PNCR: Emancipation Day honours the struggles and restored freedom of enslaved Africans

See below the full Emancipation Day message by the People’s National Congress Reform:

Today, we celebrate the 186th Anniversary of Emancipation Day. Today memorializes the day of deliverance of the descendants of Afro-Guyanese from 200 years of enslavement from the time the Dutch came in the 1600s to the time Africans were freed.

Today memorializes the day when enslaved Africans broke the chains of bondage and freed themselves from domination and dehumanization. Today memorializes the day when those descendants began their journey towards their full self-determination, self-realization, and liberation. Today, we celebrate these momentous and transformational events in Guyana's history.

But Emancipation Day in Guyana should be commemorated for another important milestone. It is not only the day when the foreparents of Afro-Guyanese were freed, it is also the day when the other ethnic groups were destined to migrate to Guyana. The first Indians arrived on 5th May on the very year of Emancipation in 1838.

The Chinese arrived in January 1853. The Portuguese came on the 3rd of May 1834 after the Emancipation Act was passed.

So, the coming of the Portuguese, the Indians, and the Chinese all had to do with African Emancipation. Emancipation Day 1838 is therefore the day that connects all Guyanese, as it served as the foundational force in determining what Guyana is today. And as we acknowledge this aspect of emancipation, we accord due recognition to the special place in our nation of the Indigenous People of Guyana.

We in the PNCR also see Emancipation Day not only as the moment when freedom was won, but as the moment it was restored or returned to enslaved Africans. Liberty and autonomy were already birth rights of many Africans in Africa, but were taken away from them during their enslavement.

Enslaved Africans fought to regain their stolen liberty and humanity over centuries with immeasurable endurance, fortitude, and sacrifice. In our view, therefore, Emancipation Day in 1838 must be properly and justifiably recognized as honoring the struggles for freedom of enslaved Africans and as acknowledging and restoring their lost freedom.

On this the 186th Emancipation anniversary, we call on all Guyanese to reflect on these thoughts.

Happy Emancipation Day to all.