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Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 3197

guyanatimesgy.com

Sunday, April 30, 2017

PRICE

One year later

$120 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Diaspora investors still waiting on Govt to create business climate

Assassination allegation

P9

Police obtains phone records of complainant, witness

Page 3

Govt misleads: Basil Blackman still honorary advisor Page 7

Guyana, P10 Australia to strengthen ties

…in support of oil and gas sector

Sport tourism has the potential to become a major industry – Alexander

Bandits P2 invade WCD business … escape with cash, phone cards

Dave Martins addressing the inaugural Developing Sports Tourism workshop, which was held under the theme “Improving Sports through Tourism; growing Tourism through Sports”. Also in photo (from left) are Sport Director Christopher Jones, Technical Facilitator to the Education Ministry, Vincent Alexander and Sports Consultant Joseph “Reds” Perreira (Photo by John Ramsingh)

Renaming Region Showdown ensues over 9 not a priority irregularity – Vice Chairman

GPSU elections Page 11

… Police called in to pacify situation … 50+ villages yet to approve renaming

Page 9

Govt must examine P7 feasibility of further ExxonMobil exploration – TIGI Mara residents forced to P12 manoeuvre roadway

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SUnDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesGY.com

Bandits invade WCD business ‌escape with cash, phone cards

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he Police in D Division (West Bank Demerara-East Bank Essequibo) are hunting for four men who executed a daring robbery at a shop at

Anna Catherina, West Coast Demerara, on Friday evening. The incident occurred at about 20:00h.

The four men, three of whom were armed with

handguns and a knife relieved the owner, his staff and customers of their mobile phones and cash. In addition they carted off a quantity of phone cards and an

undisclosed sum of money from a drawer in the shop.

Based on reports received, three men entered the shop and without hesitation, one of them whipped

out a handgun and held the owner, Anthony Bashir, at gun point while the others ordered several customers and staff members into another section of the shop.

During the ordeal, a fourth bandit made his way into the shop to join his colleagues. The armed men then attempted to bind the hands of the owner but one vigilant customer who approached the shop realised that something was amiss and raised an alarm.

Several persons from a nearby ‘wake’ rushed to the business place but by this time the armed men ran out a back door and made good their escape through the backyard. No one was hurt during the ordeal.

Speaking with Guyana Times, Bashir explained that he normally closes his business at an earlier time

but since there was a wake nearby, he decided to keep the business open. He noted that people at the wake were visiting the shop to purchase different items.

He added that at about 20:00h, the men walked into the shop under the pretence of purchasing an item and it was then they executed the robbery. Bashir noted that at the time, he along with his brother, three employees and several customers were at the place of business.

He further stated the one of the men was masked while the others were identifiable but he did not recognise any of them, which suggested that the men are not from the area. The entire ordeal was caught on CCTV camera which is presently being reviewed by the Police.

No arrests were made.

NEWS

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Sunday, April 30 – 05:30h-07:00h and Monday, May 1 – 08:30h-10:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Sunday, April 30 – 06:45h-08:15h and Monday, May 1 – 07:45h-09:15h.

FERRY SCHEDULE Parika and Supenaam departure times - 05:00h, 11:00h and 16:00h daily

WEATHER TODAY Weather: Thunder storms with thundery to heavy rain showers can be expected throughout the day, while light cloud cover is expected in the evening.

Temperatures are expected to range between 24 degrees and 28 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to East North-easterly between 2.23 metres and 4.47 metres.

High Tide: 07:09h and 19:44h reaching maximum heights of 2.72 metres and 2.51 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 00:42h and 13:14h reaching minimum heights of 0.62 metres and 0.50 metres respectively.

SATURDAY, April 29, 2017

LOTTERY NUMBERS A

08

12 13

16

17

28

16 Bonus Ball

FREE TICKET

DAILY MILLIONS 04 15 16 22

23

LUCKY 3 3 0 4

3

Afternoon Draw

7

Evening Draw

DRAW DE LINE

02 04

07 11

One year later

Diaspora investors impatient as Govt yet to create climate for business

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iaspora investors in the United States are growing wary of waiting on Government to honour its commitments to improve the local business climate; commitments which were made nearly one year ago during the heavily promoted ‘Guyana Investment Conference’ in June 2016.

Despite having failed to follow through with its promises made during the one-day forum in New York City, President David Granger recently met with officials in the United Kingdom and encouraged them to invest in Guyana after regurgitating the same assurances given to the Diaspora in the United States.

In the meantime, the Project Director of last year’s investment conference, Salaudeen Nausrudeen, is extremely concerned that the Administration continues to urge the Diaspora and foreign businessmen to invest in Guyana, yet it fails continuously to create a business friendly climate.

“You came and excited them and did not call them to follow up. The incentives, policies, strategies they promised, did not happen. Government needs to stop talking and start doing. They need to stop talking to the Diaspora and start walking with the Diaspora,” Nausrudeen said during an interview with Guyana Times on Saturday.

Losing big

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DISCLAIMER: WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ERRORS IN PUBLICATION. PLEASE CALL THE HOTLINE FOR CONFIRMATION - TEL: 225-8902

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SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Nausrudeen, a business development and marketing expert, with more than 20 years of professional experience, argued that the onus was upon the Government to follow-up with the investors who expressed interest during the conference last year.

“They were the ones who stand to benefit so they were the ones who had

Salaudeen Nausrudeen

to follow up on each and every single investment. We were providing a platform for Guyana. We brought the investors, and they were the one to reach out and follow up,” he stated.

He further posited that Guyana is losing “big” with Government procrastinating on taking steps to implement the commitments which were made.

“It was a very rich audience; more than 250 attended the event. There was a lot of excitement and anticipation. There weren’t idle people, everyone there had a plan in their pocket and money in their hand and was willing to go to Guyana and invest,” he explained.

Nausrudeen added that in addition to failing to reconnect with interested investors, Government has not created a business climate that would attract businessmen.

Commitments

Among the top commitments made by Government Ministers during the conference are to establish clear strategies, policies and incentives for investment; implement better communication channels

and integration between relevant authorities; and fostering a deeper connection with the Diaspora.

According to Nausrudeen, investors are yet to witness any progress in this regard.

“Many of the investors have never been contacted

by Guyana, many are frustrated, and for many, that was their last chance to reconnect with Guyana on the business level,” he explained.

Nausrudeen said the Diaspora investors are mainly interested in investing in the agriculture sector but there are expression of interests for mining, manufacturing, tourism, energy, and technology and services.

Attitude

In light of the lack of progress, Nausrudeen said business members of the Diaspora are still willing to invest in Guyana.

However, he said one of the major concerns is Government’s attitude towards business.

“They have an issue with the Minister of Finance (Winston Jordan) talking down the Private Sector players, you don’t those things when you want to attract business,” he posited.

Jordan, during a recent Diaspora meeting in Washington, DC, criticised

the local Private Sector players for not taking enough risks to stimulate economic growth.

Proposals

Coinciding with the country’s jubilee independence anniversary, the Conference was intended to promote Guyana as an investment destination for Diaspora and non-Diaspora investors.

Additionally, many investors with proposals in hand queued in long lines to meet with Ministers and officials of the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) to discuss their projects and proposals. Throughout the day, the room filled with investors and entrepreneurs were seen in energising and active networking.

Business Minister Dominic Gaskin, in delivering on the investment opportunities in Guyana, said Government is “serious in bringing business to Guyana clean, fair and transparent.

Guyana can accommodate all kind investors.”

He made it clear that the abundance of natural and human resources available in Guyana reinforces the fact that the present Administration is ready to do business and to establish the right investment climate in Guyana.

Meanwhile, efforts to contact the Business Minister for a comment proved futile.

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sunDAY, april 30, 2017

Views Editor: Tusika Martin News Hotline: 231-8063 Editorial: 231-0544 223-7230,223-7231,231-0544, 225-7761 Marketing: 231-8064 Accounts: 225-6707 Mailing address: Queens Atlantic Investment Estate Industrial Site, Ruimveldt, Georgetown Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, sales@guyanatimesgy.com

Editorial

The Govt and the rule of law

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he “rule of law” is one of those phrases that Governments loves to use and our citizenry is very familiar with, but like “good morning” or “good afternoon”, has absolutely no bearing to phenomena invoked. This is rather unfortunate since it is this “rule of law” that has to be the foundation of any state we hope to establish in our long-abused land, where our people – brought here to labour as slaves and indentured servants or peripheralised into the jungles – can live with dignity.

What is the ‘rule of law”? Ultimately that citizens should be ruled by laws and not men and that no man – even a king – can be above to those laws. In Britain, which ruled us for hundreds of years, their move from the rule of an absolute monarch to their present “rule of law” took hundreds of year and saw a King beheaded. In Guyana, the process was not as conflictual and possibly, because of this, our citizenry are not imbued with the well-nigh reflexive opposition to threats to the rule of law.

The immediate problem arises with the word “ruled”.

Since mere words articulating the law cannot actually execute them, it is left to the men who have to act under or according to the law and it is here that problems inevitably arise. Whether out of “human nature” from the “twisted timber” out of which we are made, or individual idiosyncrasies of those who are chosen to “rule”, the rule of law is almost always tested.

The “rule of law” has to begin with the “law” – the rules by which we are to be ruled, and ultimately these have to emanate from the will of the people if they are to be seen as legitimate and obeyed. The Supreme Law of the land is the Constitution, which “constitutes” the State that is supposed to rule the citizenry under its mandate. Properly, the widest possible agglomeration of the representatives of the people – social, political, religious, business etc – are supposed to be convened as a “Constituent Assembly” to draft this Constitution.

This draft Constitution should then be presented in a referendum to the people for approval. The present Constitution has never undergone this legitimising process and this should be rectified sooner rather than later.

Arising from the need to always be careful of the dangers of power being centralised and taking on authoritarian characteristics, modern Constitutions invariably insist that the powers to rule the State be separated into the three functional areas of governance: Executive, Legislative and Judicial.

The Legislative branch is responsible for enacting the laws of the State and authorising the funds necessary to operate the Government. The Executive branch is responsible for implementing and administering the public policy enacted and funded by the legislative branch. While the Judicial branch is responsible for interpreting the Constitution and laws and applying their interpretations to controversies brought before it. The organisations that have these powers should be structured in such a way that they act as “checks and balances” on each other to ensure the rule of law is not violated.

In Guyana, we should see immediately that the Executive and Legislature are so conjoined and intertwined – with the Executive in control – that reform in this area is absolutely necessary. Much of the present overreach of the Government arises from this unfortunate state of affairs.

For instance, in the recent initiative of the Government to form an institution to combat corruption – State Asset Recovery Agency (SARA) – the Legislature should have explicitly disqualified the appointment of “politically connected persons” to prevent political witch hunting and other conflicts of interest. It did not because the legislature is totally controlled by the Executive and the Director of the Agency is a co-leader of a party that is a member of the coalition Government.

The result will be a traducing of the rule of law.

This young lady was seen in downtown Georgetown displaying her football skills as two little girls watched in amazement

Narine photo)

(Marceano

Political power and arrested development Dear Editor, The recent arrests and detention of a former Executive President of Guyana, Head of the Presidential Secretariat and Cabinet Secretary, Attorney General, other ministers, and senior member of the PPP/C – for the purported purpose of exacting justice for the Guyanese people – seem to me to be loathsome acts of persecution.

Walter Rodney, when defining power, noted: “Power is the ultimate determinant in human society, being basic to the relations within and between groups. It implies the ability to defend one’s interests and, if necessary, to impose one’s will by any means available. In relations between peoples, the question of power determines manoeuverability in bargaining, and the extent to which people survive as a physical and cultural entity”.

What is to be gained for Guyana by abusing the political power vested in you?

How does this abuse of power enhance our democracy or

enhance national cohesion?

There are certain actions a new or newish political administration should avoid. It is pertinent to quote Arthur J. Magida writing recently in the Washington Spectator: “America prides itself on peaceful transition from one president to the other. No coups. No backstabbing. No backward glances at what might have been… No matter how bitter a presidential campaign or how antithetical an outgoing president’s policies and ideology may be from his successor’s, the newcomer is ushered into the highest office in the land with dignity and courtesy…

As part of our tradition is the absence of any remonstrance from one president toward another, regardless of the ideological gulf between them”.

To have the APNU/AFC Coalition government pursue a path, which seems to be destructive to the growth and development of Guyana – in cultural, economic, political and social ways; and

in a nutshell be racially divisive, abhorrent, wholly unnecessary and persecutory – is inhumane. If the purpose is to humiliate the PPP hierarchy and weaken the PPP supporters, the coalition’s actions are an antithesis to their aims.

Persecution, as viewed by the pre-eminent legal scholar William Murray, also known as Lord Mansfield, is recorded thus: “There is nothing certainly more unreasonable, more inconsistent with the rights of human nature, more contrary to the spirit… more iniquitous to and unjust, more impolitic, than persecution”.

It seems that this administration is floating on such a sea, where priority is given to looking backwards over a horizon-less sea, as unjustifiable actions are conducted and executed with the varnish of political legality to find the invisible horizon.

Jean-Paul Sartre, the great French philosopher and political activist, after being arrested for civil dis-

obedience in Paris in 1968, benefited from the intervention of, and pardon by, President Charles de Gaulle.

The President said then: “You don’t arrest Voltaire”.

We may not have the likes of Voltaire, Sartre and Lord Mansfield among us.

However, what we absolutely need to have is an absence of persecution by the current governing administration towards the previous governing administration. Life is too short to be wasted on seeking revenge, or conducting endless recriminative actions that torpedo our country into an ungovernable and failed state.

Party paramountcy is our country’s Achilles’ heel; it leads to perversion of justice.

The heel needs to be cleansed or abandoned. In the absence of a magical river, the latter option to abandon party paramountcy in the governance of Guyana is strongly recommended.

Sincerely, Nigel Hinds

Time stands still Dear Editor, Some villages on the West Coast of Berbice (WCB) can truly be described as places where “time stands still.”

There are some villages where the front lands (residential areas) are privately owned and the agricultural lands (backdam lands) are state owned; but there are other villages where both front and agricultural lands are freehold property.

I refer specifically to Mon Choisi (#3) Edderton (#4) and ZeeLust (#5) vil-

lages on the WCB which I know about for sure. These villages, and their proprietors, have an age old problem which needs to be urgently addressed. Lands and Surveys records show that the three aforementioned villages were first surveyed in the late 19th century, with their lands being allotted to proprietors in plots with a north-to-south orientation.

There were some attempts at updating these surveys in the 1960s as per

Land Registration activity, ie: creating a register of owners.

But those regularization attempts made in the 1960s were, to all intents and purposes, half-hearted; they never reached the point of issuance of transports or titles to those registered as owners.

In the 1970s and the 1980s, a drainage and irrigation network, to facilitate increased agricultural production, was established in WCB, with the channels

running in a north-to-south direction, same as the land holdings. And herein lies the problem for these villages like Mon Choisi, Edderton et al. Ideally, Editor, the agricultural/backdam lands of these villages should be situated at right angles to the D&I network, so that a farmer can access irrigation supplies at one end of his field and discharge such supplies at the other end of the field (the drainage end) when supplies are no longer needed. continues on page 5

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You can send your letters with pictures to: Guyana Times, Queens Atlantic Investment Estate Industrial Site, Ruimveldt, Georgetown, Guyana or letters@guyanatimesgy.com

Is Guyana IMF-bound?

Dear Editor, Since the passage of Minister Jordan’s 2016 Budget, the seeds for a deteriorating Guyana dollar (G$) were planted. Against the US dollar, the G$ has fallen to its lowest level ever, and is currently trading on the open market at G$230 to US$1 for off-board transactions at the non-bank cambios, and for online and wire transfers at the commercial banks.

I had a conversation this month with a good friend who came from the old country, and he told me that to get the US dollars to fund his trip, he had gone to several cambios and banks and could not find the cash at the advertised rate (usually around G$215 to US$1), but was advised that if he was willing to forgo a receipt and pay G$230 to US$1, arrangement could be made within two hours. He got his money at a rate of G$230 to US$1 and made his trip.

So what is being told to the nation by Minister Jordan exposes how disconnected he is from the reality on the ground. The reports are revealing a declining stock of US dollars in the system, and that money is being kept for an exclusive group: their related parties; businesses of the banks and cambios; senior Government functionaries; their own staff, for personal needs; and

for those who are prepared to pay G$230 and above for one US dollar.

Since the 2016 budget, the exchange rate has deteriorated by some 12 per cent, compared to what prevailed at the time that budget was read in January 2016. The expectations from the market today are that this slide in the rate will continue, primarily because Guyana is just exporting too little and not earning enough foreign currency. Minister Jordan’s poor technical skillsets are also compounding this situation, which is leading to a loss of confidence in the economy.

The cause of a currency movement is vital in determining its likely effects. This free fall in the exchange rate at a time of low investments and high unemployment will have materially different effects than a similar-sized depreciation in the ERP days (1988-1992). Under Hoyte, there was one major difference – rapid increases in foreign direct investments and a more manageable unemployment situation. So the outcome today will be catastrophic compared to the Hoyte days.

Compared to the ERP days and the PPP days, the Guyanese private sector is in the worst possible position to attract new long-term customers in overseas markets,

Time stands...

from page 4

The point is that, in the hitherto mentioned villages, the D&I infrastructure for increased agricultural production and poverty alleviation is in place, but villagers are unable to access the network in any way because their holdings run parallel to the channels; and as is known, parallel lines never meet.

The result is that people have arable freehold land that they cannot fully utilize; so there is poverty, socio-economic problems, urban drift and migration.

The solution to this problem is that: (1) the agricultural lands in these villages should be surveyed/measured in their current north-tosouth alignment to determine the acreages owned by each proprietor, and then (2) these lands should be turned around ie: given an east-towest alignment along the entire width of the village, and then be returned with the necessary title to the proprietor in this new alignment.

This is absolutely nec-

essary land reform, and the MMA/ADA should be doing it. Indeed the MMA/ADA has done such realignment of lands in other villages on the WCB, where the land holdings and the D&I system were parallel to each other.

The better quality of life in these villages can be easily seen.

Parallel lines of the landholding pattern and the D&I system in the freehold villages, as pointed out here, are untenable, since parallel lines can never meet ie: the lands (oriented as they are) can never access the D&I infrastructure.

Editor, this is the 21st century, and the MMA/ADA must do the necessary surveys and land realignment so that the people in these villages can get a shot at modernity.

Sincerely, Clifford Stanley Union Village, WCB (Formerly of #4 Village WCB)

irrespective of what they do to their selling prices. In this New Global Order, the international market is demanding value-added products, not raw products. But Guyana is on the wrong side of the production platform with its raw products. So the market will pay Guyana heavily discounted prices for its raw products, which are swamping the market.

You cannot talk about a new breed of private sector player when you have failed to play your part, Minister Jordan.

When, on April 9, 2017, the Minister of Business said, “Guyana currently has no investment project to offer”, he was not wrong. If one studies the latest “EASE OF DOING BUSINESS REPORT”, Guyana’s ranking in the world on the Competitiveness Indicator reflects a deterioration since 2016. But that was no accident. Because of our small internal market, the only solution for Guyana is to focus on the export sector, especially the six sisters (rice, sugar, bauxite, gold, forestry, seafoods).

But rather than do the work it is being paid to do, the Granger Administration is busy with its “pointer broom in the sand”, constructing SARU and BARU and SOCU and POCU, and billion-dollar parade grounds. But none of these edifices has generated any foreign currency for Guyana; but the six sisters do.

Is President Granger’s legacy going to be one that is steeped in pusillanimity?

Is Guyana under his watch IMF-bound?

Sincerely, Sase Singh

Limited knowledge of Claims and Objections (Part 2)

Dear Editor, Mr Kumar wrote, “Currently, the political parties and the nation are yet to receive a report on the transactions that were completed, including registrations done, transfers done, and changes done at each GECOM office in the country”. He went on to say, inter alia, “We wait, but when would the report be available? GECOM appears to be doing everything within its authority to block information from reaching the public, thus implying that the body is not obligated by law to provide certain information, according to a release from Chief Elections Officer Lowenfield to the People’s Progressive Party”.

The Chief Election Officer gave copies of the categories and respective numbers of registration transactions which were conducted during the registration phase of the 9th Cycle of Continuous Registration exercise, and an electronic copy of the current Preliminary List of Electors (PLE). This was done at the above mentioned meeting. Further, at that meeting, the PPP delegation requested a hard copy of the PLE and summaries of the new registrations and transfers by Registration Division that were done during the exercise. This was provided to the Party on Friday, April 21, 2017.

Identical data was provided to the APNU/AFC via the coalition’s representative, who was also present at the above mentioned meeting.

Mr Kumar wrote: “There are reports of exorbitant spending by the elections body for the registration period. Many vehicles were rented and hired beforehand, yet many special taxis still had to be utilized. It was also reported that water and air transportation costs were deliberately inflated and exceeded the planned budget, and meals and meals allow-

ances were costly”.

In this regard, we hereby state unequivocally that:(i) No vehicle was hired beforehand; and if any, the hire of “special” taxis would have been minimal and only in Registration Areas where no GECOM-owned vehicle was posted (ii) Water transportation for hinterland riverine areas was hired following an advertisement being published for the provision of such services to be tendered for (iii) We are satisfied that the costs associated with the provision of meals for GECOM staff and party scrutineers were within acceptable limits and within the relevant budgetary provisions (iv) We will leave it up to the companies that provided air services to comment on whether they engaged in collusion with the GECOM Secretariat relative to the claim that the relevant charges were inflated, (v) Any audit of the relevant vouchers and supporting documents would substantiate our position.

Mr Kumar also wrote: “Also noticeable during the registration exercise was the treatment of the public by some of the so-called trained GECOM staff. Some officers were guilty of being rude and disrespectful to persons wanting to do transactions; young registrants were bullied, and some were even asked to leave buildings for being inappropriately dressed, whereas others were allowed in despite wearing similar attire. The young registrants that are perceived to be PPP, especially girls, faced the brunt of some GECOM officers’ actions. It was quite disgusting that in numerous cases, persons left GECOM centres, never to return, because of the officers’ attitude”.

He added that “some of the PPP scrutineers faced the

same treatment, and many accepted what was meted out to them as they wanted to remain in the centres to prevent the officers from committing any intended skulduggery” At senior management level, we never fail to remind all frontline staff – who interact with members of the public in general – of the need for them to maintain courtesy, professionalism and efficiency. In fact, this need was reinforced at the last Meeting of Managers of the Secretariat and Registration Officers on April 7, 2017, and again at refresher training sessions across Guyana on April 19 and 21, 2017. This action was taken not in response to complaints made against our staff, but because this is in line with our strategy for the maintenance of a good public image between and among the Commission’s public. Having said that, we invite all stakeholders to bring to our attention any official malpractice that might have been committed by any of our staff, to enable us to deal with any such occurrence accordingly. However, such stakeholders must be prepared to substantiate the report(s), as we cannot, and will not, entertain hearsay.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, we must reiterate that all of the questions/concerns pertaining to the work of the GECOM Secretariat documented by Mr Kumar in his letters could have been raised and answered at the abovementioned meeting that was held on April 20, 2017.

Accordingly, we invite Mr Kumar and any other stakeholder to contact the Chief Election Officer for adequate and appropriate response(s) to any pertinent query/concern pertaining to the work of the GECOM Secretariat.

Sincerely, Vishnu Persaud Deputy Chief Election Officer

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Foundation

Anu Dev

omorrow is Labour Day, and Friday will be Indian Arrival Day. The latter commemorated the arrival of these “indentured” labourers to our shores. Now that President Granger has acknowledged “Portuguese Arrival Day” and “Chinese Arrival Day,” I hope some researchers would discover when the first West Indian Africans arrived as indentured labourers. Some 39,059 did, more than the Portuguese and Chinese, and we can at last acknowledge their role in shaping our society.

There were also 13,355 persons from Africa who were brought under indentured conditions by British ships that intercepted slave ships, and some were recruited as indentured labourers. They, too, should be remembered. While the Portuguese and the Chinese generally left the plantations immediately after their indentureship ended to open shops - especially rum shops

guyanatimesgy.com

- the indentured labourers from the West Indies, mostly from Barbados, and Africa generally remained on the sugar estates. My grandfather (Aja) mentioned the “Bajan Quarters” that were aback the logies of “Letter A” at Uitvlugt, WCD, and he could remember the names of some of their descendants who still live in the Casbah section of our village.

I mention this because it is important to remember that it will not only be the descendants of Indian indentured labourers who would be affected by the mass closures of sugar es-

tates, as announced by the Government.

I spent the last six weeks in Guyana -- four of them at the GHPC -- but managed to travel around Guyana, as my family members are wont to do whenever we have holidays. From Demerara, where I live, to Berbice, where I spent a long weekend, most affected persons expect great hardships to occur in the coming years. As I listened to people talk (mostly to my dad, I must confess), I was struck by the similarities from the situation after the abolition of slavery I had read

about in my textbooks on WI History. England had decided to move to “free trade” then -- for her own benefit -and remove the tariffs that gave WI sugar an advantage. The price of sugar also fell, and the local planters found themselves between a rock and a hard place. Many of them abandoned their plantations; some sold them to freed Africans, but the majority cut wages, which the freed Africans refused because there was land they could farm, or move into the towns and interior.

Only the indentured labourers would accept the

low wages for field work. In Barbados and the small islands, there was no alternative employment, and low wages also prevailed there. In India, millions has been displaced and suffered famines.

Those freed Africans who remained on the plantations usually received higher wages because they could perform the skilled tasks in the factories or the distilleries etc.

Now that the price for sugar has been cut by Europe and the factories will be closed, the thousands who will now be out of jobs will have to take whatever wages are offered them as in the period of indentureship.

Since there aren’t many jobs

opening up, some will seek to emigrate, as the Bajans did back in the 19th century, or our own Guyanese did after the 1980s. But Suriname, Venezuela, Trinidad, St Kitts -- and even the US under President Trump -- will not be as welcoming.

