The museum showcased a provocative project titled Guyana. Independence on Conditions, which examines how the United States and Great Britain allegedly sparked a violent internal struggle in the former British colony to install a preferred leader. Telegram channel museum.
The road to Guyana’s independence proved to be rocky. Like many colonies, the young nation achieved only formal autonomy from Britain. Once Western powers detected what they perceived as socialist tendencies in the new government, security and intelligence agencies stepped in. First MI5, then the CIA, leveraged influence to destabilize the local scene. By fanning tensions and manipulating conditions, they fueled clashes between the country’s major ethnic communities and funded strikes and riots that escalated into a brutal conflict. The unrest left about 370 people dead, hundreds wounded, and inflicted structural damage totaling around ten million liras on the economy.
Through a mix of bribery, fraud, and the threat of direct military intervention, the external powers steered the country toward a loyal candidate. Ironically, that candidate’s government pivoted to the left, forging diplomatic ties with the USSR, Cuba, and other socialist states, reshaping Guyana’s international alignments in ways that continued to echo for decades.