! Challenges of Aging and Coping Mecha- nisms among the Khasi and Garo Tribal Groups: An Ethnographic Observation Faisal Ahmmed Shahjalal University of Science & Technology Drawing upon qualitative evidence from the Khasi and Garo communities of Bangladesh, the pre- sent study focuses on the problems of older people of these tribal groups and identify and explain some of the coping mechanisms used by the elders. Findings indicate that high status and support is extended to elders by family and community as part of tribal tradition and culture. Nonetheless, these elders still face problems that are largely a function of their age and economic and social cir- cumstances. Lack of access to mainstream services is one of the major concerns among the older Khasi and Garo people. In addition with problems related to aging, the tribal older people experi- ence negligence, exclusion, and the violation of rights. Although the tribal older people have their own system to encounter problems, they are sensitive to the fact that their community does not al- ways have the financial capacity to provide the required support. Old age is a critical phase of life. There is a tendency among researchers to view all older peoples as a homogenous group and for which age is a leveler of all other characteristics. Along with age, however, other factors including sex, soci- oeconomic background, family relationship and support, living situation, physi- cal condition, cultural practices, and more can influence how a person will enjoy later life (Gelfand, 1982). This is particularly true if the older person is a member of a visible minority group, and particularly so in the case of non-conventional minorities such as tribal and indigenous peoples whose cultures tend to be treat- ed as quaint and ancient (Manuel, 1982). Moody (1998) provides a ranking of the least advantaged elderly groups according to their vulnerability in which he puts tribal elderly on the top of the list. He documented the problems of tribal elderly as of an ‘exclusive nature’ in which they are usually excluded from all development or welfare programs initiated by the governments. This reality is now accepted by researchers and policy makers in developed countries and has bought to light the importance of aging issues in ethnic minorities. However, the topic has not yet entered the mainstream of Bangladesh scholarship and remains as a relatively new phenomenon. Given such a vacuum in sociological infor- Journal of International Social Issues (September 2012) Volume 1 Number 1 Page 23-38 24 Journal of International Social Issues mation, the present study identifies the problems of the ethnic or tribal elder peoples of Bangladesh. The approach systematically explores the indigenous care systems; its values, traditions, and customs toward older people that en- counter the complicacies by their own. To achieve these objectives, the current research covered and intensively studied two of tribal communities in Bangla- desh, namely the Khasi and the Garo. Methods The research design of this study followed the guidelines of ethnographic re- search. Qualitative research method was used to analyze subjective interpreta- tions of the participants, explore the impact of cultural difference on old age, and know the social positions of older people in their selected tribal communities. These techniques help to provide insights and enhance understanding about the experiences of the elderly tribal population. This research made use of translit- erations of oral responses to questions posed by researcher during conversations and discussions. Researcher actively participated in the social settings and used in-depth interviewing and observations over a long period in the formal and informal group discussions that were used in gathering empirical data and in- formation. Brief Profile of the Tribal Communities Studied Bangladesh is a country with a rich cultural heritage and a land of variety. It is not only the Bengalis (mainstream people) who have contributed to this culture, but also the tribal communities of the country who are distinctly different from the mainstream Bengali population in culture, religion, tradition, customs, ethnic origin, and more. More than 45 tribal communities are living in different parts of Bangladesh. Currently, the total number of tribal people of the country is about 2.5 million. Of the tribal groups, 12 are concentrated in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region and 33 groups live in plain lands scattered throughout the country (Mankhin, 2003). The Khasi and the Garo communities are plain land indigenous groups living in Sylhet and Mymensingh region of Bangladesh from time immemorial. An orientation on those two communities is given below. The Khasis. Khasis are connected with people who inhabited the Molay Peninsula and Chota Nagpur at the time of the stone-age (Gurdon, 1996). Gurdon (1996) also opined that the Khasis were the race of the ‘Mons’ who migrated from Chi- na and their origin