Indians of East and South Africa

Despite the long history and pervasive Indian influence on every facet of East and South African commercial life, Indian presence in this region of the world is still little known. Some even argue that early Indian migrants, not White settlers, provided the essential groundwork for the subsequent colonialist economy.

There are many issues that one can look into regarding this topic. E.g. the comparative socioeconomic condition of the Indian settlers in countries as diverse as Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Zimbabwe & Zambia (former Rhodesia), Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire), and South Africa; the relationship between the Indian settlers and the native African people; the ambiguous ethnic identity of these settlers; the relationship between these settlers and the native Indians. The situation of these settlers is further complicated by their mass migration into countries like Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States (which provided the background for the 1991 film "Mississippi Masala" featuring a young Denzel Washington).

For those who are interested in this fascinating topic, go to:

http://www.asiansinafrica.com/

Isn't this one of the finer points of how the British empire worked. And not just Africa, all over SE Asia and the Carribean too.

Britain migrated 10's of thousands of Chinese to countries to act as the working classes and do the manuel labour.

Thousands of Indians to act act as the middle classes, do the civil service administration, policing and skilled manuel labour.

Then a couple of hundred English to sit on their fat arses all day doing sod all.

Indians dominate East and South African economy like Chinese dominate SE Asian economy.

There's a long history of Indians being persecuted in Africa. They enjoyed  a similar status to jews. Being seen as too comercially successful. In Uganda the government persued a highly racist policy expelling all ethnic indans from the country and seizing all their wealth. Across other countries their have been significant racial attcks on them and call for expulsion, Kenya notably bad.

Indians are also common around the world too both Fiji and Guyana had similar expulsions to Uganda and even in the Carribian a lot of these view prevale.

fraid not,

If the Chinese had turned up on boat without papers they have been packed off and sent hone, same as today.

The Indians weren't slave either, they came of their own free will.

Both would have been recruited by agents in their own country, rather the same as today.