Presented at AAIMS Fifth National Conference – Fractured World, Uncertain Future: Islam, Justice, and Humanity in Turbulent Times
Abstract
Fractured and turbulent times are recurrent within the history of humanity. By looking into the past, and the individual success that were achieved there, it is possible to find a means for navigating the present. Within Australia the period between 1860 and 1920 was a turbulent time as European settlers explored the continent and moved from British colonies towards a unified nation. One group that contributed greatly to this transition by supporting explorers, maintaining trade routes, transporting all manner of goods and mail, and saving towns from both floods and drought, amongst other achievements, was the, predominantly Muslim, Cameleers. Despite their contributions to the establishment of the nation, they were maligned both politically and in the press, with the development of the anti-Afghan league and what can come to be known as the White Australia Policy. Yet, despite these challenges the Muslim Cameleers maintained their Islam and left an important legacy of Muslim heritage in Australia. Beyond the development of mosques across the country, the Cameleers also left little known, and understudied, manuscripts. These important documents provide valuable insight into their spiritual practices, the maintenance of spiritual authority, and perhaps offer an answer as to how they navigated the challenges they faced. The maintenance of Islam amongst the Cameleers potentially offers perennial lessons on remaining steadfast during times of difficulty that are valid for all eras.
Introduction
Australia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries saw significant economic, political, and social upheaval. European settlers explored the continent and the British colonies moved towards a unified nation. The predominantly Muslim Cameleers supported the explorers, maintained trade routes, and saved townships. Yet, despite their contributions to the establishment of the nation, they were maligned both politically, economically, and in the press. With the development of the anti-Afghan league and what can come to be known as the White Australia Policy, attempts at their exclusion were given legal backing. Throughout these challenges the Cameleers maintained their Islam and left an important legacy of Muslim heritage in Australia. Beyond the development of mosques across the country, the Cameleers also left little known, and understudied, manuscripts. These manuscripts provide insight into their spiritual practices, the maintenance of spiritual authority, and perhaps offer an answer as to how they navigated the challenges they faced. Exploring these manuscripts potentially offers perennial lessons on remaining steadfast during times of difficulty that are valid for all eras.
Australia’s Muslim Cameleers and their Contributions to the Country
To state the Cameleers were an industrious people during their most active period in Australia is something of an understatement.[1]Their contributions include the Transcontinental Railway Line between Port Augusta, South Australia, and Kalgoorlie, the Rabbit Proof Fence, the Canning Stock Route in Western Australia, the Overland Telegraph Line between Adelaide and Darwin, the Queensland Border Fence, amongst other things.[2] They “played a significant role in opening up Australia’s vast arid inland areas; they carried explorers and developers to remote places that were barely accessible by horse or on foot” such that “most of the successful expeditions of the late nineteenth century were equipped with camel teams” and “exploration parties depended heavily on the cameleers, who cared for the camels, loaded and unloaded equipment and provisions, located water, hunted game, and took part in the trials and achievements of exploration.”[3] In addition to these contributions, the Cameleers built the first mosques across Australia, some of which continue to be used today, ensuring a spiritual legacy for all subsequent Muslims in this country giving them a significant place within the history of Islam in Australia.
Challenges Faced by the Cameleers
Despite, or arguably because of, their contributions to the developing nation, the Cameleers faced significant challenges in Australia. These challenges most often played out politically and through the media of the time, though they had real world consequences for those involved. The camels, as beasts of burden, were vastly superior to the bullock, as they could feed while travelling, could travel during times of drought when the bullock teams had to lighten their loads to accommodate feed for their animals, and could travel in the wet, whereas the carts pulled by the bullocks would become bogged in the mud. This meant the camel strings were more efficient and could carry consistent loads. Additionally, the European Australians are seen to have transferred their frustration with other nationalities onto the Cameleers of all heritages. For instance, many of the “miners of European background, who already faced competition with the Chinese in the eastern colonies … brought with them an attitude of competition with the non-European races”[4] when they moved to the Western Australian goldfields. The competition between European and non-European workers were utilised within the media of the period to maintain and widen the reception of such views and eventually utilised for political gain.
