NI C . 1949 RIOTS REPORTS AND STATEMENTS ,

4 ., NATAL INDIAN CONGRESS ~':!". - r;'.. .1 " REPORT ON THE DISTURB]INCES IN DURBhN SUBMITTED BY " THE EXECU 'l'IVE TO THE WORKING COMMITTEE MEETING ON SUNDAY, 27th FEBRUARY, 1949.

,(a) COURSE , "" At about 5 p.m. on Thursday the 13th JflnuarY1949, a n incident' at the Indian market, Victoria street, Dlirban took place. ' Rumour spread that an African youth bad been assllultod and killed. Africans in the Victoria street, area and at the non-j~liropea' nBus Rank became engaged and assults on Indian ,bus drivers and, 'Indians generally and the stonin~ of Indian buses, cars' and shops, became widespread. Indiah buses left the rank and there was a transport blockage - workers and residents, both African' and Indian from the' outskirts of town were stranded and , involved in the fast spreading disturbancoE5. By six o'clock the whole 9.rea in and around Victoria Streot Alice Street, Warwick Avenue, Old Dutch ,Rood became a mass (,f panic st:rtcken humanity, witn the constant danger of, and a,c,tual assa'ults of "'!ndians by Africans. As the hours went by and the news spread incidents and assaults took place in area s outside Durban. Over fifty cases of injured Indians were treat­ ed in Hospitals On this day. The Distric't Commandant of Police, stationed at wentworth W9$ contacted i1nd received the first information of tlie distur­ bances from Con~ress officials. The sElme evoniriL?; the Congress Executive met, an inter­ view was arrancied with the Dis,trict Commandant for the fonowing day at 11 a.m~ At the interview officials of Congress discussed vrecautionary measures to be taken and were assured that the Police had the situation under control. '

, ' On Friday the 14th January 1949, disturbances and incidents again: took place from mid-day onwards in the centro of town. By the afternoon, ,the Indian business centre, was the scene of tremendous ,damage, assaults and looti~ ,s. Burnin~ of house.s ', damaging of shops, stonin3 of Ind ian cars and buses and assaults on IndJans, became: widespread in the t;l,fternoon in the outlying are8.1,', 'Qf ~yville, Clairwood, 'Jacobs, and' other suburbs. , Con.gress' offiCia ls in co'-operation wi th 'Mr. Champion of the African National ' CongresS, the Native' Administration Department, and the Police toured the centre of town from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. apPGaling for ,caJ,.m in thedistur,bedareas of' t own. " .!.: ",,: . ' .,' .; ,The Con&iress o.ff1;ces.remaiIied..openthewhOlenl .l.ht , anet was ,8' hi''V·e, of aC,t,iv,lty, f~omthen 0Jlwarc1s , for the next f0W weekli\:'" mehibe'rs: !bei'iig on duty at all hou:rsof the day and .. nir'. ht . The tragic and gruesome events of Briday ni.ght the 14th January, 1949, need not be ~epeated here. N~arly every suburb , and espeoially Cato Manor, Clairwood, Wlalvern, Bella ir, Wentworth, Jacobs, Clare Estate and Pinetown was the scene of devastating damage, death, arson, burning, looting, rape and every c.onceiveable form of destruction, grief and injury. At _ ,4<,~.:~,t::;,: one stage it was estimated that over 300 persons has been killed ,ijI Ind ians by Africans and Africans by the Police. The officia l fi~ures,since ~iven are:­

Deaths l~\l:rl3pean'l'tnale, Indians 50 males 3 females, l\fricans 75 rna les 8 females.

In,jured l~uropeans 30, India ns 685 males 83 fomales, Jlfricans 1056 males, 19 females.

Most of this occurred on Friday ni~ht. . . . /2 ....

_ c~ __~:...... !~ _ _ . f, l,'

- 2 ­

..since- ,Friday night Indians whose' -home-shad 'bee'n burnt, whose families had been attacked, whose property hod been looted and who were in the grip of fear from what they had sutfered, seen and heard, fled and formed themselves into Refugee camps in all centres stretching from Pinejwwn and IsipingO~ ' to Greenwood Park, Durban North, and even as far afield as Stanger and P. M. BurlS. The bulk of the yamps were in Durban ~rid suburbs. On Sunday' it was estima ted thn t there were 58-camps'with a total refugee pop~lation 6f 43,800. The worst was over by the end of the weekend. Isolated incidents took 'place thereaatter but on a very, v,ery small scale. Conl?;ress made anpeals on Satl,lrda,yfor volunteers, and donations • These came forward. Food supp'lies arid medicines were distributed from the Red Cross Headq~arters" injured were tended 'by the St. Johns, Red Cross, the Hospitals and volunteer Indian and European doctors. Hundreds of YO ,lunteers ,E(lropoons and' Indians were drafted to the different camps. Many : ~ook ever on their own, and Coromi t 'bees were ostablished to look after the needs of the r~fugees. 'rhe Congress offices continue,1 its 24 hour daily services regarding s up'erv'is ion , direc tion guidance and Bssis tance, to th'e camps refugees and to the people for their various complaints, ,enquiries, disabilitios etc. The estimated damage to property' is about'a: million pounds; About 260 homes burnt or destroyed; about BO shops burnt or destroyed; about 2,000 families whose ho~es T were looted; and about 400 - 600 familie? rendered 90mpl,tely homeless. ' By Wednesday 19th January 1949, with gradual normality establishing itself, there were s1;Ul15 J 000 refugees in 32 camps. Now there are only those who are completely homeless who are housed in four schools. The remainder have returned to their homes, or are living with friends apd relatives. The main ljroblem in the lnitial stages were the care of the refu~ees, their feeding and clothipg, and other re lief required. Constan$l reports had to ' be, reforred to the Police for the,ir attention. ' Outside'Durban, comparatively Il\inor: di'sturbances took place at P. M. Burg Wherefor a day or tworefugeo C3mps automatically arose, but there was tension in a,lmost every other town and district in Na tal w1th ' few ,incidents whtch were arr,es ted timeous ly. , ,"

...... /3 .... 1 .­

'. .' ~

, J ... .. ,. .:j _. ~ • (b) CAUSES

In its political st~t6m~~t issued on 19th JanuQry, 1949 the Congress placed the ~rime responsibility for t~e disturbances on the Nationalist Government and its. .predecessors in office. Congress stressed the t the basic andf'undnmentnl 'C8:uses pfthe' ;d:i...SJturbanG~·s ;1:tri:3the policies o,f . apartheid and .'se·gregation whd.ch., haNe: :peen raspol1sible for ~'reating racial disharm6ny and which have retarded tho polit1cal, social and eoonomic progresfiof th.e non-E;~ropoanpeople. The African people in particular have been most hard hit under these policies which have led to a sense of frustrat­ ion among them. The terrible housing conditions arid lock of health welfare,and.recreational facilities for Africans in Durban and district accentuated this sense of frustration. There 1s sufficient evidence of this cri~inal neglect of the Africans in the J;l;roome Commission Report of 1947. The comina; of the Nationalist Government into power led to greater attacks on the African people inc~uding a threat of depriving them of even the 1ndirec.trepresentation in the House of Assembly which they enjoy at present. " '1'ha frustrated , Afrioans !ll9de tho Indian a scauen;oat of their grievances. Tha Indian was the easiest targe~ for he has' been chGrac:b8rised by the present Government as a foreign ,element who is .to be,' re,pat,ria,ted and against whom 'a most vile form: of racial propaganda had been carried on leading to the , passing of the Ghetto Act. The use of brute force by .d!u:r opanns .agetnst defenc·aless Indian T,lassive resisters and the prl)achln ,~ of "viol'ent f:l.nti-Indian propaganda by Nationalists, and members of :,the:polit.ioEilfparties, ' including ' cabinet min,is~era , has q;one a ': 16ng way to ti'reate disharmony in lnda-African relationshin.

Viewing th,ed:i,stur.bances in this 'perspective W(j can swniilaTise the 'Oa ·uses. of. the dlsturbances a1;l ' fQJ,.lows:­ ., · ;1 1f .

A .JB8,sicCall~:' .. y ,.: ..1 ;,,;'j, ' L Political; ' economi-cand 'social struc~ure of ,thl''; coun~ry based on discriminatory treatment of the different racial groups. 2. Accentuation of t .his policy by the coming into power of the National.ists who went further than their predec(~ssors in attacking the non-Europeans and their dub):Jlng the Indian people as a foreign element. 3. The frlls tra:tion ot' the Africans reslllt:i.ng 'from' general conditions and particularly from tho lack of proper housing and recreational.facilities.

