Dear Ma and Pa,

My work as an indentured labourer Jamaica is far from a walk in the park. Through this letter, I want to tell you about my life here.

When the contractor hired me, he was quite economical with the truth about the living and working conditions. To say nothing of the kind of work and place of work.

We have very few rights, with the contractor living up to the behaviour standards expected of them in the Carribean -extremely harsh. He treats us like animals since we are a minority and thus easy targets for his wrath. Accidents are common in the sugar plantations in Jamaica. One time I saw a worker burnt alive when the liquid sugar we were boiling accidentally spilt on him. Since he cannot work with his third-degree burns, the contractor saw it fit to throw him out without any due wages paid. We don’t have any rights to speak or to express our dissatisfaction about the working conditions. And if we do, we will face the overseer’s whips.

Whenever I do not attend my work, I am liable to be to jail. There is a lot of work at the plantations with a heavy workload and less time to finish it all.

In case of unsatisfactory work, my wages are cut. If there is hell on earth, it certainly is this. I know my writing will cause you anguish but rest assured there is the talk of new laws underway to protect labourers like us. Thus, this situation will pass soon.