Walter Rodney’s name must be restored to the National Archives

Dear Editor,

The APNU+AFC regime has had the name of Walter Rodney expunged from our National Archives. This is a political decision and could not have been made without  direction from the very top.

This is an act of vindictiveness on the part of this PNC-led regime.  It is a clear reflection that the regime wants to wipe Rodney’s name from our history.

Rodney was brutally assassinated in 1980 because of his fight to restore democracy to Guyana. He was opposed to the PNC dictatorship and made an important contribution in the struggle against racism in Guyana.

His opposition to the PNC dictatorship and his advocacy for freedom and equality were the reason he was assassinated by the PNC regime.

Professionally, he was without doubt the most outstanding historian in the Caribbean and one of the best internationally. His contribution to historical studies transcends the borders of the region. Indeed, his works in Africa have become classics.

Many of his colleagues who associated with him in his lifetime have abandoned the cause he fought for. They are now ensconced in the APNU/AFC regime and their silence is deafening. The words of Martin Carter that “the mouth is muzzled by the food it eats to live” are now reverberating.

However, it is time for all peace loving and democratically minded Guyanese to express their opposition to this latest outrage and demand the restoration of Walter Rodney’s name on the official name of our National Archives.

Yours faithfully,

Donald Ramotar

Former President