Here is part two of the two-part series on the slaves of Borneo. It was enjoyable researching and expanding our knowledge of this great island. Although most of the slave traders came from the Sulu area the ramifications were felt all across the archipelago. Some of the information are behind paywalls and I could not afford up to $50 to access them.
Slaves in Borneo
Johol became one of the most important slaving centres by 1800. It led to the establishment of a permanent slave port in the Sulu zone. By the early 19th century it specialized in state-sanctioned maritime slave raiding attacking Southeast Asian coastal settlements.
The slaves were brought to Johol where, after the Sultans’ and datus debts were satisfied, the rest could be sold to others. Along the east Borneo coast, Muslim middlemen acquired birds’ nests and wax in exchange for slaves. The traditional ceremony held among the Ida’an, Tidong and Kenyah groups accounted for much of the demand for captives. Their religious beliefs required the sacrifice of slaves which was connected with the taking of heads for Mamat festivals and the offering of human sacrifices on the death of a chief or other persons of lesser rank.
The slaves in Borneo included those who became slaves through marriage. The title of slave will be passed down to their children. Their children will become slaves to replace their parents. If a female slave marries a free man she will also become free, however the bride price will be doubled. There are many rules and regulations governing the lives of slaves along the coast.
The slaves who are purchased or captured by warfare are another type of person. These slaves have no rights and are dependent on their owners. They usually perform heavy labour. They can be sold at any time by their masters.
The next group includes those who refuse to repay their debts within the time frame set by their creditor. Most of the debtor slaves have committed theft and cannot return the item or pay the fines. Therefore the thief and his wife and children are forced to live with the creditor until the debt is paid.
During this time, they will work to cultivate crops, find and harvest forest products or work in the house. These debtor slaves can be sold to another to help pay off the debts. There are cases of debt-bonded slaves becoming very close with their masters and are regarded as brothers, sisters, mothers or sisters. However, if they try to escape they will revert to the status of regular slaves.
Most debtor slaves had a high debt and could not pay off their obligations. People who gambled became debtor slaves however, due to high interest rates could not find themselves out of bondage.
The heritage slaves were those who were married but had not been able to pay off their debts. Therefore, the wives, children and grandchildren will become slaves if they are unable to pay off their debts.
There were slaves who were captured because of intertribal warfare. These slaves were kept in order to defend their territory and became lifelong slaves. These slaves were also obtained from Sulu and Iranun who raided deep into the interior of Borneo.
The Slave Trade
The development of the slave trade along the Borneo Rivers appears to have altered the ceremonial practice surrounding human sacrifices. In earlier times, preference had been given to killing young warriors or traders but the coming of the Taosug provided slaves, especially the elderly and the infirm.
The more slaves acquired by raiding resulted in a decrease in price which meant more were available for religious and spiritual uses. Now mourning commoners could afford slaves to remember their relatives. The slave was purchased, bound with cloth and speared to death. Depending on the status of the individual, a single or a whole household of slaves was sacrificed.
Slaves who were not purchased for ritual were absorbed into the slave class and used to find and process jungle produce. It is estimated four to five hundred slaves were processed each year by the Taosug, Iranumn and Balangingi in the first half of the nineteenth century.
The Raids
Between 1800 and 1848 the Taosug Datus advanced the raiders with boats, powder and ball, cannon, rice, opium and additional crew. Everything was to be repaid with slaves. Slaves were exchanged for 200-300 gangtans (3.1 kg) of rice. A prahu could be purchased for six to eight slaves, boat rentals were between two and three slaves. A rifle could be rented for five pieces of linen while a portable cannon could be had at the rate of one slave.
The expedition was commanded by a panglima or orang kaya. Each prahau had its own nakodah.(boat captain) A large part of the rowers would be his followers and slaves. Once the panglimas and nakodahs determined the course during the voyage they rarely left their prahus.
The expedition also had experienced officers (julmuri) who acted as steersmen and were responsible for the crew and maintenance of the boat. The juru batu tended the anchor and kept watch for reefs, shoals, rocks, trading ships and the enemy.
Accompanying each fleet was the imam who read the Koran, led prayer recitation, and acted as the judge(hakim) when disputes arose. Strict discipline was maintained within the fleet. At the end of the eighteenth century, raiding boats had between 50-80 fighting men and about 100 rowers. During the 1800’s the boats became smaller.
The Balangingi Samai visited the Philippines twice annually, once in March and once in October. It was the small settlements with little or no outside communications being attacked with their inhabitants being killed or carried off.
From the 1800’s onwards, Brunei was in easy range of the Balangingi and a squadron hovered about Palawan. They seized the Brunei inhabitants and cut off trade with North Borneo. The attacks were an important contributing factor to Brunei’s decline. “It was difficult to catch fish but easy to catch a Bornean” a Balangingi saying went.
After 1852 the Spanish blockaded Johol and the center of the trade shifted to Parang, Basilan, Palawan, the Kinabatangan and Bulungan. Bulungan became the principal slave market of the Balangingi. Infidels and Muslims were brought to be sold there. Bajaus, Bruneis, Manila men, natives of Palawan “All was fish that came into their nets” remarked Governor Treacher.
The Dutch and English took measures in a joint venture to protect the coasts of Borneo, Java and Sumatra in 1862. They placed steam gunboats at British-occupied Labuan and the Dutch on the east coast of Borneo.
By 1875 the Balangingi were confined to capturing riverine shore dwellers and Samal Baju Laut on the north Borneo coast. A combined fleet of Iranian and Balangingi prahus from Tunku and Tawi-Tawi captured 600 people in 1877 and the following year William Pryor heard numerous reports of Tawi-Tawi slave raiders penetrating North Borneo waters with impunity.
The future of the North Borneo Chartered Company was made secure only after H.M.S. Kestrel bombarded Tunku in 1878 and Dutch steamers took an active role Berau region.
Prices of Slaves
The highest price for each slave was the young women. They could be used as wives and concubines to recruit warriors into the datus retinue. Youths were considered tractable to be incorporated into Taosug society.
The prices varied for men when they came. Manila Men or Tagalogs made good rowers, helmsmen or boat builders. Visayans were unsurpassed as divers and were up there with the Tagalogs. Papuan and Flores men were excellent artificers and extremely loyal to their masters.
The courageous behaviour of the Buginese made excellent soldiers and had an uncanny ability to learn the cannon and other guns. Visayan women became weavers. Most esteemed for their beauty were the mixed Chinese. Women from the Aru and Papuan were also considered valuable because of their beauty and all three groups were sold at a much higher than the average price.
The following sources were used in the essay.
Allen, Richard European Slave Trading in the Indian Ocean Athens Ohio: Ohio University Press, 2014
Aping Sajok Perhambaan Tradisional di Borneo Utara Zaman Kesultanan Sulu & Brunei in Sains Insani 2017, Vol 2 No 02: 20-28
Bosma, Ulbe Being Dutch in the Indies Singapore: NUS Press, 2008
Munshi Abdullah Hikayat Abdullah Kuala Lumpur: MBRAS, translated from Jawi, 1849
Vienne, Marie Sybille Brunei: From the Age of Commerce to the 21st Century Singapore: NUS Press 2015
Warren, James The Port of Jolo and the Sulu Zone Slave Trade: An 1845 Report in THe Journal of Sophia Asian Studies, (25), pp.65-80 2007
Warren, James The Sulu Zone 1768-1898 Singapore: NUS Press, 1981
Tom McLaughlin for BorneoHistory.net