Guy Rozemont
|
The Honorable Marie Joseph Guy Rozemont |
|
|---|---|
| Born |
November 15, 1915 Souillac Street, Port Louis |
| Died | March 22, 1956 (aged 40) Victoria Hospital, Quatre Bornes, Mauritius |
| Cause of death | Heart condition |
| Monuments | Guy Rozemont Square |
| Residence | Mascareignes Street, Beau Bassin, Mauritius |
| Nationality | Mauritian |
| Alma mater |
Royal College of Curepipe St Joseph's College, Curepipe |
| Occupation | Trade Unionist |
| Political party | Mauritius Labour Party |
| Spouse(s) | Elsie Cummins |
| Children | Guito Rozemont |
Guy Rozemont (1915-1956) was a Mauritian trade unionist and the third leader of the Mauritius Labour Party. He fought for workers' rights and voiced against the injustice done against them. He played a crucial role in shaping the government, political culture and foreign policy of modern Mauritius.
Guy Rozemont came from a poor family and was fatherless. He studied at the Royal College of Curepipe and St. Joseph's College, Curepipe before leaving at the age of 16 to work as a labourer. He went on to become a sailor on a fishing boat, just as Emmanuel Anquetil, his mentor, did before becoming the leader of the Mauritius Labour Party. He had also served as an attendant at the military hospital of Floreal.
Rozemont became active in public life at the age of 23. He spoke for the first time at a meeting of the Labour Party at the theater in Port Louis on August 23, 1942. His fellow-trade unionist and mentor, Emmanuel Anquetil was then the chairman of the Labour Party, having succeeded Dr Maurice Curé, the party's founder.
Rozemont was an orator in the Mauritian Creole language. In 1947, he held public meetings denouncing what he said were the evils of capitalism and condemned what he saw as the indifference of official and unofficial representatives of the people in the Legislative Council. Rozemont fought for workers' rights and called for the nationalisation of certain industries, a housing plan and a pension for all workers, and retirees, health care for all, unemployment benefits, and compulsory education. He also advocated the establishment of cooperatives.
In the 1940s, the Labour Party campaigned for the proclamation of a holiday for workers (Labour Day) and for the extension of the franchise. Rozemont called for the abolition of the poll tax, which would give workers the opportunity to elect representatives to the Legislative Council. The colonial government accepted the idea of constitutional reform and on October 29, 1946, the British governor Mackenzie Kennedy submitted to the Council the Government's proposal for a new constitution. Because it kept the census voting and other elements that were understood to be detrimental to the working class, the proposal was completely rejected by the Labour Party during a public meeting in St Pierre on 1 December 1946. On the platform were: Emmanuel Anquetil, S. Salabee, Renganaden Seeneevassen, Guy Rozemont, Edgard Millien and Seewoosagur Ramgoolam.
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