Development and Culture Oxfam GB and World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD)
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Development and Culture Oxfam GB and World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD) Oxfam GB, founded in 1942, is a development, relief, and campaigning agency dedicated to finding lasting solutions to poverty and suffering around the world. Oxfam believes that every human being is entitled to a life of dignity and opportunity, and it works with others worldwide to make this become a reality. From its base in Oxford, England, Oxfam GB publishes and distributes a wide range of books and other resource materials for development and relief workers, researchers and campaigners, schools and colleges, and the general public, as part of its programme of advocacy, education, and communications. Oxfam GB is a member of Oxfam International, a confederation of 12 agencies of diverse cultures and languages, which share a commitment to working for an end to injustice and poverty - both in long-term development work and at times of crisis. For further information about Oxfam's publishing, and online ordering, visit www.oxfam.org.uk/publications For further information about Oxfam's development and humanitarian relief work around the world, visit www.oxfam.org.uk WFDD is an autonomous, non-profit institution whose patrons represent the world's major religions and development organisations. Now under the leadership of Professor Michael Taylor, formerly Director of Christian Aid, WFDD's mission is to reduce poverty, enhance the quality and impact of development policies and programmes, and help to build social cohesion. It seeks to catalyse the engagement of the world's faiths in the development process by supporting joint efforts of faith and development institutions to advance the cause of poverty reduction and by supporting country-level interfaith groups which reflect the interests of poor communities in the local development debate. WFDD seeks also to provide intellectual leadership through promoting research, debate, and communication on faith and development issues. Its publications, newsletters, and general information are available on www.wfdd.org.uk Development and Culture Selected essays from Development in Practice Introduced by Thierry Verhelst with Wendy Tyndale A Development in Practice Reader Series Editor Deborah Eade o Oxfam Oxfam GB in association with World Faiths Development Dialogue First published by Oxfam GB in association with World Faiths Development Dialogue in 2002 © Oxfam GB 2002 ISBN o 85598 472 4 A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library. All rights reserved. Reproduction, copy, transmission, or translation of any part of this publication may be made only under the following conditions: With the prior written permission of the publisher; or With a licence from the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd., 90 Tottenham Court Road, London WiP 9HE, UK, or from another national licensing agency; or • For quotation in a review of the work; or Under the terms set out below. This publication is copyright, but may be reproduced by any method without fee for teaching purposes, but not for resale. Formal permission is required for all such uses, but normally will be granted immediately. For copying in any other circumstances, or for re-use in other publications, or for translation or adaptation, prior written permission must be obtained from the publisher, and a fee may be payable. Available from Bournemouth English Book Centre, PO Box 1496, Parkstone, Dorset, BH123YD, UK tel: +44 (0)1202 712933; fax: +44 (0)1202 712930; email: [email protected] and from the following agents: USA: Stylus Publishing LLC, PO Box 605, Herndon, VA 20172-0605, USA tel: +1 (0)703 6611581; fax: +1 (0)703 6611547; email: [email protected] Southern Africa: David Philip Publishers, PO Box 23408, Claremont 7735, South Africa tel: +27 (0)21 674 4136; fax: +27 (0)21 674 3358; email: [email protected] For details of local agents and representatives in other countries, consult our website: http://www.oxfam.org.uk/publications.htinl or contact Oxfam Publishing, 274 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 7DZ, UK tel. +44 (0)1865 311 311; fa* +44 (0)1865 312 600; email [email protected] The views expressed in this volume are those of the individual contributors, and not necessarily those of the editor or publisher. The editor and management committee of Development in Practice acknowledge the support given to the journal by affiliates of Oxfam International and by its publisher, Carfax Publishing, Taylor & Francis Ltd. Printed by Information Press, Eynsham Oxfam GB is a registered charity, no. 202 918, and is a member of Oxfam International. This book converted to digital file in 2010 Contents Contributors vii Preface ix Deborah Eade Cultures, spirituality, and development i Thierry Verhelst with Wendy Tyndale Culture, liberation, and 'development' 25 Shubi L. Ishemo Globalism and nationalism: which one is bad? 38 Sinisa Malesevic Faith and economics in 'development': a bridge across the chasm? 