Chapter-2: From sojourners to settlers (Rashmere Bhatti)
Settlement in Woolgoolga-Coffs Harbour (1940-1970)
In the 194os, two major world events, World War II and Partition (the separation of British India into India and Pakistan which resulted in the division of the Punjab), had a significant effect on these Punjabi sons and ultimately led to their settlement in the Woolgoolga-Coffs Harbour area.
Given the mobilisation and commitment of Australian forces to the Allied cause in World War II, there was an acute shortage of labour in many areas of Australia in the early 194os. This meant that the Punjabis were now welcomed as workers in both the Northern Rivers area of NSW and the Atherton and Gordonvale areas in Queensland. As a result, Punjabis moved into regular employment as hawkers, market gardeners and agricultural labourers. The banana industry had moved into commercial production in the 1930s and some Punjabis became banana labourers in the Murwillumbah district of NSW.
The war also meant that the Punjabis could now obtain union tickets and were welcome to work in the sugarcane industry. Indeed, with the exception of a very few, all of the early settlers worked mainly in the cane fields. All my interviewees spoke about cane cutting, the gangs, the hard work, the life in barracks and, for some, fool-lowing the seasons between Queensland and NSW. Certainly, in the Northern Rivers the Punjabis became the leaders of cane gangs from 1942 until 1970.
Originally, no Indians could work in the cane fields. The union's attitude was that they undermined Australian working conditions by their willingness to work for less than Australians. However, in 1942 Indians could join the Australian Workers' Union because Australians needed the labour - Gurbax Singh Atwal
At the beginning there was no work, but I managed to get a job cane cutting at Gordonvale. I was given a union ticket, as there was a shortage of labour during the war. I was called up for the army, but I did not serve, as under the Manpower Program men were required to work in the rural areas - Gurdeb Singh Narwal
Some Punjabis were able to obtain employment in other industries. My father [Narranjan Singh] in the off-season worked labouring for the Queensland railways, putting down sleepers - Amarjit Singh More
My father [Jaswant Singh Dhadlie] then got a job with the Tooheys brewery in Grafton, a regular nine-to-five job on the keg line - Reshmore (Dhadlie) Tory
One year my father [Jagir Singh] got work as a labourer to build the GraftonTooheys brewery - Piara Singh Sodhi
In the search for work, which was readily available during the war years, some Punjabis ventured further a field from the Northern Rivers of NSW and travelled south to Woolgoolga and Coffs Harbour to labour on the banana farms there. Asbanana plantations had existed in Woolgoolga and Coffs Harbour for nearly all of the years that the Punjabis were in Queensland and in the Northern Rivers it is interesting to analyse how the Punjabis found out about work on the banana farms at this particular point in their time in Australia. A possible explanation can be offered based upon the early friendships and networks between Punjabis and non-Punjabis.
Charles Newman had moved from Alstonville to establish a banana plantation in Woolgoolga in the 193os. As we have seen, he had Indians working for him in Alstonville and these Indians and their friends would have most likely continued to have knowledge about him when he moved to Woolgoolga. It is highly likely that news of work available on the banana farms in Woolgoolga during the war years reached the Punjabis via the Indian networks. The following quote from Newman’s son certainly seems to support this interpretation:
See, the Indians had knowledge about bananas even back then. Sheroo worked on the bananas in Alstonville. He probably also knew some of the older Indians working on the cane in the Clarence area. Information was shared and the Indians could quite possibly have heard about Woolgoolga and the work on the banana farms - Peter Newman
Adding to the lure of available work was that it was offered by a person familiar with the Indians. This pre-existing link would have served to boost their confidence in venturing forth to new territory. This explanation seems highly plausible, as it was Labu Singh (from village Bilgia), who had been in the Clarence for man-years, who was the first known Punjabi to work in the Woolgoolga area." Labu Singh worked for Charles Newman, as subsequently did a second Punjabi, Lal Singh, whose father, Vir Singh (from village Jandiala), had also been in the Northern Rivers for more than 40 years.
In the war years, labour was impossible to find. In 1944, an old fellow, Abu, came up to our bananas asking for work. He had been working in Ulmarra and wanted a casual type of job ... and the packing shed was hardly used. As Arthur was often away helping out on plantations in Korora, and as so many men were away at war, he was glad to have someone who could be trusted and do jobs like chipping - Jean Robinson
Another connection from the Clarence area, Billy Richards, also greatly assisted the early Punjabis in settling in Woolgoolga. Billy Richards had been born and brought up in Grafton, before moving to Woolgoolga to open the Dinky Di General Store in River Street and grow bananas. After moving to Woolgoolga, he continued to maintain a house in Grafton. Billy Richards assisted the early Punjabi settlers with employment on his banana plantation and in his store. As well as Labu, he also employed another early arrival in Woolgoolga, Booja Singh, who had also worked in the Clarence area. In 1951, Maluke Singh Arkan, aged about 13, and also from the Clarence, started work in Richards's general store.
In 1943 my grandfather, Moti, worked for Billy Richards. He then travelled down to Coffs Harbour, passing through Woolgoolga. He lived at Bruxner Park with his son, Charlie Husna. He planted beans and would drive into Coffs Harbour with his horse drawn cart and sell them - Harbhajan Singh Husna
My father [Booja Singh] came to Woolgoolga ... He knew Billy Richards. And there was Labu, who was very old - Mon-Ark Singh
From these extracts we can clearly see that the first few Punjabis in Woolgoolga-Coffs Harbour were from the Clarence area and that the non-Punjabis who employed them (Billy Richards and Charles Newman) were also originally from northern NSW notably from Alstonville and Grafton, both areas in which Punjabis had worked for more than 50 years.
