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Banwari



Countries all over the world celebrate their history by proclaiming a public holiday to mark the event. Religious holidays are also part of the deal. It could be the end of a war, birth of the 'father or mother of the nation', Melon Day in Turkmenistan or Alphabet Day in Korea. It really does not matter, it is your sovereign right to celebrate whatever. Sometimes you will hear people commenting on a particular holiday in a country and smirking at how ridiculous it sounds. Well tough luck, if you don't want to celebrate it then stay home, we will gladly have a herd of vexed bulls run us down and pelt ourselves with tomatoes or cover ourselves with mud and old crankcase oil.

On the Rock we are no different, we have National public holidays, for instance, to mark our Independence and we have religious holidays for each major religion that has a following on the Rock. We also have a number of other holidays that I am not sure if I totally agree with.
To put things in their proper perspective let us look at a brief history of settlements on the Rock.


  • 3400BC - Banwari and his buddies were on island tours leaving the mainland, Venezuela and the Guianas and heading across to the Rock and the Lesser Antilles. 
  • 1498AD - A crazy Italian guy sailed all across the Atlantic, got lost, got stuck in the doldrums and eventually hit the Rock. After that nothing, much happened.
  • 1592 - The first lasting settlement established by the Spanish government by Antonio de Berrio. A handful of Spanish people are left on the Rock.
  • 1671 - A body count is done and we now have 80 Spanish settlers and 80 'domesticated Ameridians'. Probably left back from Banwari and his buddies.
  • 1777 - Things are heating up on the Rock, a population census is carried out and we find 2763 persons which include 2000 Arawaks.   
  • 1783 - The Cedula of Population is proclaimed which basically says once you were a Roman Catholic then you can settle on the Rock, even if you were not Spanish. Soon after a number of French planters, mainly aristocrats, running from the guillotine, arrive accompanied by African slaves. That was the deal, you come here with slaves you are granted land depending on how many slaves you actually brought with you. The sole purpose was to create an economy.
  • 1797 - A big war breaks out between England and Spain, Admiral Nelson does the necessary, the Brits win and the Rock is handed over to the victors. Things are now revving, the population has soared to 17,643 comprising 2,086 whites, 4466 free persons of color, 1082 Amerindians and 10,009 African slaves. 
  • 1806 - A small group of Chinese persons arrives on the Rock. Mainly from Macao, Penang, and Canton. This would be the first Chinese immigrants.
  • 1834 - Portuguese immigration starts with so-called 'illegal aliens' arriving from Fayal, Azores.
  • 1838 - There is full Emancipation for all African slaves. 
  • 1844 - The first group of Indian workers from Calcutta and Madras arrives as indentured laborers.
  • 1910 - The first know Syrian immigrant lands on the port. 
Why the history lesson since we all know all of this already?

My simple take on all the history is that even the great Banwari arrived from down the main. All of us, every single one of us who have Rock blood arrived. We all came by different routes, running from something, banished from our homeland, dragged here against our will, beaten, enslaved, promises of a better life, thieves, and vagabonds, royalty, you name it. 

As much as we all enjoy Indian Arrival Day, a public holiday commemorating the arrival of the first group of indentured laborers in 1844 I feel that we people on the Rock should be celebrating OUR arrival!
There should be a single day of commemorating the arrival of all of our ancestors, regardless. Every group that is listed above played a major role in who we are today. I fully understand the logic behind the 'Indian Arrival' but it falls short of recognizing the blood, sweat, and tears that all our forefathers gave to building this country. Not all the stories are pleasant, some downright despicable and horrific, but that is the history.
To isolate any one grouping will only ensure that the prejudices continue, the claim as to who did more, who suffered more and who should benefit more. The claims as to which group receives the greater largesse from the State for their annual celebrations should not be an issue.  
We must find a way to recognize the contribution of ALL groupings. The very public act of discrimination is the condemnation of the '1%', failing to recognize the fact that the opportunities are there for everyone. Yes, it is not easily available for all to benefit but instead of dragging down any one community we must find the ways for all to achieve.

The Rock is a very unique place where people live well together, there is a religious tolerance that very few countries can boast of. We must forever guard against favoring any one group for political or other purposes. 

I would like to see a revisiting of our public holidays and what exactly is it we are commemorating or celebrating. Who celebrates Republic Day other than a fete somewhere? See what I mean!

I do not belong to either of the two main racial groupings, do I celebrate the days of commemoration? yes, I do. Do I feel that my forefathers contributed to the building of the Rock? yes, I do. Are my forefathers considered as part of the Rock? Not sure because other than a street here or there the public perception is not there.  

Happy Indian Arrival Day!




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