PRACTICE AND CONVERSION OF ASANTE MARKET WOMEN TO THE AHMADIYYA MUSLIM MISSION IN THE LATE 20TH CENTURY By Mikelle Antoine A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY History 2010 ABSTRACT PRACTICE AND CONVERSION OF ASANTE MARKET WOMEN TO THE AHMADIYYA MUSLIM MISSION IN THE LATE 20TH CENTURY BY Mikelle Antoine Asante Islamic history does not end in the 19th century. Asante women in particular, have been converting to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission since the late 20th century. This period also correlates to a time when women were victimized in Ghana as prostitutes, witches and non patriotic. The ill treatment of women also intersected with the failing socio-economy. Food production was at its lowest and unemployment at its highest. Many people formed associations and consequently came to depend less on the state and more on social and religious networks. Converting to Islam was not without its problems. Asantes lived among Muslims for centuries, even before the rise of the kingdom. While the monarchy welcomed the written and linguistic knowledge of Muslims, they curtailed the spread of Islam. This worked to maintain Islam as distinct from Asante cultural traditions. Consequently, Islam was remained the religion of the foreigner or non-Asante. This configuration has not changed. Asante women who converted to Islam during this period were ostracized by their families. Some were denied inheritance, property, titles and stools. Many left the family home and never returned. British colonial rule gravely affected the relationship between Muslims and the Asante. British use of Muslim troops to topple Asante transformed the Muslims from allies to Asante enemies. Furthermore, British rule also gave rise to an influx of unskilled young Muslim men to the new colony. Because these Muslims were not literate and were employed as menial laborers, the Asante came to regard Muslims as social inferiors. I argue the reason why the matrilineal family has turned against such converts is because they would be outside of their authority. The inability to control women members is a problem for this system. Because identity is passed via the maternal line, this system is threatened each time women leave. Another reason is that the oldest members of the matrilineal families are losing power over the youth. The women interviewed for this dissertation all claimed they faced discrimination as Muslims from their family members and society in general. They also assert that they are willingly changing what it means to be Asante. One example of this change takes place during funerals. Muslim Asante refuse to wear the traditional black cloth. They opt to wear their traditional clothing which irks the family members. Wearing the Asante traditional black cloth at funerals is just one way of affirming ties to the matrilineal. Indeed, Muslim Asantes are proof positive that the matrilineal system is changing. Copyright by MIKELLE ANTOINE 2010 DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to the daughters of Mesimene Galette and Saintlus Laguerre, who went on to become the greatest mothers the world has ever known. Yaya, Ate and Sylmene, I stand on your shoulders and your prayers continue to protect me. This dissertation is also dedicated to my four favorite men. To my wonderful husband Nii who is willing to do anything, anytime, and anywhere to make me happy. To my brilliant cousin Kerby Laguerre-Simon, whose support I can count on anytime, anywhere. This dissertation is also dedicated to my beautiful sons Chiemeka and Mawuvi who have turned my life into one of the greatest ever lived. My pursuit of a Ph.D. would not have been possible without the support of my sisters, too many to list, but suffice to mention Guerlie, Linda and Lindsay. You guys are wonderful; I learn so much from each of you. And to the other members of the Antoine-Galette-Laguerre family, thank you for keeping things interesting. Apre nou, se nou! v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Finishing a dissertation is not easy. Nonetheless, it is possible. I may not have been able to finish mine without the support and guidance of my advisor, Prof. David Robinson. He is my favorite historian. Not just for being meticulous, but for respecting his role as an educator. Other people who contributed to my education include professors Rita Gallin and Ruth Hamilton. I also want to thank the rest of my committee members, John Eulenberg who is as enthused about Hausa language as I am. In addition, I am thankful to Gordon Stewart, Emine Avered and Nwando Achebe whose contributions have enriched this dissertation. I want to also thank the Graduate School, the African Studies Center and the History Department for supporting my educational ambitions. To my three favorite undergraduate professors: Ehiedu Iweriebor, Maina wa Kinyatti and Michael Turner, all of Hunter College for being good at their jobs. And lastly to all the wonderful colleagues I met at MSU: the Haitians, Kenyans, Nigerians, Ghanaians, South Africans, Beninois, Ethiopians, Zimbabweans, the Sierra Leoneans, Cameroonians, and the Senegalese. I loved learning and laughing with each and every one of you! vi Table of Contents List of Tables ...................................................................................................................viii List of Figures.................................................................................................................... ix Introduction:........................................................................................................................ 1 Chapter 1: The Historiography ......................................................................................... 18 Chapter 2: The Changing Complexions of Islam and Muslims in the Asante Empire, 18th-19th Centuries........................................................................................................... 53 Chapter 3: British Colonial Rule....................................................................................... 67 Chapter 4: The Coming of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission ........................................... 74 Chapter 5: On the Matrilineal System and Conversion .................................................... 91 Chapter 6: The social and economic situation of Ghana the first 3 decades after independence................................................................................................................... 104 Chapter 7: Ghanaian women as scapegoats during economic and political instability .. 132 Chapter 8: Voicing the Converts..................................................................................... 157 Chapter 9: Conclusion..................................................................................................... 183 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 191 vii List of Tables Table 1: List of People Interviewed August 2005-2007................................................. 166 viii List of Figures Figure 1: Ahmadi mosques, schools and hospitals in the Asante Region. Picture shows extent of Ahmadi influence among the Asante. Photo by Mikelle Antoine. .................... 80 Figure 2: Ahmadi women celebrating Eid al Fatul, 2007. Ahmadiyya Muslim Secondary School, Accra. Photo by Mikelle Antoine. ..................................................................... 161 Figure 3: Map of Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission national projects. Picture taken from Headquarters, Accra. Photo by Mikelle Antoine............................................................ 164 ix Introduction Conversion and Practice of Asante Market Women in the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission in the late 20th century The Akans constitute the largest ethnic and linguistic group in Ghana.1 They are located in the southern part of the country and dominate positions of political and economic power. The Asante are the majority within the Akan group. The language of the Asante, Asante Twi, is the most widely spoken language within the Akan group and Ghana.2 It is extensively spoken on television and radio. As the majority ethnic group in Ghana, any new development among this group is of national significance and worthy of study. The Asante are a matrilineal people. This means they inherit property and identity via the maternal line. The Asante are some of the few people in Ghana with this practice. A matrilineal society is not necessarily a pro woman system, as presumed. It is another way designed to control women’s reproduction and production. It also means they control the labor and production of that woman and her children as well. This means children born into the matrilineal system belong to the woman’s family. Thus belonging is defined in relation to a woman; this is also used to exclude outsiders. 1 T.C. McCaskie, State and Society in Pre-Colonial Asante, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995), 2. 2 The Akans include the Fanti, Asante, Akyim ethnic groups and other smaller subgroups. Paul Gifford, Ghana’s New Christianity: Pentecostalism in a Globalizing African Economy. (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2004), 1. 1 It is precisely because the child of a Muslim father and Asante mother would be considered Muslim (i.e. non-Asante) that the matrilineal family protests against such unions and conversion. Another problem with choosing a Muslim husband and converting to Islam, from the family’s perspective, rests on a century old