Vijesti ROMI.HR

Međunarodni dan sjećanja na trgovinu robljem i njeno ukidanje obilježava se 23. kolovoza svake godine, dan koji je UNESCO proglasio danom sjećanja na transatlantsku trgovinu robljem. Taj je datum izabran usvajanjem rezolucije 29 C/40 od strane Opće konferencije UNESCO-a na svom 29. zasjedanju. Cirkularnim pismom CL/3494 od 29. srpnja 1998. godine, glavni direktor pozvao je ministre kulture da promoviraju ovaj Dan. Datum je značajan jer je u noći s 22. na 23. kolovoza 1791. godine na zapadnom dijelu otoka Saint Domingue (danas poznat kao Haiti) započeo ustanak koji je vodio do događaja koji su bili glavni faktori ukidanja transatlantske trgovine robljem.

Ropstvo je staro koliko i povijest, ali se prema njemu postupalo te se ono razvijalo različito, ovisno o civilizaciji. Prvi oblik ropstva bilo je korištenje radne snage ratnih zarobljenika ili izbjeglica. Također, ljudi i narodi često su bili podvrgnuti ropstvu kao posljedica osvajanja. U nekim ste civilizacijama čak mogli postati rob radi dugova.

Ropstvo se u muslimanskom svijetu najprije razvilo iz ropstva predislamske Arabije, koja se povremeno radikalno mijenjala, ovisno o društveno-političkim čimbenicima kao što je arapska trgovina robljem. Islam nije bio protiv ropstva što je omogućilo ovoj praksi da se nastavi. Kroz islamsku povijest robovi su služili u razne društvene i ekonomske svrhe, pa su tako imali uloge od moćnih emira do grubo tretiranih fizičkih radnika. Broj robova u muslimanskom svijetu, kroz razdoblje duže od dvanaest stoljeća, procjenjuje se da je negdje između 11,5 milijuna i 14 milijuna.

Tijekom srednjeg vijeka u Europi ropstvo je postojalo u izoliranim područjima kao što je Skandinavija, uglavnom kao kućno ropstvo i ropstvo u svrhe rada na selu. Prijelaz ropstva u feudalizam stvorio je radnu snagu, koju više nisu činili „robovi“. Međutim, ropstvo nije nestalo, nastavilo se tijekom srednjeg i modernog doba, a masovno se koristilo i institucionaliziralo tijekom kolonizacije Amerike.

U pretkolonijalnoj Americi robovi su se, u nekim segmentima, vrlo razlikovali od onih nakon kolonizacije, a po uvjetima u kojima su živjeli bili su sličniji robovima antičke Grčke ili Rima. Ropstvo je bilo osobna institucija, što znači da nije bilo nasljedno, tako da su djeca robova bila slobodna u nekim pretkolonijalnim civilizacijama Amerike. Mogli su posjedovati privatno vlasništvo, pa čak i druge robove, što je prilično kontradiktorno s koncepcijom kakvu danas imamo o ropstvu. U Aztečkom carstvu robovi su također mogli otkupiti vlastitu slobodu ili je steći ako bi dokazali da su bili teško maltretirani. Mogli su imati djecu ili se vjenčali sa svojim vlasnicima. Međutim, u ovoj i mnogim drugim kulturama robovi su korišteni i kao žrtve različitim bogovima.

Tijekom kolonizacije Amerike, španjolski kolonizatori su provodili 'malocas'. To su bile oružane ekspedicije sa ciljem pronalaska lokalnog starosjedilačkog stanovništva te pretvaranja istih u robove. U planu je bila izgradnja „novog“ kontinenta, kojem je bila potrebna jeftina odnosno besplatna, radna snaga.

Glavna razlika između mogućnosti porobljavanja Afrikanca i Indijanca bila je etičko-religijska. Katolička crkva je odlučila da Indijanci imaju dušu, što njihovo ropstvo čini neetičkim i zabranjenim. Katolička crkva, s druge strane, nije prihvaćala da afrikanci imaju dušu, što je njihov status činilo sličnim statusu predmetima ili životinja, što je poslijedično omogućavalo da budu porobljeni. Postojala je velika skupina ljudi koja je imala ogromnu ekonomsku korist od trgovine robljem i koja se je trudila izbjeći da Katolička crkva prihvati odluku po kojoj crni afrikanci također imali dušu.