4. Anti-Indian propaganda (a) by the City Council of. Durban and by tho candidates dla'ing the Council elections 1 (b) by the English speaking and sect5.on 0f the Ba~ltu I Pr(~ss in Durban t t (c) b,v the racialist Europeans of Durban .in whose homes this became a regular topic of conversation and which , was commnnica':ed to the African domestic workers,

B. Immedia.1~~e.§. It he s been alleged in various quarters that the following have been the immediate causes of the riots:­, ;' ...... 1. Objections by Indians t o African applicants for trading

:.-._ ~...... o...--.:L. _.. _ _ ..:,...... _ ~~.... ______~ -- _- 4 ­

B , ilinmed iate Causes

:y,,'" ,[, It has been alleged in various quarters the t the _ j:, ;' , : ,:~ rollowing have been the immedi.ate causes of the riots:­ . "~ .. '., l~ Objections by lndians to African applicants for trading ' ~rid Bus licences.

2. Black rnarketeerin~ by Indian traders 3, Exhorbitant rent charged by Indian l a ndlords ' of African tenants. 4. Attitude of IndiBn men towards African women. 5. The racial arrogance of the Indian veople in their dealings with Africans generally, It is alleged that Indians look upon Africans as inferiors and consequently they get a ra~deal in the buses, in shops, in biosco~es and that they are not admitted in Indiari tea-rooms. These and other grievances of the African people were ventilated at the Joint S. A, I. C. - A. N. C. meetln~. While it is true that in most cases the ultimate responsibiiity rests with the local and c entral authorities to redress these grievances Congress is bound by its policy to see tp.at no Indian vested interests stand in the way of Afri'can \d'evelop­ ment. It is for the Congress to di s c'u$s these mat'ters fully with the African leaders and to take all steps-ne-cessary to remove , Iilny " pin pricks which stand i.Q the way of cordial Indo-Africiirirelationship. The joint meeting has realised the importance ,of , this and asked both thO ,Indian and African Congresses in Natal to meet ' as soon as possible toko further into this question. The Nata), Indian Congress cannct.-:J!ifford to waste any time to tackle thes'e burning issues. .

'"to' \ . '

~ I - 5 ­

(~) REHABILIATION' ,OF VICTIMS. T,he sq-called riots..; whi'ch were ' in fact mass raidn - ' begun on Thursday 13th January, 1949, developed into an orgy of v.iolence and destru0tion on the following ni~ht and thereafter subsided except for minor incidents and :-sporadic outbursts over weekends usually '-in the Cato 1-4anor area. During these raids, thousands of Indian homes werG broke,n into, men, women and ohildren k1-11ed and wounded; houses looted and a farge number of thom burnt to the ground. The disturbances, which broke out in the centre 9f the city of Durban, spread rapidly throughout the arty and Gnvirons and eventually up to P. M. Burg.

On that fateful Friday ni~ht, thG 14th January, 1949 , and immediately thereafter, thousands of families of Indians throughout Durban' fled :fi'om their homes and took refuge at ,the neare,st police stat.ions ' Or gathered in the nearest big bLlild~n.gs which were inths ~ main Indian schools. ' Among the problems that arose in those circumstances were the following:­

{l)Tho rehab:l,.lita~ion of- all those families whos';; homes " i ',i ; were not completely destroyed but whose belon~ings ,',: ,were loo,ted; and " (2)" the housin~and rehabilitation of all those whose houses 'J ,"were burnt ,down and 'whose belona;ings were looted and/'Jr "burnt. ' . ,,', .... "

j ' ~, For the fr*S t few days after Friday, tIle 14th. the . " 1 refugee caDtPs were provi;<:l,ed with .food ' by voluntary p-:.Lfts almost entirely frO'm Indian , sources. Emergency" food', ,clothing ElPC\.medical aid Was alsO provided by the S, A. Red Cross Society and St. John I s Ambulance Brigade. ' , Subsequently, the City Stores of the Durban Municipality took ,over the distribution of food but supplied onl~a few of the camps. All donations of food were divGrted to t~e City Stores inantiqipation of the whole distribution being taken over by them. Afterwards, a certain amount of food pad to be withheld from the City Stores and issued direct to a number of camps not rece-iving supplies. ' On Tuesday "lB,th January, the Mayor convened a, me etin"S at the C,ity Hall to organise the work done by va'do,us voluntary organisation in providing relief. Two committees 'were set up. One to deal with the dispersal and rehabilitation of the temporarily homeless and the other to seYllre the, bQu~ing and rehabilitation of those families ,rendered homelBss';~13Rth those Cbmmi ttei3s 8,ls<;> met ,for thO ,first time on Tuesday tj':ie ' lBth Januar:y 1949. ' , .. ~, The Committee for the homeless decided to bring together all the hO!:'leless families into a fixed number of camns in order to establish the extent Of their problem prior to taking ste ps for the botterhousing of the se people on a more permanent basis. This process was accomplished in less than a week. The next meetin&!; of this Comini ttee was una blato t o ke fUrther measures as the Mayor had instructed theChairi:nEln t o take ns fUrther ;steps in thi s matter until the 'resDonsi bllity of the 80cial VI/elfare Department had been clarified. A week later, the Committee was permitted to resume its efforts t o , rehouse the homeless. It had before it intimation from the;,;: , GoVel'ntnfilnt/f"'" ', ' .~; .'; .. ,I•

- 6 ­ that no Government buildings were available for t:his purD','so.

Eventually after careful inquiry it was found that th(; Naval Gunnery School at Wontworth in tho ownership of the Dl1partment ' of Defence could be made available if the Governr.J.Gnt so wished. Provisional arrangement was made for the storing of the jute bags presently stored in these buildtngs in certain othor plaC8$.

If this scheme should fail for an reaso~ ' [t W3S felt that nearby at Wentworth was certain property that h ~l d been set aside by the Government .for the Natal University College. Though these promis'es wore not wuite as suitable, it was the next best plan. If both the above should fall through, then it was decided to spend a certain amount of money to make. habitable a number of buildin~s scattered in various parts of Durban and to distribute the homeless refugees in these and other places which might be .made available.

We understand that the Gover~ent had infprmed the Mayor that the Naval Gunnery School WflS not available on the 11th instant. The Administrator for Natal had been informed on the 16th February to the same effect. Nothing was done till the meetin~ of this Committee on the 21st instant. '

It has now been decided to spend a certain:~amount of money to make habitable a certain number 01' houses, ;'etc - the third plan~f referred to above~ i [ Ni th rega.rd to the other committee set uJl f'6r the purpose of as,s-isting in the rehabilitation of those whose , hQuses have been damaged and/or whose belongings have boen looted, . this Committee resolved to provide certain absoluto essentials to all these families • . ,' At first, delay was occasioned in fulfilling this duty., owing to the tranllfer of the homeless refugeEls •. . 'rhen there waa delay in procuring the goods. In the meantime, U:u Committee h~id decided to carry out an investigation to asc0rt­ ain the extElllt of its problem. To 'guEjrd against abu.ge, it decided to '(lheckon onG out Of every thirty cases. In the course of this process, the Mayor visited these relief depots established for this purpose and, overriding the docis:ion of this Committee, .ordered that each case be. checked at its home, before relief is is~ue~. . . . This attitude has led toa considellable extent of just'i.riable dissatisfr;iction, Five· weeks after these disturban­ ces, .less than half ,the .familios ·thus affected have received a minimWllof rt3lief. d6mniodities are on order and within the next few weeks, this aspect of relief wi.ll be completed . . ' The proposals made by Congress in respect of relief are contained in a cOmnrehensive letter addressod to the Chairman of the Natal Distress Relief Fund (attached herewith) In conclusion I would like to sug/:1;Gst that the time has come when a plain requo'st mus t be addressed to the Fund asking that an appeal bo made to all sections of the ]Dublic -to contribute to the Fund - Indians cannot be expected to be the solo donors. - .;' I f • I - 7 ­ (dl JUDICIAL COMMISSION OF INQUIRY, The Natal Indian Congress wus one of the first organisations to request the appointment of a judicial commission including in its personnel Indian and African representatives to enquire fully into the disturbances and to make recommendations on ho~ to avoid such disturbances in the future. I A sub-Committee appointed by the Secretariat was r entrusted with the task. of preparing thC:l Congress case for , the commission. I Dr. Malon in liis statement to Parliament made it olear that there would be no non-Europeans in the personnel of the Commission, The formal appointment of the Commission with its term of reference WilS gazetted on tho 11th February 1949. The terms of refer~ce are very restricted and they read as follows:­ "To enquire into and report upon the events which led to und the causes of tho recent riots in which Notivos and Indians in Durban and vicinity were involved; 3nd shoUld tho Commission find that the riots were . preceded by strained relations generally between the said ' two racial groups, the causes of the strined relations". The A. N. C. - S, A. I. C, meeting had decided to prese.nt the Indo-African case jointly before the Commission and ,consequent upon ' that the N. 1. C, decided to make.avail­ able the information in its pO'ssessionto t'heJoiiltA. N. C.­ S. A, 1. C, Commission Sub-Commi tteo. Services of a legal cO,Qllllitt,ee heoded 'Oy Messrs, V. 'C. Berrantse 'and H. M. Bnsner were offered to and ~aCiC epted~ by this joint committee, . When the, ,Commission commenced its proceedings on 17th February 1949, Dr. G. Lowen represented the Joint Gommittee before the Commission. Dr. Lowen argued before the Commission the vital need of the right of cross-examination to place the truth before the Commission. This right was refused and the Commis sion granted an ad journment to allow the joint Commi ttc('3 to consider its position in the light of this refusal. The Joint Committee after a serious considero'tion of the issues involved came to the conclusion that, in view of the refusal of the right to cross examine taken together with the restricted terms of reference and lack of Indian and African representation on the vommission, no useful purpose would be served in givin~ evidence before the Commission. 'I'his deoisionwas conveyed to the Cornniiss1on on the 18th February 1949 and then the joint c'ommi ttee formally withdrew from the prooeedings. 1 .. •J •..,.... ,,."­ 5~ TASKS FACING OONGRSSS IN THE LIGHT OF THE l\Tt~W PC LI'rIC}~L SITUATION NHICH liAS AJ;n8:1~N. AS A RESULT OF THE RECENT '. " DISTUR==BJ:.:.IN:.:.C;:::.:E::,;'S=-____

