Bechu: "Bound Coolie" Radical in British Guiana, 1894-1901

When I was doing research on Asian indentured labor in Suriname, I was always envious of colleagues who focused on British Guiana. They had access to such wonderful sources as the papers of the Des Voeux Commission which in 1870-71 investigated the conditions of the Asian immigrants, or the West India Royal Commission (the Norman Commission) that did the same some twenty-five years later. Suriname never held official inquiries that included testimonies by the Asians themselves. Clem Seecharan no…