As the riots in South Africa’s Johannesburg and Durban escalate, many Indian expats and businessmen are being attacked and killed. Their businesses are being looted and destroyed in what started off as a protest after former president Jacob Zuma was found guilty of contempt of court and jailed. 

In conversation with The Times Of India, Indian-origin South African journalist Edwin Naidu explained the reason behind Indians getting targeted. 

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He mentioned that 212 people have died in the recent violence as a result of looting and stampede. The violence soon took over as means of racial war in South Africa, with Indians and white communities barricading their houses to protect themselves. There have been incidents where a black person walking past an Indian colony would get attacked. The culmination of many such incidents has led to somewhat of a racial indifference. 

The start of the unrest is, however, getting partly blamed on Gupta Brothers. Ajay Gupta, Rajesh Gupta, and Atul Gupta migrated to South Africa in 1993 and started their family business with Sahara Computers, soon entering mining, technology, media, and eventually, the government.  The brothers have been accused of looting the government treasury, turning the reputation of Indians bad in South Africa. The understanding of people in South Africa has led them to generalise all Indians as the Guptas, which takes away the contribution of Indians in South Africa’s struggle and elevating the economy when they came to the country as slaves 1860. 

Edwin Naidu said, “Indian were a part of African National Congress but ANC doesn’t seem to embrace them anymore. It is not doing much to build an inclusive South African and I think that a lot needs to be done. 

While people were threatened, no one expected this kind of violence after the court hearing of Jacob Zuma, putting the onus now on the government and its security forces to deal with the situation efficiently, as opposed to how it has been done so far.