I am a South African born Indian, peaceful citizen of this land. Recently Government has passed Asiatic Land Tenure and Indian Representation Act, 1946, which deprives my fellow countrymen and myself of certain basic elementary human rights. In protest to this unjust and inhuman law I have occupied land which Act debars me from. I am not challenging Durban City Council's owner­ship of land nor am I engendering hostility to any section of community....

10 From: Telegram to Mahatma Gandhi in Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi , Volume 84, p. 500. Dr G. M. Naicker, President of the Natal Indian Congress and Chairman of the Passive Resistance Council, led the first batch of passive resisters in the Indian passive resistance movement of 1946-48. Others arrested with him included: Dr K. Goonam, Vice-President of NIC, M.D. Naidoo, Secretary of NIC, the Reverend Michael Scott and eight women.

CLOSE