Vijaye Kumar Beeharry
Member, Arya Veer
Events and celebrations are organized from time to time to pay tribute to eminent personalities such as Mahatma Gandhi, Manilal Doctor and others for their contributions for the upliftment of Indian Immigrants in Mauritius but unfortunately Adolphe de Plevitz, the hero of heroes is often ignored.
Adolphe de Plevitz was a French national born in 1837 who landed in Mauritius in September 1858 at the age of twenty-one. He was very sensitive by nature but a born fighter. He was deeply moved by the injustices and sufferings inflicted to the Indian Immigrants. The main shortcoming of the Indian Immigrants was that they did not have a leader to stand by their side and they could express themselves in neither English nor French and not even in creole in the court. So, no fair trial was given them. Consequently, they had to bear all types of inequalities silently. He encouraged the Indian Immigrants to send their children to school and to study English and French along with their ancestral languages.
Adolphe de Plevitz proved to be a saviour for the Indian immigrants. He mobilized the Indian Immigrants and expressed their grievances. He fearlessly denounced the planters, the police, the Magistrates and the press. These politically, economically and legally strong and powerful agents were very displeased by his actions. So, Adolphe de Plevitz had to wage war alone against these ‘oppressors’. His only protector in this crusade was the Governor Sir Arthur Hamilton Gordon.
For very lame excuses, Adolphe de Plevitz was assaulted, arrested and sent behind the bars. Once he was badly assaulted by a Jules Lavoquer in front of the Port Louis municipal theatre. No lawyer was ready to take his case.
He drafted a petition enlisting the grievances of the Indian Immigrants and sent it to the queen of England. A Royal Commission of Inquiry was set up to enquire into the treatment of Immigrants in Mauritius. The petition was translated into Hindi and Tamil and signed by some 10,000 migrants. In the said petition, he was not at all tender towards the police, the magistrate and the planters. The report of the Commission was published in 1875.It brought a sigh of relief to the Immigrants.
When Governor A.H.Gordon left for his new posting in Fiji, Adolphe de Plevitz followed him as he was being persecuted by police, planters etc.
We are really indebted towards this tireless fighter who sacrificed himself for the welfare of the oppressed.