International Journal of Modern Research in Engineering & Management (IJMREM)

||Volume|| 1||Issue|| 9 ||Pages|| 56-60 || October 2018|| ISSN: 2581-4540

The May 1975 Student Strike in Mauritius and its Aftermath:

A reflection on decolonisation of education
Betchoo Nirmal Kumar
Department of Business and management, Université des Mascareignes. Mauritius

----------------------------------------------------ABSTRACT----------------------------------------------------
The 1975 Student’s strike in Mauritius was a trigger to the need for greater equality in secondary education. It
was a time when such education was not free and students attending private secondary schools had to pay to
afford learning beyond their primary education to achieve the School Certificate and aim for a decent job. The
May 1975 uprising gave way to upper secondary level students’ demonstration in the urban areas with echoes
all over the country. The benefits of such a reform are manifold like wider access to secondary education to
girls, greater possibility for students to pursue education up to the Higher School Certificate including the
democratisation of education through the creation of Junior Secondary Schools (JSS). This paper claims that
May 1975 remains to-date an important turn in the secondary education system in Mauritius bringing a higher
level of democracy and creating a pathway for the decolonisation of education through the abolishment of the
Moray House Junior Scholarship, the ‘mauritianisation’ of local texts, the use of Kreol in teaching. However,
the lessons of 1975 might not apply to the contemporary context whereby elitist education still persists, socialist
ideologies have died and new student uprising has never been seen afterwards just to sum up that
decolonisation remains a challenging process albeit the 1975 unrest as a starting point of educational
decolonisation.

KEYWORDS : 1975 strike, educational reform, decolonisation, challenges

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Date of Submission: Date, 13 October 2018 Date of Publication: Date 20. October 2018
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I. INTRODUCTION
If one goes back some forty years in Mauritius, he will have a broad idea of education with a majority of
children enrolling in primary schools and ending their education at Primary School Leaving Certificate (Grade
12). A few could be admitted secondary schools where a majority could end up to Form IV (Grade 16) and not
even complete their School Certificate which was a passport for white-collar jobs and a fairly bright future in
Mauritius. Reaching Higher School Certificate Level (HSC) was limited just to a happy few who were mainly
students of state-funded colleges with some rare cases of HSC passes from private secondary colleges situated
mostly in the urban areas. This was an outlook of education at that time that was limited up to secondary schools
and where there was a unique tertiary institution, the University of Mauritius, that offered the classical Diploma
in Sugar Technology.

Concerning colleges, there were just a few state-run ones that only afforded the brilliant students having passed
the Junior Scholarship known as the ‘Petite Bourse’. This was a tough rat-race competition for selection after the
Primary School Leaving Certificate where the best students competed for an examination prepared by Moray
House (UK). The CPE Examinations were developed in 1980 in Mauritius. Earlier, primary level examinations
were set by Moray House, London with a final examination leading to the Junior Scholarship [1]. Those topping
the list, a mere 300 students, boys and girls combined, could have the golden chance of being students in
government colleges like Royal College Port Louis, Royal College Curepipe, John Kennedy College for boys
and the Queen Elizabeth College with the Droopnath Ramphul State College for girls. The star colleges were in
urban areas and benefited from the best facilities regarding infrastructure, libraries, laboratories and amenities
for physical activities. The majority of the students could only afford paid colleges which were mostly located in
the urban areas with a few ones in central locations in villages like Central Flacq, Goodlands or Souillac. Private
colleges were family-owned and had a linear structure with the manager and family members as administrators
and staff who worked in the colleges would be mostly qualified School Certificate holders with a degree from
India or a technical qualification obtained in Mauritius.

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Call for an uprising : The 1970s formed the golden era of socialism in Mauritius with new politicians forming
the Mouvement Militant Mauricien (MMM) formerly the Mouvement des Etudiants with meetings at city of
London college and Tennyson colleges respectively [2]. There were important political upheavals like the 1971
strike paralysing the national economy followed by press censorship and the implementation of the Public Order
Act (1973). The economy was in teething difficulties but benefited from an economic boom in 1973 after the
petrol shock. Despite these favourable conditions that could partly address the needs of the lower classes,
inequalities remained high in society.

