‘File 5/196 I Slave traffic in the Gulf: Hindu boys kidnapped from Karachi and other cases’

Content

Correspondence in the first part of the volume relates to specific cases of the kidnapping of boys from Baluchistan/India to the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , and the efforts of the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. and Political Agents to locate, retrieve and repatriate them. Reference is made to a court case in Karachi, in which witness testimonies reveal the extent of the slave trade across the Gulf of Oman (folios 107-108), and the numbers of slaves on the Trucial Coast A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. , with up to 1,500 claimed to be in Dubai.

The volume broadens in scope, reflecting the British Government’s concerns about the extent of the slave trade from Persia/Baluchistan. There are detailed reports made in 1929 on the extent and nature of slavery in the Gulf region, specifically in Kuwait (folios 198-204, 215-216), Qatar (folios 220-223), the Trucial States A name used by Britain from the nineteenth century to 1971 to refer to the present-day United Arab Emirates. (folios 208-209), and Muscat (folios 242-260). The last of these reports is compiled by Bertram Thomas, then Wazir Minister. [Finance Minister] for the State of Muscat, and focuses on the slave trade in the Al-Batinah region of Oman. The report includes a detailed account of slavery and the pearl diving industry, maps of slave trade routes across the Gulf of Oman and on the Al-Batinah coast, and the names of known slave dealers in the region.

Extent and format

1 volume (312 folios)

It is grouped into

'YAL SAAD COUNTRY'

2 images

Ref: IOR/R/15/1/229, f 258

Map of slave routes between Baluchistan and Trucial States

2 images

Ref: IOR/R/15/1/229, f 260

Arrangement

Correspondence contained in the file compiled in a rough chronological order, from earliest at the front to most recent at the rear. f.2 is a handwritten index that lists the high-level contents of the file, organised into either specific reports or broad themes covering extensive amounts of correspondence. The numbering system used by this contents page refers to the earlier foliation system using uncircled numbers.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 307; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio.The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers, nor does it include the leading and ending flyleaves.The volume contains three foliation anomalies, ff 2a, 2b and 233a.

Written in

English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script

Type

Archival file

Access & Reference

Original held at

British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity.

Access conditions

Unrestricted

Archive reference

IOR/R/15/1/229

Former external reference(s)

A Series: 5/196 I

History of this record

Date(s)

6 Jan 1927-3 Jan 1930 (CE, Gregorian)

Subjects

Reports

Places

PersiaBaluchistanTrucial CoastZellaq

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‘File 5/196 I Slave traffic in the Gulf: Hindu boys kidnapped from Karachi and other cases’, British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/1/229, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100000000193.0x0000ca> [accessed 10 May 2024]

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