The journey of indentured labour from India to Mauritius and to other destinations such as Suriname, Guyana, Reunion Island, Fiji, after the abolition of slavery in 1834 has been unknown to many. It is a journey that is often forgotten. 

The diaspora and their journey led to the formation of modern democratic nation States. Their quest for political empowerment is one of the most interesting examples of the evolution of democracy, pluralism and multi-ethnicity in these regions. 

The journey of the women of Indian diaspora carried culture and preserved identity along their journey. Women have been rarely heard in the historical documents which record the statements of the literate and thoughts of the influential. The part played by Indian women in the great 19th century diasporas which have irretrievably transformed so many former colonies of the British and French Empires, has been especially undervalued.

Indian indentured women have tended to be portrayed as dependents and spouses, reluctant to migrate, and of negligible labour value, or as lone females of dubious virtue. Such characterizations were the work of contemporaries – the European officials who authored so many of the documents we use today – but they have been echoed by many later historians.
(Mukherjee is a former Indian diplomat)

 
• labour
 
• indian women