By Phrangsngi Pyrtuh
At the outset I would like to emphasize that the matrilineal system in Meghalaya and its highly structured nuances must be dissected not only by scholars and academicians but by every right thinking person concerned with where we are heading. The system which for a long time has been lavishly praised by outsiders and worshipped by our academicians and policy makers, for the “prestigious” role and status accorded to the Meghalaya women is now under scrutiny. It remained unquestioned until recently but even these discourses are confined to mere backroom discussions and media appearances through articles and the occasional reports on seminars and conferences. At the policy level, though, we have not moved an inch. I once had a tete-a- tete with Prof Tiplut Nongbri of JNU who remarked that the matrilineal system here is but a veiled artefact of patriarchy. And this is none as truthful when we look at the hierarchical structure of not only the Khasi social structure but also its religion, Christian and non-christian alike. It is particularly unfortunate that Christianity, the self proclaimed enlightened and liberal faith in our state, is no different from others when it comes to administrative and decision making functions vis-à-vis women.
The status of the Khasi woman is only slightly better than that of their female counterparts elsewhere since the latter are much more discriminated no matter which religion, class or caste they belong to. The Hindu religion places them at the bottom of the social ladder as is the case with Islam. They have no right to assert their place in the society. A woman wanting to assert her basic rights such as the right to education, for instance, is simply ostracized or worse, killed. It is getting even worse for women who are caught in between conflict zones. Women and young girls whatever their religion in ISIS controlled regions have been humiliated to the point that they have become sex slaves. Then we have the sad case of the 250 odd Nigerian schools girls who were abducted by the Nigerian armed group Boko Haram in April 2014. Conflicting stories emerged over the kidnapping but by and large their whereabouts is still unknown. These and many other stories of human depravity by groups of extremist in the name of religion (and God) through reinterpretation of sacred texts and moral precepts have given the concerned religion a bad name.
Religion has always been used by a dominant group to propagate a particular line of political thought and practices which spill over to the social arena. In the name of religion (Christianity, Islam, Hinduism etc) governments and administrative machinery were formed in the past such as the Holy Roman Empire and Islamic countries and continue to do so. I still fail to understand why we need to brand Meghalaya as a Christian state just because the sizeable majority of the population are Christians. Why not Meghalaya as a secular state? A religion-backed state machinery has for a long time struck terror not only on its own citizens but transported the same abroad as well. In fact there is no equivalence when it comes to organized terror if it is patronized by the state itself; the only difference in this case is that we are led to believe that it is the only legitimate and rational thing to do. We are all complicit in this unholy state-sponsored terror. Following 9/11 no one really questioned America and its allies for invading Afghanistan and then Iraq which has led to uncounted deaths on the civilian front. Closer home the UPA government which launched the Salwa Judum to legitimize the killing of tribals during the Green Hunt operation in Chattisgarh is one such instance of state- backed violence in the name of containing militancy. Anyone pointing fingers is incarcerated ( Dr Binayak Sen is an example). On the other hand in the name of controlling terrorism the Indian state has resorted to religious profiling of a particular religion which continues till date. There is a highly endorsed but undercurrent Islamophobia running across the country and this is not new. It is easy to paint with the same brush without arriving at a more objective and comparative understanding of the issue at hand. If not for scholars, academicians, journalists and media this endorsement would have manifested covertly into a full out war. Is Islamophobia real? Of course it is.
Being a Christian I cannot do much when my own church leaders try to tread the distinguishing line between Islam as a faith of the Moslems and those of ISIS/Boko Haram/Al Qaida during Sunday sermons. What was supposed to remind the Christian faithful of the values of patience and tolerance turns out to be a rant, albeit in a subtle form, by highlighting the atrocities of the aforementioned extremist elements and ascribing the same as a being endorsed by Islam. Moreover, I have not heard of a sermon where some of the progressive movements and practices of other religions were appreciated or complimented, at least within the church premises. More often than not Christian leaders like to hoot their own horns for the things that the Church is doing and is planning to do for the welfare of the society etc. But yes there are other religions also embarking on humanitarian and charitable exercises. Unfortunately this line of thought is here to stay, all because we are led to believe that we are a Christian state and therefore have a premium on charitable works.
We often forget that the Ramakrishna Mission has been quietly providing school education in Meghalaya for decades and they also have an outlet in Shillong for providing computer and other skills education. And the Ramakrishna Mission is not known to proselytize as most other religions are prone to do. Perhaps there is need to discuss these issues more openly and not just whisper about them because in a democracy there should be no sacred cows.