The present plight of Afghans and Ukrainians is a well timed reminder of how historical past repeats itself.
In 1972, Asians in Uganda had been simply months away from being instructed, by their president Idi Amin, that they’d 90 days to depart the nation.
This summer season an exhibition at Greenham Common Control Tower remembers these refugees who arrived right here 50 years in the past. There will probably be an official opening right now (Saturday) on the Greenham Control Tower and Café at 10.30m.
At the time, Ugandan Asians from the Indian subcontinent owned 90 per cent of companies within the nation and had been being accused of milking the Uganda financial system.
Leaving behind properties, buddies and work round 80,000 folks boarded planes with nothing however one suitcase and £50 of their pockets
Leaving behind properties, buddies and work, round 80,000 folks boarded planes with nothing however one suitcase and £50 of their pockets.
Four girls have opened up about their experiences from fleeing their properties in Uganda, to volunteering at Greenham Common.
Leaving behind properties, buddies and work round 80,000 folks boarded planes with nothing however one suitcase and £50 of their pockets
Child refugee
Headley resident and exhibition organiser Pragna Hay was solely six-years-outdated when she was pressured to flee her dwelling together with her mother and father and 4 siblings, aged between 4 and 12.
They left on October 13 and arrived at Stanstead airport the subsequent day.
Pragna Hay arrived in Newbury at six-years-outdated
Pragna, who’s a former Greenham parish councillor, stated: “The journey itself was troublesome for lots of people, with Ugandan troopers being instructed to shoot anybody carrying greater than they need to.
“Lots of households discovered methods of getting issues out, they stitched pockets beneath their saris.
Pragna Hay revisiting her dwelling county
“If they had been stopped at a checkpoint and it was discovered, it was all taken from them.
“There had been a whole lot of atrocities on the checkpoints.”
She described the second a soldier shot any individual, however she couldn’t recall the explanation.
“My sister tells me tales of oldsters on coaches placing their younger youngsters’s heads down as to not scar them for the remainder of their lives.”
Pragna Hay revisiting her mother and father outdated store that they’d to stroll away from in 1972.
Families had been bundled on to coaches and brought to Houndstone Camp, Yeovil, the place Pragna and her household stayed till February 14, 1973.
She was relocated to Greenham Common Camp on April four after which given a council home in Redditch.
The West Berkshire camp consisted of dormitories with “beds clustered collectively” for households to sleep on.
“The beds had gray blankets such as you get in these films of outdated army camps. People created sections to make their areas non-public utilizing a bit of fabric or sari in between.
“They had been possessive of their little space, you could possibly not stroll into another person’s space with out asking for permission first. And rightly so.”
Greenham Nurse
Among the workers was 78-year-outdated nurse Sarla Kakar.
Prior to changing into one of many camp nurses Sarla labored on the Battle Hospital in her hometown Reading.
The mom-of-two initially left work to have her second child, however got here throughout the chance to assist the current Ugandan arrivals and took it.
Sarla right now (56950528)
Sarla mirrored on her time on the camp and stated: “I loved it, however now after I look again at it, it was a tough job and I used to be so younger.
She stated: “It was actually coronary heart-breaking. Lots of them had been from well-to-do households, however they had been coming right here with nothing.
“It was so hurtful to see them, how they as soon as had been and the way they’d to depart every thing behind.”
Making a brand new dwelling
Author Bharti Dhir was solely 11-years-outdated when she was expelled from Idi Amin’s rule.
The Asian-African mom of 1, who now lives in Reading, will probably be studying an extract from her e-book Worth, which is about her journey as a refugee, on the Greenham Common Exhibition this summer season.
Bharti Dhir
Bharti, who adopted her now 17-year-outdated daughter when she was simply six-months-outdated, stated the story was written to “empower” her little one because it particulars the love she’d felt from her personal adoptive mom rising up.
As a child, Bharti was deserted at a roadside and located at two days outdated. She was taken in by a Pubjabi-Sikh household at round three to 4 weeks outdated.
By the time Idi Amin expelled all Asians from the nation, Bharti’s adoptive mom Pritam Kaur had turn out to be a widow and journeyed via the checkpoints alone together with her 5 youngsters.
Bharti and her household in Uganda
The journey was laborious, there was just one driver to take 45 households out to the capital Kampala – a six to seven hour journey – and troopers had been ordered to shoot anybody taking a cent greater than they need to, in another country.
Bharti, who was the one adopted little one amongst her siblings, recalled the second she feared her mom’s life at one of many checkpoints.
“We had just seen a disabled child being shot in front of us and then [the soldier] turned the gun towards my mum.”
Bharti was the one member of the household with twin heritage and he or she says “as far as the soldier was concerned [she] didn’t belong to [her mother]”.
“He ordered her to leave me behind, he ordered that several times and pointed the gun at her chest,” she defined.
“She refused.
“I nonetheless get emotional interested by it. I used to be solely 11-years-outdated.”
When she and her household moved from the camp to Reading they had been met by racism.
“We had graffiti on our doorways and on our partitions. People had been writing issues like ‘Paki’s out’ and at one level it culminated in a fireplace,” she recalled.
“They lower a department off a tree that was in our backyard, put it throughout the entrance door and set fireplace to it.”
She added: “History is there to train us that refugees will at all times be there.
“Refugees will not be leaving as a result of they’ve come for a greater life abroad, it’s extra about the truth that they’ve been pressured to depart.”
Bharti will probably be becoming a member of different authors with related tales for the exhibition and will probably be making ready a written piece in addition to contributing pictures to assist inform the story.
Young volunteer
Red Cross volunteer Sally Breach was solely 12 when she joined her household in serving to the refugees, however had a barely totally different expertise.
Her position was to play with the kids.
“They had no toys, we discovered a wheelbarrow and we had been working youngsters round within the wheelbarrow.
Sally Breach
“It was nice enjoyable time so far as I used to be conscious, the kids had been all actually excited to be someplace totally different.
“I keep in mind assembly Sarla Kakar who was a nurse,” she stated.
“She was the primary woman I had ever seen carrying a sari and I used to be completely fascinated by it.
Sally Breach and her brother Simon
Sally not too long ago joined a Ugandan Asians Facebook group got here throughout a photograph that she was in.
“A photograph got here up with my dad in it after which one other with me and my brother [Simon]. I had seen it within the press earlier than, however I commented saying I’m on this.”
She has ready info for Pragna forward of the exhibition.
• The exhibition Uprooted at Greenham Control Tower started on July 1 and can run till the tip of September.
• Bharti Dhir will probably be signing copies of her e-book Worth on October 21 at Whitewall Gallery, Parkway.
