Growing up, I had an acute awareness and understanding of South African history. I excelled in history at matric level and never saw it as a subject, but rather a way of understanding life, ideologies and systems of power and governance. As a journalist, a strong knowledge of history was essential to balanced reporting and so, I read and researched more. But even this was not enough, as I recently realised.
For the first time, I visited the 1860 Heritage Centre at Derby Street in Durban. Amid the sea of pictures of sari-clad women and men in turbans, anecdotes, archival material and artefacts, I discovered just how much I did not know.
Do we really understand the dreams that Indian indentured labourers came to South Africa with from 1860 onwards? Many of those dreams were shattered by suicide. The list is long and the descriptions are harrowing. Many more dreams were shattered by harsh treatment. All that was promised to them was not delivered. But they did not get onto ships and go back home as their offspring are often told even today. South Africa had become their home, their land. They worked on mainly sugar-cane plantations and were the backbone of KwaZulu-Natal’s economy. They did not retreat. Every day was a struggle… a struggle which they survived.
The 1860 Heritage Centre captures this struggle and the unwavering spirit of Indian indentured labourers beautifully. Curator of the centre Selvan Naidoo calls the exhibition on indenture his “labour of love”. The hard work and effort is clearly evident; it is a magnanimous display and tribute to the heroes and heroines of indenture. As he took me on a tour, I had to fight back the tears at several points. I’m sure it will evoke a similar reaction among others.
I can still feel the eyes of the indentured labourer in one of the paintings looking down upon me asking, “Do you know our pain?” His forlorn face is a sharp juxtaposition against the lush fields in the background. It is indeed bitter-sweet as this journey of indenture is often called. The taste of sugar was sweet, but it was tinged with the bitterness of their sweat. Though they worked tirelessly on the sugar cane fields, they never shared in or benefitted from the profits. But the skills they learnt, with the sun beating down on their backs, haven’t been lost. That has been passed down, giving rise to a generation of market gardeners and fostering the spirit of entrepreneurship that continues to grow today. With no other way to literally feed their families, many took to making Indian delicacies and selling them for an honest living. Many still do so – as a testimony to hard work and honest living.
If we truly pride ourselves on being South Africans, then a visit to this centre is a must. It houses our roots. Yes, the roots of South Africa, not just of the Indian community. It is an essential part of history that is being easily forgotten and too quickly, lines in the sand are being drawn, questioning if the Indian community suffered enough during colonialism and apartheid. Let us not judge what history has proven.
This Saturday, the 4th of November, a symposium will take place at the centre to mark 100 years since the formal abolition of indenture. It is an opportune time to learn more about the remarkable men and women of our soil. An esteemed list of speakers will touch on what indenture entailed, and the ripple effects still felt today. The symposium is also a call for the public to actively engage with academics and historians, and then take these discussions further as informed members of society.
A born-free may question what significance would understanding indenture have on his or her life. It is about generational legacy. If your forefathers changed their destiny, surely it has changed yours?
I consider myself fortunate to know which village in India my forefathers hailed from and when they arrived in Durban, South Africa. Nine years ago, I drove through the village of Navsari in Gujarat while on the Know India Programme. It felt surreal. Did they really take this journey (that I took by plane) by sea? How long and perilous was it? And how did they build their lives in a new land?
The answer for every family is different. Depending on what material you have – be it a ship number, date, surname or village in India – your roots can be traced with the help of the 1860 Heritage Centre. You owe it to your family and future generations to make that effort.
The list of those who arrived on board the SS Truro and Belvedere is telling. Zoom into the image and you will see how many undertook this journey clutching babies that were just a year old. Such was their tenacity. But such was also their desperation, because sadly, child labour was deemed acceptable. Look closer and you will see the different villages, religions and castes. All these barriers were cast away into the sea as they travelled together and then worked together. Amid the challenges facing the South African Indian community today, we too need to draw on their foresight and display a sense of unity. Too often we hear stories of what seems to be a bygone era, where Eid, Diwali and Christmas were all celebrations for the entire community – and the sharing and caring extended to beyond those of the same faith. Let us reclaim that era. Let us not allow prejudice to triumph over a legacy that began 157 years ago this very month, when the first Indian indentured labourers set foot on South African soil.
The symposium to mark 100 years since the formal abolition of indenture is just one day, this Saturday. Those who attended will undoubtedly leave enlightened. For those who cannot attend, the exhibition on indenture is a permanent one that can be visited throughout the year. It is a multi-media tour that touches on the very foundation of live as we know it today. For those who have now settled overseas and make that journey back home during the year-end holidays, include a visit to the centre into your schedule. The South Africa Indian indenture story is history in motion – it must be told and told again.
For details on the 1860 Heritage Centre visit: https://www.facebook.com/1860heritagecentre/
Reblogged this on mayajag.
This is what fuels some of us in our endevours for our children. We had progressed as our grandparent expected. BNut when you leave South Africa and move to another country it then and only then you realise the true damage of what was done to us. In order to see, you don not HAVE to move. But you can read to keep the fire burning to educate our children and provide them a way to a better life where held of the required recipe is held in the blood line of where we came from. Thank you for this. It will be the first place I visit when I come back home for a holiday.