Cheddi and Janet Jagan
Documents released by National Archives show prime minister Winston Churchill feared the colony would turn communist
Associated Press – August 2011 | The Guardian UK [This article is more than 7-Years Old]
Secret documents declassified by MI5 reveal in detail how in 1953 the UK under prime minister Winston Churchill overthrew the elected government of British Guiana – now Guyana – because he feared its left-wing leader and his American wife would lead the British colony into the arms of the Soviet Union.
The documents reveal how British spies kept up intense scrutiny on Cheddi Jagan and his wife Janet, who together founded the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) to campaign for workers’ rights and independence from British rule for the sugar-producing colony in northern South America. Continue reading
Reflections of Cheddi Jagan (1918-1997) – By Ralph Ramkarran
REFLECTIONS ON CHEDDI JAGAN (1918-1997)
Cheddi and Janet Jagan
Cheddi Jagan returned from studies in the United States to a British Guiana in 1943 that was a cauldron of poverty. The report of the Moyne Commission, which investigated poverty in the region in the 1930s concluded that “for the laboring population, mere subsistence was increasingly problematic.” The report was so explosive that it was not published until 1945. It weighed heavily in subsequent developments.
In 1946 Cheddi Jagan, Janet Jagan, Jocelyn Hubbard and Ashton Chase, the latter two of whom were active trade unionists, formed the Political Affairs Committee (PAC). In 1947 Cheddi Jagan fought and won a seat in the Legislative Council. Continue reading →
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