Forced, Fooled or Free Will: Exploring Narratives and Counter-Narratives of Indenture in Fiji

This paper explores the narratives and counter-narratives of indenture experience in Fiji in the works of Totaram Sanadhya, John Wear Burton, Kenneth Gillion, Brij Lal and Satish Rai. The recruitment of Indian indentured labourers in Fiji began in 1879, much later than in other colonies. Yet the experiences of the labourers in Fiji were not markedly different. The indenture system, or girmit, was considered better than the slave trade, while others regarded it as only a change in name, with regulations to safeguard the colonial interest. The above authors have shown that, from the onset, the recruitment process, the passage from India to Fiji, life on the plantations and the coolie lines, and life after indenture were a duality: either emancipation or victimisation of Indian labourers. This paper highlights the dual nature of the indenture experience in Fiji.