Freddie and Rights Activists should move on

Jun 03, 2022 Letters

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Dear Editor,

I write in response to Freddie (Jun 2) in which he accuses me and others of viewing Rupert Roopnarine and more favourably in terms of Indianness. He also accuses me and others of penning that he had exhibited self hatred as an Indian and of repeatedly libeling him in our writings. To the best of my recollection, I never questioned Freddie Kissoon’s Indianness and nothing I penned on or about him would pass the smell test of libel. Analogously, Freddie penned statements or remarks about me which were/are not factual and which are libelous — like me being a real estate investor, not being an educator, among others not substantiated by any evidence.
The comments made by Indian rights activists were in response to Freddie’s direct challenge to them or personal abuses levelled at them. In retrospect, they may have regret as I have.
I have taught for over 40 years and never invested in real estate. So Freddie was wrong about me. I completed three accredited PhDs and left a fourth incomplete. I travelled the globe studying and writing about the Indian and Caribbean diasporas. I have spent all of my life in and outside of Guyana championing Guyanese causes including the long struggle against the PNC dictatorship and the five months attempt to rig the 2020 election. I don’t think anyone outside of Guyana territory has spent more time fighting for, promoting, or championing Guyana or Guyanese causes. I have breathed and thought of Guyana for 24 hours a day ever since I left in 1977 for my tertiary studies in a white man country. I don’t have business dealings with Guyana. I never made money off Guyana or Guyanese. All of my activities pertaining to Guyana were/are altruistic and Colin. I don’t think anyone had/has gone back to Guyana as many times as I did spending so much time and personal financial resources to combat electoral frauds thru 1992 and again in 2020. And from 1992 till now, I would have travelled to Guyana a hundred trips from NYC on my own expense to perform voluntary service to benefit the nation. My education schooled me to perform altruistic service. Libeling people is not part of my training or character. I was not schooled to attack people personally. But I did respond on occasion when I was attacked not only by Freddie but a few others as well. And Freddie did blast me countless times, more than the number of times he claimed I attacked him. They are all on the web — nasty, untruthful.
Like him, I never threatened libel or sought apologies for libelous claims. I am very liberal on free speech and subscribe to the philosophy of a free press. Bad speech is better than no speech. In spite of Freddie’s attacks on me, I consistently came in his defense when he was physically attacked, when the trench at the side of his house was not cleaned, when KN penalised him, when he was attacked or criticised by Lincoln Lewis, David Hinds, Eusi Kwayana, Tacuma Ogunseye and others, and on so many other occasions. I do not wish to repeat or recall those negative experiences or writings. I did write on several occasions that he was and remains the most read columnist. And I did say I admired his courage for assailing governments of both sides.
I may have written things about Freddie that were severely critical and that came across as offensive. But they would have been measured response (tit for tat, one may say) to the non facts he penned about me. I am not proud of some things I penned. As an educated person, I should have used better language. I do regret that he felt offended. At any rate, that was the past and attributed to youthful inexperience. We must move on.
Freddie noted that I explained Indianness but not Indian self hatred. He did not ask for the latter definition. At any rate, I do not recollect describing him as such. Self hatred had nothing to do with the politics or party identification; it was the constant derogating of Indian Guyanese and Indian culture that offended Indian rights activists.
On how I and other Indians view Rupert Roopnarine, I had limited exchange and interaction with him — during the student protests on the Corentyne that I co-led and during the 1980s thru 1992. Rupert, Rodney, Father Rodrigues, Kwayana, etc., supported our protests against injustice at the Corentyne High School. Ravi Dev and I would meet Rupert regularly at Rodney House discussing political strategies against the PNC dictatorship. I met him alone a few times and our conversations were about the dictatorship. I have not seen any commentaries on how Indians view Rupert. They are very disappointed. Regrettably, I did not engage Freddie during the anti dictatorial struggle and I do not recollect interacting with him at Rodney House thru 1992 although I visited there during breaks from school in New York. Contrary to what he may feel, Freddie is very high in the esteem of the Indian community. Indians have lost respect for Rupert. Freddie’s several assessments of Rupert during the coalition’s tenure and after are spot on. Those of us who engaged Rupert during the anti dictatorial struggle became extremely disappointed in his teaming up with the killers of Rodney and those who rained blows on during the anti dictatorial struggle. Everyone who knew/knows Rupert was/is also disappointed with his performance in government. We all felt let down that he did not speak out against the closure of the sugar estates, racism, the rigging attempt of 2020, and so many other matters of governance. The same was also said about Moses Nagamootoo and Khemraj Ramjattan. Freddie is certainly “more Indian than Rupert”.
Freddie should not harp back to unpleasant remembrances of his exchanges with Indian rights activists. We all must move on.

Yours truly,
Dr. Vishnu Bisram

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