Arrival of Indentured Labourers in Mauritius
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INJUSTICE, RACISM and POVERTY in the INDIAN DIASPORA Vinay Lal
CHAPTER SEVEN LIVING IN THE SHADOWS: INJUSTICE, RACISM AND POVERTY IN THE INDIAN DIASPORA Vinay Lal Introduction the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ diasporas, the first pre-eminently Although the Indian diaspora is today an incontestable a diaspora of the nineteenth century, the latter largely fact of world culture, its global presence marked by of the twentieth century; the former also coincides with such diverse cultural phenomena as Bollywood, the diaspora of the ‘South’, just as the latter appears to Indian writing in English, tandoori cooking, and even coincide with the diaspora of the ‘North’. Although today the emergence of a new class of aggressive Indian Indian Americans may well pride themselves on being business tycoons, it is not a matter of wide public a ‘model minority’, a term of insidious intent, it is well to knowledge that overseas Indian communities embody remember that the 1940 US census described Indians a strikingly wide array of political and socio-cultural as the community with the lowest levels of schooling histories. Most middle-class Indians, whose favorite of any ethnic group (Lal 2008a: 46). Conversely, the overseas destination is unquestionably the United economic disenfranchisement of Indians in Malaysia did States, and whose image of the diasporic Indian has not prevent one Indian, Ananda Krishnan, from becoming been shaped by success stories of Indians who have the wealthiest person in the country (Sze 2004). thrived in the US, Australia, Canada, and (to a lesser The truly heroic saga of nineteenth-century indentured -
The Relevance and Potential of Buddhist Pedagogy in Mauritius
================================================================== Language in India www.languageinindia.com ISSN 1930-2940 Vol. 21:8 August 2021 ================================================================ The Relevance and Potential of Buddhist Pedagogy in Mauritius Roshan Boodnah, Ph.D. Scholar Lecturer & Head, Department of Philosophy School of Indological Studies Mahatma Gandhi Institute Mauritius Contact No: +230 57722844 [email protected] ==================================================================== Abstract Mauritius, situated in the Indian Ocean and in the East coast of Africa, is a multi-cultural island, often called as the “rainbow” island. As a vibrant part of the Indian Diaspora, Mauritius shares strong cultural, educational, religious, and economical lineage with India. The triumph of the indentured labourers from India who settled in the island in the mid-18th century is to a great extent attributed to their spirit of tolerance and endurance, set of values, and wisdom that they carried from the Mother land, India. Along with the Rāmacaritamānasa, they also carried along the intangible Buddhist values and ethos that were instrumental in developing their settlements amidst colonial suppression. It is against this backdrop that this paper intends to analyse as to how Buddhist teachings found expression as way of life in a multicultural and multiracial set up. It proposes to survey the teaching and learning of Buddhist Philosophy in the Mauritian Educational Curriculum and to propose the centrality of Buddhist ethics as a strong pillar of Buddhist Pedagogy and Didactics for a sustainable future with disciplined and confident youth. Youth should be inspired to become accomplished in virtue by following the moral guidelines spelled out by the Five Precepts (pañca-śīla) by strong vectors. Therefore, to be able to propagate the ethical teachings of Buddha, educational reforms should be brought in the pre- primary and primary curricula. -
EAST INDIANS on the SPANISH MAIN in the NINETEENTH CENTURY Michael F
Man In India, 93 (1) : 95-111 © Serials Publications ‘ABSENT WITHOUT LEAVE’: EAST INDIANS ON THE SPANISH MAIN IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY Michael F. Toussaint In this paper the Spanish Main is taken to refer to the broad area stretching from Mexico to the southern tip of South America, only part of which was affected by East Indian immigration1. Until recently, little research was done regarding migration from the Caribbean to South America. A largely unexplored dimension of this phenomenon is the late nineteenth-century illegal migration of a number of Indian immigrant labourers who had been brought to the Caribbean under indenture contracts. This paper seeks to bring this migration phenomenon into focus. It examines the circumstances surrounding the illegal emigration of these Indians to the South American mainland, their experience there and the British government’s handling of this problem. Also discussed is the cultural impact of those Indian immigrants who remained on the mainland. The overall number of Indian emigrants is unknown and undoubtedly small. Ours, however, is a qualitative rather than quantitative discourse, intended to broaden the context and scope of Indian migration, and our appreciation of the myriad dimensions of their diaspora. Theoretical and Epistemological Issues There are two fundamental and reciprocating nuances to Caribbean migration historiography. Firstly, it emphasizes the movement of labour, whether forced or voluntary. Secondly, from this, historical enquiry remains focused on in-migration to the region. Out-migration, significant as part of the Caribbean experience from the inception of European and Caribbean contact, has been studied as an afterthought. One result is that the complexity of Caribbean migration has been significantly obscured2. -