However, it is difficult to put an exact date or year to the arrival of the Punjabis in the Woolgoolga-Coffs Harbour area. Based on information obtained from more than 40 interviews with the sons of the forefathers and the descendants of the non-Punjabis, we can be sure that it was just before World War II, since Labu was working for the Newmans before and during the war. Additionally, the general consensus is that the earliest Punjabi arrivals were Labu Singh, Lal Singh and his father Vir Singh, Booja Singh, Moti Singh (and his young son, Charlie Singh Husna),Manga Singh (Atwal) and Manga Singh Sidhu."
Therefore, by the early 194os, there were a few Punjabis in the Woolgoolga-Coifs Harbour area. They were working as labourers on banana farms, mainly on a casual basis. Living arrangements and conditions continued to be makeshift and poor. These Punjabis still had a relatively itinerant existence and lived where they could, mainly in the sheds on the plantations where they were working.
In 1948, Labu Singh from Bilga lived at Nobby's Creek in a hut and worked for Billy Richards. He also had a share farm with Moti - Darshan Singh Atwal
Booja lived in the shed behind Billy Richards's store, not 50 yards from where I lived. My mates and I were curious enough to stare at him - Robert Laugher
When they first came, I remember they seemed old and they wore turbans. This was during the war. They worked for Billy Richards. At night they slept in the storeroom along with the chaff and produce - Vivian Slater
The news that work was available on the banana plantations almost all year round and that Punjabis were there quickly reached other Punjabis living and working in the Clarence. Consequently, between 1949 and 1953 more Punjabis moved to the Woolgoolga area. However, this move to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the bananas in the Woolgoolga-Coffs Harbour area was also influenced strongly by Partition between India and Pakistan.
In the late 1940s there was a mass movement of Punjabis back to the Punjab from Australia. Most of my interviewees spoke of either fathers alone or fathers and sons together returning to India in or about 1947 after hearing that there was trouble at home in the Punjab." There was concern for their land, their families and kinfolk. Many also said that before then it had been difficult to return to the Punjab, as passenger ships had not been available because of the war. Indeed, most of the forefathers in our story who went back to India at this time were never to return to Australia, although many of their sons did.
In 1947 there was some information that there was trouble in the Punjab, and my grandfather [Thakur Singh] returned to the Punjab. A lot of other Punjabi men also returned to the Punjab at that time - Amarjit Singh More
In January 1947, my father [Oudham Singh] returned to the Punjab, to be followed three months later by his wife, Chinte, and us three boys. We returned when ships again became available for passengers after the war. I remember a lot of Punjabis from both the Clarence and Gordonvale on the boat. In Calcutta, we were met by my father and returned by train to Jalandar Cant, a military base. We had to lie flat on the floor of the train, because of the gunfire and fighting [during Partition] - Maluke Singh Arkan
With the turmoil of Partition, migration overseas also became a solution for many people whose lives were disrupted at the time. Although my interviewees did not speak about Partition as directly influencing their decision to move overseas, the general consensus as to why they left the Punjab to return again to Australia within a few years after their departure in 1947 was that "conditions were more favourable to progress in Australia than in India". The sons, comparing the quiet and untroubled life that they had experienced in Australia with the turmoil of the post-Partition Punjab, were eager to return to Australia and persuaded their families to let them come back.
The following is a general comment offered by one of the sons, albeit one who arrived in Woolgoolga in the late 1960s:
It was the time of Partition in India, land was divided and there was turmoil. These small portions, when divided between family sons, became even smaller, meaning life was insecure with little chance or opportunity for improving one's lot. Migration abroad offered an opportunity to better one's position. Also, opportunities at that time within the banana industry meant that land could be purchased in Australia, as Jots have that passion with the land. A family member being able to settle abroad was indeed good fortune for a family - Bhupinder Singh La
A number of the sons returning to the Punjab during the 1940s took this opportunity to marry, so most had young wives whom they left behind in India when they came back to Australia.
By the early 195os, a number of Punjabi sons had returned to work in Australia. Initially, these sons returned to the areas they had left, namely Grafton, Harwood Island, Southgate and Murwillumbah to the north and Gordonvale in Queensland. But shortly afterwards they all moved to Woolgoolga. There were four main factors that influenced this move: the effects of Partition on families in the Punjab; the fact that other Punjabis were settled in Woolgoolga; the "easy start" offered by the banana industry and a generational change in thinking about the possibility of Australia as home."
In 1950 my father [Jagir Singh] had visited Woolgoolga and knew that Booja lived there. My father moved to Woolgoolga in 1951 and bought 9.5 acres of bananas. He pitched a tent and lived there until he was able to have a small hut. - Piara Singh Sodhi.
Connections between Woolgoolga and Grafton existed, although my husband, Harjeet, and his brother Jaswant lived in Grafton. They knew Labu, who visited them - Dunn Kaur Dhadlie.
