Slavery in Salan

Slavery is commonly practised among the most peoples of Salan. It can be estimated, that up to 20% of all the people are slaves.

Gaining slaves

The slavery on Salan is not based on race or ethnicity, but the slaves are often of the same etnicity as their owner. Slaves are most often gained as prisoners of war from neighbouring states. A freeman can also become a slave by being kidnapped, as a payment of a debt, or as a punisment from crime. Some city states force long-time homeless people to become slaves.
The children of slaves usually become slaves too. Zeribians have a strict caste system, that prevents the slaves from rising in the social hierarchy even if they were to become free, and the slaves are mostly used for simple manual work, and more complicated work is done by payed freemen, who are required to work for their lords, which can be seen as a form of slavery.

In Faren culture skilled and educated freedmen can gain rather high status, including citizenship. Freeing well-served household slaves, that have a good chance of being able to sustain themselves by doing payed labour, is relatively common practise. However, slaves on plantations, mines and other industry are much less likely to even know their owner or ever gain freedom.

Treatment of slaves

Under the Zeribian law slaves are usually treated as property. The owner can usually punish his slaves in any manner he sees necessary, but in unnecessarily cruel cases a freeman can raise a lawsuit against the owner. Treating slaves unnecessarily badly is considered shameful.
Under Faren law slaves usually have a bit more protection. A set of minimum rules for the treatment of household slaves are in place in the most city states, and a slave can gain their freedom or a new master by shoving that their master is treating them too poorly. The slaves cannot be citizens and don't have a right to vote, but they are often allowed to own things and sometimes buy their freedom from their master.

Type

Forced Labour

Abolitionist movements

In the early history, a large portion of the humans used to be slaves to the Giants that ruled the lands. After the Great Slave Rebellion of Stonelords' Throne, there were wide-spread abolitionist movements among the former slaves, arguing that a human being should never be property, not to higher forces, nor to other people.

These movements persisted into the Early Republic Period, and many early states had banned slavery, but the period of war and unrest in the late 3rd century AFS seems to have mostly silenced the opposition on the continent. This was possibly because of the large availability of war captives during the conflicts, and shortage of labour.

Later, slavery was notably banned in the early days of the Republic of Free West Island, but it was later reintroduced through the large-scale slave trade with the Zeribians.