The recent racial Jistt;rbomcesin Durban betwee'ri the African and Indian communities - mistermed riots - have com,e as a shock., a severe. shock, to many people, The victims in these; disturbances e trie Indian community - were profoundly shak,en.' Ardca'n leaders and European democrats were taken d'6mpletelY py surprise. , .\' , ' " ' It is not con.sidet'ed here to' probe into the causes of these disturbances, exce'pt in so far as they relate to the .' matn object , 'namely, to oxamine the new situation that has been revealed. , .

" ! There is a widesp~ead anti-Indian feeling among Africans today. It is not possiblJ for us to say how deep these feelini2;s ~re ~ut iridicatio~s are there that these feelings are ~rowing deeper ecich d~Y. .' Indians because j"ley hsvc been the victims in those disturbances i1re no 1,ong.Jr disposed to be friendly towards tile African. Even at the pres' ont time', the fact that sporadic attacks are contin~tngcnd accidents are seized upon as pretexts for further attacks, areproIDct.in.g en increasing feeling of insecurity among Illdions. ',' 0 ',I: The attitude of the state is such that the police forces are not preverith,g outbreaks of violence and lootin~. They are not eve,n willj,n; to 8El,t3.blish outposts .in se,r,iously affected 1;Ireas. '. _ , ", " ,, ' • '.' ; . ~ _,' ,; . • ' .' •...• 1 ( . J. ,-, The attitude of' Gh~ l'\'n1.cipalit; and the 'poJJ.ceboth in respec~ Of the bus be/ cott and the shack. tena~t "pT~~ ' t:~:in is acoentuatlng the /]lltagonisrn and ,serving as lnciteint(h~'f'. ,. ~,:~ Our knowledf';e of histor.y justifies the assumpti~n t o which events point, · that paid in3tigators - agents provocateur - have played a deci.s.iv« part in rousing Africans to anti­ Indian orgies.

From the fcregoj ,lg, it may safely be conc luded ,that Indo-African tensio:1 in ')urbtttihas now' been established. of El nature comparable to the .Hindl~-:Mi.lslim disturbances that were a characteristic of Brit :.sh India. Similar communal tensi'::Jns leadin~ to blooqsh0d and destruction have existed and in certain c~ses are still :-0 be found , in many other countries. There is a :['eal dO!!.'ier t.a t this tens ion may now beoome a permanent f<3a t ure j:1 thL~ pre-i .Ln~ e.

The above is t~ ~ ohiof'problem - the most s~rious ')ue ,

The feelL1':; of ~ nseclll'ity that has affectod. the 8ver­ . age Indian is beooming 6 ~ rongar as he soes evid~n6e that the attitude of the auttorit:es i8 incr9Bsin~1~ uph81pfU~ This feeling of iG8ecur].'~y is prol" ''li rg El state of mind' wherein ( . " . l • . (a) a · certa:tn number of :r:ndiElns are anxious to take advantage of Repatr':'ation scher'le, (b) othersa:ue qu1ttingllstricts in which large numbers of Africans live, thus unntributing to the practical real­ isation of Apartheid and . '

, .... / .. , . , . _ 2. . ,II ' , ( (0) a numbe.r areFEl!3pr1;;.ing to ,unorganisod "retaiiatory measures,. thaf ge,rierally 'harm the innocent I ~txQ{!lI:IlI:n.&I., q

':: . ,". ."} " j ' \ '" • '~ 0' . I Ofqourse, by' far ·tha "largest ' number are still in a state of bewilderment •.

, ." ;..i ..". ,.' .' ~.1 , " . . I " . . This ne.cd for .:protectiopis ,the second major problem .that has ::to be, fa .ced. ' . .: j': . . '; .1. .... :,,' ' : .,\ _, It hn,s to .be acknowledged that .6. group which has sought to capitalise on the disturbances, has also acted in a manner calculated to prolong them or provide incitement for!,urther such occur:reJ;lces.' This group hus .chosen to adont this mode of behaviour becuu'8E) i t. perceived an opportunity thereby to furthG~ its group iriter~sts. This is a group of Africans who reprosent 6. g:rowii:lg 91.a,.l3S - actual and pote,ntial middle-class me rchant elements-i Whatever their part may have been. in cBusing the recent disturbances; there is no doubt that ·v.ery many among them or'e anxious that.it Should continue for .their own private onds . .In , tho present state of affairs with the growth of African n~tionalism; it is not difficult to visualise '.',hat effect the· cry of IIAfrica for the Afric8ns" would have. ' ' ," These tnen are the three main problems that f a co us. In re&lity they arB three aspects of the one big problem. It is a serious a nd ur~ent problem for Indians as the centre most atfected is Durbanl " . There is no doubt tha t South Africa; .together with most other countries, is moving towards an economi.Q depression. During such times normal efforts are intensified , : seeking. to , divert popular dissatisfaction along courses th~t leave intact ~ the real causes of the difficulties. . It has also to be borne in mind that "t'he present ,NatiQnalist Government is busy 'pavj!ng the way fur tthe ' estfJ.b­ ~ ilshiiJ.ent of a f1a~gO:irernment in this country .. ])n the n8ture _of. things,. i,t ,1&, e. "united ,e·ffort by all non-Kl!ropean groups ~hat oanprevent or upset stich a design. The Na~iona list plan against this is to get the non-European groupl:f. working against each other. The policy o.fApartheid is aimed to ·attain this object. How are we going to. meet the situation? . ' : . '.. The question of there having to be any change of C6n~r6ss policy - in the senSe of our attitude to any matter having to under,go revision - hardly arises, in my opinion. #hat we have to consider is the way in whidh we ha ve to meet ·t ,p.e present situation and, in the light· of' f orces actually at ol.:r disposal what totality o.fiss ues we have t o concentrate upo n even ,if many other necessary things have to be somewhat ' ne. glected. Ther'ecan be no doubt that the foremost task is to ~uila lndo-Africa~ co-operation. Steps havs' been taken in : th.1s d.ireo,tion aLrea.dy on an organisation.al l .evel by the " , . ,South At';r;ican Indian. CGpgress and African National Congress • '. We. must, give. pract1calas:sistanceto, every other body tha t . 'oan a.1d' 'us in this tasl(. We must convince our own people of " t,he , great , urgency of. th,is task . .Special ' attentlonV(ill hQve be given to the working class field as the bne in which co-operation ca n be most solidly built. And . such cooper a tion

.1 .1 ·· ·. 1 " . /' '" : ... : :..'.-...... ~ ... ~ " ."

-' - ~" - ...... ".. II 3. \' can only be built if we honestly and seriously begin t o '· f·ind means whereby we may fi~ht common issues jointly. \ \. ./ Real co-operation is born only in action.

While we are workin~ to attain the above, we must nlj:,-t , lose sight of. the fact that morale of the Indian 't:)eoplc 'must be restored and strengthened. Knowing the unhelpful attitude of th a authoritie~, a heavy responsibility rests .\ . :. upon; us to , consider ways and means by which our own noople m~i b~~t ' protect them~el~es hot &nly in th~ ~resent st~te or"sp6r~dip outbursts of violenQ6 but ~lso against fUrther mass reprisings. This must not be interpreted to excuse or justify uncalled for attacks by Indi~ns 6n innocent . Africans. In this way a practicQi ~urpose will be served ,;., of affording self-proteetj,on; moraie will be built up and g~eater res~e6t will b~ secured from those misguided Africans who now strut a round flushed with e sense of tholr-' "victory".

