4 Tribes of the World: A Glimpse

Kanato Chophy

Introduction

On 13 September 2007, the UN General Assembly adopted the United Nations declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The declaration roughly included about 370 million indigenous peoples in Asia, Americas, the Pacific and Europe. The events leading up to this moment reflected half a millennium of encounter between the Old World and New World, beginning with Christopher Columbus’s discovery of the New World in A.D. 1492. Archaeologists trace substantial human migration to the last ice age, but in the modern times, the largest demographic shift had taken place during the European colonization mainly aided by discovery of modern day navigation and guns. In this context, the Western world wanted to commemorate 500 years of Columbus’s discovery of the New World, which was opposed by inhabitants of Asia and Africa on the grounds of centuries of marginalization and oppression due to colonization. In the midst of this, on Human Rights Day 1992, the United Nations declared the International Year of the World’s Indigenous People, the struggle for recognition, which began as early as 1920s under the aegis of International Labour Organisation.

In International law, the discourse on tribes as indigenous peoples/original inhabitants is contested influencing academia and policy making. Various human rights organisations and transnational bodies like the United Nations, the World Bank and Survival International are taking up measures to recognise the rights of indigenous peoples. The events leading up to this moment is not inconsequential, but conscious human activity and cultural contacts have radically transformed the tribal societies including empires like the Aztec and Incato food gathering pygmies of Ituri forest.

In 1995, a Decade for Indigenous Peoples was declared, and the United Nations instituted a Forum of Indigenous Peoples headed by a special rapporteur to deliberate on the issues of tribes and indigenous peoples. However, this development was not without ambiguity and dissenting voices; as who qualifies to be called indigenous, and the problems of definition still persist widely. In this context, the difficulty of defining tribe and the problem of conceptualization in a context like India have added more confusion. Be that as it may, in the 21st century tribal identity is no longer localised, as tribes across international boundaries have begun to reassert their identity and grievances on a common platform; and of late, the tribal political rights and cultural identity are being addressed in international forums, and also promulgated in international laws. In a nutshell, the tribes of the world have changed tremendously, and therefore the objective of this theme would be to understand tribes of the world both in its historical context and as communities in transition.

A brief overview of tribes in history

A substantial migration of human groups in the prehistoric period took place during the last ice age with archaeologist estimating the peopling of Near East by modern humans around 40,000 years ago, in Australia and New Guinea around the same time, in Europe around 35,000 years ago, in Siberia around 20,000 years ago, and Americas in between 35,000 and 14,000 years ago. The Chinese had traversed the major waters before the European explorers, but for disputable reasons did not colonise new lands. However, it was due to peculiar socio-cultural climate and technological innovation, and the centralized political organisation that enabled Europeans to colonise most part of the globe in a comparatively short span of time. In history, it was the European colonialism that radically transformed the history and culture of tribal communities. Thus from the Tasmanian genocide to the pauperization of the indigenous Kanaka Maoli of the Hawaiian island, the long arm of Western colonialism has left an indelible mark on indigenous communities.

The seafaring and transoceanic trading routes had brought cultures into contact much before the encounter between the Old World and New World. Also land routes like the thriving silk route had connected east Mediterranean Europe with China. Here adventurers, traders and travellers often recorded events, places, peoples and cultural practices, which they felt was exotic and bizarre. Thus tales of headhunting, cannibalism, human sacrifice and magical rites were common in the description of ‘others’. Interestingly, the description of small-scale, isolated and primitive communities captured the imagination of European so much so that explorers presented natives as gifts to the monarchs; and for public curiosity natives from places like Papua New Guinea were displayed at places like Piccadilly Circus in London. However, this complex process, and at times heinous instances of cultural encounters led to the discovery of many natives and tribes, which were recorded in the amateur scientific journals, travelogues, diaries, missionary letters and fictional works. At this juncture, anthropology as professional discipline developed in Europe living off the tradition of writings of missionaries, travellers, army personnel and traders, etc. Consequently, later pioneers of fieldwork tradition used the ignoble term ‘armchair anthropologists’ for their predecessors.

The glimpse into the world of tribes came from sources not associated with the universities, and most were exaggerated, prejudiced, and at times with overt racial insinuation. Be that as it may, this process paved way for the study of primitive societies and tribes in European universities. For instance, the Franciscan missionary Bernardino Ribeira de Sahagun had written the earliest work on the Aztec religion. Moreover, when the Catholic priests played an active role in the Spanish conquest of Americas; conversely, it required Catholic figures like Bartolomé de las Casas, who opposed the encomienda system, which granted Spanish conquerors the right to land and labours of the natives living on them; and in the writings of Francisco Vitoria that influenced the idea of legal rights for indigenous peoples in international law. The role of Christian missionaries among tribal societies remains a contentious issue; nevertheless, their work brought to light the situation of primitive communities from different corners of the world.

