Dr. Joey (Cheddi Jr) Jagan, son of late President Jagan, accused me of being part “of a chorus to undermine the role of Dr. Jagan in Guyana’s politics” (in letter KN Mar 8). In another missive, another communist character accused me of being part of “an anti-Jagan gang”. Anytime someone pens a commentary assessing or critiquing Dr. Jagan’s anti-American ideology, the person is labeled by the communists as anti-Jagan. I am also labeled as Indian nationalist as though that is a crime. I am proud of my identity and my culture handed down by my ancestors from India; yes, I am an Indian nationalist. There is nothing to be ashamed about in being Indian.
I, Vishnu Bisram, am pro-Jagan, but I am no Marxist-Leninist-Stalinist-Communist. I am pro Anglo-America and pro-West. The fact that I was and am anti-Communist, does not make me anti-Jagan who remains one of my heroes and in fact a hero of every Indian Guyanese. For American policymakers, there is no distinction between, communism, Marxism, socialism, democratic socialism, Fabianism, Gramcianism, and all other leftwing ism. All are considered as threat to American national security and grouped as one. And anyone associated with those “isms”, except Fidel Castro, was removed from office in the West. Contrary to being anti-Jagan, I promoted Cheddi and wrote positively on him, and I did everything possible to get him elected. In fact, Jagan praised me when we met shortly after his 1992 victory for the assistance I rendered to help him get elected. He was a stubborn man. He was ‘hard aze’, in the Indian colloquial term and that is why he was toppled from power in 1964 and kept out for 28 years. The American policymakers saw him as a threat and did all in their power to prevent his party from capturing power. Although Indians supported the PPP and Jagan, they did not support communism. Every Indian Guyanese, indeed all Guyanese, aspired to migrate to capitalist America or Canada or UK.
I never was, am not now, and will never be a member of a gang that is anti-Jagan and or anti-democracy and or anti-working class and or that sought or seeks “to undermine Jagan’s role in Guyana’s politics”. I know of no such anti-Jagan groups, formal or informal, other than political nemesis. His opponents ‘loved’ him as Cheddi’s anti-Americanism, ‘anti-Westism’ helped to secure their political control in Guyana. The Anglo-American alliance preferred Jagan’s opponents over him as they viewed him as a threat to western interests.
Jagan’s contributions to and role in Guyana are etched in the history books and can never be undermined. His character and integrity can never be impugned. And the love of the Indian people, almost all of them, for Jagan can never be diminished. But Indians did not embrace or love communism. They loved Jagan and still do. He was our ‘mattie’, and we supported him for that reason not because he was a communist.
Jagan was the beneficiary of my decades long activism in Guyana and in the diaspora and at no time did I engage in anti-Jaganism. I appealed to him to move away from communism. He rebuffed me as he did so many others. I spent twenty-five years as part of a movement advocating and lobbying for free and fair elections (FFE) in Guyana. I pioneered a free and fair election movement in New York and Trinidad. I traveled internationally on my own expense seeking support for FFE. I made financial contributions to Jagan’s PPP and urged others, including family members, to do same. I attended Jagan fundraisers in America and Guyana. I joined Pandit Ramlall, Karshan, Ramesh Kalicharran, and Jass Persaud to organize a fundraiser for Jagan in 1992. I succeeded in getting Members of Congress to pen letters that benefited Jagan. I piloted ‘motions’ for sponsorship of lectures and seminars at City College when I was in student government (at both the undergraduate and graduate levels) from 1978 thru the 1980s. Dr. Joey and Dr. Ralph Gonslaves spoke at one lecture series on Jagan at CCNY at the Finley Students Center that was sponsored by my government. Joey’s brother-in-law, Chuck Mohan organized several seminars and lectures of Cheddi and Janet Jagan and of other freedom fighters at CCNY and elsewhere; Student Government occasionally provided funding for these activities. I penned countless positive articles going back to 1976 on PPP and Jagan. I lobbied the Americans to help restore democracy in Guyana. I wrote letters to the leaders of Canada, USA, Britian, India, Trinidad, Jamaica, Barbados, and others seeking their assistance for FFE in Guyana. I appealed to American Ambassadors Theresa Anne Tull and Dennis Hays to support FFE in Guyana. I penned a public appeal carried in the international media, including SN, NY Caribbean Daylight, NY CIA News, News India, India Abroad, etc. in 1992 pleading on the Americans to give Jagan a chance. I was criticized for it by both the left and the right. I appealed to my Professor Arthur Schlesinger (JFK’s Advisor) to reconsider his views on Jagan, resulting in a favorable article in the liberal Nation Magazine.