Trenutno ne postoji suglasje među povjesničarima oko ukupnog broja robova iz Afrike. Teško je odrediti točan broj robova kojima se trgovalo, međutim, neki procjenjuju da ih je bilo oko 60 milijuna. Od toga je 24 milijuna poslano u Ameriku, 12 milijuna u Aziju, 7 milijuna u zapadnu Europu, a oko 17 milijuna umrlo je prilikom transporta iz Afrike. Arapi su trgovali robova koji su prodani u Aziji, a žrtve su bili Afrikanci s istoka Afrike koje su arapski trgovci robljem neposredno porobili. Glavna su odredišta bila Bliski Istok, Indija i druga područja oko Indijskog oceana.

Trgovina robljem bila je sastavni dio tzv. ''transatlantskog trokuta'', a postojala je od 16. do 19. stoljeća. Velika većina porobljenih i prevoženih u transatlantskoj trgovini robljem bili su ljudi iz središnje i zapadne Afrike, koje su u roblje prodavali zapadnoafrikanci ili polueuropski utjecajni trgovci, tzv. „trgovački prinčevi“, trgujući s zapadnoeuropskim trgovcima robljem koji su ih odvodili u Amerike. Postojao je i mali broj onih koje su izravno porobili trgovci robljem u iznenadnim napadima u obalnim područjima.

I Romi su bili robovi. Ropstvo je postojalo na teritoriju današnje Rumunjske i dijela Mađarske prije osnivanja kneževina Moldavije i Vlaške na prijelazu s 13. u 14. stoljeće, pa sve do njegovog postupnog ukidanja tijekom 1840-ih i 1850-ih, a u Transilvaniji i Bukovini, koje su bile dijelovi Habsburške monarhije, do 1783. godine. Robovi su bili u vlasništvu 'bojara' (zemljoposjednika), kršćanskih pravoslavnih samostana ili države. U početku su ih koristili kao kovače, ispirače zlata i kao poljoprivredne radnike, ali kada su kneževine postale urbanizirane, sve ih se više koristilo kao radnike u kućanstvu.

Iako je moguće da su neki Romi bili robovi ili pripadnici vojski Mongola, Tatara ili Turaka, veliki broj njih je stigao s područja južno od Dunava krajem 14. stoljeća. Do tada je u Moldaviji već bila uspostavljena institucija ropstva, a masovni dolazak Roma ga je učinio raširenom praksom.

Robovi su se smatrali osobnim vlasništvom gospodara; bilo mu je dopušteno da ih zaposli, proda ili zamijeni za drugu robu, a gospodar je raspolagao i s imovinom u privatnom vlasništvu robova. Gospodaru je bilo dopušteno fizički kazniti svoje robove, batinama ili zatvaranjem, ali nije imao moć oduzeti im život – jedina obveza ovakvog gospodara bila je da odijeva i hrani robove koji rade na njegovom imanju.

Narodi, zajednice, skupine koje su stoljećima bile porobljavane, ne nalaze se u najboljem položaju u trenutnim društvima. Naprotiv, ostaju siromašni, marginalizirani i s manje pristupa obrazovanju i drugim mogućnostima u donosu na ostatak društva. Mnogi ljudi čiji je rad korišten za izgradnju mnogih i sada postojećih gradova ili čak država, imaju najniži socijalni status. Moramo osuditi prijašnje ropstvo i izbjeći pod svaku cijenu da ta institucija bude dio sadašnjeg svijeta. Shodno tome, ljude koji su kroz povijest patili, a koji su sada u teškom položaju zbog te ostavštine, trebalo bi potaknuti kroz obrazovanje i druge mogućnosti da dođu u bolji položaju te da se integriraju u društvo, a da pri tome ne izgube svoj identitet ili kulturu.

Many towns, cities and even countries which are today superpowers, were built on the basis of slavery, colonization and imperialism. This day memorize the victims of that development.

International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, August 23 of each year, the day designated by UNESCO to memorialize the transatlantic slave trade. That date was chosen by the adoption of resolution 29 C/40 by the UNESCO General Conference at its 29th session. Circular CL/3494 of July 29, 1998, from the Director-General invited Ministers of Culture to promote the Day. The date is significant because, during the night of August 22 to August 23, 1791, on the western part of the island of Saint Domingue (now known as Haiti), an uprising began which set forth events which were a major factor in the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

Slavery is as old as history, however it has been treated and developed differently depending on each civilization. The first form of slavery was the usage of the workforce of war prisoners or refugees. Also, conquered people and nations were often submitted to slavery as well. In some civilizations, you could even become a slave due to debts.