When economic conditions are harsh, it always falls on the women to ensure families survive, as was the case during indentureship and during the 1980s. Some were forced to make desperate choices. We will have to stand together with sugar workers in the days ahead.

They are literally our sisters and brothers; and yes, we are their “keepers”.

GTT joined in observing “Girls in ICT” Day

Some of the girls took notes as they asked questions

F

emale students from several secondary schools across Guyana were exposed to the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) operations of GTT during a tour of the company’s facilities last Thursday, as part of the “Girls in ICT Day” observance.

The tour initiative was done in collaboration with the National Data Management Authority (NDMA) of the Public Telecommunication Ministry and was focused on highlighting the many career possibilities that are available in the ICT field.

The girls were also shown, in a relatable and hands on way, the process it takes to get the telecommunication technology to cus-

tomers’ homes and handsets.

GTT’s Public Relations Officer, Allison Parker encouraged the girls to “be at the forefront of those who join in contributing and development of the ICT sector”.

At the end of the tour, several of the girls expressed keen interest in eventually being part of the industry.

GTT previously partnered with the National Frequency Management Unit, to observe “Girls ICT Day”, an initiative of the International Telecommunication Union, “Which aims to empower and encourage girls and young women to consider careers in the growing STEM/ ICT sector”.

7 Govt misleads: Basil Blackman still honorary advisor B news

asil Blackman has confirmed he still holds the position of an honorary advisor under the Ministry of the Presidency (MoTP) even though the Government has refuted claims of that nature.

Blackman told Guyana Times on Saturday that he has been an advisor since his appointment in May 2016.

As honorary advisor, Blackman was not being paid but he was willing to contribute to improved governance.

However, the MOTP on April 25, in a strong missive, denied that Blackman was an official of that body as was outlined in an online news article.

“The Ministry of the Presidency wishes to inform all and sundry that Mr Basil Blackman AA, the individual mentioned in the sensational report, is not an adviser to His Excellency David Granger, President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, neither is he an official of the Ministry of the Presidency,” the statement outlined.

The MOTP further demanded that the online news entity retract its article, claiming that assertion that Blackman was an official is erroneous.

The online article reported that the man fingered in the plot to assassinate President David Granger had attended a party hosted by Blackman.

However, Blackman has since highlighted that

sunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

A business card showing Basil Blackman is an official of the MoTP

he does not know all of the attendees at the event.

Regarding the investigation into the assassination plot, Police have managed to obtain the phone records of persons involved.

The probe recently took an unexpected turn when a witness revealed that the complainant (the man who claimed he was hired to assassinate the

President) had offered him money to give a statement to the Police claiming that he was present when the two businessmen contacted him (complainant) to assassinate the President.

According to sources, the complainant had only made the monetary offer after he informed the Police of the assassination plot.

Crime Chief Wendell

Blanhum has assured that all efforts are being made to expedite the investigation.

If the Police concludes that the assassination plot claims were mischievous, guilty parties can be charged for providing false information to the Police.

However, if the allegation is true, the guilty parties could be charged for treason.

Govt must examine feasibility of further ExxonMobil exploration – TIGI … says global economic outlook puts big profits in doubt

C

iting the lack of clear response from Government, Transparency Institute of Guyana Incorporated (TIGI) has called for the Administration to provide information on what steps it has taken to get information from ExxonMobil on further exploration it is doing in the Stabroek block.

According to TIGI, on Saturday the organisation wrote to Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman, requesting clarification on whether he had asked ExxonMobil to submit a feasibility study. This study is in light of its proposed Stabroek Block development.

“This letter was delivered on March 29, 2017, and we obtained acknowledgement of receipt almost a month later by calling to enquire on April 27, 2017. Even after this time, however, we were unable to obtain a clear response about whether or not a response is forthcoming,”

TIGI revealed.

“As Guyana engages in its quest for Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) candidacy, it is important to ensure that the Ministry of Natural Resources is committed to the endeavour. (This is) considering that EITI is a global standard to promote accountable management of oil, gas and mineral resources, and knowing of Guyana’s stated interest in implementing this standard,” the letter stated.

In its letter, TIGI had referred to the uncertain future of international oil prices and the effect that Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) induced production cuts would have on oil prices. In light of these factors, TIGI expressed the importance of determining the feasibility of the project.

“TIGI imagines that the Government of Guyana would want to know with a high degree of confidence

ExxonMobil oil rig in the Stabroek Block

that production licences are only issued for projects

that are economically feasible. TIGI is also keen, as

might be the Government of Guyana, that the extraction and production of oil in the Stabroek Block would yield a return that is consistent with the expectations of Guyanese.”

Referring to a recent research report by multi-national investment bank Goldman Sachs, TIGI noted that even with an extension of the production cut by OPEC the prices may not raise. This, TIGI observed, is because of a record increase in non-OPEC production that would prevent a significant increase in oil prices. turn to page 12

8

SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesGY.com

More madcap thinking…

H …on oil and gas

ave you, dear readers, noticed that – as predicted by your Eyewitness – the price of oil dipped below US$49 per barrel? As he said, US shale production – which Exxon has now jumped into – would rise faster than anyone was predicting; fast outstripping OPEC’s production cut that was supposed to create “tight supplies” and raise prices. The US stared down the Saudis – who’d sworn to break shale oil – and the Saudis blinked!!

So what’s this got to do with us, apart from GPL making a killing, since its rates were set at US$100 per barrel of oil?? Well, we return to the Government in general – and to Trotman in particular – who invoke oil ad nauseum since everything but gold has fallen apart from Government’s misguided policies. Now don’t get your Eyewitness wrong; he’s firmly convinced Exxon will make its final investment decision (FID) to go ahead.

But as he’s been asking: What’s in it for us?? Even if we could ever keep tabs on how much oil Exxon will be pumping out – ha!! – can WE make anything on US$50 oil?? Your Eyewitness is amazed that local reporters don’t ask Trotman these questions; instead, letting him get away with spouting hot air and adding to global warming!

To misdirect folks terrified at the economy collapsing, Trotman started floating some nebulous US$500M “oil processing facility” on Crab Island – which may have crabs, but is certainly no island! And this even though Exxon said it won’t touch that idea with a short-boom turret!! With that going nowhere, we now hear about him shelling out US$700,000 to explore the idea of running a gas pipeline from the Stabroek Field to provide natural gas to fire a 200MW power plant.

More pie in the sky, in line with Trotman’s mantra of “if you can’t impress them with facts, dazzle them with BS!!” And this is high-grade, pungent BS! Not the idea, but the mega-bucks being shelled out to some Texan for the “study!!” This stinks to the high heavens; and if SARA were even SLIGHTLY less politicised, they’d be investigating this deal. Sounds like that electricity barge Corbin brought in from Texas back in the day for millions and millions, but we never got a watt of power. Lots of “WHAT the F***”, but no power!!

Anyhow, your Eyewitness has been pushing this Government to have a tie-in with Ghana on developing our oil and gas. They’re a decade ahead of us with their mirror Jubilee field.

Why not ask them about the US$500M contract they just signed with China for their gas pipelines from their underwater oil fields??

…on education

We just had an Education CoI Report given to an Education Minister. Yes, another one; this time from a CoI headed by former long-serving Chief Education Officer Ed Caesar. HE must’ve received dozens of these reports in his time from the education ministers who preceded this one. The incumbent minister said he hoped this report won’t be left to gather dust.

But that is exactly why your Eyewitness is worried.

Since HE’s in charge, it’s up to THE MINISTER to ensure the report doesn’t gather dust. Since he felt it necessary to HOPE it didn’t, however, it’s clear that, like his predecessors, he’s expecting someone else to take charge to ensure the Report is implemented.

Remember the “No child left behind” Reports??

Remember the “Change from tests to Assessments” reports? Remember the Improve maths report?? The Improve English Report? Remember the Science Kits Report?

Well, this time there will be billions and billions of dollars from the World Bank to spend.

Expect the “Where’d the money go?” Report!!

... on press freedom

The PNC-led Coalition Govt complained that the Press Freedom report that dropped it THREE places on the world ranking is flawed!! When its predecessor PPP government was being given stick, the report was OK. It’s not fair that they changed the criteria just to penalise the PNC!!

Readers are invited to send their comments by email to eye@guyanatimesgy.com

NEWS

9

SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Assassination allegation

Police obtains phone records of complainant, witness I

nvestigators probing the alleged assassination plot against President David Granger have obtained phone records of the persons involved, as ordered by the Guyana Police Force’s Legal Advisor.

Last week, Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum told Guyana Times that when they returned the case file to the legal advisor on Wednesday morning, she requested that the records be obtained.

Acting Police Commissioner David Ramnarine confirmed on Saturday that those records have since been obtained from the local phone companies. It is unclear, however, whether the file has been resent to the legal advisor since Ramnarine opted not to divulge any further information when prompted by this newspaper. Nevertheless, he noted that the probe is “on going.”

Meanwhile, the Crime Chief had also disclosed last week that investigators have made certain recommendations based on their findings during the probe. However, efforts made by this newspaper to contact him for further clarification on this pronouncement and for general updates on the probe have been futile.

This publication understands that the stories sub-

mitted by the complainant and the alleged witness, who was supposed to corroborate the assassination plot, do not coincide; hence, the Legal Advisor had previously advised that a confrontation be held to make certain clarifications. This was done on Tuesday.

Moreover, this newspaper was told that during the confrontation, the alleged ‘witness’ told investigators that the complainant had contacted him and offered him a sum of money to give a statement to the Police claiming that he was present when the two businessmen contacted him (complainant) to assassinate the President.

According to sources, the complainant had only made the monetary offer after he informed the Police of the assassination plot. The statements from the confrontation were submitted to the legal advisor on Wednesday morning.

Furthermore, this publication was previously told that the complainant allegedly owes some businessmen, whom he accused, in excess of $8 million.

Independent investigations revealed that the man failed to repay the money and was confronted by his creditors. Based on his inability to repay the money and more so, out of fear of what the men are capable of

alleged plot to assassinate President David Granger was first brought to light by Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, at last Thursday’s post-Cabinet press briefing.

Shortly after news broke of the investigations into an alleged assassination plot against the Head of State,

the complainant, a wellknown barber of Grove, East Bank Demerara (EBD), appeared on a local private television station to relate his story.

In that interview, the barber revealed that he was offered $7 million and given a “long black gun” by a

businessman to carry out the job of assassinating the President, but he had declined the offer.

Reports indicate that he subsequently filed a complaint with the Police, prompting the investigation which has been ongoing for over three weeks.

Renaming of Region 9 not a priority – Vice Chairman The man who claimed that two local businessmen hired him to assassinate President David Granger

doing, he allegedly levelled the allegation against the businessmen.

Police Commissioner Seelall Persaud told reporters last Friday that the Force’s Legal Advisor would have to determine whether there is substance to the allegation or if it is just a ploy to create mischief and based on her findings, the Police will take the appropriate actions.

The Top Cop had pointed out that if the allegation is indeed true, the guilty parties involved could be charged for treason, but if it was a mischievous act, the person who made the allegation could be charged for providing false information to the Police.

The matter involving the

… 50+ villages yet to approve renaming

W

hile the Lethem municipality seems to be onboard with the retitling of ‘Region Nine (Upper Takatu-Upper Essequibo)’ to just ‘The Rupununi’, there are some 56 villages that need to participate in the process before the administrative region is officially renamed.

Region Nine Vice Chairman, Karl Singh explained that within each of the other villages, which encompassed the interior savannahs, the village leaders/ Toshao will have to embark on a process to get the views of each resident regarding the name change.

According to Singh, an approval from each village would only be valid if twothirds of the village’s pop-

ulation are in favour of renaming the region.

Personally, Singh said he is not against the renaming of Region Nine but he believes that too much energy and time is being exerted behind this activity when there are more pressing issues to be addressed including problems in the education and health sectors.

The Mayor and Town Council of Lethem in collaboration with the regional administration on Monday concluded talks on the renaming of the region, and the institution of regional flags and symbols.

Lethem Mayor Carlton Beckles spoke to the residents about the regional identity and the decentralisation of power.

According to an article by the Government Information Agency (GINA), most of the Lethem residents were in favour of the name Rupununi instead of Upper Takatu, Upper Essequibo.

Regional Chairman Bryan Allicock who attended the meetings, also spoke to residents about the role of the region in the consultations and the importance of the flags as a symbol in forging a regional patrimony and identity.

Several residents said they preferred to have the red colour at the top of the flag since it represents the zeal of the people and the people must be placed ahead of the green which symbolises its rich forestry. turn to page 12

10 news

sunDAY, april 30, 2017| guyanatimesgy.com

Guyana, Australia to strengthen ties … discuss support of oil and gas sector

N

atural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman met with the Australian High Commissioner to Guyana along with other Australian diplomats, where the two countries pledged their support to strengthen bilateral ties in support of the oil and gas sector.

Trotman met with High Commissioner John Pilbeam along with Deputy Foreign Minister and Trade Secretary of Australia, Penny Williams on Friday.

Discussions were had on a number of issues, mainly those related to the oil and gas sector and gold production.

Speaking on Guyana’s gold production, Minister Trotman told the Australian diplomats that he is impressed with the works of Troy Resources, the Australian gold company.

Trotman noted that the company’s contribution

Minister Raphael Trotman and High Commissioner, John Pilbeam and Deputy Foreign Minister Penny Williams during the visit

was instrumental towards Guyana’s achievement of a record breaking gold production year in 2016.

The Natural Resources Minister also highlighted the company’s commitment to health and safety, not only for its employees but also of persons who reside in the communities in which that

company operates.

However, the discussion also included conversations on the Sovereign Wealth Fund. The Fund enables Guyana to obtain long-term benefit from its oil and mineral resources.

Minister Trotman noting that this Fund will be managing revenues not only from

oil and gas but also from mining and forestry, with a view of enhancing transparency in all natural resources sectors.

Trotman used the opportunity to express his appreciation that Guyana is receiving for management of the oil and gas sector.

He added that at this point in time, it is important for persons to be trained in the oil and gas sector, highlighting Government’s willingness to receive support from Australia. The Australian diplomats also expressed their willingness to cooperate with and support Guyana at this time.

Williams, who was appointed to her current post in February 2017, also pledged Australia’s support for Guyana regarding the nation’s territorial integrity.

Since Guyana and Australia established diplomatic ties on May 14, 1973, relations between the two countries have been concentrated mainly on interactions at the multilateral level through fora such as the Commonwealth and the United Nations.

There remains great potential for increased bilateral cooperation in the areas of education/training, agriculture, trade, tourism, security, health and in environment and climate change related matters.

This country for old men S atiricus wasn’t too happy that school was back in session. He had no problem with the young ones getting an “education,” but the extra buses on the road to take them there made his morning commute a living hell. So “school” was in his head when he sauntered into the Back Street bar for his afternoon picker-upper, and he was taken aback with Bungi’s greeting.

“Ah wha’ happen ya-suh?” Bungi demanded.

“Dem wan’ keep teacha till 65?”

“Hold it!” Satiricus exclaimed. “Can I get my beer? What you talking about?”

“He’s referring to the Education CoI recommendation to the Minister,” explained Hari.

“It was in your paper.”

“Budday, that doesn’t mean I made the policy,” Satiricus said to Bungi, after he had gulped half of the first beer the waitress had plunked in front of him. “How old was the man who made the recommendation??”

“An old Education Officer,” grinned Hari.

“Waaaay over 65!”

“And how old is the Minister??” asked Satiricus, as he signalled for another beer.

“Yuh know Roop na Rain,” reported Bungi. “He waay, waay pas’ 65!”

“Well, I think there are too many old men running things in this country!” concluded Satiricius. “What’s going to happen to all the young people if they don’t step aside?”

“Eh-eh, Sato!! But yuh leadah Nagga Man waaay pas’ 65 too!” chuckled Bungi. “Yuh guh t’row ‘e out?”

“My friend, the only man who can throw him out is older than him!!” pointed out Satiricus.

“Pressie!!”

“That would be like trying the Devil’s case in hell!” laughed Hari. “You notice is all old men heading these CoIs?” “T’aamas, who bin head de Sugar CoI, ovah 80!!” observed Bungi. “So, did he recommend cane cutters can work to 65?” Satiricus wanted to know.

“Abee na need da benefit,” said Bungi. “Cane cutta na live pas’ 60.”

news

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SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesGY.com

GPSU elections

Showdown ensues over irregularity … Police called in to pacify situation

H The Foreign Currency Debacle

L

(Part II)

ast week, I contended that though there is evidence pointing to a decline in net inflow of the US currency, the aggregate foreign currency holdings by the banking system remained relatively unchanged. However, a substantial shift in the composition of commercial banks’ foreign holdings, wherein a larger portion was utilised for foreign investments, was evident.

I argued that this was largely attributed to the distortion of the exchange rate in the domestic foreign exchange market, causing the Guyana dollar to depreciate.

To this end, the findings stemming from my analysis on this matter are thus far in sharp contrast with the contentions put forward by central government officials (the central bank governor and the minister of finance) when they met with the bankers’ association on March 24, 2017. Arising from that meeting, in a press release on March 25, 2017, it was stated that exporters are hoarding foreign currency in their retention accounts, and are sourcing foreign currency in the domestic market instead; which reduced the supply of foreign currency as demand increased, leading to the depreciation and instability of the rate.

Further, the proposed solution of a possible ‘moral suasion’ cited by the finance minister was such that, if the situation persists, closure of retention accounts held by exporters could be exercised with the aim of correcting and stabilising the exchange rate.

I, on the other hand, would respectfully like to strongly disagree with this proposed course of action. Closure of exporters’ retention accounts might do more harm to the economy than good. The reason is simple, and has potential catastrophic consequences to the economy if pursued.

Guyana’s financial market is still highly underdeveloped in comparison to the more advanced economies like obtain in the U.S, U.K etc., in respect to innovative financial instruments.

Students of finance and accounting, finance professionals and all business executives would know that firms operate within an environment which can also be described as THE economic environment, and they do not operate in isolation of the external environment. Thus, within this framework, companies are exposed to a number of inherent risk factors, such as political risks, economic risks, market risks, social risks, technological risks. In the context of this article, they are also exposed to exchange rate risks or foreign currency risks, and of course there are many other risks. In light of this, companies and businesses therefore need to engage in prudent risk management practices by using various risk management tools. In regard to exchange rate risks, there are various financial instruments that can be used to hedge exchange rate risks (exchange rate risk is simply the fluctuation of the exchange rate against another foreign currency with which a country engages in international trade).

These instruments referred to are known as derivatives.

Derivatives are normally traded within a submarket, by itself called a ‘derivatives market’, which include forwards, futures, swaps and options contracts. Unfortunately, space precludes me from explaining each one of these in detail; but, generally, they are used as risk management tools by investors by either hedging a portfolio against risk and/or arbitrage or speculation over specific profit opportunities. Hedging ensures counterbalancing of cash flows, which reduces dispersion of possible outcomes and therefore reduces the risk. Note that derivatives instruments are popularly used for hedging interest rate risks and exchange rate risks.

With that said, Guyana does not have a derivatives market or any derivatives instruments, and as such, the only financial instrument available to participants (firms and businesses) within the domestic economy to hedge or manage foreign exchange risks are those very ‘retention accounts’. By operating the exporters retention accounts, businesses can conduct transactions directly in the foreign currency market without having to worry about exchange rates, as any adverse fluctuation in the exchange rate could pose serious cash flow problems for companies and businesses, and could lead to substantial losses on the part of companies.

I conclude here for now, and will continue this discussion again next week. The nature of this topic in particular is very complex and far-reaching, and therefore it is imperative that I dedicate a series of articles in dealing with some of the major components of the subject. Just to give you a quick hint though, next week I will touch on some revised reserve management practices and foreign exchange policies that were developed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), forming the basis of my discussion relative to a likely urgent solution to the problem at hand. These policies and practices ought to be examined by the country’s policy makers and other relevant authorities.

igh drama surrounded the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) elections on Saturday as Police had to be called in over the refusal of election officials to provide the voters list to supporters of incumbent President Patrick Yarde’s challenger.

The tension was high at the GPSU headquarters on Shiv Chanderpaul drive as the union’s Presidential candidate, Gregory Gaspar and his supporters cried foul over the process. Gaspar, who spoke to this publication outside the building, was adamant that the list was not a private document.

“We were informed last night (Friday) that the counting would have resumed at nine today. So we are here.

And I think at nine fifteen the election officer would have taken one of the boxes and took off the seal, emptied it out on the table and said, we’re are here to proceed with the counting.”

“I intervened; I said we would not proceed with the counting until I have the list for that particular box so that I can know how many votes were cast. His words to me were if I am trying to stall the process and that we can get the list after. I said no, (that) that is not standard operating procedure, we need to get the list first so that we can do the proper checks and balances.”

“To date, he had abandoned the building. That box that was opened, the ballots are on the table, he has vacated his post.

He hopped in his vehicle and drove away. That was about an hour ago.”

In a strongly worded letter addressed to Elections Officer Herman De Souza, Gaspar had complained that the list was requested on April 23, 26, 27, 28 and 29, but was never provided. In the letter, he also complained about ballot boxes being delivered without the elections or assistant elections officers present.

The letter also raised the issue of no statement of polls for outlying regions such as Regions Two (PomeroonSupenaam), Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Five (Mahaica-Berbice), Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) being made available to members.

“Members are aware that this information is critical for validating the count of ballots cast for the respective stations/roving ballot boxes, and I therefore demand that this information be made available to each candidate contesting the GPSU elections for 2017, as well as the observers witnessing the count prior to the counting of ballots.”

In addition, Gaspar expressed fears that voters were inadvertently disenfranchised.

He stated that after the injunction restraining the holding of the election of office bearers for the Executive Council of the Guyana Public Service Union was discharged, De Souza had set the election for April 27, 2017.

“This action resulted in the disenfranchisement of several eligible voters of the Guyana Public Service Union as ample notice was not given to all eligible voters. Many of these vot-

Incumbent President of GPSU, Patrick Yarde

ers indicated that efforts were made to have this matter addressed but to no avail, and have informed me of same,” Gaspar stated in his letter.

Gaspar also expressed concern about the condition in which some of the boxes arrived. In his letter, Gaspar referenced a Region Three ballot box which he stated was allegedly tampered with. He said that allegations that votes from non-eligible voters were placed in the box should be reviewed before finalising the elections He stated that in one case four ballot boxes from Linden, Region 10 arrived with three seals broken. Gaspar related that he approached the elections officer earlier, but was told that they were given three seals for each box.

“The one that came from Linden only had one seal. The others were open and empty.

We asked how come and we were told that someone who was working with the boxes emptied out everything and put them in one box,” he said.

Gaspar was adamant that this was a breach as no one was authorised to breach the seal. He stated that as a result of these events the elections results would be compromised.

Their position had, up to press time, resulted in a standoff as the ballots had not been counted. It is understood that Police were eventually brought by election officials to mediate the imbroglio and to ensure that law and order was maintained.

Meanwhile, the Chief Elections Officer late Saturday evening said that despite efforts to ensure that the elections process is not only free, fair and transparent, but also free from fear, it has become apparent that there are individuals determined to disrupt the process. According to De Souza, this will only result in the disenfranchisement of the thousands of members throughout the numerous branches across the length and breadth of Guyana.

“All parties concerned were pertinently informed in a timely manner of the intention to recommence the counting and verification of ballots at 09:00 am Saturday. However, as

Presidential candidate Gregory Gaspar

the process was about to commence, my staff and I were subjected to disruption and intimidating behaviour, meted out by some candidates and what appeared to be their supporters; many of whom admitted themselves into the building without proper authorisation, and refused to exit when instructed to do so by internal security personnel,” the elections officer said.

The disruption lasted until 15:30h, a period of six and one half hours after the time counting was officially scheduled to commence.

“This action gives me the impression that persons present are deliberately attempting to obstruct the counting process which is necessary for there to be a declaration of the results of the elections.”

12 news Mara residents forced to manoeuvre roadway R SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

esidents of communities along the East Bank Berbice Corridor, stretching as far as Mara, 25 miles from New Amsterdam, are seeking the intervention of regional authorities to clear the roadway of the overgrowth of bamboo plants.

They allege that they literally have to clear passages through the overgrowth of bush along the road in order for their vehicles to traverse some sections of that corridor.

Workers attached to the Community Enhancement Programme (CIP) along that corridor are no longer employed in that part of the community. They are now performing duties in other sections of East Bank Berbice.

The electorate along the

Region Six Chairman David Armogan

eral elections. Mara was the only community that had bucked that trend.

At a recent RDC meeting, the condition of the road was discussed, and Regional

A main access road in the community of Mara, Upper East Bank Berbice, has been left in a state of neglect as residents are forced to manoeuvre overgrown bamboos in order to enter and exit their community (Andrew Carmichael photo)

entire East Bank Berbice corridor had given overwhelming support to the APNU/ AFC coalition at the last gen-

Councillor Zaman Hussain had noted that the overgrowth both on the ground

and overhead, consisting mainly of bamboo plants, was making life difficult for residents living along that corridor. He had said there was need for CIP workers to engage in activities there, and had charged that CIP workers were being sent only to “certain” communities in the region.

“Certain areas are being given priority in this region.

I don’t know where the money is coming from. Certain areas which (are) referred to as ‘supporters of the Coalition Government’. I am very dissatisfied with this. Resources should be distributed evenly across the region,” Hussain had argued.

Region Six Chairman David Armogan had promised to dispatch to the community an engineer who would assess the situation and provide feedback to the RDC. Chairman of the 30-member Concerned Citizens Group of Mara, Randolph Prass, in an invited comment said the road is in a very deplorable condition. “Some mornings, when you have to get to New Amsterdam – that is like 04:30 to 05:00h – we gotta stop and remove the bamboo from the roadways. Sometimes, when the rain fall heavily, the bamboo blocks up the road; and sometimes you coming through you don’t even notice it, and ‘blam!’ Accident.

“We are (also) asking if something urgently can be done to address the issue of

the big potholes that the vehicles have to go through,” he has said.

