Dear Editor,
Military historians may present a more accurate and detailed account of the periods immediately preceding the birth of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF). The following are my recollections, in summary, of the period leading up to the formation of the GDF and the testing atmosphere of the early years of the Force. Before the 1st of November 1965, the uniformed services in British Guiana (BG) were composed of the BG Police Force, the BG Volunteer Force (under which the Queen’s College Cadet Corps operated), the recently formed Special Services Unit (SSU) and different regiments of the British Army.
The three years between the elections in 1961 and 1964 were characterized by riots in Georgetown, bombings in Georgetown and Linden (then Mackenzie); arson in George-town and on the sugar estates; internecine violence (especially on the East and West Coasts of the Demerara River) and countrywide public sector strikes. There was a lot of chaos and instability with contributing local and external actors. British regiments assisted the BGVF and Police Force in restoring order across the country. However, colonial Commissions of Inquiry had established that the African-heavy racial composition of the BGVF and BG Police Force did not inspire confidence in the neutrality of their members.
The SSU was therefore established in 1964 after intense advertising and the offer of far higher salaries than those of the average civil servant or police recruit. The aim was to have a membership split of almost 50-50 between Indian and African Guyanese with a small percentage allocation for other ethnic groups. The recruiting success gave the lie to the generally accepted assertion that Indians were difficult to recruit to the uniformed services. The also balanced selection of initially six cadet officers from among the A Level high school graduates, who hadn’t won one of the national or industry (mainly Bookers and Demba) scholarships, was even more intense; even higher salaries were offered in a society with limited academic and better-paying opportunities.
After intense weekends of social, speaking and physical testing, six cadets were selected for military officer training in England. Three – Carl Morgan and the now deceased Ulric Pilgrim and Ramesh Narine – left almost immediately for Mons Officer Cadet School in Aldershot in January 1965. The next three of us joined them in early May 1965 – the late Asad Ishoof, Vibert Boodhoo and Desmond Roberts. While waiting to go abroad, the ‘junior’ three cadets lived in the Police Mess and underwent training by the Police Tactical Service Unit (Riot Squad in those days) under the tough tutelage of Duncan Clarke, Davey, Deomongul, Squaddie Duncan, Singh, Verapen, Hope, Hartley, Samooj, Gravesande and other seasoned police corporals and sergeants. They taught us marksmanship and to tolerate harassment. We were lucky I think to have been given this preparatory training.
Mons was the six month, short-term, officer factory for war and strife-bound colonial duties, with greater emphasis on tactical
competence and man management. While most of the other earlier officers – David Granger, Joe Singh, and the late Harry Hinds et al – attended Mons, two cadets were chosen for the Sandhurst Military Academy’s two year programme- Fairbairn Liverpool and the late Haydock West. Mons was demanding and our welcome by our fellow Guyanese cadets had a funny start. On my first day at Mons, while collecting equipment from the Stores, I heard a familiar voice calling out my name. I looked around but recognized no one. After another insistent call I recognized Carl Morgan who had clearly lost some thirty pounds. I asked “what happened to you?” He said, “You’ll find out.”
Pilgrim, Narine and Morgan returned earlier and were indeed the first officers of the newly formed GDF. We – Boodhoo, Ishoof and I – completed our training in October but naughtily opted to return by sea – on one of the Dutch boats, either the Willemstad or the Orangestaad – instead of flying home. There was anger and consternation since we arrived home a few days after 1st November. We were met on the wharf by Carl Morgan who briefed us on the new developments. (No other officers were ever allowed to return home by sea!) Police Deputy Commissioner Neil Issacs offered us the option of joining the Police Force and returning to England (Hendon Police Academy) for training; or becoming Army Officers. We chose.
To build this new military force, there was training and testing being held at Atkinson Field (Timehri) by ranks of the British regiment and Tacama under the British Parachute Regiment (3Para). There was ‘conversion’ training for the BGVF volunteers and SSU personnel opting for the GDF. Several SSU members opted for the Police Force. There was also a local training course for officers, which produced some stalwarts. Major Raymond Sattaur, a Sandhurst-trained Guyanese officer then living in Jamaica, had been recruited to head the SSU. He promptly dispatched the seafarers to Tacama with our ‘converts’. The survivors, mainly from the BGVF and police training staff, became members of the GDF.
A British training team, headed by Lt. Col. Pope began arriving in late 1965. The team of experienced older senior officers and noncommissioned officers were tasked with setting up specialized areas like the Mechanical Workshop, Signals, Stores, Air Wing, Staff Officers and infantry units. There were more British officers than subunits to command. However, it made for good mess life and social interaction since some of the British team brought their families. Col. Pope (promoted soon after) had the unpleasant task of ‘dismissing’ Major Sattaur. Or notifying him.
There were still simmering animosities, especially in the sugar estates all along the coast, in the creeks (Mahaica and Mahaicony mainly) and some villages. It was the uneasy period (1964-1966) leading to independence. We patrolled the estate backlands on foot, the creeks by boat and the main roads by radio-equipped vehicles. We did lots of walking and lots of patrolling. My first British company commander (in fact a large platoon) was Major. Pullen who was a firm teacher, a marksman and a pilot. After a while, he left to head the Air Wing, flying our newly acquired single-engined Heliocouriers. My next expanded platoon commander was Major Hartland. I learned a lot from both officers.
Our coastal, internal security operations left us completely unprepared for the Venezuelan seizure of the Guyana half of Ankoko Island in late 1966. There was need to reorient our training, weapons and aircraft acquisition, administration and logistics planning. Officers and noncommissioned officers (NCOs) were sent to the British Army Jungle Warfare Training School at Johor in then Malaya. The British contingent were not officially expected to be involved in local conflicts but Col. Ronald Pope exercised his leadership role nonetheless. The GDF expanded rapidly to cope with significant threats from both Venezuela and Suriname at widely separated parts of our long, lightly inhabited border regions – the Cuyuni and Wenamu; Rupununi and New River. Our fishermen also faced threats at sea.
The Coast Guard, Recce/Special Forces, Medical Air and Engineer Corps all grew rapidly in the first five years. Arising from the shortage of front line troops, the Women’s Army Corps was established to replace men in administrative positions on our main bases at Camp Ayanganna in Georgetown and Camp Stephenson at Timehri. (Within a short time, women were training as pilots, infantry instructors as well as university trained welfare officers and administrators.) Manpower needs also led to the establishment of the reserve units – Guyana People’s Militia. Several local, regional and international factors led to the reorganization of the GDF as the People’s Army but that’s ‘another story’.
Congratulations Guyana Defence Force for loyally serving your people, your country and region in exemplary fashion. Guyana is the only independent country in South America that has never had a coup d’etat.