South Africa province where Indians were banned for over 100 yrs gets Gandhi bust

Johannesburg: In the Free State province of South Africa, where Indians were banned by apartheid legislation for more than a century, a larger-than-life bust of Mahatma Gandhi now stands proudly at the Anglo-Boer War Museum in the provincial capital of Bloemfontein.

The bust in bronze by Padma Bhushan Awardee Ram Vangi Sutar was donated to the museum by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations.

It was unveiled on April 11 by Indian High Commissioner Prabhat Kumar alongside a documentary and a book on the hitherto untold story of the Indian involvement in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902.

Until Nelson Mandela was elected the first democratic president of South Africa in 1994, the province previously known as Orange Free State debarred Indians by statute.

Even those travelling through the province to reach the coastal city of Durban where their forebears first landed as sugarcane farm indentured labourers had to secure advance permits to do so.

“The War Museum in Bloemfontein has the South African Anglo-Boer War as its central theme. This war involved South Africans of all races, including white, African, coloured and Indian. The museum has embarked on a project to give long overdue acknowledgement to Indian involvement, both by South African Indians and those from India, by means of this publication,” said Director of the War Museum in Bloemfontein Tokkie Pretorius.

“The transcript discusses the painful story of Indian involvement in the war now referred to as the South African war, which was previously omitted from history. The journal reflects the roles played by Indians and troops that arrived specifically for the war, highlighting reconciliation and nation-building efforts. It is very necessary to emphasise the importance of acknowledging the whole truth in reconciliation and nation-building,” Pretorius added.

“The shared pain of other nationalities involved in the war is now acknowledged. The journal tells a story that was never told anywhere in the world. Indians faced bias and segregation during the war. The narrative is changing, with recognition finally given to Indian contributions,” Pretorius said.

The book titled ‘Caught in the Crossfire – Indian involvement in the South African War’ includes a chapter focusing on the British Indian Army that served in South Africa during the War.

It is a reprint of a monograph by the late Dr TG Ramamurthi, originally published in India and reprinted with permission arranged by the Indian Consulate in Durban.

While it is commonly known that Gandhi during his time as a lawyer in South Africa mobilised Indians to serve as stretcher-bearers during the war, little else has been recorded about their involvement and treatment during the war between the British colonial empire and the Boers who were fighting to establish separate states in South Africa.

“The publication regarding the Indian involvement in the war will foster a new outlook on a subject that has hitherto been neglected for years and will bring to light the sacrifices and hardships Indian people experienced during the war, especially the South African Indians,” said Indian High Commissioner Prabhat Kumar.

Commending the work done so far, Kumar suggested that the project be extended to more research about prisoners of wars in India and their experiences, especially at the prisoner of war camps that were set up in India at the behest of the British government.

“(This) would not only help us understand the war comprehensively but also to appreciate the role India played during that time,” Kumar said.

The Anglo-Boer War was the biggest colonial war ever fought in southern Africa, with over 500,000 soldiers from the British Empire, including India, brought to the country.