By Dr. Kumar Mahabir & Shalima Mohammed, MBP

This programme was hosted virtually in May which is considered as Indian Arrival Month. It was in May when shiploads of some of our fore parents arrived in various lands of our birth. May marks a historical milestone for the first Girmitiyas who were indentured labourers who landed across the globe in Guyana on May 5^th1838, Jamaica on May 10^th1845, Martinique on May 6^th1853, Grenada on May 1^st1857, St. Lucia on May 6^th 1859, Fiji on May 14^th 1879, and Trinidad on May 30^th 1845 where it is recognised as a national holiday. While Indian Arrival Month commemorates the resilience and triumph of the Indo-Caribbean and wider indentured diaspora, it also calls on us to confront the complex and sometimes painful histories that followed those arrivals.

 It is in this spirit of remembrance and truth-seeking that the program presented the Wismar Massacre: A Case of Ethnic Cleansing of Indians in Guyana, a book authored by Professor Baytoram Ramharack. The publication sheds light on the anti-Indian violence that erupted in Wismar between May 25^th and 26^th 1964 during a period of intense political and ethnic conflict in Guyana, then British Guiana. Driven by political rivalry, there was a tragic loss of life, assaults on women, and the displacement of over 3,000 Indo-Guyanese. Ramharack's work courageously documents this event which remains one of the darkest episodes of ethnic violence in Guyana's history.

See Also: How Rabindranath Tagore Renounced His Knighthood After the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

 The following are excerpts from the 312^th edition of the Indo-Caribbean Cultural Centre’s (ICC) Thought Leaders’ Forum (15/06/2026). The ZOOM program was chaired by Shakira Mohommed and moderated by Shalima Mohammed, both from Trinidad. There were (5) speakers in the program. The topic was “The launch of the book titled The Wismar Massacre: A Case of Ethnic Cleansing of Indians in Guyana by Professor Baytoram Ramharack.” See the unedited recording of the program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zc5chJ9iuzc

RYHAAN SHAH is a novelist, journalist, columnist and Indian rights activist from Guyana. She said, in summary: "It is critical and necessary to confront painful historical truths in the Indo-Caribbean diaspora. By revisiting our traumatic past, we honour the true resilience of our ancestors and our contemporaries. It is fundamental to maintain an active, truth-seeking discourse about anti-Indian violence in Guyana and provide a safe, necessary space to speak openly to foster collective recovery, compassion and deep empathy."

FAIZUL RAHIM is a retired Chartered Professional Accountant from Canada. He said, in summary: "I have personal insights into the mass displacement and violence experienced by Indo-Guyanese families during the 1964 turmoil in Wismar. Growing up in the community of Mackenzie/Wismar, I witnessed the sudden, devastating collapse of social harmony. I experienced the personal loss of my very close first cousin, and the complete destruction of my close relatives’ homes and livelihoods that, thereafter, forced them into poverty and to reside as refugees in another part of Guyana."

PROF. ALIYAH KHAN is an Associate Professor of Caribbean Literature and Islamic Studies at the University of Michigan. She said, in summary: “It is essential to categorise these events specifically as ethnic cleansing to properly place them within the broader, necessary global discourse on such atrocities. By using this terminology, we define a systematic process - ranging from nonviolent political pressure to deliberate, targeted extermination - with the ultimate goal of removing a specific population. This was a structured, calculated campaign of terror, not an isolated incident; it demands rigorous academic, historical and moral scrutiny to ensure we understand the gravity of this injustice."

RAVI DEV is a former attorney, a former Member of Parliament in Guyana, writer and activist from Guyana and the United States. He said, in summary: "The long-standing political and ethnic tensions in Guyana created a fertile, dangerous ground for the 1964 tragedy. The continuum of violence has plagued our nation, moving from the historical Wismar Massacre to subsequent decades of intense political rivalry and systemic marginalisation. The pattern of destruction targeted Indo-Guyanese businesses resulting in persistent pain for those who lost loved ones in these attacks. We must confront how political agendas fuel ethnic divisions, addressing these deep historical wounds through constant, honest and courageous public dialogue."

PROF. BAYTORAM RAMHARACK is an award-winning author from Guyana. He said, in summary: "My book, The Wismar Massacre: A Case of Ethnic Cleansing of Indians in Guyana, serves as a courageous, objective documentation of one of the darkest episodes in our national history. This is a definitive account that challenges the denialism often encountered regarding these events. I am moved by the contributions of my colleagues and the resilience of survivors. My hope is that this publication serves as a permanent, factual record that gives a voice to the victims, challenges the historical narrative, and allows those who have carried the burden of this trauma to feel heard and acknowledged in their pursuit of truth."

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