Chapter 281: Exporting Labor
Of course, this was purely Ernst's personal viewpoint. Considering he had lived two lives, he felt least able to empathize with all those so-called "organizations" from his previous era, or the "minorities" who shouted the loudest slogans. Once the majority of ordinary people stopped speaking up – effectively becoming a silent mass – they would follow their personal preferences and side with a chosen "minority," fracturing any unified set of values and ultimately unraveling society's order.
Preserving social stability was thus the core goal behind East Africa's assimilation policy. Once ordinary people's basic needs – food, clothing, and shelter – were met, they would gradually integrate into East African society. With most people preoccupied with daily survival and not prone to overthinking, that suited Hechingen's royal family, the nation's rulers, perfectly.
Otherwise, by conventional colonial standards, the East African Kingdom should be extracting maximum resources from the natives to feed the settler population, following the British or French model.
…
"Starting this year, have a clear discussion with the Sultanate of Zanzibar. Tell Sayyid he must scale down his slave trade, and within five years, turn it into mere history." On the phone, Ernst was telling his father this.
Constantino seemed startled. "Hmm… That might not be so easy. The slave trade is central to the Sultanate of Zanzibar's economy. If they give it up, I'm afraid—"
Ernst interrupted: "Right now, the slave trade is already harder to run. Britain and France keep cracking down on it. Zanzibar's trade is a sunset enterprise. Just yesterday, two of their slave ships were seized by the British. So if we forbid them from continuing, it's for their own good. Otherwise, if the British find an excuse to spark a war, do we help them or not?"
Given that the Sultanate of Zanzibar was effectively subordinate to East Africa, Ernst didn't want any outside powers meddling there. Its location was near Dar es Salaam and Bagamoyo, so it was of vital importance.
"But the British aren't so scary," replied Constantino. "Our kingdom's already the largest in Africa. We're not afraid of them in this region."
"As your son, I don't fear them either," Ernst clarified, "but we have no reason to clash with them right now. Britain can afford to waste its national resources. We're not yet strong enough to do that. If we fought them now, one certainty is that it would slow East Africa's development. If they blockade our maritime trade, we'd be in dire straits."
"True enough," Constantino conceded. "But would Britain truly turn against us over Zanzibar?"
"Nothing is absolute," Ernst said. "We've gained so many advantages that eventually Britain – and other colonial powers – will resent us. Right now, it's just not blowing up yet. Once Europe's economy suffers a downturn, they'll definitely scramble to expand abroad, using it to defuse internal conflicts. And Africa will be a prime target."
Constantino pondered it carefully and realized Ernst had a point. East Africa's size was on par with the likes of the Netherlands or Portugal in Europe, which didn't frighten anyone. Meanwhile, East Africa had grabbed so much land that, if word got out, they might indeed invite trouble.
In reality, East Africa couldn't keep it hidden much longer. Its Third Conquest War had pushed forward nearly to the British colonies. Sooner or later, the British would discover the "monster" that had arisen in Africa.
"In that case, what do you recommend?" Constantino asked.
"For the next ten years, East Africa's main objective should be establishing a military–industrial sector for self-sufficient arms production," Ernst replied, "ensuring we can defend our territory of seven million square kilometers, plus stand off multiple enemies at once. When the Franco-Prussian War ends, I'll move the Berlin arsenal to East African soil, along with the Austrian artillery plant, so we can first set up lines for rifles and cannons."
"Yes, that's important."
"Beyond that, the next decade we must digest the lands seized in this and the previous war, especially the southern Matabele Plateau with top priority. It contains large deposits of iron and coal—vital resources for industrial growth."
Constantino frowned: "You're sure? I never heard of that."
Ernst, drawing on memories from his former life but unable to admit that, said, "It's from a preliminary survey I had done, not fully verified. But if there's any chance, we need to prepare."
"All right, let's get back to the Sultanate of Zanzibar," Constantino said. "If we press them too hard about banning the slave trade, might it backfire? What if they throw themselves at Britain?"
"We have to clarify that it's Britain and France banning the slave trade, not us," Ernst explained. "We're just kindly reminding them. If little Sayyid's government is dead set against it, we won't force them. But if they persist and the British seize on it, we'll have to wipe out the Sultanate first, for the sake of coastal security near Zanzibar Island."
Constantino burst out laughing: "Hahaha, I assumed you'd found your conscience. Turns out you had this plan all along. But the slave issue isn't just Zanzibar's, it also involves East Africa. We're the supplier."
"It's true we're the supplier, but Zanzibar's approach is too crude. They need to modernize. East Africa, after all, has immigrant ships whose conditions aren't much better than slave ships. If Zanzibar insists on old-style slave trading—sorry, let's call it labor trading—then they must level up their methods." Ernst said.
It turned out East Africa wasn't eliminating the slave trade so much as adopting a more discreet approach.
"Tell little Sayyid's government to rebrand the slavers as labor export companies, and improve conditions aboard their ships enough that those headed for the Middle East at least look somewhat human. It's a borderline trick, but it works," said Ernst.
Constantino snorted. "Well, if the British truly want conflict, they'll find any pretext anyway."
"I'm just taking precautions," Ernst answered. "If the British won't listen, we have no choice. If they won't let up, we'll smash their African colonies to bits."
Ernst didn't intend to provoke Britain now, but if they did trouble East Africa, the kingdom wouldn't be a helpless lamb.
"Excellent. That's the spirit our House of Hohenzollern should embody," Constantino said, satisfied. "Peace demands military backing; cowering only leads to ceding territory."
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