The role of European explorers remains a blot on the encounter between the Old World and New World. It was common to name primitive peoples as brutes, uncivilized and animal like. Thus for instance, the first Europeans who encountered Australian aborigines regarded them as missing link between apes and modern humans. Similar perception was common in Africa and New Guinea, and consequently many primitive groups had witness mass extermination.

At this juncture, anthropologists emerged as experts on tribal and primitive societies. The role of anthropology and its association with colonialism is still debated; but the developments of fieldwork tradition under doyens like Franz Boas in United States and Bronislaw Malinowski in United Kingdom paved way for new perspective on primitive peoples and tribes. This new methodology gave rise to production of what was known as ‘tribal monographs’ focusing on the holistic study of tribal communities. Mostly Boas’s student in the United States carried on this tradition, and the influence of Malinowski remained pertinent in British anthropology.

Colonization and tribes

Generally, colonial agents like soldiers, travelers, missionaries and civil servants are deemed indispensible to the whole colonial enterprise. Nevertheless, on an institutional scale, the agreements, treaties and policies introduced by the colonial state had massive impact on the tribal communities. In retrospect, assimilation has been the most common policy of national states in dealing with the indigenous and tribal populations. For instance, in Australia, the state sponsored programme of assimilating aboriginal population into the mainstream society had devastating effects gaining the notoriety of what is known as ‘lost generation’ in common parlance. The entire continent was declared as unoccupied territory when Australia was colonized in 1788, despite being inhabited by more than 2 million aboriginal people. In fact, until 1967, the tribal people were denied civil and political rights by the state.

In Japan, the state’s assimilation policy has completely overrun the Ainu society and culture—the aboriginal people of the northern island of Hokkaido—starting from the 19th century. While in South America, the tribal populations have faced centuries of exploitation, subjugation and disenfranchisement at the hands of the colonial empires and authoritarian states. This dates back to the first major European-Native American encounter during the 16th century when the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizzaro representing King Charles I of Spain defeated the Inca emperor Atahuallpa beginning the conquest of the New World and the fall of Aztec and Incan empires. Consequently, the intrusion of the external state had marginalized and pauperized communities like the Mapuche of Southern Chile, the Maya people of Guatemala, and the tribes of Amazon basin. In Chile, the state had pursued a unilateral policy of assimilating the tribes during the 19th and 20th century, which has come to be known as Chilenization.

In Australia and North America, the dispossession of ancestral lands and forests preceded the assimilation policy. In North America, despite the signing of the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which defined aboriginal rights across North America, the British government applied the treaty selectively suiting their needs. Thus for instance, the British did not negotiate with aboriginal inhabitants of the Canadian west but transferred land to the Canadian government in 1870. An example can be cited from the Black Hills struggle between the colonial government and the Sioux. Under the Treaty of Laramie of 1868, the Sioux were assigned land which was overrun by miners and developers attracted by the rich goldfields. This led to the battle of Little Big Horn in1876 under the leadership of Sioux chief, Sitting Bull. With war the Sioux fled north toward Canada staying there until the early 1880s; and by 1877, the US government seized the treaty lands in the Black Hills.

Slave trading in Africa, which is associated with European colonialism has received due attention as an extension of the state interest, although some historians estimate that between A.D. 650 to 1900, about 10 to 20 million Africans were enslaved by Arab slave traders, much after slavery was abolished in the British Empire. The scourge of transatlantic slavery had affected many African populations, but in terms of displacement, deprivation and extermination, the African human group identified as Khoisan, which includes the small hunter-gatherers, San, like the Bushmen and Hottentot (considered offensive in modern usage) have been at the receiving end of European colonists. The Khoisan like the Pygmies of Central African rain forest represented as primitive tribes have been transformed as a result of colonial encounters. Africa had been a fertile ground for European colonial expansionism, aside the sizeable British colonies, Leopold II, king of Belgium owned entire Congo, the French had colonized Algeria, and Germany had colonies in East Africa, South-West Africa, Togoland and the Cameroons. In all these European state owned colonies, the experiences of the tribal populations had varied from one empire to other.

The tribes today and modern nation states

Anthropologists studying nation states recognise that every known tribal society is identified as part of the state, although the nature of relationship between tribes and the statevaries significantly across nation states. There are many issues facing the tribes in today’s context, but the impact of nation states on tribal communities is an important factor determining the survival of tribal cultures and identity. The recent discourse of indigenous and tribal people’s rights in international forums is in regard to the inclusion and exclusion of tribes in nation building and tribal rights to self-determination. The understanding of tribes in the 21st century requires a critical gaze from the lens of political dynamics of nation states. In this regard, tribal communities around the world are differently positioned in relation to the state. Many tribal communities today comprise the most deprived and marginalized section of nation state. This condition is observed in almost every continent having tribal populations.

