With a heavy heart I have been reading articles and reports on the struggles of the indentured labourers brought into Fiji during the colonial rule.

The poems of the indenture period by the former principal of Khalsa College, Ba Jogindar Singh Kanwal are the veils that cover the different faces of the indenture system.

His poems sum up the life that many of our descendants went through at the hands of the white overseers and their sardars.

I salute our ancestors for having an unlimited capacity to endure pain and suffering while making enormous contributions to Fiji’s development. I am definitely proud of the resilient efforts put in by my ancestors in building and shaping our Fiji.

It is important that our younger generation are exposed to this piece of history written 137 years ago of the freedoms gained and lost on the journey from India to Fiji under brutal circumstances. If our young generations are able to appreciate and learn this painful history then uniting people through nation building will not be difficult. I commend The Fiji Times for capturing and documenting the atrocities, trials and tribulations of the indenture system in Fiji.

Shalveen’s article titled “Call your number” explains the fact that to the field officer the girmitya was an expandable labour resource.

He also sheds light on the social ills caused by this system.

Suicides, paucity of women, high rates of infanticides, whipping, fear and desperation marked the beginning of dawn.

The indenture system is a sad part of our history and it brings memories of the days when abuse was at its highest order.

Times have changed today and our lives have improved and we owe a lot to our ancestors who braved stormy days to ensure that we have a better Fiji.

I conclude with my favourite lines from Mr Kanwal’s poems: “Tired and half-dead we do the task, even then we are rebuked and insulted, we irrigate the field with our sweat and blood, but sitting comfortably, the overseer bosses us around.”