The Saharawi live in Western Sahara, Mauritania, the Canary Islands and Algeria. The Saharawis are a sub-group, ethno-culturally speaking, of the beidan or Moors nomads of mixed Berber, Arab and black African descent who speak a dialect of Arabic known as Hassaniya and live in the desert from the Oued Draa in southern Morocco to the valleys of the Niger and Senegal rivers. The people are Semitic, with an olive coloured skin, dark hair, brown eyes and are of average height.
Since 1975 approximately 167,000 Saharawi have been living in refugee camps in Algeria to escape the conflict that arose due to the invasion by Morocco.
Today about 100,000 people live in these camps, 80% of whom are women and children who receive relief aid to assist them - mainly for food and shelter. However, the Saharawi refugees have almost become self sufficient, growing crops, selling chickens, setting up an educational system, health care program and authority structure. There is hardly any family that has not been divided by the conflicts as the different family members spread out over the different countries mentioned above.
There is currently a handful of known believers and there is very little Christian witness amongst the Saharawi.
Identity/Location
People Name: Saharawi or Sahrawi
Primary Language: Arabic
Ethnologue Code: MEY
Other Names: Saharawi refugees
Dialects: Hassaniya
Population
Total People: 230,000 (est.)
Urban Percent: 37.2%
Countries: Algeria 100,000; Mauritania 10,000; Canary Islands 1,500
Adult literacy: 60% (est.)
Language/Literacy Information
Adult literacy: 60% (est.)
Primary language: Hassaniya Arabic
Second language: Spanish
Third language: Moroccan Arabic
Fourth language: French
Note: People over 30 years normally speak Spanish well; young people under 25, who have gone to school under the Moroccans speak French and little or no Spanish.
Economics
Occupations: Military, farming, chickens and vegtable gardens, teaching, nursing, crafts, sewing, repairing tents, commerce. Real nomadism expired when the animal herds were decimated by the drought and the war.
Income sources: Selling 15% of chickens and eggs to Algeria. In the camps no money is used to buy food. The supplies are divided equally among the people, although pregnant women, children and sick people get a little bit more. This is to prevent corruption and a black market. There is no free market in camps. Quite a few Saharawis are fishermen and even own ships. Some Saharawis who live on the Canary Islands or in Europe use their work and commercial contacts for the well-bring of their brothers in the camps.
Products: Sandals, handicrafts (blacksmiths, carpets, sewing).
Trade Partners: Algeria, Canary Islands, Mauritania.
Modernisation/Utilities: Butagas is used for cooking now, instead of charcoal. Canvas tents were given to them by relief organisations.
Other: The land is rich in phosphate and iron ore and has very plentiful fishing waters in the Atlantic.
Living Conditions/Community Development Status
Since Morocco claimed their land, the Saharawi have mostly lived outside their own territory, with 25% of the people living in Western Sahara. Women and children are in refugee camps in Tindouf (Algeria) and have adjusted to this new situation. Each camp is governed by a People's Council which co-ordinated the work of specialised committees for food distribution, education, health, crafts and justice. Clinics, hospitals, schools, creches, craft workshops and vegetable gardens have been established under an impressive self-help program.
Food: Milk, butter and cheese used to be very important, especially camel milk. Meat was only eaten on special occasions. Grain, lentils, gofio (corn meal porridge or drink), milk powder, oil, tea, suger, sometimes cheese, corned beef, canned fish. Between November and April they have onions, tomatoes, carrots and sweet pepper. Camel meet is their favourite meat but is not always available.
Shelter: The tents were made of strips of goat or camel hide. Now canvas tents, donated by relief organisations, are not strong enough for the rugged climate (frost is not uncommon in winter, while summer temperatures can exceed 50 degrees). Some mud brick structures. The desert climate knows extremes.
Clothing: The Reguibat are also called "Blue men of the desert", just like the Tuareg because of their dark blue dress. The men wear the draa, or wide blue gown, wide trousers (seroual) and sandals. This is covered by a wide square, folded, with a hole where the head goes through. It doesn't matter how the 2-4 metre long blue, black or white veil is wrapped around the head. Women wear the melhafa (colourful scarf draped over head, shoulders and whole body), Western clothes are worn underneath. Their hair is made up in different ways, often braided, and piled high upon the head. Jewellery is important. They are not veiled and will only cover their face for protection against the dust and flies or if embarrassed. Children wear Western clothes.
Health care: In the camps available for everybody. There are hospitals on the regional level. Every wilaya (camp) has a mother and childcare centre. Vaccination campaigns take place. Life in the camps, under harsh conditions, causes rheumatism, bronchitis and pneumonia. Life expectancy is estimated to be about 60 years.