In 1952, my father, Charlie, and Uncle Kabul returned to the Clarence and cut cane. They also came to Woolgoolga and worked for the Newmans and Unwins and then leased a plantation in Morgans Road..- Harbhajan Singh Husna
In 1951, we [Mulkeet, Harjeet, Maluke] returned to Australia with our mother, Chinte. We also had Booja Singh's wife with us. We were met in Sydney by Booja Singh. We all stayed at Mullaway - Maluke Singh Arkan
in 1950, I had bananas in Murwillumbah but knew that there were Punjabis who had moved to Woolgoolga. I had known them in the Clarence; there was Moti, Booja, Labu and Manga Atwal. Then in 1953, I also moved to Woolgoolga -Pritim Singh
In 1954, my father [Manga Singh] bought me bananas in Gaudrons Road. However, they suffered many mishaps - hail, storms - and I traded them for a house in Grafton - Gurmit (Johnny) Singh Sidhu
In 1956, my father [Channan Singh], who had bananas in Murwillumbah, brought us [Gurbaksh Singh and Rattan Singh] out to Australia. We didn’t like the bananas in Murwillumbah because they were a long way to walk, there was no transport and it was always wet. In 1959 we moved to Woolgoolga. The other Punjabis there invited us. We came and worked for Billy Richards on Grays Road and I knew Harjeet Arkan really well - Gurbaksh Singh
For the first time since the forefathers entered Australia at the turn of the century, the Punjabis were in a position to set themselves up in Australia. Therefore, at the end of the 195os, most of the sons from the Northern Rivers had moved to Woolgoolga. Bananas were an easy start for them because, com-pared with sugarcane farms, banana farms did not require huge sums of money to set up. It was quite possible to continue working hard at cane cutting, as they all did, to save rather than remit one's earnings and to acquire enough money to buy or lease a few hectares for a banana farm. Moreover, there was little outlay for machinery or equipment as the work was mainly manual labour. Bananas also offered work all year round and, therefore, a regular income. All of the sons starting in the bananas in the 1950s continued to cut cane in Harwood and MacLean until the 1970s.
Work in the bananas offered an easy start. Only a small amount of money was required. It was their own work. It didn't require working for someone else. And it was handy. Also bananas could be worked alone and supplemented by other work - Harbhajan Singh Fiusna.
About the Indians moving to become settlers, so many things all happened at the same time. In Australia there was the war and, because men were away, work was available on the banana farms. Properties were available. There were the "populate or perish" policies and they were prepared to let people stop here. The Indians took these opportunities. They were hard workers -Harry Gale
The move to become settlers was also a generational phenomenon. Most of the sons came to Australia in their early or late teens, with the exception of the Arkan brothers, who came as children. Therefore, these young men spent their prime years toiling in Australia before most returned to the Punjab in 1947. It is significant that they all returned to Woolgoolga within a few years of leaving.
Although the sons had an attachment to the family land in the Punjab, they also had not worked it or visited it for more than 10 years. Further, they would have been in a position to compare the opportunities and their likely future livelihoods in India and Australia. Even though the sons had endured harsh conditions in Australia, they would have also become familiar with the better life superior living conditions, the freedom, the infrastructure and the many possibilities com-pared with the situation in India. They must have recognised the opportunities available in Australia and persuaded their elders. However, in the early years the reality was that the sons tried to maintain their responsibilities and homes in both countries, often by brothers alternating their time and duties between the Punjab working agricultural land, caring for sick and elderly and organising the marriage of womenfolk) and Australia.
These sons, now in their seventies, or their descendants, were proud to have had British passports that represented their power to enter Australia. They recognised what Australia had to offer in the way of opportunities if you were prepared to take them. They were also proud to be abroad, as international migration remained an attractive alternative and a way to gain increased prestige and status.” Father [Booja Singh] was proud to have a British passport - Mon-Ark Singh
Father [Charlie Husna] was proud to be in Australia. He always spoke about his British passport giving him this opportunity - Harbhajan Singh Husna
I love Australia. Living is 100 per cent good - travel good, food good. I love all of Australia. If you work hard you can be well settled. Yes, the Punjab isothere, it is good to visit but Punjabis live where the family all is and we are here in Australia - Darshan Singh Atwal
Therefore, although the sons respect and acknowledge their homeland India to this day, their comments very much support the view that in the early 1950s they also saw themselves as based in Australia and thought of it as the future for them. After a generation the Punjabis had become settlers rather than sojourners.
Arrival of Punjabi women
In the era of the forefathers, the only two known mothers of the present-day community to have come to Australia were Sham Kaur, wife of Gharne Singh and mother of the Malhi (aka Mullee) brothers (Frederick, William and James) and Chinte Kaur, wife of Oudham Singh and mother of the Arkan brothers (Mulkeet, Harjeet and Maluke).
Sham Kaur came to Australia as a new bride in the early 19305 to settle on the property that her husband had acquired during his years in Lockhart, NSW. After a short time, she returned to the Punjab with her three sons after her husband's death. Fred and William returned to Australia in 1956, subsequently settling in Woolgoolga.
Chinte Kaur first came to Australia in 1940 and lived in Southgate near Grafton) with her family for seven years. She then returned to the Punjab, at the time of Partition, travelling alone with her three sons, as her husband had returned a few months earlier. In 1951, she returned to bring her three sons to settle them in Australia. On this visit she stayed in Woolgoolga and also brought out with her Booja Singh's wife, as they were from the same village and it was thought better for a young bride to travel with someone known to her and experienced in the journey. Chinte Kaur returned to Australia shortly before her death in 1978.
