Fiji - Lal

Question 1

When was it written? Whats it called?

Answer 1

1985

Kuntis cry

Question 2

Whats Kuntis cry about?

Answer 2

Indian women, who writes letter to colonial administrator mapping out problems of Indians womens sexual exploitation by European men.
- Were investigations by political dn medical officers.

• Colonial records say their was a debate about how to receive the reports.
• Some wanted removal of medical reports (which testified that Kunti was correct, that womens virtues were being compromised)
• Other colonial administrators denied it all - make women accountable for their own aggressive sexuality.

Question 3

What does Lal do thats different from Kelly?

Quote about women in the indenture system:

Answer 3

Lal goes through the list of social problems on the coolielines in detail.

WE can see in quote how women such as Kunti were ‘convenient scapegoats for all the ills of the indenture system’ (p199).

• Goes into detail about issues of suicide, murder, prositution and infant morality

Question 4

Suicide… what did they blame this one?

Why did they commit suicide?

Answer 4

• Immigration officials pinned suicide on ‘sexual jealousy’ arising out of the disproportion of the sexes on the plantation (40 women to every 100 men).

It is the brutality that women were faced with that they felt their heavy hand to commit suicide. The relentless space of plantation work, from dawn to dusk, all year around was too oppressive to cope with, with violence on top of this, they took their own lives.

• Poor sanitation. Illnesses. high infant mortalityy.
• Blamed for ‘carelessness, indifference and ignorace’
• But Lal shows demands and pressure to work and lack of time

Question 5

Livelihoods…

Answer 5

he looks at how women and men make a living out of the harsh conditions on the plantations, bring up children, sustaining marriages, protecting their health, securing enough food etc.

Question 6

nature of “work” on plantations;

2 quotes

Answer 6

1) ‘a dehumanising experience’ (p208)

• relentless and demanding, with absence of any respite,
• Indians even referred to it as ‘narak’ which means hell.
• Over tasked, non completion meant no pay at all.

Indentured labourers did not arrive to Fiji in a downtrend state, but suffered hardship precisely thought the indenture system of work:

2) ‘ Women.. generally suffered greater hardships than men. They shouldered the dual burden of plantation work. the double standards of morality, and carried the blame for many of the ills of indenture.’ (p211)