A Glimpse of History: The Rise of Pastoralists and the Evils of Locusts in British SL

[Xudeedi]

Somalis' struggle to foreign rule evolved in different forms throughout our history. It involved from one with cohesive agenda during Ahmed Gurrey to one that characterized our divisions like the Tories and Loyalists in American history to mostly popular politics in our revolt against a set of colonial policies. Here is an account of the revolt of pastarolists against the introduction of anti-locust campaign in the history records.

 

 

The introductory part of this important historic account rehearses the core justification of the colonial mission as to educate the “wild” and the “beast” on how to govern themselves and to adopt to a contemporary system of governance perhaps to psychologically influence readers what is to come in the body and conclusion of this historic account of our history. The colonial mission does still rest on popular assumption that colonialism improved Africa by creating European style nation-states. To begin with, The document is based on accounts of popular politics then unpopular in Somali history due to lack of sufficient study, nevertheless, it shares its place with subaltern nationalism and resistance in British Somaliland. Accounts like revolts against the imposition of taxation, small political parties that articulated the aspiration, resentment, and destiny of the people are few examples. However, the main one of this heterogeneous struggle, according to the account, was the Pastoralist’s revolt against locust control program in which the colonial regime attempted to allocate “set poisoned bait” to all the districts in British Somaliland. “A persistent theme in anti-colonial resistance throughout the colonial period was the suspicion that the administration had secret designs to depopulate the country and introduce settlers,as the British had done in East Africa,” states it.

 

In May 1945, Locust swarms descended on the countryside and destroyed the grass. However, the locals became suspicious throughout the protectorate that the British have secret designs to destock or wipeout their livestocks. The first peace disorder took place In Zeila and Baran, burning bait dumps and attacking employees. Burco took the riot to the streets and petitioned the District Commissioner. The administration even went as far as to warn the people to refrain from spreading mischievous rumours that the colonial administration had had grand designs in its policies to destock in the interest of soil conservation. It warned anyone who is found of spreading or fabricating such ill-conceived rumors will be tried and punished. It also preempted religious leaders from playing any preaching role to the people because the administration was apprehensive of popular resistance.

 

 

However, locals adopted strategies of non-cooperation, street protest hurling stones, and poetic communication to foment public discontent. Although they were totally ignorant of the benefits of the poison baits, they wrongly thought their opposition to the locust control program was the right direction in saving their livestock but they might had had good reason. Prior to the campaign, the administration introduced two new policies to protect and conserve the ecology of the land by encouraging more livestock exports and grazing restrictions. The locals reacted negatively to the latter and recalled it during the campaign of anti-locust.

 

 

Literary struggle of poems called for the people to rise against the colonial policies and revenge for the corpse of Sheikh Bashir which was refused for burial and displayed instead as an exhibition in Polyneices’ punishment where his body was kicked and spat upon as a tactic to intimidate and humiliate the people. Haji Adan Afqaloc, a native of Erigavo composed two historic national poems. “Raqdii Bashiir”, “The Corpse of Bashiir” and “Gobonimodoon” while in Burco Jail. (Interestingly enough, Mahatma Gandhi and Kwami Nkurumah had been to Bur’o jail.) Previously, the rise of Sheikh Bashir came after the colonial adminstration punished the Habarjeclo by confiscating one thousand of their camels and charging extortionate money for the release of each camel. His struggle was short-lived after units of police officers attacked his fort and killed him and all of his followers. The poem in English goes:

 

Sheikh Bashir was hanged in daylight, at a house near you,

 

 

His body torn out by bullets,

 

 

And still covered with wet blood,

 

 

They kicked and insulted him

 

 

Then watched him with contempt

 

 

When the unwashed body was thrown outside,

 

 

And refused burial, you were all a witness.

 

 

There were others killed playfully,

 

 

About which nothing was done

 

 

The body of Qayb-diid is still warm

 

 

Though an old man, Farah was sent to jail

 

 

And now like a beggar he roams the outside world

 

 

They refused him rights over his family and wealth

 

 

The unjust man (British) is punishing everybody.

 

 

What the English always wanted, the people of India refused

 

 

The houses of Punjab and the gold that they hoarded there

 

 

have been denied to them

 

 

Now they look back at them with nostalgia

 

 

The celebration is for Muhammad Ali (Egypt)

 

 

And the French are leaving Syria that they conquered

 

 

They withdrew from Beirut, and Lebanon.

 

 

Many ships will arrive at our ports,

 

 

They will bring here (Somaliland) those thrown out by the

 

 

stream of shit,

 

 

The place where you pasture Daawad (the land), the infidels

 

 

will settle,

 

 

A man who owns a car and an aeroplane will force you to

 

 

work on his farms,

 

 

Few would survive such humiliation.

 

 

This rich poem, the content of which features historic figures and awareness of political outcome in far regions, angered the Makhiri and many other pastoralists. The final content of this history is how the Makhiri pastoralist challenged the authority while the administration responded with brute force. For the first time, the administration sent armored vehicles and an aircraft from Royal Air force based in Aden led by Major General Wood to combat the pastoralists. At the time of these incidents, all locals were already disarmed and pacified by the administration, yet the pastoralists resisted with determination the anti-locust campaign by facing armored cars, for instance, in one instance, 300 Makhiri armed with spears, attacked the police force and armored units at Hubeera and Hadeed. “Even though the pastoralists suffered losses, their attitude remained ‘unsatisfactory, and more force was considered necessary’: their attitude was ‘unsatisfactory’ to Major Wood, because they continued to resist the antilocust campaign, and so more troops and police armoured cars were dispatched to the district.121,” states it. It is important to note that our people understood the concept of unity as it prevailed in our country back then.

 

This history reminds us that our people were united against foreign rule regardless of our narrow differences. Great poems like those of Haji Afqaloc did indeed spark the revival of our natianalism that Sayid Mohamed instilled into our people. .

 

 

For further reading, visit

 

http://past.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/174/1/184.pdf

 

By SOL: Nassir

[Xudeedi]

Excellent Piece, great job Nassir.

[NASSIR]

Thanks Xudeedi for posting this old book review of mine.

 

The "Corpse of Bashir" poem by Haji Adan Afqaloc is a historic one.

The level of contempt and disrespect with which his body was held by the colonial admin, after they killed him, will never be forgotten. The peom indeed preserves that historic moment.

[ismacil mire]

excellent piece brother Nassir,keep up the gud work.

lakinse how can the one get into oxfordjornals.org and read the book without having a password ?