by Lynn Schler
Nation on Board
NEW AFRICAN HISTORIES
SERIES EDITORS: JEAN ALLMAN, ALLEN ISAACMAN, AND DEREK R. PETERSON
Books in this series are published with support from the Ohio University Center for International Studies.
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Nation on Board
Becoming Nigerian at Sea
Lynn Schler
OHIO UNIVERSITY PRESS
ATHENS
Ohio University Press, Athens, Ohio 45701
ohioswallow.com
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Schler, Lynn, author.
Title: Nation on board : becoming Nigerian at sea / Lynn Schler.
Other titles: New African histories series.
Description: Athens : Ohio University Press, 2016. | Series: New African histories | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2015044414| ISBN 9780821422175 (hc : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780821422182 (pb : alk. paper) | ISBN 9780821445594 (pdf)
Subjects: LCSH: Merchant marine—Nigeria—History. | Merchant mariners—Nigeria—Social conditions. | Merchant mariners—Legal status, laws, etc.—Nigeria. | Nigerian National Shipping Line—History.
Classification: LCC HD8039.S42 N557 2016 | DDC 387.509669—dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015044414
ISBN 9780821445594 (e-book)
With love, to George, Amos, Ellie, and Mika
Contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1. The Working Lives of Nigerian Seamen in the Colonial Era
Chapter 2. Seamen and the Cosmopolitan Imaginary
Chapter 3. From Citizens of the World to Citizens of Nigeria
Chapter 4. The Birth of the Nigerian National Shipping Line
Chapter 5. Nigerianizing the Sea: Cultures of Work on NNSL Ships
Chapter 6. Seamen in the Shadow of the NNSL Decline and Demise
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Illustrations
Cargo on ship bound for West Africa
Krooboy
Group of Krooboys
Cargo on deck
Deck boys coming on board in Accra, Ghana
Deck on a Palm Line ship leaving West Africa
River Andoni, an NNSL ship
King Jaja, an NNSL ship
Acknowledgments
Many research projects spring from personal experiences and connections to a certain topic, while others are born out of fascination with something extremely foreign or misunderstood. This project unquestionably falls into the second category. My curiosity about the lives and experiences of Nigerian seamen is undeniably linked to my own fear of the sea, and my sheer fascination with those whose livelihoods required them to spend days, months, and years crossing the oceans. As Nigerian seamen were recruited as an underpaid and undervalued labor force on both colonial and postcolonial ships, the hardships and challenges they faced were particularly pronounced. This research was thus driven by reverence for the struggles and adventures these seamen experienced in the face of endless difficulties both onboard ships and ashore. Because the project began with my lack of familiarity with this world, it required a full education into the many facets of African seafaring in the colonial and postcolonial eras. I slowly entered into a world of knowledge concerning life on board ships, including shi
p hierarchies, work regimens, and tasks, as well as deck-based social relations and cultural life. I also learned about the political economy of international shipping in general, and the politics of shipping in postcolonial nations in particular. To close the gaps of knowledge, I had to rely on countless sources of information and support. The final product is based on material gathered from a wide range of archives, interviews, and the published research of others. Thus, I am deeply indebted to a long list of people and institutions that made this book a possibility.
First and foremost, I am indebted to the former Nigerian seamen, officers, seamen’s wives, and former NNSL managers who generously gave me their time, opened up their homes and their offices to me, responded to a wide array of questions, and tolerated my lack of knowledge regarding the material lives of seafarers in the international shipping industry. More than seventy men and women shared their stories, some of which were uplifting, others that were testimonies of abuses suffered and disillusionment. Every interview opened up a world onto itself, and I never could have undertaken this project without the detailed and insightful testimonies that emerged in each meeting. In particular, I am grateful to Adeola Lawal, Capt. Alao Tajudeen, Ari Festus, Ben Achilefu, Evelyn Miekumo, Lawrence Miekumo, Muritala Olayinka alli-Balogun, Pa Agbaosi, Rita Anomorisa, and Jackson Anomorisa. Sadly, some of the most notable informants have passed away since we last met: Joseph Kehinde Adigun, Anthony Davies Eros, Capt. Cosmos Niagwan, and Reuben Lazarus. Although the final product will appear long after the last of the interviews was conducted, it is my hope that all those interviewed will find their stories accurately portrayed in the pages that follow.
