O regulado na sociedade Mandjacu: o caso do Plundu na Guiné-Bissau (1901-1950)

Abstract

Guinea-Bissau has two political organization models, the official state one, ruled by the Constitution of the Republic, and the traditional ones, ruled by local customary Law, according to each community. In this research, we have delimited our analysis in "regulado", which stands out as a traditional political organization used by some Guinea Bissau ethnic groups, including the Mandjacus, in the community of Plundu. The aim of this study is to analyze the "regulado" in Plundense society between 1901 and 1950, focusing on its structure, functionality and the challenges it faced during the period in question. Therefore, we undertook a qualitative study in which we used the bibliographical review technique, followed by a field study that took place in Plundu, Guinea-Bissau, where we interviewed five people belonging to the Plundu community and the Mandjacu ethnic group. Therefore, we worked with oral and written sources. The data showed that, structurally, the "regulado" in Plundu was organized in a hierarchical and vertical way, with the régulo occupying the position of the highest leader in terms of political power representation, followed by the heads of tabankas, council members and several assistants. However, not everyone in the community could climb to such positions, especially the régulo's position, as this required belonging to groups of djorsons considered as djagras, in other words, families that could rule. In addition, members of the "regulado", especially the régulo and the heads of tabankas, enjoyed a variety of privileges in their community. The criterias for rising to the position of régulo and the privileges enjoyed by the members of the regulado caused some social tensions in Plundense society, which were not accepted by the whole community. However, in the period under review, the Plundu regime faced some challenges, among them the intervention of the Portuguese colonial regime in the pacification campaign in 1914, in which the Portuguese began to interfere in the selection and nomination of the régulo in Plundu, neglecting local customary Law. Based on the analyzed data, it is concluded, therefore, that the “regulado”, based on customary Law, was a way of exclusion and perpetuation of the privileges of some groups, “djorsons”, since not all people who belonged to the Pludense´s community could be régulos. Furthermore, the changes that took place during the analyzed period brought consequences for the structuring and functioning of the “regulado” system, as well as for the population layer of Plundu in terms of the society's way of life.