Amongst those who were outspoken against the Cameleers were European Australians who either utilised their position to spread further dissent or used the expressed dissent to further their aspirations. One was Frederick Vosper (1869 – 1901), newspaper journalist and proprietor, and politician.[5] Arriving in the West Australian goldfields, Vosper “became influential as editor of the Coolgardie Miner, and a dominant figure in the Anti-Asiatic League at Coolgardie” who “both stimulated and added to the existing anti-Asiatic racist sentiment.”[6] Vosper was crucial in raising sentiments that helped enforce the exclusion of Cameleers and other non-European workers who had been so vital in the development of Western Australia. Another, using their editorial powers to further anti-Cameleer sentiments, was Robert Samuel Ross (1873 – 1931), socialist journalist and union organiser,[7] who “referred in his newspaper to ‘The Afghan Menace’ (Barrier Truth, 13 March 1903) … [and] claimed that the north Broken Hill camel camp was unbearable to nearby residents because of the noise and smell, and that 130 people had appealed to the municipal council to have it removed.”[8] Far from being isolated examples, so prevalent were these views played out within Australia’s early media that “by 1901, virtually all federal parliamentarians, whether Protectionist, Labour or Free Traders, supported the ideal of a ‘White Australia’.”[9] These views were not simply political and media fodder as they were prevalent amongst certain segments of society.
Many of the Cameleers in Australia considered themselves “British subjects” and went to lengths to make this known. During the celebration of the “the Mohammedan festival of the Lesser Bairam” in 1895 the Hadji Mollah, when interviewed, stated of the congregation, “They are nearly all British – not subjects of the Ameer of Afghanistan, as many of you Europeans imagine – and find in Australia a country much to their liking” and that “the Mohammedans are respecters of and believers in the British law, and people are beginning to understand us now,” later adding “our religion is not interfered with, and we are not harassed by any unjust laws.”[10] Making such explicit statements as those reported indicates the Cameleers utilised events such as the celebration of the two ‘Ids, given the wider public interest, to express their inclusiveness and commitment to the rule of law of their adopted country. Yet, this was not enough to quell the rising and persistent voices of dissent.
Despite the political agenda against the Cameleers, other immigrants, and Indigenous peoples playing out within the media, giving a popular and one-sided impression that such views were uniform across the country, there were voices of dissent. A serialised account of life on the goldfields in Western Australia in 1908 stated,
I never once saw an Afghan the worse for drink or illtreating a fractious camel. Truly these followers of Mahommed are a sober, industrious race, and a necessity in the arid interior of Westralia, until such time as other means shall be devised for carrying provisions and materials[11]
Additionally, there were interventions from the Indian Government attempting to assert the rights of their countrymen.[12] This was taken up by some of the Cameleers themselves, for “when the Immigration Restriction Bill was before parliament, some Indians appealed to both the British and Australian Governments for amendments to give them preferential treatment on the grounds of their British nationality, but their appeals were unsuccessful.”[13] Yet, despite the attempts by the Cameleers in Australia and the governments from their homelands, “application for naturalisation as British subjects was another administrative sphere in which Afghans received scant favour.”[14]
The Cameleers themselves were acutely aware of their variegated geographical origins. One Cameleer wrote in 1893, “I know that the Australian public do not at all distinguish between Afghans and other persons coming to these colonies from India” and that the “natives of Afghanistan are in very small number here” while the rest “are all Berohees, Mekranees, Sindhees, Kutchees, Borees, Hindus, or natives of Bombay, Calcutta, or Panjub, who are, one and all, British subjects.”[15] The continued use of the geographically inaccurate term, “Afghan,” that effaced cultural, geographical, linguistic, and religious differences perpetuates the colonialism of the past, one that served to deny some of the Cameleers their rights as British subjects and eventuated in racism and bigoty being enshrined in law and policy within Australia.
The Cameleers were far from passive in response to politicisation of sentiments against them. Musakhan wrote to the editor of theWest Australian in 1895, reminding the reader of “the useful services of Afghan and Indian camel men in helping to open up the goldfields,” concluding “we will insist upon our just demands as loyal subjects of Her Majesty.”[16] While by 1914 many of the laws impacting the Cameleers in Australia had already been passed, Said Jeelani Shah warned against “the color [sic] line attempted to be drawn by Australians” and that “no distinction should be made as regards British subjects being admitted into the Commonwealth.”[17] Yet, despite all of these challenges, the Cameleers can been seen to have persevered.
The Resilience of the Cameleers
Even though the Cameleers experienced decades of social exclusion, media denigration, and political and legislative bias against them, they persevered. They faced hardship in living away from their homelands, being perceived by some as inferior to the European Australians, and in the work they undertook. More than persevering, there were many Cameleers who prospered. Their industriousness had to be, at least, in part motivated by the financial opportunities they perceived and an ability to support their families in their homelands. Yet, this alone cannot account for their persistence.
