DOCSLIB.ORG

Mils Hills Phd Thesis

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

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odes of Association and Differentiation in Mauritius: An Account of Identity in a Situation of Socio-Cultural Heterogeneity. Mils Hills Department of Social Anthropology University of St Andrews Scotland. Supervisor: Professsor Nigel Rapport I, Mils Hills, hereby certify that this thesis, which is approximately 107,000 words in length, has been written by me, that it is the record of work carried out by me and that it has not been submitted in any previous application for a hig~ degree. date 10th of January 1999 signature of candidate I was admitted as a research student in October 1995 and as a candidate for the degree of Ph.D. in Social Anthropology; the higher study of which this is a record was carried out in the University of st. Andrews between October 1995 and August 199& - date 10th of January 1999 signature of candidate I hereby certify that the candidate has fulfilled the conditions of the Resolution and Regulations appropriate for the degree of .................... in the University of st. Andrews and that the candidate is qualified to submit this thesis in application for that degree. date .................... SIgnature. 0 f supervIsor. ..................................................... In submitting this thesis to the University of st. Andrews I understand that I am giving permission for it to be made available for use in accordance with the regUlations of the University Library for the time being in force, subject to any copyright vested in the work not being affected thereby. I also understand that the title and abstract will be published, and that a copy of the work may be made and supplied to any bona fide library or research worker. date 10th of January t 999 signature of candidate l.. : • Table of Contents Abstract 1 Acknowledgements 2 Preface 6 Introduction: necessary locations 14 Part 1: Locating Mauritius - '1a nation arc-en-cie/ 15 Evoking the Image 1 7 History 18 Population, Density, Climate and Life 19 The Economic Situation 23 The Political Situation 24 Languages 28 Ethnographic Residence 31 Part 2: Locating the Author 38 Traveller, Guest, Stranger, Note-Taker 43 Shedding The Researcher's Skin? 44 Entering, Noting and Writing the Field 47 Questions 48 Drinking (in) Identity 50 Vignette 52 A Diversity of Approaches to Best Present Diversities of World Views 55 'Revelatory incidents': The Special ness of the Anthropological Viewpoint 55 Aims 61 Chapter 1: Mauritius: Unity, Diversity, Division - From Sociological Categorisation to Governmental Ideology 64 Part 1: The Sociological Divisions of Mauritius 65 Section One - non-Mauritian academics 66 JF Meade ct al.. 67 Burton Benedict 68 Oddvar Hollup 71 Thomas Hylland Eriksen 72 Overview of Section One 82 Section Two - Mauritian ethnographies 83 Benjamin Moutou 83 Pavi Ramhota 85 Dr. A Cader Raman 86 A Devi Nirsimloo-Anenden 87 National Seminar on the Language Issue - 1982. 88 NJRoy 89 Overview of Section Two 91 Part 2: Governmentality and Division in Mauritius: enacting sociological categorisation 92 'Unity in Diversity' 96 Statistics Creating Division 98 The Multiculturalist Thesis of 'Unity in Diversity' (and its critics) 101 Reprise: 'Unity in Diversity', Social AnthropolO$y and this Thesis 108 The Alternative view: 'Dilo trankil pena fonder' 113 Chapter 2: Individual Expressions of Identity 115 Introduction: Individuals as social dummies? 116 Individual 1: Dev 118 Individual 2: Mrs. Shanti. 132 Individual 3: Mrs. Bogum. 124 Individual 4: Roshun 126 Individual 5: Huri. 129 Discussion 131 Ethnicity and Identity 132 Loops and Strips of Identity 134 Chapter 3: Individual Mauritian Discourses of Categorisation and Division 137 Division 1: Hindu Mauritians v. Hindu Indians 139 Division 2. Mauritians v. Reunionnais and Franco-Mauritians 141 Division 3. Hindus and Muslims 144 Division 4: Creole v. Franco-Mauritians and the Government 151 Commentary 154 From Difference to Similarity 156 Ethnographic Instance 1 - racism as a desirable attribute 156 EthnO$raphic Instance 2: preserving cultural heritage and racism manifested 159 Commentary 160 Chapter Conclusion 161 Chapter 4 Politics, Strategy, Support, Absence and Critique: The Pragmatic and Situational Deployment of Ethnicity and Caste 164 Preamble: Proverbial Ethnicity 166 Instance 1: The strategic employment of ethnicity and caste 168 Instance 2: The strategic employment of ethnic and non-ethnic support 170 Instance 3: secular techniques employed to resolve a work-place problem 172 Instance 4: Individual ethnicity as less important than personal qualities. 