Madagascar–South Africa relations fight against apartheid. Radio Freedom was operated by South African freedom fighters in Madagascar between 1979 and 1993. In June 1991, apartheid legislation was repealed in South Africa and Nelson Mandela was elected President in May 1994. That same year, Madagascar and South Africa officially established diplomatic relations. During the 2009 Malagasy political crisis, Malagasy President Marc Ravalomanana fled to South Africa where he remained in exile for the next 5 years. In August 2012, South African President Jacob Zuma traveled to the Seychelles to assist in brokering a deal between Madagascar's President Andry Rajoelina and Marc Ravalomanana. In January
Religion in South Africa owned by European settlers. Many came from Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar, and some from other states of India. Early Hindu settlements in South Africa suffered discrimination, abuse and persecution. Hindu Indians were among the people who were referred to as coolies, racially segregated, and their discrimination continued through the Apartheid era until 1994. The first Hindu temples were in operation in the 1870s. Some South African local governments banned temple building and property ownership by Hindus in 1910s. Modern South Africa has many Hindu temples, and its Hindu community observes major festivals of Hinduism such as