were in Burma or they were one of the races of “Turanian origin.” A theory describes that the Khasis are the aboriginal inhabitants of the Khasi- Jaintia Hills (Bhattacharjee, 1984). They traveled westward migration through the Patkai route and finally encroached upon the Khasi-Jaintia Hills (Bhattacharjee, 1984). Jaintiapur, the capital of Khasi-Jaintia kingdom’s capital was geographically located inside the Sylhet Division of Bangladesh. The dura- tion of Jaintia Kingdom was from 1500 to 1835 A.D. This kingdom was spread over the areas of Jaintiapur, Gowainghat, Kanaighat, part of Companygonj of Sylhet District and Gova, and Dimarua regions of Naogon District of Assam in Aging and Coping Mechanisms 25 India (Rahman, 2004). Currently, Jaintiapur is one of the Thana (smallest ad- ministrative unit under the district administration) headquarters of Sylhet Dis- trict where a few archaeological sites of their kingdom remain uncared for. Some Khasi people are still living in the District. The largest settlements of the Khasi people live in Kulaura, Borolekha, Juri, Kamalgonj, and Sreemangal Thanas of Moulvibazar District. Almost all of these Khasi people are concentrated in deep remote hilly forest zones. It is said that there will be about 90 Khasi villages throughout the whole area where they are currently living (Rahman, 2004). The total number of the Khasi people is estimated at twenty-thousand. Similar to other tribal people in Bangladesh, the Khasis have laws, traditions and customs of their own which are distinct in character (Ahmmed, 2010). However, they have many similarities with the customs of the Garo tribes. The mothers’ kinship is dominant among them. Although women hold the family property, they have no voice in public affairs outside the home. Any social judicial or political issues are operated by the males. The supreme God based traditional religion of the Khasis, “Ka Naim”, underwent a dramatic change when the Jaintia king sud- denly reformed to Hinduism (Dutta, 1982). After the intervention of the British, their religion came under threat again. Although some modern Khasis persist in claiming themselves as Hindus, their religious, cultures, and norms are not en- tirely similar with the mainstream Hindus of Bangladesh (Ahmmed, 2010). Cur- rently most Khasis are Catholic and a smaller number are Protestants. The Garos. The Garos originate from the Bodo family of Tibeto-Burman and have close racial relationship with the majority of the Tibeto-Burman tribes. The origin of the name ‘Garo’ has been the subject of inference. Though the words ‘Garo’ and ‘Garo hills’ are commonly used both officially and unofficially, there is no word ‘Garo’ in Garo language (Sangma, 1993). Sangma (1993), a member of the community, confirmed that the people themselves never use the word and it contains no meaning in their language. People introduce themselves as ‘A chik’ or ‘Achik Manderany’ which means hill man. Ethnologists have speculated that the origin of the word ‘Garo’ was derived from the migration history and living places of the tribe. However, this idea was recognized as being based on supposi- tion. One mythical story describes how one of the early Garo chiefs named ‘Garu Mandi’ eventually introduced the tribe and the place where they lived by his own name (Playfair, 1909). The ancestors of Garos inhabited a province of Tibet that drifted into Eastern India and Burma. The time of their migration is still unknown in the historical field. From many records of different ethnologists, the Garos first occupied the plain of Assam to the north and the plains of Bang- ladesh to the south of Garos hills, roughly during the same period (Sangma, 1993). Currently, the Garos are concentrated in nine administrative districts in Bangladesh that include Mymensingh, Netrokona, Sherpur, Tangail, Gazipur, Rangpur, Sylhet, Sunamganj, and Moulovibazer (Chakma, 2003). According to Bangladesh Census Report 64,208 Garo people are living throughout the coun- try. These statistics are not accepted by the Garos and different development agencies. They believe the number of the total Garo population is more than one hundred thousand (Mankhin, 2003; Pervin, 2002). The Garo society is mat- rilineal. Children adopt the clan of their mother. The mother is the custodian of 26 Journal of International Social Issues family rites and property. After marriage, the elder sisters generally makes a sep- arate family with their respective husbands, but the youngest sisters commonly stay in their parents’ residence along with her husband (Barch, 1974). The hus- band is called a Nokkrom who is living in his father-in-law’s house as husband of heiress. He is placed next to his father in-law whose place he takes after the death of father-in law (Sangma, 1984). The property inheritance law that affects the Garos accepts the cultural tradition that property rights belong to the women and are passed from mother to daughters. If sons acquire property by their own labor, they are the sole owner of that property.