The history of a subcontinent in South Africa

18 April 2010 - 02:00 By Omar Badsha and Jon Soske
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During the latter half of 2010, a series of events commemorating the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the first Indian indentured labourers in Natal will take place across South Africa.

The preparations have already inspired widespread debate - particularly about the extent to which the celebration of "Indian contributions" to South African history falsely isolates the lives and struggles of Indian South Africans?

Does celebrating an Indian past homogenize a story divided in many ways - by class, language, religion, caste, political loyalty and province? Who is authorised to speak as and for "the Indian South African community"? What role will individuals from other groups, particularly Africans, play in organising these celebrations? What histories are in danger of being forgotten?

For the most part it appears that the "150 years" committees have adopted one of three strategies.

The first tack - derived from a persistent sense that existing histories have marginalised Indians - centres on a heroic narrative of "Indian contributions" to the anti-apartheid struggle and nation building. Concerned by the possibility of an anti-Indian backlash among certain sections of the ruling party, these organisers hope to counter increasing rhetorical attacks against minorities by establishing the centrality of Indians to the struggle for national liberation.

The second approach seeks to highlight a political tradition of non-racial unity in order to demonstrate the ways that "Indian history" is inseparable from a broader legacy of oppression and common social struggle.

This strategy emphasises a broader South African, rather than an Indian, identity by celebrating political leaders, like Dr MN Naicker, who were critical to building the multiracial Congress Alliance of the 1950s.

A third outlook largely avoids the question of South African Indian history by shifting the focus to the past and present relations between India and South Africa: a celebratory narrative of bilateralism that risks sidestepping an open discussion on race and racism in post-apartheid South Africa.

This emphasis on India's contributions to the anti-apartheid struggle speaks to a broad desire to accentuate connections between India and the diaspora.

But these narratives do not confront the most difficult issue facing SA's historians: the urgent need to desegregate the past and write histories that transcend the racial framing of "African", "Indian", and "coloured" - without denying the persistent divisions and differences among those oppressed by colonialism and apartheid.

The central problem with the one-sided celebration of "Indian contributions" is that it rests on the image of a collective, racial heritage - an assumption that often feeds into different forms of anti-Indian racism.

As with every other "national group", some individuals gave their lives to end apartheid while others collaborated with the regime; some worked to overcome racial divisions while many enriched themselves by exploiting other sectors of the oppressed.

Versions of history that whitewash these intractable realities breed cynicism.

A more adequate history would seek to accomplish four things.

First, it would do justice to the immense diversity of South Asian cultures and experiences in South Africa. It would include Indian slaves in the Western Cape as well as indentured labour in Natal and "Passengers" (migrants who came of their own accord) throughout the country, exploring the many convergences and divergences between Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi-speaking and other communities. It would also honestly address prejudices and class hierarchies that continue to exist between different sections of the Indian population.

Second, a more rigorous history would openly discuss the forms of mutual distrust, stereotypes, and even racism that persist throughout South African society.

In the context of the "150 years celebration", special attention should be given to the history of African/Indian racial dynamics in Natal. Within the anti-apartheid movement, the issue of racism among the oppressed was either taboo or superficially handled. The assumption was sometimes that, after liberation, the problems of chauvinism and inequality would solve themselves.

Under the new dispensation, anti-Indian or anti-African prejudice within black communities has never been fully confronted in a sustained discussion that draws in intellectuals, activists, unionists and community members from across the racial divide.

Finally, a more critical history would explore the failures and successes of past efforts to build social and political unity.

However, the anxieties around "150 years" are not just about history, but also reflect the rapidly changing political situation, particularly the aggressive assertion of a racialist nationalism by sections of the ANC Youth League and its open attacks on minorities.

Though anti-Indian attitudes have a long history in the youth league, stretching back to Anton Lembede, this resurgence has its basis in the rise of an aspirant African bourgeoisie, which remains heavily dependent on the state and seeks to weaken constraints on its ability to further accumulate wealth.

Hence, it employs racial demagoguery to attack sections of the alliance it perceives as political obstacles, particularly the SACP and Cosatu.

Unfortunately, the youth league's foetid soundings ring true to many ears precisely because of the enormous privilege that white, Indian and - to a much lesser extent - coloured South Africans tenaciously maintain as groups.

Until very recently, the response to this rhetorical onslaught has been rather muted both within and outside the ANC (besides, of course, from the Afrikaner right). The events organised for "150 years" thus present a substantial opportunity.

They should strive to broaden from a narrowly "Indian" discussion, draw in the broadest possible range of participants, and use the rich and varied histories of Indians in South Africa to confront the challenge posed by the new anti-minority chauvinism.

Otherwise, the "150 years" celebrations run the risk of feeding back into this very phenomenon by once again reiterating sweeping, racial narratives that artificially partition South Africa's complicated and entangled past.

  • Badsha is head of SA History. Soske is a historian
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