With the availability of regular work and therefore a regular income, and with the decision to settle in Australia, many of the settler sons started to invite their wives and, in some cases, small children to join them in Woolgoolga. This required each one, as a sponsor, to show that he could provide for his family. This criterion was met with the help of friends, many going guarantor for each other, and with non-Punjabi assistance in completing official documents and clarifying the requirements of sponsorship.
Joginder Kaur (Gindo) Singh came to Harwood in 1950 and shortly afterwards moved to Woolgoolga, accompanying her husband, Manga Singh, to become the first Punjabi woman to settle in Woolgoolga.
I was in Harwood with my husband, Manga, and in the slack time, we went to Woolgoolga and stayed with Booja Singh. Then we moved to Woolgoolga. I was the only Punjabi woman there. There was Labu, from Bilgia, who we share farmed with. During this time, Chinte came from the Punjab with her three sons. She also brought with her Booja Singh's wife, Meeto, as they were from the same village - Joinder Kaur (Gindo) Singh
Other wives soon arrived in Grafton, Harwood, Maclean and Woolgoolga. Jaswat Singh Dhadlie's wife, Rattan Kaur, came in the early 1950s, but lived in Grafton all her life, although she had regular contact with those in Woolgoolga. In Woolgoolga, Booja Singh's wife, Meeto Kaur, arrived in 1951. Then Pritim Singh's wife, Rattan Kaur, came in 1953. The brides of the Atwal brothers, Darshan Singh and Bakhshish Singh, first came to Maclean, where their husbands were cutting cane. They moved to Woolgoolga in 1958. Harjeet Singh (Peter) Arkan's wife, Joginder Kaur, arrived in 1958 to live an isolated life on their banana farm in Woolgoolga. Gurmit Sidhu brought out his wife, Swaran Kaur, in 1956, to live in Grafton. She often had to stay on her own as Gurmit worked in gangs on the sugarcane farms.
The Punjabi women who arrived in the early fifties were in the main young brides in their early twenties. Their husbands, the sons in our story, had spent many years in Australia. These sons had briefly visited the Punjab to marry and return. Therefore, in the main these women knew little of their husbands. As is Punjabi custom, most had been living in extended families in their husbands' villages without their spouses, so for many of them the arrival in Australia was the start of their married lives. They had to endure the trials of marriage, household chores and childbirth in an unfamiliar land with strange customs far removed from all that was familiar and without the rituals and customs culturally associated-ed with these events.
My interviewees all spoke about the prestige attached to having husbands who were in a foreign land and, although they were filled with fear to leave their families and friends, there was also a certain romanticized idea of the "fortunate" life the new country would offer. Most of the women were also aware that in this country they were wholly dependent on their husbands. Their husbands were everything to them and they all accepted and recognised this fact. The following statement reflects these sentiments of the pioneer women:
In those days, we weren't anything without the men. Our parents had chosen them to give our hand in marriage. We had their blessing. And as such, we had nothing but the utmost respect and regard for them and all they did. These days women have everything and forget just what the husband is in our culture - Sarjeet Kaur Thandi
The concept of the fortunate life that the new country would allegedly offer and its illusory nature perhaps explains why most of my interviewees were disappoint-ed at first with life in Australia. They had expected it would be better and they found that it was far different from what they had anticipated. Most significantly, they lacked the support of friends and kinsfolk.
When I first arrived in Gordonvale, in the early hours of the morning, I saw tall, blackened men walking in a group, like some unholy caricatures. But I was told that these were our men and they had just finished a shift on the cane fields and were covered in soot from the burning of the cane. I was scared that this was what Australia offered - An early bride of the village.
In the main the first Punjabi women in the area lived lonely, isolated, frugal lives. They were left in the house when the men went to work, with little to do except housework. They did not know the English language and this was perhaps the main source of their loneliness. In some cases, the non-Punjabi women attempted friendships with the Punjabis. My interviewees spoke about these neighbours and farmers' wives teaching knitting, embroidery and the names of various household items and basic greetings. However, although there was respect and regard for the non-Punjabis, these friendships, in the absence of a common language and culture, did not progress beyond the most perfunctory stage. This was in sharp contrast to the warmth, closeness and friendliness of compact Punjabi villages where the walls of houses join together and being alone is uncommon.
All my interviewees said that the early years were very hard because everything was so different. Their dwellings were in the main on isolated banana farms or, in Queensland, on sugarcane farms. Besides this isolation, what made life so difficult was the lack of facilities in what had been makeshift bachelor abodes. The women spoke about having few utensils, having to light fires to heat water for bathing and having to cook and wash clothes using the old washing coppers. There was a lack of refrigeration and the milk was kept cool by hanging it in a bucket of cold water which had to be changed a few times each day. One of my interviewees spoke with great pride about the first refrigerator that they had been able to buy. Some accepted their life in Australia as a force beyond their control:
Our forefathers came because that is what destiny had ordered, that is the way things were to be and that is why we are here - Rattan Kaur
Those who arrived in North Queensland spoke about their dependence on the non-Punjabi farmers for whom their husbands worked. After the men left for work at the crack of dawn, the Punjabi women were left alone until dark, their only contact being with the owners on whose farms they lived. It was these non-Punjabis who did so much for the women. My interviewees spoke about how they took their shopping lists and bought the groceries and were the ones the women turned to when babies were due.
When I knew the baby was coming, I went to the farmer's house with my bag packed and in gestures explained that the baby was coming. She was able to take me to the hospital - An early bride of the village
One of the activities that broke the loneliness for the newly arrived brides in North Queensland were the sat sangats that Teja Singh held at his house to mark religious occasions in the Sikh calendar.
