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THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES

ST. AUGUSTINE, TRINIDAD & TOBAGO, WEST INDIES
OFFICE OF THE CAMPUS PRINCIPAL

Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Clement Sankat, BSc (UWI), MSc (UWI), PhD (Guelph), FIAgrE, CEng, FAPETT
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Remarks by the Campus Principal

National Council of Indian Culture (NCIC) 50
th
Anniversary Celebrations (1964-2014)
International Diaspora Conference
Towards a Vision for the Indo-Caribbean Diasporic Culture

The Divali Nagar, Chaguanas
Friday 11
th
July, 2014 6.30pm


Salutations


Thank you Master of Ceremonies, Cultural Officer of the NCIC, Mr. Deoroop
Teemal
Minister of Works and Infrastructure in the Government of the Republic of
Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. the Honourable Surujrattan Rambachan
President of the NCIC, Dr. Deokinanan Sharma
Distinguished Presenters and Guests
Members of the Media
Ladies and Gentlemen

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A very pleasant good evening!

It gives me great pleasure to bring greetings to you all at this Opening
Ceremony of this International Diaspora Conference themed, Towards a
Vision for the Indo-Caribbean Diasporic Culture hosted by the National
Council of Indian Culture (NCIC). At the outset, I wish to congratulate the
NCIC on achieving the momentous milestone of its fiftieth anniversary! Your
organization began its life as the National Council for Indian Music and Drama
in San Fernando in 1964 and since that time you have continuously focused on
the goal of establishing a centre for the assertion of identity to a substantial
section of the national community. Over the last 50 years you have effectively
functioned as a centre for the performative, cultural and religious arts as well as
supporting scholarly work related to East Indian Indentureship. You have
become the main venue for the annual celebration of Divali (the festival of
lights) which is the second largest national festival after Carnival.
Congratulations to the NCIC and may you continue to seek ways to highlight
and preserve the contributions of the Indian Diaspora and contribute to the
betterment of our multi-cultural society.


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I would also like to take this opportunity to recognize and welcome all visiting
Professors and presenters, especially my own colleagues of the UWI. I am
advised that we have presenters from as far as India, the United States, Canada,
Mauritius, Suriname, Jamaica, Guyana and the Netherlands, just to name a few
a very warm welcome to each and every one of you! All of these scholars will
be presenting new work on the Indian Diaspora internationally and I fully
expect that this diversity of contributions will further enhance our knowledge,
thoughts and analysis of the Indian ancestry in Trinidad and Tobago and the
Caribbean. It is my sincere hope that the type of research, reflection and rich
discussion this conference will foster will help chart a renewed vision for the
Indo-Caribbean Diasporic Culture and Experience. I wish to assure you of the
full support of the University of the West Indies for these academic endeavours.


Distinguished guests, over the years the UWI St. Augustine Campus has played
a pioneering role in documenting the history of the East Indian Diaspora in the
Caribbean. This work must be truly celebrated, as through this consciousness of
the East Indian arrival, debate and discussion on their contributions to
Caribbean development and identity have been raised. In fact, since 1975 our
Campus has held 7 conferences related to the Indian Diaspora. Let me
recognize the pioneering work of Professor Brinsley Samaroo at this time, as he
has quietly and steadfastly led many of the efforts in this area over the years. I
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must also commend the Department of History of the UWI and all the many
scholars who have contributed to this body of knowledge.


While many of our conferences have taken on a more historical flavor, treating
with the Indian arrival into the Caribbean, it is absolutely important that we
look to the future, that through our ancestral and fraternal links, we re-engage
with the Indian Diaspora to build a sustainable platform for our own
development with a strong focus on science, technology, innovation and
entrepreneurship. This is why this conference, dedicated to shaping a vision for
Indo-Caribbean Diasporic Culture is so important. 169 years after the East
Indian arrival in the Caribbean it provides a platform whereby the link
between the East Indian Diaspora, the Caribbean and India can be nurtured and
harnessed to bring value to our respective countries. We must look to the
future!

As the leading regional tertiary education institution, the UWI is cognizant of
its role, and may I add its responsibility to advance developmental issues such
as the importance of the East Indian Diaspora to contribute to the development
of our region. I can speak similarly of the African or the Chinese Diaspora in
the Caribbean and building links with Africa and China. In this regard, as
Principal of the St. Augustine Campus, it is my goal not only to fulfill our
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mandate to serve as a centre of scholarship, research and learning in a global
world but more importantly, to extend our reach and engage our communities,
including the Diaspora with special emphasis on the historical links of the
Caribbean with India, Africa, China and Europe for example.

With respect to our conferences on East Indian arrival, I must mention that a
comprehensive body of knowledge has been created - papers, books and
journals and these can be found in the West Indiana Section of our Main
Library at the UWI St. Augustine Campus and in many other libraries around
the world. This is testimony to the rich chronicle of the East Indian presence
and research done by The University of the West Indies to have this recorded
for posterity. This information and research that has been garnered will
continue to play an important role in the future development of our people as it
will give them a better understanding and appreciation of their ancestral roots,
the challenges of indentureship and their hopes and aspirations for a better
future in the lands of the Caribbean. I invite you all to make good use of this
rich resource.

My own sense as I speak is that we are getting today a broader, deeper and
richer sense of our East Indian ancestry, with many more descendants, sons and
daughters of the diaspora, and the daunting voyage between India and the
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Caribbean being investigated and chronicled. Many more persons are
connecting with their East Indian ancestry, their roots as we say. As
communications become less challenging and as the first hand interchanges
occur, new insights and revelations will also occur. Many facets of
indentureship may in fact be rewritten as new stories unfold. The work that has
been done to date must therefore be steadily updated and intensified. There is
still much to be done as we look to a new future with India.

In closing, let me reiterate what a pleasure it is for me to formally join in
welcoming you to this International Diaspora Conference. I extend best wishes
to all conference participants. It is my hope that you will have two days of
interesting discussion, debate and engagement which will be beneficial, not
only to further enhance the knowledge and scholarship of the East Indian
presence in the Caribbean, but to move towards charting a cohesive vision for
the Indo-Caribbean Diasporic Culture in the future.

Let me also again offer my congratulations to the NCIC and its leadership for
the excellent work you have done over 50 years in supporting the culture and
scholarship of the East Indian presence in Trinidad and Tobago and the
Caribbean. The UWI has always been pleased to be your partner.

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On that note, I wish you all a productive and successful conference and I do
look forward with anticipation to hearing about the outcomes of your
discussions.

With that said, ladies and gentlemen, I thank you