The epitome of ‘martyrdom’ in Guyana is the slaughter of more than 200 ‘martyrs’ by the British Army on 20th August in the Demerara Revolt of 1823, the 200th anniversary of which the nation commemorates this year. The Demerara ‘martyrs’ definitely contributed to the emancipation of enslaved Africans, the eradication of the system of slavery in the Americas and the enjoyment of the freedom Guyanese enjoy today.
Former President David Granger pointed out in his weekly programme – The Public Interest – that the British Empire was inherently violent and unstable. Colonised people invariably suffered oppressive economic, ethnic, political and social pressures which triggered resistance. ‘Martyrs’ are those who choose to die to resist repression.
Violence plagued plantations in the sugar belt mostly about working conditions, poverty and pay disputes in the post-World War depressions. Protests by unarmed workers in the colonial era resulted, often, in their suppression by armed policemen and soldiers, occasionally causing death and injury.
Mr. Granger expressed the opinion that killings in the Ruimveldt Riot of 1905 had the unintended consequence of the formation of the first formal trade union – British Guiana Labour Union (GLU, founded by Hubert Critchlow). Others, including the Guiana Industrial Workers Union (GIWU, founded by Joseph Lachhmansingh) followed as a consequence of frequent encounters by the police and workers. The ‘Labour rebellion’ in the British West Indies in the 1930s prompted the establishment of the Royal (Moyne) Commission which recommended political and social reforms that accelerated freedom and Independence.
The former President felt that the historical significance of martyrdom seems to have been misunderstood and underestimated. With the exception of Enmore Martyrs’ Day, the PPPC administration ignores other Martyrs’ Days which were proclaimed and published by the previous APNU administration. He felt, also, that martyrdom’s historical lessons can heal the nation by helping to recognise our ancestors’ sacrifices to attain the freedom everyone enjoys, to remember that freedom is not a favour but something of value to be fought for and defended, to respect the common quest for freedom and to foster social cohesion among former colonized peoples.
Mr. Granger said that martyrdom can be a powerfully motivating force for the nation. We should not discount the sacrifice of the ‘martyrs’ who courageously confronted colonisers and consciously gave their lives in the belief that their deaths would contribute to the achievement of a good life for posterity. 󠄀