It is worth noting that anywhere the Cameleers alighted for any reasonable period of time or with some frequency, the Muslims amongst them build mosques. The building of places of worship can be seen as an exteriorisation of the faith they carried within. By the breadth of places the Cameleers build mosques, spanning from the east to the west coasts of the mainland, it could be seen that their faith was strong. Despite their acute awareness of their geographical and cultural differences, for the Cameleers “when it came to the establishment of mosques, all differences were ignored, and all Muslims were considered as members of the ummah.”[18] The Cameleer built and funded mosques, some of which are either still active today or form the foundations of some Australian mosques, can be seen to represent an exteriorised expression of their faith, which, in turn, provided a location for the renewal of the furnishing of their interiorised belief.
Given the scarcity of available records, it is difficult to gain a full understanding the interiorised belief of the Muslim Cameleers, which provided such drive, perseverance, and resilience. Yet, there are glimpses that can be found. There are a few letters to the editor published in Australia’s early media, with some Cameleers writing for Islam. Sheik Abdul Kader was one such individual who wrote “on behalf of the Mohammedan community … to inform the public in defence of their faith who can be a Mullah.”[19] Such instances indicate the honour they attributed to Islam and the importance of correctly recognising authority within the religion. While such newspaper articles are informative, they are still written for a general audience.
A deeper glimpse of the Cameleer’s interiorised belief can be gleamed from the religious documents they travelled with as they are both devotional and personal, though these have not received the attention they deserve within the existing literature. To date, only three manuscripts with strong connections to the Cameleers have been identified. The Broken Hill Mosque Manuscript and the Broken Hill Notebook are part of the Cameleer artifact collection housed at the north camel camp mosque in Broken Hill. The Perth Mosque Manuscript is in a private collection in Perth. The two of the three treatises in the Broken Hill Notebook contain colophons. The first text states it was completed on Sha’baan 14, 1272/April 19, 1856 (BHN fol. 29r, ٥٦). The third text states it was completed “by the pen of the humble atom of the incomparable servant, Muhammad Abd al-Razzaq, who resides in the lands of Hindustan and is a temporary resident in the Port of Mumbai” on Safar 17, 1279/August 13, 1862 (BHN fol. 66v, ٣١). This places the composition of both treatises outside Australia, meaning they were considered of such importance they were carefully transported on the perilous journey to Australia. The Broken Hill Mosque Manuscript states it was written al-sayyid Ahmed al-Qadiri based upon the request of Ahmed Akbar Khān al-Afghānī in 1322AH/1901CE. This likely indicated the composition of this manuscript occurred in Australia, meaning it was considered of such importance that the effort was made to compose a fully voweled, bordered, predominantly Arabic document at the time. There are no dates given for the Perth Mosque Manuscript.
The contents of each of the Cameleer manuscripts are different, though interconnected to varying degrees. The Broken Hill Mosque Manuscript is essentially a licence (ijaza) granting authority within the Qadiriyya Sufi Order, following Burton’s “Specimen of a Murshid’s Diploma, in the Kadiri Order of the Mystic Craft El Tasawwuf,”[20] including the chain of transmission (silsila) and remembrance (dhikr). The importance of this licence demarcating religious authority amongst the Cameleers can be seen to be reflected in Sheik Abdul Kader’s insistence on the prerequisite qualities for the office of the Mullah. The Perth Mosque Manuscript is essentially a prayer book detailing with the performance of various supererogatory prayers and supplications for specific needs. This manuscript highlights the religious engagement of the Cameleers over and above the formal requirements of Islam, reflecting a high level of piety and increased reliance on Allah. The two complete treatises in the Broken Hill Notebook are a falnama, a text of bibliomancy, and a copy of the supplication known as the Treasure of the Throne (duʿāʾ kanz al-ʿarsh), along with its associated benefits. Both texts have a strong focus on protection during travel, a key component of the Cameleers’ lives in Australia and again foregrounding a desire to have the highest possible level of Divine protection in their undertakings. A key component resulting from the performance of such supplications and prayers is trust in Allah (tawakkul), as the efficiency of such acts are predicated on the believe that they will be fulfilled once completed. It is an important virtue within Islam, as has been stated, “trust in God lies at the heart of the message of the Qur’an where references to the word tawakkul abound.” [21] Thus, while different, each of the Cameleer manuscripts can be seen to be carriers of meaning which place great emphasis on the centrality of Allah in one’s daily life which is reaffirmed by seeking guidance from those with recognised religious authority. These manuscripts give insight into a heightened level of piety amongst the Muslim Cameleers over and above the performance of the obligatory (fard) requirements of Islam.