Le Site De Phooliyar À Maurice : L’Empreinte De La Mémoire Des Migrations Baishali Ghosh
Le site de Phooliyar à Maurice : l’empreinte de la mémoire des migrations Baishali Ghosh To cite this version: Baishali Ghosh. Le site de Phooliyar à Maurice : l’empreinte de la mémoire des migrations. Carnets de Recherches de l’océan Indien, Université de La Réunion, 2019, Varia. hal-02474956 HAL Id: hal-02474956 https://hal.univ-reunion.fr/hal-02474956 Submitted on 11 Feb 2020 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. 2019 Carnets de Recherches de l’océan Indien N°4 Le site de Phooliyar à Maurice : l’empreinte de la mémoire des migrations* Phoolyar in Mauritius: stamping memory and migration Résumé Cet article retrace le processus de commémoration de la migration, des matériaux et de la mémoire des travailleurs engagés à l’île Maurice. Il examine les éléments visuels du site et de la sculpture à Phooliyar (ancienne usine sucrière, dans le district de la Rivière-du-Rempart), prenant ce site comme étude de cas. Je propose d’étudier le site comme un contre-engagisme qui a été mais aussi leurs descendants et la matérialité du système sous-contrat. Le siteconstruit se présente pour authentifier comme une non contre-archive seulement la qui mobilité déploie des progressivement migrants engagés, les récits complexes de la migration des engagés et des générations suivantes. -
Life on Sugar Estates in Colonial Mauritius
Journal of Anthropology and Archaeology December 2018, Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 1-10 ISSN 2334-2420 (Print) 2334-2439 (Online) Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved. Published by American Research Institute for Policy Development DOI: 10.15640/jaa.v6n2a1 URL: https://doi.org/10.15640/jaa.v6n2a1 Life on Sugar Estates in Colonial Mauritius Mrs Rashila Vigneshwari Ramchurn1 Abstract This research paper seeks to examine life of descendants of indentured labourers on sugar estates in Mauritius. Attempt will be made to unravel gender disparity in all its forms. This study demonstrates how the bourgeoisie exploited and dominated the proletariat and preserved the status quo from the Marxist perspective as well as other theoretical approaches. Empirical data has been collected by conducting qualitative research using the face to face unstructured interview with elders aged 70 years to 108 years in the Republic of Mauritius and critical analysis of speeches of the leader of the Mauritius Labour Party. Secondary data has also been employed through qualitative research. The interviews were recorded in the year 2016,2018 and 2018 on digital recorder, transcribed and translated in English. All of the researches have been carried out objectively in a systematic manner so as to erase any bias in the study conducted. 70% of modern Mauritians are descendants of the indentured labourers. 1.1. Introduction Mauritius is an island in the South West Indian Ocean. Four hundred years ago there was no indigenous population on the island. All the people in Mauritius are immigrants. Mauritius has known three waves of immigrants namely the Dutch, the French and the British. -
Vol 2 Prelimineries J22 .Indd
Angajē The Impact of Indenture Explorations into the history, society and culture of indentured immigrants and their descendants in Mauritius Volume 2 © Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund 2012 Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund 1, Quay Street Port Louis Republic of Mauritius Email: [email protected] www.aapravasighat.org Volume 2 - The Impact of Indenture ISBN 978-99903-88-20-6 Cover Angajē is a Mauritian Bhojpuri word designating indentured labourers. Photo: Indo-Mauritian sugar cane labourers at work on Trianon Suger Estate during the 1940s. (Source: Mauritius Chamber of Agriculture , Photo collection) Design and Page Layout Doorga Ujodha Printed by Cathay Printing Ltd. Angajē…. In memory of the indentured labourers from India and other parts of the world who worked, lived, suffered, resisted and died in Mauritius between 1826 and 1910. iii Editorial Board Chair Associate Professor Vijayalakshmi Teelock, GOSK University of Mauritius Members Dr Anwar Janoo University of Mauritius Dr Geoffrey Summers, MBE Senior Fellow, Research Center for Anatolian Civilizations, Koç University, Istanbul, Turkey Dr Marc Serge Rivière University of Limerick, Ireland Sooryakanti Nirsimloo-Gayan