Then, the few families would gather at his house, and he would have kirtan and we shared langar. They were the best days and our friendship will always be remembered by those special occasions - Sarjeet Kaur Thandi.
All the women agreed that things were better in Woolgoolga when more women came. It was then that they all accepted that they were in Australia to stay. Once they had acquired their own land for bananas, their own homes, had babies and were able to visit other Punjabi women, they started to regard Australia as home. They were able to help on the banana farms making the wooden packing cases and packing the fruit. This certainly helped break the everyday monotony of household chores and the associated loneliness.
We were blessed by God, that after the harshness, we have found a good life in Woolgoolga. God always brings peace after the hardships - An early bride of the village.
It was different to now. In those days, everyone was very close friends. The Punjabis in the village of Woolgoolga were our kinsmen, our families, our brothers and sisters [in the absence of all the kinships so readily available in the Punjab]. We were everything to each other - Gurmej Kaur Atwal.
Although these shy young Punjabi brides tried to embrace life with all of its difficulties in their new country, there was a very strong adherence to the customs and requirements of the homeland. In early photographs of these women, now in their seventies, one often sees them in Western-style dress but with scarves tied on their heads. As some lived in the same houses as fathers-in-law they were required to cover their heads out of respect, as is mandatory for any young bride in the Punjab.
A highlight for the Punjabis newly settled in Woolgoolga was the Grafton show, when all the Punjabi families would travel together to Grafton. The women would talk and the children play in the park while the men all enjoyed a drink at the corner pub. For the author, the quiet historic streets of Grafton evoke thoughts of the lives the forefathers lived there. Some families today make it an annual event to attend the Jacaranda Festival in Grafton.
During this period, there were two Muslim families who also settled in Woolgoolga. Their forefathers had arrived from the Punjab at the same time as the
early Sikh Punjabis but had, in the main, been based around the Lismore area. Jallal Dean, from village Kariha, near Nawanshahr, joined his father in Australia in 1936and moved from Lismore to settle in Woolgoolga in 1952. Ghulam Gouns was a market gardener and his son, Ghulam Ahmed, born near Jalandhar, joined his father in Australia in 1950 and moved from Lismore to settle in Woolgoolga in1962. Both families have good relations and friendships with the Punjabi Sikhs dating back to cutting cane together on the Clarence and the early settlement years inWoolgoolga.39 By 1960, 26 Punjabi men and to adult women were living in Woolgoolga and West Korora."
In these early years in Woolgoolga, the establishment of these Punjabi families was, to a large extent, made possible with the friendship and support of non-Punjabis in the community The most prominent of these were William (Billy)Richards and Charles Newman. Both men, as discussed earlier, came from the Northern Rivers district where they had connections with Punjabis. As we have seen, the Newmans and Richards were the first to employ Punjabis on their banana plantations.
William Richards was of great help to a number of the early settlers. He found jobs for them, assisted them with any necessary paperwork, kept records of their monies and helped some with loans to buy land. His premises became a general service depot for employment and other benefits. Richards spoke very warmly of these early arrivals and said they never let him down; they were good workers, would tackle any job and were honest, fine people. He remembered Luke, working in the back of his store filling up jam jars, weighing onions and things like that ... Marie de Lepervanche (based on an interview with Billy Richards in 1970).
Billy Richards influenced my father a lot. He helped him to adapt to Western society, influenced him to bring his family - Mon-Ark Singh
Another non-Punjabi who provided much assistance to the Punjab community in the early years was Don Clinch. Whereas Charles Newman and Billy Richards had assisted with employment, it was to Don Clinch, as the local pharmacist and real estate agent, that the Punjabis turned for help with matters such as buying real estate and dealing with official correspondence, especially with the Department of Immigration in relation to the sponsoring of wives and families.
I helped the Indians all the time. They would come in with forms for me to help them complete. There was a lot of immigration work, especially with applications to bring their families. I used to be able to introduce them for representations with the local member of Parliament - Don Clinch
During the 19505, instead of working for the Australians, the Punjabis gradually began to buy their own farms. They usually bought small plots in partnership with relatives or close friends often Billy Richards was a partner. The Punjabis helped each other with interest-free loans and Richards also gave financial support to the Punjabis. As it was possible to make a living from a small holding of bananas supplemented with seasonal cane cutting in Harwood, the Punjabis were able to buy more land and acquire houses.
Arrival of Punjabis from Queensland
As we have already seen, the early Punjabis had a presence in Queensland, mainly in the Gordonvale area. After World War II, some of these Punjabis decided to settle in Australia and brought out their wives and children. They were mainly employed in seasonal work cutting sugar cane, although some also came to Murwillumbah to work in the bananas. They were all close friends.
I travelled between Gordonvale and Murwillunnbah depending on what work was available - Mohan Singh Thandi
In the early sixties, of the present day Woolgoolga community, the ones in Queensland were Gurdeb [Dave] Singh Narwal; Tara, Nasib and Teja Singh Grewal; Sohan and Mohan Thandi; Gurbax Atwal and his nephew Randhir [Barry] Hundle; my father, Narranjan Singh; and then the Malhi brothers, Frederick and William, would come for seasonal cane work - Amarjit Singh More
In the late fifties we all lived and worked where we could. The highlight was when all the Indians would get together and we would drink and eat. There were the Mathi brothers - Frederick, William and Jimmy, NarranjanMore, Gurbax Atwal, Barry Hundle and Harjeet Dhadlie - Nasib Singh Grewal
The Punjabis in Gordonvale knew about Woolgoolga and knew that their compatriots had moved there to work in bananas. They also knew that there were good opportunities offered in this industry. Some from the Clarence continued to cut cane seasonally in Gordonvale (e.g. Gurmit Sidhu, the Arkan brothers and Harjeet Dhadlie) and therefore the networks were maintained and information exchanged.