, Our desire for Indo..JAfrican und~rstanding , Gnd , co-operation, powerful and tirgent as tt .must' be, .should not iead us ,into adopting an attitude ot 6ver~eage~ne~s, we okness ~nd defensiveneSs. Every complaint made to lJ.S that. Inc1i:ws haye contributed: to st'rain¢dfee1in~s, .must be thoroughly examined. if such a coJirpJ"ain.t is act\ially held , 't!ly. anybod y, then .Indians must be told that it 1.9 so, ' and ;Lndian conj llct ad Justed accordingly·. While doing so, we must draw attention : to failures ou the part of the Africans to assist in this , ta1;lk of esta bUshing.: racial harmony. 'Nhil£;) gl,vtng assurances '. : ourselves, we .must demalld and secure ~~r 'assurellces. wh ~ r e " Recess~ry from ,the African people or :r' leaders' and lnslst ', ,' , , that ' they be applied ,'pract'icallY in the same ,way as 'we do ourselves. " , ' . . " "

.l " Should we carry out the foreg6ing faitfif~lly, conscientlou~ly and with all the ,resources at our disposal _t ,nere is no .do.ubt that we shalT .cont:ribute .to the lessening g-f "Indo-African1lension. Such measures by. · themseJ;v.es, will .pot, ve . l+mfn~ te 'f\riction or '8"nsure'tha"!1 dist,llrbanc'es10 nnt t/3.ke place in the. :f;uture. ,The forces : workin~ ' against us, the .race policies of the 'Government,the press, the "whrte polit­ " ~-QA;L · ..partiesand the chauvinists among all non-Europeans, ·:1re 80 powerful that unless additional steps are considered (a) to weaken t ho attacks of our enemies and (b) to counter their attaaks, we are in danger of finding all our efforts will not h El ve proved succ ~ ssful. We have to give very serious thought to the problem of propagation of race hatred in South Africa. Our greot0st difficulty is that it is state policy in South Africa t o propagate race hatred. It arises from the propag~.1ida of tho major politica l ~arties. Racialism in the press fs a cOT Qllory and chauvinism is a prqduct. To weaken race hatred, we must weaken it jn s~dte policy where it is entrenched. The political structure of 0 0uth Africa being what it is. We must realise that while we put forward our maximum effort, it is essential for world opinion to exert pressure in the fulfilment of this task. At the present time, there are only two ways in which this may be done. The non-wh.:bte nations of the world , especially India, must be asked to consider the best means

•••

., j . ,

, i I f ! t. !

...... ST.P.TEMENT ISSUED BY JOINT MEETING OF AFRICAN AND INT.lIAN LEADERS fmLD IN DURBA N ON SUNDAY 6TH ~BRUARYt 1949.

This historic jolnt meeting of the representatives of the national organisations of the African and Indian people, representin~ the Executives of the African National Con~res3 and the South African Indian Con~ress, and other leaders held in Durban on this 5th day of February, 1949, expresses its regret shock and horror at the recent tra~ic happenin~s in

Durban and elsewhere in N~tal, durin~ which there has been considerable loss of life and d()strLlction of property of mernh,)r'C, of both the African nnd Indian communities.

This meetin~ extends its deep and heartfelt sympathy to the relatives of all the victims of the unhappy tragedy Bnd to all those who have suffered. i\[hatever are the immediate causes which may have precipitated the outburst, nnd which are receiving the attentio~ of this me,3tin/S, this meeting is convinced t.hat the fundomentul and basic causes of the disturbances are traceable to the polit­ ical, economic and social structure of this country, based on differential and discriminatory treatment of the varioL:; r[ cl'~ll g;roups and the preachin~ in hi~h places of rl3.cial hatred and intoleranco. Any disturbances such as the recent Riots are therefore the fruits and results of such a policy as well fl f ; the responBibility of those who create and .maintain such r,n artificial social framework.

In the light of this, thes meetin~ calls upon our respective peoples ­ (a) to view our problems in this perspective.

(b) to devise W8YS and mel'lns for closer cO-r):!1erc,tion and mutllf31

understan~ing throu~h their national organisations.,

(0) to stand together in their fi~ht for national liberation and their mutual political, economic and social advancemGnt and security. This •.. /2 • .....

J ! -,.,. t - 2 -

This meeting therefore directs its constituent bo~J e3 ,

particularly the African National Cungress (Natal Bnd tll O Nat,al. " ',: In,iian Quus,:ress to constitute a joint council and to E::lst3blish thereunder local committees to advance a nd nromote

mutual undBrstandin~ abd goodwill amon~ our respectiv~ peou10 s .

For African Nati~nal Con1ress. Dr. A. B. Xuma, President General. A. W. G. ChBmnion, President (Natal) C. S. Ramahanoe, President (Transvaal)

R. G. Baloy:l, TrGasurer~enoral.

H. Selby, MSimang, J. B~ Marks, J. Malangabe , G. Maimbeni, Moses M. Kotane, L. K. Ntlabati, O. R. T8mbc. for South A:fr:lcan Iud ian Congress Er. G. M. NH:lcker, President. A. I. Meer, Joint Hon. Secretary. J. N. 8:lngh, Joint Hon. Secretary. Dr. A. H. Sader, Joint Hon. Treasurer.

G~orge Singh, Joint Hon. Treasurer.

I. A. Cachalia, '1'. N. Nuidoo, V. Lawrence, I. C. Meer.

M. D. Naidoo, Debi Sin~h, Nana Sita, Y. Cachalia, G. H. I. Pt:had. Other Indian and African leaders. Professor D. D. T. Jabavu.

Rev. Z. R. Mahabane of the Ora nile Free State. N. Mkele, Observer All African Convention. D. N. Moshe. S. B. Ngcobo. S. R. Naidoo (Ca De) . T. B. Gwala. E. O. Mtiimang. A. N. Ntuli • J. G. M'\3.di. j t .... '.... - 2 ­

Thil3 meeting therefore dirocts its constituent bor]l,:;:3,

particula rly the African Na tiona l C0nl::';I'eS s (Nu ta 1 and the

Nat~l '~ In,lian (;on,9:ress to constitute a joint council and to establish thereunder local committeos to advanc e and nromote

mutual understanding afid gOodwill amon~ our respectiv ~ peop10s .

For African Nati~nal C0n;ress. Dr. A. B. Xuma, President General.

A. 'N . G. Chamnion, President (Natal) C. S. Rams hanoe, President (Transvaal) R. G. Baloy:L, Treasurer-Gend'ral. H. selby, Msimang, J. B. Marks, J. Malangabe, G. Makabeni, Moses M. Kotane, L. K. Ntlabati, O. R. Tambc '. for South African Iadian Congress

Br. G. M. N~icker, President. A. I. Maer, Joint Hon. Secretary. J. N. Singh,Joint Hon. Secretary. Dr. A. H. Sader, Joint Hon. Troa surer.

G~orge Singh, Joint Hon. Trea surer.

1. A. Cachalia, '1'. N. Nuidoo, V. Lawrence, 1. C. Maer.

M. D. Naidoo, Debi Singh, Nana Sita, Y. Cachalia, G. H. 1.

P~had . Other Indian and African leaders. Professor D. D. T. Jabavu. Rt:v. Z. R. Mahabane of the Orange Free State.

N. Ml~ele, Observer All African Convention. D. N. Moshe. S. B. Ngcobo. S. R. Naidoo (Ca De) • T. B. Gwala. E. O. Moimang. A. N. Ntuli.

J. G. M ,;~;),d i. - 3 ­

JOINT rlFRICAN-INDL-lN Cf.SE BEFOIiE JUDICIi-lL r., . COMMISSION. 'rhe J0int meetinR; unanimously decided to present to the Judicial Commission tile joint Indian-il-frican case, ,through the National Executive of the African N"tional Congress and the South African Inlian Congress. A Committee of Jlfrican and Indian representatives was constituted to preapre thoir joint case in ,consultation ,,'ith leo;al advisers. REPRESENTATION ON JUDICI.H COMMISSION. The meetinf?; deplored the absence of repr.:lsentatives of the Indian and African communitios on the Judicial Commission announced by the Prime Minister and requested

Dr. A. B. Xuma on behalf of the .1oint meetinlS to communicato the viewpoint of the African Bnd Indian ueopla to tho Prime Minister requesting him to appoint such representatives.

sgd. J. N. Sin~h. On b8half of Joint Msating.

7th Fvbruary, 1949. Durban.

