreigners are still shocked to see so
many Indians and samples of Indian culture in the Caribbean.
The 159th Anniversary of the arrival of the first batch
of Indian indentured labourers (1845) and the seventh
anni versary of Indian Arrival Day, May 30, are fast
approaching.
Over the past 20 years, Indian Arrival has become a
popular day for Indians to commemorate. In fact, it
became so popular that public functions had to take place
on successive weekends preceding May 30. It often spilled
over into June. Unconsciously, May was staked out as a
month-long commemoration of the Indian presence in
T&T.
But there are other historical reasons why May has
significance for Indians in the Caribbean. May provided
for the Indian community in 1945 a month-long period of
intense community activity to produce a massive rally of
Indians at Skinner Park. It provided a landmark day for
Indians in the Diaspora during colonialism to dream, plan,
organize, assemble, publish, envision, reflect, and to
express themselves and exercise leadership. Many an
initiative was spawned in the wake of May 1945.
May, as Indian History and Heritage Month, also
provides a common platform for all Indians in the
Caribbean to bring focus on Indian Heritage. In fact, May
holds historical value to most of the Caribbean as Indians
first came to the Caribbean in May: Guyana - May 1838,
Hesparus and Whitby; Trinidad - May 30, Fatel Rozack;
Jamaica - May 1845. Suriname missed May by a few days.
May in the centenary year, was 61 years after October
30, 1884, the date of the infamous Jahaajee Massacre at
Balidaan Tolaa in San Fernando on the occasion of
Maharram. It was an occasion of great community spirit
and inter-religious unity. Out of 22
jahaajees
who were
shot dead by the police during the religious precession,
only four were Muslims. The majority who died were
Hindus.
One could understand how much the month of May
would have meant to Indians in 1945. Not too far away
from Balidaan Tolaa is Skinner Park where Indians would
again assemble in large numbers. Within a 10-mile radius
lay over 30 villages from
whichjahaajees
were drawn to
the fatal procession and from whom blood would be drawn
in sacrifice at Balidaan Tolaa.
The story would have been recited of Bal Gopal Singh,
who jumped on a horse, wielding a sword, and crashed
through the gates of Philipine Estate to let the
jahaajees
join the procession. How much would Balidaan Tolaa
make for deep reflection of the citizens of T&T? Would
we just drink wine, wave yuh hand and mash up de place
on Indian Arrival Day?
Ravi ji is a cultural activist and
Guardian
columnis
Interested parties may apply to Roots In India,
The Kendra, Jilibia Trace, Raghunanan Road, Enterpris
Phone/Fax 665-4270, 4103. E-mail: [email protected]
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
35/84
EstabJlshed 1985
They Came
They Saw
They Committed ...
In 1845 the first ships sailed into
Trinidad bringing the first Indentured
Labourers from India.
What they saw was a land not only
rich in soil content, but also rich in
potential.
And though they wore many faces,
they had one common goal, to make
this country their home. Now,
because of their undying
commitment, they've been able to
leave their mark on every aspect of
our culture, religion and politics.
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
36/84
I poem
MAl
By Jacqulin Suepaul
Talk to me East Indian mother of this land; bolo, sub kuch
bolo, tell me all you can
From the day the Fatel Razack
la ee ho,
And you chalo, chalo straight to the fields,
Indentured servant, poiya in hand,
To work for a meal planting kitari aur dhaan.
Tell me mai, about that kaam, that work.
Sun baking. Back breaking. Salt and
roti
melting
As yuh keep on toiling,
kaam karti rahee,
for wages next
to nothing.
Every 'fore day morning' yuh up,
Khaanaa banaanaa, food to cook; capray dhona, clothes
to wash,
Bancho palan posan, children to see 'bout; barracks saaf
karan, barracks to clean,
Before yuh khait chalan, leave to go out.
And what about dem barracks? Lil' two by four;
Choke up space to bechaaway rice pal to sonay on lepay
floor;
Walls thin thin; parosin could hear if yuh choopkay say
bol, whisper too loud,
Far more for when maar khaayo, licks share
Mai, doh feel shame to admit the abuse yuh suffer
From yuh pati, and de sardar, your workmaster.
Doh feel shame to tell of the other workers too;
Sharam aur hassi,
ridicule and laughter aimed at you, Mai,
Yuh ghangri stained with curry; head tied with orhni.
They calling yuh 'coolie.'
I know Mai, how like dew on flowers,
Tears must have graced your eyes, many unshed showers;
But Mai, sir naajook yuh never complain.
Yuh varsho ka parishrum, years of struggle was not
111
vain
Dhanya hai mai, we grateful yuh brave the kala pani
Stomach six months on the Atlantic sea
Yuh land here, argayee, with just ajahaji bundle and a
Dhristi, a vision.
Humbly start building for agali pirhe, coming generations.
Pawn yuh jewels to send yuh
bachchay to college;
Khaaee nahi,
do without, so they, we, could have the
privileges, you never had.
Now, yuh bachchay aur naatay, children
grandchildren are not only
adhyaapak, vakeel,
te
lawyers and doctors
But rose to raastra pati, president and pradhan m
prime minister
Rewards are worth balidaan dio, sacrifices you offere
With the kitari aur dhaan yuh plant in this ground
You help to build people, villages, towns - Iogue,
nagar.
Yes Mai, mujhe garv hai, I proud to say, you help
Trinidad what it is today.
Yuh enrich we culture with bhojan you make cook
the chulha.
With your holy festivals, your music, your
dholak,
dhantal
With the kaseedas and bhajans yuh sing as the c
ring,
With paramparaa, values you instilled; chaahut, lon
you fulfilled.
So bolo,
Mai,
yuh have plenty to say
and I need your gyaan, your wisdom to guide me
rasatayi
So
sadi batay soona
0,
Mai,
tell all you can tell
Let this sansaar know, in your own way, you excelled
Jacqulin Suepaul is a teacher, and the author
ofthe anthology of poems, Tempo in we tongue (20
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
37/84
oF A _nagemenl and taff
of
t-,
I
..
}
8/10/2019 Indian Arrival 2004
38/84
The first potter of Chase Village
By Dr. Harold Harrinarine
Chase Village and Edinburgh Village ...
have become the pottery capital of the country
Chase Village and Edinburgh Village, located slightly
south of Chaguanas in central Trinidad, have become the
pottery capital of the country. This was no accident. This