Corentyne woman celebrates 102nd birthday
Sumintra Sarju, called “Mai” of number 60 Village, Corentyne Berbice, turned 102 years old on Monday. She was born on March 27th, 1921, in East Canje, Berbice.
Mai met Lawrence Bharat and walked down the aisle. Thereafter, they relocated to Bloomfield Village. Their union produced nine children, seven of whom are still alive.
After living at Bloomfield Village for over 25 years, Mai and her husband resettled at Village Number 60, Corentyne Berbice.
Mai’s husband passed away several years ago.
The elderly woman worked in the sugar industry for several years to make ends meet for her children. She served in several fields, including cane harvesting.
Additionally, Mai worked together with her husband, to establish their garden and cultivate a wide range of vegetables; they also fished.
Mai is being cared for by one of her sons, Arnold, and other relatives. The centenarian has a few health ailments, including a slight hearing problem. She can move around freely.
On Monday, Mai celebrated her 102nd birthday very simply among family and friends.
Sumintra Sarju has 44 grandchildren 78 great-grandchildren, 68 great-great-grandchildren, and 11 greatgreat-great-grandchildren.
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Baroness Valarie Amos in discussion with President Irfaan Ali
The Guyanese-born Baroness is a British politician and diplomat who previously served as the UN UnderSecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. (OP)
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President Dr Irfaan Ali received a courtesy visit from Baroness Valerie Ann Amos LG, CH, PC at State House.
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Images of We lift 3
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Quotes of the First Lady of Guyana
1. My baby boy is 4 today! Feels like only yesterday you were born, and blessed our lives with your presence. You are everything magical that is in this world, everything pure, the meaning of life itself, the reason I will never lose hope. I am so proud to be your mother baby boy! I love you.
2. Through the National Beautification Project, two multipurpose parks will be developed - one in Region 3 at Tuschen, EBE, and one in Region 4 at Diamond/Grove, EBD.
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Today I was joined by Minister of Local Gov't and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall, to launch these 2 transformative projects which will benefit thousands of residents of those communities. This investment is yet another demonstration of Gov't's commitment to improving the lives of the Guyanese people.
3. As we observe immunization week, each of us must play our part to ensure our children and families are vaccinated against deadly preventable diseases. A healthier population means a more productive population. A more productive population means a healthier economy. A healthier economy means a happier nation. So let us do our part to create a happier nation.Both parks will feature recreational and sporting facilities including a children’s playpark and multipurpose court; a multipurpose building with conference hall, library, computer centre, training rooms, cafeteria and washrooms; and amenities including wifi, benches, lights, fountains, and garbage receptacles. The park at Diamond/Grove will also have a food court and outdoor gym.
4. Last evening, President Irfaan Ali and I hosted an Eid-ul-Fitr Dinner and Cultural Presentation at our residence, State House.
The event featured harmonious qaseedas, Quran recitals and speeches which echoed the call for respect and tolerance for all religions in Guyana.
We were joined by family, friends, colleagues, members of the Diplomatic Community, members of the private sector, and hundreds of Muslims from across Guyana.
5. Today we celebrated Eid-ul-Fitr at our home in Leonora with family and friends. Eid is always a very special day for our family and today reminded us of the love that surrounds us through the blessings of Allah. I hope today was just as special for you and your family.
6. As ‘Godmother’ of the Prosperity, Guyana’s third Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel, I am especially proud to welcome the vessel to our waters after travelling over 20,000 kilometres in less than two months. Thank you to the crew who brought her safely home. During my time in Singapore for the dedication of this facility, I saw first-hand the collaboration and hard work that made her arrival possible. Prosperity is more than a vessel; she is a testament of the relationship between the people of Guyana and the collection of companies doing business in our oil and gas sector. This vessel strengthens that bond between us creating another link to a brighter future; one of prosperity for Guyana.
7. Extending heartfelt congratulations to our talented Guyanese athletes who represented our beautiful country at the 50th CARIFTA Track and Field Championship which recently concluded in Nassau, the Bahamas; and those who represented us at the Swimming Championship which was held in Curaçao.
Guyana bagged three gold, two silver and three bronze medals at the Track and Field Championship, and five gold medals at the Swimming Championship. On behalf of every Guyanese, I take this opportunity to thank them for representing the 592 with such pride and commitment, and wish them continued success.
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Women in the Local Government Elections of Guyana
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June 12 is new date for Local Government Elections
Nigel Dharamlall
By Stabroek News
February 17, 2023
Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall yesterday informed GECOM that June 12, 2023, has been selected as the date for the long overdue Local Government Elections (LGE).