1. South America

In Ecuador, the Amazonian tribes are being displaced due to logging, oil extraction and commercial farming. The same is observed in Brazil eastern Amazon region like in the case of the Awa whose survival is at stake due to multi-million dollar projects attracting unscrupulous contractors, settlers and loggers. The indigenous Aymara and Atacameno in Chile are fighting for their ancestral water source, which has been affected due to mining operations. In the case of Mapuche of southern Chile comprising a considerable population of the country, they had lost their ancestral lands under military dictatorship due to land privatization and large agricultural projects. The government had agreed to their legitimate demands but struggle with Mapuche militant groups is still a contentious issue. In Guatemala, the Maya comprising more than half of the national population, who were officially recognized their Rights of Indigenous Peoples and identity after decades of civil war are still being marginalized in access to land and resources. Reports of civil war, militarization and drug wars affecting indigenous population like the Embera in Colombia and Shuar in northern Ecuador have diversified problems faced by tribes. Similarly, tribes like the Maya and Misikito in Central America, and Huaorani in South America have all been affected by international conflicts and civil wars. In Mexico, the Cucapa people’s subsistence fishing economy is being threatened since the authorities have put restrictions on their livelihood citing environmental reasons. Peru, which has considerable number of isolated tribes, is witnessing change in recent years due to major developmental projects and rapid deforestation of Amazon basin. This poses threat not only for indigenous people in the so-called ‘development zones’, but also those relatively isolated tribes are in grave danger to venerable diseases and other contagious diseases to which they have no resistance. This rapid economic transformation of South American nation states spells irreversible changes for the tribes and indigenous populations

2. Africa

In Africa, the hunting-gatherers are the most affected group with most facing decline in population and loss of traditional land and forests. The Batwa have lost their forestlands due to establishment of wildlife sanctuaries by the Ugandan government, and thereby their mobile hunting-gathering lifestyle is affected reducing them mostly to landless labourers. In Kenya, the hunting-gatherers Ogiek are dispossessed of their land due to privatization and are in continuing litigation with the government for right over their lands; also the indigenous Keiyo have been displaced from their land due to mining activity without proper compensation. In Botswana, government sponsored projects in Central Kalahari Game Reserve had come at a cost of displacing Basarwa Bushmen who were forced to relocate in resettlement villages. Moreover, in Botswana and Namibia, around 80,000 Bushmen have been subjected to displacement and assimilationist policies of the state endangering their cultural identity and traditional livelihood. In southern Sudan, anthropology’s famous tribes like the Nuer and Dinka have been affected by perpetual civil war with the state and religious strife, which is transforming the experiences of tribal societies in contemporary period.

The question of tribal identity is unique in African context mainly because the term ‘indigenous’ as a separate category is debated due to fear of secessionist movements, and ‘tribalism’ which might threaten the unity of state. Also this problem has become conflated with Africa’s long history of colonialism, nevertheless, the impact of postcolonial states on tribes have been complex and at times violent.

3. South Asia and South East Asia

According to the United Nations study, about 80 percent of world’s indigenous and tribal peoples identified belong to Asia. The process of assimilation of tribes into nation states has been less than perfect in Asian countries. In India, the tribes of Northeastern states have been embroiled in decades of separatist movement against the Indian state. In what has been deemed as fight for self-determination, militancy and guerrilla warfare has occupied a chunk of tribal politics among tribes like the Bodo, Karbi, Kuki, Mizo and Naga. In central India, many tribes are displaced due to developmental projects like mineral extraction, construction of dams, and establishment of government wildlife and forest reserves. The construction of Sardar Sarovar dam on Narmada River in Gujarat is expected to displace hundreds of thousands of tribals, mostly farmers depending on land for livelihood. In Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh, tribes like the Chakma and Marma, traditionally practicing jhum cultivation, are struggling to protect their traditional lands; many have been rehabilitated as refugees in Indian neighbouring states. It is estimated that the construction of Kaptai dam alone had displaced about 100,000 people, mostly Chakmas. In Sri Lanka, the oldest aboriginal group, Wanniya-laeto (Vedda), is facing decline in population and loss of ancestral homeland. Originally forest-dwellers practicing hunting-gathering, the Wanniya-laeto livelihood has been adversely affected due to developmental projects and mass immigration, and also the state’s assimilation policy has affected their cultural identity and traditional lifestyle.

