Interterritorial conflicts of interest in the federation of French Indochina: recruiting indigenous labour in Tonkin and Annam in the 1920s

ABSTRACT In the 1920s, the expansion of French colonialism in Vietnam and throughout the Federation of French Indochina increased the demand for labour. Particularly in Cochinchina, the rapid expansion of rubber plantations led to a labour shortage. To address this, Cochinchina plantation owners intensified the recruitment of labour from densely populated areas such as Tonkin and Annam. This recruitment activity negatively impacted the interests of the government, French capitalists and Vietnamese landlords in Tonkin and Annam, causing labour shortages, increased recruitment costs and a loss of poll tax revenue. To protect their interests, these forces in Tonkin and Annam opposed the labour recruitment by imposing bans in certain areas of Tonkin and across the entire territory of Annam. These recruitment bans created significant difficulties for Cochinchina’s economy and sparked heated disputes over interests and perspectives among the governments and French capitalists in the territories within the Federation of French Indochina.