Because of the current condition of the road, its takes about two hours for a vehicle to travel the 25 miles that separate Mara from New Amsterdam.

“It is very difficult for senior citizens to go to New Amsterdam, especially to

draw their pensions. And when they have to get the new book, they have to go themselves. A car takes $10,000 to go out to New Amsterdam and come back in, so it is very difficult for them to survive,” Prass explained.

Prass also noted that the state of the drainage and irrigation canals at Germania is a worrying concern.

The villages of Germania and Mara are the last two villages accessible by road along the East Bank Berbice Corridor, and they are home to approximately 200 residents. Farming is the sole source of income in that community. Farmers sell their produce in the town of New Amsterdam. (Andrew Carmichael)

Govt must examine feasibility of...

“When profitability margins are tight, as they must be in the current economic environment, profit maximising companies will be inclined to take greater risks, especially if they are not contractually required to themselves underwrite those risks.”

With this in mind, TIGI requested that Minister Trotman share with it the “types and particulars of the studies and investigations he has requested as part of

the process for evaluating Exxon’s production licence application.”

“We further wish to know if the documentation listed under Section 10 (e) of the “Form for Application for a Petroleum Production Licence” as prescribed by the Regulations accompanying the Petroleum (Production and Exploration) Act of 1986, and in particular subsection (f) of Section 10 (e), will be required in the evalu-

ation of ExxonMobil’s application.”

According to TIGI, it is all the more important for citizens, civil society and agencies including TIGI to ensure that the similar interests of the Government and ExxonMobil do not affect the Government’s commitment.

That commitment, according to TIGI, is to both the financial returns to Government coffers as well as environmental safety.

Renaming of Region 9 not...

However, the move by Government to assign separate flags for each administrative region has been met with strong objections from the parliamentary Opposition, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), which believes more time, energy and resources ought to be spent on better governance.

The party had declared that the Golden Arrowhead is the constitutional flag of Guyana, adding that any other flag imposed will be contrary to the country’s Constitution.

Regional flags

The decision to give each region its own flag was announced last year by Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan, who noted that the initiative was all part and parcel of a wider effort to promote the decentralisation of each of the 10 administrative regions and encourage each district to embrace its uniqueness.

However, the PPP/C believes that there will be an overwhelming rejection from the regions, mostly by residents who would prefer jobs, enhanced public security, money in their pockets, better

from page 7

from page 9

roads, improved potable water supply and efficient garbage collection over flags.

“Rather than seeking to change things that obtained under the PPP/C and to make things look different under the [A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change] APNU/AFC, the Granger coalition Administration should change their racial and political discriminatory and witch hunting practices, as well as their wasteful spending and focus on improving the economic and social well-being of all Guyanese,” the Party had stated.

news

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SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

2020: OUR Sport tourism has the potential to BEST HOPE become a major industry – Alexander

By Ryhaan Shah

I

t’s coming up to just two years for this PNC Government – let’s dispense with the pretence that there’s an APNU/AFC Coalition – and the entire country is already focused on the 2020 general elections, and appears ready to vote them out.

The reasons are many and varied, and you can take your pick as to which one or several affect you: the VAT payments on private school Ryhaan Shah fees, airfares to interior locations, utility services, and on many of the once zero-rated items; the loss of jobs for sugar workers and loss of export markets for rice farmers; the hike of MMA/ADA rental fees for Mahaica and Mahaicony rice farmers; the ban on importing affordable used tyres; the mistreatment of miners; the bypassing of importers of pharmaceuticals; the public service witch hunt and loss of jobs, especially among Indian Guyanese; the contentious parking meter project.

There is discontent across the land, and some citizens are already defaulting on loan payments to banks because of the burden of increased taxation and/or because they are now unemployed as a result of the tanking economy.

Republic Bank has reported a 4.5 percent drop in profits for the six-month period ending March 31, 2017, compared to the similar period in 2016, largely due to the increase of $109 million that was required to cover loan losses.

These depressing figures underline the concerns of the business sector, which is genuinely troubled by the economic downturn but whose many suggestions to the Granger Administration as to the incentives and measures needed to reverse the downward trajectory continue to be ignored.

The irony of it all is that the Granger Administration appears to lack confidence in itself! There is a dearth of state infrastructural projects two years in, and the investments promised on the campaign trail have also failed to materialise.

Imports of capital and consumer goods, as well as goods needed for manufacturing have all declined because of a lack of confidence in Government’s policies. At such time of waning confidence, people turn to preserving their assets in gold or hard currency, and hoarding has resulted in a scarcity of US dollars on the local market.

Even as fear and discontent grow, we get reports of President David Granger’s trip to The Bahamas on a private plane with a large entourage, which will set taxpayers back $18 million. What business does Guyana have with The Bahamas to warrant this trip and the expense? Or does Granger’s “Nassau Plan” require regular visits to that town?

This does smack of Burnham-like excesses, except that much has since changed and a PNC redux is not likely to be tolerated. The public protests by Guyanese of every race and class disclose a move away from politics as usual and a refusal to heed partisan appeals. This presents our best hope for saving Guyana, for every citizen and both major political parties need to take note of this political maturity.

Whether Granger is indeed trying to set the stage for a PNC-type rigged election in 2020 – the only way they could win, given their dismal track record – he needs to rethink that plan. His spurious reasons for rejecting the nominees presented by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo for the GECOM chair still stand, and no chairperson has yet been named to this crucial position.

Then there is the case of the alleged plot to assassinate the President. That, along with the massive wall being built around the Office of the Presidency, is creating much public speculation. All public buildings should be as fully transparent as the business being conducted therein. Is that wall being built to keep us, the people, out, or to hide what happens behind it? Neither proposition sits well with the public.

Guyana has no history of assassination attempts on heads of state, despite our divided politics. Burnham’s dictatorial regime bears the stain of the assassinations of Walter Rodney, Father Darke and Vincent Teekah. Could the assassination claims be an attempt to mitigate that record, and to provide a reason for an increased militarisation of the state as 2020 approaches?

The Granger Administration should recognise that the widespread and various protests that are ongoing reflect the citizens’ firm belief that they have been artfully conned by the slick words of cheap tricksters, who promised a change that will never materialise.

The 2020 elections should offer more than a chance of payback, however. If we can bring about real change through the polls, the incoming administration would be on guard about fulfilling the wishes of the people, or risk being booted out as well.

Readers are invited to send their comments by email to shah@guyanatimesgy.com

T

A large crowd at one of the Amazon Warriors games in Guyana

he introduction of sports tourism as a major industry in Guyana is an excellent idea, but there are a number of challenges which would need to be addressed if the concept is to be successful. This is the opinion of Technical Facilitator to the Education Ministry, Vincent Alexander.

The Education Ministry official made this statement during brief remarks he made at the inaugural workshop on Developing Sports Tourism, which was held under the theme “Improving Sports through Tourism; growing Tourism through Sports”.

“Do we have facilities that in fact can be provided for sports tourism, (which) include certain standards that can market the country? Do we have the kind of human resources that ensure that you can properly organise and manage those activities?”

Alexander questioned. The industry will also be challenged by the capacity of sport organisations to become involved, he added.

Alexander explained that the areas highlighted -- described as critical to the sports tourism industry -- would need to be addressed immediately if we are to move forward.

He explained that apart from

sport, there are other resources within the country that can attract tourism, and he expressed hope that those resources would be highlighted for the betterment of the country.

Meanwhile, in a courtesy call made on Business Minister Dominic Gaskin on Friday, St Lucia-based Sports Consultant Joseph ‘Reds’ Perreira noted that the sports tourism industry needs major private sector input and support from sports associations and other stakeholders.

Although Caribbean countries which are involved in the sports tourism industry have become successful, Perreira explained, it would take some time for Guyana to experience that success, especially since there is much need for promotion via the media to help in the process of attracting persons to the country.

The sports consultant expressed gratitude for the co-operation he has been given, and the hope that an internal sports tourism industry can also be realised.

Minister Gaskin labelled sports tourism a viable and sustainable component of Guyana’s overall tourism product, and added that it has a contribution to make towards the nation’s

development. “We understand that tourism has to be developed from the ground up; and those involved have to understand that they are participating in something that has an economic value and has a contribution to make to our economy,” the minister explained.

He noted that sports should not be seen only as competition, but as having the potential to bring persons to Guyana.

This workshop was a collaborative effort between the Department of Tourism in the Ministry of Business; the National Sports Commission in the Department of Culture, Youth and Sport (NSC); and the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA).

CPL and local economy

Meanwhile, Guyana, through the Caribbean Premier League has benefited significantly from sport tourism since the inception of the tournament, with some US$17 million being pumped into the economy last year.

CPL’s Chief Operations Officer (COO), Pete Russell, during an exclusive interview with Guyana Times had explained that the games’ economic impact locally has been both direct and indirect. He said assessment reports compiled by CPL showed that our economy received close to US$17 million last season.

Russell explained that the net sum is calculated by looking at the influx of tourists to the country, hotel bookings, vending during the games, and the overall spending of persons during this period.

With the Guyana Amazon Warriors success at CPL, Guyana has over the past four years benefited from some US$80M from the tournament.

In fact, some US$90 million was poured into the entire Caribbean region in 2016 as a result of the CPL tournaments.

Linden youths schooled on career opportunities

Y

ouths in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara- Berbice) were presented the opportunity to choose a career path, through a Career fair hosted by the Education Ministry, Department of Culture, Youth and Sports on Wednesday. Scores of youths from the community, including several schools, flocked to the Linden Technical Institute where the exercise was hosted, to explore opportunities offered by various organisations. Held under the theme, "A youth aware is a youth prepared", youths were given a chance to ask questions, sign up, and submit their resume's in an effort to secure jobs.

In her remarks, during the opening ceremony, Director of Youth Melissa Carmichael stressed the importance of young people in the Region, noting that their voices, talents and skills are important to the nation's development.

"We want to help you to start, to begin somewhere.

And by forging you with all the organisations represented here today we give you the opportunity to choose, to start making decisions. To say, whether one career or the other may fit you…You

Youths viewing several booths at the career fair

will have to be the ones to decide what and where you go from here. We will continue to present opportunities in environments like these so that our young people are able to make better decisions…Tomorrow you will be the leaders, the decision makers", she stressed.

Carmichael alluded that the youths are the molders and shapers of the nation as she encouraged them not to be discouraged by the lack of, but to be motivated by the drive to work towards fulfilling the gap. She further urged that they be inquisitive and to seek to be a part of organisations in making the best use of the activity.

Linden Mayor Carwyn

Holland in his remarks, shared his own experiences with choosing a career, as he stressed the importance of doing so.

"When choosing a career, it is important to do self examination…ask yourself, what are you really good at?

You must know what you love doing…Choosing a career is very important…You must assess the need of your nearby and wider community to determine how you can assist or how you can be an asset. You need to assess the possible financial gains of your preferred career choices…choose careers wisely. You must assess the qualifications and expertise necessary for your preferred career choices to determine

if you are willing and capable", he said, while stressing that the community is in need of great leaders who are of high moral standards.

Regional Chairman Renis Morian also encouraged the youths to make the best use of the opportunity presented through the exercise and to formulate in their minds, where they wanted to go and how they plan on getting there, as he also encouraged them to remain focused.

"Don't allow yourselves just to hang loose…you have your life, you have a future…all of you could be a success story. So use today as a vehicle and an imputus to strengthen your resolve and your own path of what you want to be…I want to assure you, that you have the ability to make it.

I want to assure you that the Government of Guyana is working very hard to promote young people", he said.

Organisations such as the Guyana Defence Force, the Linden Mayor and Town Council, Linden Technical Institute, Guyana Post Office Corporation and the Linden Utility Services Coop Society Limited were among numerous others present.

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SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Younge’s Take

The private jet saga G

uyanese learnt over the past week that the Government of Guyana made a conscious decision to utilize millions of tax payers’ dollars to fund the use of a private jet to transport President David Granger and his political allies to The Bahamas last month.

It was also reported that the President’s entourage included select media operatives and officials, who were invited at his pleasure to enjoy the spoils and beautiful scenery that awaited them on the island. In return, they Michael Younge were expected to launch various direct and indirect public relations’ ventures that would paint the trip as a huge success; one which would no doubt have positive economic gains for the country as a whole.

Also, the citizenry learnt that the trip saw the overall total of $18 million being spent to fund the venture, as was reported in a section of the press. To their surprise and shock, a whopping $8 million allegedly went to covering the expenses related to the private plane alone, whilst the remaining sum tackled expenses connected to the accommodation and meals of those who comprised the President’s entourage.

Millions more were spent on gifts for various state officials in The Bahamas and per diem expenses for the team members.

That aside, the state, as expected, also covered all of the expenses associated with the security detail of the ministers who travelled with the President as well as other officials.

Whilst nothing stops the President from chartering private planes and travelling in fine style, there is a public expectation that he would chose to do so only when Guyana’s economy is buoyant and experiencing high levels of economic growth. The public also expects that the President would act carefully to avoid taking with him a large contingent of officials on these trips if it is not absolutely necessary. That aside, he should ensure that he spends minimally, and that the principles of economies of scale apply wherever necessary.

It is also regrettable that the President and his public relations team did not see it fit to brief the country on the official purpose of his trip to The Bahamas. The only information available at the time was that he was going on an “economic mission”. Had this been former Presidents Bharrat Jagdeo or Donald Ramotar, a frenzy would have been created in the media, which would have in turn led to outrage in the public corridors, even if the purpose of the trip was justifiable.

That aside, media operatives also learnt that the Head of State allegedly left The Bahamas without securing a single economic deal or prospective deal, as his team was, for the most part, unprepared to tackle the robust agenda which was agreed upon beforehand. It has also been reported that, whilst in The Bahamas, the President utilized every opportunity to meet Guyanese and spread the now infamous APNU/AFC propaganda, which seeks to dupe Guyanese abroad into believing that everything is fine and dandy at home.

In fact, the trip was largely political. The Government of Guyana therefore owes the public an explanation on a number of issues. It must release full details surrounding the expenditure incurred for the trip to The Bahamas; including, but not limited to, the deals secured, officials who had gone on the trip, details of all expenses paid and covered by tax payers’ dollars; and the method used to procure the services of the private plane.

It is regrettable that our ministers and President could choose to fly in fine style and luxury whilst ordinary citizens are being taxed further into poverty and the youths are being forced to seek alternative avenues to gain a dollar.

It is also sheer hypocrisy that the Ministry of Finance continues to allow the Cabinet to misuse the public purse to fund these unnecessary and most times unproductive trips abroad.

The money wasted on the private jet and per diem for all those who had travelled with the President to The Bahamas and St Vincent could have been used to build roads, fund the ‘Because we care’ cash grants programme, build homes, and improve the state of the country’s health care system.

NEWS

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sunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

2 commit suicide Workshop held to detect, prevent in Essequibo in sexual assault in military I 1 week

A

s the scourge of suicide continues to plague Guyana’s society, two young people along the Essequibo Coast, Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) have resorted to taking their own lives in the past week for reasons unknown to the aggrieved families.

Dead are 22-yearold Shalini Danpat of Onderneeming Sand Pit, and Covindra “Rovin” Lakeram, also 22, of Pomona Housing scheme, Essequibo Coast.

Reports are that Danpat consumed a quantity of carbon tablets on Thursday evening while the young man injected a quantity of poisonous substance into a vein on one of his arms.

However, after consuming the tablets, Danpat, a mother of two, was taken to the Suddie Public Hospital where she succumbed a few hours later. Her tragic death has left family members in shock but more importantly, her children without a mother.

It is not clear what might have prompted the young

Covindra Lakeram

Shalini Danpat

woman to take her own life but based on reports received, the woman left her mother’s home and went to Onderneeming a few weeks ago and was staying with a friend.

Her two children are now left in the care of their father. On the other hand, Lakeram injected the poisonous substance into the vein of his hand on Monday last but took his last breath on Friday while receiving medical attention at the Suddie Hospital.

Guyana Times was told that the young man was

found lying on the floor of his parents’ home in a motionless state. In close proximity, there was the syringe thus alerting relatives that he had injected himself.

Both bodies are at the Suddie Hospital Mortuary awaiting post-mortem examinations. Only a few weeks ago, a farmer, Mohammed Rakfeek Ali of Walton Hall chopped his wife and attempted suicide. The couple were admitted patients at the Suddie Hospital but was subsequently discharged after spending a few day in the medical facility.

n observation of “Sexual Assault Awareness Month”, ranks of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) recently took part in a workshop during which discussions were held on ways to identify, reduce and eliminate sexual assault within the Army.

The workshop was hosted

by Brigadier General Mike Canzoneri, Commander of the Florida Army National Guard (FLARNG) along with his team of experts on the subject matter. The visitors joined senior leaders in the Guyana military to raise awareness of the important matter.

Deputy Chief-of-Staff of the GDF, Colonel Nazrul Hussain, and Coast Guard Commander Orin Porter, took part in the opening ceremony.

Brigadier General Canzoneri commands nearly 10,000 soldiers and exercises management authority over all FLARNG programmes. In his remarks at the opening ceremony, he stressed the importance of creating a culture where sexual assault, in any form, is not tolerated.

He said, “It takes time and is hard work, but in the end, doing the right thing creates a better work environment,” and will lead to lasting change. He went on

Brigadier General Canzoneri delivering his presentation during the workshop

to say that sexual assault destroys unit cohesion and threatens military readiness by eroding bonds of trust.

In order to remain strong, the Brigadier General outlined the need to infuse prevention practices into the daily mission and encouraged officers to report any acts of misconduct.

Brigadier General Canzoneri and his staff shared best practices, including initiatives introduced earlier this year to better protect ranks from bullying and hazing issues.

He also stressed the impor-

tance of two-way communication and welcomed ideas and techniques that are effective in Guyana.

The US Brigadier General also pointed out that it is the responsibility of every military member to encourage behaviour that fosters a climate of dignity and respect.

The FLARNG places great value in its on-going relationship with the GDF, and the Brigadier General pledged that the two militaries will continue working together to take action to prevent sexual violence in its many forms.

16 news

SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesGY.com

Several companies awarded for promoting workplace safety

S

everal companies were on Friday awarded by the National Advisory Council on Occupational Safety and Health (NACOSH), for ensuring that their employees are working in an environment free from hazards and risks.

The award ceremony was undertaken at the Herdmanston Lodge in the presence of Minister of Social Protection, Amna Ally; NACOSH’s ViceChairperson, Patricia Woolford, and President of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU), Coretta Mc Donald, among other invitees and company representatives.

According to the Government Information Agency (GINA), Minister Ally explained that the safety and health of all workers in every sector of Guyana is of a high priority to the government. She said the awards ceremony was created to encourage individuals and organisations to establish effective systems for managing occupational safety and health, and to inculcate a culture of prevention in the daily duties of workers and employers in order to sustain safe practices for the future.

“While new challeng-

Social Protection Amna Ally

Minister

es and emerging new risks will arise, I urge you to continuously adjust your Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) system and standards to keep on par with current developments and new regulations and policy guidelines, so that you may better guarantee a conducive and sustainable working environment,” Minister Ally underlined.

The national OSH work place award is the highest accolade given to those that lead the way in preventing accidents, and ensuring that workers are kept safe and healthy.

Minister Ally reaffirmed government’s commitment towards promoting the protection of workers’ safety and health. She pointed out that as part of ongoing efforts to promote OSH, numerous activities continue including OSH walks in Regions Two, Three, Four, Six, Seven and Ten. Meanwhile, OSH Advisor at the Ministry of Social Protection, Gwenneth King, in providing a brief history of the award ceremony, highlighted that it was first launched in 1996 to recognise and reward individuals, then workplaces for their contribution to the development of OSH in Guyana.

She added that from 1996 to 2000, 15 individuals and five workplaces received awards.

However, the award programme was suspended at the end of 2000 pending a review. “While deliberating the best method of addressing the issue, we got a copy of the British Safety Council Award Scheme, and with some modification we were able to introduce the requisite programme. In 2003 the award resumed; there were lapses, but it was reintroduced this year again,” King stated.

The various categories

of the award are the work place, joint workplace safety and health committee, individual and special awards.

The first three are for individuals and groups within the workplace, and the final one is for persons, NGOS and educational institutions that contribute to the development of OSH in Guyana, King said.

ViceChairperson, NACOSH, Patricia Woolford said the objective of the awards is to encourage all companies to lift their environmental standards, and improve the conditions under which people work and serve.

Woolford added that NACOSH is embarking on a plan of action t0 sensitise the nation on all matters of OSH, paying attention to the mining sector, construction and other areas where accidents and occur.

“Currently we are in the process of ratifying the national policy on Occupational Safety and Health, which, when approved and implemented, will see substantial advances in OSH….as we take into consideration the need for persons with disabilities and youths among others,” Woolford pointed out.

GTU’s President, Coretta Mc Donald lauded the event noting that this is the right direction to promote the health and safety of employees.

Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), Demerara

Harbour Bridge Corporation (DHBC), Massay Gas Product Guyana Limited, National Milling Company of Guyana Incorporated and Linden Hospital Complex are among those that benefitted from work place awards.

Trump attacks US media at 100-day rally

President Trump says his first 100 days in office “has been very productive”

U

S President Donald Trump has launched a scathing attack on the media during a rally marking 100 days in office.

He told supporters in Pennsylvania that he was keeping "one promise after another", dismissing criticism as "fake news" by "out of touch" journalists.

Trump decided to skip the White House Correspondents' Dinner the first US leader to miss the annual event since Ronald Reagan in 1981.

Earlier, big rallies were held against Mr Trump's climate change policies.

At the rally in Harrisburg, the president said the media should be given "a big, fat, failing grade" over their coverage of his achievements during his first 100 days and told

the cheering crowd he was "thrilled to be more than 100 miles from Washington".

He quipped that at the same time "a large group of Hollywood actors and Washington media are consoling themselves" at the correspondents' dinner "that will be very boring".

Turning to his election pledges, Trump said the first 100 days had been "very exciting and very productive".

He said he was "delivering every single day" to bring industrial jobs back to the US, ending the so-called "war on coal".

The president said the previous administration of Barack Obama "gave us a mess", stressing that he was ready for "great battles to come and we will win in every case". (BBC)

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SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Anna's

The pauperisation of rural women

I

t’s been almost two years since Guyana became trapped under the curse of a prolonged period of regression on several fronts, with the most hard-hitting being the economic crisis resulting from contractionary policies and austerity measures.

Evidence of this trauma can be found in the decline of the people’s purchasing power, which tells a tale of the overall pauperisation of Guyanese, especially a significant majority living in rural Guyana and depending heavily on the traditional income earning sectors, in Anna Correia particular agriculture.

The people of rural Guyana are suffering, and unlike their compatriots in the city, alternative sources of income and subsistence are fewer, rendering it difficult to minimize the backlash of the devastated rice and sugar industries. Seasonal labourers and farmers alike are struggling. The consequential rise in crime substantiates my belief that the causal effect of poverty on criminality has more merit in Guyanese society than the ludicrous theory advanced by President Granger to the effect that the “mother of all crimes is narcotics”.

But in this degradation of Guyana’s developmental trajectory, we seldom speak of the vulnerability of Guyanese women, who bear the social and financial burdens of society, despite the inequalities and stigmas already associated with their sex; especially rural Guyanese women. Depending on the age, social and civil status of women in rural communities, the impact of the economic stagnation on everyday life and opportunities differs. Subsequently, an 18-year-old CXC graduate from a modest family in which the bread winner is a small-scale rice farmer is now confronted with the suffocating reality of having to find a low-income job somewhere in the region.

Once a possibility when the rice sector was still profitable for hundreds of Essequibian families, attending the University of Guyana or another private institution is now a luxury many parents cannot afford their daughters. But finding even a lowincome job on the Essequibo Coast proves to be challenging for young people now more than ever before.

Then there’s the question of young professionals with higher learning degrees who, because of the high unemployment rate and economic decline, look beyond our borders for opportunities. Yet, studies and research have proven that a mother’s education level has a decisive impact on child health and education. The online medical journal produced by The Lancet has, for instance, determined that for every oneyear increase in the education of women who are at age to reproduce, there is a decrease of about 9.5% in the national infant mortality rate. The reduction of teenage pregnancies and the increase of schooling for children have also proven to be closely linked to the level of education of mothers.

Just as important is the question of mothers above an average age of 40 living in rural Guyanese communities with basic primary to eventually limited secondary education, without degrees and with practically little prospects of finding a job. These women, often mothers and housewives, generally turn to small-scale investments to help make ends meet. But rearing a few pigs, chickens or ducks hardly feeds a family or pays a child’s tuition fees. This is the plight of the average rural Guyanese mother. This is the woman who, despite being resourceful, is now helpless when confronted by the financial hardships of her family. She is the wife of the now jobless cane-cutter; the wife of the now jobless rice worker; the wife of a struggling cash-crop farmer. She simultaneously looks for innovative means to generate income while bearing the burden of her husband’s struggles whether she consents or not. Either way, she endures and suffers in silence.

Last, but equally important to remember is the case of single mothers challenged by unemployment and limited education, or a combination of several factors of socioeconomic disparity.

They can be found throughout the country; but those living in rural Guyana are particularly prone to precariousness, and their children stand to suffer the consequences of poverty more than others.

These are the very real scenarios that depict the daily life of the small woman, whose purse is now lighter, thanks to the APNU/AFC Coalition. This impoverishment will have irreversible consequences for many living in rural communities, and must go down in history as a deliberate orchestration by the Coalition Government, through the promulgation of policies which obliterate the voices of our rural people, of our rural women.

And while somewhere in Essequibo a mother combs her purse to feed her child, Granger squanders millions of taxdollars on private jets and fruitless overseas trips.

Contact sundayarrow@gmail.com

18 News Freedom of the Press and Guyana SunDAY, april 30, 2017 | guyanatimesGY.com

By Jarryl Bryan

W

ords uttered by famous 20th century author George Orwell still ring true, particularly for Guyana, even as we draw closer to the March 3rd observance of World Press Freedom Day. Essential to any democracy is an independent body that would guard against executive overreach, call politicians out because of their incompetence, and expose corruption. It is not for naught that the press is often referred to as ‘the fourth estate’.

