Malaise Créole is a term that was coined in the 1990s to describe the phenomenon of social exclusion of members of the Creole community on the island of

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

by the rest of Mauritian society. The literal translation of the term is "Creole Uneasiness".

Background

Ethnographic research amongst Creoles in Mauritius has identified four main facets of the ''Malaise Créole'' phenomenon, in addition to the impact of colonialism and slavery: 1. It could be the result of dispossession and physical and psychological violence under slavery, especially as African slaves had to give up their traditions and religion to adopt their masters' religion Roman Catholicism in accordance with the Code Noir. This could explain the fragmented identity and lack of solidarity. 2. Another interpretation of ''Malaise Créole'' is that is a social pathology resulting from the lack of a fundamental pre-existing Creole identity. 3. The African heritage and hybridity of Creoles resulted in their destructive tendencies. 4. Lastly ''Malaise Créole'' could be considered as a concept which was deployed by political and socio-cultural groups in an attempt to homogenise the very diverse Creole community in order to mobilise them towards a common political goal. Although the phenomenon dates back to the years of slavery of the 1700s, the ''Malaise Créole'' worsened especially in the 1980s, after the uncertainty, mass migration and racial riots around the country's independence in 1968, followed by a reconciliatory alliance between the Labour Party and the PMSD which enabled the economy to recover.

Manifestation of the phenomenon

The

1999 Mauritian riots The 1999 Mauritian riots were national-scale rioting and protests in Mauritius following the death of the popular " seggae" musician Joseph Réginald Topize, better known by his stage name "Kaya", in police custody. The rioting lasted for fou ...

following the death in custody of popular "

seggae Seggae is a fusion genre of sega, the traditional music of the Mascarene Islands, and reggae. It was originally created in Mauritius by Kaya (Mauritian musician) and eventually became popular in Mascarene Islands. Seggae is one of the most popular ...

" musician Joseph Réginald Topize brought the phenomenon of ''Malaise Créole'' to the forefront.

Independent enquiry and recommendations

In 2009 the government of Mauritius instigated the independent

Truth and Justice Commission The Truth and Justice Commission of Mauritius was an independent truth commission established in 2009, which explored the impact of slavery and indentured servitude in Mauritius. The Commission was tasked to investigate the dispossession of land, ...

(TJC) to explore the impact of

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

and

indentured servitude Indentured servitude is a form of labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an "indenture", may be entered "voluntarily" for purported eventual compensation or debt repayment, ...

. It also investigated the dispossession of land and made recommendations for the welfare of descendants of slaves and indentured labourers. The TJC published its report in 2011.

References

Social history of Mauritius Reconciliation 1990s neologisms {{Mauritius-stub