The Occupation of Bajor (referred to simply as the Occupation by Bajorans) was the military occupation of Bajor by the Cardassian Union between 2328 and 2369. During the occupation, Bajorans were used as forced labor by the Cardassians, whose brutality towards the populace led to more than ten million deaths. (DS9: "Emissary", "Cardassians")
History[]
After being invited onto Bajor as protectors following a false flag operation orchestrated by Skrain Dukat that implicated the Tzenkethi Coalition as would-be invaders, the Cardassian Union seized control of the planet and dissolved the Republic of Bajor, installing the Bajoran Occupational Government as their puppets and forcing many Bajorans into slavery and prostitution. (TLE novel: Day of the Vipers)
The Cardassians' cruelty eventually gave rise to a grassroots resistance movement, the so-called Bajoran Resistance, which fought the Cardassian Guard with guerrilla warfare and terrorism. (TLE novel: Night of the Wolves)
The Federation refused to become involved in the conflict due to the Prime Directive, despite itself being at war with the Cardassians during the later stages of the Occupation. (TNG: "Ensign Ro")
The occupation eventually ended when the Resistance overthrew the Cardassians, who withdrew from Bajor and relinquished control of the space station Terok Nor to the Bajoran Provisional Government, which requested Federation aid in reconstructing their planet. (DS9: "Emissary", "Cardassians"; TLE novel: Dawn of the Eagles)
Death toll[]
In the 2370s Bajoran school lessons stated that 10 million Bajorans had died over the course of the Occupation. However, in 2410 Captain Kanril Eleya gave the number as 600 million. (DS9: "Cardassians"; Bait and Switch: The Wrong Reflection)
Alternate timelines[]
Mirror universe[]
In the mirror universe incarnation of the Occupation, the occupying power was the Terran Empire. Following the conquest of the Empire by the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance, Bajor joined the Alliance and enslaved the Terrans remaining on-world. (DS9: "Crossover")
The Mysterious Case of Neelix's Lungs[]
In an alternate 2371, Gul Aman Evek noted that he himself had no idea how many Bajorans had actually died in the Occupation because the Bureau of Military Statistics had stopped counting after the first five years. Meanwhile Crewman Apprentice Celes Tal spoke disparagingly of the Federation's non-involvement. (The Mysterious Case of Neelix's Lungs: "Factoring Primes")
External links[]
- Occupation of Bajor article at Memory Alpha, the canon Star Trek wiki.
- Occupation of Bajor article at Memory Beta, the non-canon Star Trek wiki.