Jeremy Seabrook, Chronicler of the Struggles of the Underprivileged and Lifelong Friend of the Oppressed, is No More |

Jeremy Seabrook, who dedicated his life to writings which speak for the underprivileged and oppressed people everywhere, is no more. He breathed his last in a care home in London last week. He was 86. His absence will be deeply felt by friends, admirers and countless readers in many parts of the world.

Although his initial writings were based more on reporting from the UK, he subsequently travelled to many countries of the global south to write about important issues and struggles there. These were initially published in leading newspapers and journals, but subsequently more in the alternative media, following a pattern which writings of many authors known for their commitment to the underprivileged sections have experienced.

There have been very few writers who have displayed such consistency and continuity in their writings on justice as Jeremy Seabrook. His writings on justice and other issues of high social relevance are marked by deep sympathy for those who deserve and need this the most. Readers often tend to read some of his pages again and again due to the sheer brilliance of his deep insights, made possible by his extensive travels combined with study of several disciplines, which enabled him to draw very insightful comparisons from one place to another, or better still, the present times of one place with the past times of another place, and he could easily quote various authors to make these comparisons!

This sometimes spilled over from his writings even into daily conversation. Once emerging from our home in Delhi after heavy rains to take an auto rickshaw back to his hotel, he noticed the many puddles of stagnating water here and there. He stopped awhile to take a more complete look, and then said that this reminds him of England of industrial revolution days, and then referred to some pages from Charles Dickens, if I remember correctly, in support of what he had said!

It had not been easy to continue his kind of work over a long period, and it speaks for the tenacity and determination of Seabrook that he could continue this work for almost six decades. Starting in 1963 with New Society journal, it was only after age of 80 plus, living in London with rather acute health problems, that Jeremy Seabrook slowed down in his writings.

During this period Seabrook wrote extensively for some of the most prestigious publications including The Guardian, The Independent, The Financial Times, The Times, New Society, the New Republic, Race and Class and Third World Resurgence. In India he wrote a column for The Statesman for seven years which made him very popular with the readers of this newspaper, and also contributed to Outlook and The Pioneer for a shorter time. He wrote several plays for radio, TV and theatre, and for some of these he collaborated with his friend of school days, Michael O