Tears in Paradise - Unveiled - Suffering and Struggles of Indians in Fiji 1879 - 2004

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Full details for this title

ISBN-13	9780473114565
ISBN-10	0473114569
Stock	Available
Status	Showing available at publisher; usually ships 7-15 working days
Publisher	GLADE PUBLISHERS
Imprint	Glade Publishers
Publication Date	1 July 2006
Publication Country	New Zealand
Format	Trade Paperback/Paperback
Edition	3rd edition revised 2010th
Author(s)	By Prasad, Rajendra
Category	History Australasian & Pacific history Fiji

Description of this Book

Tears in Paradise, extensively researched and eloquently written, is the history of our forefathers who were brought under the infamous indentured labour system to Fiji by the British Colonial authorities from 1879 to 1916. The saga of these young, mostly illiterate, simple rural folks, lured by false promises of an ever-elusive 'Paradise', needs to be read and remembered. The author has done a remarkable task of compiling the story of this Indian Diaspora, people defenceless under an alien and systematically inhumane system, yet preserving their culture while creating the wealth and beauty of the land they made their home.

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Author's Bio

Rajendra Prasad Rajendra Prasad is a third generation Indo-Fijian - a descendant of Indian indentured labourers, who were recruited by the British to work in the sugarcane plantations in Fiji, during the indenture period from 1879-1919. He was the Town Clerk of Ba (1972-1987) and in 1974, while on a course to study local government management in Delhi, India, he located his roots in the village of Birpur Khairania, Bahraich, UP, India. The pilgrimage to his roots was a heart-wrenching event in his life that left him emotionally devastated. Unable to relate his journey verbally to his family, without breaking down, he scripted it and it became the seed of desire to write a book. However, it called for an intensive research, noting that the people about whom it was being written had passed away. Also, very little information about that period was available from written texts that truly depicted the depth of pain and suffering of the victims. In view of this, it took seven years (1997-2004) for the author to accomplish his mission. During this period, the author was deeply distressed and traumatized by the depth of violence suffered by the Indian indentured labourers (Girmitiyas, as they called themselves) in the sugarcane fields of Fiji. The brutal Overseers of the CSR Company, to exact productivity, extensively used physical violence and overtasking. The nature of violence meted to the innocent, ignorant and helpless Girmitiyas that included men, women and children, left him in shock. He was exasperated, as truth of what happened during Girmit in Fiji became clearer to him. Everyone said that Girmit in Fiji was bad but few knew how evil and cruel it was. It became a source of inspiration for Prasad to reveal the truth to the world. Initial journey to write on the gruesome indenture period was extended, following the coup of 19 May 2000, to capture the unfolding drama that contributed to a rapid of exodus of Indo-Fijians from Fiji. Hurt at the injustices suffered by the Indo-Fijian community since the Girmit era, Prasad decided to investigate, analyze and reveal the history of his community as viewed by them. Tears in Paradise became the medium for him to echo the cries of a community that bore its pain in silence.

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