INDIGENOUS RIGHTS
Ghumusar Mahila Sangathan (Women Joining Together), Orissa, India
As Kui women have come into increasing contact with mainstream Indian society, many of their beliefs have come under attack. For example, mainstream culture has imposed discrimination against widows and purdah (the system of sex segregation, practiced especially by keeping women in seclusion.)
The Kui, among the original inhabitants of the western forest region of Orissa, India, historically have valued women in ways that are often more gender-sensitive than mainstream Indian culture. They believe that women can own land and can pass on their lineage to future generations. If widowed or divorced women choose to remarry, they are not stigmatized.
Ghumusar Mahila Sangathan-GMS (Women Joining Together), a group of tribal and indigenous women organized in 1979 to respond to threats against indigenous women. Their first victory was catalyzed by a series of incidents in which indigenous women were marrying Indian men from other areas of India. These men, many of whom were temporarily assigned to work in the forests of Orissa in fulfillment of government or forestry contracts, were secretly married to women from their own communities. After a couple of years, or when the Kui women became pregnant, the men abandoned them, claiming that the traditional Kui marriages did not apply to them. GMS challenged the men in court and succeeded in getting traditional marriages recognized as legal. As a result, in 40 cases, women were declared legal wives entitled to financial support.
GMS then turned its sights to educational programs. Group members noticed that their children did poorly in school due to the failure of curriculum to acknowledge their native culture. GMS led a successful campaign that resulted in the primary schools incorporating educational materials written in the Kui language, some of which highlight issues of human rights and gender equality.
Upholding the belief that in "caring for mother earth, we care for ourselves," GMS has organized committees to protect the forest. These committees monitor forest use and impose fines on those who illegally engage in logging. The group has also devised projects that include licensing intellectual property rights for their knowledge of medicinal plants, and setting fair prices for forest products that they create.
With grants totaling $20,250, the Global Fund has proudly supported the growth of this extensive network of women who are defending and reviving an indigenous, egalitarian culture.
Ghumusar Mahila Sangathan
Sandhyarani Naik, Secretary
At/Po - G. Udayagiri
Udayagiri, Kandhmal District Orissa 762100
India
Phone: 91 684 2760006
Fax: 91 674 2430990
Email: gmskuidina@yahoo.com
Photo by Jean Brenner