Concerning the education system, there was a status-quo with a traditional rat-race system and private college
students were always disadvantaged in facility terms compared to those happy few who could join the state
colleges. Since political militancy gained momentum with socialist vibes pervading the nation; initially in urban
areas followed by higher acclamation in the rural areas, the call for class equality and social justice grew higher.
This was illustrated by the winning of political seats by the MMM in 1976 ensuing the election of legislative
assembly members coming from a left-winged party, something not so easily imaginable at a time when
Mauritian politics was framed on Westminister style politics with the traditional Labour Party and the Parti
Mauricien Social Démocrate (PMSD) living in a murky alliance [3].Since political socialism was gaining higher
acclaim in society, there was a clear indication that this would impact education particularly at the secondary
level.

II. THE MAY 1975 STRIKE

Secondary education remained elitist in the 1970s with a low percentage of students that could read up to the
HSC level and aim for white-collar jobs or choose to go abroad for undergraduate studies. Students who studied
in private colleges were merely limited to a School Certificate where the possibility of passing the first time was
low. This was characterised by inherent weaknesses in private secondary education where colleges had poor
infrastructure in every nook and corner. Libraries were poorly equipped, classrooms resembled those of primary
schools and worse, the opportunity to complete secondary education at the Ordinary level was weak. Worse,
secondary education suffered from the most significant disparity where private colleges charged school fees for
students and state-funded schools subsidised education with students having no need to pay for education while
enjoying top-class amenities at all levels. In this case, just getting in a private college represented a bleak
opportunity for success as the long-term prospect for reaching the coveted HSC level was barely attained.

Based from the inherent weaknesses in private secondary schools, it was expected that a wave of socialism could
blow over secondary education. There were initial boosts for some change like press articles ‘Place aux Jeunes’
in ‘Week-End’ paper and certain reflections on educations developed by Jeunesse Militante, a spin-off of the
MMM. There were also political upheavals in various areas like transport, public utilities, etc. Education could
not be spared because the 1975 Gervaise cyclone devastated most of the school infrastructure while exacerbating
infrastructure problems in schools [4]. Private secondary schools built on ‘brick and mortar’ infrastructure were
also in deplorable conditions with greater difficulty in imparting education to students.

These factors teamed up with the need for equality and social justice in education. The impetus was already on
and demonstrations started in April 1975 to last for nearly a month. This was a catapult effect with secondary
educators going on strike with students namely in colleges like Bhujoharry, Trinity, Eden, New Eton, etc. to
gradually rally with the already well-established state colleges which started to see the inequalities in education
and show greater empathy for the colleagues living and teaching in tougher conditions. The student unrest was
powerful, showing resistance and resilience despite police threats like tear gas and baton. Such a condition
attained its paroxysm and became untenable. That could be a precursor to more electoral threats from the
government in power.

Although the clamour was diminished after negotiations between the private college unions and the Ministry of
Education and Cultural Affairs, disparities still existed but the creation of the Private Secondary Schools
Authority (PSSA) in 1978 allowed for better wage treatment for private secondary teachers as well as an
alignment in wages between public and private educators [5]. In January 1977, Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam,
the then Prime Minister, surely tired of hearing of student dissatisfaction and claiming some foothold in the 1976
national elections, came forward with a bold decision that could be both political and social. Secondary
education was declared free for all and state colleges would be built all over Mauritius to accommodate a larger
number of students. These new colleges would be Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) with students reading to
Form III (Grade 15) and eventually reading for an SC either in extension classes or in the existing state colleges.

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There was at least a sigh of relief for the thousands of parents who had to pay for secondary education if their
wards qualified for private colleges.

III. TOWARDS THE START OF DECOLONISATION

The 1975 strike spoke on the inequalities of secondary education particularly at the private secondary education
level. Although the effects were not immediate certain factors might be isolated as a causal factor of the strike.
They took place over the years with more pledges from private colleges to be heard and accepted in the
Legislative Assembly. Certain steps were: the end of the Junior Scholarship, new curricula developed by the
Mauritius Institute of Education (MIE), the case of introducing Kreol as a medium of instruction, the
democratisation of secondary education. These are briefly developed below:

The end of the Junior Scholarship : Moray House (UK) continued with the system of ‘Petite Bourse’ or elitist
education but was gradually phased out. The tough and competitive secondary school’s entry examination were
replaced by the Certificate of Primary Education developed by the Mauritius Institute of Education and the
Mauritius Examinations Syndicate. Though the new examinations still remained competitive, not only 300
students could enter State colleges but rather a four-fold number in the initial years. This measure somewhat
affected entry numbers in private colleges that were forced to review their recruitment strategy as well as their
facilities which were better addressed by more financial grants from the government.