45 Wendy Tyndale Spirituality: a development taboo 60 Kurt Alan Ver Beek Communal conflict, NGOs, and the power of religious symbols 78 Joseph G. Bock Ethnicity and participatory development methods in Botswana: some participants are to be seen and not heard 92 Tlamelo O. Mompati and Gerard Prinsen Women, resistance, and development: a case study from Dangs, India no Shiney Varghese Gendering the millennium: globalising women 130 HalehAfshar Stressed, depressed, or bewitched? A perspective on mental health, culture, and religion 142 Vikram Patel,Jane Mutambirwa, and Sekai Nhiwatiwa Responding to mental distress in the Third World: cultural imperialism or the struggle for synthesis? 155 Jane Gilbert Research into local culture: implications for participatory development 168 Odhiambo Anadeti Some thoughts on gender and culture 174 Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay Resources 177 Books 177 Journals 188 Organisations 189 Addresses of publishers 192 Index 194 vi Development and Culture Contributors Professor Haleh Afshar teaches politics and women's studies at the University of York and has written widely on subjects relating to feminism, Islam, and development. Odhiambo Anacleti worked until his retirement for Oxfam GB, before which he was based in the government of Tanzania. Joseph G. Bock is Deputy Executive Director of the American Refugee Committee and previously worked for Catholic Relief Services in Pakistan. Jane Gilbert is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist working in the Department of Psychological Services and Research at Dumfries in Scotland. Shubi L. Ishemo is a Tanzanian historian teaching at Trinity and All Saints, University of Leeds, England. Sinisa Malesevic is a Lecturer in the Department of Political Science and Sociology at University College in Galway, where he co-ordinates the Economic and Cultural Studies Programme. He was previously research fellow at the Institute for Development and International Relations in Zagreb and at the Centre for the Study of Nationalism of the Central European University in Prague. Tlamelo O. Mompati lectures at the University of Botswana in the Department of Social Work. Dr Jane Mutambirwa is a Senior Lecturer in Medical Anthropology and Behavioural Sciences in the University of Zimbabwe Medical School. Dr Sekai Nhiwatiwa was at the time of writing a trainee psychiatrist in the University of Zimbabwe Medical School, prior to which she worked in mental health in Zimbabwe, Nigeria, the UK, and USA. Dr Vikram Patel is a psychiatrist who was at the time of writing a Beit Research Fellow at the Institute of Psychiatry (UK) and a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe Medical School. Gerard Prinsen was at the time of writing Training Coordinator for Extension Workers in the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning in Botswana. Wendy Tyndale is the Co-ordinator for the Faiths of the World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD) and was previously head of Christian Aid's Latin America and Caribbean Department. Kurt Alan Ver Beek is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Calvin College and also Director of Programmes in Honduras. Shiney Varghese studied at the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague and the Institute of Rural Management, Anand, India, and has worked for several development NGOs, focusing on gender issues. Thierry G. Verhelst co-ordinates research at the Brussels-based South-North Network on Cultures and Development, and is editor of the journal Cultures and Development. He has worked extensively in the South, both with the Belgian development agency Broederlijk Delen and as a writer. He is the author of many works on the intersections between culture, spirituality, and development; his book, No Life Without Roots (1990), originally published in French, has been translated into several languages and is regarded as a classic in its field. viii Development and Culture Preface Deborah Eade The word 'development' entered the lexicon of international relations in 1949, just before the process of decolonisation began in earnest, and at a time when much of Latin America, which had recovered its formal independence some generations before, was undergoing rapid industrialisation and export-led economic growth. Development was then, and continues to be, widely perceived as synonymous with Western-style modernisation. Under-development, within this world- view, is thus the widespread poverty that characterises the (mostly agriculture-based) economies of the South; hence the development process is perceived as one of 'catching up' with the industrialised economies of the North. This is a highly caricatured account,