The CO-OPERATIVE REPUBLIC of GUYANA
— Transforming Organizations, Revitalizing Communities and Developing Human Potential
I got to spend last week on THE most amazing surprise honeymoon trip of a lifetime. I got to visit my wife’s amazing home country of Guyana! It’s a country on the northeastern coast of South America between Venezuela and Suriname bordering Brazil in the south. My wife’s family lives and loves in shades from tanned pale (with more pronounced european features) to the most ebony of Africa and India - and every shade in between that you can think of. There are literally cousins that have most every shade and feature Guyana's unique mixture of citizens has to offer. And they are proud of their beautiful country!
Colonialism left deep tracks in the entire region that includes Suriname and French Guiana, and those tracks lead back to the Netherlands, Portugal, France, Spain, Germany even for a brief moment, and of course the British with their tea-time preference for Demerara cane sugar. The long reach of that history is still palpable, in the names of places, but also the stories of unique coalitions overcoming colonialism in the last century, the Buxton railroad stoppage' for example, and the communities that are still owned by cooperatives of their respective inhabitants up and down the East Coast.
Most of the folks I met are some unique combination of the rich and powerful mixture of the 6 peoples of Guyana: Amerindian (its Native peoples), Indian (brought as indentured servants by the British from the subcontinent), African (the descendants of slaves), Chinese, Portuguese, and European (read Dutch and British). I met a few of my new family, who literally have all six peoples' heritage in their family tree.
I got to pray with Christians and Muslims and Rastafari, saw Hindu temples and glimpses of nature that by itself should inspire religion if you ask me. I was there for the 50th anniversary of Guyana becoming a republic on February 23rd, 1970 - a day celebrated with a huge carnival-like festival and parades all over the country called Mashramani or Mash, as the locals call it. No matter the skin tone or religion, Guyanese know how to celebrate - Together!
Just a few days later there is now a sense of tension in the air - roads are blocked off around the election commission and folks just seem a little less relaxed - especially in contrast with Mash celebrations just days earlier. While Guyana has a multi-party system, the decision has been made into a sort of us vs. them of the PPP (predominantly supported by the Indo-Guyanese - about 30% of the total population of Guyana) vs. APNU-AFC (predominantly supported by Afro-Guyanese - who represent about 40% of the total population). As a result, the number of disgruntled constituents that might vote for one of the smaller parties have become an intriguing factor in the upcoming election. Most pundits agree that the election is too close to call. One seemingly likely outcome is that neither the PPP nor the APNU-AFC can secure a majority - which will potentially put one or more of the smaller parties into interesting coalition-building position[s].
According to 2012 census data, 20% of the population identify as mixed, but in my opinion that number is significantly larger. I have cousins-in-law that might be considered “African” or “Indian” - but knowing my wife’s family tree - they have at least three of the six peoples of Guayana as part of their heritage.
It is remarkable how throughout Guyana’s recent history the coalition and then tension between Afro-Guyanese and Indo-Guyanese has seemingly ebbed and flowed in the progress of the country. Hopefully, the election will be a step toward Guyana realizing its name - Co-operative Republic.
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