Chapter 144: Trade
Port of Dar es Salaam.
Slave market.
"These natives are now yours, Mr. Abrag. Pleasure doing business."
A staff member handed over a group of slaves to a Zanzibari slave trader.
"Of course, my friend. Good luck to you," said Abrag.
He then ordered his men to put chains on the natives. Just like that, another slave convoy departed from East Africa.
Abrag was a long-time partner of the East African colony. His father was a minister of the Sultanate of Zanzibar.
The long line of slaves slowly moved toward the docks under the watchful eyes of enforcers.
"Animals! Don't look back again. From today onward, there's no going back for you! Give up that hope."
The Zanzibari men spoke to the natives in Swahili, attacking them psychologically.
It was part of the slave trade—breaking the last hope in their hearts.
Becoming a slave was not something terrifying for Africans, as they were still in the tribal era. Tribal warfare was common, and it was normal for the losers to be enslaved.
In tribal times, every tribe would capture members of enemy tribes, turning them into slaves—or be captured and enslaved themselves.
In other words, slavery was an everyday reality on the African continent. So when the natives became slaves, they weren't overly panicked. Their worldview had always been: losers become slaves.
Moreover, some natives actually found being a slave in the East African colony to be not too bad!
That's not a joke. Under the training and discipline in the colony, the lives of these native slaves were relatively satisfactory. While the work was exhausting, food was at least stable every day.
Back in their tribes, they knew exactly how slaves were treated—beatings and scolding were the norm. Hard labor was common, losing limbs wasn't rare, and during food shortages...
Compared to what their tribes did, the East African colony seemed like a land of mercy.
So, the natives weren't afraid of becoming slaves. What they feared was the ships on the sea.
They knew once they boarded a big ship, they would be taken far away—possibly never to return for the rest of their lives.
Experienced Zanzibari slave traders naturally needed to crush any homesick feelings among the natives.
Otherwise, they might revolt once aboard the ships.
There was nothing more effective than beatings and curses to distract these natives.
The Zanzibari method worked. These slaves quickly lost focus amid the abuse, and with prior "training" from the East African colony, they soon became obedient.
"Keep the cargo and the slaves separate. Don't let these natives ruin anything. And store things high up—don't let my goods get damp! If my cargo suffers even the slightest damage, you'll regret it," Abrag told his men.
"Yes, sir," they respectfully replied.
More and more slave traders were now using a combined cargo-and-human transport model—bringing both slaves and goods to the Middle East for sale.
In recent years, things had become increasingly tense. Slave trading was getting harder.
To the Zanzibaris, those Europeans were meddlesome fools.
Back then, it was the Europeans who profited the most from the slave trade. Now that they'd made their fortune, they were smashing everyone else's rice bowl!
The Zanzibaris and Arabs were talking about the British and French. The abolitionist movement was all the rage now. Some ships had even been confiscated.
If Europeans were really so kind-hearted, Abrag said he'd eat sh*t standing on his head.
As someone who had long dealt with the sea, he knew full well—those sailing the seas were all devils. There were no saints. The saints had long been shark food.
These European bastards, now that they no longer needed slaves, had started acting all saintly and morally superior. It was disgusting.
People influenced by Arab culture—those who often dealt with the West—knew the score. These two religions had been at odds for a thousand years. Who didn't understand whom?
It was only because the Arabs had declined that these Europeans dared to step on their heads.
Strength speaks louder than reason. Without power, you have no say.
But the Zanzibaris and other Arab merchants were not going to sit idly by. They began to transform and upgrade.
Of course, giving up the slave trade was out of the question.
Illegal slave ships, with a little makeover, became labor-import ships.
Slaves were rebranded as legally recruited workers.
To avoid giving the Europeans any excuse, slave traders even reduced the number of slaves per ship. That way, there was no apparent overcrowding—at least not visibly.
But to earn more, many merchants started using the original slave spaces for cargo.
This shift was influenced by the East African colony. The Hechingen Consortium was exporting goods to Arab regions. Most of the goods traveled via the Mediterranean—from Austro-Hungarian factories through Adriatic ports to Ottoman countries—but some made their way to East Africa.
These industrial goods were highly valuable to the Zanzibaris.
And the best part—they didn't have to pay cash!
While East African goods were priced clearly, they could be traded for women.
Not just Black women—any kind would do, as long as they weren't too old.
That worked well. After all, the Zanzibaris weren't running Middle East routes exclusively—they also traveled to India and Southeast Asia.
In this era, the poorest people in colonized regions were driven to despair.
Already exploited by local elites, now they had colonizers sucking their blood too.
Southeast Asia had been colonized by the Dutch and Portuguese for over two or three centuries. Why was Southeast Asia considered a "high-quality" colony?
Because it had a large population and was developed early. It had civilizations.
Unlike Africa or the Americas.
When Europeans arrived, Native Americans were still playing with stones. Africa…
Moreover, many of the southern islands in Southeast Asia were Arab-influenced nations (like Indonesia). Naturally, Arab merchants were heavily involved in trade and commerce there.
This gave Zanzibaris a wide range of channels.
As long as they bribed local nobles, they could take as many people as they could transport.
After all, there was no such thing as "human rights" in a colony.
Many of these nobles were agents of European colonizers. The colonizers relied on them to rule and suppress the masses.
Don't expect integrity from them when profits are on the line.
And conveniently, these nobles—local tyrants—were utterly ruthless.
Hardly anyone among the lower class in the colonies had enough food to eat.
Economic conditions were terrible.
When people are on the verge of starvation but still clinging to life, they become terrified.
Because the colonizers and nobles could decide life or death with a word.
Yet no one wanted to stand up—because staying alive was a privilege.
To survive, all notions of ethics and virtue meant nothing compared to a single meal.
That's why Zanzibari merchants could often buy people from these areas for just one or two meals.
In any case, it was all about the profit margin.
And in the end, the one paying the bill was still the East African colony.
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