مجموعة ٣٤/١٢ "الرِق وتجارة الرقيق: تدابير حظر الرِق في الساحل المتصالح" [ظ‎‎٢‎٣‎٠] (٤٧٣/٤٦٠)

Art. 3. In the event of a slave complaining of bad treatment on the part of
his owner or possessor the competent authority shall summon both the complainant
and the person against whom the complaint is lodged and if it is satisfied that the
complaint is well-founded it shall caution the owner or possessor in the first
instance and shall grant him respite for a period not exceeding two months in
order to examine again the condition of the complainant and, if it is satisfied in
the second instance that the grounds for complaint still exist, it shall compel the
owner or possessor to divest himself of the ownership or possession of the com
plainant either by sale or otherwise. If the owner or possessor fails to bring the
complainant before the competent authority within the period fixed by it he shall
be punished in the first instance by a fine not exceeding £1 and if the contra
vention is repeated a fine double that amount shall be imposed and he may be
sentenced to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one week.
Art. 4. Any slave who can prove that he was born free and that he was
enslaved in a manner contrary to Islamic law during the period which has elapsed
since the establishment of the Government of His Majesty the King in the year
1344 shall have the right to petition for his release from slavery and it is the duty
of the competent authority to consent to examine the case and to give an equitable
decision concerning it.
Art. 5. Subject to any rights which the owner or possessor may have reserved
in a form recognised by Islamic law and recorded in writing at the time of the
marriage, it shall not be lawful for the owner or possessor to separate two slaves
who have contracted matrimony in accordance with Islamic law except under an
order issued in accordance with that law.
Art. 6. The owner or possessor shall not separate children from their mother
so long as they are minors.
Art. 7. The slave shall have the right to apply to his owner or possessor
for “ Mukataba " {i.e., an agreement enabling the slave to purchase his freedom),
and it shall be the duty of the owner or possessor to accede to this demand and in
the event of any dispute arising between owner or possessor and slave as to the
amount of the sum to be paid that sum shall be assessed by the competent
authorities and they shall appoint dates for its discharge. The existence of the
“Mukataba shall not be held to set aside the application of the provisions of
article 3 above.
Art. 8. Any slave who was born outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shall
have the right to choose the place where he shall reside when he has been freed in
accordance with the provisions of this regulation or in accordance with any other
form recognised by Islamic law.
Art. 9. All slaves must be enrolled in a special register to be kept by the
competent authorities, and every slave shall be given a certificate of identity
containing his description and, in the case of males, his photograph. Certificates
of identity shall be in triplicate, one to be kept by the competent authorities, one
by the owner or possessor and one by the slave. There shall be entered on the
certificate of identity all the formalities relating to the slave, and the owners
or possessors of the slave shall be required to complete the formalities of the
registration within one year from the date of the promulgation of this regulation.
Art. 10. Any slave who has not been registered by his owner in the manner
set forth in the preceding article shall have the right' to present himself before
the competent authority and to demand to be given a certificate of freedom.
Art. 11. When slaves are transferred from the possession of one person to
that of another they must be produced before one of the doctors of the Department
of Public Health, in order to obtain a certificate that they are in good health.
Part III.
Art. 12. It is not permitted to engage in the traffic in slaves as an agent
or' broker except in accordance with an official licence issued by the competent
authority.
Art. 13. A special official, entitled Inspector of Slave Affairs, shall be
appointed to deal with matters relating to slaves and he shall have, in case of
necessity, a travelling assistant.
Art. 14. 1 he competent local authorities shall present a six-monthly report
on the working of this regulation, containing a summary of the formalities which
have been concluded, and the six-monthly reports shall be forwarded, together
with the observations of the Inspector of Slave Affairs, to the Minister of the