The British government estimated that about 40,000 were British passport holders with the rest split between Ugandan passport holders and nationals of India, Pakistan and other African countries. After failed negotiations with Amin, the British government announced that it accepted ultimate responsibility for Asians with British passports. Shortly after that, Amin declared a 90 day deadline for the Asians to leave. The British requested help from other countries. Several countries responded and set up immigration processing centers in Uganda. As more and more Asians left Uganda, reports of widespread harassment of Asians grew. Amin required verification of citizenship for Ugandan passport holders which proved to be an excuse to cancel thousands of legitimate citizenships essentially rendering them stateless. The majority of Asians had left by the end of October. However, As the deadline approached, there were a few thousand Asians left who weren't able to leave for a variety of reasons. The United Nations began a massive airlift operation, taking thousands to refugee camps all over Europe.
After the expulsion was completed, the Washington Post reported, “Steel shutters are drawn in a long gray line across the store fronts of Williams Street, once a busy commercial area in Uganda’s capital. As if their owners had been suddenly plucked up by a giant invisible hand that sought people, but disdained property. Thousands of shops and houses built up by the Asians in their seven decades on Kampala’s hills stand silent and abandoned now, waiting to be taken over by eager new African owners.” |
