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The Bolama-Bijagos Archipelago
Report by Amy Corbin and Ashley Tindall History and Cultural SignificanceEarly settlement in the area that is now the nation of Guinea-Bissau started from the interior of Africa and moved westward. It is believed that people arrived on the coast by 9,000 BC. Members of the broad Senegambian ethnic group settled the 88 islands of the Bolama-Bijagos archipelago and became known as the Bijagos (Bissagos). The Bijagos are a matriarchal and matrilineal society in which women choose their husbands and which is guided by female priests. Traditionally a hunter-gatherer society, they were famous for their almadias, large ocean-going canoes that could hold up to 70 people. The Bolama-Bijagos islands are in a cluster, with Bolama the largest and closest to the mainland. Only 23 of the 88 islands are inhabited. The semi-tropical islands consist of mangrove forests, saltwater swamps and palm trees interspersed with zones of dry forest, coastal savannah and sand banks. Island rivers release nutrient-rich freshwater into the ocean, creating a breeding ground and habitat for many species including crocodile, hippopotamus, fish, sea turtles, crustaceans, and mollusks. Each year, around 1 millionlocal and migratory birds from as far away as Siberia and Northern Europe settle in the archipelago to breed. After their own migration from the mainland, the Bijagos watched other ethnic groups arrive from inland West Africa. Trade and agriculture in the Sahel region led to the development of the powerful empires of Mali, Songhai and Ghana, which plundered the western areas of Guinea-Bissau for slaves, gold, and other resources. The Keita dynasty of the Mali empire came to power in 1235 and, through its sub-empire the Farim of Kaabu, extended towards the coast of modern-day Guinea-Bissau, but never controlled the coast itself or the Bijagos islands. Mainland Senegambians either assimilated into the empire’s culture, including the embrace of Islam, or moved towards the islands. Each westward migration put more pressure on coastal dwellers and islanders. For instance, the island of Bolama, closest to the mainland, became a refuge for the Beafadas people, who were pushed out of the interior by the Mandinka (of the Mali empire). The arrival of the Beafadas on Bolama forced the Bijagos onto more distant islands of the archipelago.
The island of Bolama was desirable for its location near the mainland and its fertile soil. The British tried to conquer it in 1792, but were pushed out by Bijagos warriors the following year. France and Britain repeatedly asked Portugal to subdue the Bijagos islands, and in 1849, decided themselves to conduct a joint “punitive” raid on the islands—only to turn back when faced by the islanders’ resistance. Both the British and Portuguese “bought” Bolama from both the Beafadas and the Bijagos, ignoring the reality of the local coneption of land ownership. Finally, the European nations appealed to the United States to decide who possessed the island, and US President Ulysses S. Grant supported Portugal in 1870. In 1879, Portugal made Bolama the new capital of its colony, and it enjoyed a brief period of colonial prosperity when many businesses and banks were established locally. However, the Bijagos led a prolonged revolt against the Portuguese from 1917-1925 throughout the archipelago resulting in further Portuguese oppression, including a policy of complete segregation of the indigenous peoples from the colonials (the “civilized”, as they called themselves.) The end of the slave trade made a substantial dent in the prosperous lives of the of colonial elites, and embittered Portuguese officials took out their dissatisfaction on the people of Guinea-Bissau. The late 19th and early 20th century saw increased brutality through the so-called “pacification” campaign, a government doctrine dedicated to suppressing the ongoing resistance of the coastal people and assimilating them as workers into the low-wage colonial economy. Portugal, being a small and resource-poor country, put pressure on their colonies to produce cheap goods to ship to Lisbon. For the first half of the twentieth century, the Bijagos suffered under a system of forced labor. They were required to climb palm trees to gather their fruits from which kernels and oil were extracted. They also built the factories and machines used by the Portuguese and British who were industrializing the harvesting process. Part of the “civilizing” mission of the Portuguese government meant coercing natives to participate in a cash economy: on the islands this was accomplished by paying individuals for a few months’ work, taxing them, and then employing a different group so that the wage jobs were spread around. Bijagos were punished if they failed to gather 50 palm fruits a day. The dominance of the palm fruit industry forced the islanders to cut back on the cultivation of rice and other food crops, hunting, fishing, and canoe-building—the activities that made their culture sustainable. In 1936—after five centuries of ongoing colonial presence along the Bissau coast—the Portuguese declared the Bijagos archipelago “conquered.” The palm fruit industry put the islanders into a cycle of dependency, though it was short-lived on the islands because of the lack of