THE best tribute that stakeholders of Guyana’s sugar industry can pay the Enmore Martyrs is their collective effort towards restoring the industry to profitability.

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Basil Williams delivered the charge on Sunday at the site of the Enmore Martyrs Monument at Plantation Enmore for Enmore Martyrs Day.

Attending were Minister of Social Protection, Amna Ally; Minster of Foreign Affairs, Dr Karen Cummings; representatives of trade union bodies in Guyana and other specially invited guests.

Yesterday marked 71 years since the five Enmore Martyrs – Rambarran, Lall called Pooran, Lallabagie Kissoon, Surujballi called Dookie and Harry – lost their lives fighting for their rights and the rights of others on June 16, 1948.

Delivering the feature address, Minister Williams stated that the cause of the five sugar workers was “just” and was fuelled by the simple aim of changing the negatives of the sugar industry.

On April 22, 1948, cane-cutters, backed by the Guyana Industrial Workers Union (GIWU), went on strike demanding abolition of the existing “cut and load” system in the fields.

This reaping system, introduced in 1945, forced cane-cutters to load the sugar punts with the cane they cut as opposed to the “cut and drop” system, whereby cane-cutters would cut the cane and workers would load the cut cane into the punts for shipment to the factory.

The “cut and load” system was not popular among cane-cutters and from time to time they had gone on strike to demand that it be changed.

Their efforts, Williams told the attendees, were not isolated but were a part of a greater rising up of the working class in Guyana and the Caribbean, who had discovered strike action as a “potent weapon.”

He said that it eventually led to more favourable working conditions for Guyanese, the establishment of a sugar welfare scheme, better housing and a decisive shift in the political momentum.

“Mere death, however, does not make one a martyr. Martyrdom requires a just and noble cause done not just for oneself, but for others. The five sugar workers whose martyrdom we commemorate today did not seek death, glory, power or fame. They pursued the simple goal of struggling for betterment for themselves and for others,” Williams said.

He also reminded the audience that in paying homage to the Enmore Martyrs, citizens also acknowledge the contributions of the GIWU which was the mastermind behind the strike.

“Enmore 1948 changed the sugar industry and it changed our nation. Its impact on the nationalistic struggle is without dispute. Workers’ gains in subsequent years would not have been possible without the sacrifice of the Enmore Martyrs,” he said.

Looking to sugar in 2019, the attorney general highlighted that the industry once again finds itself in another challenge, but this time it is to restructure the industry to become viable once again.

He pointed out that between 2009 to 2014, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) racked up more than $50B in losses, over $82B in debt and its cost of production far outweighs its profits in export markets.

However, he stated: “The sugar industry is not on its death bed; it is in the recovery room and it is being nursed back to health through the reforms and reorganisation which commenced after May 2015. President Granger has assured workers that the sugar industry is not being closed. It [is] being right-sized, restructured and reformed in order to make it sustainable and profitable.”

With this in mind, he reminded citizens that no achievement in human history has ever been made possible without sacrifice.

He further called on all the industry’s stakeholders to work towards improvement of the sugar industry in Guyana, as this would be the best tribute to pay to the men who gave their lives also for improvement.

At the ceremony, comments came too from Organising Officer at the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU), Poorandatt Narine, who highlighted that apart from poor wages, the workers were faced with potable water issues, non-existent transportation facilities, poor sanitary conditions and vector-borne diseases.

He noted that following the strike action which had spread to several plantations, five sugar workers lost their lives and 14 others were seriously injured.

Narine detailed that Rambarran sustained two bullet wounds in his legs; Lall called Pooran was shot in his leg and sustained a gaping three-inch wound above his pelvis; Lallabagie Kissoon was shot in the back; Surujballi called Dookie was also shot in the back and Harry was shot in the spine.

Yet, he noted that Enmore Martyrs did not die in vain.

“Their contribution to the overall advancement of the working class in Guyana is immeasurable,” he said, adding that it had a lasting effect on numerous persons, including leading personalities such as late President Cheddi Jagan.
Speaking too, Executive Member of the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC), Norris Witter told the audience that it is important for Guyanese to know and remember their history to be better guided into the future.

He also highlighted the recent RUSAL issue, whereby some 91 workers were previously laid off, is one of the many modern-day struggles of the working class which labour unions must work to address.

During the ceremony, the attendees acknowledged one minute of silence in honour of the lives of the five Enmore Martyrs.

Floral wreaths were laid at the base of the monument by Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams; representatives of the five Enmore Martyrs; representatives of trade union bodies in Guyana and the Critchlow Labour College.

The event also saw a poem from Ann’s Grove Secondary while musical renditions came from the Regional Choir of Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), the Buxton Steel Orchestra and the Guyana Police Force (GPF) Band, MS.