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By Odeen Ishmael
Guyana Journal, April 2009
A few years ago Mrs. Janet Jagan (Comrade Janet, as she was popularly known), wrote a series of articles in the Mirror entitled “Women of Substance”. In that series she examined the struggles, setbacks and successes of some famous women of this region and beyond. Looking back, I believe she easily could have been writing her own autobiography through the qualities of determination she described of those noble women.
I can recall very clearly when I first saw Comrade Janet. It was in the late 1950s when my father and I went to visit my aunt at Dundee, Mahaicony. That afternoon when we arrived, there was a large public gathering near the public road for the opening of the new health centre. At the health centre, festooned with balloons and small Union Jacks, I saw a White lady in a white dress speaking through a loud speaker to the rapt audience. My father told me the lady was Janet, the wife of Dr. Jagan of whom I, as a little boy, already knew. I had seen photos of her and knew that she was the Minister of Labor, Health and Housing, but it was the first time I was seeing her in person. That image of her in a white dress and waving her arms as she spoke remains with me to this day as an everlasting memory.
Years later, I had the opportunity to be closely associated with her from the early 1970s when I held a leadership position in the Progressive Youth Organization (PYO) and then later as a member of the Central Committee of the PPP. I found her to be an intense debater, and we had numerous discussions on issues relating to education, international affairs, social issues and ideological matters. I can easily say that she stood fast to her views but she held a healthy respect for opinions that differed from hers. However, she definitely was uncompromising to those antagonistic towards the PPP.
My closeness to her can be easily understood by the fact that her decisive action nearly thirty years ago actually saved my life. Back then, I suffered a serious spinal injury and my situation was deteriorating rapidly. I lost the mobility of my right arm and had become very ill, and medical treatment available in Guyana was providing no relief. When Comrade Janet heard of my situation, she quickly arranged for me to be sent to Moscow for emergency treatment. I was hospitalized there for nearly three months where a repair job was done and she ensured that I returned for check-ups on a number of occasions. This itself is just one example of the humane side of Comrade Janet, of which many others can equally vouch.
But above all, she was a modest and courageous woman. This was so vividly displayed when she sat by Comrade Cheddi's bedside at the Walter Reed Hospital in Washington D.C. in February-March 1997. Every day I went to the hospital and talked with her. I can attest that she stood out as a beacon of dignity, grace and courage during that trying time. She never wilted under the stress that the situation presented, and she was the one who continuously inspired us with hope that, despite the odds, her comrade-at-arms would win this battle for his life. She also showed a great concern for the members of her immediate family by urging them to "get some sleep" while she herself would sit for long hours to keep the vigil over her husband. Her determined fortitude was ever present.
On many a late evening when I dropped in at the hospital I found her alone where she sat near her husband's bedside. She never broke down under the pressure. But when Comrade Cheddi died, I saw in her dignified face a realization as if her world had collapsed into pieces beside her. It was a representation of our own feelings at that time.
Comrade Janet was well known internationally, no doubt, as many would say, because people linked her with her renowned husband. I saw this clearly demonstrated when I accompanied her to Chile in 1997 where she, as President, attended the second Summit of the Americas. Ordinary Chileans saw her and shouted out her name in greeting and numerous young university students approached her for autographs. Many of the leaders attending the forum also held animated conversations and posed for numerous photographs with her.
Even here in Venezuela on a regular basis, despite the fact that she was no longer in public office, politicians continued to enquire about her. Actually, President Chavez on many an occasion asked me to convey his greetings to her, and once reminded me that she was the first President he met when he was first inaugurated.
After she resigned the presidency in 1997, I worked very closely with her in collecting historical documents and other materials relating to the life of Comrade Cheddi, and we consulted with each other by telephone and the occasional e-mail. The Cheddi Jagan Research Centre, which was so close to her heart, surely, is now a memorial for her as well.
Without a doubt, Comrade Janet was an immense international figure – a Guyanese woman of substance who stood up to the might of British colonialism and never flinched from her duty to wage the battle for independence for Guyana. And even when independence was won, she never backed down from struggling against totalitarianism and for the return of democracy to our country. Although, physically she was of small stature, she wielded immense vitality in her determination, fortitude and selflessness. Sure, she had her share of detractors, but history will remember her more for her sterling efforts in the battle for equal rights for women, her leadership role in the political evolution of Guyana, and the initiatives she took to improve the social conditions of the Guyanese people.
Caracas, 29 March 2009
(The writer is Guyana's Ambassador to Venezuela).
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