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Diaspora and Ethnic Contestation in Guyana

The Palgrave Handbook of Ethnicity

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Abstract

Guyana, an ethnically bipolar state has suffered immense developmental damage as a consequence of competitive partisan elections based on communal mobilization. After colonial control was relinquished, the country fell into two and half decades of corrupt authoritarian ethnocratic rule. In 1992, free and fair elections were restored, but in succeeding general elections, the pattern of ethnic preference persisted. The discovery of immense petroleum resources in 2016 is about to confer unprecedented wealth on this small country of about 800,000 people. The problem now consists in the challenge to overcome the bipolar ethnic antagonism between Indians and Africans even as the new wealth itself threatens to unleash its own form of curse.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of the West Indies Trinidad, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

    Ralph Premdas

  2. Department of Political Science, University of the West Indies Trinidad, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

    Bishnu Ragoonat

Authors
  1. Ralph Premdas
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  2. Bishnu Ragoonat
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ralph Premdas .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Socio & Anthro, Rm 309, Univ of Canterbury Dept of Socio & Anthro, Rm 309, Christchurch, New Zealand

    Steven Ratuva

Section Editor information

  1. Pacific Studies|School of Māori Studies and Pacific Studies, Te Wānanga o Waipapa, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Melani Anae

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© 2019 The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Premdas, R., Ragoonat, B. (2019). Diaspora and Ethnic Contestation in Guyana. In: Ratuva, S. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Ethnicity. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_45-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_45-1

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-13-0242-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-13-0242-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Political Science and International StudiesReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Diaspora and Ethnic Contestation in Guyana
    Published:
    28 November 2019

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_45-2

  2. Original

    Diaspora and Ethnic Contestation in Guyana
    Published:
    22 April 2019

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_45-1

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