Ikelan
Encyclopedia
Haratin
Haratin are oasis-dwellers in the Sahara, especially in southern Morocco and Mauritania, who make up a socially and ethnically distinct group of largely sedentary dark colored workers speaking either Berber or Arabic...
within Maure
Maure
A Maure, since the 11th century, is the symbol of an African head. The term has Phoenician and Greek origins; see Moors.- U Moru :The main symbol in the coat of arms in Corsica is U Moru, Corsican for "The Moor", originally a female Moor blindfolded and wearing a necklace made of beads...
society in the western Sudan. Like the Haratin, the name "Ikelan", and to a much greater degree Bouzou and Bella, are exonyms (a name not used by that people themselves) with negative connotations. In parts of West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
an unknown number of Ikelan caste individuals continue to live in slavery or slavery like relationships with other Tuareg individuals. Ikelan individuals and communities are found through much of Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
, Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
, southern Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
and Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
, and parts of northern Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated...
and Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
.
Caste system
The Tuareg people have in the past had a highly socially stratified society, with specific social roles (warriors, religious leaders) or professions (blacksmiths, farmers, merchants) assigned to specific castes. The tiny aristocratic caste of warrior elite which once sat atop a pyramid of Tuareg society was decimated during the wars of the colonial period, and this, along with economic necessity, post-colonial border restrictions, and modern education, have broken down many traditional caste barriers. Tuareg higher caste traditions value a nomadic life, warfare, study, animal husbandry, and trade. Consequently, Higher caste communities travel, at least seasonally, if able. Lower caste groups, not limited to the Ikelan are more likely to live in settled communities, either in SaharaSahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
oasis towns or in villages scattered among other ethnic groups in the sahel
Sahel
The Sahel is the ecoclimatic and biogeographic zone of transition between the Sahara desert in the North and the Sudanian Savannas in the south.It stretches across the North African continent between the Atlantic Ocean and the Red Sea....
region to the south.
Formation and role
As the Tuareg moved south on the continent in the 11th century AD, they took slaves as prisoners of war. Most slaves were taken from among sub-Saharan Africans: Songhay - Djerma, Kanuri and HausaHausa people
The Hausa are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. They are a Sahelian people chiefly located in northern Nigeria and southeastern Niger, but having significant numbers living in regions of Cameroon, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, Chad and Sudan...
communities, as well rival Tuareg Kels (tribal confederations). These éklan once formed a distinct social class in Tuareg society. Servile groups came in two forms: domestic slaves lived near their owners as domestic servants and herders, and functioned as part of the family, with close social interactions. Additionally, entire communities became servile to aristocratic tribes, conquered in situ, formed by migration of Ikelan families or even other ethnic groups moving into Tuareg controlled communities seeking protection. Sometimes members of rival Kels, defeated in war, were subsumed as lower castes, but usually of higher level than the Ikelan. Servile farming or salt extraction communities, somewhat analogous to European Serfs were gradually assimilated into Tuareg culture, maintained Tuaregs herders during their annual transhumance
Transhumance
Transhumance is the seasonal movement of people with their livestock between fixed summer and winter pastures. In montane regions it implies movement between higher pastures in summer and to lower valleys in winter. Herders have a permanent home, typically in valleys. Only the herds travel, with...
cycle, or provided trade or farming centers for Tuareg clans. Prior to the 20th century, the Tuareg captured most individual slaves during raids into other communities and in war. War was then the main source of supply of slaves, although many were bought at slave markets, run mostly by indigenous peoples.
Some Tuareg noble and vassal men married slaves, and their children became freemen. In this sense, éklan formed distinct subsections of a family: "fictive children." Entire Ikelan communities, on the other hand were a class held in an inherited serf-like
Serfdom
Serfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
condition, common among some societies in pre-colonial West Africa, and often having little interaction with "their" nobles though most of the year.
When French colonial governments were established, they passed legislation to abolish slavery, but did not enforce it. Some commentators believe the French interest was directed more at dismantling the traditional Tuareg political economy, which depended on slave labor for herding, than at freeing the slaves. Historian Martin Klein reports that there was a large scale attempt by French West Africa
French West Africa
French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan , French Guinea , Côte d'Ivoire , Upper Volta , Dahomey and Niger...
n authorities to liberate slaves and other bonded castes in Tuareg areas following the 1914-1916 Firouan revolt. Despite this, French officials following the Second World War reported there were some 50,000 "Bella" under direct control of Tuareg masters in the Gao - Timbuktu areas of French Soudan alone. This was at least four decades after French declarations of mass freedom had happened in other areas of the colony. In 1946, a series of mass desertions of Tuareg slaves and bonded communities began in Nioro
Nioro
Nioro is the name of two towns in West Africa*Nioro du Sahel: a town in the Kayes Region of western Mali*Nioro du Rip: a town in the southern Kaolack Region, Nioro du Rip Department, of Senegal...
and later in Menaka
Menaka
In Hindu mythology, Menaka is considered one of the most beautiful of the heavenly Apsaras.She was sent by Indra, the king of the Devas, to break the severe penance undertaken by Vishwamitra. She successfully incited Vishwamitra's lust and passion when he saw her swimming naked in a lake near a...