When there was an effort to derail Jagan’s victory in 1992, I appealed to Members of Congress for assistance to pressure Hoyte to accept the will of the voters. After Jagan became President, I met Ambassador George Fleming Jones and appealed for increased aid for Guyana when Jagan was President. I repeated the appeal at a media conference on Robb Street to launch Ram Jodha’s newspaper where Ambassador Jones was present and addressed the gathering. I engaged Charge Hugh Simon on same objective after David Hobbs was recalled as Ambassador. Vishnu Bandhu was with me at an invite at Charge Simon’s residence for a private reception. When Jagan suffered a massive heart attack, an appeal was made to Charge Simon and to the Clinton Administration (for which I campaigned) for US medical assistance. The Americans airlifted him to Panama and thence to Washington at Walter Reed hospital that is reserved for eminent American politicians. I wrote several news releases carried in Indian and Caribbean publications on Jagan’s heart attack. I left for my research sabbatical to the Philippines. As news came that Jagan’s medical condition was deteriorating, I cut short my stay in the Philippines and flew back to New York. Mike Persaud and I monitored Jagan’s medical condition. Mike and I agreed to alert the New York Times of Jagan’s medical condition. He spoke with the news editor to carry a story on Jagan. The news editor informed him that they were on top of the story and that an obituary was already prepared should be passed on. And when Jagan passed on a day later, NYT carried a gracious tribute. I helped to organized tributes and memorials for Jagan at mandirs and halls. And years later, I did same for Janet when she died.
I flew down to Guyana for Cheddi funeral. Did the communists fly down from Russia and the former Soviet satellite states to attend the funeral? I met Basdeo Panday, Randy Depoo, Raj Singh, Arjune Karshan, Chuck Mohan, Mel Carpen and host of the ACG boys. I reported on the funeral for the media in New York. I was at Albion and also attended the night wake at the Ankerville home of Jagan’s parents where Cheddi was born and where Joey spent time during school holidays. Vishnu Bandhu, Roy Ramsaran, Ramko Kalicharran, and several other New Yorkers were there.
Ralph Ramkarran gave one of best tributes to Jagan at Babu Jahan. When the funeral pyre was lit by Joey and Nadira, the party comrades left in a hurry and rushed to cross the river with ferry back to town. The Jagan’s family, including Joey and his son, Uncle Suchit and Aunty Janey stayed behind as did I and Roy Ramsaran and other true Jaganites to watch the last embers of the cremation. Who displayed more love for Jagan?
Joey and others blamed America for toppling Jagan. America acted in what it thought was in its national interests. The world was divided between east and west. At the height of the cold war, you don’t defy Washington.
Joey’s father and his mother, Janet, showered accolades on me for the role I played in the country getting its first free and fair elections in 1992 and for all the fundraising for Jagan when he visited America in 1991 and 1992. Cheddi also thanked me for the meetings arranged with the Chairman of the Democratic Party Ron Brown in 1989 and for the role played in getting Dr Arthur Schlesinger to attend his lecture at Nation’s Magazine.
Guyanese couldn’t migrate to Soviet bloc countries and at any rate would not have wanted to settle in any them – there was no freedom and standard of living as well as quality of life was very poor. Today, more Guyanese live in USA than in Guyana, and almost every Guyanese at home seeks a resident visa and or citizenship of USA. A communist wrote that the working class of Guyana has been impoverished. That was expected and predicted. The wealthy communists in Guyana don’t share their loot with the workers. The working class is not invited to their homes for any reception of function. The poor working-class person seeks migration to America and quickly becomes a millionaire or close to it whereas his progress is stymied in Guyana and are largely excluded from the wealth of the country. I invited the working class to my pujas and assisted as much as I could with financial assistance. The bourgeoisie, not the wealthy communists, socialize with the working class.
The above anecdotes and illustrations refute Joey Jagan’s accusations made against me as being anti-Cheddi. Had Cheddi listened to those of us to tone down his anti-American rhetoric and his militant communism, democracy would have come to Guyana sooner and Cheddi elected as the rightful ruler of the country.
