Relevance: prelims/mains: G.S paper I: History
- January 8 was the death anniversary of Manilal Doctor, the colonial-era barrister who fought for the rights of Indian-origin people in Mauritius and Fiji.
- He was an associate of Mahatma Gandhi known for his efforts towards helping abolish the indentured labour system that Indian immigrants in many parts of the British Empire were subjected to.
The indentured labour system:
- In 1833, the British Parliament banned slavery, and the practice became illegal throughout the Empire. However, to maintain the supply of labour in their territories, colonial authorities effectively replaced slavery with the indentured labour system.
- The ‘indenture’ (meaning contract) system required Indians to sign a legal agreement stating their consent to move abroad for a minimum of five years to work mainly on sugar estates.
- Many were lured to distant lands, such as the Caribbean, South Africa, Réunion, Mauritius, Malaysia, and Fiji, where they ended up living in miserable conditions.
- In the mid 19th century, over 35 lakh Indians were transported to British, French, and Dutch colonies around the world. The system was officially banned in 1917.
Manilal Doctor:
- Born in 1881 in Vadodara, Doctor studied law in Bombay before travelling to Britain in 1905 for further studies. He became a member of the Indian Home Rule Society in London, and wrote in the monthly ‘Indian Sociologist’.
- In 1906, Doctor met Gandhi, who at the time was in London to meet imperial authorities on behalf of South Africa’s Indian origin people.
- During the meeting, Gandhi asked Doctor to move to Mauritius to assist the Indian community there in their struggle for equal rights. Doctor arrived in Mauritius the following year.