There were several institutions and individuals in Nigeria who contributed in significant ways to this study. The officers of the Nigerian Union of Seamen in Apapa, Lagos, helped me to locate former seamen, and also enabled me to conduct interviews in their offices. Adeola Lawal, the late Joseph Kehinde Adigun, and Jackson Anomorisa all referred me to key informants. I also had the honor of working with outstanding research assistants in Lagos. Lanre Davis located the first set of retired seamen. He also conducted a preliminary set of interviews that were extremely rich in content and served as an important basis for the rest of the research. Adeola Thomas Ayannubi and Alex Tayo located and interviewed some of the seamen’s wives and assisted with transcriptions. I have the most sincere gratitude for the assistance I received from Friday Aworawo. With great perseverance and personal dedication, Friday sought out informants, set up interviews, and helped to locate important archival sources. Throughout very long days and weeks of interviews, he guided me through dozens of chaotic neighborhoods and suburbs of Lagos. Friday’s engagement with the project and the insights he shared throughout helped to shape many of the ideas that emerged during the fieldwork, and his contribution was fundamental to this research. I also thank his wife, Biola, for her support.
The staff at the Nigerian National Archives in Ibadan helped me to locate many key documents. The Nigerian Institute of International Relations holds a very well-organized collection of newspaper articles related to shipping. I am indebted to Capt. Alao Tajudeen, who suggested I search a forgotten closet in the Apapa headquarters of the Nigerian Shipping Federation. There I discovered a large collection of uncataloged ship logbooks from the entire era of the Nigerian National Shipping Line. These logbooks were an invaluable source of information regarding the daily lives of crews on NNSL ships. I would also like to acknowledge the late Capt. Cosmos Niagwan, who gave several lengthy interviews regarding the liquidation of the NNSL and allowed me to review his personal archive of the proceedings. Lawal Bello Dogarawa, of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, shared his research on Nigerian shipping. Ayodeji Olukoju has been an extremely warm and helpful colleague every time that I have been in Lagos. Paul Osifodunrin graciously helped me to locate research assistants.
Several archives outside of Nigeria provided essential documentary evidence of Nigerian seamen employed by British shipping lines. The Elder Dempster archive at the Merseyside Maritime Museum in Liverpool was a vital source of information for this study, and the staff there provided tremendous assistance on several research trips. The Modern Records Centre of the University of Warwick houses the archive of the International Transport Workers Federation, and the staff there was extremely helpful in providing material on the Nigerian seamen’s union. I was also aided by records on British shipping at the British National Archives in Kew Gardens, and the Peter Waterman Papers at the International Institute of Social History in Amsterdam. I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to several people in the United Kingdom who provided interviews and answered endless queries about the historic relationship between Elder Dempster and the Nigerian National Shipping Line. The historian Peter Davies has published extensive and detailed research of the Elder Dempster Lines that provided essential background for my work, and Peter also gave a very informative interview early in the project. I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to Kenneth Birch, former Elder Dempster executive. Following an initial interview in Liverpool in 2009, Ken has generously provided thoughtful responses and clarifications to several queries over the years. I also thank former seaman Derek Bailey, who worked on NNSL ships in the very early years. Derek provided a wealth of information regarding the inaugural journeys of Nigerian ships, and his experiences and insights have greatly enriched this book. Photos were generously provided by Chris Clarke, Claes Moburg, Malcom Cranfield, Paul Strathdee, and Pete Bass.
I prepared the final manuscript while on sabbatical leave at the HUMA Institute at the University of Cape Town. As a visiting scholar at HUMA, I was provided with the space and resources that enabled me to complete the manuscript. I would like to thank Deborah Posel, Shamil Jeppie, Ilana van Wyk, Zethu Matebeni, Heather Maytham, and Rifqah Kahn for the opportunity to be a part of their vibrant intellectual community. A particular thanks goes to Deborah Posel for helping me to jump-start the concluding arguments of the book. I would also like to thank the Department of History at UCT for the opportunity to present my work, and for the encouraging feedback. While in Cape Town, we were assisted in numerous ways by Ronit and Stephen Segerman and Janine and Werner Thetard, all of whom have become lifelong friends.