New curricula developed by the Mauritius Institute of Education (MIE) : Earlier curricula were focused on
Mauritius particularly at the Primary level. With the setting up of the MIE in 1973, more educational material
was developed locally, at first in primary schools, but later in secondary schools, both public and private.
Learning materials like ‘Mots et Merveilles’, ‘Password’, etc. were developed for lower secondary classes but
used all over the island. This partly addressed the need to harmonise learning curricula between the schools.
Further, being Mauritianised, these texts ensued some decolonisation from prescribed British-based curricula
that was not too easily adaptable to Mauritian standards.

The case of introducing Kreol as a medium of instruction : Kreol has been taught as an instructional
language more specifically in rural areas where the exposure to international languages like English and French
was limited. Kreol is subjectively perceived among Mauritian elites as a broken language that cannot be used in
formal domains and written interactions [6]. Kreol could be used for any subject especially as the level grew
higher and became less explicit in upper secondary classes. Teachers expressed themselves in Kreol although a
few elite schools maintained teaching in English. It is also worthwhile noting the introduction of Asian languages
like Hindi, Urdu, Tamil and later Arabic in secondary schools, once again from curricula jointly developed by
the MIE and the Mahatma Gandhi Institute. This aspect should not be overlooked since Oriental languages were
also looked down upon the bourgeois that favoured western to such languages.

The democratisation of secondary education: The democratisation of secondary education must also be
emphasised here. With a larger number of Junior Secondary Schools being built over the island, better
infrastructure could be made available on a decentralised basis. This favour much higher enrolment of students
in secondary education, lifting the bar for access to School Certificate and gradually promoting more students to
attain the final level, HSC. Girls’ enrolment in education progressed significantly and their pass rates were
spectacular. Free access to secondary education in 1977 increased enrolment considerably with a remarkable
increase in girls’ enrolment reaching near parity [7]. Getting out of the confined role of the housemaid became a
reality and this was also triggered by industrialisation since the mid-1980s.

Decolonisation Seen from the 1975 Kaleidoscope : In 2018, it will be quite difficult to associate the
decolonisation process juts from the 1975 student strike. Apparently, such an uprising was a trigger of
decolonisation because the process ensued ‘mauritianising’ the education system, democratising education by
reducing disparities between the rich and the poor and also enabling more girls to have access to secondary
education. To some extent, the student unrest did portray the existing weaknesses of the system and paved the
way for free education at the secondary level. Considering decolonisation from the curriculum perspective,
certain efforts were brought in with a few textbooks written by Mauritian authors like ‘Tales of Mauritius’ by
Ramdoyal, ‘History of Mauritius’ by Varma, some French texts by the David couple, etc. Further, Mauritian
literature was also studied and examined at the School Certificate and HSC levels with works from Masson,
Unnuth, etc. These explained that there was a real effort in bringing ‘mauritianisation’ to the national curricula.

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But has there been genuine decolonisation since 1975? It would be a utopia to say that such a process could
occur and reshape the educational system in the country. For instance, Kreol has and is being constantly used in
the teaching process since educators understand the context and the teaching complexities in tough courses in
Science and Economics. The introduction of Kreol Morisien (2011) is now an optional subject in primary
schools [8]. Kreol has been used as a facilitator for learning and remains appropriate in developing quick
understanding of subject matter. However, written and expressive form of such a language is still in its infancy in
secondary schools today. This has surely been a long fought battle undertaken by Lalit, the Michel brothers and
the government through ‘grafi larmoni’. But using Kreol as a medium of instruction has not been accepted at any
level in all the different sectors of education but the national language has been limited as a teaching medium for
a sole curriculum ‘Kreol’. Recognition has not even been sought in the National Assembly while English is the
official language and the use of French is also accepted.

Another key argument could come from the mindset of the population with regards to education. Although many
experts have advocated the elimination of the ‘rat-race’ system at the Certificate of Primary Education (CPE)
level, there remains a majority that is still stuck with the concept of learning through an intense competitive
atmosphere. There is more or less widespread recognition among vast swathes of the Mauritian population of
the importance of this enabling and transformative factor, which explains the ″rat race″ for the ″star schools″ by
parents all over the island for the best educational opportunities – an absolutely legitimate aspiration for their
wards [9]. The proclamation of laureates continued after 1975 and remains a folkloric event with the media
exposure of laureates emphasising the importance of elitist education. Laureates become the ‘talk of the town’
and are cast in the limelight all of a sudden. Does the system consider the number of drop-outs and the need to
find alternative educational pathways for those not capable of coping with such an elitist system? Mauritius
remains along with Singapore and Jamaica, the few rare countries that still adopt the competitive Cambridge
examinations. To this end, the roots of competitive examination offered by an external body might not clearly
illustrate decolonisation in the educational process. Even changing the existing system might be costly and even
take quite a significant amount of time to become a reality. Education has from the beginning aimed to colonise
people’s hearts and minds, both in the colonised and colonising countries [10].

