India-South Africa India-South Africa 2019 | Page 20

India-South Africa relations
A bond oiled by the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi
and Nelson Mandela
Omegere John Patrick*
T
he relationship between India and
South Africa is unique in its kind.
Initial contact between people of
Indian origin and South Africans can be traced
to as early as the mid-seventeenth century. It’s
also important to note that Mahatma Gandhi
originally travelled to South Africa in 1893
on a temporary assignment to act on behalf of
a local Indian trader in a commercial dispute.
What was meant to be a short stop gap for the
struggling young lawyer turned into a 21-year
stay, with spells in India and England.
Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi: Two
global Icons against one global vice
Whereas Gandhi arrived in Durban
20 • India-South Africa • 2019
as a young law professional for short
litigation, he also arrived at a time when
the Indian immigration issue was at its
peak. People of Indian origin were hence
racially discriminated. His fi rst encounter
at the Durban courthouse and the later train
incidence at the Pietermaritzburg train station
were turning points in Gandhi’s life. A few
years later, Nelson Mandela was confronted
with the same reality. Born to the royal
polygamous family in the Qunu area of the
Transkei region, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
was among the few to join the elite University
of Fort Hare. It is here that Madiba’s political
underpinnings were provoked. Mandela
later played a signifi cant role in the African