There are several institutions and people in Israel that provided support for this project. Funding for the research was provided by an individual research grant from the Israel Science Foundation. Nurit Klein helped with the administration of these funds. Additional sources came from the dean’s office in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. I was assisted by several graduate students with the bibliography and references, and I would like to thank Hilah Segal, Itamar Dubinsky, Noa Ginosar, Roy Knafo, and Tally Eyal for their hard work.
I divide my time at Ben Gurion University between two homes. I am honored and extremely fortunate to be a member of the Department of Politics and Government. This community of scholars embodies the best mixture of intellectual rigor, professional support, and deep dedication to human rights and political and social justice. Despite the ongoing challenges presented by the encroachment of antidemocratic forces, the Department of Politics and Government promotes a multiplicity of opinions and vantage points, evidenced by the crucial role the department played in the revival of African studies in Israel. For providing me with this exceptional and valued institutional home, I am extremely grateful to Gal Ariely, Dani Filc, Michal Givoni, Neve Gordon, Becky Kook, David Newman, Jennifer Oser, Sharon Pardo, Rene Poznanski, Ahmad Sa’di, Haim Yacobi, and Dina Zisserman-Brodsky.
My second home is the community of Africanist scholars, including colleagues in the Inter-University Program in African Studies and the Tamar Golan Africa Centre at Ben Gurion University. I would like to thank Ruth Ginio, Louise Bethlehem, Galia Sabar, and Ella Keren for years of camaraderie in the effort to promote African studies in Israel. A special thank you is due to Ruth Ginio, who has been the ideal colleague for many years. It has been
my great fortune to work so beneficially with someone whose research interests overlap so closely with my own, and who has consistently provided a critical eye, enthusiastic encouragement, and friendship. I am also extremely privileged to work with the talented and dedicated staff of the Africa Centre. It is impossible to enumerate the countless ways in which Ayala Kuriel, Noga Miller, Moran Mekamel, Noa Levy, Itamar Dubinksy, and Tamar Ben Moshe work tirelessly to promote knowledge of Africa in Israel, and the human rights of Africans in and beyond Israel. Individually and as a staff, they constitute an example to follow.
This project was born in the course of field research for my PhD that focused on the history of Douala in the colonial era. Richard Roberts was my adviser then, but many years later, he continues to be a source of intellectual and professional guidance. And as a teacher and mentor, Richard is a rare role model that all his former students aspire to emulate. From those days in graduate school until the present, Kathryn Barrett-Gaines, Walter Hawthorne, Benjamin Lawrance, Thom McClendon, and Emily Osborn continue to provide support and friendship. Becky Kook, Walter Hawthorne, Tijani Hakeem, Ayodeji Olukoju, Louise Bethlehem, Ruth Ginio, Emily Osborn, and Gai Rofeh have read all or parts of the manuscript and gave important feedback. A special thanks to Haggai Ram, who has heard and commented on each of the arguments in endless car rides to Beer Sheva. I owe an intellectual debt to the scholars whose work has fundamentally shaped the theoretical and empirical grounding of this research. This list includes, but is not limited to, the work of Toyin Falola, Ayodeji Olukoju, Peter Davies, Diane Frost, Frederick Cooper, Carolyn Brown, and Tijani Hakeem. I have learned from each one of these scholars, but the shortcomings of this work are, of course, mine alone. To the editors of the New African Histories series at Ohio University Press: Jean Allman, Gillian Berchowitz, Allen Isaacman, and Derek Peterson, and I would like to express my sincere appreciation for their hard work and support of this book. The final product has been much improved by their close reading, insightful criticisms, and their strong commitment to high-quality scholarship. The entire field of African studies has been greatly enriched by the many important works that this editorial team has put their support behind over the years.