Former Director-General, Mahatma Gandhi Institute and Rabindranath Tagore Institute Editing Assistants Babita D. Bahadoor Research Assistant, Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund Christelle Miao Foh Research Assistant, Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund Project Supervisor Corinne Forest Head Technical Unit, Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund Project Coordinator Satyendra Peerthum Researcher, Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund iv CONTENTS List of Figures and Tables vii Abbreviations xi Foreword from the Editors xii Introduction to the Series xiii Introduction to Volume II xvi Acknowledgments xvii Notes on Contributors xix PART ONE THE IMPACT OF INDENTURE ON IMMGRANTS Life at the Immigration Depot 3-24 Indira Gyaram and Amirchandsingh Teerbhoohan Shifting Identities – Names and Numbers 25-40 Sonwantee Deerpalsingh Indentured Labour and the Application of Law. -
Gender, Race, and Empire in Caribbean Indenture Narratives
City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 2-2015 The Ties that Bind: Gender, Race, and Empire in Caribbean Indenture Narratives Alison Joan Klein Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/582 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] THE TIES THAT BIND: GENDER, RACE, AND EMPIRE IN CARIBBEAN INDENTURE NARRATIVES by ALISON KLEIN A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in English in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York. 2015 © 2015 ALISON JOAN KLEIN All Rights Reserved ii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in English in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Ashley Dawson __________________ Date Chair of Examining Committee Mario DiGangi __________________ Date Executive Officer THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iii THE TIES THAT BIND: GENDER, RACE, AND EMPIRE IN CARIBBEAN INDENTURE NARRATIVES by ALISON KLEIN Adviser: Professor Ashley Dawson This dissertation traces the ways that oppressive gender roles and racial tensions in the Caribbean today developed out of the British imperial system of indentured labor. Between 1837 and 1920, after slavery was abolished in the British colonies and before most colonies achieved independence, approximately 750,000 laborers, primarily from India and China, traveled to the Caribbean under indenture. -
Archaeology of Indenture
Table of Contents Editorial and Messages Editorial 4 Message from the President of the Republic of Mauritius ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 7 Message from the Prime Minister ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 8 Message from the Minister of Arts and Culture ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 9 Message from the Lord Mayor of Port Louis ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 10 Article by the Director of the Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 11 Message from Professor Armoogum Parsuramen ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 14 1 AAPRAVASI GHAT WORLD HERITAGE SITE 15 The World Heritage Status �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 16 The -
PM Indian Arrival Day Message
GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER MESSAGE TO THE NATION BY DR THE HONOURABLE KEITH ROWLEY, MP PRIME MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF TRINIDAD & TOBAGO ON THE OCCASION OF INDIAN ARRIVAL DAY 2017 On the occasion of Indian Arrival Day 2017, I extend warm greetings to our East Indian community, on behalf of the people and Government of Trinidad and Tobago. Each year on May 30th we commemorate the anniversary of the arrival of the first East Indian immigrants to Trinidad and Tobago. In some areas of the country there are often re-enactments of this historic occasion, which allow community members to showcase their knowledge and creativity. This year also marks the centennial of the abolition of Indian indentureship. It was in 1917 that the transportation of Indians out of India for labour in another country was ceased. In March of this year I was honoured to be invited to the Indian Diaspora World Convention 2017, which was held in Trinidad and Tobago under the auspices of the Indian Diaspora Council. I believed that it was important for me, as the leader of a country which has been impacted by Indian indentureship, to attend a Convention which brought together diasporic scholars, researchers and community advocates and activists from various regions and countries, for open dialogue on the Indian Diasporic experience. Similarly, Indian Arrival Day must therefore be considered as an opportunity for all of us, as citizens of Trinidad and Tobago, to recall our history as a Nation and determine how we may all continue to positively impact our future. -
Documenting Our Journeys – As Guyana Commemorates 180Th Anniversary of Indian Arrival Day by Ashook Ramsaran