fresh water. In 1941, the capital was moved to Bissau, on the mainland, and the signs of European settlement fell into disrepair. Citizens of Guinea-Bissau and the Cape Verde islands formed the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) in 1956. The initially peaceful group took up arms after Portuguese soldiers massacred striking dockworkers in the city of Bissau in 1959. The years 1963-1974 witnessed the rise of one of the most famous liberation struggles, led by Amilcar Cabral until his assassination in 1973. By 1968, PAIGC controlled most of Guinea-Bissau’s territory but Salazar’s dictatorship in Portugal refused to hand over the colony. On September 24, 1974, after the Carnation Revolution in Portugal, the new democratic Portuguese government independence to Guinea-Bissau. Today, the Bijagos are still a traditional people of about 25,000, the majority of which practice their animist faith and speak their ethnic language, in addition to the Portuguese-African creole (Criolu) spoken by the majority of the citizens of Guinea-Bissau. Current Challenges and Preservation EffortsThe impressive biodiversity of the Bolama-Bijagos archipelago has captured the attention of ecologists in recent years. The small islands are also valued by animal geneticists because they have unique gene pools and can provide clues about species evolution. A strong correlation has been shown between the restricted sacred sites and a high degree of biodiversity. For these reasons, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated the islands a biosphere reserve in 1996 and is considering making it a World Heritage Site. Part of what has kept the Bijagos islands so pristine is that the Bijagos animistic faith prohibits economic and subsistence activities in the many sacred areas. Thus, large areas have never been inhabited and their resources never touched. Some sacred sites are monitored by family clans, who have close ties with the deities that govern those areas. These clans establish guidelines for ritual and other behavior within the sites, rules that are followed by other islanders. Other sites are also reserved for initiation rituals, with access restricted to those who have completed certain ceremonial duties. Still others are meant only for men or women. The World Conservation Union (IUCN) lists some of the prohibitions for sacred sites: “a) the dead cannot be buried and the construction of permanent settlements is forbidden; b) Access is denied to those non- initiated (both men and women); c) Access is allowed to those initiated individuals from the clan that owns the sacred site; d) Sexual relations are prohibited; e) Blood shed (human or animal) is forbidden.” Like the rest of Guinea-Bissau, the Bijagos depend on the cashew nut harvest and a subsistence economy of fishing and gathering. This dependence on one cash crop has exacerbated Guinea-Bissau’s unstable economy; in 2005, the government tried to raise cashew prices, but this resulted in a near-boycott of the product by the international market. The fifth poorest country in the world, Guinea-Bissau is thus particularly vulnerable to foreign businesses that promise short-term profits at the expense of the environment. In 2003, the Spanish company DDY de Comercio Exterior SA proposed setting up a shipbreaking area around Bolama island. Shipbreaking is the practice of dismantling and sinking commercial ships, and often takes place where countries have looser environmental regulations. This results in oil and toxic materials like asbestos and PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls --commerical coolants) released into the water. DDY, acting on behalf of other Spanish companies with refrigeration boats requiring disposal, signed an “intention protocol” with the Government of Guinea-Bissau to develop an industrial center for shipbreaking. The government agreed not to tax the company’s operations on the rationale that it was bringing a “sustainable” business enterprise to the islands. DDY also claims that shipbreaking is an environmentally sound practice, a charge disputed by environmental organizations like Greenpeace and the Basel Action Network, which have led the campaign against unregulated shipbreaking around the world. Upon learning of the environmental damage being wrought in India, Pakistan, and other Asian countries, the main locales for shipbreaking, the Bijagos were determined to stop the industry from developing in their waters. The hazardous materials released into the waters could destroy the pristine marine environment that serve as a breeding ground for so many marine species and harm the indigenous fishing industry. Guinea-Bissau is a target for shipbreaking because it is not a signatory to the Basel Convention, an international treaty that regulates the transport and disposal of hazardous substances across national lines. “The people of Guinea-Bissau and their Government are victims of manipulative companies,” says Leo Stolk from NOVIB, Oxfam Netherlands. “A shipbreaking yard will mean destruction, not sustainable development for an area protected for its nature. It can only cause harm to communities reliant on the health of the oceans for their livelihood.” Public outcry and the opposition of political and business leaders in Guinea-Bissau eventually led the government to reject DDY’s proposal.