, quickly spreading along the Niger River valley. In the first decade of the 20th century, French administrators in southern Tuareg areas of French Soudan estimated "free" to "servile" Tuareg populations at rations of 1 to 8 or 9. At the same time the servile "rimaibe" population of the Masina
Masina
Masina may refer to:Places* Masina, Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo* Masina, alternate name of Tabas-e Masina, in Iran* Masina, Lumbini, in Nepal* Masina, Rapti, in NepalPeople* Giulietta Masina , an Italian film actress...
Fulbe, roughly equivalent to the Bella, made up between %70 to %80 of the Fulbe population, while servile Songhai groups around Gao
Gao
Gao is a town in eastern Mali on the River Niger lying ESE of Timbuktu. Situated on the left bank of the river at the junction with the Tilemsi valley, it is the capital of the Gao Region and had a population of 86,663 in 2009....
made up some 2/3 to 3/4 of the total Songhai population. Klein concludes that roughly %50 of the population of French Soudan at the beginning of the 20th century were in some servile or slave relationship.
Contemporary conditions
While post-independence states have sought to outlaw slavery, results have been mixed. Traditional caste relationships have continued in many places, including the institution of slavery. In some areas, the descendants of those slaves known as the Bella are still slaves in all but name. In NigerNiger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
, where the practice of slavery was outlawed in 2003, a study found that almost 8% of the population are still enslaved.
Mali
In Mali, members of hereditary Tuareg servile communities reported that they have not benefited from equal education opportunities and were deprived of civil liberties by other groups and castes. Ikelan communities in GaoGao
Gao is a town in eastern Mali on the River Niger lying ESE of Timbuktu. Situated on the left bank of the river at the junction with the Tilemsi valley, it is the capital of the Gao Region and had a population of 86,663 in 2009....
and Ménaka
Ménaka
Ménaka is a rural commune and town in Menaka Cercle, Gao Region, in the far east of Mali. It is the local government seat and largest town in the Cercle, and one of four rural communes...
also reported systematic discrimination by local officials and others that hindered their ability to obtain identity documents or voter registration cards, locate adequate housing, protect their animals from theft, seek legal protection, or access development aid.
In 2008, the Tuareg based human rights group Temedt, along with Anti-Slavery International
Anti-Slavery International
Anti-Slavery International is an international nongovernmental organization, charity and a lobby group, based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1839, it is the world's oldest international human rights organization, and the only charity in the United Kingdom to work exclusively against slavery and...
, reported that "several thousand" members of the Tuareg Bella caste remain enslaved in the Gao Region
Gao Region
The Gao Region is located in eastern Mali. The region's capital city is Gao. Gao Region is bordered to the south and east by Niger, to the north by Kidal Region, and to the west by Tombouctou Region. Common ethnicities in the Gao Region include the Songhai, Bozo, Tuareg, Bambara, and Kounta...
and especially around the towns of Ménaka
Ménaka
Ménaka is a rural commune and town in Menaka Cercle, Gao Region, in the far east of Mali. It is the local government seat and largest town in the Cercle, and one of four rural communes...
and Ansongo
Ansongo
Ansongo is a Rural Commune and small town in the Gao Region of south-eastern Mali. The town lies on the left bank of the Niger River 90 km south of Gao. It is the administrative center for the surrounding Ansongo Cercle. The commune has an area of 445 km2 and had a population of 32,709...
. They complain that while laws provide redress, cases are rarely resolved by Malian courts.
Niger
In Niger, where the practice of slaverySlavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
was outlawed in 2003, a study has found that more than 800,000 people are still slaves, almost 8% of the population. Slavery dates back for centuries in Niger and was finally criminalised in 2003, after five years of lobbying by Anti-Slavery International
Anti-Slavery International
Anti-Slavery International is an international nongovernmental organization, charity and a lobby group, based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1839, it is the world's oldest international human rights organization, and the only charity in the United Kingdom to work exclusively against slavery and...
and Nigerian human-rights group, Timidria
Timidria
Timidria is the name of an NGO for human rights in Niger, founded by Ilguilas Weila. Timidria is dedicated to the eradication of slavery in Niger.Timidria was formed in 1991 and the name means 'solidarity' in Tamajaq...
.
Descent-based slavery, where generations of the same family are born into bondage
Debt bondage
Debt bondage is when a person pledges him or herself against a loan. In debt bondage, the services required to repay the debt may be undefined, and the services' duration may be undefined...
, is traditionally practiced by at least four of Niger’s eight ethnic groups. The slave holders are mostly from the lighter-skinned nomadic ethnic groups — Tuareg, Fula
Fula people
Fula people or Fulani or Fulbe are an ethnic group spread over many countries, predominantly in West Africa, but found also in Central Africa and Sudanese North Africa...
, Toubou
Toubou
The Tubu are an ethnic group that live mainly in northern Chad, but also in Libya, Niger and Sudan....
and Arabs. In the region of Say on the right bank of the river Niger, it is estimated that three-quarters of the population around 1904-1905 was composed of slaves.