Mahatma Gandhi's granddaughter, Ela urges India to help South Africa in quelling violence

The granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi, Ela Gandhi, said on August 15 that India should help South Africa in its efforts to rebuild the country after the recent violence it witnessed.

In July, South Africa witnessed protests, looting, and rioting across the country, after the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma. The crisis exposed the deeper issues of poverty and inequality in the country. 

At an online seminar organized on the occasion of India's 74th Independence Day, speaking as a delegate from the Indian Consulate in Durban, Gandhi said that the recent violence in the Indian area of Phoenix was caused by a few perpetrators with criminal intent, who must be brought to book. Phoenix is a massive Indian township, north of Durban, that saw tensions between the local residents and the African community of three neighbouring informal settlements.

Ela Gandhi said, “But it doesn’t mean that an entire community or an entire area is racist and is the cause of these few digressions that occurred. As we are building peace, one good thing that has come out of all this is the unity amongst the people". 

She added, “We are all getting together and working together and we are going to build peace in the country. I sincerely hope that the Government of India and the people of India will once again help us to build this peace and to build common nation bonds in South Africa where we would not need to call people by different identities (by ethnic origins). We will all be South African citizens and recognized as such." 

India to resolve South Africa's violence 

High Commissioner for India Jaydeep Sarkar informed that four Indian missions had collaborated on the topic of the contribution of the Indian Diaspora in the making of South Africa as equal citizens. He added that a plea for a greater recording of the history of the community is required as Indians, in general, tended to take for granted.

Sharing the story of Nelson Mandela and elucidating a photograph, Sarkar said, “Alongside the pictures of Mandela with world leaders was a picture of him with an elderly sari-clad lady. I asked the Foundation who this lady was who had found a place in this famous galaxy of people. The director told me that the lady was Mrs GR Naidoo (whose husband) was a photographer at the time that Nelson Mandela was arrested at LIliesleaf Farm."

He went on to add, "At that time, many of his fellow activists had believed that it was GR Naidoo who had betrayed Nelson Mandela’s location. Mandela himself never believed that and one of the first things he did when he came out of prison was to call Naidoo’s widow and to honour her in this way." 

The infamous Rivonia Trial had occurred followed by the arrest of Mandela and others at a farm that sent them to Robben Island as political prisoners for decades. After being a prisoner for 27 years, Mandela became South Africa’s first democratically elected president.

(Image: AP/Facebook)