Category: Features

Award-winning, thought provoking books to include on your 2018 booklist By Petamber Persaud We, lovers of literature, can say goodbye to 2017 – the year marking the centennial end to indentureship – with satisfaction, knowing that some of the books published in this year will follow us into 2018 while others will stay with us during 2018 and decades beyond. From its inception, the book was treated with respect, even with awe, for man valued the book very highly with regards to its potential as a tool of education and…

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By Dr. Rosh Khan As you turn the chapter on 2017 and leap into 2018, you’re probably filled with breath-taking excitement and purpose! New resolutions. Bigger goals. Higher targets. It’s easy (and fun) to get caught up in the thrill of it all. We have a fresh chance for greater success in 2018. But can I ask that we be brutally honest for a moment? I have zero intentions of bursting the balloon of hope for all that 2018 will do for you, but it’s time to queue a healthy…

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Sunday Times Magazine ‘Persons of the Year’ The Wales Estate Sugar Workers By Shemuel Fanfair The end of 2017 saw an uncertain future for thousands of men and women across the sugar belt with the retrenchment of their employment, but as they begin to contemplate what lies ahead, a suitable marker can be taken from the challenges that have befallen the workers formerly attached to the Wales Sugar Estate. December 31, 2016 was the official date for the cessation of operations at the century old entity. While the circumstances that…

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Give Another Chance Foundation (GACF) is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation registered in Guyana, with more than eight years of giving back to the society. Its staff spans a range of disciplines from the social sciences, public policy, technology, and the creative arts. This interdisciplinary team collaborates to bring cross-disciplinary insights to a future that combine complex challenges and require unconventional perspectives. The Board of Directors is committed to the financial, operational, and intellectual vitality of the organisation. From the earliest days, the Board has collaborated with management to evolve the…

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In Caribbean culture, to give a whole home-baked black cake as a gift is a sign of great affection and intimacy. But have you ever thought about the origin of black cake? According to Guyanese historian Sushima Naraine, who resides in Canada, black cake is the Caribbean version of the British dessert plum pudding, but with “some slight Caribbean-esque changes(hence the rum)”. Food and Cooking in Victorian England: A History stated: “Banned by the Puritans in the 1660s for its rich ingredients, the [plum] pudding and its customs came back…

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By Peter Halder The observation and celebration of Christmas in Guyana dates back to the 17th century. It began, circa 1627, among the Dutch immigrants who had established permanent settlements in Essequibo. The celebration later spread to Berbice in 1627 and then Demerara in 1746. The counties of Essequibo, Demerara and Berbice, which subsequently became British as a result of European wars, were merged in 1831 and became British Guiana. In the new British colony, the largest ethnic population were African slaves captured by British and Dutch slave ships and…

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Have you ever thought about how sorrel drink became part of our culture, especially at Christmas? Well, it is believed that sorrel may have come from Africa to the Caribbean since the 1700s. The sorrel plant is an annual shrub, normally planted in August and reaching maturity in December. After flowering, the sorrel petals fall of leaving the sepals (fruit) and these become enlarged and turn crimson as they mature. A beverage made from the fruit of the sorrel plant is made by steeping the sepal in hot water with…

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In the late 19th century, the decision was made for the construction of a market that would stand the test of time in order to accommodate the increasing number of vendors in Georgetown; that market has survived to this very day. While little official information appears available about the history of Bourda Market, previous unofficial research relates that Bourda market was originally built in 1880, and was soon reconstructed in 1902 to accommodate a growing number of vendors and consumers. The market got its name from the famous colonial, Joseph…

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The GBTI Calendar Art Competition, which was resuscitated last year, dates back 15 years ago following the aftermath of 9/11 in the US, which sent shockwaves throughout the world. What could be described as a global catastrophe, touched the hearts of many and no doubt, the hearts of bankers at GBTI. Consequently, this saw the launch of the very first Calendar Competition in 2001 which focused on the topic, “If you had a chance to make a difference in this world today, what would you do?” This year, the competition…

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‘Junta…’ is more than a novel merely about a bloodless coup, executed by the military in a seemingly flawless plan headed by General Septimus Ignatius Marks, wrenching power from the legitimately elected government, as it goes beyond the coup into the machinations of the junta to hold onto to power, at whatever cost, pitting its machinery of manufactured fear and military decisiveness backed by a gang of mercenaries/thugs, headed by The Reverend – a merciless criminal, carrying out the dictates – doing the dirty work – of the army acting…

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