) .. - ~ I . {.wY\,()....v r:' . "

'. , (, ' . / ' (I . ' - ,

. ~Ie•• bl "'.$ .... haw u •

• "'f

awloi; . • U·~ ~,. • .-. .lJ. ~pu. ~74ItU WUW 'MUA

.~.Wl1 b:1 ewp.ri.u. n 1. Qt; o-..aU,_NI .be,.. \0 "ON lQi~ t_ ••ue.a td 'h... Ua\u1> · N.H'C.W-' tA " f*-.. .8 u., h<~t.. 'l~ b

, .. \J. • Abu.... ~8J'. It t. no. at1Jl. W ..., ... ••• , • t. ~. ~ $ ~ou """ ...,.. ". • rae''', fil1'. 4Q.

1 Un. &4:(1 .. 1

Ui.p.0u4 ~ M t.l"l

i> ' • . &00'-14••- 8M M4a«4 (l~ &$ _"~ fv t"IR'tAu .,,*-p u. ""

~lD.« a. J,.,...1Ag 1'891_ of _IV ___ lAd. ..

~n. .,-.1twt. ot tit.....,. U Ifvll .., ,oUM

., ; 1'fl1rft;. _. _~ .....u. QUC~•• .<).f Y.l01... au ~ ;1 . • \ .r t 'f.bo-¥ t:\" u~ 0" wlU~ k e$talbua... . 'fCl8'M U ' _.10..1.J' ~ ~ &-tt"~ ~.

'(h .t;t;.l1la~. ot ... ~"l.U~ it. tu . »* bGtJ;1 1. ""l*I" of tM • • .,...... ~t.h&ll U .ooenC_.:t.1ac _...... IlU'dDC .. taoS

!:;;\'tl' lclWW1..~ cZ Ato·-,. I Ute .QQ;IA.~li1D ~t!l wiU.4h. 1t¥lrfl.tfIS l»1a~ " . :14 .lU'''n- u JftYl:'lMMU - - toa... p1fq~t4 It c1M"",Y. jijill!'tI. .$..a • qlq Ant.- ~ _d­ ~..t.tul O-nPId. »'fta t1M to-HC01 t ·1, T 'il-lQr .. .oUl'lllleli , tal' l'.Q4o- Al~_ ,-gabm.u. 1l.0· <~ ~...... 1 ~:e4 4 • ~. • IJ, , u. tl,1.a; ' ''l . ··ft ~,,;r: • . • ~. ", ..."... l ~:'\-" . /

) .;

ff'

' t'h~l''$ is u fiI · ~ ;t·04~: ~rt.\ ~,,,j l.';'.t.y n ,l", t; Uti <\> ~. .ai(.n ",~ ;'i:.;.V 1;I!)>lI l'4.JX) t? ~

f\lrt.h~r ~Q-ci, CI(!·co~:ra.uetli~ . 1'tlh, ~l:'QilJ"f ~HII ef.10.Mfli,l \0 , 'ldoll't t.l:d.a

~.f.(t 01' t.e~; vlo\U'" (; ~tH\lH~ ~, ~••$i\t'4itd ~UJ Qp po-!l1'i-uuUy t;~ ~l·4Ji,' ·.

'&0 X'U .~·t-.ti\1f r H.,." O:~l'(;l.u. p h.t,~r"tu'j. ~l@in l'..: i~ij.&) ()t ·xi.f·~.ic.. a$

Wl'l.f' r e i? l'<;l ~vnt Oil. .:;;;I'1'J"tJi..n:i!: ~ lA:u~a - I!H·~~ ~~l. liclli1 .p:o,"ati~ 1 ;Jlj,."\d~.·­

tllQ.'H} it' ~l"cL&~ t i.lli\)i~~, t ... , :urt t f.i} \I~ ·i." t,tw' h~ ),1&.1"t; f1f;!!ty tJ;e 'lflt Pe&a 1.11

ut:H",j), i,n,g t,i.>i~· l' ~CliW V; ~:::i. il t;.u,.f."h1l; !1.I:HltGi ~ "b~ ~ .tr. J ~ .ili 'f.~y .. h: O ·." . ...f~'l:Y' li!tI.Olli<: ',\!%.~.~. ~, N'J >cflUOU$ th~ . t .u~ ~hml:4(l () (J tl~tta~l.t'i~ 6anlr>. it) (;, 1',Q ~nj J · ~.n,t; auto ~r ,·), t:r~oaF f~~lL' th~

'''fri.\Ii1at! t i\; 1ill Rot. d:U'fleu ltr to ..~ .~m.'1 , i$,l6 wIiat ~:tt'~0- 't<. itb.e

01!yot " ( ..trIcE\. l {l:l' ,:£le Afr1. u "'It" ~fOul~ h<~W. (f)

.. "' •••• 111 /3•.••••• / ·Qli'~ $ , I.·1'"t~4 1.. wrlMt.n.•

. 'l"A";L". t ~ Ill} 4· . ~. ~ , h~t ·~1U'1. .. ~ fl'l"', t~~e~h J' w.1 tt,

~ , QtlJle;r C'JHulti-l'1••, 1* O'y'Lu-: tUWIn'da U-fii OGl~ah dOf;ll'(I;l\\$1~n.

I"u.];'~ Ihtot. Cli~. Gmi'~l .1't'~I"t& !U''tj 1!\~.M1J.' :1, 4. ..e,lf:1..'l4l: 'to

~l.....t PC) 1-&1' dlisa:Q.atll!'aot:lo4 .~f.l£ UoCwta•• t.Ulll fr t_v. 1.tl~ct t.h$ r 'M 1. C$.ua... of' r.tl" 4-tt';fteult.ioll.

It Uti ' loiU'Q t~ ~n. 1n . Ii\U~ 'fUlt. t.h ~'i.iu t £1..'1~ ,\.:.tat;

,}t;l"",~,nt 1& t>\Ui'Y ~.'1..aJ; tJlii _,. !'"ll' t. ~:." 1l04t13ll,U.al) _0 ot a

h~ 115 t ¥.1''fll''&QJIH1' inllith f,l ti.l'f. I.a tih tl~ t.w:'$ ')i tJU ~ .

1t. i.e Qlllly a t.1;.Q.i iN " ftort bt' !AU n~ 'i'::, u:r~ l} .• .1% ~Q.~ 't..na,

tt6A f!r-a 'ft1\,~ f.i~ a.paet ' ~u~h

thl& b to t. t 'h~ uo ri,: .\. Ul'3~,n _~ ,. _~k , . ae»i .n..,. t tJa~!\.

t)".u·~ ~ }IOU., C;,f .ii .~!ilX't~e14 .b 1.1 ~ a.$ 101 tJU3 e j&

t ant WQ g,otnp; ~ a N 'U t l'tO> 1;, 1t 'Wii. UOll'

f h ~t~a.tl1.o.n 001: "b*:tlil Mo'd nc W '~ '!WI e~ .f/1i.. oo.a~.,u

~U4' - 1~ 't~. ~." €.>t OWl a.U,UW4t ~ ~ .... "-.- Moving 'tG

'QM""8Q ;<4vl,M.!)n - b&tildl y fI ~ l iH.J iJ:l ¥i¥ ill . $11.,,,, WU:l\ ". M1r. ~ e.Quid.,. 1&1 "'tt~ we" 1.A .·1<0.')1 " _ u.u.' ta. t. l$1tuaUO.6 tUlIl.'!. .In t.tie U_' or ~Nft.. . OUtlfl U;t a t o-u.ll' 418.po_t

...l'.... , t,i,)~dl.l' fJ't 1,.:l-lU.ea Wit iia,* '~() o~coatat. u,)1I.\ Jl _Mil U an,

otber n¥Ge'_s.uy ~1~ b~v. W M ~1i&a1i ~~lQOte4..

't'tlcu". CiU1 00 It.Ct Il~'a4b'; tb.&' ttu t~t.WQ8 t tlaalc 1:.. t~ buH;I

l~-Atl!ll.a:ll ~~1!"'t.l, ott . ...'i

41".'101\ ld.l'fildy 01.\ ~ (u,"f,Wlhat~l lie_i. ;'i. , ~t $.lY~

~t1J}ikl .Hb~. ~ a'YQ)" o".1!' .~. tliAIltt fI~1!l .U ws lli.

Uie \aai1:. ;',~ ~u&t (KH.iY''1.,. Mil' Q'WG, il$!i)~la ~,t t40~, 1': U$J

or \lU,. tau. .J. pooal _tUi.l\,,tq 'dll. toaw to ~ tit!"e,g, ·to t.be

wo~-~la.. rtQ. M fU9 ~e f,},ru; ill id11C'li ~...O' atla. __4 b$

~, 8(;\114l,y bl;lUt.

