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I attend my first GOPIO (Global Organization of People of Indian Origin) conference last week at St. John’s University. The theme was HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERIENCE PERSPECTIVE AND EXPERIENCE: People of Indian Origin in the Caribbean, Americas, Asia, Africa, and Europe. The conference was a nightmare.

 First, the attendance was much less than I imagined, especially for young Indians. I counted somewhere around twenty-five. I believed the youth leaders from the Guyana group at St. John’s University disappeared after a while. As expected, the usual crowd of Guyanese Indian community “leaders” was there; seeing them greet each other so readily, I wondered what implications exist in such a picture, especially for my generation. At one point a young colleague said that it seems like one big boy’s club.

Interestingly, I met a young woman who, apparently, had been promised some assistance by GOPIO for an art-film project and—well, as one could expect, did not materialized. She was seen appealing/befriending one community “leader” to another—only to fail. What exactly are we young Indians to do to get assistance from our community, to do Indian-oriented projects is beyond me? And what should the young Indian do to be able to speak at GOPIO?

This GOPIO conference was about discrimination against Indians but I felt that GOPIO discriminated against Indians from the West Indies. I do not understand why our presenters were made to speak at the very last session, when most of the US dignitaries (e.g., US Congressman Gregory Meeks) had already left.

 Who are we telling our horror stories to if only to a selected small group—namely, ourselves? To add more insult, the time for each speaker was reduced—with Ravi Dev being the exception. How, for example, do we translate the murder, rape, fire, and mayhem against Guyanese Indians since 2001 general elections into five minutes of speech by Ms. Ryhaan Shah, the president of Guyana Indian Heritage Association (GIHA)? Dev himself criticized GOPIO by suggesting that we who had endured to be there in the final session ought to be given “medals.”

Naturally, this annoyed Dr. Thomas Abrams, the current chairman of GOPIO. In his closing remarks, he lamented facts like Mr. Ashook Ramsarran, the general secretary, being Guyanese. But this does not explain why he visited GOPIO’s small booth where books etc. were being displayed, spent fifteen minutes conversing with members of ASHA, a charity group doing work for India, and had nothing to say to me at my section, which dealt with the criminal violence against Indians in Guyana. And we crossed eyes numerous times. He promised ASHA some help, while another high-level Indian (from India) also did the same. I say this so our Guyanese and Trinidadian community “leaders” in Richmond Hill can note, especially in light of the story of the young woman

I mentioned earlier. Ravi Dev is wrong. Don’t give us medals; give one to GOPIO for sending us invitations and for its meeting with President Bharrat Jagdeo earlier this month. What exactly transpired there is another issue. But one wonders if it pertains to a GOPIO human rights chapter in the West Indies—and who will head it; a PPP person? One may argue that GOPIO was forewarned not to accommodate Ms. Ryhaan Shah in any manner. After all, GIHA human rights campaigns (e.g., the publication of its important Crime Report) have caused enormous problems for the PPP.

Dr. Prem Misir (PPP minister) seemed very uncomfortable sitting beside Ms. Shah (he complained about not being told he’s part of a “panel”), and Mr. Kawal Totaram, a prominent lawyer-close friend of President Jagdeo (who, strangely, chaired the final session), made an immature passing remark at the end of Shah’s presentation, only to prompt an outburst from some in attendance who refuse to accept PPP propaganda. Dr. Misir, in true spirit of PPP denial, spoke essentially about Burnham and violations by the PNC in the sixties, ignoring present-day tragedies—such as the fifteen well-armed criminals operating out of Buxton who had just terrorized a family in Lusignan, East Coast, on the night before this conference.

Given what has been happening and continues to happen to Indians in Guyana, it seems appropriate to be speaking about the human rights of Caribbean Indians—even if we’re pretending. But we have to do much more than talk (and write)—we have to become more involved. Especially if one is young because this is our time. There is no other way…until we do this, we will have to go without those medals.