Editor,
The Bill, KHADC (Khasi Social Custom of Lineage) ( 2nd Amendment) Bill, 2018 of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council sounds the death knell of the jaitbynriew
Khasi. While the world at large has become a global village, the Khasi race, through the KHADC has retreated into the cave, effectively isolating itself completely. It must be understood that the cave cannot protect the jaitbynriew Khasi, rather they will starve to death inside.
As of now many of the Khasi youths both men and women, are well educated, but hardly find employment in Meghalaya. In order to stave off hunger they have to find employment all over the world for they cannot starve in their own hearth and home. Frankly speaking the Khasi Hills in particular and Meghalaya at large cannot and will not be able to provide jobs for all of them. As such they have to migrate and work all over the world to earn their livelihood. Nobody wants to stay at home and beg. Moreover wherever they work, you cannot expect them to be able to live alone as they need to marry and have a family. Intermarriage is unavoidable in this case.
The action of the KHADC will deprive the Khasi race of its pool of well educated Khasis whose earnings through remittances enhance the income of the Khasi Hills.
A Question may be asked at this point: Can the KHADC provide employment to the majority of Khasis both educated and uneducated? As a matter of fact the KHADC should think twice before passing the Bill. Has the KHADC ever passed a Bill to create employment for Khasis? Has the KHADC ever passed a Bill on the economic policy to enhance the economy of the Khasi Hills? Before passing any Bill on the cultural and social security of the Khasis, first and foremost, it should provide jobs and economic security to the people of Meghalaya, so that they will not migrate and intermarry elsewhere. In this way the KHADC will be able to maintain a pool of pure Khasi blood that is, if there is still any left.
History itself has shown that the then UK & JHADC (United Khasi & Jaiñtia Hills Autonomous District Council) and the now KHADC are failed institutions. The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India has mandated through the word “autonomous” that the Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) may run independently, Primary Schools (in their own mother tongues),Primary Health Centres, Agriculture, Fishery and Veterinary Centres. In the Khasi Hills where are the results now? Nowhere to be seen! Hence no economic and social security for the people; it has failed in every front, failed to bring in sound economic stability for the people of the Khasi Hills. It was the failure of the then UK & JHADC ( United Khasi & Jaiñtia Hills Autonomous Distrct Council) and the KHADC that culminated in the creation of Meghalaya State. Now, even Meghalaya has not been able to bring in and build up the economic stability of the state.
Without economic stability no tribe or community – Khasi, Jaiñtia or Garo can maintain cultural stability. The people will forget culture when there is hunger in their stomachs.
The Bill, KHADC (Khasi Social Custom of Lineage) (2nd Amendment) Bill, 2018 of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council is, therefore, suicidal for the Khasi culture at large unless the KHADC from this moment on, brings in economic recovery so fast that educated Khasi youths need not go looking for work outside the state, prosper well at home and protect the “purity” of the Khasi blood. As of now, in the total absence of economic stability in Meghalaya, this is an appeal to the Governor of Meghalaya not to give his assent to the flawed Bill.
Yours etc.,
Baston S. Lyngdoh,
Via email
KHADC Bill discriminatory!
Editor,
As a concerned citizen of Meghalaya and a daughter of the Indian state, I want to share my voice on this present issue. I am sure the knowledgeable people of the Khasi Hills and the people who know what the Matrilineal system really means, would agree with me. It is unfortunate that the social media sites today are full of posts where Khasi men are verbally abusing Khasi women. How can there be unity in inequality? And despite of all this happening such provocative and vulgar statements are still not considered as cyber crime! This is shocking to say the least. And our culture talks about protecting our women! It is sad that the police are doing nothing to stop all this; no tracking down of those who write disrespectful words and descriptions about their own Khasi women; no ban on the internet? Simply nothing!
Are all those harsh words that these Khasi men are using against their own tribe uplifting for the Khasi society? Or are they dragging it down to the grave? So far there has never been any tribal community whose men would bring down their own folks to such a disgraceful level. This indeed is the raw mentality of the Khasi male. While Khasi women are actually praised by the people around the world and the nation, for their lifestyle and the way they present themselves to the world, here in our own State we are living in fear of our own Khasi leaders who have taken the law in their hands. At the present moment a lot of slander against women is taking place. If this is not gender bias then what is? Where is the gender equality in Khasi society? Is this even a democratic state any longer?
To the statement made by a member of the KHADC that “our legislation is to check those who are exploiting the Scheduled Tribe status for benefits”, let me enlighten you with certain facts which it seems you are not aware of.
There are men from the Khasi tribe who are married to non tribal women. Such women take the Khasi clan of their Khasi husbands as is their custom. This is not done only by the non-tribal wife but also by their offsprings. And surprisingly even after divorce takes place in these intermarriages, the woman and her children still continue to enjoy the Scheduled Tribe benefits as they retain their Khasi clan name. But according to the proposed Bill, a Khasi woman who marries a non-Khasi will be, together with her off springs born out of such marriage, deemed as non-Khasi and shall lose the Khasi status and all the privileges and benefits of a member of the Khasi tribe. The question here is- what about those non-tribal women having Khasi husbands who together with their offsprings are enjoying the Khasi status and the privileges and benefits as members of the Khasi? Has the KHADC not recognised them as members of the Khasi tribe?
In a Patrilineal/Patriarchal society, a woman, after marriage takes the title of her husband. So ours being a Matrilineal society, the KHADC should formulate a Bill where a man, after marriage should take the clan name of his wife. That would be a fair deal instead of bringing up a Bill that invokes gender inequality.
Finally we would like to know if this issue is really a concern relating to Scheduled Tribe status or a diversion from some other major issue?