1,'b1.1£1 .. e.',i;., ~,, 01rk1~ ~ ato""i. t~11/i abo.,.. 'iN mull" Ml;

loJJ~ »19b t ilt tl.l3.tt taet t.hf.t t 'tkto DlO8le 'Of' 0 ltill.. ,' .i?..t~

Mfit. t. l"lis'tH',iZ'ed AUld .t.rugtlt..... ~ 1i. ~ lp:tul

a"9;1't4l~,1. ,fit " . bcriUtlUJ, ~ ~ 1"0 31>0 l~U.1.t;1. l'vob ~ A

•. "...... /4...... ,.. \'i.at. b1NiIt.oi . . _1'1'4W ~1t O::l·,f,,!l 1m. tJie, -pl"e'tHltat; et.... t. Q:/ ..~ ~).6~tWdl0 Gli\t.1rHJ ft,e ut n aanea ~~ 180 fip i,l\l..~rt i'u:t'-.iiffl' ~$Q

ii ••r-v&4 ()t &tt(H!'ilin.g ;t.oU'-l'iri:lt'IIH.'Hell~ ~ra~. ~11l be w:Ut u~

.JIl~ .':r'1l~ltl,i:V It.apeot Idll l..... ~ec~~ :r~ th_IIlQ "d",,",Il:t4..-4 ~

Atl"loau w}lQ Jl(')W sill-l'\tt. a~tlji,td .fl-Ma..il>d 'NitA ., ~. Ql~ tndl."

. <';'Q r- 4'-'411". for .l.n.d(;·A..h'1fl~ UlL-a'.iVJJ:Q;aMlng uE1 (}~{i!"l'­

8;.\1011 I lWlIW-.n-.tu..l ~M J.W~;;:, o.t. ~U! ~,~ m ~. lJt ". ~!wu.ld jm-·tt l.~ ~.Il

.tatoo 4t\e,p·Un..i.r {m 1l\'t1t1t.ndJfl ut OYO, :r-trage;rMft$~ ~_ ~.. altil

datuut"ll-u-fl1il»$. 1t;Vt$1'1 oompl.a1Bt t lJ;l;' bljU.'!u~.E! la.V(t eGulbtl..t..d

tl' ~t-ral.rj$d 1~1.1~ muo:t M ~jl~lrOtl l¥ u u l._-4'. :U ~.h. &

o~laht b ~otuetJ.l$ b8l-

told t~At t 1" 1111} .1) I {U-I.-.t In. b n ·o-oBd l.U,1!i. aJl.:it/i.,IIt.lri a6~ilWU!.l.{tlW.

A-frlOtUUi\&flaU-t :1.n $Jtl~ task C;J;~ _U\)U~\hu(M l!'.u,rli1d. ~ .

> llil-n tti1TUaA' -. _Jl~ " " 1:,••, 'it.. law.at 4_~n4 o:mill ltHfitH

aitlrdlu ,U8Qnno•• _~" un ~ t~.. ~tJ.. il,1''rl.:on.ft 'g$ei/.l.

Ol'~ill1)i.t i _ h.r8 aM iWilat ~. ti\o-1 " a, pl.ioll tft~ ~ca l.l)'

111 t-.h~ Mte!) mt,;y U " El4 i>n!@l.,v_. '\ .-aQal-tt we 1J'.4.'Il'r:r r.)£l1~ UHjI f0 "@'!It,Q'~ tttlt~f\ll1.Y"

Q~N;lt~ta-1t~16uill17 Ili'M wtlll ~U th~ rua-ourova ii' O-'IU' UJtJQallll t.ittiJr. i.t nQ !Q\l.bt 'W:i_~ t ~ $wu.l ~\l.nt;dlmt. "0 t.Ji/i l&.h.a1m~ I O't h.l~,-~ ,.tl."to..-1l u ' . .tent. ;;uoh ~ ~H"allt will nl)-' .UJil.i.na~

f!'ict-l90 or i.\I'llllllit" ~a '~ I!tU\m:" _ _3 do at "1iI~. -pl«o. 1{l t.iu~

t'ntu.l'O. 1'b-e 1'<;)11'0'" wG'l.'li:tl'lg Q6lil1nst U,$.. ~ vaG. ·pol1d.4b f)t:

U.l~ Gov· ~:It \.l."lA4 h ' ~ " fo'l'$lla. . 'til~ \,thiw _'P'l'-l:11H.fotitl ~»U. ea aM

u.le:sa ibild.ltlo-Q6\l U i$fIA ~Ilt: o;M14_Mi4 'lal ~ ~U '\tn..

at~~~. ~f o_r '.)n,tiU-H ~b-4 ().Ij __ 6Qat-tlf1" ~A:,~b a t ~'J wo· ,~,

_" 1A 4 ngt:1l' {jf fin4:1;Qg Ul ou' .'tt.t,llI PHVlq wl..t\.

i'l ljl OOq tQ ~i. w v~"Y aQ1..~ lh. . . t tf&o .h ~

./

••• iIt. /frjt .,. •• , I , it' ,-",. ,'i '.,.

" , ,. '~ ..

to. , \. ' " ~ : ;. '. "," '

../ .).

I ~

... ,.

~, "\, ";' " \'

:'.

:::a

,-1-. <

":I.~"...... \. \ \ ~ ___ :... .1~:~J!.:

./ ' ,TATE1v)ENT ISSUED BY TIm NATAL INDIAN CONGRESS

The prime re~ponsibility for the serious and unprecedentod wave of violence in Durban leading to the loss of hundreds of livos and mass destruotion of property must rest upon the present Govern­ mept of the Union. 'l'he tragedy of the past few days flows naturally from the basis shortcomings in our multi racial society in which it is the state policy to relegate the non-European people to a place of political impotency. The Nationalist Government with its policy of ruthless

onnression and complete denial of political ri~hts to four-fifths of the Unions cit izens has aCQ,entuated this poHcy and is no",! giving the ,country the first logical instalment of Apartheid. The preaching of racial hatred by the Government of the land has created a highly inflammable situation containing in it danger to all sections of the population of the Union. Anti-Indian pronaganda has continued to bE! the chief weapon in the state armoury of creating racial animosity. The frustrated African, whose meagre nolitical rights are beinl!,

~ threatened by the Government have made tho Indian a scapegoat this , time. The policy of Apartheid is bound to create greatar frustration among all sections of the non-European people with consequent di8­ harmony in our society.

Con~ress is .gravely perturbed by the fact that the pnlice did not take prompt and adequate measures in the early stages of' the , • disturbances. There is no doubt thst this fact contributed to tho unexpected spreading of orgies of destruction and violence - "Rioting"

is a misnemer, it W9S more a massacre. It has also largely createl

a st~te of panic - a, contributory fa.ctor in the phenomenal growth of refugees camp even in those areas where no disturbances occured. The consequent desertion of houses has without doubt been an inducement to loot and burn unoccupied homes. Unless the residentia.l areas are fully protected by the authorities looting and burninp.; will continl18 and the slogan "Back to the homes" will not have the desired rosults. Congress anneals to the police'Buthorities to give the maximum amount of protection t.hroughout the affected areos an8. to ,~ '..r.-.,. , \ '.':' "a'lJ?W In'Uans -to form Home GU!:lrns under police supervis ion to prevent

" 1' / "4 the .../2, ...... i , ,. '",~-:,~_J . _ ------~-.~ - -­ \. .l .;.: "-f ::f.::Z.: I .' '-. A

- 2 - \

the recurrence of any further violence.

Since the outbreak of the ~ttacks against Ind ians many African grievances have been ventilated in an effort to discover ,. the cause and origin of the outbreaks of violence. These ~riGv8nc88 to a very large messure apply to t,tie poorer sections of the IuHan

community themselves. NG believe that the Jurjicial commission is the DrODer place where all grievances can be gone into. The nrimary task before the lead~rs of the I~jisn Bnd the African neople is to take proper steps to brin~ the nresent situation under control. Our anpeal to the 1n1ian ~eople is to keep calm and refrain from retaliating.

It is ~ndeed tra~ic that even in this grave hour of crisis the Union Governmont has failed to show its willin.gness to assist the In,1i.'1n communi ty to tho fullest extent it is caTJabh of rjoing. The Cabinet Ministers who visiterj the affected oreas did not meet Indisn and African leaders and UD till now the Government has not expressed its sympathy with the victims of the clashers •• nor assured them that they v.ill be compensated by the state for the destruction tha t has been caused. It is significant that when in

~he R00depoort T.::;rnado _'i:W'otluanproperties were sffected the

Government machinery was rallied in matters of hours to' assisG [;h0

victims. When it comes to th.e destruction of non-Euro:,ean :9roDerties.

for which the Governmont mus t bear responsibility the authoritius

are found to be quibbling as to whose responsibilit.ies it is t u render assistance.

