The 1937 Somaliland Camel Corps Mutiny: A Contrapuntal Reading

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Periodical article

Title:	The 1937 Somaliland Camel Corps Mutiny: A Contrapuntal Reading
Author:	Mohammed, Jama
Year:	2000
Periodical:	International Journal of African Historical Studies
Volume:	33
Issue:	3
Pages:	615-634
Language:	English
Geographic terms:	Somalia Somaliland Great Britain
Subjects:	colonialism black soldiers History and Exploration Military, Defense and Arms
External link:	https://www.jstor.org/stable/3097437
Abstract:	This article analyses the causes of the 1937 Somaliland Camel Corps mutiny. The mutiny broke out in Company 'C' of the Somaliland Camel Corps when scrapers were introduced to clear the dung from the stables. However, the article argues that the dung issue was used by the 'askari's' (soldiers) as an 'excuse for outward demonstration' for their demands for better working conditions. The main cause of the mutiny was their demand for higher wages. The scarcity of labour in the Protectorate, along with political and economic developments in Ethiopia as a result of the Italian occupation, stimulated the demand for labour in both Somaliland and Ethiopia. The askaris were willing to take a risk, because they were sure that they would either gain higher wages within the army or find employment in Ethiopia or Somaliland. The article contrapuntally reads askari politics and regional market changes in the outbreak of the revolt. Notes, ref.