Indian arrival Day pressure group launches newsletter
Stabroek News
June 5, 2003
The Indian Arrival Committee (IAC) on Tuesday launched ‘Indian Opinion’, the organisation’s monthly publication, at the Cheddi Jagan Research Centre.
According to IAC executive member, Evan Radhay Persaud, the name ‘Indian Opinion’ first appeared on a publication created by Mahatma Gandhi while he lived in South Africa. The name later surfaced in Guyana during the early days of the British Guiana East Indian Association as a publication of that body.
The inaugural issue of this ‘Indian Opinion’ is primarily focused on the 165th anniversary of the arrival of East Indians in Guyana and the IAC’s campaign to have Indian Arrival Day made a national holiday. The issue of crime against persons of Indian descent is also examined.
Persaud noted that through its publication, the IAC would work to promote national unity and highlight a cultural awareness of the history of Bharatiyas, Indians who came from Bharat (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Nepal).
Author Dr. David Dabydeen said, “We need to recognise that our histories are connected. We can’t speak of one experience and shun the other.” He said scholars writing of the Indian experience should avoid sentimentality and avoid being epic and heroic.