Slavery in the Muslim world first developed out of the slavery practices of pre-Islamic Arabia, and was at times radically different, depending on social-political factors such as the Arab slave trade. Islam was not against slavery which allowed this institution to continue. Throughout Islamic history, slaves served in various social and economic roles, from powerful emirs to harshly treated manual laborers. The number of slaves held over twelve centuries in the Muslim world are considered by some stimates to be somewhere between 11.5 million and 14 million.

During the Middle Ages in Europe, slavery persisted in isolated areas such as Scandinavia, which was mostly rural and domestic slavery. The transition of slavery to feudalism created a workforce, which was not slave anymore. However, slavery did not disappear and it continued during the Middle Age and the Modern Age, being massively utilized and institutionalized during the colonization of America.

In the pre-colonized America, slaves, in some elements, were very different from those after the colonization, and their condition were more similar to the slaves of the Antique Greece or Rome. Slavery was a personal institution, which means that it was not hereditary, so the children that a slave had were free in some pre-colonized civilizations. They could have possessions and even own other slaves, which is quite contradictory with the conception we have nowadays of slavery. In Azteca Empire, slaves could also buy their own freedom or obtain it by proving that they were mistreated heavily, they had kids, or married their owners. However, in this and many other cultures they could also be used as sacrifices to different gods.

During the colonization of America, Spanish colonizators started doing “Malocas”. These were armed expeditions with the goal to find local indigenous population in order to make them slaves. There were plans to build the “new” continent, which needed cheap (or free) labor.

This main difference about the possibility to enslave an African or a Native American was ethic-religious. Catholic Church decided that Native American have a soul, which makes their slavery unethical and forbidden. African, on the other hand, were not declared to have a soul, which would make them similar to objects or animals, which allows them to be enslaved. There was a big lobby from people who were benefiting enormously economically from slave trade to avoid any kind of declaration from the Catholic Church that black people have also a soul.

There are currently no consensus among historians regarding the number of slaves taken from Africa. It is hard to determinate the exact number of slaves being traded, however, some estimate around 60 millions. Out of those, 24 million were sent to America, 12 million to Asia, 7 million to Western Europe, and around 17 million died in transition. Arabs traded most of the slaves sold to Asia, and the victims were East Africans which were directly enslaved by Arab slave traders. Main destination was the Middle East, India and other areas around Indian Ocean.

The slave trade regularly used the triangular trade route, and existed from the 16th to the 19th centuries. The vast majority of those who were enslaved and transported in the transatlantic slave trade were people from Central and West Africa, who had been sold by other West Africans, or by half-European "merchant princes" to Western European slave traders (with a small number being captured directly by the slave traders in coastal raids), who brought them to the Americas.

Roma people were slaves too. Slavery existed on the territory of present-day Romania and part of Hungary from before the founding of the principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia in 13th–14th century, until it was abolished in stages during the 1840s and 1850s, and also until 1783, in Transylvania and Bukovina which were the parts of the Habsburg Monarchy. The slaves were owned by the boyars (landlords), the Christian Orthodox monasteries, or the State. Initially, they were used only as smiths, gold panners and as agricultural workers, but when the principalities became more urbanized, increasingly more of them were used as domestic workers.

While it is possible that some Romani people were slaves or troops of the Mongols, Tatars or Turks, the big numbers of them came from south of the Danube at the end of the 14th century. By then, the institution of slavery was already established in Moldavia, but the mass arrival of the Roma people made slavery a widespread practice.

The slaves were considered personal property of the master, who was allowed to put them to work, selling them or exchanging them for other goods and the possessions of the slaves were also at the discretion of the master. The master was allowed to punish his slaves physically, through beatings or imprisonment, but he or she did not have power of life and death over them, the only obligation of the master being to clothe and feed the slaves who worked at his manor.

Nations, groups, communities who were enslaved for centuries do not find themselves in the best position in current societies. On the contrary, they tend to remain poor, marginalized and with less access to education and opportunities than the rest of society. People whose labour was used to build many of the nowadays existing cities or even countries, tend to be in the lowest social status. We must condemn historical slavery and avoid at all cost from this institution to take place in current world. And those people who historically suffered and are now in a difficult position due to that heritage, should be encouraged through education and opportunities to be put in a better place and integrate them to society, without them losing their identity or culture.