Meanwhile, industrial fishing also faces little regulation. Ships from China, Japan, and South Korea—modern day pirates—flock to the 70,000 square kilometers of water that is one of West Africa’s most fertile fishing regions. Smaller boats also come from other African countries. Recently, the harvesting of large numbers of sharks and rays that are fished for their fins, a popular delicacy in Asia, has attracted the attention of conservationists. In May 2007, the IUCN brought together all stakeholders of this industry—including Bissau-Guinean government officials, fishermen, fish processors, scientists, and island residents—to discuss how the industry as it currently operates is a threat to the environment, both marine and terrestrial, and to think strategically about how to regulate the industry in a way that allows some economic development. The immediate problem is that the government of Guinea-Bissau simply does not have the resources to enforce regulations: fuel shortages restrict the number of trips, and the waters to be patrolled are twice the country’s land base. There are only six small vessels in its navy, and every time they leave port to patrol, collaborators radio the pirate ships to let them know that the patrol is coming, preventing government officials from catching fishermen in the act. The government knows how valuable its maritime resources are, with 45% of national revenue derived from fishing. Guinea-Bissau has struck a five-year fishing deal with the European Union that allows EU companies access to local waters in exchange for a licensing fee of 51 million euros. Even if fished sustainably and legally, however, the fish are transported to other countries for processing, which translates into the loss of up to a thousand potential jobs for Bissau-Guineans. The impoverished country’s other natural resources— oil, gold, and diamonds —are all industries that have been relatively untapped but may soon be more aggressively pursued, leading to environmental destruction. Most recently, drug cartels from Latin America have begun using the isolate Bijagos archipelago as a weigh station for smuggling illegal drugs into Europe. Not only are the far-flung islands of the archipelago physically ideal for hiding speedboats and large amounts of drugs, but the government is unable to patrol the archipelago and pursue drug enforcement. The easy money of harboring drug smugglers is also realistically attractive to the economically-strapped Bijagos. De Andres, the UN Office of Drugs and Crime representative, warns that the trade on the archipelago could lead the country “to explode in any direction, civil war, regional destabilisation and it can trigger a domino effect against post-conflict countries which are recovering like Liberia and Sierra Leone.” SolutionEco-tourism, if implemented properly, would be one way for the islanders to rise out of poverty without sacrificing their sacred sites and natural resources. The Bolama-Bijagos archipelago is the only place in the world where one can see hippos swimming in ocean; the islands are also home to five endangered species of sea turtles and rare migratory birds. These could attract tourists interested in “adventure” tourism, nature-watching, and fishing, however the industry is limited by delapidated infrastructure and political instability. The government recognizes that the islands’ potential for the economy depends on maintaining their pristine eco-systems, and has plans to market Guinea-Bissau as the “Land of Biodiversity. Two island groups are national parks: the southern Orango group, home to saltwater hippos; and the eastern João Vieira group, breeding ground for a number of endangered sea turtles. Guinea-Bissau also hopes that the Bolama-Bijagos archipelago might be the country’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site. The country submitted the archipelago in May of 2006, but it remains on the tentative list. Sustainable economic development is the current challenge for Guinea-Bissau if the country is to protect its people and environment, and it is receiving needed attention from international institutions and the European Union. The EU has expressed interest in investing the $3-4 million needed to establish refrigerated fish processing plants on Guinea-Bissau to prepare fish for direct sales in Europe. However, the nation also needs the financial wherewithal to augment the policing of its waters, improve its port infrastructure, and attract foreign investment. Cooperation between conservation-minded international agencies like UNESCO and IUCN (through its West African Regional Coastal and Marine Conservation Program) and the international investment community should result in the development of a truly sustainable fishing industry. Such a development would allow the Bijagos to stay true to their traditional way of life while earning money. What You Can DoIn July 2007, the NGO Palmeirinha, established through IUCN’s Guinea-Bissau office, conducted a public education project called “Towards better management of biodiversity and natural resources”, which disseminated information through 6 national and community radio broadcasts, 36 school visits and 3 organized video debates and 3 radio debates. To support Palmeirinha’s efforts to protect biodiversity and the livelihoods and culture of the Bijagos people, contact IUCN’s country office in Guinea-Bissau. In addition, the Regional Coastal and Marine Conservation Program (PRCM) is continuing to organize the NGOs and governments of the coastal West African countries around issues of conservation and sustainable development. Contact the Program’s Director Ibrahima Niamadio for more information. Resources
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The islands off the coast of the West African nation of Guinea-Bissau have weathered centuries of slave trading, followed by an international debate over territorial possession. Throughout this, the ethnic Bijagos people have remained fiercely independent and continue to practice their land-based religion. Now, the delicate ecosystem of the archipelago is threatened by industrial fishing, shipbreaking and the growth of international drug trafficking. Pointing to foreign demand and interference in the affairs of the impoverished nation, Amado Philip de Andres, deputy representative for West Africa to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, said, “Guinea Bissau is going to explode unless we do something now. It is not a problem of Guinea Bissau, it’s a problem of Europe and Latin America.”
Portuguese traders and slavers began colonizing Guinea-Bissau in 1446. For several centuries, they governed the coast while the Kaabu empire kept control of the inland regions. It was a symbiotic relationship: Kaabu grew wealthy by delivering captured members of rival tribes to European traders. At its height, the Portuguese slave trade centered around Guinea-Bissau, running northwest to the Cape Verde islands and across to the islands of the Caribbean Ocean. However, neither the Kaabu nor the Portuguese (despite repeated attacks on the islands) could establish dominion over the Bijagos archipelago. There were too many of them, and the terrain was wild enough that the Bijagos could hide in remote areas. In the 18th century, the Portuguese slave trade shifted south to Angola. Throughout the 19th century, European nations and the United States outlawed the slave trade one-by-one under pressure from abolitionist groups. The Portuguese fought to stay relevant in the waning years of the slave trade, with France and Britain constantly threatening their territories.
While this first proposal has been rejected, the Bijagos remain wary of future prospects for shipbreaking due to the ambiguity of international ship disposal protocol. In March 1996, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the trade organization for the shipping industry, released a deeply flawed  |
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