Eternal Records: A Sociological Analysis of Emigration Passes Used in the British India Indentured Labour Program
Date
2023-03-20
Authors
Prasad, Dominica
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Abstract
British India is known to be the birthplace of several modes of surveillance that continue to occur in contemporary society. Thus, it is crucial to understand the historical roots of these modes of surveillance. Between 1834 - 1917, after the abolition of slavery in the British colonies, the British Empire contracted numerous Indian people (indentured labourers) to work in plantations within the British Empire. To organize this large indentured labour program, British officials established several administrative processes to surveil and control the migration of indentured labourers. Emigration passes were key components in these processes. Using historical and archival analysis, I analyzed a set of emigration passes to Fiji to understand how emigration passes were integrated into a larger system of historical surveillance. I sought to understand how emigration passes can indicate evidence of British colonial and racial dominance over Indian indentured labourers. The results of this research imply that Indian indentured labourers might have been subject to disproportionate levels of surveillance compared to the general Indian population. The surveillance mechanisms shown in the emigration passes were pivotal in reifying the subordinate social position of Indian indentured labourers within ideologies of race, labour, and migration.
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Keywords
emigration, indentured labour, British India, race, colonialism, Surveillance