A question for Ravi Dev

Sep 21, 2017 Letters

Dear Editor,

I refer to Ravi Dev letter in Kaieteur News on September 20, 2017 entitled “Can the Indian Guyanese speak for justice?” In the letter it is stated that ‘Of the 163,964 Indian immigrants that remained in Guyana a mere 2,653 (1.6%) exchanged their return passage for land.’ The question is: Why did 161,311 of the 163,964 indentured Indians that remained in Guyana refused to accept the government’s land offer if they remained after their contract was over?
Excuse the derogatory terms but the following is an exact quotation of the ordinance providing return passage to every indentured Indian if he remained in Guyana:
Court of Policy No. 21 – British Guiana -1850, Appendix, No.14 “An ODINANCE further to Regulate and Encourage the Immigration of Coolies”
Preamble 4: -. And be it enacted, that every Cooly immigrant who hath arrived in this colony prior to the 4th day of March 1848, upon completing a residence of five years, and every new Cooly immigrant, upon completing a residence of five years, and every new Cooly immigrant, upon completing an industrial residence of five years, shall be entitled to a free passage back to India.
Preamble 8; – And be it enacted, that where any Cooly immigrant shall be desirous to commute his right to a free passage for the value in land to the amount of the cost of such passage, and the Governor shall see fit to grant to such immigrant out of the Crown lands of the colony a piece or parcel of land equal in value, at the upset price of Crown lands, to the amount of the cost of such return passage, such immigrant shall have the same in lieu of his right to a free passage.

Kingsley Williams

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