Indian Acquisition of Land in the Diaspora: From Indentureship to Ownership. INVITATION TO OUR 110th ICC (+AGI) ZOOM PUBLIC MEETING
Caribbean history shows that, in ethnically plural societies where there is an even division of numbers between descendants of enslaved Africans and indentured Indians, the former has often been privileged to occupy the role of Government for decades. The PNM has ruled Trinidad and Tobago for 50 years, and counting; and the PNC/APNU has held power in Guyana for a total of 33 years. Non-Indians have governed Suriname for 43 out of 47 years.
There is a popular belief among Africans in these societies that Indians should not be allowed to occupy the Government because they already own “plenty land”. This belief is grounded in the myth that Indians got free Crown lands from the colonial government at the end of their indentureship. The reality is that the land grant was not free, but given in lieu of their contracted right to a return voyage to India. The fact also is that only two (2) percent of those who were eligible received the land that was promised, and what they were given was often flat and prone to flooding.