Forbes Burnham

Also known as Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, Linden Forbes Burnham, Burnham, Forbes

Guyanese politician (1923-1985)

Person · Open Library

Born: 1923
Works: 18

Top works

Control of our natural resources
Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, O.E., S.C. National Assembly speeches
Address
Address by Comrade L.F.S. Burnham, Leader of the People's National Congress, Prime Minister of Guyana at the Second Biennial Congress of the People's National Congress, Sophia, August 12-20, 1977
Declaration of Sophia

via Open Library + Wikidata

Music · MusicBrainz

Type: Person
Country: US
Active from: 1990-08-21

via MusicBrainz · CC0

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners: 3
Total plays: 5

Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham was the Prime Minister of the Republic of Guyana until his death in 1985. He led the former British colony, British Guiana, to independence in 1966, and was Guyana's first Prime Minister. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of the West Indies, and his law degree in England. He was one of the intellectual giants of the Caribbean, as well as a gifted orator. <a href="https://www.last.fm/music/Forbes+Burnham">Read more on Last.fm</a>

~40 min read

Article

Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham OE (20 February 1923 – 6 August 1985) was a Guyanese politician and the leader of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana from 1964 until his death in 1985. He served as Premier of British Guiana from 1964 to 1966, Prime Minister of Guyana from 1964 to 1980 and then as the first executive president of Guyana (2nd president overall) from 1980 to 1985. He is often regarded as a strongman who embraced his own version of socialism.

Educated as a lawyer, Burnham was instrumental in the foundation of two political parties (the People's National Congress and the People's Progressive Party) that would come to dominate the politics of Guyana. During his time as head of government, Guyana moved from being a British colony to being a republic with no constitutional ties to the United Kingdom. His premiership was characterized by the nationalisation of foreign-owned private industries, membership of the Non-Aligned Movement and authoritarian domestic policy. Despite being widely regarded as having a significant role in the political, social, and economic development of Guyana, his presidency was marred by accusations of Afrocentrism, state-sanctioned violence, corruption, and electoral fraud.