In South East Asia, the tribal struggle against the state pertains mostly to loss of land and forests. The Bakun dam in Malaysia is estimated to have displaced more than 7000 indigenous peoples from the area with the clearing of 80,000 hectares of rainforest. While the San Roque Multipurpose Project in the Phillipine Cordillera region has affected thousands of indigenous peoples. The Penan in Malaysia has reported to be struggling against illegal logging destroying their traditional homes. The Montagnard indigenous people in the Central Highlands between Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia have been affected by conflicts with reports of human rights abuse, and mostly living as refugees scattered inside Laos and Thailand without legal protection.

   4. North America

The peculiar case of North America has been high evolvement of legal prescription and constitutional procedures concerning indigenous peoples. In this regard, Canada and United States have extensively implemented the policy of affirmative action. Most of the Native Americans like the Cree, Navaho, Omaha and Pueblo living in reservations are struggling to maintain their cultural identity in the midst of tremendous socio-cultural change and complicated state’s legal system. An example can be cited of the Indian Gaming Regulation Act of 1988, which gives legal prescriptions for opening casinos in Indian reservations for economic sustainability has also been subjected federal jurisdictional structure governing Indian gaming, thereby becoming a source of extensive litigation controversy. Also in an important legislative programme, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990 had prescribed rules and procedures to secure Native American interests in ancestral remains, burial grounds and funerary objects. What is implied here is that: in developed modern democratic states of North America, the issues of common law of the land, litigations and amendments would decide the fate of Native Americans in the 21st century.

In many countries, the domestic laws, which were passed earlier, have come into conflict with international laws concerning indigenous peoples and tribes. However, the relation between tribes and modern states is a highly contentious one, with newer laws being passed, scrapped and reenacted to suit the needs of the state. For instance, the Australian High Court denied in 2002 the native title rights over natural resources in the Miriuwung-Gajerrong native title claim, which was first lodged in 1994. Moreover, with the rising issues of climate change, the first to be affected are the vulnerable sections, which includes tribes and indigenous populations in most countries.

Conclusion: a brief ethnographic glimpse

A Naga scholar completing his PhD from Oxford Divinity School has become a success story among the illustrious Angami tribe in the contemporary context. Belonging to Khonoma from Kevichusa clan, his village was known for prolific headhunting raids and slave trading, and also led the 1898 Naga uprising against the British rule. In Kohima, he preaches Christian forgiveness and reconciliation in Baptist churches to weary Naga believers perplexed by gun violence among warring Naga rebel groups—when they are not fighting Indian armies for political self-determination. Like the Nagas, the allure of nation-state based on ethnic line had influenced many tribes in British India North East frontier in the post-colonial period with far-reaching implications. While in the Andaman Islands among the hunting-gathering Jarawa, who had been relatively isolated hitherto, aside the signposts that says ‘do not feed the Jarawa’, news of vulnerability of Jarawa women to sexual exploitation from outsiders are being reported. In Central India, in certain pockets, the Birhorwho have been subsisting mainly as animal trappers and food gatherers are being reduced to scavenging and rag picking for sustenance, as their traditional forests and hunting grounds are shrinking in size.

While in other parts of the world, globalisation and modernisation have penetrated even the remotest corner of tribal areas. This is reflected in the Inuit and Sami using snowmobile, refrigerator and other modern equipment as part of their daily livelihood; a Maori entrepreneur having access to best business school in New Zealand and running a successful business; Aborigine teenagers in the Australian outback wearing Nike shoes and listening to American pop music; Navaho activists fighting for gay rights in their community; an Angami girl winning coveted model contest in national television in India, and so forth. Most of the tribal societies in the 21st century are at the forefront of globalisation; as a result most of the tribal communities are witnessing tremendous social and cultural change. These processes are changing the understanding of tribes and the nature of tribal societies.

References and Suggested Readings

• Beteille, Andre (1986) ‘The Concept of Tribe with Special Reference to India’. Journal of European Sociology 27(2): 297-318.
• Bodley, John (1989) Cultural Anthropology: Tribes, States, and the Global System. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield.
• Coates, Ken S. (2004) A Global History of Indigenous Peoples: Struggle and Survival. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Kuper, Adam (2005) The Reinvention of a Primitive Society: Transformations of a Myth, 2nd edn, New York: Routledge.
• Lewellen, Ted C. (2002) The Anthropology of Globalization, Westport, CT: Bergin and Garvey.
• Niezen, Ronald (2003) The Origins of Indigenism. Human Rights and the Politics of Identity. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
• Vidyarthi, L.P. and B.K. Rai (1977) The Tribal Culture of India. Delhi: Concept Publishing Company.