Morality of tribal women's livelihoods in Manipur

Kamei Samson *

Locally brewed Wine as part of Gaan Ngai celebration at Dimdailung in 2013 :: Pix - Daniel Chabungbam

This article attempts to initiate a discourse on the life of tribal women in Manipur valley. Some of the tribal women brewing wine in Manipur valley were already ostracised by the dominant standard on morality. Unfortunately, the choice of their livelihood, immensely determined by social and political factors, apart from other factors, is the cause of moral ostracisation. The dominant Hindus and the conversion obsessed Christians act as moral police keeping a vigilant watch over them. They are just oktabi (immoral).

The women from dominant social group who enjoy major spaces in the markets are not immoral. However, women who stay within the confine of the strict social monitoring in village, but amidst strangers are easily labeled immoral. Morality of women is no longer equated with the time and place where women stay outside her house or village. The dominant group now decides what kinds of women are immoral. The privileged in the market decide what means of livelihood are to be labeled as immoral activities. No one seemed to have thought that domination by alienation in economic activities is greed. Greed is a lust for wealth and power. And judging the morality of tribal women based on their livelihood opted as a result of domination by alienation in economic activities by the dominant is a moral genocide and violation of human rights.

The tribal people in Manipur valley are fragmented into different Constituencies and rendered no scope for majority in any political debates and votes. Their interests are sandwiched between the conflicting interests of the dominant. So far, there has been no due consideration in any political debates on the status of tribal women in Manipur valley. Often, the hill tribals think the tribals in the valley are far better off.

The fact is that, the tribals in the valley are without a single tribal representative in the Legislative Assembly. They are represented by the dominant group who occasionally repair village streets to be repaired for the next election. Their worries and difficulties were sweetened by sugar bags distributed by their political representatives who visited during flood or election campaigns. The tribals in Manipur valley do not have people's representatives in the true sense of representative politics but individuals' contacts. No policy or programme for the tribals in Manipur valley whose needs and problems are not the same as the tribals in the hills. Isn't there a need to restructure the political system of Manipur valley to allow tribal representatives? Let's think.

Considering the extent of wine brewing for economic reasons and the revenue collected by the state from the households selling wine, the government could have formulated a policy to address the issues concerning the living standards of the tribal women engaged in wine brewing. Despite the revenue collection there is no instance of policy for the wine brewers. No alternative livelihood options. The dominant society and the tribal Christians are more pro-active than the government in dealing with the tribal women selling wine. They simply label them immoral. The Christians suggest moral solution i.e. conversion, without any temporal solution. While the Christians preach that man does not live on bread alone they perhaps failed to realise that man cannot live without bread, including them.

Instances of burial taking place even inside houses in tribal families in Manipur valley were already cited as problem of high density. They do not have sufficient lands for gardening and farming. Very few tribal households in urban engage in agriculture. Most of the tribals in the valley do not have option to grow vegetables due to lack of lands. Tribal women in the valley cannot go to market to sell vegetables and get empowered like those women from the dominant group whose participation in market is symbolised and respected as a sign of emancipation and empowerment rather than being considered immoral for staying outdoor till late evening.

According to executive summary of 2011 census, the total percentage of women in urban engaged in household industries is 18.3% while that of men is only 4%. This reveals the stark truth of the role of women in economic activities confined within the households. Within this 18.3% of women engaged in household industries, perhaps wine brewing and selling is the only activity labeled as immoral by the society, who rather than questioning the governance system doubt the women who they call oktabi.

Brewing wine has been a major activity among the tribal community in Manipur valley. Significant number of households sustains their daily basic needs through sell of wine. Many young women have spent the vibrant days of their beauty and youth within the walls of their economic activity, brewing and selling wine. Who will understand the feelings of the Kabui women in valley, brewing wine for sale and who were often stigmatised by their neighbouring Kabui/ Rongmei Christians and Meitei women as immoral women selling wine amidst ogling men.

If the Meitei get tribal status recognition and Meitei Imas begin to brew and sell wine, will the immoral tag ascribed to the Tribal Nupi be assimilated by them willingly? I believe no woman sell her dignity out of passion, but risk her dignity out of compassion for her family. This perhaps is not understood by our Meitei politicians representing the valley tribals who come only with sugar bags, kerosene and assurances for jobs in defence (police, IRB) for male youths. The politicians have no policy for the valley tribals.

The tribals in the valley are sidelined in the policy for the dominant. Most of the tribal women in the market selling vegetables are from the hills who come down every morning in buses or other form of transportations. Often, the hill tribal women in the market are poor in bargaining/ haggling due to language problem and time constraint.

The dominant language spoken in the Manipur valley being Meiteilon, the tribal women often find ineffective in bargaining. Some places from where the tribal women come have only one bus plying only one trip a day. If they fail to sell their goods brought from the far hills on time they either have to sell at losing price or carry the goods back to their villages thus incurring heavy fare on transportation. These problems are well known to the people in the valley including the tribals and they did exploit the weaknesses of the tribal women in the markets.

What have been the responses of the government to these problems faced by tribal women in the market? Is tribal market at Imphal constructed amidst residential areas far from the business centre of the state or Capital a response to the plight of the tribal women in the market? If the lips profession of chingmi-tammi amatani remains mere lips profession, the desire for separate administration cannot be ruled out. Why cannot the markets in the hills be made more effective with facilities for storage and better transportation? Why are the tribal women forced to come down to valley to do business? Is there governance loopholes? The Ima Market that symbolised women empowerment and political emancipation in the history of Manipur during colonial period has been reduced to nothing less than a symbol of discrimination at the heart of Manipur.

The 2011 census declared Manipur as a total slum-free state, but there are economic-slums in the Capital of Manipur. Many tribal women coming from the hills to sell vegetables are still found near and around Ima Market and near Shamumakhong (elephant statue). Why are these tribal women not in Tribal Market at New Checkon to sell their goods? Do we have an answer from the Government, from those who preach chingmi-tammi amatani, and the tribal politicians? Are separate tribal constituencies the solution to tribals in the valley? Let's think.