Review: The Thinker Volume 6
The Thinker (Le Penseur) by French artist Auguste Rodin (1840 – 1917) is a life-sized sculpture of a nude man seated on a rock, bent forward in deep contemplation. It is one of the acclaimed and well known pieces of French sculpture and the most famous for Rodin. It was originally completed in 1888 as part of a collection called ‘The Gates of Hell’ but was enlarged and exhibited on its own in Paris in 1906. It is highly regarded and associated with philosophy and intellectual thought.
This specimen of French art seems to have inspired the creation of a journal by the Cheddi Jagan Research Centre at Red House in Georgetown. Rodin’s work is an imposing figure, not only for its spectacle, but for its interesting background, rooted in Renaissance literature, and its association with philosophical thought. The research centre found it an appropriate name for its journal, interested as it is, in political thought and reflective of the line of intellectualism and analysis with which it wishes to be associated.
The Thinker, Vol.6, January – June 2022, has just been released. It is edited by Frank Anthony, Donald Ramotar, Clement Rohee, Hydar Ally and Indranie Chanderpal, all prominent members of the People’s Progressive Party. They hold, or have held, highly distinguished positions in government. Ramotar is a former president of the nation, while Anthony is currently Minister of Health. Rohee and Chanderpal are former ministers of government, now holding other positions, while Ally, a former permanent secretary and head of the Public Service, is a member of the PPP Central Executive Committee and Chairman of the Jagan Research Centre.
While it might not be difficult to discern a party position or an alignment in some of the articles, the journal publishes a wide range of contributions of intellectual merit, including writers with no known affiliation. Most of the selections have a professional focus, may be regarded as worthy contributions in their respective fields and could have found a place in any other reputable journal. Indeed, these include a number of solid papers of academic quality in history, social commentary or political thought. As a whole, the publication aims at general intelligent readership and has something to offer any inquiring mind, or anyone interested in Guyanese contemporary society, public affairs or recent history.
The editorial is useful in that it adequately sums up a kind of focus for Volume 6 of the journal and tells at a glance some of what is to be found in the pages. There is an interesting menu of themes and current or topical issues. It advises: “The first half of 2022 is noted for several major world events, the most significant of which is the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, which has resulted in the loss of thousands of lives, millions of displaced people not to mention the billions in infrastructural and residential destruction”.
It also lists other themes: “This year also marked the 54th Independence anniversary of Guyana; the 74th anniversary of the Enmore Martyrs and the 50th anniversary since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Guyana and the People’s Republic of China. This year also marks the 204th birth anniversary of Karl Marx, the German revolutionary and thinker.”
Several articles in this edition focus on these broad thematic areas. Marxism, communism or socialism continue to be topical issues today and Ally attempts an elucidation of the “Relevance of Marxism in Contemporary Society”, while Chanderpal revisits the struggle of the Enmore Martyrs who were shot down on June 16, 1948.. Surprisingly, this is the only article written by a woman in the volume. This matters, although there is no gender
imbalance in the actual content.
Among the contributors to The Thinker Vol. 16 are professional historians, former university men with a robust track record of research and publications and a former Indian diplomat and member of the Indian Parliament, also the author of academic publications. James Rose and Tota Mangar add significantly to Guyanese historiography with analyses of different periods in the country’s colonial history, while Shashi Tharoor revisits Indian history going back to the time of Independence in 1947.
Rose is a former vice-chancellor of the University of Guyana, a former director of culture in Guyana and a historian of considerable repute. The title of his article in this volume, “Testing the Waters” is eye catching, using that advantage to draw readers into a scrupulous analysis of “Political Mobilisation in Guyana 1935 to 1947”. The paper starts with the aftermath of industrial unrest and workers’ struggle that characterised the 1930s and 1940s across the Caribbean and their effect on the movement towards self-government in the colonies.
Rose fills a gap in the recording of recent Guyanese history because reports of the recent political history are so often partisan with interpretations according to the political sympathies of the author. This account of the elections, the candidates, and their backgrounds is dispassionate, enlightening and interesting.
Mangar is a former deputy vice-chancellor of the UG and a historian at the institution during the period of its highest academic interventions. His paper “Constitutional Developments in Colonial British Guiana: From Dutch Inherited System to Crown Colony Government” interrogates the transition of the territory from the Dutch period of three separate jurisdictions of Demerara, Berbice and Essequibo to the early institution of British Crown Colony government.
The Indian author Tharoor contributes “Nehru’s Relevance in India Today” to honour the 75th anniversary of the Independence of the Republic of India. He pays tribute to “the four men who embodied the vision of free India in 1947 – Gandhi, Nehru, Patel and Ambedkar”. He goes further into an investigation of the political passion, the humane and non-sectarian vision of the inspirational campaigner Jawahrlal Nehru who became the first prime minister of India in 1947. Tharoor had undertaken other studies of Nehru, in particular, the biography, Nehru: The Invention of India (2003).
Equal to the weight of these is the commemoration of
the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Guyana and the People’s Republic of China, which took place on June 27, 1972. This occasion is marked in the journal by the article “Guyana-China: 50 Years of Diplomatic Relations” by Ramotar, who was also general secretary of the PPP.
Ramotar draws on his own experience in government, his first-hand observation of Guyanese politics, his interest in word affairs and his research into the period of the 1960s and 1970s to produce close analysis and a critical assessment of the global and local politics of that time. He examines Guyana’s foreign policy from the 60s to 1972 and traces the development of China from the ascendancy of the Communist Party of China in 1949, drawing into his analysis the world stage, the United Nations and the pace of Guyana under the influence of the USA during the period up to 1972. The reach of Ramotar’s investigation is wide and his investigation thorough.
“The Russia/Ukraine War: What Will Its End Look Like?” is written by Rohee, who is also the president of the Guyana Peace Council and an executive member of the Central Committee of the PPP. He exhibits an understanding of the wide reach of the war whose impact extends well beyond Europe and readers are warned against taking a too narrow or hands-off view of the insurrection. Rohee is able to call upon his own exposure to world affairs since he once served as minister of Foreign Affairs.
The Thinker also benefits from an input from Attorney General Mohabir Anil Nandlall who writes on “Dr Cheddi Jagan and the PPPs Contribution to Electoral Democracy in Guyana”. There is therefore a great deal to be gained from the journal because of the inputs from writers who have performed at high levels in government and are able to bring to the publication first-hand experience and knowledge.
However, the journal stands on its own as an independent contribution to knowledge and explores a significant variety of interests and points of view. Its contributors also include those who have never been in politics or government and can enrich the publication with critical thought and professional advantage.
It is in circulation, on sale, and can be recommended as a volume well worth reading, with something to offer a variety of readers, as it highlights a number of important and topical issues and commemorations.