The Guyana Constitution guarantees freedom of speech and the right to information. Article 146 of the constitution provides for the protection of Freedom of Expression, while there is also the Access to Information Act of 2011. But although these provisions are in place for journalists to access and disseminate information, public officials have been able to use legal ways to stave off publication of information and to punish recalcitrant media houses.

One such way is Guyana’s defamation laws.

Guyana’s current

Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo, in 2009 described the defamation laws as needing a revamp, as they were being used to curtail press freedom. Over the

places on the latest ranking of this index: from 57 to 60, with a score of 26.80.

According to the index, public officials in Guyana often use the existing defamation

The threat contained in Guyana’s defamation laws has silenced many a media house over the years

years, the concept of a revamp has been just that -- a concept.

This potential stumbling block to freedom of expression and freedom of the press has been red flagged by Reporters Without Borders in its World Press Freedom Index. The index rates countries based on the relative freedom with which journalists are allowed to operate.

Guyana dropped three

laws, which provide for fines and up to two years in jail, “to silence opposition journalists.”

In addition, the index zeroed in on regulatory bodies.

According to the index, “the members of the media regulatory authority are appointed directly by the president.

This restricts the freedom of certain media outlets, which are denied licences.”

The index also noted that journalists in Guyana

are subjected to harassment that takes the form of prosecution, suspensions and intimidation. While the index did not refer specifically to a particular agency, one example would be the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority (GNBA).

The functions of the GNBA are dealt with in Section 18 (1) of the Broadcasting Act of 2011.

That section states that the GNBA shall “suspend or revoke any licence, provided the licensee is given a reasonable opportunity of making representations, unless this is impracticable.”

More updated broadcast regulation is forthcoming, as recently received recommendations from the new GNBA Board were handed over to Government. These recommendations are expected to strengthen oversight of broadcasting, and it cannot be an easy thought for some that GNBA representatives have repeatedly alluded to the existence of a ‘naughty’ list of broadcasters.

Then there is the Access to Information Act of 2011.

The Act guarantees citizens the right to access information on public authorities

and entities. These authorities include the National Assembly; Parliamentary committees; the Court of Appeal; the Cabinet; ministries, or departments within the ministries.

In addition, it also extends to the local democratic organs, regional health authorities, and constitutional commissions. The Act also provides for a Commissioner of Information.

But it, however, all comes back to the defamation laws. If a journalist is unable to write what he has discovered for fear of litigation, then access to information is seemingly a Pyrrhic victory for press freedom.

Government’s response

But while the index has reduced Guyana’s ranking, Government, in responding to the report, has stated that it is “deeply flawed”.

In a statement issued on Friday, the Department of Public Information said Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, who has portfolio responsibility for information, is unaware of RSF

conducting any survey or inquiry into press freedom in Guyana. That statement has questioned the reliability of the sources used in that survey.

The statement also said that the local media has never had greater latitude and freedom to operate without interference from Government than it presently does. In fact, the statement called on Reporters Without Borders to “update its country information with current and relevant information which reflects the reality in Guyana.”

The statement further pointed to two recent cases of unjust suspension of state media employees, saying that the suspensions were robustly condemned by senior Government officials, and that the respective situations were addressed to the satisfaction of the affected employees.

This is a reference to the suspension of National Communications Network (NCN) Sport Editor Jocelle Archibald-Hawke and the removal of her colleague, journalist Natasha Smith, from anchoring duties ostensibly because of her pregnancy.

The release did not address the use of defamation laws, as referred to by Reporters Without Borders.

Guyana Press Association

Asked about the index and the Government’s response, a representative of the Guyana Press Association (GPA) agreed that there is generally a conducive atmosphere within Guyana for journalists

to work. According to GPA Executive Member Nazima Raghubir, there is generally a fair amount of access to information and freedom to operate.

That said, she acknowledged that situations have been arising within the state media which have raised the ire of the GPA. “We are against any interference (in) the operations of the state media. We have been against it under the last administration, and we are not going to allow it under this administration. And that is our main grouse,” she said.

“Reporters Without Borders, more likely because of our regional and international affiliates, noticed our concern here, and they have made notes. Our concern mainly is (about) what has been happening in the state media,” she explained.

She referred to the association’s opposition to the appointment of Imran Khan to the Guyana Chronicle’s Board of Directors. In addition, she recalled the

criticism levelled against Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan, who, in a letter to the Guyana Chronicle editor, had objected to the placement of one story in a more prominent position than another.

“We feel it is a political appointment. We have (also) been vocal about Minister Bulkan writing a letter in (relation to) the story in Guyana Chronicle. Even though the President says it’s his personal opinion, he signed it as the Minister of Communities,” she explained.

“We’ve been vocal about what has happened at NCN with the anchor and Ms. Archibald, and we feel that these are issues that should not have taken place,” she said.

The veteran journalist was also asked about Guyana’s Defamation Act. Raghubir said the removal of criminal penalties from the Defamation Act is an issue the GPA would like to pursue.

“We are not lawmakers; we have to depend on the lawmakers to remove it. Those are issues that are on the international press organisation’s agenda, and it’s an international issue.

They’ve been lobbying all over the world for criminal penalties to be removed from the law books,” she explained.

It remains to be seen whether improving Guyana’s defamation laws and their ability to silence journalists, as red flagged by Reporters Without Borders, would become an item on the parliamentary agenda.

sunDAY, april 30, 2017

CWI/Women’s Regional Super50 Tournament 2017

Red Force Divas confident

19

Penn Relays high schoolers go quicker than Jamaican national team

of repeat

T

rinidad and Tobago Divas’ Captain, Merissa Aguilleira, is confident that her team can overcome the impressive Barbados Women in the Regional Women’s Super50 Competition, due to come to a thrilling end at the Arnos Vale Sports Complex tomorrow, Sunday, April 30.

After what Aguilleira considers a ‘mishap’ in their first game, where they lost to the Barbadians, she believes the team has exhibited the necessary skills and temperament to retain their title, won last year in Guyana. It has definitely shown in the results, as their record thereafter remains unblemished, with their latest victory coming at the expense of the Windwards on Friday (April 28).

She thinks due to the wealth of experience in both squads, we are bound to have a fantastic final encounter. However, Aguilleira insists that if her team sticks to their tasks and are efficient in all aspects of their game, they will come out on top.

Batting for long periods is one thing she stressed on (which was reiterated by her T&T and West Indian teammate Britney Cooper), as the players and coaching staff believe that in a tour-

The winning Calabar High School team

C The Trinidad and Tobago Red Force Divas after their triumph in 2016 in Guyana

nament like this, spending time at the wicket almost guarantees you big scores. With most matches turning out to be low-scoring affairs in this year’s competition, this key component could prove to be the difference between the eventual winners and the disappointed finalists.

The Regional Women’s Super50 2016 was not necessarily successful, majority of the matches were rained out and Trinidad & Tobago only played one game.

This game was against Barbados and proved to essentially be the final. Aguilleira has no doubt in her mind that revenge is on Barbados’ mind coming into this encounter.

She stated, “they will have it in the back of their minds that last year they wanted the Championship so badly and we took it

away.” Merissa was also quite adamant that she holds deep belief in all of her players’ ability, because they are “really good and experienced players, who know how to cross the line.”

The competition itself comes at a crucial time for the West Indies women, as the regional team is preparing for the Women’s World Cup, to be held in England in June. There have been some deficiencies in the batting department for quite a few teams.

Stafanie Taylor made 89 in Jamaica’s final encounter, a score which only seven players have managed to amass throughout the tournament. However, we have seen some dominant performances from the likes of Hayley Matthews and Deandra Dottin of Barbados, and

Britney Cooper and Stacy Ann King from T&T which are good signs, considering these ladies are all a part of the West Indies setup.

Performances with the ball have been exceptional so far however, with spinner, Afy Fletcher of the Windwards, leading the pack on 15 wickets. Hayley Matthews and Shamelia Connell have been excellent for Barbados, picking up 13 and 12 wickets respectively, with spintwins Anisa Mohammed and Karishma Ramharack getting the job done for the T&T side, equally splitting 18 wickets between them.

The Final of the 2017 Regional Women’s Super50 will be held at the Arnos Vale Sports Complex in Arnos Vale, St. Vincent.

The first ball is scheduled to be bowled at 09:30h.

Joshua beats Klitschko in heavy weight classic A

nthony Joshua produced the performance of his career to add the WBA world heavyweight title to his IBF crown with an enthralling knockout win over Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley Stadium.

Joshua also knocked down Klitschko in the fifth round

A post-war record 90,000 fans at the national stadium were treated to a see-saw contest, Joshua dropping the former unified world champion in the fifth round, before being put down - for the first time in his 19-fight career - in the sixth.

Both men looked in danger of being stopped over two rounds which will live long in the memory, before Joshua delivered the clinical blows in the 11th.

The Briton landed a brutal uppercut which gave him the platform to send Klitschko down with an immediate flurry.

'Dr Steelhammer' stood, was dropped by a left hook again moments later, and then stood again, only for referee David Fields to save the challenger when pinned against the ropes.

Joshua threw his arms into the air as roars rolled down the Wembley tiers.

He had come through his stiffest test to date, while

Klitschko had answered questions of his own, showing he remains competitive at world level, even at 41.

He will rue not finishing the job when he floored Joshua and appeared tantalisingly close to reclaiming two of the titles he lost in his last fight against Tyson Fury in 2015.

"What can I say? 19-0, three and a half years in the game," said Joshua. "I'm not perfect but I'm trying, and if you don't take part, you're going to fail.

"As boxing states, you leave your ego at the door and you respect your opponent. So a massive shout-out to Wladimir Klitschko." (BBC)

alabar High School's out of Jamaica are the new record holders in the 4x100 for high school boys at the Penn Relays.

To put into context, how quick the 39.00 the team ran on Saturday to claim relay gold was, the United States team that took on the World in a relay over the same distance, finished in 38.87 seconds for gold.

The high schoolers would have finished second, beating the Jamaican team in the US vs the World Relay, who crossed the line in 39.01, and would have destroyed the Dominican Republic, who finished in 40.32.

The previous record, 39.63, was smashed by an experienced outfit, comprising of Tyreke Wilson, Christopher Taylor, Michael Stephens, and Dejour Russell.

Calabar finished ahead of former record holders, Kingston College, who ended second in what used to be a smart, 39.74.

In other news from Penn

Relays, Jamaica won the 4x400 metres for men and women.

The men's team was anchored y Fitzroy Dunkley, who chased down his US opponent, making up 10 metres to finish in 3:03.14 seconds, just ahead of the US, who crossed second in 3:03.25.

In the women's equivalent, the team of StephenieAnn McPherson, Shericka Jackson, Dawnalee Loney and Janieve Russell were more dominant than the men, finishing in 3:28.32, well in front of the US outfit, who clocked 3:29.30.

In the US vs the World 4x100 metres for women, the team of Kerron Stewart, Gayon Evans, Christania Williams and Elaine Thompson made it a good day for the Jamaicans, finishing atop the podium with a 42.25-second run.

The United States Red team were not far behind, finishing in 42.42. The United States Blue team were third, clocking 42.90.

(Sportsmax)

Rain hampers GCA matches

T

he weather pattern in the city over the last two days has affected the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) from hosting several key matches at the Under 17 and first division levels. Thus all GCA matches have been called off until further notice.

The Guyana Diabetic Association/ PAHO T20 semifinals which was scheduled for today at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) Ground was called off late Saturday afternoon after the Chairman of the Competition Committee of the GCA, Shaun Massiah, said after making several inquiries it was understood that the weather is not expected to change and even if it does grounds would be too affected to afford play.

Due to the semifinal postponement, the final which was slated for Monday will also be played on a new date.

Meanwhile, when the University of Guyana (UG) and Transport Sports Club (TSC) teams arrived at the Malteenoes Sports Club (MSC) venue for play on Saturday it was visible that there would be no play due to a wet outfield caused by overnight and early morning showers.

Massiah said the GCA will update teams of the new dates set for these matches in the upcoming week.

The state of the DCC ground after rain on Friday night and Saturday morning

20

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sunDAY, april 30, 2017

GINSENG

Chris Persaud pays gives Tribute to Lal Munilall boost to Team Evolution I

Brand Coordinator, Sean Abel, hands over sponsorship’s to Team Evolution’s President, Keith Fernandes. Also in picture are Vice President, Stephen Fernandes (right) and Secretary, Andrew Arjoon (left) along with the other team members

G

INSENG on Friday, April 28, 2017, announced that is has renewed its sponsorship of Team Evolution and will be partnering with the club for another year. This agreement will see GINSENG, a carbonated flavoured beverage with natural ginseng fruit, lending support to Guyana’s leading cycling club until March 2018.

GINSENG Brand Coordinator, Sean Abel, said, “GINSENG looks forward to building a winning partnership with Team Evolution in the coming

year. These cyclists make up a group that is energetic, health conscious and victorious which makes them a perfect combination for GINSENG. This beverage is known for its herbal benefits that enhance the performance of the human body, and for these cyclists the product helps as a fatigue fighter as well as a muscle relaxer.” He added that, GINSENG also reduces mood swings and helps to boost overall performance.

President of Team Evolution, Keith

Fernandes, said, “Team Evolution includes a number of talented senior and veteran cyclists who are passionate about the sport. I would like to thank GINSENG for their support and for recognising our talent and supporting our passion. We are very honoured to be able to represent GINSENG and I can assure you that we will carry the name with pride.”

The team was formed in early 2015 and is one of the leading cycling team in the country.

GHB/ Farfan & Mendes, Woodpecker Products 1st Division Outdoor League…

Pepsi Hikers crush Old Fort 9-0 – GCC Spartans earn draw

P

epsi Hikers romped to a commanding victory over Old Fort who recorded their second loss in two days during the Guyana Hockey Board/ Farfan & Mendes, Woodpecker Products 1st Division Outdoor hockey League.

Playing at the St. Stanislaus College Ground, Carifesta Avenue on Saturday afternoon, Hikers romped to a 9-0 victory over Old Fort with Shane Samuels scoring a hat-trick of goals for the win.

By the first half of the one hour affair, Hikers were 3-0 up as Robert France, who was injured in the last match Hikers played along with Randy Hope and Samuels scoring.

In the second half of the match, Kevin Fogenay got Hikers to their fourth goal

A depleted Woodpecker Hikers were shocked to earn a draw against Old Fort Shooting Stars (Dexter Ceres photo)

in the 30th minute while Tivesarid Garnett extended that lead to five just four minutes later. Samuels returned for his second in the 45th minute while Andrew Stewart got amongst the goals in the final quarter

Rain forces YWCC Mash Cup postponement F

where he scored twice in the 45th and 48th minute to have Old Fort reeling 7-0.

Stewart and Samuels sunk a depleted Old Fort with two more goals to finish the contest 9-0.

Meanwhile, in the wom-

or the third time, The Young Warriors Cricket Club (YWCC) fund raiser, Mash Cup 2017 is forced to be postponed due to heavy rainfall that has caused flooding at the venue. This, the fourth edition was slated for today at the Cumberland Cricket Ground, East Canje, Berbice but will now be played at a new date to be announced.

A release from the Cumberland based cricket club said that it is very unfortunate that the tournament which was originally fixed for the traditional Mash and then April 9, has to be rescheduled once again.

Rafeek Kassim The release from club President, Rafeek Kassim stated that everything was in place with excellent weather prevailing and then suddenly the rain came. He said that the club has no control over God’s work and will announce a new date as soon possible.

He advised that all tickets purchased will be valid for the new date. In closing, Kassim thanked the sponsors so far for their support.

en’s contest Woodpecker Hikers were rocked back with a draw in a contest they were expected to win against GCC Spartans.

One of the favorites teams to win the competition, Hikers, were bamboozled at the development Spartans had made in their second contest of the tournament to draw the match 1-1.

Spartans fended off Hikers and managed to score in the 37th minute where Serena Chan managed to find a way to break the Hikers’ defense but Tekisha DeLeon composed herself to score in the 43rd minute and earn a valuable draw.

The action continues at the same venue with Pizza hut GCC taking on Old Fort Shooting stars in the women’s division and Bounty GCC facing Saints at the St. Stanislaus College Ground, Carifesta Avenue from 15:00h.

t is with great sadness that I have learnt of the passing of Munilall, former national cricketer and one of the leading batsmen of his time at the senior level, what was then known as Case Cup. Muni as he was popularly called also opened the bowling for Indian Cricket Club (subsequently renamed Everest) where he normally bowled from the southern or Carifiesta Lal Munilall Avenue end of the ground bowling into the wind and causing numerous problems for batsmen with his out swingers as seen numerous times by the writer and testified to by one of his former club mates and wicket keeper Neville Pertab who later gave way to Badrol Mohamed (Fat Boy) to concentrate on his batting.

Lal Munilall was born on August 17, 1948 in Canje Berbice and died at the age of 68 at the JFK Hospital Palm Beach Florida, USA. He had resided in Florida for a number of years after moving from New York where he had migrated to from Guyana.

Muni was encouraged to come to Georgetown by my late father David (skipper) Persaud to play for the ICC. It is instrumental to note that he had already distinguished himself at school cricket and was beginning to make an impact at club level in Berbice.

In order to facilitate this, my father offered him a job at Toolsie Persaud Ltd at Lombard Street.

Munilall was instrumental in the Indian Cricket Club defeating the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) in the Northcote final (around 1968/69) where he featured in a partnership of over 200 runs with Abdul (Waqar) Hassan making a hard hitting century with Hassan going on to make a double century as the team scored over 500 runs to defeat the Georgetown Cricket Club.

Muni was Vice Captain of the cricket team as the Everest Cricket Club (ICC renamed) went on to win the Case Cup and Rothmans Cup (defeating Port Mourant led

by Romain Etwaroo in the final) under the captaincy of David D. Persaud.

Muni was an integral part of the senior team and was a swashbuckling batsman who drove fear into bowlers of the day.

It had been observed by many savants that he was very similar to Rohan Kanhai in his attitude to try and dominate bowling attacks at the outset and had a very noticeable “swagger” as he walked out of the pavilion to do battle.

He was not interested in just occupying the crease to make a century as supported by evidence which showed that he got out many times between the 60 to 90 scores.

Muni was appointed club captain after the retirement of skipper David Persaud and he was instrumental in Everest winning the Kawall Cup against Trinidad in Trinidad where he scored a belligerent century in the final.

Muni represented Guyana at the Shell Shield competition though with the abundance of high powered cricketers on the scene he was unlucky not to have an extended run.

He played in a benefit match in honour of Garfield Sobers in Barbados and made 27 runs but took 3 wickets which I am told were Gordon and Geoffrey Greenidge and Seymour Nurse.

Munilall represented Broward Cricket Club in Florida where he continued his batting exploits dominating the bowling and scoring about 12 centuries over a four year period including two scores of over 150.

Based on the quality of both his bowling and batting performances he could be aptly described as an all-rounder.

It is quite a pity that records of his exploits on the field are probably not available at all and/ or very difficult to come by as it would have given a far better indication of how significant a cricketer he was at the First Class level in Guyana.

For those who know ‘Muni’ well they would testify to his affable, friendly nature and he was never without a smile on his face. Cricket is a team game and I would like to take the opportunity to acknowledge contributions of the following Inter Alia for the great successes of the ICC/Everest teams in the period 1968 to 1976.These include David Persaud(captain), Ajodha Persaud, Isaac Seurinarine, Leonard Baichan, Anand Sookram, Badrol Mohamed, Waqar Hassan, the Pertab brothers, Neville, Cyril, Basil, Kenneth and Harold (before departing for GCC), Pooran Singh, Indal Persaud, Saranga Baichu, (black mare – Bacchus), Robin Barry, Sen Gopaul, Baksh, Randolph Ramnarace, Joe Solomon, Basil Bedessee, the Seerattan brothers et al. May Bhagwan Krishna grant his soul eternal rest.

21

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WANTED Applications are invited for One Evening Tutor for Grade 9 Student.

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GCB/Igloo Ice Cream Under-17 Inter county championships

Rain has final say

The middle at the world famous GCC ground Bourda was completely covered

O

n Saturday the final round of Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Igloo Ice Cream Under17 was washed out due to heavy rainfall in and around the city on Friday night and Saturday morning.

The Ancient County side, Berbice was down to play archrivals Demerara at the renowned Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) Ground, Bourda while Essequibo were scheduled to take on a select national U-15 unit at the Everest Cricket Club Ground.

However, both venues were inundated due to heavy overnight rain on Friday and early morning rain on Saturday.

Up to press time it was not confirmed if the final round matches would be replayed.

Nevertheless if they are not replayed then

Berbice will emerge winners and dethrone 2016 champions Demerara, who performed poorly in the tournament, narrowly winning against the National Under 15 select and losing to Essequibo.

Berbice is the only team that has played unbeaten.

Calls to GCB TDO Colin Stuart to enquire if the matches will be replayed or otherwise proved futile.

The following is the point standing after the second round: Berbice 18.5 ( 2 batting points and .5 fast bowling points)/ Essequibo 10.1 (1 batting point and 11 fast bowling points)/ Dem 8.3 ( .3 fast bowling points)/ Guy U15 Select X1 (.6 fast bowling points).

Pollard, Bumrah give Mumbai the edge in Super Over thriller

A

fter collapsing from a position of strength, IPL high-flyers Mumbai Indians prevailed in a Super Over to defeat Gujarat Lions.

Jasprit Bumrah showcased his death bowling expertise in the Super Over as Mumbai Indians overcame Gujarat Lions in an Indian Premier League classic on Saturday.

Chasing 154 for victory, Mumbai were seemingly cruising at 82-1 and at 127-4 in the 17th there was little sign of the drama to come, before the visitors lost six wickets for 26 thanks largely to some remarkable fielding.

James Faulkner had already run out Jos Buttler and with Mumbai needing 12 from seven balls, direct hits from Irfan Pathan and Ravindra Jadeja left the visitors needing one from the final delivery.

Jadeja was unerring again, though, running out Krunal Pandya to rescue a tie, but those heroics proved in vain as Mumbai made 11 from their five balls in the Super Over Faulkner having Kieron Pollard and Buttler caught in the deep after the West Indian had clubbed a four and a six.

Despite starting with a no-ball and then a wide in his first three deliveries, Bumrah's searing yorkers were too good for Brendon McCullum and Aaron Finch, who could only manage six as Mumbai moved level with Kolkata Knight Riders at the top of the table.

Earlier, teenage opener Ishan Kishan's 48 from 35 balls underpinned Gujarat's 153-9, Pandya's 3-14 doing the most damage as Mumbai kept their hosts to a manageable total.

Parthiv Patel struck nine fours and a six in his 44-ball 70 to set the platform for Mumbai's chase, but his good work was in danger of being undone as the lower order cracked under the immense pressure of Gujarat's superb fielding.

After Pathan's direct hit accounted for Mitchell McClenaghan from the last ball of the 19th over, Mumbai needed 11 from the final set of six. Pandya hit the first ball over the ropes, but Jadeja twice swooped with accurate throws from the infield to set up a Super Over, where Bumrah came to the fore. (Sportsmax)

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sundAY, april 30, 2017

23

Brighto Paints presents West Indies vs Pakistan Q Mobile Test Series

West Indies in must win position – Pakistan forecast historic Caribbean glory

N

Vishaul Singh

ow that the buzz around Younis Khan's 10,000th run is over, the focus shifts to the dreary business of the Test series unfolding around it. Weather delays and uninspiringly sedate batting at times from both sides give the first Test a dreary, old-fashioned feel. However, there were absorbing periods that left you wanting more, particularly in the last session of the fourth day, when Yasir Shah beat West Indies into submission just as the Test threatened to meander to a forgettable draw.

The build-up to the second Test is not so different to the first, particularly for the West Indies, who must go back to the drawing board. It's all very well working out the opposition's weaknesses and setting elaborate plans, but all that is unlikely to bear fruit

when you then go on to lose five wickets in the first 30 overs of the game, and drop straightforward catches, like they did in Kingston.

From Pakistan's point of view, it was as efficient a Test as they could have hoped for. They were on top right from the start.

Mohammad Amir turned in his best performance since his return to cricket, Yasir did what world class second-innings spinners need to do, and their middle order piled on the runs. Their only concerns might centre around the seemingly intractable puzzle of an endlessly misfiring top order, a concern only appeased by the fact that it was well hidden in Jamaica.

In a depleted side that suffers from a paucity of genuine quality, West Indies appear to have found, in Shannon Gabriel, the man who comes closest to matching that description.

He was the man his captained turned to every time it looked like the West Indies were out of ideas, with the 29-year old providing the breakthrough - or at least creating chances more often than not. His aggression cost him half his match fee in Kingston, but that sort of passion might be appreciated by the West Indies fans. On a Barbados pitch that has traditionally offered more pace and bounce than the Sabina Park surface, Gabriel is perhaps the likeliest to make the sort of telling contri-

Table Tennis ‘Rebirth’ set for Linden today T

he auditorium of the McKenzie High School in the Mining Town of Linden will come alive as senior table tennis will make a grand return to afford players an opportunity against counterparts from other section of the country. The event coincides with Linden Town Week activities and is called the Linden Open Table Tennis Championship or more commonly called The Rebirth.

The two day event which is scheduled for today and tomorrow will commence at 10:00h. It will feature some of the nation’s best players who will journey to Linden on a bus provided by the Guyana Table Tennis Association.

Speaking with this publication, Maurice Cummings an

Key Players in The Rebirth – President of the GTTA Godfrey Munroe (left) and Maurice Cummings

organizer of the event and a member of the Linden Table Tennis Steering Committee, said it is been a while since a tournament of this magnitude has occurred in Linden.

He stated that this is just the initial stage of reintegrating the sport in the mining town but the ultimate goal is to produced players, who will go on to represent Guyana.

