Saharawi music and its role in the independence struggle
Music and poetry have been key elements in Saharawi culture since nomadic times, when they were efficient ways of transmitting news and stories, providing entertainment and establishing links among the tribes. After Spain abandoned Western Sahara and Morocco and Mauritania invaded the territory in 1975, music became the voice of the revolution. It played an essential role in the formation and establishment of the new Saharawi Republic and the reshaping of the society. Music, thus, was used by the Saharawis to foster social change.
Figure 1. Session of traditional spiritual Medeh music in the camps
© Violeta Ruano
The Saharawis belong to a wider area known as Trab El-Beidan (Western Sahara, Mauritania and parts of Mali, Algeria and Morocco), traditionally inhabited by the Hassani tribes. A blend of Sanhaya Berbers, West African slaves and Yemenite Arab from the Beni Hassan tribes, the Hassani share the same oral culture, language, the Hassaniya, and musical traditions. The professional hereditary musicians, the iggawen, would travel from tribe to tribe, offering their services to perform at weddings and other social gatherings with their tidinits (4-string stroked lutes played by men), ardins (calabash harps played by women) and tbals (drums normally played by women) accompanying their voices, clapping and female ululations or zagarits. These musicians were important figures in the process of cultural transmission. However, Saharawi society did not have a high opinion of them because they would only perform for money. Also, the iggawen as a caste never really existed among the northern Saharawi tribes, who would hire them from the southern tribes of the Mauritanian region.
© Violeta Ruano
By 1973, with the foundation of the Polisario Front in the, at the time, Spanish Sahara, music started to be crucial for the transmission of something else: the nascent Saharawi anti-colonial, revolutionary spirit. Using the radio and cassettes for the circulation of new songs, members of the independent movement transferred their ideas and intentions to the rest of the population, gaining more and more supporters of the cause. When Morocco and Mauritania invaded the territory in 1975, attacking the population with napalm bombs and white phosphorus and forcing them to get exiled in SW Algeria, the Saharawi struggle was strengthened further with the appearance of symbolic songs such as Sahara Ma Timba (Sahara is not for sale), first sung by famous revolutionary singer Um Reghia when she was only 15 years old.
Um Reghia singing Sahara Ma Timba in Vitoria, Jan 19, 2013: Video
Then with the creation of the Saharawi Republic in 1976 and the project of a new and strong national Saharawi state in exile, music became the perfect way to promote and intensify the national identity, encourage the freedom fighters and ask for international support. A national band, Shaheid El Uali, was created and named after Polisario founder, and the production of revolutionary songs was highly encouraged by the government.
© Violeta Ruano
Musicians and poets were inspired by the war and the new nationalistic spirit, and figures such as guitarists Ali-Salem Kaziza, Brahim Ehmeyada and Najm Alal and singers Mahfud Aliyen ‘Drebaba’, Um Dleila, Um Reghiya and Mariem Hassan became as motivational figures, or more so than any of the political leaders. At that time, anybody could contribute to the building of the nation and musicians were seen as an essential part of the process. This helped the society overcome the stigma against music-makers since they were no longer performing for money, but for the revolution.
© Violeta Ruano
Since the cease-fire of 1991 and the promise of the referendum that has yet to take place, the Saharawis have been initiating projects that promote and protect their oral heritage and their music from getting lost due to the invisibility of their protracted fight. One of these projects is, for example, the creation of the Saharawi National Music School (Enamus) in 2011. Reinforcing these efforts and others, Studio-Live aims to engage with local musicians, cultural figures, independent artists, cultural authorities and a wide range of partners, collaborators and supporters around the world to work towards promoting the struggle of the Saharawis through music, just as they have always done.
© Violeta Ruano
* Violeta Ruano is a PhD Music Research Candidate, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.
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