Carleton University would like to invite you to a special event to view materials from the Ugandan Asian Archive Collection in Toronto on Saturday January 23, 2016 from 1:00 to 4:00pm at the S. Walter Stewart Branch of the Toronto Public Library (John S. Ridout Auditorium) located at 170 Memorial Park Avenue (Closest major intersection Coxwell Ave. and Mortimer Ave).
On August 4, 1972, then-President of Uganda, Idi Amin, ordered the expulsion of the country’s Asian population. At the time, there were over 80,000 individuals of Asian origin in Uganda. With 90 days to leave, families scrambled to find a place to go. Those with Ugandan passports were stripped of their citizenship, making them stateless. Canada was one of the first countries to respond to Idi Amin’s order.
Given the importance of capturing the memories and experience of the South Asian people during this period, Carleton University has created the Ugandan Asian Archive Collection https://arc.library.carleton.ca/exhibits/uganda-collection). This is a unique archive collection that gives insight into the 1972 South Asian expulsion from Uganda and the subsequent resettlement in Canada.
The event on January 23rd in Toronto will showcase archival material as well as oral histories that have been donated to the Ugandan Asian Archive Collection. The event will feature:
- Wayne Jones, Carleton University Librarian
- Patti Harper, Head, Archives and Research Collections
- Michael Molloy who was previously Ambassador of Canada to Jordan. Mr. Molloy was sent by the Canadian Government to Uganda in 1972 to work under the direction of Roger St. Vincent. Mr. Molloy was second in command at the Kampala office of the Canadian Mission during the time of the expulsion.
- Tasneem Jamal, author of Where the Air is Sweet
- Nizar Fakirani, a lawyer based in Toronto whose family was up-rooted from Uganda in 1972
- Shezan Muhammedi, PhD candidate in History, Migration and Ethnic Relations at Western University who is conducting oral histories with Ugandan Asian refugees from across Canada.
By sharing the work being done at Archives and Research Collections with the Ugandan Asian community in the Toronto area, we hope to encourage others to participate in our oral history project and contribute to new acquisition activities.
To attend the event, please register at the following website http://events.carleton.ca/ugandan-asian-archives-road-show/ or contact Kylie Patrick at 613-520-2600. The event is free.
Ismailimail 
Wow! This is wonderful. I’ve been on this site for over two hours listening to the oral histories. Fascinating!
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