175 Instance 5: where ethnicity has no role 178 Instance 6: Caste in Marriage and Politics 1 79 (a) Lower caste marriage into a Brahmin (higher caste) family 180 (b) Politics 182 Commentary 185 Chapter Conclusion 189 Chapter 5 Transenn tou bann divisyon: Transcending all those divisions 190 A Definition of Terms: 190 EthnO$raphic Moment 1: The Typing Pool 191 Ethnographic Moment 2. Jerome. 194 Ethnographic Moment 3: Cavadee 199 Ethnographic Moment 4: Maha Shivaratree 205 Ethnographic Moment 5: A Village fishing Competition 209 Part 2: Unifying and Shared Moments and Practices. 21 3 Daivanaden's neighbourhood 213 1. Hosts and Guests. 220 2. oro Morisyen Twa?' - Individual Attempts at Being 'Mauritian'. 222 3. 'We all came from ... somewhere else ... to this beautiful island' 225 4. Food 226 5. Fasting 229 6. The Sega: amizc7 bizin sant sante7 danse7 amizc7 sant sante7 danse 230 7. Disinterest as a Strategy of Conflict Avoidance 232 Chapter Conclusions: from Banal Unities to Creolization and Back To 'Unity in Diversity'. 234 Chapter 6: Conclusion 240 Overview 241 Intersubjectivity, Transcendence and Creolization 242 1. Intersubjectivity 244 2. Transcendence 244 3. Creolization 245 Unity in Diversity and Paradise 246 Thesis Politics 250 Multiculturalism and Plural Society 250 Bibliography 253 Appendix 261 Abstract hiS Thesis details the anthropological investigation of socio-cultural heterogeneity in Mauritius, a small island republic in the Indian Ocean. I Tintroduce the island, its population, climate and other salient features in the Introduction, where I also reveal something of the author's intentions, interests and ideology. Although Mauritius has been relatively infrequently written about by anthropologists or other social scientists, when Mauritian social diversity has been discussed it has been conducted on the presumption that difference is synonymous with division. Consequently, in Chapter 1, I develop a critique of this assumption, which has found its way into the texts and discourses of both sociologists and state bureaucrats. I collapse these two categories' products into one, by drawing upon Foucault's notion of 'governmentality', and critique widespread views of Multiculturalism as being founded on the alleged coevalness of difference and division. I also introduce my three main analytical tools: intersubjectivity, transcendence and creolization. Chapter 2 portrays individuals' identity, agreemg that at times those Mauritians that I met did draw divisions between one another, but that this was far from predictable, nor universally practised. Chapter 3 continues this project, by focusing on specific forms of the expression of division, but again I highlight the unanticipated nature of division and difference. Chapter 4 further clouds the picture by noting that even where individuals might be thought to be unproblematically employing ethnic - or caste - based strategies in, for example, the workplace, the use of such tools was again unforseeable, and not always successful. Even where they were successful in securing advantage, there are wider costs not previously noted in the ethnographic record. Chapter 5 is the culmination of my argument. Through a fine-grained portrayal of a number of ethnographic moments, I point up the unifying and shared practices which have hitherto been excerpted from ethnographic accounts of Mauritius (or other 'plural' societies). These unifying features are as relevant to my understanding of Mauritian society as divisions, I claim, and I reflect on the contrast between 'banal' unities and governmental notions of Multiculturalism. The Conclusion draws together the threads of the Thesis and charts where it fits in terms of wider anthropological and political trends. 1 Acknowledgements I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone I met in Mauritius and make special acknowledgements to those without whom both this work and the multitude of experiences comprising my year in Mauritius and the ensuing writing would have been impossible. Here is as comprehensive as possible a list of Thanks and Dedication. To all those Mauritians I met and helped me that I have omitted to mention below: I've given you all the little, that I've to give; You've given me all, that for me is all there is; So now I just give back what you have given - If there is anything to give in this. - Dedication in Woolf: 1975. We must always aim at the bull's eye - although we know that we will not always hit it. - Goethe.
Recommended publications
  • 2018 Global Go to Think Tank Index Report1

