Durham E-Theses The system of land tenure in Sierra Leone Greene, Lionel C. How to cite: Greene, Lionel C. (1966) The system of land tenure in Sierra Leone, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/10259/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk THE SYSimi OP Uq.^ TEiniRB IK SIERRA LEOFili A dissertation soibmltted for the degree of Elaster of Arts of the University of Durham, iionel C, Greene. lBt Ariril, 1966. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without his prior written consent and information derived from it should be acknowledged. 2. A G K N 0 W L E D g B M E IT T S The writer would very much like to extend his gratitude to all those isho assisted him in the preparation of this dis• sertation* Hie special thanks are due to Dr. W* Elkcqi and Mr, P. G, Tiiboku-Metsger his STJ^ervisors whose special advice and patience were very helpful in furthering the completion of this disserta• tion. 3• Preface fgo^lsin and Mstrll^utlon ..............Page « ^il!ii-§.3tomai* LaiKl Practice -P-S- ^6 and Tenure in the Western Area, .>>4 . .Page HTf ShaT3ter k Acquisition of land by Govemisent and control of alienation to non-citizens,.Page 54- i§I^es and problems with ^-and^in^the Provinces ^ • • * • nhapter 6 Page 75 Present Day Trends*. " - Appendix: nTBLIOSRAPHy, ^ mm%m^ mi$mmi mtimmSi 994^1$%$ M u i8^ltettt% iaslMMit«#llt ^mm is iMi»iiif» m» ilkitl cut yt»@ii^i?«Mi» ^^MmiSt^ mm i^p^fmm%im $0mm^ ti^lNNi I« tui* mm%9w at j^ftf 'Mint tlii li^t«i!^»llttll v»9f« 1^ l$f«»^ M l£a«« t^«$K. «olr iNMWiNNi^ HtMiiy f»«i«»t liuNi tut ^ %ms^ Mum mm'^t^ mmumm ^ ut^ mimm m 5. outright sale of their land, as it was not the practice to sell land, Sut the British went further when they proclaimed Jurisdiction over the former Protectorate in 1696# • Aceording to J?yfe G,H* * the foreign jurisdiction Act of 1Q90 consolidating a series of earlier Acts eiapowered the Ca^owp to exeroiae an^r jurisdiction claimed in a foreign country as if by i?ight of cession for conquest. An Orcler*in*Counoll of August 28, 1895 declared that the Grotwi had ae^red jurisdiction in foreign countries adjoining the Colony. On August 51» i 396, a. Protectorate >7^s formally proelalmed ae being best for the interests of the people of the territories Ijrlng on , the British side of the British and Siberian frontiersH This was the time when the Sresit Buropean powers were partitioning Africa Porter A*T, in his book Creoledom puts it this way "This periodwas also, it stust be remejabered, a period of iaperialism, when iiatloJia of Europe were staking their several claims oa the Afrieau eontlnent."^ However since the ratification of the treaties with the local Chiefs in 1807* the British goveriaaent adminis• tered the Colony now known ae the Western Area by ths application and introduction of the English legal system. But in the Protectorate (Now Provinces) the system of indirect rule was adopted as a matter of escpediency. Lord liUgc-rd himself advocated this policy when he started that " the general policy of ruling on.afrlcah principles through native rulers must be followed for the present**.-^ The Chief was to be the pivot around which the whole of the 1.. Fyfe C.H. q^^torv of Sierra Leone London 1362 p.5M 2,^ Porter A,T* qrsoledom O^U>P. 1963 p.68 3« Perhem SI, Lugard the Years of Authority 189^ ^ l^kq London 1956 p,11f9. 6> Loeal administration would revolve^ The Chief and his ti?ibal cOUjicll acted fi^ the executive end legislature of the local government* Thus the system of indirect rule enmired the preservation of all tribal lan^s and cue tome including the commuiial system of land tenure. Any change which hae taken piece in the land tenure system has been the result of ecoJiOmie activity rather than political chenges based on the eonceptioa of English property law^ In fact the British Government took eveiy measure to preserve eiid uphold local oustom^ii^ lend law* This study will deel with the measures taken to help the advances that are taking piece within the framework of the tribal systems* Ea^ly in this century when the eeonoalc potentiali-* tiee o3P the Pil Palm were realiaedi many concession seekers utgedvt'l^e Spitlsh; ^^ to grant t&em permission to establish pl^tation egrieulture in West Africa^ to cneure an ade<l"^^te supply Of the eoimoodity as against the prevail• ing system of peasant cultivation. The