In 1956, we [Frederick (Dara), William (Khartara) and James (Gulzar)]returned to Australia from India. We worked in Sydney and Gordonvale. In the late fifties, I visited Woolgoolga and worked for Booja Singh - Frederick (Dora) Singh MaIhi.
On my arrival in Gordonvale in 1950, I heard about Woolgoolga and that some Punjabis were there. Later, I came to Woolgoolga and stayed with Gurdeb [Dave] Narwal and Lal Singh in Korora. It was great to visit some Punjabis. Then I moved here in the early 1960s - Randhir (Barry) Hundle
My father [Narranjan Singh] knew about Woolgoolga and that there were Punjabis there. In the late 50s, my uncle [Channan Singh] used to come to Woolgoolga and work for Eric Bennett. There were discussions between my uncle and father about the opportunities in Woolgoolga - Amarjit Singh More
In 1963, I moved to Woolgoolga. Narranjan and I were old friends in Queensland, and Narranjan persuaded me to come to Woolgoolga. He was a great help in the early years. I bought my house from Billy Richards's son-in-law, Ken Prince - Gurbax Singh Atwal
The work available to these men in Queensland was only seasonal and as such only offered an irregular income. As with the Punjabis who had moved to Woolgoolga from the Clarence, there was also a desire on the part of those based in Gordonvale to secure a reliable living, particularly as some of these men had also brought out their families from India. 4' In contrast to most of those doing season-al work in Queensland, the Punjabis in the Woolgoolga-Coffs Harbour area were buying their own land, bringing out families and buying houses. It was obvious to the Punjabis in Gordonvale, from their visits to Woolgoolga and from their friend-ships, that the banana industry in NSW did offer good opportunities. Thus, in the1960s, the second wave of Punjabis came to settle in Woolgoolga.
The Punjabis in Queensland had thus far and in the main been familiar with the dairying and sugarcane industries. These required large amounts of money to set up. In contrast, bananas only required a small outlay and they were not seasonal. They provided an income all year round and they were easy to set up. In 1962, some of the Punjabis in northern Queensland moved to Woolgoolga. They came in a group - Amarjit Singh More.
In 1967, Jagoo Singh Atwal and others came to Gordonvale for collection of donations to build a gurdwara. They told us about the good living that could be made on the bananas. We visited Woolgoolga in 1968 and, in 1969,my brother Teja decided to move to Woolgoolga, and I followed in 1970 -Nasib Singh Grewal
Unlike the earlier arrivals from NSW, those from Queensland seemed to be able to establish themselves in bananas without resort to co-ownership arrangements."
Establishment of the gurdwaras
By the mid-196os, the settlers had established the means of a livelihood, in that they had bought land, established banana plantations, acquired houses and earned a regular income. Although friendships were very close and the men met regularly and the women visited each other, there were no formal Punjabi cultural or religious institutions or structures during the early 1960s.
Nevertheless, religion played a central part in their lives. Religious occasions were honored in celebration through gurpurbs (celebrations of events associated with the lives of the Gurus) and akhand paths. These were held in individual homes, with Baba Ram Singh often bringing the Guru Granth Sahib from Teven for the ceremonies. These occasions provided a welcome opportunity for the community to get together socially, as well as to meet for religious purposes.
However, community members were acutely aware of their duty to establish a permanent house of worship, a gurdwara, essential to Sikhs in their way of life.
Every one of us in Woolgoolga at that time recognised the need for a place of worship - Gurbaksh Singh
As a kid I remember the discussions for the gurdwara. There was talk for many years to have a gurdwara - Mon-Ark Singh
Therefore, with immense goodwill and the agreement of all the Punjabi families in the village of Woolgoolga in 1965-66, it was decided that donations would be gathered to establish a gurdwara. A committee was formed and donations of kloo (s200) per family were collected. However, the matter did not proceed amicably and soon some of the donation cheques were returned. All my interviewees spoke about the returning of the cheques as signifying the first signs of disagreement over establishing a gurdwara and the beginning of factional splits in Woolgoolga.
Why are there two gurdwaras in Woolgoolga today? In my interviews with the elders some of whom were part of the original committee, others who were not part of the committee and still others who were young boys at the time I asked about the reason for the split into two groups and the subsequent building of the two gurdwaras. All of my interviewees readily and passionately spoke about that time and gave their explanations. Essentially, I concluded that there was no single overriding reason for the split into two groups. Rather, the split reflected conflict between personalities and between groups with allegiances from earlier years.'" However, 30 years later, it is still interesting to explore the reasons pro-vided by the elders for the building of the two gurdwaras. These included:
- Not everyone was on the original committee. The opinion of those already in Woolgoolga at the time was that the new crowd from Queensland were "upstarts”. And the newcomers felt that the earliest settlers in Woolgoolga were used to "ruling the roost". There was disagreement, therefore, when some of the first Punjabi settlers in Woolgoolga were not included in the original committee.