Water supplies: Distributed daily, brought by trucks, stored in tanks. A committee for health care is responsible for first-aid posts and the quality of drinking water. Shortages in the summer months.
Society
Family structures: The Saharawi are mainly monogamous, it being too expensive to take a second wife. Women are not allowed to marry before they are 16 years old. A committee will interview the couple and families to make sure the partners marry out of their own free will. Women have a lot of freedom and can even initiate divorce; in that case the children stay with her. Whether the dowry will have to be returned depends on the grounds for the divorce. 80% of the camps are made up of women and children. Families live separated due to the inconclusive political decisions on the status of the territory of Western Sahara and many Polisario men being 'wanted' in Morocco.
Rule/Authority/Selection: Although the Reguibat are in general quite individualistic, traditionally a gathering of older men, the jemaa would administer justice. In the camps committees have been set up for health, food, arts and education. The adults take part in these committees each of which has an appointed chairman. The committees come together to set up distribution, social affairs, justice, childcare, healthcare, crafts etc. Once a year all the inhabitants of the diara (municipality) come together in the Basic Peoples Congress. The chairman of these committees get together with the People's Council of the wilaya (province) and the government appointed governor. The Basic Peoples Congress also chooses deputies for the national congree of the Polisario. The government is made up of 13 members and there is only one political party: the Polisario (Frente Popular para la Liberacion de Saguia el-Hamra y Rio de Oro). The parliament is called Le Conseil National Sahraoui. Women play an important role in the office of Frente Polisario and also in the administration of civil life. A referendum is to be held, but both parties (Morocco and the Polisario) disagree about who is eligible to vote. This would be based upon the census of 1974 which gave a number of 76,000 inhabitants. But Morocco wants to add 120,000 names to the list.
Social habits: The society is one of solidarity; they share everything. As a result of their current position women have received much more freedom than in other Islamic cultures. The traditional tribal structure has been similar to that of the Moors. The tribe was divided into fractions, themselves made up of several families. Fraction chiefs were chosen by the oldest men of the member families, and together those chiefs formed the assembly of jemaa. Warriors occupied the highest rank, socially as well as politically, followed in descending order by the marabouts, tributaries, harratin and black servants, with blacksmiths, bards and fishermen forming groups marginal to the basic tribal structure. The difference in social class used to be clearly marked, with specific rules for relating to another class. Because of the recent changes in their society, this has changed slightly.
Judicial system/Trial punishment: Under appointed committee (in the camps).
Crisis/Conflicts - History/Status: The country was colonised by Spain for 90 years. Before this time the people lived as nomads but with the arrival of the Spanish the first villages were built. At the end of 1975, Morocco invaded the country and approximately 70,000 Saharawis fled into the desert and later escaped to Algeria. At present approximately 100,000 people live in four refugee camps there. The UN sent in a mission called MINURSO, to set up the referendum.
Celebrations/Recreation: Tea drinking is important. The moussem, camel market, in Goulimine (South Morocco) was very important. Algeria created new markets in Tindouf, Boubernous and Tabelbala. These markets are the opportunity for festivities and meeting places.
Art Forms: Handicrafts (blacksmiths) and wall paintings.
Media (Radio/TV/Newspapers/Films/Videos/Recordings): Radio Polisario, broadcasting from Algeria.
Children/Youth
Education/Type of Schooling: Schools have been established in the camps and there is a possibility for students to go to both primary and secondary school. There are boarding schools also and the possibility for vocational training. University training takes place in other countries, like in Morocco. Women often live together at the schools with the children as they are also being educated. General literacy programs are present and centres for teachers' and nurses' training conducted in Arabic, Spanish and French. Women get military training as well, though they have not been involved in any fighting during the recent war with Morocco.
Labour/Tasks: Girls help mothers even at a young age. They often care for younger siblings.
Problems (Morality/Family/Insurrections/Etc.): Infant mortality is 176 per 1000. Separation of family members due to the recent war. Families are strongly encouraged to have more babies to increase the population.
Greatest needs: Restoration of the family. A nutritional survey in the camps in 1989 revealed a chronic malnutrition rate of 40% among children under 5, who have for some time been receiving neither the amount nor the variety of food they require.
Religion
99% Folk Islam
Religious practices/ceremonies: General Muslim holidays and practices. Some adapted to their desert lifestyle.
Redemptive Analogies/Bridges: Analogies common to Islam.
Spiritual Climate/Openness: Considerable openess among the Saharawis to change due to the political unrest.
Current Church Development
Scriptures available: Bible in North African Arabic; Hassaniya translation in progress.
Christian Radio: None
Recordings: Hassaniya (Luke and some teaching), Moroccan Arabic, Spanish and French
Current Needs
Main need is for the stabilisation of the political situation so that easier access may be gained for the placement of long-term workers in Western Sahara.
Statistics