The Indian presence in what is now

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

dates back to 1890 or earlier. Some scholars have suggested the similarities of the gold mining techniques carried out in southern Zimbabwe during ancient periods with the Indian ones, a brass cup of Hindu workmanship dated to 14th or 15th century AD has been found in Zimbabwean workings. During colonial period Indian

plantation Plantations are farms specializing in cash crops, usually mainly planting a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Plantations, centered on a plantation house, grow crops including cotton, cannabis, tob ...

workers in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

crossed the border into

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

. A voluntary wave of Indian migrants also came at this time from the east, made up mostly of Gujarati men crossing the Indian Ocean to look for new opportunities. These men landed in Beira in Mozambique. Finding that immigration restrictions made it difficult for them to go to South Africa, they made their way across Mozambique, ending up what was then Southern Rhodesia. Further immigration was restricted in 1924 when the colony became a self-governing colony of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The next year, entry of Indian migrants was restricted to wives and minor children of existing residents, with exceptions made on occasion for teachers and priests. Indians in Zimbabwe have never made up more than one per cent of the country's population. In 1911, they numbered 2,912 as compared to the white settler population of 23,606, out of a total population of 771,077. By 1969, Asians still only numbered 8,965 as compared to 228,296 Europeans out of a total population of 4,846,930. The first migrants worked as traders, market gardeners, and laundrymen in the rural areas, often setting up stands on white farmers' land. They were eventually driven out of the reserves and into urban spaces by the Land Apportionment Act of 1930. Most Indians in Rhodesia were Gujarati, hailing from the same villages. According to the 1921 census, there were 612 Hindus resident in the country, and 231 Muslims (with one Parsee and 113 identifying as ‘other’). Indian Zimbabweans faced discrimination during colonial rule as a minority non-white population. Although most stayed out of active politics, some Indian Zimbabweans discretely channeled funds to anti-colonial movements. Many Indian Zimbabweans emigrated to South Africa,

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

, and

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

, as well as

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and the United Kingdom, following the economic downturn in Zimbabwe that began in 1999. As of October 2016, an estimated 9,000 Zimbabwean citizens are of Indian origin, mostly Gujarati. Prominent Indian Zimbabweans in politics include

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

Kantibhai Patel, who served as member of the

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the highest organ of the central committee in communist parties. The term is also sometimes used to refer to similar organs in socialist and Islamist parties, such as the UK Labour Party's NEC or the Poli ...

and Central Committee of the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front. Patel died in 2011, and was declared a national hero in 2012. Indian Zimbabweans Bharat Patel and Ahmed Ebrahim have served as justices of the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. Around 500

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n citizens were residents in Zimbabwe as of October 2016. Most of them are professionals working in computer software, accounting and banking.

Persecution

In the months before the Zimbabwean election, amongst widespread economic mismanagement by the Zimbabwean government, Zimbabwean president Emmerson Mnangagwa accused Zimbabwean Indians of hoarding basic goods, and threatened to seize their property.

Persecution

See also

References

Further reading