The Legacy of the Cameleers
Islam provides for the sincere practitioner a level of spiritual resilience that is increased through a higher level of faith (iman). The practices outlined within the Cameleer manuscripts encourage a heightened level of religious practice that can be seen to increase the practitioner’s faith. Given the political and media scrutiny and resistance faced by the Cameleers, their increased faith through the practices outlined within the manuscripts would have strengthened their spiritual resilience. The legacy of the Cameleers, along with their contributions to this nation and the history of Islam in Australia, can be seen to be a reminder to hold our faith in the highest degree no matter what fractures we face nor how turbulent the times become.
I would like to acknowledge the work of Dr. Rami Dawood, Arthur Schechter, and Hamza Surbuland for their attention to detail, insight into, and translation of these important Cameleer manuscripts.
[1] Hanifa Deen, “Excavating the Past: Australian Muslims,” The La Trobe Journal 89 (2012): 66.
[2] See Nahid Afrose Kabir Nahid, “Muslims in Western Australia, 1870–1970,” Journal of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, Vol. 12:5 (2005): 555; Nahid Afrose Kabir, “The Culture of Mobile Lifestyle: Reflection on the Past – The Afghan Camel Drivers, 1860 – 1930,” Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, Vol. 23:6 (2009): 801.
[3] Nahid Afrose Kabir, “The Culture of Mobile Lifestyle: Reflection on the Past – The Afghan Camel Drivers, 1860 – 1930,” Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, Vol. 23:6 (2009): 800-801.
[4] Nahid Afrose Kabir, “Muslims in Western Australia, 1870–1970,” Journal of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, Vol. 12:5 (2005): 555.
[5] E. Jaggard, “Vosper, Frederick Charles (1869–1901),” Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/vosper-frederick-charles-8933/text15695, published first in hardcopy 1990, accessed online 25 July 2025.
[6] Nahid Afrose Kabir, “Muslims in Western Australia, 1870–1970,” Journal of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, Vol. 12:5 (2005): 555.
[7] Joy Damousi, “Ross, Robert Samuel (1873–1931),” Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/ross-robert-samuel-8274/text14497, published first in hardcopy 1988, accessed online 24 July 2025.
[8] Nahid Afrose Kabir, “The Culture of Mobile Lifestyle: Reflection on the Past – The Afghan Camel Drivers, 1860 – 1930,” Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, Vol. 23:6 (2009): 796.
[9] Nahid Afrose Kabir, “The Culture of Mobile Lifestyle: Reflection on the Past – The Afghan Camel Drivers, 1860 – 1930,” Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, Vol. 23:6 (2009): 792.
[10] “The Feast of Bairam,” Evening News, June 11, 1895, 3.
[11] Louir C. Ware, “Life on a Westralian Gold-Field Part II,” Williamstown Advertiser, February 15, 1908, 3.
[12] Nahid Afrose Kabir, “Muslims in Western Australia, 1870–1970,” Journal of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, Vol. 12:5 (2005): 555.
[13] Nahid Kabir, “Muslims in a ‘White Australia’: Colour or Religion?,” Immigrants & Minorities, Vol. 24:2 (2006): 203.
[14] Brian Willis, “From Indispensability to Redundancy: The Afghans in Western Australia 1887-1911,” Papers in Labour History, Vol. 9 (1992): 53.
[15] “The Truth About Afghans: To the Editor,” South Australian Register, May 1, 1893, 7.
[16] Mohamed Hasan Musakhan, “To the Editor,” The West Australian, April 25, 1895, 6. Vosper’s response in defence of the Anti-Asiatic League is in “Correspondence. The Anti-Asiatic Question. To the Editor,” The Daily News, April 26, 1985, 3.
[17] “A Moslem Festival,” Shepparton News, November 2, 1914, 3.
[18] Nahid Afrose Kabir, “The Culture of Mobile Lifestyle: Reflection on the Past – The Afghan Camel Drivers, 1860 – 1930,” Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, Vol. 23:6 (2009): 795.
[19] “The Office of Mullah,” The Advertiser, August 18, 1927, 14.
[20] Richard F. Burton, Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to El-Medinah and Meccah, vol. 2 (London: Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans, 1855), 341–46.
[21] Leonard Lewisohn, “The Way of Tawakkul: The Ideal of ‘Trust in God’ in Classical Persian Sufism,” Islamic Culture, Vol. 73:2 (1999): 28. See also Atif Khalil, “Ibn al-‘Arabi and the Sufis on the Virtue of Tawakkul (Trust in God),” Journal of the Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi Society 72 (2022): 87 – 106.