Documenting our Journeys – As Guyana Commemorates 180th Anniversary of Indian Arrival Day By Ashook Ramsaran Perspective “The Indian indenture system was an ongoing system of indenture, a form of debt bondage, by which 3.5 million Indians were transported to various colonies of European powers to provide labour for the (mainly sugar) plantations. It started from the end of slavery in 1833 (Slavery Abolition Act) and continued until 1920. This resulted in the development of large Indian diaspora, which spread from the Indian Ocean (i.e. South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar, Zambia, Zanzibar, Uganda, Malawi, Seychelles, Réunion and Mauritius) to Pacific Ocean (i.e. Fiji), to the Atlantic Ocean (i.e. the Caribbean, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Belize, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Jamaica) as well as the growth of Indo-Caribbean, Indo-Fijian, Indo-Mauritian, and Indo- African population.” Wikipedia Indian Indentureship was an intense and harrowing period for Indian labourers from several Indian states to far away lands of then British, Dutch and French colonies to replenish desperately needed labour after the British emancipation of slavery in 1834. The majority of those labourers were taken from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkand, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry. March 20, 2017 marked the centennial of official abolition of Indian Indentureship, an era spanning the years 1834-1917. The history and consequences of Indian Indentureship are deeply embedded with tremendous significance, importance, meaningful history and reflections to millions of descendants living in many countries which were the recipients of Indian Indentured labourers seeking better livelihoods. -
World Heritage List
Amitava, The Aapravasi Ghat, Past & Present: Aapravasi Ghat (Mauritius) Archaeological Investigations, Port Louis, 2003. Date of ICOMOS approval of this report: 10 April 2006 No 1227 3. THE PROPERTY Description 1. BASIC DATA Aapravasi Ghat is the site through which 450,000 State Party: Republic of Mauritius indentured labourers from India first set foot in Mauritius between 1830s and the 1920s, marking one of the great Name of property: Aapravasi Ghat waves of migration in recorded history. Location: Port Louis District Set on the bay of Trou Fanfaron, in the capital Saint Louis, Aapravasi Ghat is the remains of a cluster of three stone Date received by buildings dating from the 1860s, built on the site of an the World Heritage Centre: 31 January 2005 earlier immigration depot. The remaining buildings Included in the Tentative List: 28 July 2003 represent less than half of what existed in the 1860s. International Assistance from the World Heritage Fund for The nominated site is tightly drawn around the buildings preparing the nomination: No and covers 1640 sq metres. It is surrounded by a buffer Category of property: zone which is part of the heart of the rapidly expanding city and a busy harbour. In terms of the categories of cultural property set out in Article 1 of the 1972 World Heritage Convention, this is a The buffer zone 28.9 hectares s divided into two zones: a site. smaller zone 1 of 2.9 ha enclosing the nominated area, and a larger zone 2 of 26.0hs that surrounds zone 1. Brief description: The abolition of slavery in European colonies during the Aapravasi Gat, Port Louis, is the site where the modern nineteenth century prompted tropical plantation owners indentured labour Diaspora began. -
Nelson Island and Indian Indentureship in Trinidad
Nelson Island and Indian Indentureship in Trinidad Nelson Island is one of the Five Islands off Trinidad which lies west of Port of Spain in the Gulf of Paria. The island has historical importance for the many ethnic groups that now populate the twin-island state of Trinidad and Tobago. From 1866 to Source: Adrian Camps-Campins 1917, Nelson Island was used as a landing, immigration and quarantine station for Indian indentured immigrants to Trinidad. This exhibition highlights the role of Nelson Island during the period of Indian Indentureship, with photos and records from the National Archives of Trinidad and Tobago. Indian Indentureship in Trinidad On May 30th 1845, the Futtle Rozack commonly known and settled in the New World colony. In many ways, they as the Fatel Rozak docked in the Port of Spain harbour in brought India to the Caribbean. They continued with their Trinidad with 225 adult passengers on board. The passengers traditions of Hinduism and Islam, and continue to add were the first immigrants from India who had come to colour to Trinidad and Tobago’s cosmopolitan society. the British colony to work on the sugarcane plantations after the abolition of African slavery. They had spent 103 Descendants of these Indian immigrants, who now days at sea during the long and dangerous journey that comprise about half of the multi-ethnic society of the twin- spanned 14,000 miles (36,000 km). The immigrants were island state (1.3 million), commemorate the arrival of their contracted for five to ten years to work on estates (sugar, ancestors to these shores annually.