Immigration schemes – Part 2
OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1. Describe TWO push factors and TWO pull factors that led to the migration of the Indians to the British Caribbean in the post-emancipation period.
2. Describe TWO push factors and TWO pull factors that led to the migration of the Chinese to the British Caribbean in the post-emancipation period.
3. Discuss the effects of Chinese and Indian immigration on the cultural and economic life of the British Caribbean.
THE CHINESE
The majority of Chinese immigrants who arrived in the British Caribbean did so during the period 1859 to 1886. They went primarily to British Guiana, Jamaica and Trinidad. They were mostly from the Portuguese colony of Macao and from Canton. Others came as well because of the Teiping Rebellion (18511864).
PROBLEMS WITH CHINESE IMMIGRATION
Planters complained that the Chinese were unsuitable for estate labour and many opted not to renew their indentureship contracts. Instead, they preferred to return to China or open retail shops. Another difficulty in recruiting Chinese immigrants was that transportation costs to get them to the Caribbean was more expensive than the Indian scheme. The Chinese government also insisted that a full return passage be granted after a five-year indenture contract. The planters were willing to pay this only after two five-year contracts. The Chinese government also opposed immigration because they were ill-treated in Cuba. Most Chinese avoided the British Caribbean, preferring to go to the United States or to find work nearer home in Java or the Philippines.
THE INDIANS
The first Indians arrived in 1838 on Gladstone’s Estate in British Guiana. However, the British government stopped the scheme because of evidence of illtreatment and the high death rate. In 1840, the scheme was discontinued by both the
British and Indian governments. The scheme would be reopened after investigations into Gladstone’s Experiment and promises for improvement in the scheme.
It was not difficult to find willing immigrants. Many craftsmen had lost their jobs due to competition from mechanized factories and mills of England. India was becoming overpopulated and there was not enough land to divide among the younger generation. Wages in India had fallen to 1/2d per day and there was a series of famine during the period 1857-1877 that led to an increase in food prices. Those escaping the police and the caste system were also willing to migrate. The Caribbean seemed attractive with high wages, shelter, medical care and a chance to find new occupations beside agriculture. Indians were easily recruited as India was a British colony. British ships and trading posts were already there, and the British government could easily provide British officials to supervise the scheme. Planters were satisfied with the Indians because they had a better performance record on the sugar estate than any other immigrant groups, and were more willing to renew their indentureship contracts.
PROBLEMS WITH INDIAN IMMIGRATION SCHEME
The living conditions for the Indians on the estate was described as a ‘new system of slavery’. They could not leave the estate without a pass/ticket, and they were subjected to fines or imprisonment for disobedience or absence from work.
CULTURAL EFFECTS
Indians brought their firm family structure in which all relations supported each other. The idea of extended family, which included several generations, was very strong. All males over 16 years were members of a family council. They made all decisions of the family, for example, marriage, religious ceremonies and expenditure. There was also the introduction of new religions, such as Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism.
The Chinese did not have a major impact on religion, as Buddhism was not widely practised in the British Caribbean. Many Chinese converted to Roman Catholicism and this may have influenced why there was no major impact of Buddhism. Lastly, there was the introduction of several festivals, such as Divali and Hosein.
ECONOMIC EFFECT
British Caribbean planters had turned to immigration as a tool of reviving the sugar industry. The hope was that with the steady supply of labour, planters could focus on increasing their output. Due to Indian immigration, the rice industry was developed in British Guiana and the cocoa industry in Trinidad. Immigration, however, did not have its desired impact, especially in a colony such as Jamaica. In territories such as Trinidad and British Guiana, we cannot assume that it was immigration that saved their sugar industry. For instance, they introduced new machinery and placed more lands under sugar cane cultivation. These other elements could have readily accounted as factors that saved their sugar industries. Barbados could be used as another example. Up to 1848, they had seen an increase in their output by 250 per cent. However, by the end of the 19th century, this had declined. We cannot assume that this was because Barbados was not using immigrant labour that its output declined. During the period, Barbados was plagued by problems such as soil exhaustion and inadequate mechanisation.
The overall conclusion must be that immigration cannot be posited as the sole/major cause for increased sugar production in the British Caribbean, as many other factors could have been responsible.