Evening star., 1949-01-15
South Africa Indians
Flee Riot-Torn City,;
Death Toll Put at 800
400 Also Reported Hurt;
Armed Forces Unoble to
Holt Strife Completely
BY the Associoted Press

! DURHAM, Union of South
Africa. Jan. 15.-Terrified In
dams fled from Durham today as
race rioting which already has
claimed an estimated 300 lives
blazed up in the suburbs.
The fighting, between native
blacks and the Indians, a minority
: group in South Africa. has been in
progress since Thursday. Indians
and natives alike have been burned
and stoned to death and shot. En-
tire Indian families have been wiped
out. The city's Indian quarter has
been wrecked. Some of the natives
chanted Zulu battle cries as they
fought.
Intervention by South African
armed forces has slowed, but not
halted the rioting.
At least 400 persons have been in
jured. One European (white) was
killed and a dozen were injured.
They have not. however. been gen.
orally involved in the rioting. DAM
age was estimated at $1,000, 900.
Flee to Nearby Villages.
Police organized areas or refuge
/ for the Indians, who are immigrants
or descendants by immigrants from
the Asian subcontinent. Officials in
Johannesburg said a majority of
the Indians are evacuating Durham,
fleeing to surrounding villages with
their few remaining possessions.
Those officials made the casualty
estimates.
More ahan 200 police reinforce
ments have arrived in Durham, De-
fanse Minister F. C. Erasmus said
he would proclaim state OF emer-
gency if the situation grew worse.
The South African air force was
held in readiness to move in extra
police. Five radio cars and 100 po-
lieemen already have been sent from
Pretoria by air.
Before the new flareup in the su-
: urbs the district police commandant
; for Durgan said the police and mil
itary and naval personnel had the
situation we'll in hand. 1t was the
first time South African military
units have been summoned to help
quell racial violence.
Whole streets of stores and houses
have been burned down or looted.
Hundreds are destitute or homeless.
Riots Began Thursday.
,, The rioting broke out Thursday,
when a young native boy was in
jured by an Indian market peddler.
He was taken to hospital and re-
ports spread that he had been
killed.
The incident snowballed into
wholesale native attacks on the
Indians Whole families were slain
in their homes.
BY the time the armed forces
quelled the rioting in the city, 1t
had spread to the suburbs.
Indian and native casualties, JAM
med into King Edward VII Hos
pital, kept IA doctors busy.
Durban's population includes no.
00e Indians. The white Euro
pean population is 10000 and the
black (native) about twice that.
The Mayor of Durham met with
police and service chiefs to discuss
public safety measures for the strife
torn city.
Last Outbreak in September.
The last big native demonstration
in South Africa occurred last Sep
tember, when 5000 blacks demon
srrated against the segregation OF
whites and whites on Cape
Towns suburban railway. lines.
There is segregation on trains
throughout the union.
Natives cannot vote in parlia-
mentary elections.
The Indians have about the same
status as the natives.
Asiatic land tenure and repre-
sentation acts prevent them from
purchasing or leasing property, ex-
Icept in certain specified areas, and
give them only group representation
in Provincial Councils and Parlia-