- There was disagreement among those in the original committee about the structure of the planned gurdwara, with some wanting it to be like a Western place of worship(to cater to non-Punjabi guests in an Australian setting) and others wanting it to be a traditional Punjabi gurdwara:" The group supporting the traditionalist view broke away from the original group and formed a second committee intent on building its own gurdwara. However, other interviewees claimed that these distinctions about what the gurdwaras would look like actually arose after the split itselt.45
- Among some members of the community, there were sensitivities over status differences between those deriving from bara pind (big villages) and those from chhote pind (small villages) in the Punjab." Some claimed that they should be on the committee by virtue of being from bara pind; others felt that these sorts of considerations had no place in community discussions about building a religious place, as the Sikh religion taught the equality of mankind. In point of fact, this could hardly have formed a major basis of the split as, with the exception of two families in the First Sikh Temple group," all other members of both committees were from the chhote pind network of Doaba.
When the conflict occurred there were attempts at reconciliation and mediation between the two groups, but these failed. When the cheques were returned, some families did not wish to retract their donation because they felt strongly that, since the donation had been earmarked for religion, it must be used as such. As a result, there were discussions about sending this money as a donation to a gurdwara in the Punjab. However, some decided that, rather than accept their cheques back, it was better that the gurdwara project proceed as intended.
The party that did not take back their cheques thus formed a committee to construct gurdwara. The committee consisted of Punjabi and non-Punjabi members, including Doug Whitton (headmaster at Woolgoolga Central School), Noel Hall (publican),
Narranjan Singh More, Gurbax Singh Atwal, William Singh Mullee, Piara Singh Gosaland Jagir Singh Sodhi. The First Sikh Temple in Australia, as it was eventually named, opened its doors in 1968. It was built at 6 Hastings Street, Woolgoolga!' The temple was a modest structure built along the lines of a Western place of worship!' Its first granthi(a reader of the Guru Granth Sahib, i.e. priest) was a woman, Surjit Kaur (Narwal)."
At the opening ceremony, the theme was peace and tolerance:
Sikhism can serve a part in bringing about closer contact between different nations and faiths, so that one day our children may live in a united world ...Sikhism should be a bridge between Muslim and Hindu faiths ... Today all mankind stands in need of such a bridge ... For us it is Sikhism. The bridge today must be erected so the strivings of man for peace and tolerance between nations, and harmony between individual men and women, may be achieved ...Gurbax Singh Atwal, a committee member speaking at the opening of the First Sikh Temple in Woolgoolge
The group critical of the First Sikh Temple people had also decided to build their own gurdwara, with the aim of having a prominent and traditional structure adhering to Sikh principles. The committee members for what was to become the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara were Jagoo Singh Atwal, Charlie Singh Husna, Maluke Singh Arkan, Channan Singh, Pritim Singh and Booja Singh.
Land for this gurdwara was bought at 13 River Street on a prominent site on the approach to Woolgoolga. Don Clinch was responsible for securing the site through his negotiations with the non-Punjabi owners who had been unwilling to sell it to Punjabis. A sahaj path (a complete reading of the Guru Granth Sahib performed intermittently) was celebrated in a marquee in 1969 to mark this occasion, and thenishan sahib (Sikh flag) was erected on the site. Giani Bhagat Singh Lalli, a staunch Sikh, officiated at the opening." The committee was very passionate about designing the gurdwara along traditional lines, evident in the domes and arches and the seating on the floor. The gurdwara was opened on January 3, 1970."
If we examine the membership of the two groups that were formed for the building of the gurdwaras, we can see that they reflect the bonds of friendships and networks that developed between the settler sons in the respective areas where they were first located when they arrived in Australia. Decades later, it was those ties, developed through the pioneer years, that affected the dynamics of community life in Woo1goolga.54
Today, over three decades after the gurdwaras were built, most Sikhs in Woolgoolga attend community and private functions, celebrations and worship at both gurdwaras. The main sentiment expressed was that the conflict was in the past and that this is the present. Today people know which families have over the years been aligned with the First Sikh Temple or the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, but in the main this does not affect friendships in the community. There is simply an acceptance, by most, that "it's just the way things are". Some of the sons and daughters of the village are actively trying to break down the legacy of the split.
Citizenship rights
The legal and citizenship status of the Punjabis in the early decades of Federated Australia was that they were British subjects. Then, under the Nationality and Citizenship Act of 1948, British subjects who wanted to become Australian citizens had to apply for registration in much the same way as aliens had to apply for naturalisation, with the minister having the power to grant or refuse registration without giving any reason. Until 1956, Government policy was not to grant registration to British subjects of non-European background, even to those long domiciled here whose Australian-born children were Australian citizens.55 Indeed, some of my interviewees, although they had children born in Australia, did not have Australian citizenship.
Department of Immigration statistics indicate that only 1,500 British subjects of non-European origin had been registered as Australian citizens by 1965.56 In1966, the Government decided to abandon the 15-year-residence requirement and allow certain non-Europeans to apply for permanent residency and naturalisation after only five years of residence. But it was not until 1973 that non-European British subjects could obtain citizenship after 12 months like other British subjects.57
Although a few Punjabis obtained Australian citizenship in the 1950s, most of the settlers and their children did not gain citizenship until the late 196os and early1970s. Since many had been proud of being British subjects, committing to Australian citizenship indicated a new sense of confidence in their future in Australia.
By 1970, the Punjabi Sikh community in Woolgoolga had become firmly established. They had made a claim on Australia as their home by buying land and houses, by establishing family life, by building their gurdwaras as social and religious centres and by taking out Australian citizenship. They had arrived, but under the prevailing assimilation models of Australian social policy, they were still learning how to belong fully in Australian society.
