In the politics of Guyana and Trinidad it’s important to understand ‘measurement of power’ and how it works. In the case of Trinidad, Guyana and Suriname, the ethnic group that controls resources eventually has control over all other political actors, events and the outcome is that they will be the dominant race in politics most of the time. Whosoever controls state enterprises like oil, gas, land, wealth, and the armed forces can also control the opposition. Even a one percent population ethnic group also has influence by means of their economic power due to private business and can influence governments, events and their outcomes, for example the Syrians? In Guyana and Trinidad, the Indian political race does not have a fair share of these measurements of power. When you measure Afro-Caribbean behavior in government as in the case of Guyana’s President Granger, his PNC government behavior is based on their ‘measurement of power’ to disrespect the Opposition, the laws and the constitution of Guyana. In Trinidad the African PNM government is always investigating the Opposition UNC / Indian party for corruption and even jailed an Indian Prime Minister on the basis of the PNM’s measurement of power.
The problem with the Indian race is that the idea of utilizing political and military power is out of the question for reasons of plain stupidity and spinelessness. Indians admire themselves mostly for their academic ability as doctors, lawyers, engineers and in some cases businessmen yet fail miserably when it comes to real political power. It’s not about getting elected, but to have political power and influence over events and outcomes even when out of government in order to achieve basic ethnic protection for survival. Basically, they book sense but absolutely zero common sense and political sense. Indians can achieve measurements of political power with all of the above only by changing their political software to meet the challenges of their opposites.
In the Guyana situation, Indians have to understand that Afro-Caribbeans are not superpowers or untouchable and therefore can only operate within the constructs of their measurements of power. Indians in Guyana have a numerical power and can disrupt the status quo of Guyana and bring global attention to their cause like in Hong Kong, Iraq, Iran and Venezuela etc. The PNC party can only offer limited response. If Indians came out strong to protest against the current illegal political occupation and other injustices, they have nothing to be afraid of. What is the worst that can happen? They cannot mass erase Indians if that’s what Indo-Caribbeans are afraid of. One or two Indians may get caught in the flurry but the superpowers will intercede. World attention will intervene as in the case of Bosnia and Rwanda. So it’s really up to Guyanese Indians how to calculate and use their numbers to make their presence understood in Guyana. A late development to prove my case in the ‘Measurement of Power’ is the Suriname Court convicting President Bouterise of murder for the 1982 executions of 15 opponents. This president crossed the limit of his powers and attracted the attention of super powers like the UK, USA, France, Spain and the Netherlands who made sure President Bouterise was tried for MASS MURDER.
The lesson Guyanese Indians can learn from what played out in Suriname is that the PNC powers are limited and it is up to Indians to attract big powers to what is going on in Guyana. Do not sit and beg for RIGHTS. You will not get anything from begging except scraps and disrespect. This passive behavior has not work and it never will. Indians must stand strong to win their place because others have realized that Indian measurement of power is weak.
Why the Indian measurement of power is perceived as weak has to do with the political cognitive behavior of our political leaders and activists and how they respond to African political behavior against Indians. In Trinidad, when Bhadase Sagan Maharaj was in his political youth the Indian race had wielded a lot more respect among the Africans because Bhadase was considered as an ‘Indian Nigger / badjohn” as he was referred to many times, he wielded fear. In the case of Guyana, the British Guiana East Indian Association had wielded more power and respect than the present Indian leaders and activists. Out of these organizations arose leaders like Cheddi Jagan. The moment such Indian leaders and activists replaced Indian NATIONALISM with SOCIALISM and a pseudo “one-love” philosophy, Indians began to walk the road of disadvantage and difficulty. Indians must ask the question, does African Nationalism exist in Guyana and Trinidad? So why not Indian Nationalism. Indians must today behave in a manner in their daily life as a race to be feared and then they will be loved.
HAPPY NEW YEAR – 2020.