According to Cummings, the event has received positive response in and out of Linden.

President of the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) Godfrey Munroe said the event is very critical for the association in terms of the decentralization plan.

He said the GTTA has been working with the Linden Table Tennis Committee over the last year and a half, helping to nurture their plans and programmes.

Munroe opined that the Linden Committee has been doing a splendid job and he is happy that the GTTA would have help to provide some key resources to start this process.

There will be several categories of play, juniors and seniors as well as masters. Men’s Singles, Women’s singles, 9 years and under, 15 years and under, 18 years and under and under 21 open. Trophies and cash incentives will be up for grabs.

Some of the big names that are slated to participate are Shemar Britton and Nigel Bryan among many other top players.

bution that eluded his side last game.

Ahmed Shehzad, not for the first time, finds his Test career at a precipitous stage.

It is a pattern that has regularly repeated itself: inconsistency at the international level, rich form domestically, rinse, repeat. Apart from a pair of fifties, Shehzad has struggled to get going since his return to the highest level during the limited-overs leg of this tour.

With Pakistan's selectors showing impatience at the top order - Kamran Akmal has already been dropped from the Champions Trophy squad - Shehzad must be feeling the pressure of playing for his place again. Whether that stifles him or spurs him on may well have a significant outcome on the second Test.

West Indies' squad is unchanged from the one that fell to a seven-wicket defeat in Kingston. Eyebrows were raised when Shimron Hetmyer and Vishaul Singh were both selected to make their debut in a side that already lacks experience, and one of them could make way for Jermaine Blackwood.

Teams; West Indies: Kieran Powell, Kraigg Brathwaite, Jermaine Blackwood, Shai Hope, Roston Chase, Vishaul Singh, Shimron Hetmyer, Shane Dowrich, Jason Holder (capt), Devendra Bishoo, Alzarri Joseph, Shannon Gabriel and Miguel Cummins Pakistan could stick to the side that won

the first Test, even though Misbah-ul-Haq did say they would consider Shimron Hetmyer the possibility of playing two spinners. That would also give them a fifth bowling option, so necessary in an attack that relies on three fast bowlers.

Pakistan: Misbah-ulHaq (capt), S a r f r a z Ahmed (wk), A h m e d Shehzad, Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam, H a s a n Ali, Mohammad A b b a s , Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Asghar, Shadab Khan, Shan Masood, Usman Salahuddin, Wahab Riaz, Yasir Shah, Younis Khan The forecast for the second Test is better than the it was in Kingston, even though rain is expected on the fourth and fifth days. The surface in Bridgetown is generally hard and fast, and if it is overcast, the toss could assume great importance.

If Pakistan win this Test, it will mark their first ever Test series win in the Caribbean.

(ESPNcricinfo)

SUNDAY, APRIL 30, 2017

Sports is no longer our game, it’s our business

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Brighto Paints presents West Indies vs Pakistan Q Mobile Test Series

West Indies in must win position Pg 23

– Pakistan forecast historic Caribbean glory West Indies need to bounce back to keep the series and their proud home record against Pakistan intact

GHB/ Farfan & Mendes, Woodpecker Products 1st Division Outdoor League…

Pepsi Hikers crush Old Fort 9-0 Pg 20

– GCC Spartans earn draw

Serena Chan scored the lone goal for Old Fort Shooting Stars to earn them a draw (Dexter Ceres photo)

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Times

MAY 2017 FREE DISTRIBUTION

Magazine

Tying up loose ends...

Indian Repatriation Fund Monies Expropriated

Origin of indentureship

Page 2

Will justice ever be done?

Page 4

Page 3

2 Times Indian Arrival Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

MAY 2017

Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

M

A European indentured ‘indented’ contract. The jagged indented top indicates this is the bottom half of the indenture contract

ost of us know that ‘Arrival Day’ is about the ‘arrival’ of ‘indentured servants’ to labour on the sugar plantations after the abolition of slavery first the Portuguese (1935), West Indian Africans (1835), Indians (1838), and, finally, the Chinese (1853).

But exactly what is an ‘indentured servant’? It is actually one of a series of arrangements in which individuals were pressured by various devices - which were enacted into ‘law’ - to provide their labour under controlled and

specified conditions.

‘Indentured labour’ was but one of various guises under which individuals across the globe were conscripted to provide labour in the development of the ‘capitalist’ mode of production that developed as Europe began to exploit the worlds it had ‘discovered’ – and more germanely, conquered – after 1492. There were indentured labourers from Europe starting from the 17th century long before the Indians from India.

White Indentureship

The Master or his representative in Europe, who would be recruiting workers, would write up the agreement detailing all the terms that would have to be agreed to by the servant. Typically, the servant would be transported to a plantation in the new world at the master’s expense, where he was supposed to work for a specified number of years. He would be provided with food, clothing, and other necessities and, at the end of the said period,

he would be either given land on which he could farm or on a few occasions be given a passage back to the ‘old country’.

The agreement was written twice on the same piece of paper then was separated in a manner that left jagged ‘indents’ - from which the word ‘indenture’ was derived. At the end of the indentureship period, the indentured servant would present his portion of the agreement, which would be fitted to its other half to confirm they were the same contract with the same terms.

The British initially introduced indentured workers in the farms they established in America (Virginia) and Barbados, their first colony in the West Indies where tobacco was the main crop. Many of the whites presently residing in Barbados are descended from these European indentured servants.

But with the introduction of plantations in the seventeenth century - which demanded greater numbers and rigour than Europe could supply to cultivate sugar cane and cotton - the British turned to African slaves. They had to invent slave laws in Barbados that used the Spanishoriginated racist ideology to also justify the practice.

Indian Indentureship

In India, which the British East India Company conquered between 1657 and 1818, the British passed laws that changed the rules on land taxes and crops that should be cultivated. Consequently, millions died from famine and pushed off the land to become the excess labour that could be exported to other parts of the empire as needed.

Under the new racism, Indians were also lower intrinsically to whites.

Indentured Indian labour was first used within India in the tea plantations of Assam, and then to the newly acquired French islands of Reunion and Mauritius.

After the abolition of African slavery in the British Empire in 1834, rather than moving to ‘free labour’, as was promised, they introduced ‘unfree’ indentured labour by

law. The contracts of the indentureds were structured to keep them bound to their employer so that if they were not in the fields, they had to be either in jail or hospital.

Infractions of their contract were subjected to criminal penalties, and these were applied liberally.

In Fiji, the descendants of the Indian indentureds call themselves ‘GIRMITIYA’ people of the agreement by which they were bound to the new world.

The indenture contracts formed a partnership between the traveller and the ‘master’ to exchange years of service for a promise of future compensation like acres of land, livestock, clothing, room and boarding during the time of service.

The terms of this contract were between servant Patrick Larkin and Master Thomas Blood.

The Indian Indenture Contract

This is an example from Mauritius of the indenture contract that Indians were made to sign before embarking on the ship for the colonies at the beginning of indentureship. The terms were to be copied by all the countries such as Guyana and Trinidad, which received indentured labour later.

Copy Form of Contract Between the undersigned __ acting on behalf of __ of Mauritius, and the natives whose names are hereunto affixed, the following agreement has been entered into by the several parties binding themselves to the observance of the conditions thereof: 1. The natives agree to proceed to the Isle of France, to work as labourers there, upon a sugar estate, the property of __ and to remain there, if required, for the time of five years.

2. The passage of the natives to the Mauritius shall be paid by __ who shall also provide a passage again to this country, at the end of five years, for each native who may then wish to return; but if any individual, from any cause, should be discharged or leave

the employment of before the expiration of five years, such individual shall have no claim on him for a passage.

3. The pay of the natives shall be fixed at the rate of five rupees per month for each man. The labour required from them will be that of digging holes, weeding canes, working in the sugar-house, repairing roads and bridges, or otherwise making themselves useful, according to their ability, as __ may order them; the quantity of daily labour required from each to be fixed by the manager of the property; the pay of one sirdar shall be fixed at seven rupees per month, and that of one mate six rupees, and boys at three rupees per month.

4. As __ must be responsible to government that the natives shall not be a burden to the colony, in the event of their being discharged or leaving their employments, one rupee per month shall be retained from the pay of each individual, until there shall be a sufficient sum to provide a passage for each to Calcutta; should no such contingency take place, the money shall be restored at the end of five years.

5. In addition to the pay as above fixed, food and clothing shall be supplied to each as follows-Fourteen chettacks of rice (about 2lbs.), two ditto of dholl*, two ounces of salt, and some oil and tamarind, daily; and annually for each, clothing as follows; two dhooties, two blankets, one jacket, and one cap.

6. Each individual shall receive six months’ pay in advance, for which he shall give an acknowledgement here; their pay to commence from the date of their going on board the ship.

7. The nature of this agreement (which shall be registered at the police) is such that each native is individually responsible for the observance of its conditions by every one whose mark it bears; and it is further agreed, that while in hospital, from sickness or any other cause, the pay is stopped during such time.

Sample of an ad announcing the arrival of white indentureds

guyanatimesgy.com

MAY 2017

Times Indian Arrival Magazine

3

Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

Tying up loose ends...

Monies or land in lieu still outstanding

Of recent there have been some erroneous claims that “land was given” to Indian immigrants. This may be due to confusion because over the course of indentureship, the contracted clause that Indian immigrants were owed a return passage was adjudged as too onerous a burden to the government and Plantocracy, which then attempted to induce immigrants to commute their return passages for small plots of land. By and

the emigrant sailed.

From the 396 that landed in 1838, sixty remained in Guyana after their contracts expired in 1843 and 236 returned to India. Ninety-eight others died and immigration was suspended because of the slave-like conditions imposed in British Guiana.

Immigration was reopened in 1845, at the insistence and importuning of the planters and after the Government of India Act XXI 1844, Guyana passed Ordinance No 12 of 1844

A group of Indian immigrants in British Guiana n.d.

Labourers' dwellings on sugar plantation (Photo by J Williams)

large, these schemes were unsuccessful. But no land was ‘given’ to Indian immigrants.

The Return Passage Clause

The Indian indenture contract was initially promulgated by the Colonial Government of India, which was supposed to secure the interests of its citizens being shipped overseas to labour.

However, the government of the receiving countries were all heavily influenced by the sugar planting interests, which had a strong lobby both in the colonies and with the Foreign Office and the Secretary for the Colonies. It should not be surprising that in the end, the “terms of engagement” were all aimed to squeeze the most profit from sugar plantations at the expense of the indentured workers, and even these were consistently violated on the sugar plantations.

One of the terms that the planters fought almost from the beginning was the right of a return passage by immigrants after they completed their prescribed years of indentureship.

The initial agreement Act XXXII in 1837 specified (3) Contracts were to be for one term not exceeding five years, or successive terms not exceeding five years each, with stipulation for a return passage to the port from which

to guarantee return passage to all immigrants after five years of indentureship.

Immigration was again suspended in 1848 because of conditions on the plantations.

It re-opened again in 1851 with the return passage clause intact, and this lasted up to 1853 as the planters encouraged the immigrants to remain in Guyana by securing a bonus to sign on for another five years, after which the return passage would be available. In 1856, this arrangement was solidified with the bonus being $50, but the return passage remaining.

In 1862, all contracts reverted to five years of indentureship with the right of return passage.

Even though the wages were abysmal, Indians, as most immigrants will, went to extraordinary length to save money, some in the hope they would use their agreed return passage to India and “live in style”, as they were promised when they were recruited. This return passage, which was such a prominent feature of the Indian indenture contract, soon became a source of concern to the planters. And starting from the initial position of guaranteeing passage after the fiveyear service, tried all means to have this changed because of the expense.

In addition to the funds

demanded for hiring ships, the planters were also anxious for the experienced workers to remain since the new arrivals had to undergo a period of seasoning, during which they were not so efficient. One study mentions that by 1869 there were 30,000 indentures who were eligible for return passages, and this would cost at least $250,000-$300,000 - an enormous sum.

Immigrants were encouraged to re-indenture for another five years with a bounty of 50 pounds.

Land to keep Indians in Guyana: None was ever “given”

Land Exchange for Return Passage

Acting on a suggestion of the Immigration AgentGeneral James Crosby, the government decided to offer land to the indentureds in lieu of their return passage.

In 1871, Plantation Nooten Zuill on the East Coast was bought for this purpose, but there were no takers because of the evaluation of the offered land by immigrants.

The Indians were demonstrating they would not jump ‘willy nilly’ into taking up unsuitable land. In the meantime, re-indenture bounty was discontinued in 1873. No land was “given” to Indian immigrants.

Huist Dieren - 1881

Plantation

Huist

Dieren was purchased by Government in 1881 to offer to immigrants in lieu of return passage. The 768 acres purchased and divided into 350 cultivation plots of 2 acres each plus 270 residential lots ¼ acre each.

Most immigrants thought the infrastructure was deficient, and by 1882, when it was decided to sell outright rather than commute return passages, only 69 cultivation plots and 49 residential lots were occupied.

The price was judged ‘exorbitant’ being ten times the going rate and only 67 residential and cultivation lots were sold - 10 of which were repossessed by the government. Government resumed control of all unoccupied land and the experiment was declared a “failure” in 1888. No land was “given” to Indian immigrants.

Change in Responsibility for Return Passages

On the demands of the planters and government, in 1893, the two administrations, British Guiana and India, decided that indentured labourers must pay half of their return passage.

With prices of sugar continuing to decline, the government and planters formed a committee in 1889 which proposed to discourage return passages by encouraging settlements. A “Return Passages Committee” was formed in 1896.

It is rather ironic, in light of claims in the present, that land was “given” to Indian immigrants that by the 1890s, with the boom in gold prospecting in the interior the changing voter demographics to include more Portuguese and ‘coloureds’, the law on acquiring land was made less onerous and the price of ‘crown lands’ plummeted. It was now much less expensive to acquire lands in British Guiana.

ing their return passages.

However, most of these did not take up their allotments for several reasons and the settlement was adjudged a failure, even though Rev. JB Cropper had been appointed Superintendent. No land was “given” to Indian immigrants.

Whim, Corentyne - 1898

Between 1898 and 1899, five hundred and seventyfour cultivation and residential plots were allocated, and because it was close to Albion Plantation, even though faced with hardships like the settlers at Helena, the ones at Whim had an alternative employment outlet.

The great drought of 1899, however, took its toll and the results at Whim were not encouraging to the government from their perspective of having mass commutation of return passages. No land was “given” to Indian immigrants.

Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice: 1897-1902

The property of Bush Lot, with 1,303 acres and 843 acres of it cultivable, was sold to the Government for $1,200

and handed over to the Return Passages Committee.

They spent $35.47 per caput to develop the land for the Indians who accepted their allotments in lieu of their return passages. No land was “given” to Indian immigrants.

Maria’s Pleasure, Wakenaam: 1902-1903

One hundred and sixtyeight cultivation plots and residential lots were allocated in 1902 to 176 individuals in commutation of their return passages. But only 40 took possession and started building houses and cultivating crops. No land was “given” to Indian immigrants.

In 1905, being very disappointed by the results of their plan to initiate a mass commutation of return passages, the Government handed over the four settlements to the Central Board of Health.

Henceforth, all lands that became available to the Government or from private owners were drained, irrigated, sold, rented or leased to immigrants at market rates.

No land was “given” to Indian immigrants.

Logies at Leonora Esate

Helena: 1896

Helena, an abandoned plantation in Mahaica, was purchased in 1896. In 1897, lots were allocated to 1,206 persons in lieu of commut-

Housing range of indentured labourers

4 Times Indian Arrival Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

MAY 2017

Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

Will justice ever be done?

Indian Repatriation Fund Monies Expropriated

be the granting or transporting of land or the making of money payment to them in lieu and satisfaction of their right to Return Passage, under the provision of Section 193 of the Immigration ordinance, Chap 208’ BE IT RESOLVED that this Conference respectfully requests Government to offer at an early date suitable lands or money payments to all immigrants, their wives, children and or, dependents entitled thereto in lieu and satisfaction of their right to a return passage in accordance with Section 193 to 195 of the Immigration Ordinance, Chap 208; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Conference urges upon Government as an alternative measure the establishment of land settlements at suitable sites for such immigrants at an early date under approved schemes in consideration of their right to Return Passages.

Mover: Mr DP Debidin Seconder: Mr Sugrim Singh

By Ravi Dev

T

he first shipments of immigrants to British Guiana in 1838 were privately financed

by John Gladstone. Subsequently, the financing was raised through loans obtained in Great Britain, by advances from the British Government, and from the general revenue of the Colony.

In 1864, a decision was taken by the British Guiana Government to create an “Immigration Fund” to finance the cost of immigration and repatriation of immigrants.

This Fund was drawn from general revenue, duties levied on estates' supplies, plantation land usage, indenture and re-indenture fees paid by planters, fees paid for renewal of certificates of exemption from labour, and fees for the registration of Indian marriages.

The amount paid into this Fund grew significantly with each succeeding year.

From September 1, 1895 to October 1898, the Government unilaterally decided that male immigrants would have to pay quarter of their return passages and females one-sixth. From 1898, onwards males had to pay half and females one-third.

In 1898, “The Return Passages (subsequent to 1898) Fund” was created specifically to pay for the repatriation of immigrants who arrived in British Guiana after 1898.

The planters had to contribute to this fund. The authorities estimated that quarter of these arrivals would choose to return. Thus, the planters deposited quarter of the passage - which varied between $60 and $72.

In 1917, at the cessation of immigration from India, the Consolidated Immigration Loan Commissioners closed their account and transferred their $149,000 and $130,000 from the Immigration Fund to form a “Repatriation (prior to 1898) Fund”.

In December 1920, the sum of $765,577 was transferred to “The Return Passages (subsequent to 1898) Fund” to offset depreciated investments.

Since the 1920s, Indian leaders have consistently asked the Government of the day to utilise the monies in the Funds for the benefit of the descendants of the Indian indentureds.

In 1938, all the leaders of the Indian community, at the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the arrival of Indians to Guyana, repeated this call in the presence of the Governor. The proceedings were published in the widely circulated “The Indian Opinion” in May 1938 and was summarised in the Editorial, “The Centenary” by Mr J. Ramlogan.

Below is a pertinent excerpt: “Now, after Centenary, what?” is an important question for all our leading and thinking Indians in British Guiana.

What we certainly should expect to see, and would be glad to see is… the installation of a Resident Agent General… An Indian Agent General of the right type should be able to see to it that the halfa-million or more dollars lying at credit of the Immigration, or Repatriation Fund, is used wholly and solely for the purpose we

Immigration Fund Expropriated

East Indian immigrants in British Guiana circa 1800s

have often advocated (and legally we are advised) it could be used for no other purpose), and that is - the granting to every time -expired immigrant of money or land in lieu of a return passage to India to which he is entitled under the terms of his labour contract.

Government’s refusal of our Association’s request to utilise the money in its keeping in this direction has naturally laid Government open to the suspicion of being motivated by some ulterior motive in respect to it… making good the deficiency in some flagrantly underestimated undertaking…

We look to Government to be guided in its administration of the Colony’s affairs by some moral principle, by some sense of honour and justice, as we would expect of any individual public official of whatever grade or rank.

Surely, on the other hand, it cannot be, as one writer has suggested, that the government is playing a waiting game - waiting until all the Indians entitles to the right of repatriation have died out, and then take hold of the half-a-million as a sort of treasure trove. Surely, it cannot be that Government has so far degenerated in morals in respect to other people’s property - property to which there claimants still alive - as to be capable of acting in the mercenary spirit of the plunderer who said to his victim, “What I have I hold; what I hold I keep.”

We have often thought of the enormous economic possibilities for Indians lying in these halfa-million dollars at credit of the Immigration Fund. With a commutation of the repatriation claims to grants of cultivable Crown Land and of working cash drawn from this Fund to compensate adequately for the foregoing of that claim, what further endeavour and

achievement might we not expect of them in this second century of their settlement in this land of their adoption!”

The Centenary Conference Resolution on the subject was: Number 4: Repatriation and Return Passage WHEREAS there is a large number of Immigrants in the colony entitled to return passages to the port in India whence they came; AND WHEREAS for economic and other reasons it would be desirable to discourage their return; AND WHEREAS a strong factor in achieving this end would

In December 1948, these Funds were all merged as the “Immigration Fund (Amalgamated)” and amounted to $440,000. After the two ships between then and 1955 (MV Resurgebnt) took back immigrants to India, it was decided there would be no more chartering of ships and individual passages would be paid. There were only two. In 1966, approximately $280,000 remained in the Fund, according to Dwarka Nath.

In that year, Guyana became independent, the PNC government appointed a committee “to recommend in what way the amount lying in credit of the Immigration Fund should be used for the benefit of the surviving immigrants and their descendants”.

According to Nath, the committee recommended that three Indian Cultural Centres be established in the three counties, so that Indian culture could be kept alive.

The PNC government, howev-

The National Cultural Centre today

er, in 1968 declared that all the Indian Immigration Fund monies would be used to build a ‘National Culture Centre’ in Georgetown.

All the Indian organisations in Guyana protested - even the Maha Sabha, which said, “While not opposed to a part of the Fund being used for a ‘national’ cause, there should be Cultural Centres in Berbice and Esequibo also.”

The Gandhi Youth Organisation, under the leadership of Dr Balwant Singh, took the most consistent stand and demanded the Funds be used only on Indian Cultural Centres since the money was contractually and legally owing to the descendants of Indian immigrants.

All the protests fell on deaf ears, and the PNC government constructed the National Cultural Centre (NCC) in time for Carifesta 1972, which was boycotted by most Indian organisations in protest. As predicted by the organisations, the NCC has been utilised only occasionally by the generally ruralbased Indian population and resentment at the injustice meted out to Indian Guyanese remains in the community.

Between 1998 and 2000, the ROAR, Gurkha and GIHA Indian organisations called for Indian Cultural Centres to be built in the three counties.

Most recently, during the commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Abolition of Indentureship, at its symposium “The State of the Indian Guyanese Community: Challenges and Prospects”, the Girmitiya Research Council reiterated the previous calls for the government to make amends for unilaterally expropriating the monies from the Immigration Fund (Amalgamated). It passed a resolution calling for the Government to construct Indian Cultural Centres in each county, with research, archival and museum facilities, to serve the community in dealing with the ravages of the indentureship experience on the descendants of Indian immigrants.

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MAY 2017

Times Indian Arrival Magazine

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

B y R yhaan S hah

M

uch discussion and debate surrounds the Indian presence in the Caribbean.

The late UWI Professor Rex Nettleford said that we have to “learn to be West Indian”, a statement which many have taken issue with since it suggests that our ‘Indianess’ is not compatible with being West Indian, but must be transformed in order to fit some other idea about ourselves. In the Caribbean context this means an African Caribbean culture and identity.

These were created and emerged from the broken state of the Africans who had been stripped of their beliefs, culture and even of their very humanity by the brutalities of slavery on the plantations. From this fragmentation has arisen, like the mythical phoenix from the ashes, new sounds, language, and a new selfhood as transmitted through calypso, reggae, steel pan, carnival, and dialects that have refashioned the English of the slave owners with new rhythms and idioms that bear the echoes of a remembered heritage.

In his Nobel Laureate speech, Derek Walcott spoke of this lovingly when he stated: “Break a vase, and the love that reassembles the fragments is stronger than that love which took its symmetry for granted when it was whole. The glue that fits the pieces is the sealing of its original shape.

It is such a love that reassembles our African and Asiatic fragments, the cracked heirlooms whose restoration shows its white scars.”

Walcott spoke at length of witnessing a presentation of the “Ramleela” drama in the Trinidad countryside. He saw this, too, as part of the region’s cultural fragmentation. While Indians in the Caribbean have adapted to fit a Western environment and new circumstances, this adaptation amounts to adjustments that have been made in order to survive and progress; they can hardly be likened to brokenness and fragmentation.

In my poem, “I Did Not Begin Anew”, I challenge this idea of Indian cultural fragmentation with the lines:

“I did not begin anew but am the present from a past That was never abandoned on this distant shore.

I am no shard of history, no broken vase, but lived In every century of old, fought glorious wars, Beheld the gods and sang their songs of praise.”

Despite the brutalities of the sugar plantation, Indians never surrendered their beliefs and culture. On the contrary, these gave them strength and succour to survive the worst. The colonial masters did attempt to Christianise us as they had the African slaves, but our fore-parents saw no reason to give up their gods, beliefs and values for another’s.

As much as the English saw them as “the other”, they, in turn, viewed the white master as “the other” and were not willing to surrender their beliefs, culture, habits and their names to fit the master’s idea that they should be moulded into imitation English people or “mimic men”, as V.S. Naipaul so aptly named the phenomenon.

The fact that Indians in Guyana, Surinam and Trinidad and Tobago can still be identified as an ethnic group, through both physical appearance and cultural habits after the 179 years that have passed since the SS Whitby weighed anchor off Plantation Highbury in Berbice, is a triumph of the human spirit over the most challenging adversity.

However, this survival of Indians and Indian culture is often viewed negatively as triumphalism, racism, and supremacist

by African Caribbean critics. In their estimation, the Caribbean is a one-culture region and can only be home to the new expressions and beliefs that have emerged from the fragmentation and reassembling à la Walcott.

That Indians continue to sing, dance, pray, perform rites and rituals and hold to traditions and beliefs as passed down through generations from the very first Indian immigrants are seen as counter, even threatening, to the concept of one-Caribbean selfhood.

Some of the most vo-

ciferous critics and accusers are not even African Caribbean people, but Indians who have positioned themselves as multiracial and multi-ethnic mostly through mixed relationships. The choice of a spouse or partner is always purely personal, but many of them are moved to make their condemnation of Indian pride public.

They interpret our pride as criticism of their choice, which they defend in the strongest terms.

Interestingly, the mixed or African half of these multiracial partnerships never rises to such public defence of their choice whenever an African Caribbean person expresses pride in their African roots and heritage.

Perhaps, they are secure in the African entitlement of the Caribbean’s cultural status quo.

