Janey Tetary
British-Indian indentured servant and resistance fighter From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Janey Tetary (c. 1856–26 September 1884) was a British-Indian indentured servant, rebellion leader and resistance fighter.[1]
Life
Tetary was born in 1856 in Patna and was raised as a Muslim. She was divorced at a young age and was known to defend women who had been badly treated by their husband.[2]
On 11 September 1880, Tetary and her 10-year-old son Boodhoo signed contracts in India to labour overseas. They were indentured to Plantation Zorg en Joop near the Commewijne River in Suriname, which was under Dutch control as a plantation colony.[3]
In 1884, Tetary lead the collective labour resistance of a group of "Hindustani" indentured servants against exploitation, after planters filed a petition to the colonial administration to change penal ordinances. They also protested about the low wages and difficult tasks they were given on the sugar plantation.[4] When the military and police were called in to put down their rebellion, she mobilised women to fight armed with stones and bottles they had collected.[4]
She was murdered by policemen, allegedly on the advice of the colonial official Barnet Lyon,[5] dying from a shot to the back of her head at close range on 26 September 1884.[4] Six other indentured labourers were also killed.
Legacy
In 2013, the documentary film Tetary Over strijd, moed en opoffering (Tetary, about courage, battle and sacrifice) was broadcast on Dutch television.[6]
In 2016, Tetary's life story was featured in The Uprising music documentary which told the story of resistance against racism in the Netherlands, UK and France from a decolonial perspective.[7]
In September 2017, a statue of Tetary was placed in Paramaribo, Suriname near the President's Palace, replacing a statue of Barnet Lyon.[8] The statue was paid for through the Tetary Must Rise crowdfunding campaign lead by the artist and activist Pravini Baboeram.[9]
In August 2019, a street in the Netherlands was named in her honour.[10]
References
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