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Report to ABP of the summer-tour 2001 of the Adivasi-Tee-ProjektB.Ramdas |
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Introduction With the third group of Adivasi people coming from Gudalur to Germany, Germany has become like a second home, a familiar land. Unlike the first two groups which had all men or all women, this group had a mix � five men and three women. They are: [N.N.] � our seniormost nurse at the Gudalur Adivasi hospital, [N.N. and N.N.], both Health Animators working in the villages, [N.N., N.N. and N.N.] all Community Organizers. [The latter] is also a musician and a spiritual leader of this community. This group was accompanied by Rama Sastry and B. Ramdas, both whom work in the Education Programme of ACCORD. 2. Meetings with young people We start the report with this because our interactions with them/ with meeting children in every place was more than fulfilling. We visited schools of various age levels and at no place was the time sufficient. In Lauffen (Neckar) for example, with the Class 10 students we had a two-and-a-half-hour session and both, they and us had questions that remained unasked. It appears to us that children have a lot more questions now than they had previously, or if they had, they were not asked. In the primary schools and the Kindergarden the questions had to do with schools and children back home and of course about animals. However, the elder children asked about living conditions, life-styles, the use and effects of modern technology particularly internet, use of money and what it mean to Adivasis, the impact of HIV/ Aids, equality between sexes and so on. Interestingly in one school, the Adivasi asked the students whether there was equality in their society. To this the girls answered that there was, but the boys did not agree! Also, there was a lot of discussion about development issues. (input: educational work of development issues in Germany) We do not know if it is a new trend, but in all the schools many teachers seem to want to expose children to other cultures. In fact, we have been seriously discussing the possibility of youth exchanges in the future. A group of five 15-year olds from a school [...] are ready to come and we believe this will be the most important step in cementing relationships and having respect and understand each other�s cultures. 3. One world groups and multipliers A number of fruitful exchanges were held with groups of persons who are supportive of �third-world� development efforts, e.g. Third-world-shops� volunteers, development organisations, local action-groups and so on. For these groups what was of particular interest was to know the kind of changes taking place in India in the economic and cultural front, the effect of it on the marginalized groups and how organizations like ACCORD and AMS were coping with such changes. These meetings have been extremely satisfying as one interacted with active supporters. It was truly wonderful to see the time and trouble people took to attend these meetings and spend time with us. As [N.N.] told one of the groups � �We did not know that so many people were with us in our efforts. It gives us a new strength.� However these people will multiply our views and inputs of these meetings. 4. Religious interactions For the Adivasis, the Protestant Church in India stands in an antagonistic position, particularly because of a fear of conversion. Therefore, [...] the church here has been a positive eye-opener. The groups had been invited to services in different parts of Germany. In all these the Adivasis were asked to present their form of worship and to share their values with the congregation. Even their music was played. At the end of all these services, many members of the congregation stayed on to have coffee/ tea and talk to us. After the first service which [N.N.] attended with much attention (?), he said � �This is the first time I have entered a church and I want a photography to take back and show the christians near our village.� The Kirchentag requires special mention because it brought to focus the human being, innerspective (?) of his beliefs and gave him a ecumenical platform. Besides, the religious views presented, which included Hindu view also, the social and economic life of the Adivasi people were also presented. This was very revealing and touched the Adivasis. [N.N.] said that in Koudankolli village in Gudalur, where a number of Adivasis became christians, the other members of the congregation refused to give them a place in the church and so not only a separate church was built, but also a separate cemetery was made! 5. The way we live Visiting people�s homes, living with them, spending time in homes for the aged, for the mentally handicapped, hospitals and such showed us another way of life. The idea of the family was a very, very different, relationship between members of the family was striking as these seems to be a deliberate attempt at creating a space between individuals. Even the old seemed to want to live independently and be self-reliant. This is in complete contrast to Adivasi families. The fact that there were so many single parents and that marriage was unnecessary for long-term relationships was shocking and the Adivasis have been discussing whether such changes would take place in their communities and if so, whether this was good or not. 6. Seeing Germany In spite of all the programme and meetings the groups had time to also see Germany. Besides just strolling around market places and window-shopping we got see the present, past and future. Both the groups visited museums where the past of Germany was preserved. One group went to Detmold to a village museum and the other group to old farmhouses in the Blackforest. This was very impressive. So also was the visit to the Mercedes-Benz museum in Stuttgart. The ZKM (Zentrum für Kunst- und Medientechnologie Karlsruhe) exhibition in Karlsruhe was really high-tech and while they fascinated the group, they understood only some of it. [N.N.] remarked while wondering at one of the exhibits � �It looks like we are illiterate again and the world has gone further from us.� 7. Effects on the group Considering the fact this was the third group coming to Germany and that many of the places and people and the way they live are somewhat familiar, it was still fascinating for the group and this came as a surprise for the two persons who were accompanying the Adivasi group. There were two reasons for this. One important aspect was that most of the members of this group had hardly any exposure, not having travelled at all. Secondly given the Adivasi village and community as their background it is unimaginable that completely different world exists. One sometimes sees such things in movies, but this was the first time they get too see and experience a different life. They were fascinated by the greenery, the way houses are designed according to the traditions, the facilities provided in the houses, the family or the lack of it in some cases, the way people dress of undress. The number and speed of vehicles, the quality of roads, the way (in many places) people have gone to great lengths to preserve their past and the way they take pride in it. 8. It must be put on record that ACCORD and the Adivasi Munnetra Sangam are grateful to ABP for giving an opportunity for a very marginalized community who can hardly travel to the nearest city to fly across to �almost� another world. These visits have had a very positive effect on the community there, particularly that one must preserve one�s cultural roots when one moves on in a modernising dynamic world. It has also helped to understand and respect other cultures and religions even if they are worlds apart and in complete contrast to one�s own. In spite of the fact that one did not like everything one saw, as [N.N.] said in a community meeting in Lauffen (Neckar) � �I did not believe until now that people of so different backgrounds could actually work together. We have been treated as friends, as equals. This is unforgettable.� [This text has been anonymized by Chr.Fels] |
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 Das
Adivasi-Tee-Projekt ist eine AG der Bundes-ESG |
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