Factions in Indian and Overseas Indian Societies, Part 3: Communal Rivalry among Indians in Uganda

Abstract

r NHIS PAPER first describes the broad groups discernible in Indian society in Uganda and then discusses those aspects of , their structure which are of theoretical interest in a discussion of factionalism. Four points which arise from the East African material seem to be of particular interest.* (i) The title of this paper does not contain the word faction This omission is deliberate, for if a faction is considered to be a group organized to deal with a specific but temporary situation, then the term is not always appropriate in the circumstances I am about to describe. The Indian population of Uganda is undoubtedly divided into 'communal' groups which are permanent structural units in the Indian section of society in Uganda; but from the point of view of Africans and Europeans these 'communities' frequently have the appearance of factions and often behave as such. (ii) The material from Uganda leads me to suppose that the emergence or non-emergence of rival groups within a larger category of people depends to a sigriificant extent on the actual numbers of people concerned. (iii) A second factor related to the emergence and consolidation of rival groups that I wish to put forward for consideration deals with