'File 8/7 I Jidda Intelligence Reports' [‎34r] (67/536)

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that the Eritrean authorities should be held responsible for their repatria
tion A despatch from His Excellency the Governor-General, dated Novem
ber 14th amplified these points but envisaged the possibility of some of
the destitutes being absorbed in the Sudan labour-market in February 1932,
should conditions still warrant it.
70. It was therefore arranged to examine and classify at the Legation
all Nigerian destitutes then in Jedda and seeking repatriation. This
examination was carried out during the 2nd week of November by the Pro-
Consul, in the presence of a member of the Italian Consulate who assisted
in the interrogation of the pilgrims and agreed the conclusions arrived at.
It involved 5 days’ exhausting work; but the results were striking. During
the month which had elapsed since the opening of the question, many more
destitutes had flocked to Jedda under the stress of economic depression
throughout the country, and a total of over 900 was finally examined.
Some 100 had come to the Hejaz via Suakin and 800 via Massawa. Of the
former, 32 held return tickets, all of which were time expired; the remain
ing two-thirds had come to the Hejaz between pilgrim seasons on single
tickets. 94 held pilgrim-passes or other Sudan papers; the rest had lost
theirs.
71. On November 29th, 108 pilgrims who had come via Suakin were
repatriated at destitute rates by Khedivial Mail steamer to Suakin, with
the concurrence of the Government of Nigeria and of the Sudan Govern
ment, who, while reserving their rights in the matter, undertook to waive
the incoming quarantine dues. The Hejazi Government also waived out
going dues. In the meantine His Majesty’s Chargd d’Affaires had
approached the Italian Consul with a view to inducing the Eritrean autho
rities to accept at Massawa, without payment of quarantine dues, 500 out
of such destitutes as might be proved to have come to the Hejaz via
Massawa, to be sent in batches of 100 by the fortnightly Italian steamer.
The Consul proved helpful. He sent his interpreter,, as already stated, to
be present at the interrogation of the destitutes; and on receiving the result-
ing proof of the Massawa sanbuq traffic, succeeded in securing the accept
ance of the proposed arrangement by the Eritrean authorities. The latter
also intervened with the subventioned Italian shipping company to induce
them to quote a low destitute rate. The Nigerian Government agreed to
the arrangement, and on December 20th the first batch was embarked for
Massawa, the Hejazi Government again waiving outgoing dues.
72. Nigermn Pilgrimage Control .—The examination of Nigerian pil
grim destitutes described in paragraph 70 above incidentally showed up
three undesirable aspects of the present system by which these pilgrims
reach the Hejaz. The first was that far too high a proportion of these
embarking at Suakin do not come during the pilgrimage season, when they
are compelled to purchase return tickets, but slip over between seasons on
single tickets. Another was that the 6 month period of validity of return
tickets is too short to suit the leisurely habits of the African pilgrim, who
on reaching the Hejaz usually works there for over a year to earn money
before recrossing the Red Sea. His Majesty’s Minister, who had the
previous May suggested to the Sudan Government that return tickets should
be made compulsory for pilgrims all the year round and should be valid
for at least a year, on December 21st again emphasized these points in a
despatch to Khartoum.
73. The third and most important fact of which irresistible evidence
was now afforded was the existence of a regular pilgrim traffic by sanbuq
from ports on the Arabian littoral. The Foreign Office in a despatch of
October 9th had forwarded corroborative evidence of this collected indepen
dently by the Sudan Government and requested His Majesty’s Charge
d Affaires to submit any evidence collected at Jedda which might assist
His Majesty’s Government to represent the more forcibly to the Italian
Government the failure of the Eritrean authorities to implement the rele
vant articles of the 1926 Sanitary Convention. The information contained
in paragraph 70 above was accordingly forwarded to His Majesty’s Govern
ment on November 28th.