Dharamlall last night while confirming to Stabroek News the appointed date, said that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) had written to him saying that they are in a state of readiness.
“They wrote to me and said that they are ready and will be prepared to hold the elections by May 22, 2023 the earliest.”
The announcement of the new date comes months after a postponement by GECOM. The commission was forced to push back the elections, which was initially slated for March 13. That date was however derailed by GECOM having to reopen the Claims and Objections process whilst dealing with a dispute over the demarcation of constituencies.
A legal challenge was mounted by the main opposition APNU+AFC to contest the manner in which lists have been extracted for constituencies. This triggered a recommendation by Chief Election Officer Vishnu Persaud to the GECOM Chair for a further period of claims and objections to the various registers.
Persaud had told GECOM Chair, retired Justice Claudette Singh, that should the opposition concerns not be addressed, the image of the elections body could be tarnished for failing to guard fundamental standards for democratic elections. He suggested that the coalition could possibly boycott the upcoming polls if the concerns are not addressed.
The APNU arm of the APNU+AFC coalition has been claiming that the voters list was compiled without capturing voters in their correct constituency, thereby placing them at a disadvantage.
It was against this background that APNU’s Chief Scrutineer, Carol Smith-Joseph, moved to the High Court for an urgent hearing challenging GECOM’s method of compiling the voters lists to be used in the then proposed March 13 LGE.
In the legal challenge, Smith-Joseph argued that GECOM, in its preparation of the current voters list, did not act in accordance with the law and the constitution.
Persaud informed the commission’s chair that accepting the proposal would result in the postponement of the elections. He did not say for how long the elections could be postponed. Local government elections were due since the end of 2021.
The Chief Election Officer told the Chair, the proposal, once accepted “…would not only guarantee transparency and inclusivity, but would address the specific concern of the APNU+AFC coalition, but by extension engender participation of the coalition’s support base in the Local Government Elections.”
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He stated that from views expressed by the opposition there are concerns that the electorate is being denied the opportunity to scrutinize the Registers of Voters. “It appears that the APNU+AFC is concerned that members of the public were not given the opportunity to (i) claim entry in the respective constituency RoVs, providing they qualify for such inclusion based on residency, and (ii) object to the inclusion of electors in constituency RoVs who do not meet the residency requirement for such inclusion.”
After months of deliberation on the supplemental work plan, the elections body on February 7 announced the new work plan was approved by the commission. In this regard, the Secretariat will proceed with the full implementation of the relevant statutory and administrative activities to ensure the successful conduct of the elections in the eighty (80) Local Authority Areas (LAAs) countrywide, it said in a release. Going forward, the GECOM Secretariat will immediately move to (i) roll out a robust civic and voter education programme, (ii) appoint Electoral Registrars and Assistant Electoral Registrars, and (iii) extract the Preliminary List of Voters (PLV).
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These activities are directly linked to the preparation of Registers of Voters for each of the 80 Local Authority Areas.
The release said that preparation for the conduct of Local Government Elections commenced in 2022. In this regard, it informed that the GECOM Secretariat had already completed the training of management and polling day staff for all LAAs, and the receipt of applications for and approval of symbols submitted by political parties, voluntary groups and individuals who intend to contest in the elections. Local Government Elections were constitutionally due at the end of 2021 but GECOM was without a Chief Election Officer and could not have prepared to host the elections. As a result, the Chair wrote to the government informing it of the situation but did commit to confirming a timeline after the appointment of a CEO.
At the beginning of June 2022, the Commission’s Secretariat released a list of vacancies for “polling day staff for Local Government Elections.” The Commission is looking for Presiding Officers, Assistant Presiding Officers, Poll Clerks, Ballot Clerks/ Counting Assistants and Information Clerks. That process concluded at the end of June. Stabroek News had reported that the Secretariat decided to go ahead with the advertisement for polling day staff to be prepared for whenever the Commission announces a date.
GECOM embarked on a continuous registration process back in March 2022, particularly targeting new applicants. The continuous registration cycle concluded on May 29, 2022, with over 49,000 persons being registered for the first time. A total of 70,041 transactions were conducted during the period. 28,149 were new registrants between the ages of 14 and 17, while 21,130 were new registrants above the age of 18. Additionally, 4,629 persons applied for transfers, 6,526 persons changed or corrected their information, 7,667 applied for replacement identification cards and 1,940 registrants retook their ID photos.
Late last September, the commission had concluded its claims and objections programme in preparation for the elections.