    2018 Global Go to Think Tank Index Report1

    University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons TTCSP Global Go To Think aT nk Index Reports Think aT nks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) 1-2019 2018 Global Go To Think aT nk Index Report James G. McGann University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/think_tanks Part of the International and Area Studies Commons McGann, James G., "2018 Global Go To Think aT nk Index Report" (2019). TTCSP Global Go To Think Tank Index Reports. 16. https://repository.upenn.edu/think_tanks/16 2019 Copyright: All rights reserved. No part of this report may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the University of Pennsylvania, Think aT nks and Civil Societies Program. All requests, questions and comments should be sent to: James G. McGann, Ph.D. Senior Lecturer, International Studies Director, Think aT nks and Civil Societies Program The Lauder Institute University of Pennsylvania Email: [email protected] This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/think_tanks/16 For more information, please contact [email protected]. 2018 Global Go To Think aT nk Index Report Abstract The Thinka T nks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) of the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania conducts research on the role policy institutes play in governments and civil societies around the world. Often referred to as the “think tanks’ think tank,” TTCSP examines the evolving role and character of public policy research organizations.
  • Hinduism Around the World

    Hinduism Around the World

    Hinduism Around the World Numbering approximately 1 billion in global followers, Hinduism is the third-largest religion in the world. Though more than 90 percent of Hindus live on the Indian subcontinent (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bhutan), the Hindu diaspora’s impact can still be felt today. Hindus live on every continent, and there are three Hindu majority countries in the world: India, Nepal, and Mauritius. Hindu Diaspora Over Centuries Hinduism began in the Indian subcontinent and gradually spread east to what is now contemporary Southeast Asia. Ancient Hindu cultures thrived as far as Cambodia, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia. Some of the architectural works (including the famous Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia) still remain as vestiges of Hindu contact. Hinduism in Southeast Asia co-worshipped with Buddhism for centuries. However, over time, Buddhism (and later Islam in countries such as Indonesia) gradually grew more prominent. By the 10th century, the practice of Hinduism in the region had waned, though its influence continued to be strong. To date, Southeast Asia has the two highest populations of native, non-Indic Hindus: the Balinese Hindus of Indonesia and the Cham people of Vietnam. The next major migration took place during the Colonial Period, when Hindus were often taken as indentured laborers to British and Dutch colonies. As a result, Hinduism spread to the West Indies, Fiji, Copyright 2014 Hindu American Foundation Malaysia, Mauritius, and South Africa, where Hindus had to adjust to local ways of life. Though the Hindu populations in many of these places declined over time, countries such as Guyana, Mauritius, and Trinidad & Tobago, still have significant Hindu populations.
  • Social, Formal, and Political Determinants of Trade Under Weak Rule of Law: Experimental Evidence from Senegalese Firms

    Social, Formal, and Political Determinants of Trade Under Weak Rule of Law: Experimental Evidence from Senegalese Firms

    SOCIAL,FORMAL, AND POLITICAL DETERMINANTS OF TRADE UNDER WEAK RULE OF LAW:EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE FROM SENEGALESE FIRMS∗ ABHIT BHANDARIy FEBRUARY 2021 Abstract How do firms ensure secure exchange when the rule of law is weak and contracting institutions privilege the politically connected? In developing countries, firms may use social, formal, or political heuristics when selecting business partners, but how these factors jointly impact exchange remains understudied. This article develops these the- oretical mechanisms and tests their impact with a conjoint experiment administered to 2,389 formal and informal firms in Senegal. I find evidence in support of all three theories: To varying degrees, social, state, and political factors simultaneously impact firms’ sense of deal security and likelihood of exchange. The results demonstrate the substantial influence of formal predictors of exchange even in an overwhelmingly in- formal business environment, and also establish the countervailing effects of political connections on trade. These findings suggest that firms in developing countries must contend with an intricate political calculus to ensure their growth. ∗I thank Fodé Sarr and the enumeration team for excellent research assistance. I thank Christopher Blattman, Nikhar Gaikwad, Jessica Gottlieb, Macartan Humphreys, Kimuli Kasara, Robert Kubinec, John Marshall, Mohamed Saleh, Tara Slough, and seminar participants at the African Studies Association, NYU-Columbia Informal Institutions Workshop, and IAST/TSE Economic History and Political Economy Working Group for helpful comments. This project was supported by the National Science Foundation (SES-1647457 and DGE-1644869) and was approved by the Columbia Institutional Review Board (IRB-AAAQ9047). I acknowledge funding from the French National Research Agency (ANR) under the Investments for the Future program (Investissements d’Avenir, grant ANR-17-EURE-0010).
  • The Religious Lifeworlds of Canada's Goan and Anglo-Indian Communities

