– Dr. Prem Misir to speak
THE month of May, while acknowledged as Arrival month in Guyana for the Portuguese and the Chinese, has long held special significance for East Indians, particularly as they were the largest contingent of labourers to arrive to these and other shores following the abolition of slavery on  1 August, 1834 by the British Parliament.
With this in mind, the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) Guyana and the Indian Commemoration Trust will be conducting their fourth annual lecture series to celebrate the 172nd anniversary of East Indians’ arrival to Guyana.
The first in the series, conducted by GOPIO President, Dr. Yesu Persaud last Friday, focused on the contributions of Indians to the development of the various countries they settled in, such as Mauritius, Malaysia, Fiji, East Africa, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname, Jamaica and a number of other Caribbean nations, during the period of indentureship in the 19th century.
Another lecture will be conducted tomorrow by Pro-Chancellor of the University of Guyana, Professor Prem Misir, and will examine the roles of East Indians in Guyana and Fiji.  This will be held at the Pegasus Hotel.
This will be followed by another discussion by Mr Tota Mangar on May 20 at Hotel Tower and will review the indentureship system and the resistance in colonial Guyana.
Mr. Petamber Persaud will wrap things up on May 28 at the National Library with a discussion on Literature by Guyanese of Indian Ancestry. All lectures commence at 17:00 hrs.