The Natal Indian c.on!?;ress makes an appeal to both In(\ian 'I ann African peoples to remaj n calm. The salvation of the non­ \ ,

EUropean people does not lie in engaging in vj~lGnce but in racial

harmony and the fullest co-o~erBt i on against the r acial policy of

the state which creates con ~< itions resultin~ itl sllch tragedies as·

Durban has experienced sinCe) last Thursday, •

Sgl}. Debi.. 81.1gh. GENER1IL Si:.:;HETARY. NATAL INDljl.N CONGRESS. 'I P~ ; O.Box 229g, Durbah. .. >JI ~~' Durban. 1st February, 1949.

Tue Chairman, The Natal Distress Relief Fund, City Hall, DURBAN.

Sir, Thig letter is being addressed to the Natal Distress Relief Fund by the Natal Indian Congress und the Natal Indian

Organidation on behalf of the Indian community of Natal. It deals in !1ome detail with the organisation and administration of relief to all persons who have been seriously affected by the recent tragic disturbances in Durban. At the outset we wish to express our deep distress at this traglc occurence which involved so much wastalS8 in both life and property and whiCh has disturbed the friendly relations between the African and Indian communities. We hope however, -. that lasting goodwill and understanding will soon be restored to all those who have 8uffered - both African and Indian. vVe extend our deep sympathy. We also place on record our deep sense of gratitude to the band of voluntary workers of all r;lces who have rendered and are still rendering yeoman servicew in

human~ . J' relieving distress. Althoui>1;h such tarian work is its own reward it is our duty to publicly acknowledgo it. The magnificient way in which the Red Cross Society and the St. Johns Ambulance worked, especially at the peak of

the tragedy is beyond praise and has earned the ~ratitude and admiration of all sections of the people. We are deeply grut"ful to the Mayor of Durban and the Chaiman of the Malvern Town Board and their offices for the prompt and efficient handling

of relief work. We are glad that 8S a result of the interest of the Administrator of Natal and the Mayor of Durban, the Natal Distress Relief Fund was set up within a few days of the

disturbances and that the Union Governm~nt has agreed to make

• a £ for £ contribution. We ••..• /.2 •••••.

" . ." ~' I • ' ;;l;', •• () , 'j " " ,' ,' I 1\ , / ;~ r. , ,l - 2 .'i I -'I' ! We appeal to ail persons rsgardi~ss of race or cre'ed I:I ' t ora·1ly to the suppqrt of this, ,und. I iExtensive reli ,f is ., ' , 1I I requir~d and unless the Fund is: ~enero, , ~slY supported we '. will , . not be able to meet the demands ! Of thosle w.!lo have's uftered. I I It is neoessary, therefore, tha~ an in:t lensive propaganda be i conducted and the mafinitm.de of ~he rel:tef req'uired be kept in the public eye 'until the are realised. reqbirement, ~' It is very necessary that ;at the r utset the cost and

extent of relief be estimated a~d planp~d. This will ensure that the most deserving cases are attenfed to first and will fUrther faoilitate efficient administration of relief. I I In the followin~ paragrl?-plls, we have attempted to make a rough estimate of the requirements for the relief and I rehabilitation of those affected by the ldistrubanoes, This

estimate can only be a tirst app'roximat~on as detailed

statistios, which a more aocurate estim~te oan be made, are not available. It is essential that a iUll census, which Will ~ provide the required statistics, Should ;be completed and i , I published as soon 8S possible, MeanWhilj' a skeleton plan , should be drawn up immediately with the available informatl!)T1. I. , . I ' : I We have been unable to secure eve~ rough figures of the number of African sUf:Cerers and the natUre of the relief they i need. While we are anxious to ipclude p,rovision for this ! relief on'similar linEls we have not bee~ a.ble to work out a I" I detailed estimate in,respeot of the Afr~can. The number of I , i Atrioan sufferers involved and the, extenlt, of damage s uftered by them is only a fraction of th~ total! ,/ind 1'\1 though we have i been ,informed that the Na 'lj ive M-Illinistra~ion is handling this : . I relief, w~ have, however, set apart a l;T P sum of £5,000 to

I ' be:' inoreased it neoessary. I An equitable basis for an ~stilnat : e l of the relief required I '

would be the just re~titution ofl all la~ses, the more so in view /' , , ~ : 1 of the fact that the great; majorfty of :the sufferers belong ,'. to the poorer seotion 10f t e pop' latlo~ ['WhO ' have no resources I / j of t.heir own to ta~: _baok upon" L .. ·\" -Cpl.l". . ~...z,""'-"'-"::..L..~ ----,--=-__J -'-­ -­ '-'-- - _. ext'ant be . from:- (a) 'burning of to to -, contents of

by ins~ence not be able

have lost the ~avin~s Of a lifetime. l I' I .. j . I" .' , It is expe.oted l, tMt thi.. will .rull to over a million pounds J ~. , r , , . I \ j I'J j i (£1."o,m,ooo). It will. ,be ' difUouit! e ~ e;n impossible - to make - . ,"" I· 1 ,I ,'. o9.mple,te, res:tittlt.ion J We have, ' ?eref ~ 1 e dis.cuss <:l d the categor- F· . ies ,of relief i'n their order of prior;l.'~y so that the Fund may I "I I be appl1~ .d in the first instanc' r for t jediate and urgent rAlief ,. .t and wha.t · is left. ov. e ~ may be aPFlied ~9 the l ess ~gent but .. , 1-- equally ~("'esl;lary types of' rell f. ':.! I.' 1 t - f . ,~ i i . During the dis ~ urbanoes : a ' ~ i~~~ iatelY thereafter, the f ·ma1-n problem was the Ip rovision 'bf foodi k nd shelter. This has t , i I' I 1 i',-. . no;" been attended to , ~y shelter~ pg ref~1gee$ 1n c"l.mps and by t he

distribution of tood .wh,ich at t ~ beg ~~.' ning was done through i 1 I ' :r the Red Cross and vo ~ tl,nt.ary orgTlPisat.1! Ins and subsequently , '.r , '1 1 " through the c.ity Sto~ es and vql' fltary !'fforts. Food .and othel' neoessities amounti~ ~ ' to s e vera: ll l thoU ~81 nds of pounds were , . 11 I oontributed in kind ana distrib r ~ed. ~n Durban the Municipality an~ ,'·' ~t , M~l.~ern the T ~wn Board hfve al ~ inc'lrrp"l f3xpendi ture , - ,,' t .,' .' in this o ·b~eotlop. 1h1S phese ~ rel ~8i f work is now more or '. les~ ' - o ~ er . ~xc . ePt i!). j he oase ofl ~ .oIlle } ,OOO persons who are r~ow o ~ l~e_ O' ~ed ~t th,e. S!'lv ~ n permaneDir. ; camp" established by the suh- f I 'oommf ttf'W ~eal1ng Wi ' h the , ho~e ! ~ ss " 1.1 ! ~ sufferers who o/e1'e i I ;tn.e t e!:lporary oamps ~ : ! T~e o ~, e ~ h~ve l ; . • either. returned to what remains of · the~r homes or have· found ~ "," ~ . I , . I I ao~~modat:!:on ;'i'th their relatfo,ns 8'nd'~ i r-1endS. Most of these .J . " I' I ~ . ! • _ _ . • • • • • • • _ ... ~ _ _ ~ .. ~-,... ~ ", .:l CI ."~ /r.,.. t .h .. -l T' household : 11 , ,.~!~ , , fl ~ " . :: " , ,,~ . "., 4~ ',': ~ !' f . . ~ ... j' 1 J ",' . " 1 ~.. ~ • , f .. 1.J " ' , ,", ", \ 1 naEl9 ia th'e provis~0ri' of" heu'ae ' Qlq ', equipment and repairs , . ," I I ,l wMoh. Wl;L~ : n+ake.1t P ~ ss"ible fo ' jtbem t ' live, eat and sleep > ' · in their ' hduses • • FQ , ~his i~ , ~ ~ neoe~ ary to give them . ' j, , 11 I illlllle(Uately 'mattrEfsses ,. cookin~ utens,i s, etc. From tbe , '. ~ . r I ' , il1f'orinatlop. 8.~ . our dtsposel we, e'stimat that 2,000 families ' ~ , .1 I with the average oomposition 0 r1- adui~s and 3 children have , • I J L i . I j to be ' pr?vided for. ~he oquip ept neQsssry is indioated in , , ; I anneXUre "a", The e£;1timated toltal co,s of providing this