However, the Indian, who is now moving to that belonging and is the one who is expected to adapt, appears insecure about their new footing and, therefore, moves to condemn any Indian pride which they see as placing their newfound identity and social positioning in jeopardy.

Expressions of Indian pride are never meant to condemn or criticise, but are simply a celebration of the unique values and beliefs that provide us with a link to a heritage that still resonates in our daily life. All races, ethnicities and cultural groups display such pride. It is human and natural.

If the Indian partner in a multiracial relationship feels that they cannot or should not express such pride in their heritage, this does raise a number of serious sociological questions about the regional expectations with regard to culture and identity.

The idea of enforced change for any ethnic group is anathema to the norms of civilised behaviour and attitudes and the Caribbean, like most progressive countries and regions, surely has room for the acceptance and respect for diversity.

The values of decency, pride, justice, and a respect for all humankind as expressed by Indian culture are in perfect harmony with Caribbean and Western values and should, both socially and politically, be encouraged

and supported as good attributes for the region’s progress and development.

After 179 years, the Indian presence and Indian pride are very much part of Guyana and the Caribbean region.

There is much to celebrate and on this Indian Arrival Day, we can hope that every other ethnic group will celebrate with us, sincerely.

Ryhaan Shah

6 Times Indian Arrival Magazine

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MAY 2017

Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

The Shaping of Guyanese Literature

By Petamber Persaud

W

henever I talk about or even dare to mention a ‘Guyanese literature’, there are loud sounds of scoffing and large signs of scepticism. A whole lot of people think that this is a farfetched idea – what could a relatively young nation and small country like Guyana have produced to call its own literature, perhaps forgetting St. Lucia, in respect of nationhood, and Ireland, in respect of size, both countries producing Nobel Laureates.

The scoffing and the scepticism to a Guyanese literature was sort of a blessing in disguise. In 2013, I was able to compile and publish a substantial book of some 150 pages titled, “Introduction to Guyanese Literature”.

This book underwent three printings. The natural progression is now for me to do a revised edition to include ‘new’ writers, new publications, ‘new’ literary enablers, new anthologies and new anthologists. Since the Caribbean Press, there has been no known institution or institutional work to add to the information already in that book.

I’m belabouring this point because of something that happened in 1883, something that all writers, especially emerging writers, can use as inspiration.

When Egbert ‘Leo’ Martin, our first major poet and short fiction writer, was crit-

icised for focusing on foreign subjects for his first book of poems, he responded by producing “Leo’s Local Lyrics”.

Additionally, and more recent to Leo’s case, is the situation of N. E. Cameron who, while studying at Cambridge in the early 1920s, was unable to give a proper account of the literature of his country. The upshot was his compilation of the first anthology of ‘Guianese’ poetry.

When in 2008, I produced “The Balgobin Saga” - a small part of Indian folk literature in Guyana - many academics condemned that ground-breaking work. As I continue to share my findings on an unfolding IndoGuyanese literature, I was emboldened by sparks of support. Let me hasten to say, all my work – years of producing of Guyanese literature on television and in the press - would reveal a dominant interest in preserving and promoting Guyanese literature first and foremost.

Now in 2017, I have published a book showcasing over 70 Guyanese writers of Indian ancestry. As the questions and the scoffing and the looks of disbelief appear, I allow myself a moment of vanity. Yes, in the book, there are over 70 Guyanese writers of Indian ancestry, and those are only the ones I was able to get sound information on and a proper image of.

For far too long we were been fed on the old tradition peddled by an old guard who was/is grudging with its compliments of other peoples’ writings and was/is comfortable with the state of play. This is not intended to take away from the import of the exceptional and substantial corpus of work done by the Mittleholzers, and the Carters, and the Harrises. But there is an unacknowledged parallel tradition in the Indian community of writers going way back

to the early nineteen century. My new book seeks to correct sins of commission and sins of omission, among other objectives.

For the first time, some of the neglected, slighted and the omitted writers will see the light of day and breathe again, their voices heard again as more research will fill out the skeleton of data and infuse character into them.

For instance, you would come face-to-face with the first Indian anthologist

whose work surface about three years after Guyana’s first anthology. You would also come face-to-face with the first Indian novelist, the first Guyanese and Indian satirist, the first Guyanese and Indian to write his autobiography, the first Guyanese woman and Indian biographer, among other significant and lesserknown achievements of the Indian community of writers. You would come faceto-face with those who laid the foundation for an IndoGuyanese literature and those who are building on that foundation to make all Guyanese proud of a burgeoning literature.

“Guyanese Writers of Indian Ancestry” is the second publication in a series of full-colour pocketbooks designed to present interesting and little known information in a way that it can be readily and easily absorb. This second pocketbook is much thicker than and as attractive as its sister, “Made in Guyana”, published in May 2016 to mark the country’s Golden Jubilee.

Granted this pocketbook is small and slim, it covers a lot of ground previously untouched by anyone and contains some of the data in my effort to map Guyanese literature, some data I have been collecting for over two decades. So we could say this little book took some 20 years of work.

First and foremost, this

pocketbook is to mark the centennial end of indentureship in 2017, evoking nostalgia for some and adventure for others. Secondly, there is not much information readily available on IndoGuyanese literature and this project will attempt to fill that lacuna. Finally, this book is an acknowledgement of our literary ancestors.

This book is designed to be used by anyone interested in Guyanese heritage, including students from primary to tertiary level education – the information is not cryptic and the language undemanding.

Although this book captures the life and work of more than 70 writers, it is an introduction, whetting the appetite, eliciting respect and appreciation to encourage more scholarship on Indo-Guyanese literature and, by extension, Guyanese literature.

Responses to this author telephone (592) 226-0065 or email: oraltradition2002@ yahoo.com What’s Happening: It’s here: “Guyanese Writers of Indian Ancestry” was launched to commemorate the centennial end to indentureship and (Indian) Arrival Day. The book is available at Austin’s Book Service and directly from the author; it will soon be at other locations including the National Library, hotels and airports.

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MAY 2017

Times Indian Arrival Magazine

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

Georgetown Sugar Estate, British Guiana

Protesting at Skeldon Estate

By Ashraf Dabie

S

ugar was the raison d'etre for Guyana in the early 17th century by the Dutch and continued as the foundation of the economy up to the ending of the 20th century. After the abolition of slavery in 1834, indentured labourers were brought from every continent to keep the sugar industry going since the freed Africans, not surprisingly, wanted to have the least to do with the site of their degradation. By 1848, more than half of the 82,000 freed men and women had left the plantations to form the Village Movement.

Portuguese, Indians, West Indians, Africans and Chinese were all brought as indentured labourers to form the new multi-cultural, multi-religious, multiethnic society as we know it today. Because the sugar regime in Europe had changed with the increase in beet sugar and removal of preferential tariffs in England,

the West Indian planters cut wages drastically from the 1840s into the end of indentureship in 1917.

The workers, especially the Indian indentureds that formed the bulk of the workforce, face tremendous hardships in those years. They had to literally face bullets to struggle for recognition of their humanity and for a living wage. Since the sugar interests were the mainstay of the government, to struggle against sugar meant a struggle against the state.

The sugar workers’ struggle in the 20th century led to the independence from Britain.

However, in the recent years, Guyana has been dumped from the economic stability which was almost entirely supported by the production and exportation of sugar to regional and international markets.

With the decline in the agricultural industry, primarily the production of rice and sugar, the country was forced to make several dras-

Albion Sugar Estate circa 1920

tic changes to adapt to the new developments. Among these changes were proposals for the closure of sugar estates, which once provided the backbone of the country’s economy. This then gave rise to the sugar fiasco, which is currently unfolding in Guyana.

Following the announcement by the government early last year regarding the proposed closure of several sugar estates as well as the sale of the operations site at Skeldon, sugar workers, as well as relevant stakeholders, have been relentless in their outcries to halt and reverse such drastic actions against the industry in Guyana.

Various forms of demonstration were staged within the last year, with the frequency and magnitude intensifying, especially in the past four months. The concerns of unemployment and disturbance to the livelihood of workers and their families, along with the blow which the termination

of operations at these major sugar production hubs will have on the economy, were the headlines of the protests which materialised at several locations throughout the country.

After months of taking to the streets with placards and chants, it is evident that the actions of those affected have had a lasting impression, given that it has sparked conversations at various levels, including direct attention from the President and his Cabinet.

However, these protestors and their representing body, the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), are still of the opinion that nothing is being done. As such, the sugar workers and their Union have pledged continued support to the protests to prevent a total shutdown of the sugar industry in Guyana.

In an interview with Sunday Times Magazine, the president of GAWU, Komal Chand, pointed out that despite several attempts by authorities to justify the butchering of the sugar industry, workers and the long list of affected citizens have united in their opposition against the government on this decision.

“The numbers are getting bigger. We see this growing because workers realise it is the only way to force to government to revoke the decision,” he declared.

However, Chand acknowledged the govern-

ment’s position on the sugar industry being in a deplorable state with a decline in production over the last few decades. Nonetheless, Chand noted that correcting the deficiencies within the industry is a more plausible solution rather than closing these estates, which will inherently affect the entire country. Family life and communities will be affected with looming financial challenges being a threat to education, and even an upsurge in crime. This therefore creates a new list of substantial expenses for the government, which may be significantly more than what is initially required to rectify the shortcomings on these estates.

As such, Chand proposed a series of recommendations, which he had presented to the government, but to no avail. Among these recommendations were the streamlining of management of the estates and implementing new strategies to tackle the production deficits. Furthermore, he suggested the exploration of additional industries, such as the selling of electricity, setting up a refinery to supply CARICOM countries and the establishment of a new distillery to further generate capital.

Concerning the sale of electricity, Chand commented that about $9.5 billion was generated from the Skeldon Estate from electricity produced by the boilers on site. With that,

Plantation Enmore, British Guiana

not only will production increase, but the potential for these estates goes beyond the production of sugar.

Chand added that in 2015, the government had launched a Commission of Inquiry to assess the feasibility of the closure of the Wales, Enmore and Skeldon Estates with the reports advising against such actions.

Even then they were still determined to close these estates, leaving some 350 cane cutters of Wales without their severance packages. This publication also understands that potential buyers are lining up for the sale of these prime lands, which is further evidence of the potential these estates possess.

It is with these beliefs that GAWU and sugar workers attached to estates across the country continue to express their grievances and call for the consideration of the alternatives to the closure of sugar estates in Guyana.

There have been announcements by both the President and Prime Minister that the sugar industry will not die, but GAWU is not sold on the integrity of such claims.

The acts of protest by those affected are keeping the conversations on sugar relevant and holding those in authority accountable, thereby controlling and even preventing drastic actions from being taken against Guyana’s sugar industry.

8 Times Indian Arrival Magazine

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MAY 2017

Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

By Isahak Basir, CCH

G

olden Fleece Sugar Estate was one of some 55 estates developed by the Dutch in the 17th century and closed by the British owner John Dodds in 1910. The estate’s owner and his political influence saw the end of sugar cane cultivation and the last sugar factory closure in 1934 in Essequibo.

Bacchus from Wakenaam, then by present owner, Nazeemul Hakh.

Golden Fleece estate is predominantly rice producing, and the present owner hails from a rice-growing family. They are in the business since 1938 on the West Coast of Demerara.

Over the years, the landscape of Golden Fleece has changed. It is developing due to the construction of a

Fleece and Zorg is an elevated formation of white clay.

This clay, when dissolved in water, was used extensively by indentured Indians to “white-wash” their logies and other house facilities. The alkaline white clay was distributed all over the county of Essequibo and island of Wakenaam. It was a household need for weddings and religious functions. Consequently, the Aerial shot of Golden Fleece Estate with rice mill in centre view

Golden Fleece rice mill (Photo by Nigel A Singh)

The estate is located about six miles from Adventure and the main residential area is located on a sand reef about a kilometre inland, west of the public road. The old sugar factory site is now a very modern rice-milling complex.

Its first owner was a Muslim individual who bought the estate from the British Guiana Trustees.

This was the only alternative for departing British estate owners to leave their estate in trusteeship.

History has also recorded that the Trustees were forced to sell several estates to meet drainage and irrigation expenses. On one occasion in early 1909, Pareekan Singh purchased several abandoned sugar estates in Essequibo.

The second owner of Golden Fleece Estate was C. R. Chan, followed by Kader

modern rice complex, which has contributed to the social and economic gain of community. Access via sections of paved roads can allow tourists a one-mile ride between orchards and new buildings that have replaced mud houses made with thatched roofs, troolie palms and walls made out of wattles.

Some symbols of early Dutch occupancy are still visible in Golden Fleece.

The Anglican Church is adorned with century-old palm trees, which were used to guide sugar punts in and out of the area. The main estate road is elevated ten feet above the rice fields and is commonly known as Truck Line.

The kilometre long rail carriage that facilitated the transport of sugar and molasses to the waterfront in the backlands of Golden

constant removal of this clay created a tunnel, which eventually caved in. In 1938, a resident, Anand Barose of

Golden Fleece, was removing clay and was crushed and killed.

Like all sugar productions, water supply was a prime necessity. As such, a huge water reservoir was created at the extreme west end of Golden Fleece and Perseverance. This reserve is filled by a natural spring known as “washer woman”.

In the vicinity lies a Dutch tomb that has a huge padlock, which can be seen still. The sandy soil of the housing area allowed the propagation of many fruits; one of which was the olive plant known as “Nulluck catcher”. This tree would bear fruits from its roots upward. Sadly, it has been used many times for suicide by hanging.

At one time in the history of sugar in Essequibo, British plutocracy was so impressed with the productivity of indentured works that an estate owner decided to examine one of the workers’ lunch bowl. He discovered shelled hassar and sijan sticks. In alarm, he referred to the diet as “sticks and crocodile”.

By 1935 a religious organisation by the name of The Canadian Mission saw the need to advance Christianity, and, as such, the Fisher Primary School was built. In 2010 the school was replaced by a modern structure under the PPP/C government.

Golden Fleece Estate is a well laid out village, having had the full support of the

current government, with well-paved streets, a school, playfield, modern pubs and fast food restaurants.

The proprietor of Golden Fleece Rice Complex offers subsidies transportation of burnt paddy husk to residents who wish to cultivate other crops. The Golden Fleece Rice Complex not only endured hard days, but produced and exported high quality rice while creating employment for scores of workers.

Golden Fleece Estate can be easily identified at nights with its illumination and under the flight path of aircraft to the Caribbean, U.S.A. and Canada. (Photos

by Marco Basir)

Rice harvester in the fields (Photo by Nigel A Singh) The old Fisher Primary School

Tall palm trees in the Golden Fleece area

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MAY 2017

Times Indian Arrival Magazine

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

“Tadjahs” British Guiana. No date (S.P.G. Postcards, England)

By Neaz Subhan

T

he anniversary of the arrival of Indo-Guyanese foreparents should be a much anticipated opportunity for the current generation to meaningfully reflect on the transition of this ethnic group. One would assume that in this process foremost would be status, contribution and relevance in the contemporary Guyanese society with a keen perspective on what the future can bring.

The relevance of this reflection would have probably heightened from two standpoints: the related impact of the current circumstances, which are unfolding nationally; and 2017 being the centennial anniversary of the abolition of the Indian indentureship scheme.

The complexities, which this reflection can unravel, should not be underestimated. These have the potential to precipitate other convolutions that can force descendants to make painful undesired sacrifices. That said, one potential impact could be on the preservation of the rich cultural traditions Indo-Guyanese ancestors brought in 1838. One hundred and seventynine years after, it would be useful to ponder how it withstood the test of time.

This would attract divergent views depending from where it originates. One extreme is that much has been lost and the loss continues. The other is that pres-

ervation has not waned and that related efforts have been relentlessly sustained.

Objectively, it would not be erroneous to posit that both views have aspects of accuracy and are probably embellished with dosages of exaggeration. What seems irrefutable is the bombarding of the culture over time by other influences, which brings other issues into focus. Given that, there has been waning, there has been loss, but there have also been commendable efforts to preserve and foster these traditions over the years. The latter gives much needed hope for the future.

The obvious questions would be what has waned and what has been lost? One could easily venture to say that the Tadjah festival, which disappeared over 100 years ago, probably following an order of governance, is something that has been lost. While that may connote an extreme case, singing of “Beraha” has drastically declined to almost being non-existent. This open form of improvised poetic storytelling, which probably began to lament being away from home (India) and missing loved ones, evolved into bringing focus to issues that affected the immigrants.

“Taan” singing, which are traditional songs that expresses emotions and relates to every moment of the day, situations and conditions, is another that would have

declined with the passage of time as it is no longer seen as attractive to some. On an encouraging note, there were talks to have this art form be revived with a national completion being touted.

This would be most welcomed and would probably be seen as “new” to sections of the current generation.

Chutney music, with its general single straight-style, originated from this region. Many are of the opinion that its contemporary form has strayed far from its origin. Evolution is cited as the reason for the decline and, with the advent of modern electronic instruments and changing human preferences, Taan singing, for example, can be deemed a casualty of this on-going metamorphosis. Its decline may exemplify the claims by some; that of a similar fate of other aspects of the culture.

Take for example the languages of Urdu and Hindi; they are no longer prevalent as they once were.

It would not be insensitive to state that apart from some religious circles, these languages are no longer spoken locally when compared to its usage just east of these shores in neighbouring Suriname.

Of course, there are other factors that would have contributed, but gone are the days when in the villages, wiling children would gather to learn these languages from an elder. It transcended religion and complemented efforts in the Madrasas and Temples. Then, these holy places brimmed with youngsters with competitive dispositions, not just to pray, but to learn the languages. Present information suggests a decrease in numbers and little or almost no authentic village tutelage.

Music in general has survived especially given the tremendous influence of Bollywood and its legends like Talat Mahmood, KL Saigal, Hemant Kumar, Mohammed Rafi, Mukesh, Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey, Mahendra Kapoor, Geeta Dutt, Suraiya, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle among others. But even from among these names, how many are still remembered is an un-

avoidable question.

Similarly, Bollywood cinema superstars like Dilip Kumar, Askok Kumar, Pradeep Kumar, Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, Nargis, Maduhbala and Meena Kumari, were local household names. The Filmfare magazines and Indian movie posters were always in demand as star-struck fans with modest financial means, spared no efforts for information and photographs to adorn their walls. Time has now given Shreya Ghoshal, Himesh Reshammiya, Shah Rukh Khan, Ranbir Kapoor and other present day artistes.

What possible could have been lost in that? Some posit the soul of music, the art of movie making, the passion in adulation and the deep felt attachment. Others believe nothing has been lost, and in fact claim that much has been gained. They cite the positive impact of technology on movie making and music and its real-time availability on portable communication devices.

Here again is the factor of evolution, which in some way divides perspectives. Tassa drumming waned and was spiritedly revived, however, the proclivity for classical dancing is far from what it once was despite efforts as is the case for Indian drama.

In the context of 100 years after the abolition of Indian indentureship, does the decrease in attendance in the Madrasas, Temples, classical dancing and music classes, a seeming reduction in passion of adulation, and to use fingers to feed one’s mouth, a verified fact that the culture is waning or has completely lost some aspects?

Based on what is communicated, for many, the answer is a worrying yes. For them, concerns are rife about the influence from other cultures and for some, lifestyle changes resulting from financial advancement. One would find it difficult to ignore these concerns.

The temptation would be to deem as pessimists.

The optimists argue that the mere fact they are scores or activities across the country to celebrate

and commemorate Indian festivals and historic events prove that the culture brought here some nine decades ago remains relevant and is being fostered and sustained. On the surface it would be difficult to disagree with that. International Indian artistes who perform here are always mesmerised by Guyanese in an English speaking country singing Bollywood songs.

More so, there are always in awe of the overwhelming crowds in attendance.

However, for all involved, the optimists must prevail, but in the context that it continues to mean something and its authenticity uncompromised even after taking into consideration evolution with time. Nothing else can suffice if the desire is for the culture to remain relevant into the future.

Here is where all those who are involved in its preservation must be commended and encouraged to continue.

There is concern and clearly there is much more to be done including the most important of all; imparting on to the young. They must be taught to see the need to be responsible for its survival. Like our fore-parents, today’s parents have a crucial role in guiding their children towards the culture in an effort to imbue that sense of appreciation and belonging. In this modern world it competes with other desires, however, identity and love for it are compelling factors.

Indo-Guyanese fore-parents sacrificed and laboured tirelessly, without any of the amenities available today, to impart values, culture, pride and dignity.

Descendants can therefore not afford to allow pride to escape them despite the current challenging circumstances. Inspiration can be found in reflecting on the achievements of their ancestors and how they endured. While things will evolve, the basic elements of these cultural traditions must be guarded. It is only with selfless efforts and a profound sense of pride instilled within that this can be achieved.

East Indian Tadja. Berbice. No date (Berbice Gazette)

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Artist Darshani Kistama

arshani Kistama is an artist with a knack to beautify. Her aim is to preserve her Indian culture through art,

and this she does passionately.

One of her most creative works is her hand-painted Indian wear. Her beautiful stencil print sarees, embroidered leggings, tie-dye salwar kameez and sarees are fashionable pieces that showcase a love for her heritage.

Darshani is a graduate of E.R. Burrowes School of Art. Her minor at the institution was art and major was in textile designs.

“Nature is my number one inspiration. I am influenced and inspired by the magnificence and splendour of the natural environment. However, due to my commitment to my religion, I am often driven to produce works that are closely related to my culture, that is Hinduism,” the artist said in an interview with Sunday Times Magazine.

Darshani’s beautiful sarees and other artistic works are currently on display at the “Ganga Ship 1917: The Long Journey” exhibition, which is being held to commemorate the centenary of the abolition of the Indian indentureship. The exhibition opened on April 11 and will continue until May 9, 2017 at Castellani House, Vlissengen Road.

Admission is free.

For more information on the artist, visit Touch of Art on Facebook or her website at darshanikistama.tk.

Stencil print saree Embroidery legging

Tie-dye salwar kameez

Found object print saree

Tie-dye saree

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

Ayube Hamid

Ayube Ahamad Khan, known as Ayube Hamid, was born Sept 20, 1926 in Danielstown village, Essequibo to parents born of Muslim indentured labourers who had arrived in the 1880s.

He attended St Agnes Primary School in Georgetown and, with his exceptional abilities, was able to attain a scholarship to attend the prestigious Queen’s College, when he was awarded the highly contested Essequibo County Scholarship prize in 1937.

He was also a devout Muslim, and learnt Arabic and Urdu while also regularly attending his Essequibo neighbourhood masjid. At just 17, Hamid became a trustee of the Queenstown Masjid – a lifelong position that he held.

At Queen’s College, he was a member of the QC Cadet Corps and had hoped to study medicine. However, after completing his secondary education and unable to fund travel and tuition fees overseas, Hamid began his work career first in the geophysical surveys department of the Demerara Bauxite Company, before leaving to take up a job in the Chemistry department of the Anna Regina Department of Agriculture.

He was later selected by the agriculture department to attend a training course in Jamaica for food processing where he earned a certificate in canning technology.

But neither field were to be his calling.

Applying for a vacant post as broadcaster for, at the time the only radio station in British Guiana, ZFY, he would be selected to begin work on April 1, 1954 as news announcer. It would be the start of a more than five-and-a half-decade long, remarkable career.

At ZFY, he met renowned broadcaster Rafiq Khan; with two “Khans” on the air, there was a need to avoid mix-ups with names. Ayube Khan was given the moniker “Ayube Hamid”, the name to which generations of Guyanese tuned in on radio. He had found his niche.

Moving from just news, Hamid also interviewed personalities and played music.

His apparently innate abilities in broadcasting soon led to his own programme as host of ‘Indian Memory Album’. Over the years, his programmes widened to include different music genres including country, classical and a variety of Indian music.

But it would be his signature playback of “Sahani Raat” for ‘Indian Memory Album’ that would remain a golden memory in Guyana’s broadcasting history.

Hamid’s broadcasting career would span ZFY radio, Radio Demerara, GBC and NCN before retiring from radio to become producer and promoter in his later years, lending his fabled voice on special occasions as master of ceremonies.

But his love for broadcasting would be matched only by his dedication to his Islamic and Indian heritage; Hamid became one of Guyana’s foremost proponents for cultural revival, reminding the ancestors of indentured immigrants that “the passing of the years from indentureship has not, and will not, obliterate the love and sense of cultural belonging ...”

Hamid was credited for introducing Islamic quasida competitions to Guyana, and was one of the founders of the Gandhi Youth Organisation, as well as being in the forefront of the Indian Commemoration Trust. He was also a major supporter in setting up the Indian Monument Gardens in memory of Indian indentureship in Guyana, and was an enthusiastic MC at IA Day ceremonies there.

For his contributions to Guyana and his heritage, Hamid received several awards, including a 1986 national Medal of Service and a Golden Arrow of Achievement award in 1997, along with a 2003 award from The Guyana Cultural Association (New York) and an achievement award from the Indian Arrival Committee in 2006.

Ayube Hamid died Jan 21, 2009 at 82years-old from heart complications, leaving to mourn his only child, Safiyya; his wife having died in 1994.

Dr Moti Lall

An experienced pulmonologist, he took up the post of Medical Superintendent at West Demerara Regional Hospital in 1974, where he remained until his 2001 retirement. He has also been widely hailed for his efforts in limiting the spread of tuberculosis in Guyana through education and control.

His interest in TB eradication led to the opening of the Chest Clinic in Orange Walk, Georgetown, now housed in the compound of Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. He was also president of the Chest Society, and helped raise funding for the local fight against TB. Recognising his efforts, the health ministry awarded Lall a Silver Medal in 1983, and in 1998, he received the country's third highest honour: the Cacique Crown of Honour (CCH). On May 25, 2011, the Seventh-Day Adventist Guyana Conference awarded him for his outstanding work in his field, “in recognition of the impact that his life and professional work had on the citizenry of his beloved Guyana.”

Dr Lall also served as chairman for the Central Housing and Planning Authority, and was president of the Central Demerara Lion's Club. His humanitarianism also saw him a proud member of Arya Samaj and a member of several NGOs in the country.

