The Guyana Public Service Union extends warm greetings on this Emancipation Day, to all locally and internationally. Emancipation offers an opportunity to reflect on the difficult and untold sufferings of our forefathers. It was a long and grueling fight to end the harrowing crime of enslavement which was inflicted on humanity for centuries despite the persistent cries for freedom. Freedom guaranteed the right to live and enjoy a life in dignity, and the security to live one’s life according to one’s dreams and beliefs. As we continue to reflect let us envision a future of prosperity for all Guyanese as One People, One Nation, One Destiny – with a commitment for development in the interest of all.
History would teach us that Human Slavery was institutionalized long before the year 1080, and several efforts were made to ban the slave trade in England in the 12th Century when the Ecclesiastical Council of London decreed that “let no one dare to engage in the infamous business…of selling men like animals”. However, time progressed, until 1783 when an anti-slavery movement started. Despite legislative restrictions on slave trading, slavery itself remained unchallenged and flourished on the sugar plantations of the Caribbean. Many African families were captured and sold into slavery during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Barbarism and genocide were the fate of some slaves during this unfortunate period. Others endured sickness, starvation, torture and the brutal life sugar plantations offered…death was a relief from the sickening conditions.
The Jamaican rebellion caused the British Empire to hold an inquiry into the rebellion, which resulted in the passage of the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 that became effective on August 1, 1834 throughout the British Empire except a few territories. With the passage of the 1834 Act 800,000 slaves were freed, causing an influx of indentured labourers to supplement the plantation’s labour force. Under the Act 20-million-pound sterling were paid to slave owners as compensation.
Further, on January 1, 1863 the Emancipation Proclamation by United States President Abraham Lincoln to wit:
“…all persons held as slaves…shall be forever free…and all authority thereof, shall recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons and will do no acts to reprise such persons in any effort they make for their actual freedom”.
This Proclamation was only effective in the rebellious States during the civil war which liberated 3.5 million slaves.
In 2023, 189 years later, there is still the call for Reparative Justice, for restitution to the victims of slavery or their descendants.
The July 2023 Brussels Summit of the European Union and the Community of Latin American and the Caribbean States (CELAC) Declaration 10 states
“We acknowledge and profoundly regret the untold suffering inflicted on millions of men, women and children as a result of the trans-Atlantic slave trade…including the acknowledgment that slavery and the slave trade, including the transatlantic slave trade, were appalling tragedies in the history of humanity not only because of their abhorrent barbarism but also in terms of their magnitude, organized nature and especially their negation of the essence of the victims, and that slavery and the slave trade are a crime against humanity…”.
CELAC referred to the Caribbean Reparation Commission document which outlines the path to conciliation, truth, and justice for the victims of slavery and their descendants.
In today’s society, the conditions experienced by the enslaved human capital of the 16th century no longer exist and several anti-slavery legislations are inforce to prevent a recurrence. However, that process to emancipation was laced with blood and tears, many have died to secure freedom for all and the right to be born free, to live freely and to enjoy benefits compensatory to efforts.
As we enjoy our lives in freedom where the chains of bondage were broken, the shackles loose, let us strive to secure economic freedom as well as prosperity for all. Let us continue the difficult journey in pursuit of a livable wage for workers. Social and economic equality must be attained to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor of our country. The lack of adequate resources to provide for our needs has created another bondage for the citizens of Guyana. Economic freedom remains elusive for the working class.
The Guyana Public Service Union advocates for all of us to work together, to rid our country of the afflict of economic deprivation and the stronghold of poverty that continues to grip the working class. Let us work together to build a just and fair society where all are treated equally before the law, where all can share in the richness of our country’s resources, regardless of our ethnicity, social and economic standing, or geographic origin. This is a Guyana of One People, One Nation, One Destiny. We can do better; albeit we must do better to secure a brighter future as a nation.
Let individual, economic and social freedom reign.
Happy Emancipation Day
August 1, 2023.
