Preserving institutional memory of our unsung heroes should do justice to their genuine contributions

Dear Editor,

I join hands with Lal Balkaran (`Urgent need for biographies of our hidden heroes’- SN 9/9/18) in lamenting the fact that we sorely lack a repertoire of biographical tales of the great luminaries and the best and brightest of Guyana who have contributed towards our historical development as a people. Our lack thereof, deprives a younger reading generation of a historical knowledge to cherish. No one can deny the fact that Guyanese have excelled tremendously at the domestic level and at the global stage, and continue to do so. We read every day about how citizens around the world with links to Guyana continue to impress us with their accomplishments and contributions. It’s the ingenuity of our intellectual spirit that is at stake when history is neglected. Every new generation builds upon that acquired intellectual tradition when history is preserved and made available to them.

Preserving the institutional memory of our unsung heroes should do justice to their genuine contributions, while seeking to do so with historical accuracy, as best as humanly possible. Historians view history as a giant incomplete epistemological puzzle, the parts of which can be pieced together so as to engender debate and to contribute to our greater knowledge and understanding of our sacred history across time and space. Balkaran might be happy to learn about a few more biographies being contemplated. Historian Clem Seecharan has already made it known that his current research includes a comprehensive political narrative of Cheddi Jagan (quite different from Jagan’s own biographical struggle against the West). At the risk of self-promotion, I am completing research on Jung Bahadur Singh (labour leader, parliamentarian, immigrant ship doctor) to be released next year. A study on his wife, Alice Bhagwandai Singh, responsible for preserving the artistic creativity of Indians through the British Guiana Dramatic Society is also forthcoming.

I would caution Balkaran not to be too hasty though. From experience, it is never quite as simple a task of “all it takes is someone with an open and objective mind” to complete these narratives of our unsung heroes. Mere biographies and profiles, as opposed to serious academic research, do not necessarily add substantially to the academic puzzle, nor would they do justice to the long list of luminaries he mentions. It is no secret that quality research is meticulous, time-consuming, laborious and takes precious time away from family responsibilities. Rigorous research requires patience, which is a virtue, which can lead the interested readers to experience epiphanies of sorts.

My recent visit to the Rodney National Archives, the Public Library, the UG Library, as well as the Parliamentary Library, despite their shortcomings, corroborates the fact that hidden in Guyana are a wealth of primary source research materials, which cannot be found elsewhere. It’s an historical bonanza for the historian and the eager researcher. My one disappointment is the fact that I am left with a deep sense that the gamechangers and the powerful in society do not genuinely appreciate the importance of preserving and documenting the cherished history of our citizens, past and present. I share one example. President Granger, the nation’s “Chief Historian” should imagine this situation: A visit to the Rodney National Archives, requires one to wear a face mask, donning white gloves, turning pages of immigration records or bounded age-old national newspapers only to discover that pages are either missing or parts were deliberately cut out with a sharp instrument. In some cases, turning the pages caused the documents to be torn apart quite easily; in others (if it’s not listed as “missing”), a touch of the aged document results in its disintegration in front of one’s very eyes. Overly dramatic? Perhaps. But one is left to ponder - what happened to the planned digitalized project that has been mentioned so often in the past by the authorities. If our history is not preserved with care, it will be forever lost.

Yours faithfully, Baytoram Ramharack