Coll 34/4 'Slavery: Persian Gulf: Reports on; Attitude of HMG' [‎348r] (697/716)

aeil thorn Into tha Jharqiy&h fromwhioh pleco they
provltate northwards* f Jhaa the Sar fend iharqjyah slave
la generally th© victim of deceit, th# ilekran of force.
• gHH 3LAV^ K 0 Ul\^i ( » r mkL tthMlAB
3ee Hatch Map 1 and Appendix A*
j^he hunting of slavea in the Tekran i» carried on
by the Inhabitants themaelvee. A considerable part,
perhaps most of their transhipping Is done in Mek ran
owned and manned craft - Birkat Mhon himeolf being said
to posses© three dhowa. But Batlnah traders are also
in It. 2he traffic is sporadic and every craft whether
of Mekran or Oman origin is suspect.
-here would appear to be tv o main routes. A northern
on© from BUMCI and 3IKIE foing chiefly to CA2A?., ABU rUABl
X?UBAl t KHOh f&JZAff and XABBA: a southern one from the
Mekran portv^ of JUDA3CH, CHALLACc* OOMDHT, PAR AC, PC SIM
and KUMiSKAE to the 7AL ports ( Jee sketch Map ID,
chiefly XHABHKA, WDJJi and 3HHU. 3UPAI0H would' seem to
have the worst reputation.
fhe principal source of slave supply is ascribed to
BIMiCA? KBAM 9 perhaps largely by way of the northern route.
A man of great generosity, he Is said tp repay a present
from ah Crauni shaikh fourfold. Catai/and the 'frucifel
Chiefs are reported to send him occasional presents of
rifles (Unun Vugbah) and or.iaiunition and to receive slave
presents in return, a mere rifle and forty pounds of
ammunition going not unregarded.
hatimatea of slave numbers using YAL iA'Al ports
(see the southern route of Jketoh Hap 2) vary between
20 and 100 per annum. On arrival their journey north
is almost invariably by camel. -he route follows the
inside of the Batinah date grove to *ALAJ AL UBAJYAL.
Those destined for BIRAliil are said to be taken by way
of W.JISSI, the majority are bound for IUBA3 with a
choice of roada over the mountains via ADI HATTa or tf.nOR
or The last route is usually favoured to escape
the attention of BHAH2HAH Badawlns, themselves not averse
from securing a ’’cheap” si? ve, ^nd egt inet this
eventuality a fALAJ AL QUBAIYAL rafiq la said to
accompany the party. ( *or 11 it see appendix X^.)
A lidt of Trucl^ 1 teceivln^' Agents and Xealero
according to information received, is given in Appendix B.
GjUi-lnA^ li^liAiu J.
I . It would appet^r that the Truoiai Coast is the
magnet and mainspring of most of the slave trade in Oman.
In the light of the considerable normal slave element
personnel of the diving fleets, the occasional instance
brought to light there of a now MekranS elfve (not much
good a a a diver unless young, and likely moreover to
make himself a nuisance) as a novelty or in outrage
suggests
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