Editor,
The news item, “Polygyny rate highest in Meghalaya: Report,” which was featured in the 21st July edition of The Shillong Times made me contemplate and analyze the truth behind this alarming information. Yes, we understand that the report was prepared by the reputed and deemed to be University, International Institute of Population Studies (IIPS) ,Mumbai which is an Autonomous Organization under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. However, after carefully going through the report, one finds a few statements that are misleading and also the usage of a technical concept like Polygyny to brand the State of Meghalaya must be based on more robust research.
The first line of the report states – “Contrary to popular belief, Christians as a religious group are more polygamous than Muslims or Hindus and matrilineal Meghalaya has an extreme rate of polygamy, more than any other part of the country” which is an overrated statement. Meghalaya is comprised of not only Christian population whereas the data has shown a comparison of only 3 religious communities. Whether other indigenous faith of these communities were also taken into consideration in the study? Religion cannot be the only yardstick on the basis of which such conclusions can be drawn. Whether the study was carried out with proper scaling techniques and what were the parameters used while conducting the research that have resulted in such statistics and data ?
Secondly, it has been mentioned that the report was based on “statements of married women who stated that their husbands had other wives besides themselves.” Can statistical data be based on such subjective analysis of a few married women and conclusions drawn? The third point which is quite perplexing is the usage of the term Polygyny . While the definition of Polygyny is correctly given in the report, however in the last few lines it says- “ The study indicates that polygynous marriages are more prevalent among women”. It is not women who are polygynous but the men of this society. Hence I think there’s a slight confusion with the usage of very term Polygyny which is both misleading and confusing. Polyandry is the term used for a woman who marries more than one man at the same time.
Whether or not Matriliny is a factor for polygynous marriage is not a proven fact although anthropologists have noted that matrilineal systems do create ‘conflicting allegiances’ within the household due to the residence pattern which is ‘matrilocal’ where women and children are subsumed within the kin group of their maternal kins and the male spouses have little to say in family decisions of his wife’s family. This could be one reason as to why there is a high incidence of female-headed households in Meghalaya leading to feminization of poverty where helpless women especially in the rural areas look for a supporter and provider to her family – but many a time this does not happen through a proper marriage ceremony. The man and woman cohabit or live together. It is here that one has to be careful in using the term ‘polygyny’ which is a preferential type of marriage and does not mean the same as ‘co-habitation’ where a man may have abandoned his wife and goes to live with another woman but not through a formal marriage ceremony and legitimate recognition of both the parties.
For example among Khasis, men have often been referred to as ‘U rang-khatar-lama’ which means ‘men have the strength of twelve flags’ but this does not entail them to have as many wives as they wish. In fact, marriage is a sacred union that takes place through mutual recognition of both the clans of the man and woman before they enter into a marital union (poi-kha–poi man). So the conclusion drawn by the report should have referred to the fact that it is not polygyny but the number of cases where the union between one man with many women has increased .
However, on the whole, the data and information by the International Institute of Population Studies is commendable and is an eye-opener especially for research scholars and academicians who wish to study the changes and transformations taking place in matrilineal societies .
Yours etc.,
Prof. R.M Shangpliang
NEHU, Shillong
Manipur violence a disgrace
Editor,
The time has come when we can no longer afford to indulge in communal violence. The time has come for us to hang our heads in shame. What is happening in Manipur is a blot on our patriotism. No amount of quibbling, finding fault with each other can save us from the ignominy of having to face a situation in which citizens of Manipur where more than 160 people have lost their lives, several have been injured, two women being paraded naked and sexually assaulted. I feel emotionally and mentally upset by reading such horrendous news, knowing this is the story of every woman in India irrespective of religion, age, and complexion. It is an indication of the magnitude of corrosion of our political life that the guardian of law and order should themselves be ashamed of. It is a measure of the bankruptcy of our political life today that no political party has cared to go and camp in Manipur.
Our value system has been shattered, and it is time we thought of a genuine cultural revolution to fight against communalism in all its manifestations.
Yours etc.,
Dr Omarlin Kyndiah
Via email
Men and cultural attire
Editor,
Apropos of the recent commemoration of U Tirot Sing’s death anniversay it was a sombre yet memorable moment for our generation to remember the sacrifice of our freedom fighters. However, what was observed was the cultural imbalance in that the men present were all dressed up in suits with a jaiñspong a traditional Khasi turban on their heads. What is intriguing is the hypocrisy of men dressed up in western attire while in every other event, women are expected to come in their traditional wear which exposes the hypocrisy of our society where the rules are different for both genders. The uniformity of dress code would have been better if both adhered to their respective traditional attires. When will we ever have a balanced approach as far us our cultural attire is concerned. Or will it ever happen?
Yours etc.,
Monalisa Wankhar
Via emai