–IAC

THE Indian Action Committee (IAC) wishes to convey greetings to all Guyanese citizens on the occasion of the Independence of Guyana from British colonial rule on May 26, 1966, 55 years ago.
The IAC calls upon all Guyanese citizens to remember and recognise all those persons who contributed to the ending of British colonial rule in Guyana including former Presidents Cheddi Jagan, Forbes Burnham and Janet Jagan, and stalwarts of the struggle for national liberation like Hubert Nathaniel Critchlow, Jocelyn Hubbard, Joseph Pollydore, Ramkarran, Ashton Chase SC, Jainarine Singh, E.M.G. Wilson, Cedric Vernon Nunes, Martin Carter, Rory Westmaas, Eusi Kwayana, Brindley Benn, Moses Bhagwan and Reepu Daman Persaud.
The IAC, in recognition of the challenging history of Guyana during the past 55 years dominated by authoritarian rule (1968-1992) and especially the period from 1962 to 1964 when there was a state of undeclared civil war which resulted in:
1. Over 200 persons losing their lives.
2. Over 900 persons suffering physical injuries.
3. About 2700 terrorised families being displaced from their homes as villages were engulfed in orgies of ethnic cleansing.
4. Over 1700 cases of arson in which over 300 business places and houses were completely destroyed by fire during wanton acts of terror.
5. Losses of over US$ 20 million in the local economy as opposed to an investment of US$2.2 million used to destabilize pre- Independence British Guiana according to U.S. declassified documents.
6. The destruction of the Indo-Guyanese community at the adjoining villages of Wismar and Christianburg, where all 87 business premises and 215 homes owned and occupied by Indo-Guyanese were deliberately destroyed by fire between 24th and 25th May 1964 followed by the evacuation of almost 3,400 Indo- Guyanese persons under the protection of British military forces on 26th May 1964, exactly two years before Independence.

The IAC is cognisant of the recent upsurge in crime within the past eight months, mainly in rural areas, and characterised by many brutal robberies on Indo-Guyanese and Chinese business persons who have been deprived of hundreds of millions of dollars in cash, jewellery, electronic devices and vehicles by criminals.
The IAC reiterates its call for the inclusion of all Guyanese in the present Government’s drive towards economic development and prosperity.
The IAC, in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, is calling upon all Guyanese to respect the COVID-19 safety protocols at all times and to take advantage of free vaccines being offered by the Government of Guyana.
The IAC joins its voice with those of the political parties, religious bodies, trade unions and other civil society groups in a nationwide call for peace and unity.
The IAC is of the opinion that as many persons as possible must be vaccinated in order to ensure herd immunity by the end of 2021.
The IAC wishes all Guyanese citizens a Happy 55th Independence Day.