Under international law “Crimes Against Humanity” is defined as “Acts committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack, directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack.” These acts include enslavement, deportation, imprisonment, torture, rape, persecution, and other inhumane acts causing great suffering. Many descendants, activists and postcolonial scholars are calling for recognition, apology and reparations for Bhartiya migration and indentureship. They argue that that the system of Indian indentureship involved widespread and systematic abuse that fits the spirit – if not the technical legal definition – of a crime against humanity. Historically and morally, Bhartiya indentureship can be viewed as a crime against humanity due to the systematic exploitation and dehumanization it involved. Legally, it falls into a grey area. However, the moral and historical parallels to slavery make the argument for Bhartiya migration and indentureship fit to be described as compelling.
The following are excerpts from an Indo-Caribbean Cultural Centre (ICC) Thought Leaders’ Forum (19/10/2025). The ZOOM program was chaired by Shakira Mohommed and moderated by Shalima Mohommed, both from Trinidad. There were (4) speakers in the program: PROF. SHARDHANAND H. SINGH – Founder of Girmitiyalogy, an emerging academic discipline exploring the history, culture and genealogy of girmitiyas [Indian indentured labourers] and their descendants worldwide. PROF. ONKAR NATH UPADHYAY – Affiliated to the University of Lucknow, his area of interest includes Girmitiyalogy, and Diaspora Studies. DR. ANIEL PAHLADSINGH – Commissioner at the Dutch Human Rights Committee, and Deputy Judge at a court in Rotterdam. PROF. MOHAMMAD SALIM – An Engineer and the Vice President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind in New Delhi. The topic was “Was Bhartiya Indentureship a Crime against Humanity?” See the unedited recording of the program: https://www.youtube.com/@dmahab/streams.
PROF. SHARDHANAND H. SINGH (Netherlands/ Suriname) said: “Slavery was officially recognized as a crime against humanity by the United Nations in 2001. There is acknowledgement of human suffering and moral irresponsibility during slavery, hence the reason we are talking about the unequal treatment during Indian indentureship. Crime against humanity has been committed, and it is for all of us to apply the law to this problem. Indentured labour is still not an issue globally, and there are consequences to this. Descendants of indentured labourers, such as us, face unequal recognition compared to descendants of enslaved Africans. Discourses on the suffering of girmitiyas [Bhartiya contract labourers] remain marginalized. Our ancestors’ suffering remains marginalized which deepen historical injustice. Equal acknowledgement and apology are essential for genuine reconciliation and healing. We have to fill the silence. We Indian-oriental people, we are very calm. We are polite. We have to empower Bhartiya-descended individuals and students to understand the colonial period of the descendants. We have to fight for our rights, and this Zoom meeting is one of the many ways of doing this globally.”
PROF. ONKAR NATH UPADHYAY said: “The systematic nature of violations, state involvement, and the scale of sufferings meet the criteria for crimes against humanity under current standards. The indenture system involved systematic deprivation of liberty, deceptive labour and inhumane treatment on a massive scale, meeting all criteria for crimes against humanity under Rome statutes. The indenture system, while was legally distinct from slavery, constituted a form of forced labour that violated fundamental rights, human rights and meets contemporary definitions of crime against humanity through its systematic nature, state involvement and inhuman treatment of millions of workers. This statement reflects the growing academic and legal consensus that historical practices must be evaluated through the lens of universal human rights standards regardless for their legal statutes at a time. The indenture system’s systematic violation of human dignity, deceptive labour conditions and state sanctions, and abuse, constitute crimes against humanity under modern Bhartiya law.”
DR. ANIEL PAHLADSINGH said. “There was no free will of the Indian migrant to end the contract. If a person would end the contract, he or she would face penal sanctions or labour sanctions which could be quite severe. Indentured labour of Bhartiya migrants should be qualified as forced labour, and that is a violation of the ISO convention Number 23. Most European countries have signed the European Convention on Human Rights and the Charter of Fundamental Rights. And, therefore, it is also a violation of Article Four of the European Convention on Human Rights and Article Five of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights.”
PROF. MOHAMMAD SALIM said: “As Indians and People of Indian Origin, it is our duty to uphold Bharat’s image as a symbol of values that define a nation; values such as human dignity, equality, freedom of expression, faith and ideas. Bharat stands as a model of harmony and unity in diversity. Our people come from many religions, languages and traditions, yet we live and work together with mutual respect and trust. It was this unity that led us to victory in the freedom struggle against British rule.”