Justice Singh had told the media that LGE would be held by the end of November. Initially, Chief Election Officer Vishnu Persaud had proposed December 12 last year as polling day but that was rejected since it fell outside of the statutory timeline.
He came back with a date of February 13, 2023, but was asked to further revise it to mid-January. Earlier in October, Stabroek News reported that March 06, 2023, was being suggested as polling day. However, the Commission could not agree to Persaud’s work plan since there were ancillary issues to be addressed.
On October 20 last year, Dharamlall however announced that LGE would be held on March 13, 2023. That was the earliest date signified by Singh in her correspondence to him on when the polls could be held.
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New Parliamentarian Dr. Asha Kissoon commits to ‘serve with dignity’
Leader of The New Movement (TNM), Dr. Asha Kissoon taking her Oath on Monday as the newest Member of Parliament.
“I do hereby solemnly declare that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the people of Guyana.”Those were the opening words of the Oath taken by Leader of The New Movement (TNM), Dr. Asha Kissoon, on Monday as she was sworn in as the newest Member of Parliament (MP).
She replaces Deputy Speaker and Leader of the Liberty and Justice Party (LJP) Lennox Shuman who resigned as at March 31, 2023.
MPs from both sides including Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton and Prime Minister Mark Phillips, along with Speaker of the National Assembly, welcomed the MP to the House and committed to working with her for the benefit of the people of Guyana.
Responding to the welcome remarks, the TNM Leader said it was nothing short of a honour to represent her constituency in the National Assembly.
“I give my word and dedicate to serve with dignity,” she said as she called on all MPs to continue to work in unity.
“I urge leaders to put the people of Guyana first… to value and appreciate our diversity,” she added.
Dr. Kissoon is an Opposition MP although not part of the main parliamentary opposition – the APNU+AFC Coalition. Dr. Kissoon said previously that she will accept the Deputy Speaker’s post if current Parliamentarians repose the confidence in her.
The Deputy Speaker’s post is usually held by a member of the parliamentary opposition and on one occasion, it was held by a member of a minority government at the time. It requires a majority vote from among the 65 parliamentarians to secure the top post.
Dr. Kissoon, 33, studied medicine in Cuba, and currently serves as the doctor in charge of the Sophia Health Centre; she entered politics for the March 02, 2020 elections as the presidential candidate for TNM.
The TNM, together with A New and United Guyana (ANUG) and the Liberty and Justice Party (JLP), joined their lists to contest the elections.
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The combined votes gained in the elections allowed the three parties to have one seat in the National Assembly. They had agreed that the seat would be rotated so that all three parties would have representation in the five-year term of the Parliament.
[Source: Newsroom 24 April 2023]
Not stepping down from art anytime soon
A passion for preserving culture through art
BACK in “the days” – more than 60 years ago – all the wives of the British High Commission diplomats would go for art classes with the renowned Edgar R Burrowes, and Conrad Meertins, who was a student of Queen’s College at the time, would go just to look on and wash their brushes.
“Boy Conrad, I see like you like this art,” Mr Burrowes would tell the teenager. As a little boy, at 10 years old to be exact, Meertins participated in a painting competition and won. His interest had always been in art, perhaps as a result of his Dutch ancestry which included a line of boat builders – a genealogy that has provided the talent for woodwork and craftsmanship that has undoubtedly influenced the direction of his art.
Today at almost 80 of age, the father of four has anything but slowing down in his art career on his mind. With the training he received from the man himself, Mr Burrowes, Meertins has developed a type of art that hardly anyone else does.
“He [Burrowes] taught me every art form; everything he taught me! I was always there. It was quite a privilege to be taught by one of Guyana’s great art masters and he took a personal interest in me because he saw that I was really interested,” Meertins shared in an interview at the Guyana Chronicle.
After school, he became an airline pilot and flew as captain with several of the major airlines in the region. “But I always did art. I had the time to do it and I did not need the income from it to live; I was able to develop it quite conveniently because there was a lot of ground time.”
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By Conrad Meertins: The first asphalt plant machine acquired many years ago
A full three-dimensional representation of a proposed new office building done by Meertins
Meertins was able to develop his three-dimensional art while waiting in the crew room to fly. “It took me about 40 years to develop this technique; because it is a different genre altogether, nobody is doing this type of art because it’s a combination of art and woodwork and is something which I would have developed over a long period of time. There are not many artists doing the kind of work I am doing; not in the Caribbean and even worldwide,” the artist explained. Having retired, Meertins began pursuing his art career full-time. He designs residential and commercial interiors, including offices, restaurants, and nightclubs. He also likes to do historical buildings, kokers, and other places of interest.