31 Cecil Gordon Winfield was the Member for Clarence in the NSW Government from 1938 to 1955. He was born and educated in Southgate.
32 As a sojourner, Oudham Singh lived and worked in the Grafton district between 1911 and 1947. His sons Mulkeet, Harjeet and Maluke became the settler sons and maintained the early friendships with non-Punjabis in Grafton.
33 See the contributions of Jean Robinson and Earl Richards in Community Voices at the end of this chapter for accounts of Labu Singh's story.
34 It is clear from information available that Labu Singh was the first. The others arrived about the same time but the order in which they arrived is not clear. It is also known that other Punjabis worked in the Woolgoolga-Coffs Harbour area before this time (see Vivian Slater's contribution in Community Voices at the end of this chapter).
35 After World War II, the British were eager to grant independence to India. Negotiations on British departure led the Muslim League to press for a separate Muslim state on the Indian subcontinent. Ultimately, the British agreed to the establishment of the separate nation-states of India and Pakistan. Consequently, at Independence, the British territory was divided. The Punjab was divided, with a mass movement of Muslims to the Pakistan side and Hindus and Sikhs to the Indian side. Partition was traumatic with much loss of life, property and homes.
36 Whereas the fathers, as sojourners, were remitting their earnings back to the Punjab, the sons began to think about the possibility of investing their savings in Australia.
37 For example, in the 1950s and 1960s the following brothers travelled regularly between the Punjab and Woolgoolga - Jagir and Gurbachan Sodhi, Narranjan and Channan More, Kabul Benning and Charlie Husna, Harjeet and Maluke Arkan.
38 The increased prestige of international migration was displayed in the form of plates on the ancestral house in the Punjab naming the family as Australian.
39 Another link between the Sikhs and Muslims in Woolgoolga was that it had been the Local Muslim travel agent in the Punjab who had originally helped many of the sojourners in the early part of the century with travel documents and tickets.
40 The men were: Labu, Moti and his sons Charlie and Kabul; Booja Singh; the Arkan boys - Mulkeet, Harjeet
41 Gurbax Atwal had brought out his wife, Kithar Kaur, their daughter, Randhir, and son, Piara, as well as his nephew Randhir (Barry) Hundle, in 1950. Mohan Singh Thandi had brought out his wife Sarjeet Kaur in 1958. The brothers Nasib and Teja Singh Grewal had brought out their wives Harbhajan Kaur and Ranjit Kaur in the mid-1950s.
42 Examples of such partnerships have been given earlier in this chapter.
43 Although all communities have their splits, factionalism is particularly common to Jat Sikh communities world-wide. And this factionalism commonly manifests itself in community political manoeuvring for control of the management committees of gurdwaras.
44 Members of the Punjabi community in this era were very proud to call Australia home and keen to maintain positive relationships with the "host society". Gestures of goodwill and respect were accorded to non-Punjabis in all dealings, hence the perceived need to cater to the comfort of non-Punjabi guests who were also members of the management committee of the First Sikh Temple.
45 Interestingly chairs were not in the First Sikh Temple at the time of its opening, but were borrowed from the school at this time for the comfort of visiting dignitaries. They then remained until their removal in 1992.
46 Traditionally, certain villages in Doaba had more prestige as a result of their more demanding izzat requirements. Therefore, those of the bara pind felt themselves superior to those of the chhote plod and did not marry their daughters to chhote pind villages. See Chapter 1 for details.
47 The two exceptions were a family from Malwa region and another from bara pind.
48 The land that the First Sikh Temple is built on was in the process of being bought by Manga Singh Atwal, whentalk of the temple began. He graciously allowed the sale to go to the committee.
49 Chairs are controversial in gurdwaras. Chairs were once present in gurdwaras in Stockton, California, and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Chairs were ultimately removed from the First Sikh Temple in 1992, as they had been earlier in the US and Canada.
50 The appointment of a female granthi was itself a rather radical move. Female grant his are still a rarity with-in the Panth, despite the fact that women are nominally the ritual equals of men. Members of the First Sikh Temple sometimes point to this appointment as an example of their group being the more "progressive" segment of the local Punjabi Sikh community.
51 Cited in Neil Yeates, Woolgoolga: The History of a Village, rev. ed., Banana coast Printers, Coffs Harbour, 1994.
52 Bhagat Singh Lalli was an original son who came to Australia in 1937. He had returned to the Punjab at the beginning of World War II, and only returned to Australia with his family in 1967. He was from a staunch Sikh family, had acquired a religious education and had dedicated his life to Sikh religious work - hence the honorific"giani" by which he was known. He was also politically active in the Punjab as a district leader of the Akali Dal, the Sikh political party.
53 Both the First Sikh Temple and the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara later built community halls adjacent to the gur-dwaras, with kitchen facilities to cater for langar and the secular needs of the community.
54 Within the First Sikh Temple grouping, we find mainly the families from North Queensland, with two exceptions. The Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara group, on the other hand, includes mainly families from the Clarence, in the Northern Rivers of NSW, again with two exceptions. Newcomers who came in the early 1970s were recruited to one or the other faction based upon relationships in the Punjab or on patronage extended in Woolgoolga.
55 Palfreeman, p. 106.
56 Palfreeman, p. 62.
57 Palfreeman, p. 72.
