Tag Archives: Ray Chickrie

Eid Reflection: Muslim marginalization in Guyana – Commentary

07/28/2014 – 11:35 pm
Commentary: Eid Reflection: Muslim marginalization in Guyana
By Shabnam Alli and Ray Chickrie
Published on July 28, 2014 – Caribbean News Now

ray-chickrie.jpg
Born in Guyana, Raymond Chickrie was a teacher in the NYC public school system and is currently teaching in the Middle Eas

Islam reached the shores of Guyana during slavery, when Muslim slaves from West Africa were shipped to work on the plantations and, after the abolition of slavery, Islam was reintroduced in Guyana with the arrival of indentured immigrants from British India, when more than 90 Muslims of the immigrants on board the Whitby and Hesperus were of the Islamic faith arrived in Guyana.

Despite the many obstacles, these great ancestors forever changed Guyana’s landscape. They are the reason why Islam survives in Guyana today. Much later in the 1940s, that generation of Muslims and led by Muslim leaders of Guyana, including the head of the British Guiana Sadr Anjuman, Rahman Baksh Gajraj and many others ensured the further institutionalization of Islam at all levels in the country.

Muslim marginalization in the political dynamics of Guyana needs to be reviewed briefly by accessing Caribbean East Indian Diaspora studies. A review of literature on the East Indian Diaspora written by non-Muslims portrayed East Indians as a homogeneous group. The symbols of one dominant religious group are very visible, while the Muslim presence in Guyana remains largely invisible.  Continue reading →
By guyaneseonline | Posted in Government, Guyana, Politics, Religion | Also tagged , , , , , | Comments (2)

Georgetown may very well be CARICOM’s most unattractive capital – letter

09/08/2012 – 1:04 am

Georgetown may very well be CARICOM’s most unattractive capital

SEPTEMBER 7, 2012 |  | Letter to the Editor by  Ray Chickrie

DEAR EDITOR,
The trash and filth-ridden drain around Guyana’s Parliament epitomizes the state of Georgetown and one can safely say the state of Guyana —a nation plagued by corruption at all levels, with a bureaucracy that makes the nation crawl, and a political system that totally centralizes power in a nation that still awaits the implementation of local elections.

I never expected to see such filth around parliament. This should be the centerpiece of the city. Imagine what impression foreigners have of Guyana seeing this and yet we hear much rhetoric about tourism.
Those who talk about Guyana’s tourism potential are in dreamland.  They need to go just across the border, to Paramaribo, and look at that ornate capital where colonial buildings and homes are preserved in a city that is clean and attractive, and is undergoing major rehabilitation of the waterfront and surrounding areas.                Continue reading →

By guyaneseonline | Posted in Architecture, Governance, Government, Guyana, Local Government, Politics, Tourism / Entertainment | Also tagged , | Comments (6)

Keep an eye on Suriname – letter

08/19/2011 – 3:50 am

Keep an eye on Suriname – letter

AUGUST 18, 2011 | BY  |  LETTER from Ray Chickrie

Dear Editor,

Former military leader, and now democratically elected President of Suriname, Desi Bouterse, is keen to put a positive international spotlight on his country.  That is the case so far.

Just a week ago, Fitch upgraded the sovereign foreign currency credit rating for Suriname one notch to B-plus, citing a stronger credit position and improvements in its balance of payments.

The rating outlook was revised to stable from positive. Suriname is moving ahead in its quest to develop its economy without the help of Holland, its former colonial master.    Continue reading →

By guyaneseonline | Posted in Business, International News, Tourism / Entertainment | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)
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