Transvaal Indian Congress
Transvaal Indian Congress | |
---|---|
Far-left (later) | |
Religion | Hinduism, Islam |
National affiliation | South African Indian Congress |
The Transvaal Indian Congress (TIC) was a political organisation established in 1903 to fight discrimination against Indians in the Transvaal Colony, and later the Transvaal Province, of South Africa. Founded in 1903 as the Transvaal British Indian Association,[1] it was a member of the South African Indian Congress alongside its elder and larger sibling, the Natal Indian Congress. It fell dormant after the end of apartheid in 1994.
Origins
The TIC was generally a moderate organisation in its formative years. It was active in
Dadoo led the group through a campaign of passive resistance against the Asiatic Land Tenure and Indian Representation Act from 1946 to 1948.[1] It subsequently became active in opposing apartheid, including during the Defiance Campaign of 1952. In the late 1950s, the TIC, then based in Fordsburg, was generally more radical than the larger and older NIC, particularly in its support for Nelson Mandela's proposal to prepare for armed struggle against the apartheid regime.[2] However, during the 1960s and 1970s, the TIC fell into dormancy due to the extent of state repression against the Congress Alliance, with some leaders (such as Dadoo) living in exile and others (like Ahmed Kathrada) imprisoned.[1][4]
Revival
The first signs of the TIC's revival were in 1981, when a community meeting in Lenasia agreed to form the Transvaal Anti-South African Indian Council Committee to advocate boycotts of elections to the South African Indian Council, a government advisory body.[1] After a successful boycott, the committee held a conference in January 1983, at which attendees decided to revive the TIC.[1] At the same conference, Reverend Allan Boesak made his famous call for the establishment of a "united front" against apartheid, which led later that year to the founding of the United Democratic Front (UDF).[5][6]
Meanwhile, the TIC was formally relaunched in May 1983.
Although the TIC was represented at the
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Transvaal Indian Congress (TIC)". South African History Online. 30 March 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
- ^ ISSN 0258-2473.
- ISSN 0259-0123.
- ISSN 1089-201X.
- ^ Spector, J. Brooks (22 August 2013). "The UDF at 30: An organisation that shook Apartheid's foundation". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
- ^ ISSN 0258-9346.
- ^ a b c d "Transvaal Indian Congress (TIC)". The O'Malley Archives. Retrieved 2 May 2023.