His ‘Van Meer’ collection can be viewed at the Academy of the Arts on Carmichael Street – an institution he started just prior to the pandemic. Despite accomplishing little due to the pandemic, Meertins kept working on the facility. Just before Independence Day, he is planning to have an opening exhibition and will do a ‘Sip and Paint’ event around the same time. “I want to make my place one where artists and even non-artists can come and paint something or do something. I will have both adult and children’s classes,” he shared.
Meertins concedes that it was a bad idea to open the art studio at the time he did, because he could not make any money due to the pandemic. Due to his love for art, however, he continued going to the studio every day. “Every day, from Sunday to Sunday, I leave home at 7 in the morning and get home after 12 to 14 hours. Every day I do my art; that is where I am happiest.”
He believes that for someone to learn well, they’d have to be really interested. Sadly, though, he has not found anyone who reminds him of himself in his younger days.
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The train station in Georgetown in 1945
Meertins’ depiction of City Hall “Persons are not like that today. You have to be consistent and want to do it. A lot of people get excited and three weeks later, they don’t come back.”
For those people who go to the Burrowes School of Art, he thinks that some time should be spent preparing them for the commercial world after completing their studies. “A lot of artists come to me with good portfolios but they can’t make any money. For people to be interested, they have to show initiative because it’s hard to even get people to look at your art these days.”
Offering some advice to fellow artists, Meertins urged: “Don’t give up. Explore every possible opportunity. Even if nothing happens at certain levels, you keep doing your art. If you stop and wait for that opportunity, you stagnate yourself…which is something I never did. I just kept on and on. Over the last three years, everyone said to me why are you going to the studio and you’re not making any money? But I went every day for three years.”
Meertins has just completed models of the proposed Demerara Harbour Bridge that will be built soon by the Chinese.
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THE Woodside Choir
THE Woodside Choir has been in existence for 70 years now, established by the late Lynette Dolphin for the participation of the Bishops’ Girls. The Woodside Choir have serenaded many nationwide with their beautiful choral singing. The Pepper pot Magazine spoke with a senior member of the choir David H J Dewar, who shared his memorable moments since he has been in the choir.
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News
GIHR Call for papers and abtracts for the Sixteenth Conference Theme: Race relations, cultures and, politics
Abstracts and proposals will be accepted by 9 June 2023.
Hosted by the Guyana Institute of Historical Research
The Guyana Institute of Historical Research is pleased to call for papers and abstracts for its 16th Annual Conference.
For the 2023 conference, the committee will consider proposals on all aspects of Race relations, cultures and, politics, especially encouraging submissions that reflect on this year’s theme; submissions that focus on other topics will also be entertained by the Committee. Submissions of pre-organized panels and roundtables are strongly encouraged.
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During the TWO days Conference, each panel will have 3-4 presenters (each 20-15 min., respectively), possibility of submission of a partial session with at least 2 presenters.
Panel, roundtable, and pictorial proposals will include the following information: following criteria:
Proposal explains the topic, research questions, methodologies, and historiographic significance in ways that specialists and non-specialists alike can understand. (10 points)
Proposal presents new findings or revisions of long-held interpretations. (10 points) Panel proposals must include a panel title and 300-word abstract summarizing the theme of the panel; paper title and a 300-word abstract for each paper proposed; and a one-page professional curriculum vitae for each panelist (including the chair and commentator).
Roundtable proposals must include a roundtable title, a 300-word abstract summarizing the roundtable’s themes and points of discussion, and a one-page curriculum vitae for each participant (including the moderator, if any).
Individual paper proposals are also welcome and must include a paper title, 300-word abstract of the paper, and one-page vita with contact information and email address. If accepted, individual papers will be assigned by the program committee to an appropriate panel with a chair and commentator.
Volunteers, who wish to serve as chairs and commentators should send a one-page curriculum vitae to one of the following persons:
GIHR Conference specialist Syndrene Harris –syndrene.harris @uog.gy.com
Registrar Hazel Woolford –gihrinstitut@gmail.com
Proposals will be judged according to the Proposal addresses the conference theme. (5 points)
Participants may present one paper, serve on a roundtable, or provide panel comments. They may not fill more than one of these roles during the conference, with the following exception: Members who act as panel chairs may deliver a paper, serve on a roundtable, or offer comments in another session. You may invite persons through the print or social media to be members of your panel. Members who serve as both the chair and commentator of a single session may not present in another session. If members attach themselves to more than one proposal in violation of the above rules, then the first proposal that arrives will be considered by the program committee and any subsequent proposals that include that member will be rejected.