He also served as MP from Nov 24, 1992 until Feb 15, 2001, then retired in 2002. He was a well-respected doctor of the Vreeden-hoop area, often assisting poor families without recompense.

Dr Lall died Jan 10, 2012 from heart ailments, and cremated after numerous glowing eulogies at Kaashi Dhaam, Ruimzeight on the West Coast Demerara.

Nesbit Chhangur

Dr Moti Lall was born Jan 14, 1942 at Windsor Forest, West Coast Demerara, the eldest of six siblings, but grew up in Buxton, East Coast of Demerara. His mother was a single parent owing to the early death of her husband.

Having excelled in primary school, Lall gained a scholarship to Queen’s College, the premier academic institution in the country, journeying by train to school and back each day. Encouraged to pursue a career in medicine by the school’s principal, Vivyan Joseph Sanger-Davies, Lall would finish secondary school with a scholarship to study medicine in Havana, Cuba in 1964.

He completed undergraduate studies in Cuba before leaving for Germany in 1967 to complete his postgraduate programme that included an in-depth knowledge of TB. He would then complete a post-graduate programme in pulmonary care. After graduating, he migrated to Canada in 1970 where he began working at the Grace Hospital in Winnipeg.

Dr Lall returned to Guyana in 1974 and met Chitrarakha Kumar; he married her in February 1975, and they raised three children together.

Nesbit Chhangur was born in the early 1930s at Fyrish, Lower Corentyne, Berbice in British Guiana to a musical family – his father sang and played the sitar while his siblings (three brothers and four sisters) played the piano accordion, harmonium, and fiddle; Nesbit played the dantal and loved to sing.

He attended Fyrish and Albion primary schools, and by the time he was eight he was performing in school, accompanied by one of his brothers on the piano accordion. At ten, he received his first guitar lesson from an elder in the Fyrish village. He later attended Corentyne High School at Rosehall, and by 15, he began entering musical competitions. In the early 1940s, he won a local radio (ZFY) talent contest.

This win led to airtime on local radio alongside other local bands, while

famed Guyanese broadcaster Olga Lopes Seale featured him on her weekly New Amsterdam produced radio programmes.

He became a weekly guest artiste on a talent show called “Berbice Calling” and her show, “Olga Lopes sings”.

Nesbit is described as “Guyana first singing cowboy”; his love for American country music first began when his father bought “T is for Texas and T is for Tennessee” and “Blue Yodel”, a 78rpm Bluebird record by Jimmy Rogers.

As WWII left American records scarce commodities on the colony, Nesbit tuned into American radio stations to listen to cowboy music especially, and was a special fan of the “Grand Ole Opry” broadcast from Nashville, Tennessee in the U.S. The war also created a shortage of guitar strings, but Nesbit found a solution to the problem: Usually playing at Providence on the East Bank Demerara, which was near Everton where bauxite would be loaded onto boats bound for the U.S, Nesbit met American sailors who had heard his singing on local radio. Happy to hear their country music so far from home, they volunteered to bring back guitar strings along with a country-and-western music book for Nesbit.

Nesbit is credited with being the first person to record songs in the colony of British Guiana. The recording of his own composition in the 1950s, “Sunny Corentyne” was done by ACE Records, a local entity set up by local entrepreneur Vivian Lee. Nesbit would record several more records there, including his versions of “There’s no room in my heart for another”, “Starry Waltz” and “I’m so lonesome I could cry”.

The BBC would later use Nesbit’s version of “There’s no room in my heart for another” in their documentary “Roraima, the lost world”.

For Guyanese, it would be his song, “Guianese Lament”, recorded in 1964 after the arrival of British troops on the colony to quell racial disturbances, which would resound. He also donated money raised from the sale of its records to the Red Cross Disaster Fund, and recorded another patriotic composition, “Call to Guiana”.

But singing cowboy and patriotic songs was not a lucrative career for Nesbit. He also became a well-known and respected teacher and administrator. He taught at the Albion, Albion Front and West Coast Bushlot primary schools, and was history teacher and choirmaster at the Berbice Educational Institute in New Amsterdam before becoming its vice principal.

Nesbit Chhangur also became British Guiana’s first local YMCA (Guyana) executive director and general secretary. It was at the YMCA complex in Thomas Lands, where British troops were garrisoned in the 1960s, that he composed “Guianese Lament.”

He would also be called upon to perform at many significant local events such as the Catholic Standard Diamond Jubilee in 1965, and at the 1961 inauguration of Cheddi Jagan as prime minister. In addition, he was invited to sing at one of the Miss Guyana competitions hosted by Lady Sarah Lou Carter.

Nesbit Chhangur is said to live in Canada with his family after emigrating in 1967, but still enjoys teaching music. A qualified Canadian teacher, he enjoys playing and recording his music.

He has received numerous honours and awards, including the Wordsworth McAndrew Award at Folk Festival 2002 in Brooklyn, New York, and, in November 2004, he received a special award from the Berbice Educational Institute. continued on page 13

J

oel Pharous, known as Prince JP, is a Guyanese Chutney artiste making waves in the local music industry. Born Dec 30, 1989, he grew up in West Ruimveldt but later moved to Diamond, EBD, and is currently residing in the U.S. The 28-year-old started his singing career in his West Ruimveldt School choir at the age of 10 and at 18 began singing in a local band, though not taking the singing seriously. Ultimately, Joel discovered that his destiny was to sing and he has not looked back since. Today, he has successfully taken part in many singing competitions and entertainment shows, as well as produces his own music. Recently, he released his latest single titled, “Wine that Sexy Body”. The song was written by the Guyanese artiste and is a groovy soca hit. He also recently became a father, but still manages to find the time to write and record his music – something he is passionate about. The music for the this new release was arranged by Shastri Music out of Orlando, Florida, but the vocals were recorded at Prince JP’s Home Studio in New York. Planning to return to the land of his birth sometime soon, Prince JP can be followed on his website www.princejpmusic.com for all the latest in videos, photos and music. The singer’s future plan is to continue to record music. He revealed that in August he will be releasing his first R&B album as well a mixed one. He will also be working on a few chutney songs for his fans.

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Little-known Indo Guyanese...

from page 11

Ram S. Singh

Ram S. Singh was born March 26, 1912 in Alexander Village to indentured parents who had arrived in the colony of British Guiana in 1894. His father died in 1938 and his mother 10 years later.

Singh began his career with the British Guiana Museum of the Royal Agricultural and Commercial Society as a “washer or museum assistant” in 1924 at just age 12, after completing his basic education at the Ruimveldt Anglican School on what was then considered the East Bank of Demerara.

The then museum curator Walter E. Roth, along with P.S Perberdy, who was to succeed Water Roth as curator, further mentored the young Singh. In 1939, Singh was awarded a Diploma in Taxidermy of the North-Western School of Taxidermy in Omaha, Nebraska; then in July 1946, Singh was sent to the U.S under a special scholarship, to take a course in modern, scientific and educational techniques of taxidermy and exhibition arrangement at the Chicago Museum of National History.

By courtesy of the director of the museum Colonel Clifford Gregg, Singh also received an eight-month practical course in Taxidermy, Botany, Anthropology and Zoology, and went on to study the preparation of school exhibits. Upon completion, Singh was invited to study at the Colorado Museum in Denver for two months, in which time he visited the premier museums in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Iowa, Milwaukee; the American Museum of Natural History in New York and the Smithsonian Institute in Washington.

During his time in the U.S, Ram Singh received a diploma in zoology, and was highly praised by both staff and students for the quality of his work. He became a member of the American Ornithological Union (MAOU) and the British Ornithological Union (MBOU). He returned to British Guiana June 11, 1947 to continue his work for the BG museum, when he was appointed assistant curator.

Ram Singh was also an expedition pioneer. Before his studies in the U.S, he accompanied both Walter Roth and Perberdy

on interior scientific expeditions; going with Perberdy on the Pinkus-Perberdy Mount Roraima Expedition of 1938-1940.

In 1939, Singh accompanied Dr E. Davis of Harvard University on a field expedition up the Mazaruni River.

After the Feb. 23, 1945 Great Fire of Georgetown destroyed the museum and many of its exhibits, Singh would lead at least 11 special expeditions into Guyana’s interior to collect new material for the museum. He first travelled to the Abary region Feb. 4, 1946; two years later, he reached the upper Abary, the Demerara River, through the north-west regions and the Rupununi district, collecting specimens.

He also travelled extensively along the coastlands from Essequibo to Berbice.

The specimens were stuffed in the field before being brought to Georgetown; something, it was said, that had never been done before in the colony. With his extensive knowledge gained from travels in the US, British Guiana and Brazil, Singh was able to collect, preserve and exhibit museum specimens.

Interior of a logie

Manager's house, Plantation Non-Pariel

Creole labourers dwellings at Pln Ma Retraite, British Guiana.

No date.

(Berbice Gazette)

Semi-detached labourers' cottages at Plantation Ogle (Photo credit B.G. Sugar Producers' Association)

The Great House of former Aurora Estate (Essequibo Coast). Its broad gallery has been enclosed and fitted with windows.

Trashing rice on the plantation

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Kunal Kapoor to raise money Shah Rukh Khan: ‘I sell dreams, peddle love to millions’ for the rehabilitation of paraplegics S

K

unal Kapoor has always been known to back a good cause, whether it is raising money for the victims of the Nepal earthquake or people suffering from cancer. The actor has now focused his attention on raising funds for our soldiers.

Kunal’s crowdfunding platform, Ketto, had started a campaign after the Uri attacks to raise money for the family of soldiers, successfully raising funds. The actor has now taken his commitment to help soldiers of the army a step further.

A source reveals, “Kunal has collaborated with the IPL team, Rising Pune super Giants to raise money for the Paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre (PRC) and the campaign is called Shukriyasoldier. PRC is a rehabilitation centre for defence forces that are medically boarded out i.e. retired from service due to spinal cord injury while serving the Nation. Though, wheelchair bound, these soldiers have not let their disabilities come in the way of their achievement. There are paraplegic soldiers that have won medals at national and international events in various sports”.

Talking about it, Kunal says, “I went to the PRC and came back incredibly inspired by the soldiers and the work that the organ-

isation is doing. These soldiers have not let their disabilities and the challenges that they faced, stop them from achieving amazing things. They are real life superheroes and I think it’s important that their stories reach out to people”. (Hindustan Times)

K

atrina Kaif has a new feather to add to her cap. The actor is now the first Bollywood star to be featured in Peruvian photographer Mario Testino’s Towel Series.

Katrina posted the photo from the shoot tagging Mario and wrote, “Thank you @ mariotestino for the wonderful experience of shooting for the legendary #TowelSeries ...

You must come see us again soon. Here u go @anaitashroffadajania.”

In the photo, Katrina can be seen wrapped in nothing but a white towel. Her back and legs are exposed as she strikes a mean pose for the lens. Her hair is bundled up in another towel.

Mario has shot several international celebs like Britney Spears, Blake Lively, Kristen Stewart, Selena Gomez, Kendall Jenner and Cindy Crawford for the Towel Series.

Katrina posted a picture with Mario in January on her Facebook. He had come to

hah Rukh Khan has become synonymous with the phrase “dreams come true” in Indian cinema and the actor says he believes love is the emotion that inspires and keeps one from failing.

In his first address at the TED Talks, which was laced with his signature wit and humour, the Bollywood superstar proclaimed that he sells dreams and love to millions around the world. “I sell dreams, and I peddle love to millions of people... I’ve been made to understand there are lots of you here who have never seen my work, and I feel really sad for you. That doesn’t take away from the fact that I’m completely selfobsessed, as a movie star should be,” TED Blog quoted Shah Rukh as saying.

The actor, 51, said love is the simplest yet greatest emotion known to mankind.

“I’ve learned that whatever moves you, whatever urges you to create, build, whatever keeps you from failing, whatever helps you survive, is perhaps the oldest and the simplest emotion known to mankind, and that is love,” Khan said.

Shah Rukh, the first Indian actor to deliver a TED Talk, compared his “ageing” movie star persona to humanity. “Humanity is a lot like me. It’s an ageing movie star, grappling with all the newness around it, wondering whether it got it right in the first place and still trying to find a way to keep on shining regardless,” he said.

Talking about his constant face-off with controversies, be it about his faith or opinion, Shah Rukh said it has become a practice with people active on social media to target him. “Everything I said took a new meaning; everything I did good, bad, ugly, was there for the world to comment upon and judge... I started to feel that I couldn’t be who I wanted to be or say what I actually

thought. We had expected an expansion of ideas and dreams; we had not bargained for the enclosure of judgement.”

The actor said one always has the option to utilise one’s faith to break walls or to spread fear. “You may use your power to build walls and keep people outside. Or you may use it to break barriers and welcome them in. You may use your faith to make people afraid and terrify them into submission. Or you can use it to give courage to people, so they rise to the greatest heights of enlightenment.”

Shah Rukh will return to Indian television as the host of TED Talks’ Hindi version, titled “TED Talks India: Nayi Soch”. (PTI)

Vinod Khanna dies at 70

V

attend the Vogue India party with his team.

Currently, Katrina is busy with her next film, “Jagga Jasoos”. The film has been directed by Anurag Basu and also stars Ranbir Kapoor. She will also be seen with Salman Khan in “Tiger Zinda Hai”. (Hindustan Times)

eteran Bollywood actor, politician and former union minister Vinod Khanna passed away in Mumbai on Thursday morning following prolonged illness. He was 70.

His funeral took place at a crematorium in Worli, Mumbai, in the evening which was attended by a number of his contemporaries, including Amitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor, Ranjit and many others.

Khanna was hospitalised over a month ago for cancer but the family then re-

mained tight-lipped about his condition. In a brief statement, the hospital said

Khanna breathed his last at 11.20 am due to advanced bladder carcinoma.

Amitabh Bachchan reportedly rushed to Vinod Khanna’s family’s side after hearing the news of his death. According to reports, Bachchan was giving an interview for his upcoming film “Sarkar 3”.

Khanna is survived by his wife Kavita, son Sakshi and daughter Shraddha, his former wife Geetanjali and their sons Akshaye and Rahul. (Hindustan Times)

Priyanka Chopra: ‘Don’t like Shilpa’s name dragged in business sensationalising stories’ row to create hype, says husband

A

fter a criminal case was lodged against Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty and her husband Raj Kundra for duping a textile firm owner for a considerable sum of money, the businessman said

his wife’s name has been dragged to create media hypes.

Kundra released a statement on Friday in which he says that “the vendor is misusing his connections in various stations”. “This is a

civil matter and an abuse of the law. We have tight contracts signed and on the contrary, the vendor owes us money for not fulfilling orders. Beat deal is unfortunately being wound up due to the business failing and we are following the laws of the land to close the various matters properly,” Kundra said in a statement.

Kundra also added that Shilpa has nothing to do with the daily running of the business. “It’s sad that at every step of the way, my wife’s name is dragged in to create media hype. She was a non-executive, who had nothing to do with the daily running of the business,” he said. (IANS)

A

ctor-producer Priyanka Chopra, who has done some bold scenes in the American series Quantico, says she doesn’t like to sensationalise stories into sexuality.

“I haven’t done anything more than what is shown here in Hindi films. I am an actor and I don’t like sensationalising stories into sexuality... so, it just becomes a big deal,” said Priyanka.

“I have my limitation and people over there know that.

In Hollywood, I have only done what I have done in Hindi films. I keep my standard same for everything,” she added.

She is now set to make her Hollywood debut with “Baywatch” as the antagonist Victoria Leeds.

“I feel the world is maledominated, whether it’s in India or abroad. Outside India, there is also same fight of equality for women as much as it is here in India.

Entire world... over the years has told women that they are second class citizens all their lives. Even in films, male actors are given reverence but with female actors, we have reached a stage where female actors have crossed Rs 100 crore-mark at the box office.

It was achieved by Kangana Ranaut and it is the biggest achievement.”

She wants Indian and south Asian talent to get represented in global cinema. “We are one-fifth of the world population, but very few Indian actors are seen in international cinema. So, I

want to take on roles which are not written for Indian actors,” she said.

She also spoke about Indian celebrities getting trolled online. “I feel that media gives undue importance to tweets made by celebrities or other influential people. My each tweet becomes a news article. I have over 17 million followers on Twitter and when they see it, then there is no need to make news about that,” she said.

Talking about working with filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali, she said, “We have spoken about other films, but not for Padmavati. I’m sure it will look beautiful.”

“Padmavati” stars Ranveer Singh, Shahid Kapoor and Deepika Padukone. (Hindustan Times)

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I

n 1872 two men began work on a lexicon of words of Asian origin used by the British in India.

Since its publication the 1,000-page dictionary has never been out of print and a new edition is due out [in 2013]. What accounts for its enduring appeal?

“Hobson-Jobson” is the dictionary's short and mysterious title.

The subtitle reveals more: "A glossary of colloquial Anglo-Indian words and phrases, and of kindred terms etymological, historical, geographical and discursive. By Colonel Henry Yule and AC Burnell."

But even the word "discursive" doesn't quite prepare the reader for what is to come.

"It's a madly unruly and idiosyncratic work," says poet Daljit Nagra.

"Not so much an orderly dictionary as a passionate memoir of colonial India. Rather like an eccentric Englishman in glossary form."

Take the entry for the Indian word dam. The dictionary defines it as: "Originally an actual copper coin. Damri is a common enough expression for the infinitesimal in coin, and one has often heard a Briton in India say: 'No, I won't give a dumree!' with but a vague notion what a damri meant."

That is the etymology of

dam. But Yule and Burnell have more to say.

"And this leads to the suggestion that a like expression, often heard from coarse talkers in England as well as in India, originated in the latter country, and that whatever profanity there may be in the animus, there is none in the etymology, when such an one blurts out 'I don't care a dam!' in other words, 'I don't care a brass farthing!'"

There is a huge delight in language that's evident throughout the dictionary, says Dr Kate Teltscher, reader in English Literature at Roehampton University, who is preparing the new Oxford World Classics edition.

"It's a hugely ambitious attempt to trace linguistic influence… it's all about the distance that words travel," she says. "It's also about looking at words in their context, and seeing how they describe a lost way of life."

When the book was published, it was already a source of nostalgia for the passing of the East India Company era as India came under British rule.

"There was a market for it in India, amongst the British serving in India.

One review recommended it as an ideal 'after-dinner reading in camp'," says Teltscher.

"It does include a lot

Words from India

A - atoll, avatar B - bandana, bangle, bazaar, Blighty, bungalow C - cashmere, catamaran, char, cheroot, cheetah, chintz, chit, chokey, chutney, cot, cummerbund, curry D - dinghy, doolally, dungarees G - guru, gymkhana H - hullabaloo J - jodhpur, jungle, juggernaut, jute

of administrative terms things that the British needed to know. But it was also clearly meant for diversion and entertainment, both for the British serving in India and the British when they had returned home."

Anglo-Indian food features prominently. For example, it defines kedgeree (or kitchery) thus: "A mess of rice, cooked with butter and dal and flavoured with a little spice, shred onion, and the like.

It's a common dish all over India, and often served at Anglo-Indian breakfast tables. In England we find the word is often applied to a mess of re-cooked fish, served for breakfast, but this is inaccurate. Fish is frequently eaten with kedgeree, but is no part of it."

Chilly, we learn, is "the popular Anglo-Indian name of the pod of red pepper".

"There is little doubt that the name was taken from Chile in South America," the compilers Yule and Burnell say, "whence the plant was carried to the Indian archipelago and thence to India."

"Who doesn't know what chilli means now?" asks Daljit Nagra.

"But here it's been recorded probably for first time in a Western dictionary and I love the idea of witnessing the birth of that word."

For writers such as

K - khaki, kedgeree L - loot N - nirvana P - pariah, pashmina, polo, pukka, pundit, purdah, pyjamas S - sari, shampoo, shawl, swastika T - teak, thug, toddy, typhoon V - veranda Y - yoga Sources: Hobson-Jobson, Oxford English Dictionary

Nagra, Hobson-Jobson has often been a source of inspiration.

Here is how HobsonJobson defines naukar-chaukar. It means "the servants" but the authors continue: "One of those jingling double-barrelled phrases in which Orientals delight even more than Englishmen... As regards Englishmen, compare hugger-mugger, hurdy-gurdy, tip-top, higgledy-piggledy, hocus-pocus, tit-for-tat, topsy-turvy... harum-scarum, roly-poly, rump and stump, slip-slop…"

"I love these rhyming words in Hobson-Jobson," says Nagra.

"They're such a familiar feature of my mother tongue and I can see how it's inspired so many writers, most famously Salman Rushdie whose novel “Midnight's Children” is richly sprinkled with phrases such aswriting-sh[y]ting, puddingshudding."

The word Hobson-Jobson itself is one of these.

"My friend Major John Trotter tells me that he has repeatedly heard this phrase used by British soldiers in the Punjab. It is in fact an Anglo-Saxon version of the wailings of the Mahommedans as they beat their breasts in the procession of the Moharram - 'Ya Hasan! Ya Hosain!'"

Another author who has drawn inspiration from the dictionary is Tom Stoppard.

In his play “Indian Ink”, two characters compete to use as many Hobson-Jobson words as possible: Flora: "While having tif-

fin on the veranda of my bungalow I spilled kedgeree on my dungarees and had to go to the gymkhana in my pyjamas looking like a coolie."

Nirad: "I was buying chutney in the bazaar when a thug who had escaped from the chokey ran amok and killed a box-wallah for his loot, creating a hullabaloo and landing himself in the mulligatawny."

Stoppard says he deliberately chose words that the English-speaking audience would be familiar with. One of the surprises is that there are so many of these.

"By exploring the words that are in Hobson-Jobson we start to realise how many words that we use every day, we don't even think of as particularly being of Indian origin actually are," says Teltscher.

"So words like shampoo, words like pyjamas, words like bangle. We tend to think of Empire in terms of domination and control, in terms of the way power was used and abused. But we can also think of it in more intimate ways and I think HobsonJobson allows us to do that."

Nagra says this is exactly what he loves about Hobson-Jobson.

"That it now feels like a benign project of Victorian multiculturalism, where words from Hindi, Malay, Arabic and even Chinese can cohabit and intermingle with English words - words that have themselves been remade by rubbing alongside their new neighbours."

In his introduction to the

Shampoo: To "knead and press the muscles with the view of relieving fatigue".

Pyjamas: A "pair of loose drawers or trousers, tied round the waist".

Gymkhana: "It is applied to a place of public

book, Yule writes that words of Indian origin have been "insinuating themselves into English ever since the end of the reign of Elizabeth and the beginning of that of King James".

Terms such as calico, chintz and gingham had already by then "effected a lodgement in English warehouses and shops, and were lying in wait for entrance into English literature".

Eccentric, entertaining, full of curious detail, the dictionary is nonetheless very much of its time. Teltscher notes "an almost innate sense of British cultural superiority" running through the book.

Novelist Amitav Ghosh, meanwhile, is quite sure he would not wish to meet Yule and Burnell.

"No. I don't think I would at all," he says. "I enjoy the book but it's absolutely ridden with ideas of racial separation. I would never be a guest at their dinner party."

Arthur Burnell, a scholar of South Indian languages, died before the project was completed.

Colonel Henry Yule, a retired Bengal engineer, who became president of the Royal Asiatic Society, eventually drew his 14-year labour to a close in 1886, not because it was finished, but as he put it, "ars longa, vita brevis". Art is long, life is short. (Source: BBC News Magazine, “Hobson-Jobson: The words English owes to India” By Mukti Jain Campion. July 11, 2012)

resort at a station, where the needful facilities for athletics and games of sorts are provided".

Veranda: "An open pillared gallery round a house".

Source: Hobson-Jobson

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration Nrityageet

Nrityageet dancers Sony Sikandar, Rewattie Datt, Indira Itwaru, Koreena Itwaru, Keon Heywood, Mikel Andrews

By Ashraf Dabie

T

he cultural heritage of those who came as indentured labourers is still evident in present Guyanese society. As a matter of fact, some of those traditions brought to these shores by our Indian ancestors have laid the foundation upon which our society operates.

However, though several aspects of the tangible and non-tangible inheritance from our Indian forefathers have managed to weather the years, some elements have either been completely erased or fused with other ethnicities to create a unique creole culture.

The 'Bangra Boys'

Nonetheless, masses of traditional Indian societies and cultural activists have successfully established various avenues to preserve and celebrate the contributions of their predecessors.

One such example is the annual classical dance production, Nrityageet.

Nrityageet features a fusion of traditional Indian dances, including Kathak, Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi, as well as the more modern Caribbean evolutions such as Chutney and Soca.

After being staged for over 30 years, the production has been established as a highly anticipated cultural spectacle, while honour-

ing the founding fathers of Indo-Guyanese society and educating those in attendance of their historical arrival and presence.

Nrityageet was birthed 38 years ago, when the Nadira and Indranie Shah Dance Troupe first launched their annual celebration of the arrival of the first batch of East Indians to the then British Guiana.

The Shah family, being direct descendants of Indian indentured labourers, remained dedicated to honouring their roots though music, drama, poetry and, later, dance. The idea came to life following a conference at the University of West Indies, as the administration celebrated the arrival of East Indians to Trinidad.

It was at this event that Nadira Shah was invited to perform, and her stellar presentation of the classical Kathak dance inspired the concept that such national productions can be done in Guyana. As such, the Shah family went on to stage the first ever Nrityageet in the year 1979 at Queen’s College, after which it was moved to the National Cultural Centre, where it remains to date.

Seeta Shah Roath, one of the Shah’s sisters and organisers of the annual cultural event, as well as director of the troupe, vividly recollected when the inaugural

Nrityageet was held.

“The idea was to remember our ancestors by highlighting the cultural traditions that have been passed down,” Shah explained.

She pointed out that initially the focus was on classical Indian music and dance, but over the years the production has evolved to include poetry and dramatic presentations, as well as folk dances inspired by the “plantation society” and modern presentations.

