Share

12.3 (Fall 1988) Resettlement and Relocation Part 1

Update on the Status of Bushmanland

The department of Nature Conservation has been active in the eastern half of Bushmanland since the formal proclamation of the so-called homeland in 1976. Unlike the residents of all other "ethnic homelands" in Namibia, Ju/Wasi have no representative council and are virtually wards of the state. Bushmanland is described vaguely as being "kept in trust for its residents." In effect, however, it is up for grabs; several conflicting interest groups, both within and outside of the government, have their eyes on it.

Toma: A Tribute

When anthropologists work in the field for extended periods, they live with and form ties with individuals who become more than mere representatives of their culture. Some of these relationship are deep and lasting. It is rare, however, for those individuals to filter through the ethnographies, the ponderosity of papers and documentary film, to become real people for the rest of us. There are, of course, exception: N!ai, N#isa, Ongka, Ogotomele, Dedeheiwä and #Toma.

The Forgotten Struggle of Australia's Aboriginal People

The Issue of Aboriginal people gaining recognition for their full rights on land held under pastoral lease in the Northern Territory of Australia will become a major battleground for human rights in the 1990s and beyond.

Slavery in Sudan

Sudan today is experiencing a resurgence of chattel slavery.

The Anti-Slavery Society recently conducted an investigation into slavery in, mainly, the western Sudan provinces of Darfur and Kordofan, and in the capital, Khartoum.

The western region, populated largely by Baggara Arabs, borders on the province of Bahr el Ghazal, the home of the African people, the Dinka. (Baggara is a generic term referring to cattle-owning nomads, predominantly Rezeigat from Darfur and Meseriya from Kordofan.) The former are Sunni Muslims; the latter animists and Christians.

Road Construction Threatens Huaorani in Ecuador

On June 20 of this year, the Huaorani Indians, with the support of the Confederation of Indian Nations of Ecuadorian Amazon (CONFENIAE), began the task of physically demarcating Huaorani territories located in the Napo province in eastern Ecuador. Five years after receiving legal recognition of their rights to the land, they feel compelled to physically draw the line against destructive and often illegal development of these lands.

Repression in the Narmada Valley, India

The gentle Narmada River, flowing across the central plateau of India to the Arabian Sea, is one of India's few remaining unspoiled rivers. At 1,300 km, she is India's longest western-flowing river and one of her most beautiful. No large cities or industries mar her entire course. She sweeps along unimpeded from her source high in the holy hills of Amarkantak to her mouth north of the city of Surat in the rich agricultural state of Gujarat.

One Indian Woman's Ordeal in Guatemala

In July 988, while visiting her homeland of Guatemala from her US home in Indiantown, Florida, Maria Elena Gaspar was detained by the Guatemalan police for 13 days. Her ordeal, presented here in her own words, is just one example of the continued repression of Kanjobal Indians in Guatemala.

My name is Maria Elena Gaspar. I war born on 25 May 1967 in Guatemala. I am a Kanjobal Indian. I have resided in the United States since 1981, and I am a temporary resident of the United States.

Mangyans Forced to Evacuate Homeland in Philippines

The 16-year-old war between the Philippines Armed Forces (AFP) and the communist guerrilla New People's Army (NPA) has recently reached deep into the mountains of the island of Mindoro. The AFP has used helicopter gunships and widespread bombing in attempts to flush out the NPA soldiers from their mountain hideouts.

Malaysia: Economic Recession, Ethnic Relations and Political Freedom

The events of the second half of October 1987 may yet prove to be the beginnings of another major transition for the Malaysian nation, almost comparable to the post-election race riots associated with 13 May 1969. Once again Malaysia tottered at the edge of the precipice that has already consumed Northern Ireland, Lebanon, Sri Lanka and Fiji. The arrests of more than 100 people, as well as bans on three of the more independent newspapers and on all public rallies, seem to have temporarily defused the danger that threatened to explode in late October 1987.

Malaysia Update: Logging-Post Blockade in Sarawak

Since the Malaysian police dismantled all the blockades set up by the various native communities in the interior of Sarawak in October, logging has resumed in full force throughout Sarawak.

Syndicate content