Le turban et la Capote (The Turban and the Condom), by Nassur Attoumani & Luke Razaka
One consequence of the départementalisation of Mayotte in 2011 is that the laws of the République Française must now apply. This has led to a decline in the influence of the cadis, the Muslim dignitaries previously in charge of the island’s moral and legal affairs. Among the customs the Republic disapproves of is polygamy, especially when the wives can be as young as thirteen. The cadis, though, have no problem with this – it’s been part of cadial law, approved, and to a large extent practised, by the cadis themselves for centuries. Before we start feeling sorry for them, though, it should be noted that the practise is still going strong. The cadis have simply learnt to pretend that it’s not.
I’d like to know more about Mayotte and if it’s related with Madagascar.
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It’s not related any more to Madagascar, though when Madagascar was a French colony, Mayotte was administered from there. In the past, Malagasy sailors invaded Mayotte (one of the reasons Mayotte sought protection from France), and a variant of Malagasy is still spoken in part of the island. I wrote a bit more about Mayotte for Clara’s expat survival blog: http://expatpartnersurvival.com/2015/01/29/people-who-live-in-small-places-part-1-mayotte/
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Yesterday I was reading in google about Mayotte, I like geography and travelling (when I can..it’s
very expensive!), I saw the island have problems to reach it as the port is very small.. how do youu get there? I’ve read Clara’s interview, interesting and I’ve seen her blog sounds good, so I’d like to read her writings. Thanks a lot!!! Cheers!
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Yes, the port is small, so most people arrive by plane. The runway is a bit short also, which is a limiting factor, but there are plans to extend both the port and the runway. The future of Mayotte seems quite uncertain to me, but we shall see…
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