President of the Republic stresses importance of knowing Mauritius’ history

At the opening of the exhibition entitled ‘The Forgotten Saints’ by Seychellois artist, Mr Emmanuel D'Offay, at Lespas Lar in La Tour Koenig, yesterday, the President of the Republic of Mauritius, Mr Dharambeer Gokhool, invited the population to question the representations and images of enslaved people produced by colonial travellers, administrators and naturalists, and to examine what these depictions revealed about those portrayed, as well as about the observers and the colonial society in which they were produced.

The exhibition is being organised by the Nelson Mandela Centre for African Culture Trust Fund in the context of the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition. ‘The Forgotten Saints’, through a compelling collection of mixed-media works inspired by archival records and historical images, seeks to restore visibility, individuality and dignity to persons whose lives were too often reduced within colonial records to numbers and administrative entries. It provides an important space for reflection on slavery, historical memory, identity, resilience and reparatory justice.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Gender Equality and Family Welfare, Mrs Marie Arianne Navarre-Marie; the Minister of Local Government, Mr Ranjiv Woochit; the Junior Minister of Social Integration, Social Security and National Solidarity, Mr Kuvalayan Kugan Parapen; Members of the Diplomatic Corps and other dignitaries attended the opening ceremony of the exhibition.

In his inaugural speech, the President pointed out that history was often shaped by those who wrote it, the amount and type of information they gathered and preserved, and the values and cultural beliefs that informed their accounts. He underlined that history was often told and written by the victors and the elites, as powerful and influential groups were able to record their views, while other voices were left unheard.

“Were slaves only victims, chained, punished and subject to sufferings or were they people, men, women children, who resisted, escaped, preserved traditions, threatened with erasures, formed communities and sought autonomy?” reflected the President. Accordingly, he added, the underlying questions of justice and reparation in History must be properly researched, preserved, narrated and understood

On this note, Mr Gokhool commended the Seychellois artist, Mr Emmanuel D'Offay, for his work which, he stated, restored individuality and dignity to the enslaved people. “The Forgotten Saints create the meeting point between historical evidence and contemporary memory, and its notion is highly significant as an ode to the dignity of those whom history has rendered anonymous,” he underscored.

Moreover, the President highlighted that at a time when conflict, uncertainty, instability and rapid change have become defining features of the international environment, the lesson of histories such as the slave trade and its abolition were not confined to the past. “They remind us of the consequences of denying human dignity, reducing people to categories and allowing systems of power to silence individual humanity, and also of resilience, resistance and the enduring human search for freedom and dignity,” he said.

For her part, the Deputy Prime Minister spoke of the importance of the common history that had shaped the country’s unique blend of multiculturalism, through the contribution of populations from various horizons who helped the nation. She dwelt too on slavery which, she underlined, was not merely a chapter in the history of Mauritius, but also a story of human suffering and pain, family separation, dignity and resilience.

The significant role of enslaved women and the need to recognise their place in history were moreover stressed by Mrs Navarre-Marie. She explained that the resilience of these women had contributed to the survival of numerous traditions and cultural practices.

Furthermore, the Deputy Prime Minister deplored the fact that the suffering of enslaved children was often overlooked. “Children were confronted with a painful reality, deprived of security, freedom and familial continuity, with no access to basic human rights,” she averred. On that score, she called for the transmission of this history to younger generations so that they could understand how Mauritian society was shaped and why human dignity was essential.

It is recalled that the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, marked on 23 August each year, was established by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in 1997. It commemorates the transatlantic slave trade which stands as one of the darkest chapters in human history as over a span of 400 years, between 25 and 30 million people were kidnapped, torn from loved ones, forcibly uprooted, and transported from Africa to the Caribbean and the Americas to endure servitude and work in agonising conditions.

21 August 2026

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Topics: Culture