All the correspondence, other than related to paper abstracts submission and acceptance, should be sent by e-mail for the Conference Organizing Committee, to the attention of the GIHR Conference specialist Syndrene Harris - syndrene.harris @uog.gy.com
The Organizing Committee would appreciate your familiarizing the members of your research/teaching unit, as well as all interested colleagues, with the present Announcement.
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Panels
1. Memorializing an event in history .
a. 1763 Berbice revolution.
b. 1823 Demerara rebellion.
c. 1853. The arrival of the Chinese in British Guiana.
d. 1913 Rose Hall labour protest.
e. 1953 The suspension of the Waddington constitution.
2. The Diasporas: Historical and Contemporary
a. Twice deceived.
b. Illegal immigration.
c. Little Guyana.
d. The Caribbean nationals and colonials and the British government.
e. Kamla Harris, Jamaica and Modi.
3. Africans and the human condition.
a. Contributions of Africans to the Founding of Civilizations
b. The trans-Saharan slave trade.
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Tours
Venue for the GIHR Welcome reception and the Plenary sessions
c. Slave trade, slavery and manumission in Africa, Europe and the Americas.
d. Africans, apartheid and South Africa.
e. Migrants and Expatriates
f. Africans in India.
g. Afro-Futurism
4. Christianity and Indian immigration
a. The Presbyterian church.
b. Berbice High School.
c. The Lutheran church.
d. Christian school teacher in the class room, practicing Hindu priest at home.
e. The plantation owner and the religion of labourers.
5. Gender, women, race and, identity
a. The feminization of the University.
b. Gender, women and, small business.
c. Gender based violence in the plantation society.
d. People trafficking.
6. Libraries, special collections, and historical bibliographies.
a. The Academic teaching library.
7. Main trends in education
a. Education policy.
b. Teaching Caribbean history in a plural society.
c. Adult education and learning.
d. Future learning.
e. Politics and education.
f. Ethnic studies.
g. Caribbean studies.
h. Private schools
8. Business and ethnicity.
a. Plantation economy and businesses.
b. Portuguese and businesses.
c. Yesu Persaud.
d. The tea plantations and the Irish.
e. Industrialization.
f. History of the oil industry in Guyana.
g. Food and nutrition security.
h. Parallel economy.
i. Cash transfers .
j. Socio economic transformation in Guyana and the Caribbean.
k. Guyana National Cooperative Bank.
9. Politics, trade unions and, Indians.
a. Jung Bahadur Singh
b. Jainarine Singh
c. Mohammed Ayube Edun
d. Cheddi Jagan
e. J.P. Latchmansingh.
10. Architecture
a. Gender, women and prisons.
b. Architecture and school buildings in the developing world.
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c. Architecture and the construction of hospitals.
d. The Georgetown Public Hospital.
11. Pandemics in the colonies
a. The medical history in the colonies
b. Cholera
c. Malaria
d. Yellow fever
e. The influenza epidemic.
f. Ebola.
g. Covid
h. Monkey pox/small pox.
12. Culture and the Arts.
a. Indian art and artists
b. Doris Rogers
c. Phillip Moore
d. Monuments and public art.
e. Spirituality.
f. The writings of Walter Rodney.
g. The creole world of Guyana and the Caribbean.
h. The Guyana prize.
13. International Relations.
a. The world economic order.
b. Globalization.
c. Non Aligned Movement.
d. The Problem of Territorial Settlements.
e. The Commonwealth of nations and the former members of the British empire.
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REGISTRATION FORM.
Sixteenth Conference of the Guyana Institute of Historical Research
Venue of the Opening ceremony and plenary sessions: Critchlow Labour College
Woolford Avenue
Georgetown
Dr. [] Mr. [ ] Mrs. [ ] Ms. [ ] Prof. [ ]
Name:
Address
Telephone Number: (Home ) _____(Office) ____________________________(Cell)
E-mail: ____________________________________
Organisation:___________ ____________________
Educator [ ] Post graduate student [ ] Researcher [] Administrator []
Please submit a copy of your conference presentation in the week of the conference, as well as a video presentation/power point for the conference secretariat to share. If unable to do so, please set up your presentation.
Please fill out this form or a photocopy
Contact person: Ms. Syndrene Harris- syndrene.harris @uog.gy.com
Download, scan and return Registration form to gihrinstitut@gmail.com/gihrinstitute@yahoo.com
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1823-2023. Bicentennial of the Demerara slave rebellion
Mrs. Hazel Woolford Managing Editor
