Negotiating a dispute in Arunachal Pradesh
The man in the left foreground is one of many Apatanis who have gathered in the Nyishi settlement of Talo to resolve a long-standing dispute between Nyishis and Apatanis. Having made the four-walk from the Apatani valley to Talo, he is now placing a piece of bamboo against a long piece of wood, whic...
| Full title: |
Negotiating a dispute in Arunachal Pradesh [electronic resource]. |
|---|---|
| Format: | Photo |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
[S.l.] :
[s.n.],
1945.
|
| Series: |
SOAS Digital Library.
ASC. REGIONS. FORMATS. PHOTOS. RSEA. FURER. ILOA. |
| Subjects: | |
| Online access: |
Click here to view record |
| Summary: |
The man in the left foreground is one of many Apatanis who have gathered in the Nyishi settlement of Talo to resolve a long-standing dispute between Nyishis and Apatanis. Having made the four-walk from the Apatani valley to Talo, he is now placing a piece of bamboo against a long piece of wood, which was a traditional method of enumerating grievances against enemies. Other pieces are inserted vertically into the ground beside the long piece. Seated behind him are mostly Apatanis (a few Nyishis sit and stand to the right). Among the Apatanis, in the centre, smoking a pipe, wrapped in a shawl and looking down, is Padi Lalyang, a rich and influential man of Reru village. Christoph von Furer-Haimendorf, who came here to oversee the negotiations, was only able to witness long speeches: 'The Daflas [Nyishis] seem to love arguing, and with men of so many villages assembled, there are everywhere mel [negotiations] and councils, with larger and smaller groups gathered around a claimant placing stick after stick on the ground and explaining in an endless flow of words exactly how many mithan, maje [bell], cloths and dao [machete] his opponent owes him. Usually the defendant waits quietly and when the accuser has at last finished, takes up tally sticks himself and proves not less eloquently that all the claims put forward are more than outweighed by outstanding claims from his father's or grandfather's time against the family of the claimant.' These negotiations between Nyishis and Apatanis seemed close to resolution when the Apatanis reduced their demands by three quarters, asking for the return only of bells and brass plates recently paid as ransom, as well as 36 mithuns. The Nyishis agreed but offered only 17 mithuns, and the ten days of talk ended in stalemate. |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
[S.l.] :
[s.n.],
1945.
|
| Subjects: | |
| Series: |
SOAS Digital Library.
ASC. REGIONS. FORMATS. PHOTOS. RSEA. FURER. ILOA. |
| Access: |
© 1945, The Estate of Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf. The Estate is currently (2015) represented by Nicholas Haimendorf, son of Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf. ----- Creative Commons (by-nc-nd). -- This image may be used in accord with Creative Commons license Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs. |
| Place of Publication: |
India -- Arunachal Pradesh -- Lower Subansiri District. |