Attacks on Indians

The history of South African Indians includes episodes of severe anti-Indian violence and systematic state-sponsored discrimination. Confronting this history honestly is essential to understanding the full experience of the Indian community in South Africa.

The 1949 Durban Riots

On 13 January 1949, violence erupted in Durban between African and Indian residents — the worst episode of inter-communal violence in South African urban history. Within hours of a minor altercation near the city bus rank, organised attacks on Indian homes, businesses, and individuals spread across the city. Over three days, 142 people were killed — the majority Indian — more than a thousand were injured, and approximately 1,200 Indian homes and 550 Indian-owned shops were destroyed or looted.

The Group Areas Act and Forced Removals

The Group Areas Act of 1950 constituted a form of structural violence against Indian South Africans. Indian families who had lived for generations in established urban neighbourhoods — Cato Manor, Pageview in Johannesburg, District Six in Cape Town — were compelled to abandon their homes, businesses, and community institutions and relocate to distant, underdeveloped townships such as Chatsworth, Phoenix, and Lenasia. The financial losses were immense; compensation was minimal or absent.

The 1985 Inanda Violence

In August 1985, during a period of intense political unrest, violence broke out in Inanda, north of Durban. Indian homes, temples, and businesses were attacked and burned. The Gandhi Settlement at Phoenix — the historic farm established by Mahatma Gandhi in 1904 — was among the targets. Dozens of Indian families were displaced.

Resilience and Reconciliation

The Indian community responded to violence and discrimination not with despair but with remarkable resilience — rebuilding homes, reopening businesses, re-establishing institutions, and continuing to participate in the political struggle for a non-racial South Africa. SAICAS believes that an honest reckoning with this history is a necessary part of preserving Indian South African heritage in its full complexity.