Volunteer recalls flight from Africa at gunpoint
Hospital volunteer Jatin Shah made an emotional visit to Buckingham Palace to mark the 50th anniversary of the arrival of British Asians in the UK from Uganda.
More than 70,000 fled the country in 1972 after dictator Idi Amin ordered them to leave the country within three months claiming God had spoken to him in a dream.
They were forced to hand over their businesses, homes and savings and threatened with prison if they remained.
Jatin said: “It was a frightening time with curfews and soldiers on the streets. My father got a call one evening from a friend saying the Army was looking for him and that we needed to pack a suitcase and leave straight away.
“I remember the worry on my parents’ faces as we passed through numerous armed check points on the long drive to Entebbe airport.
“We would be asked to get out of the car at each checkpoint and the soldiers just helped themselves to whatever they wanted. Our driver heard that several people who argued with soldiers were simply shot on the spot.
“I was born in Uganda and here I was being kicked out of my own country. We were allowed to leave with one suitcase and had to leave everything else behind and start over in the UK.”
More than 200 people attended the function at Buckingham Palace which was attended by King Charles III. It included presentations by David Dimbleby and Jon Snow who reported from Uganda as young journalists.
Jatin who has spent the past 22 years working as a volunteer at Northwick Park Hospital, said: “It was lovely to met everyone and share those memories. It’s been a long journey.”
Idi Amin presided over one of the most brutal dictatorships in Africa with up to 300,000 deaths attributed to his regime before he was forced out of power several years later.