Thirdly, this young generation known as ‘digital natives’ loves being in a community of its own. Through
constant contacts online and in a virtual manner, it might look like the concept of sharing has shifted from
community-based interaction to peer-group interaction where face-to-face contacts are sacrificed to virtual ones.
There was a little naïve perception recently from certain journalists claiming a revival of May 1975 when it
concerned secondary school students who protested on conditions regarding the payment of examination fees in
case of repeated absences. In comparison with the genuine 1975 uprising for a demand for equality, democracy
and even decolonisation, the current short-lived demonstration was more of an antithesis with students from star
colleges soliciting favour to avoid paying for examination fees. Swaniker in Mail and Guardian (2017) rather
challenges this shallow thinking by stating that “We seek to cultivate leaders who are innovative, leaders with a
good command of communication, who can effectively tell our own stories through literature and research.
Because of the rate of information flow, the ability to learn and unlearn is most important in the information age,
especially for Africans, who have always been on the back foot [11]. ″

IV. WHY MAY 1975 CANNOT BE REVIVED?

May 1975 remains a symbol of student revolt and demonstration at a time when socialist ideologies were strong
especially in the developing world. It was a ‘remake’ of the truly iconic ‘Mai 68’ in France where students
questioned the education system in France and that was followed by mass student movements throughout France
obliging the French government to initiate a reform in education. A similar effect took place in Mauritius when
students were unhappy with the existing educational system and fought for justice and equality. Assisted by left-
winged political movements, the student movement gained momentum and national acclaim. Sometime later,
after certain reforms were implemented, the movement died and gave way to political affiliations of certain
student movement leaders.

Ideologies live and die ; This adage cannot be challenged. As the economy of Mauritius was set back to track
since the mid-1980s, capitalism stepped in naturally with the local community willing to benefit from tax rebates
on electronic goods mainly TV sets and video cassette recorders, refrigerators, electric showers, etc. All these
were considered as luxuries earlier. Through better accrual of personal wealth, common interests started to
vanish and just got weaker and weaker in the course of time. Today, in a digitalised world, the level of
materialism and personal gain reaches a peak whereby common calls for a certain cause roughly draws a handful
of participants despite thousands of likes on the social platform ‘Facebook’.
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Further, there looks to be a dearth of newcomers on the political arena. Traditional parties predominate after
Independence gained in 1968 with the same leaders or dynasties ruling the country. The absence of young
people in the socio-political environment might illustrate the low interest of the present generation in politics and
could also be a causal factor explaining the low involvement of the young ones. Coupled with materialistic
values and the need for comfortable individualised living, the hearth for student uprising will not be possible.

V. CONCLUSION
This paper concludes that May 1975, an iconic symbol of student unrest in Mauritius, remains to-date, an
important stepping stone for decolonisation seen from the educational perspective. The initial processes to
decolonise secondary education were manifold namely increasing access to students in better colleges, providing
free secondary education to all students entering colleges, bringing Mauritian texts for study in secondary
schools and also encouraging a larger percentage of girls to join colleges. Decolonisation of education cannot be
fulfilled even some 43 years after the unrest. Today the world is globalised with exchange of knowledge, greater
sharing of information and the need to standardise learning. Cambridge, the examining body, adjusts itself to the
learning curricula of each country while setting a British standard for the examinations. Carnoy’s seminal work
(1974) remains compelling enough to speak on current disparity in mindsets. ″The society reinforces, through
schooling and other institutions, the self-image of incompetence and ignorance for those who do not succeed in
school [12]. ″ In a nutshell, partial decolonisation exists as there might be an evaluation of Kreol in final
examinations, wider inclusion of locally-developed texts and learning material. Officially teaching Kreol as a
medium has still a long way to go. Additionally, new agendas like global warming and sustainable development
easily override decolonisation issues. Nevertheless, the iconic 1975 strike remains a lesson to be learnt in history
as it definitely ushered decolonisation in education and substantially ‘mauritianised’ our system that still and for
a long-time will be governed by final examinations developed abroad which remain elitist and highly rote-
learning focused despite having their credibility nationally.

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