Shah added what started out as a tribute to Indian culture has eventually diversified to include influences and fusions of other ethnicities within the multicultural society of Guyana.

“New dancers are joining all the time, learning and exploring the world of dance, learning from the greatest while adding their flair for the modern and different. Nadira Shah Berry, Suzanne Shah Nilsson, and Rewattie Datt DaCosta are also currently training new dancers in traditional and modern dance, as they explore new trends and create new experiences. We are exploring futuristic dance theatre with ballet and modern dancers blended with influences of traditional styles with the best dancers in Guyana, exploring new frontiers in the art form,” Shah expressed.

The troupe has performed for national and international programmes such as the InterGuiana Cultural Festival, CARIFESTA, World Expo and many other programmes in India, Europe, UK, U.S.A., the Caribbean, Latin America and around the world. With Nrityageet being in existence for 38 years, the presentations have been recognised internationally for its high standards in dance theatre in Europe and the United States, earning them the prestigious Madame Iffel Award of Barbados for the “Best Traditional Dance”.

The Guyana Theatre Arts Awards also recognised this troupe for its “Exceptional Diligence in the Pursuit of Excellence,” for “Best Dance Production” in 2004, 2003, 2000, 1998, and 1999; “Best Costumes” in 2003, 2002, 2000, and 1997; “Best Sets” in 2003, 2004. Most significantly, the Nadira and Indranie Shah Dance Troupe received the Medal of Service (a National Award) for “Sustained and Outstanding Contribution to the Cultural Mosaic of Guyana”, and the New York Folk Festival Award for “Long and Sustained Dance Productions of Excellence”.

The celebration of the history and contributions of our Indian ancestors to the evolution of the diversified Guyanese society continues this year as the 38th production of Nrityageet is being held on May 6 and 7, 2017 at the National C u l t u r a l Centre.

The diverse dance theatre experie n c e , which

Suzanne Shah Nilsson

echoes the traditional values of Indo-Guyanese culture through the performing arts, is this year being staged under the theme, “Our Heritage, Our Treasures - Celebrating the

Arrival of All Peoples”. The event promises a colourful recollection of history while at the same time showcasing the diversity, creativity and accomplishments of modern Guyanese society.

Nadira Shah

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

A

pple recently rolled out the new iOS 10.3 update — and if you took the plunge and upgraded to the new OS, you might have noticed your iPhone is running a bit more quickly and smoothly than it did before.

Tech BYTE

Y

That alone shouldn't be a big surprise.

New software should make your phone hum, and this update in particular includes a fancy new modern file system that has played a part in freeing up more storage space on devices than the previ-

This gadget can turn an ordinary surface into a smart controller

ou can now turn on your smart appliances with a touch of any ordinary surface.

Welle uses embedded sonar and a sensitive algorithm to let you control your smart devices with simple hand gestures.

ous OS. But that's not the only reason your iPhone now has some extra pep, according to Apple engineer Renaud Lienhart.

He took to Twitter to reveal one of the undocumented tweaks to the OS. iOS 10.3 feels “snappier” because many animations were slightly tweaked & shortened, for the better.

The animations he's talking about come when you open, close or switch between apps, as BGR notes. This doesn't mean the apps will be running faster when you use them — it has to do more with improved responsiveness, which I noticed

right away while switching between open apps on the new OS. It's a small change, but it makes multitasking on the iPhone even more seamless than before.

You should update your device to iOS 10.3 for more than just the speed boost, too. It's always a good call to keep your phone's OS current, since updates usually fix issues and bugs, like the Safari ransom bug that 10.3 knocked out.

That, and you'll finally be able to track down pesky AirPods when they get lost and avoid dropping a $69 fee (not nice) for a replacement. (Yahoo)

Touch your table to turn off your TV. Move your finger a certain way to lower your shades.

Set that snooze alarm a little easier.

Welle is still in a Kickstarter campaign, so you can score an early-bird price of US$69. (Yahoo)

Tech NEWS

Drones posed 'significant risk' to passenger plane

Tech BYTE

A

A

eroMobil is calling this the nextgeneration vehicle.

The company unveiled their flying car in 2014 but it was not commercially available.

Now it’s ready and being presented at the Top Marques car show in Monaco.

The vehicle is fully functional as both a

car and an aircraft, and its hybrid engine makes it environmentally friendly.

You will need more than just a driver’s license to operate the car of the future – a pilot’s license will be needed as well.

This isn’t the first flying-car concept – Airbus and Italdesign debuted the Pop.Up earlier this year. (Yahoo)

near-miss involving a passenger jet and more than one drone has been reported in the UK for the first time.

The incident happened over east London as an Airbus A320 was approaching Heathrow Airport last November.

A report by the UK Airprox Board (UKAB) found the incident had "compromised the safety of the aircraft".

One pilot also said there would have been a "significant risk of collision" if the jet had been on a different approach path.

The plane was flying at 5,500ft on 20 November when its crew spotted two white, orb-shaped drones nearby.

The pilots "remained in constant visual contact" with the gadgets, which are estimated to have got as close as 500m to the aircraft, according to the report.

Less than 30 minutes later, a Boeing 777 approaching Heathrow flew within 50m of what is believed to have been one of the drones, described as white, about

2m wide and with four prongs.

A report was made to the Metropolitan Police, but the people flying the drones were not found.

The latest report from UKAB said there had been five near-misses between aircraft and drones in one month - bringing the total over the past year to 62.

But the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said the 20 November case was the first time there had been an incident involving more than one drone.

According to CAA rules, drones must not be flown above 400ft or near airports or airfields.

Earlier this month, police forces in the UK said they were being "flooded" with reports involving drones.

Last year, more than 3,456 incidents involving drones were recorded, compared with only 1,237 in 2015, according to the PA news agency.

Incidents involved include invasions of privacy, disputes between neighbours, and prison smuggling. (BBC)

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

Recipe of the Week

Ingredients

D

eeply rooted in the country's culture and history, Indian interior design features rich textiles and furniture,

4 cups milk, preferably full cream Few strands saffron 5 to 6 tbsp sugar 3 1/2 tbsp rice, soaked 12 almonds, blanched and sliced finely Few drops almond essence

often handmade using traditional methods. Transport yourself to this exotic country and get Indian design ideas for your home.

Rich colour and texture are key elements of Indian design. Coated with various shades of red Venetian plaster, the dramatic arch in this living room becomes the perfect backdrop for a framed Indian textile.

The columns are drizzled with copper paints and adorned with a subtle Moorish stencil design, while the remaining walls have a soft gold faux finish.

Embroidered throw pillows and a leather ottoman complement the lavish surroundings

Method

Microwave for 1-2mins until the Soak the rice for 20mins and grind milk comes to a boil again. Continue to a fine paste. Soak the saffron in 1 to cook for 5mins, stirring twice. Let stand 3-4mins.

1/2 cup warm milk.

Stir in most of the almonds and Bring the milk to boil along with essence. the sugar and saffron on the stove.

Pour into serving bowl and garnish Put into a large microwave-safe with the remaining nuts and some dish. Stir in the ground rice. raisins. Chill well.

I

Since Indian decor is often rich in colour, pattern and texture, just a few strategically placed pieces can fill a room with exotic flair. An antique Indian bedspread, hand-stitched with beading and gold thread, completely transforms this urban loft bedroom into a vibrant, energetic space. Patchwork pillows handmade from old textiles and the pink beaded sari vunderneath the ottoman, another vintage item from India, add another burst of colour Step inside a traditional South Indian home and you may find a jhoola, or swing.

Typically placed in the living room, indoor swings can be wood or metal, simple or ornate, and hung from the ceiling or from a frame

Greatest Cooking Tips

f you forget to soak channa overnight, just soak it in boiling water for an hour before cooking.

Don't burn your spices. When adding spices, add a little water to the pan to help cool it sufficiently to prevent the powders from burning. This also allows the pan to deglaze and keeps the bottom free of residue. The water also helps to bring out the flavours.

Except when frying the spices to begin the cooking process, or frying mustard seeds, it’s best to start the dish on a medium heat. Cook slowly to seal in flavours.

Use a heavy bottomed vessel to make kheer to prevent burning.

Soak potatoes and eggplant after cutting to avoid discolouration.

Soak almonds in a cup of boiling water for 10 minutes. The skin will peel off easily.

Always add hot water to gravy to enhance its taste.

T

Home Help

o keep ants out of the house, find where the ants are entering the house and sprinkle a "barrier" of cinnamon or any type of ground pepper to block their way. The spices are too “hot� for the ants to cross.

Baby wipes are miracle-workers on carpet stains, from motor oil to blood, they remove almost anything.

Smelly shoes? Simply fill a tube sock with kitty litter, baking soda or tea leaves; tie the end closed and place the filled socks in the shoes when you're not wearing them. These sachets can be used over and over in any kind of shoe.

If you need a wide piece of wax paper, seal two strips together with a hot iron; it cools quickly.

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration PARENTING w

T

JOKES Half It Your Way

he food at a sandwich shop I frequent is good, but any deviation from the norm throws the staff.

I once told a clerk that I wanted only half a sandwich. His reply: “What am I going to do with the other half?”

A week later, when I told another clerk the same thing, she responded, “Do you want the top or the bottom?”

T

One each

wo little boys stole a big bag of oranges from a neighbour. They decided to go to a quiet place to share the lot equally.

One of them suggested the nearby cemetery.

As they were jumping over the gate to enter the cemetery, two oranges fell out of the big bag but they didn't bother to pick them since they had enough in the bag.

A few minutes later, a drunk on his way home from a bar passed near the cemetery gate and heard a voice saying: "One for me, one for you. One for me, one for you. One for me, one for you."

He immediately sobered up and ran as fast as he could to a church nearby.

"Father, please come with me. Come and witness God and Satan sharing corpses at the cemetery."

They both ran back to the cemetery gate and the voice continued: "One for me, one for you. One for me, one for you. One for me, one for you."

Suddenly, the voice stopped counting and said: "What about the two at the gate?"

S

Dress feud

A

New will to live

R

Inside marriage

avitri’s wedding day was fast approaching. Nothing could dampen her excitement – not even her parents' nasty divorce.

Her mother had found the perfect dress to wear, and would be the best-dressed mother-of-the-bride ever!

A week later, Savitri was horrified to learn that her father's new, young wife had bought the exact same dress as her mother.

Savitri asked her father's new young wife to exchange it, but she refused. "Absolutely not! I look like a million bucks in this dress, and I'm wearing it," she replied.

Savitri told her mother who graciously said, "Never mind sweetheart. I'll get another dress. After all, it's your special day."

A few days later, they went shopping, and did find another gorgeous dress for her mother.

When they stopped for lunch, Savitri asked her mother, "Aren't you going to return the other dress? You really don't have another occasion where you could wear it."

Her mother just smiled and replied, "Of course I do, dear. I'm wearing it to the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding."

n elderly gentleman named Raj had considerable hearing problems for a number of years. Naturally, Raj went to his doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that enabled Raj to hear perfectly.

Raj returned in a month to the doctor for his check up and was told, “Raj, your hearing is perfect. Your family must be really pleased that you can hear again.”

Raj grinned, “Oh, I haven't told my family yet. I just sit around and listen to the conversations. I've changed my will three times, already.”

ohan and Shalini, young couple, got married and went happily on their honeymoon.

When they got back, Shalini immediately phoned her mother, who obviously asked, “How was the honeymoon, dearest?”

“Oh, Ma,” she replied, “the honeymoon was wonderful.

So romantic...”

Then Shalini burst out crying. “But, Ma, as soon as we returned home Rohan started using the most ghastly language... saying things I've never heard before! I mean, all these awful 4-letter words! You've got to come get me and take me home... Please Ma.” “Calm down, Shalini!” said her mother, “Tell me, what could be so awful? What 4-letter words?”

Still sobbing, Shalini whispered, “Oh, Ma...words like dust, wash, cook, and iron.”

B

umps and bruises are an inescapable part of childhood. Yet a light injury is only one step away from a dangerous fracture. To help a child avoid serious injury, parents need to follow some simple rules.

Sleep safety

A baby should sleep on their back. Since 1992, when an official recommendation changed from “sleep on the stomach” to “sleep on the back”, the mortality rate from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in the countries of Western Europe decreased by three times.

Quilted blankets with lace can block the baby’s respiratory tract during sleep. A hard mattress and taut elastic fitted sheets are all you need.

A can of Coca-Cola should fit between the crib bars. This distance is optimum for a baby not to get stuck between the bars.

A sleeping baby should be free from scarves, clothes, hats with ties, bibs, pacifiers, or toys with strings.

Fall and injury prevention

it comes to staircases, they should be placed both at the top and the bottom.

Always buckle children when using high chairs or carriers. When putting your child into the carrier, set it on the floor, not on a chair, table, or other furniture.

If your child moves around the house in a baby walker, watch that they stay away from stairs, heating appliances, and hanging wires.

Put security bars on your windows. They must be provided with emergency release devices in case of fire.

Ensure secure fixing of furniture (especially of high cabinets) and any other things that can tip and fall.

(To be continued)

Install in your house certified safety gates. When

STORY TIME

The Little Mice and the Big Elephants

O

nce upon a time a village was devastated by a strong earthquake. Damaged houses and roads could be seen everywhere.

The village was, as a matter of fact, in a total ruin. The villagers had abandoned their houses and had settled in a nearby village. Finding the place totally devoid of residents, the mice began to live in the ruined houses. Soon their number grew into thousands and then millions.

There was also a big lake situated near the ruined village. A herd of elephants used to visit the lake for drinking water. The herd had no other way but to pass through the ruins of the village to reach the lake.

While on their way, the elephants trampled hundreds of mice daily under their heavy feet. This made all the mice very sad. Many of them were killed while a large number of them were maimed.

In order to find a solution to this problem, the mice held a meeting.

In the meeting, it was decided that a request should be made to the king of elephants to this effect. The king of mice met the king of elephants and said to him, "Your Majesty, we live in the ruins of the village, but

every time your herd crosses the village, thousands of my subjects get trampled under the massive feet of your herd. Kindly change your route. If you do so, we promise to help you in the hour of your need."

Hearing this, the king of elephants laughed. "You rats are so tiny to be of any help to giants like

ephants. The elephants got trapped.

They struggled hard to free themselves, but in vain.

Suddenly, the king of elephants recollected the promise of the king of mice, who had earlier talked about helping the elephants when needed. So he trumpeted loudly to call the king of mice. The king of

us. But in any case, we would do a favour to all of you by changing our route to reach the lake and to make you more safe." The king of mice thanked the king elephant and returned home.

After sometime, the king of a nearby kingdom thought of increasing the number of elephants in his army. He ordered his soldiers to catch more elephants for this purpose.

The king's soldiers saw this herd and put a strong net around the el-

mice hearing the voice of the king of elephants immediately rushed along with his followers to rescue the herd. There he found the elephants trapped in a thick net.

The mice set themselves on the task. They bit off the thick net at thousands of spots making it loose.

The elephants broke the loose net and freed themselves.

They thanked the mice for their great help and extended their hands of friendship to them forever.

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

Following are groups of three words.

Can you figure out the common link within each group?

Example: Hurricane, camera, needle (answer: eyes) 1: Barber, rooster, beehive 2: Bowling alley, tailor, wrestling match 3: Telephone, deck of cards, car trunk 4: Fishing rod, actor, checkout counter 5: Watermelon, tennis tournament, idea see ANSWERS on page 23

see solution on page 23

see solution on page 23

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration Creature Corner

GEOZONE

Gharial

G

harials are found in the rivers of the northern India subcontinent, including: Bangladesh (where they are close to being extirpated), Bhutan (possibly extirpated), India, Burma (possibly extirpated), and Nepal and Pakistan (possibly extirpated).

They are found within the river systems of the Brahmaputra in Bhutan and India, the Indus River in Pakistan, the Ganges River in India and Nepal, and the Mahanadi River in India, with small populations in the Kaladan and the Irrawaddy in Burma.

The word “gharial” is derived from the word “ghara”, which means “mud pot”. It was misread by Europeans who changed the word to “gavial”. Thus, this species is known both as gavial and gharial.

The gharial is one of the largest of all crocodilian species, approaching the Australian saltwater crocodile--the largest crocodilian--in maximum size. Males reach 20 to 23 feet (6 to

Please see solution on page 23

7 meters) in length.

It has the characteristic elongated, narrow snout, similar only to the false gharial. Variation in snout shape occurs with age.

It generally becomes proportionally shorter and thicker with age. The bulbous growth on the tip of the male's snout is called a "ghara" and is present in mature individuals. It has several functions attributed to it, most notably as a vocal resonator (that produces a loud buzzing noise during vocalization) and as a visual signal to females.

The diet changes as the gharial matures from a juvenile to an adult. The juveniles are well suited to deal with a variety of invertebrate prey such as insects, plus smaller vertebrates such as frogs, but they mainly eat small fish.

Adults are primarily fish-eaters, for which their jaws and teeth are perfectly adapted. The thin shape gives the snout low resistance in water that is suited to fast, sideways snatching movements underwater. The teeth are ideally suited for holding struggling prey such as slippery fish. Some of the larger gharials are more opportunistic and take larger prey, including mammals.

Gharials once nearly faced extinction.

Although they are still critically endangered, conservation efforts are helping to bolster their numbers.

The objective of the game is to fill all the blank squares in a game with the correct numbers. Every row of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order. Every column of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order. Every 3 by 3 subsection of the 9 by 9 square must include all digits 1 through 9.

G

urez is a valley located in the high Himalayas, about 86km from Bandipore and 123km from Srinagar in northern Jammu and Kashmir, India. It sits directly below the high-altitude “Line of Control” that divides Indian and Pakistani controlled sectors of Kashmir, which is one of the most tensely guarded frontiers in the world.

For security reasons, Gurez was closed off to the outside world in1947, but the Dard Shin people who call it home were allowed to remain there.

While life in Gurez has been affected by the presence of soldiers guarding the border, the closure of the valley meant it remained totally untainted by tourism for 60 years. At the end of 2007, Indian authorities decided to open the area to

visitors.

The crooked wooden villages that dot the floodplain look like something straight out of an old folk tale. Most have no electricity, plumbing, or telephone. For half the year, the villagers are completely sealed off from the rest of the world, as the one road in and out of the valley is buried deep beneath snow. Most families farm small plots of potatoes, vegetables, and spices. In the highlands surrounding Gurez, nomadic shepherds arrive every ‘summer’ from other parts of Kashmir, and from Punjab, to graze their goats.

At about 8,000 feet above sea level, the valley is surrounded by snow-capped mountains. It has diverse fauna and wildlife including the Himalayan brown bear and the snow leopard.

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Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

and groom sit in a square marked out in the centre of the tent in front of the ceremonial fire. In front of them, sits the officiating pandit.

The pandit reads passages from the saved books, and offers a prayer that the deotas (deities) will witness the union and bless it with happiness and make it fruitful. The father of the bride gives her to the bridegroom with appropriate words, and the garments of the couple are knotted together; they then make a

bridegroom touches the head of the bride with sindoor (a vermillion powder).

The application of the sindoor to the parting of the bride’s hair is the climax of the ceremony; it was also the first time, perhaps, that the bridegroom glimpsed his future wife’s face as he raised the purdah (veil) covering her face, to apply the sindoor.

The ceremony outlined resembles the shaadi ceremony of a northern India caste of those times.

Another caste marriage

A typical setting during the religious aspect of a Hindu wedding

M

any of the traditions we uphold today were passed down from our ancestors.

One such tradition is the Hindu wedding.

The religious aspects of the wedding are intriguing, and originated from those who came as indentured servants from India.

Although the Hindu wedding ceremony became elaborated as time went by, the basic structure has remained the same.

It was the parents of the parties concerned who first decided that their children should be married to each other. A pandit(or priest) was then consulted as to an auspicious day for the celebration of the nuptials. A

few days before the wedding, the bride and groom each organize a haldi ceremony (sometimes called pithi ceremony) at their respected homes where the lagan (date) is fixed.

On the day of the wedding, the bridegroom was taken in procession to the bride’s parents’ house and conducted to a tent specially erected for the wedding.

In due time, the bride, “being shrouded in thick folds of muslin or variegated hues and patterns”, joined the groom and the ceremony commenced in the presence of the bride’s relatives, invited guests and the bridegroom’s baraat (a bridegroom's wedding procession made up of rela-

Ceremonial offerings by the bride and groom

tives and friends).

The ceremony sometimes lasts for hours.

During this time, the bride

circuit of the bamboo a stated number of times, and returning in their seats, the

ceremony was the dola. In the dola, the marriage ceremony took place at the

bridegroom’s residence, to which the bride came on the day before the ceremony.

Her coming was marked by an attitude of humility befitting a party importuning marriage on behalf of a poor girl.

In British Guiana, because of the scarcity of suitable girls for marriage, there was little need for a father to importune on behalf of their daughters; consequently, the dola was hardly practised.

But practices associated with the dola survived.

These included the ceremony of matikore or “dig dutty”, the ceremony of thappa lagana, in which the drum is featured, and the worship of Sharti Mata (Mother Earth.)

In all of these ceremonies, women are featured prominently. The dola further lent its name to the bride and groom who were called dolahin and dolaha respectively.

In the ceremony that evolved on the plantation, the dola rites were regarded as preparatory to the marriage ceremony itself. What seemed to have happened on the estate was that the dola and the shaadi were fused in the development of a ceremony that became widely used.

By the 1890s, this fusion had already taken place.

(From the text by the late Dale Bisnauth)

A husband applies sindoor to his bride's forehead

The garments of the bride and groom are knotted, a tradition that originated from India

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A

gem from 17th Century India, believed to have been worn by Mughal emperors, has been auctioned for more than a quarter of a million pounds.

The ruby-red Mughal spinel pendant is inscribed with the names of royal patrons and was lost for several weeks in England during the 1920s.

A US newspaper at the time reported that it was found by a Leicestershire railway worker before it was reclaimed.

It was bought by a private collector for £272,750 on Wednesday.

A

court in northern Indian has given the Ganges and Yamuna

The estimated guide price for the auction on Wednesday was between £60,000 and £80,000.

Benedict Carter from Sotheby’s auctioneers said the gem was a symbol of “power and prestige” and was expertly inscribed in “flowing Persian script” with the names of three Mughul emperors.

The spinel pendant is walnut-sized and hangs on a gold chain with a tassel of pearls.

Mr Carter said he found the American newspaper article in the archives but was unable to confirm the details because the pa-

rivers the status of “living human entities”.

The high court in

Brain Teaser Answer

1. Show and tell 2. Tried and true 3. Ways and means

4. Lost and found 5. Touch and go 6. Room and board

SUDOKU

KID SUDOKU

CROSSWORD

the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand said this would help in the “preservation and conservation” of the highly polluted rivers.

It added that the “legal status” ensures that polluting the rivers would now amount to harming a human being.

Both rivers are considered sacred in India and are considered goddesses by the majority Hindu population.

The ruling comes a week after the Whanganui River in New Zealand became the first in the world to be granted the same legal rights as a person.

The court said in its ruling that Hindus had “deep faith” in the two rivers and they “collectively connect with them”.

“The rivers are central to the existence of half of the Indian population and their health and well-being. They have provided both physical and spiritual sustenance to all of us from time immemorial,” it added.

It went on to add that both rivers had become heavily polluted due to industrialisation and rapid urbanisation.

Two top state officials have been appointed as the “legal guardians” of the rivers and will represent their rights.

Activists say the order is likely to fast track efforts to clean the rivers. (BBC)

per had closed down in 1930s.

“The story was in the Shamokin Dispatch in Pennsylvania but I wasn’t able to find any other references to it in papers in the US or here in Britain.

“I have no reason to believe it’s not true,

though,” he said.

Mr Carter said the jewel probably came back to England with the wife of the UK deputy high commissioner in Lucknow in the 1920s. (BBC)

24

Times Indian Arrival Magazine

guyanatimesgy.com

MAY 2017

Celebrating 179 years of Indian Immigration

Archie

Don’t let your emotions spin out of control. Be care(March 21ful when dealing with people April 19) putting demands on you or using emotional manipulation.

Don’t feel guilty about knowing enough to walk away.

ARIES

Get together with friends, TAURUS relatives or people who share (April 20- the same concerns as you.

May 20) The input you offer will be appreciated. Don’t be afraid to do things differently.

Refuse to let someone or GEMINI something from your past (May 21- stand in the way. Taking conJune 20) trol of any situation you face will do you good and encourage you to excel.

CANCER (June 21July 22)

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Dilbert

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22)

Put your time and energy into something you enjoy.

Indulging in a creative hobby, attending a trade show or taking better care of your health and well-being is a good place to start.

Be open to suggestions.

An interest in health and physical fitness will give you a sense of strength and power. Make decisions that will encourage you to enhance your best attributes.

Use your creative imagination when searching for personal solutions. Find out the truth before you make accusations. Answers can be found if you are understanding and tolerant.

LIBRA Situations will get blown (Sept. 23- out of proportion quickly if you Oct. 23) haven’t paid close attention to detail or others’ actions. If you don’t like something, say so immediately.

Peanuts

Personal changes look inSCORPIO (Oct. 24- viting. Choose to do someNov. 22) thing different or to take on a new and exciting lifestyle.

Attending a retreat or making travel plans that emphasize peace and quiet are favored.

SAGITTARIUS An investment or joint ven(Nov. 23- ture someone proposes is likely Dec. 21) to favor him- or herself rather than you. Negotiate to equalize the prospects, or decline and proceed to do your own thing.

Share stories with people CAPRICORN you haven’t talked to in a (Dec. 22- long time. Make changes to Jan. 19) your home or lifestyle that will bring you joy.

Calvin and Hobbes Personal changes will AQUARIUS raise your confidence and at(Jan. 20- tract attention. Put personFeb. 19) al matters first and make plans that include your family, loved ones and friends. A physical challenge will do you good.

Look at your current sitPISCES (Feb. 20- uation at work and home. If Mar. 20) you don’t like what’s happening, do something about it.

Don’t wait for someone else to make the first move.