relief: ~s £26,150. , ' I ' All these people fl8d fro ~ thei~ !homes in the clothes they were in and in n;ost cases f ave . r~.~ urned to empty houses. They are in urgent need of a ch~ n ge o~ Iclothing, Details of i ' , I ' the minimum requirements r er family, I an oosts are given in i Annexure "B". The estima''.,ed co t of pr.0v1d1ng bhis is £43,400. After these requirements !"'ve be+ met a certain amount of furniture must b\3 .prov Lded. Irha kin of equipment we , I· contemplate i6 indioe.ted 1.n Ann ~ xure To those people who , I ' "Oi". I ' have nothing left in their ho~e~ , all t;he items .]11, the list may I I have to be provided. Fami lies w~ich ha,vle sUf' f er bd only partial ~", I 1 I , 10s8 oan be provided with thos8:essentil'\ls which they lack. The i : ' espeoial requirements in t:'l ach i{lo.ividua;l case will have to be I investigated before t 'he toilal cost of r f lief 08.1 be estimated. Suitable lIlaoh1nE~ry wi,ll h~ve tol be devi ~ ed for the ' conduot of tbe tAqul~1 al4 the a4l1ni.t~at t Qn of 're relief. %t Will be de,~ble and co~venieAt it the lgrant ~f relief U4der this

head takes the form of a ~rant +~ oash ~nd/or an order to I I purohaSe oertain types of' gOOdS : ~o tha~ ! each family oan make

the best use of ,the gran~ Wha e , v8rlth~ l for~ bf a~ministratjon of this relief, we believ.) that ! /'j. roug/11 esti.mate oan be I ' arrived at on the basis t nat an l 8verag~ Icost of £47.. per I I • family would be incurred for tb (jl 2,000 familieE! affected. The , I : 1 totel expenditure und,E~r tilis h '1 ~q shOI..1)."~ amount to ;e94, 000.

Iothe foregoing. V11 hBV'3 \dealt ~~th the rehabilitation workers who will have returned to their previous employment and who will b~ able to carryon with the bare neoessities of USe provided by thb relief. However, cases have come to our QOtice of persons who have also lost their instruments and tools for oa~ying on their trade. Under this category would fell: farmers' who have lost farm implements; carpenters and

~er workers ~o have lost their tools and petty traders who havti lost equipment such as we~ghir~g machines etc., and without whi~tl they will not be able to set Ufl .. in business again. It is esse&tial that provision should be ma~e to re-equipthem in such'a way that they can ~esume their ,revious oGlcupation. We have no statistios on which to base an estimate of these requirements and are, therefa-re,' providtng L lump sum of £2, 000 which figure will have to be varied in the li~ht of further experience. We consiBer that after the progranune of immediate relief outlined above has been complete, serious 'il,c8l'1tion should be paid to the relief of the loss .and damage, at least to suoh an extent as w1l1 be adequate to set the sufferers ~gairi ' ~L ~he road to recovery. In the case of the poorest section,this would require almost full restitution while for others in better circumstanoes, ~rtial relief might be re~arded as all that can be provided. AS;;Jista:.1oe by way of grants for rebuilding should be given in the oases of hOl..3es and shops burnt down. We estimate that 260 houses and 80 shO~ are involved and that at least £200 will be needed in each case. The cost of this should be £68,000. As the gra~t will 1n its81f prov8 in~~0quAte for the reoonstruction of the bul,ldings, we consider that it should be supplemented by interest-free loans on easy terms to assist in early rebuilding. Similar assistance should also be extended through g~ants and loans towards the rehabilitaticn of shop-keepers and thOSE) whose buses, lorries or factories

have ••.• 5j . '" have been de!ltroyed. T~ese cases obviously roquire careful investigation without which no estimate can be made. It is

neoessary~ therefore to ca~l for claims separately for this type of assistance and to investigate them. There are several cases of families deprived of their source of income by the death or, disablement of the breadwinner as a result uf these distrubances. Many uf these cases are to be found in the seven permanent centres fur the homeless and early steps should be taken tu 8ecure pensions for them from the Social Welfare Department, As this is likely to take some months, interim grants should be given to enable them to carryon until such time as these pensions are provided. As stated above, over 300 families rendered homeless are in the permanent oamps which are at present established at certain sohools. As the schools have to re-open shurtly aud it will take some time to secure accomodation to which they can go, it is necessary immediately to take steps to transfer them from the sohools to other shelter. The availability of army huts at the Stamford Hill Dispersal Depot, and at Durban North and Wentworth for this temporary purpose, should be investigated. ]ireotion of prefabricated houses and the acceleratioo- Of economic and sub economio houses in the Springfield area will also assist in the solution of this problem. SUMMARY. For convenlent l'eferenoe we summarise in this paragraph the reoommendations submitted above:­ A skeleton plan and estimate of the relief work should be adopted on the following line'S:­

(a) provision of household equipment and clothing £69,'550.

(b) grants in ald for fam j, iies whose breadwinners are dead or disabled 3,000.

(c) minimum furniture and accesbries -, 94, 000.

(d) provision of implements, tools and equipment to workers and petty traders and farmers 2,000.

(0) grants for rebuilding houses and shops burnt down 68, 000. (f) grants and loans for rehabilitation of shop­ keepers etc. after investigatlbn (not estimated) (g) lump sum provided in terms of ,par.? (African) ~. 000. £2,41, 550. ..

- ? ­ The magnitude and the extensive and varied Bharacter of the relief required has been outlined above. 'Having given

oareful consideration to the constituti~n of the Relief Fund Committee we are firmly of the view that it i3 most essential

that individualsi representing t~e main sufferers and having intimate and first hand knowledge of their ueeds and who oan speak for the Indian and African communities, should find a plaoe on this Committee. The Indian representatives on the two

sub-committees constitQ~d by the Mayor have done useful work. We feel, however, that unless such a rep;resentative is also appointed to the Committee of the Fund, the Fund will be greatly handioapped in discharging its task equitably. We therefore earnestly request that such a person should be appointed to the Committee without delay.

We are further anxious ~hat careful thought should be given to the 1llIlchinery and administration. Some needs are best dealt with by the issue of goods as, where for instance, standard types of goods like mattresses are involved; in other cases in cash grant after careful lnvestigatlon and under proper

supervision would be the most economical way of rel~ef. The economy that can be seoured by purchase and supply of certa i ·.. items at wholesale prices has also to be considered. We feel

that a Sub-Committee should be set up to deal \Wi t~ this aspoct

of administation, so that when a certain 9QID has been .sanotioned for a particular relief the maximQID benefit will accrue to the recippent. Yours faithfully, (Signed) M. D. NAIDOO J. N. SINGH. For NATAL INDIAN CONGRESS.

(Signed) P~ R. Pather. For NATAL INDIAN ORGAN[SATION. ANNEXURE A. Family i£quipmont of £13. l. 6 p·:.r family units of 7 persons - 4 8.dult8 r:..nd 3 children, made up as follows:­ 3 mattresso[l @ 30/- N. 10•. O. 7 blankets t wool @ 12/6 4. 7. 6. 3 pots & frying puns ll. 6. 1 buckot 1 billy can 1 bath 15. O. 7 pl>:1tes & 7 mugs 14. O. 2 largo spoon8 1 smnll spoon and 1 knifo 5. O. 2 dowels & 1 dish cloth 7. O. 1 storm lantorn 6. O. 1 Primus stmvo l. 1. 6. 1 Broom 3. O. 1 scrubbinf. brush 1- O.

£13. 1- 6.

ANNEXURE B.

Clothing gr~nt of £20 per family unit as abovo:­ Males Shoos £l. O. O. Jacko t 1.15. O. TrouGor l. O. O. Shirt 12. 6. Undorwoo.r, etc 10. O. £4.17. 6. X 2 mal. 3 adults £7. 15. O. Fomal:) Shoos l. O. O. S8.rri l. O. O. blouso 10. O. undorwoar 12. 6. £3. 4. 6. X ~ fomale adult s 6. 9. O. Mo.l;; child 2 shorts 15. O. 2 shirts 15. O. shoos 15. O. und3rw08.r 5. O. £2. 10. O. X 2 childron 5. O. O. Fomalo Child 2 drosses 1- 5. O. underwear 10. O. shoGS 15. O. £2.10. O. X 1 child 2. 10. O. £21. 14. O. ~.",

ANNEXURE C

6 BiJdshc Gt s @ 7/6 £2. 5. O. 7 units (1 pillow 2 pillow cases @ 11/6 ca.) 4. O. 6.

3 bods @ 50/- 7.10. O.

12 yds curtains @ 3/6 2. 2. O.

1 t able @ 100/- 5. O. O.

7 chairs @ 17/6 6. 2. 6.

1 Settee @ 100/- 5. O. O.

1. Kitchen dre sser @ 80/- 4. O. O. 1 " table @ 30/- 1.10. O. 1 Wood chopper @ 15/- 15. O. 2 childrens schoolbooks and caso @ 40/- 4. O. O.

1 shaving kit @ 2/6 2. 6.

5 blnnkots @ 12/6 3. 2. 6.

1 mirror @ 4/6 4. 6.

1 large pot @ 12/6 12. ' 6.

1 kettlo @ 12/6 12. 6.

£46.19. 6.

/

/