South Asian Corporate Dominance in Uganada leads to Racial Violence

4 killed in Uganda forest protest Published : Thu, 12 Apr 2007 19:29

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) - A mob stoned to death two people of Asian origin, and two other people were killed Thursday as a protest over a prized Ugandan rain forest exploded into racial violence, forcing military police in armored vehicles to fire tear gas into the crowd, authorities said. Police arrested 20 people suspected of being the ringleaders of the melee and offered special security to Asians in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, said Information Minister Kirunda Kivejinja. Police were guarding some Asians in their homes.

The protest was aimed at a subsidiary of the Mehta Group, which is run by Ugandans of Indian descent. The company wants to slash part of the Mabira Forest Reserve to expand its sugar plantation. The crowd burned cars, attacked a Hindu temple and chanted, 'We are tired of Asians!' and 'They should go back to their land!' Dozens of Asians, fearing for their lives, took refuge in police stations. Tension between black Ugandans and those of Asian origin has a long history in this African country. In the 1970s, dictator Idi Amin expelled South Asians, saying they were trying to dominate the economy.

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