Bj^ltish Qovemment firmly resisted this trend toward plantation agricujLture on the grounds that it would involve alienation of Card which wae contrary to the local customary land laws. The late t^Oyd Oeoi^e P|*ime Minister of Britain at the time etressed in Parliament that it was their duty to protect the peoples of r/est Africa from the soap boilers of the world. This study Will outline the system of land tenure ae it developed both in the Western Area and in the Pro*- Vinces* The system of communed ownership in the Provinces, it is Often eeldt aocounta for the badsrard state of our agrieulttire* But it may be remarked that excessive fra^en- Mttoii %& a typlQal feature of oM Suropeaa peasant ceaffliSxnitieB based on individual property rights and that th© undersiaed faria xmit is the major structural pre>hl«m which the iSurppean common market is now facing# Therefore . if. Westerii European agrioultui?e faces ^prohleo of esceesslve fragmentation and minute farms then it is reasonable to eonolud© that these defects may be associated with any tenure system and are not confined to Africa traditional system and Sleipra I»eone tribal system in particular, Soae of 'the difficulties and p3?obleiBs connected i^rith^ land tenure in the Provinces will also be dealt with* 10- YALUNKA V GUINEA S U S U G UINEA r LI MBA KORJVNKO LOKKO 91 KONO BULL TIMKE MENDI ATLANTIC OCEAN LI B E RlA J SIERRA LEONE~L TRIBAL iCALE I : Z.OOO.OOO MILES lO 5 O 10 20 » 40 50 MILES 7 West from bi«en 8. CHAPTER 1, : • ' ^ !l?BitBAL ORIQm AHD DISTR^BOTIOR Sierra Leone is en Independent eoyereign state situated In the West Coast of Africa slightly north; of the equator, Th.e total estimated population of two and a quarter million includes fourteen, trlhes who are believed to have entered this, countt^ et vaj^ying times between the 12th and 17th cen-** turies| during end, following the break up of the Empires of Ohana* Mali and Songhai, These tribes may be conveniently divided into three groups; The Monde group now found mainly expound (S^uinea and include the l^endesf Lokos^ Susus^ Yalunkas, Kurankost Konoe* Kissl and Vaie j the Semi Bantlt group of the TewneBf, LimbeSf Bulloms, Sherbro and Krimji the Creoles who are a heterogeneous groups mainly descendants of slaves. The Fulas who are not included are not indigenous to this country. They are nomadlO In character with a predominantly patJtoral background. Their immigration to this country dates back to the early part of this century when tli^y brought in cattle forv sale. Their number has increased over the years to such an extent that their population is a sizeable one. However it may be noted that smaller groups have come in at different times, but have settled down ehd become identified with the tribes in the area. This chapter seeks to give a brief account of the origin of each of these groups. The Mende are the same as the '*Manes or ilani who in the I6>th century migrated from the Kigdom of Quoja on Cape Mount in the present Liberia end moved northwards along 9. the coast led by their Kings Saeina and Seterana,"^ They were iJrobably fleeing from the all conqiiering King Askia Mohamed of Soagjiai, The Bulloms and Temne Kings attacked the invaders but were defeated, Felipe, a Hani emperor, made allience with the Sapi and together with some tribes of the interior attacked the Limbas and Yaiunkas in the area where they settled and i§ today known as Mende Country, The Mende people who are Sierra Leonee largest of the Mande speaking group inhabit an area of almost 12,000 square miles in the Southern and Eastern Provir.ces with a total estimated population of 600,000, It is suggested that when they arrived in the early i 6th century they established themselves into little bands of warriors under a locel Chief, The 'war boys* acted as the Chiefs body guard and private army in the event of a dispute with a neigh• bouring Chiefs These war boys were mercenary soldiers who were rewarded with the spoils of the raids and expedition made on neighbouring Chiefs, In some cases they made treaties With the conquered and offered them protection in return for allegiance* In other cases article villages were enslaved and their leaders killed* In this way individual Chiefs Were able to huild large confederacies in which the Paramount Chief exercised control of a variable kind over a number ot local chiefs.