    The Religious Lifeworlds of Canada's Goan and Anglo-Indian Communities

    Brown Baby Jesus: The Religious Lifeworlds of Canada’s Goan and Anglo-Indian Communities Kathryn Carrière Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies In partial fulfillment of the requirements For the PhD degree in Religion and Classics Religion and Classics Faculty of Arts University of Ottawa © Kathryn Carrière, Ottawa, Canada, 2011 I dedicate this thesis to my husband Reg and our son Gabriel who, of all souls on this Earth, are most dear to me. And, thank you to my Mum and Dad, for teaching me that faith and love come first and foremost. Abstract Employing the concepts of lifeworld (Lebenswelt) and system as primarily discussed by Edmund Husserl and Jürgen Habermas, this dissertation argues that the lifeworlds of Anglo- Indian and Goan Catholics in the Greater Toronto Area have permitted members of these communities to relatively easily understand, interact with and manoeuvre through Canada’s democratic, individualistic and market-driven system. Suggesting that the Catholic faith serves as a multi-dimensional primary lens for Canadian Goan and Anglo-Indians, this sociological ethnography explores how religion has and continues affect their identity as diasporic post- colonial communities. Modifying key elements of traditional Indian culture to reflect their Catholic beliefs, these migrants consider their faith to be the very backdrop upon which their life experiences render meaningful. Through systematic qualitative case studies, I uncover how these individuals have successfully maintained a sense of security and ethnic pride amidst the myriad cultures and religions found in Canada’s multicultural society. Oscillating between the fuzzy boundaries of the Indian traditional and North American liberal worlds, Anglo-Indians and Goans attribute their achievements to their open-minded Westernized upbringing, their traditional Indian roots and their Catholic-centred principles effectively making them, in their opinions, admirable models of accommodation to Canada’s system.
  • A Meeting with Shelina Permalloo, Winner of 2012 UK's Masterchef Television Competition by Yvonne Goder-Persand

    A Meeting with Shelina Permalloo, Winner of 2012 UK's Masterchef Television Competition by Yvonne Goder-Persand

    VOL 2012 No 9 Editor: Peter Chellen (Former Editor of Mauritius News 1983 - 2015) A totally independent platform Views expressed by contributors are their own Louis-Ferdinand Céline: Les gens se vengent des services qu'on leur rend. Peter Chellen: Les gens (parfois) se vengent des bienfaits qu’on leur fait. Malheur aux bienfaiteurs! Let’s Fight Corona Together We must stay vigilant to keep it out of our body! Vaccination REDUCES Risk of Infection. You are free to expose yourself and your family to risk. But not free to expose your neighbours! A taste of Mauritius in Southampston, UK A meeting with Shelina Permalloo, winner of 2012 UK's MasterChef Television Competition by Yvonne Goder-Persand Shelina Permalloo is a British-born chef of Mauritian descent from both parents. Shelina became a well-known public fig- ure after winning the BBC's UK television programme MasterChef in 2012. MasterChef is a very competitive production screened in over 60 countries worldwide with the UK's BBC version hosting talented un- discovered chefs. Shelina brought to light ex- otic, mouth-watering traditional Mauritian dishes that captured the British audience. In reward for her memorable food she was rightfully crowned the winner of MasterChef 2012. Photo: MN stock Shelina Permalloo This great achievement of winning in such a Yvonnre Goder outside the Mauritian restaurant hit show like MasterChef, competing with the greatest talents in the UK made Shelina a celebrity instantly within the Mauritian UK community in addition to Yvonne Goder in front of the Mauritian restaurant in Southampton the British. Many of her dishes were either Mauritian or Mauritian-inspired in- 2015.
  • Faith-Inspired Organizations and Global Development Policy a Background Review “Mapping” Social and Economic Development Work

    Faith-Inspired Organizations and Global Development Policy a Background Review “Mapping” Social and Economic Development Work

    BERKLEY CENTER for RELIGION, PEACE & WORLD AFFAIRS GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY 2009 | Faith-Inspired Organizations and Global Development Policy A Background Review “Mapping” Social and Economic Development Work in Europe and Africa BERKLEY CENTER REPORTS A project of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs and the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University Supported by the Henry R. Luce Initiative on Religion and International Affairs Luce/SFS Program on Religion and International Affairs From 2006–08, the Berkley Center and the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) col- laborated in the implementation of a generous grant from the Henry Luce Foundation’s Initiative on Religion and International Affairs. The Luce/SFS Program on Religion and International Affairs convenes symposia and seminars that bring together scholars and policy experts around emergent issues. The program is organized around two main themes: the religious sources of foreign policy in the US and around the world, and the nexus between religion and global development. Topics covered in 2007–08 included the HIV/AIDS crisis, faith-inspired organizations in the Muslim world, gender and development, religious freedom and US foreign policy, and the intersection of religion, migration, and foreign policy. The Berkley Center The Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, created within the Office of the President in March 2006, is part of a university-wide effort to build knowledge about religion’s role in world affairs and promote interreligious understanding in the service of peace. The Center explores the inter- section of religion with contemporary global challenges.
  • Mauritius Country Report BTI 2018

    Mauritius Country Report BTI 2018

    BTI 2018 Country Report Mauritius This report is part of the Bertelsmann Stiftung’s Transformation Index (BTI) 2018. It covers the period from February 1, 2015 to January 31, 2017. The BTI assesses the transformation toward democracy and a market economy as well as the quality of political management in 129 countries. More on the BTI at http://www.bti-project.org. Please cite as follows: Bertelsmann Stiftung, BTI 2018 Country Report — Mauritius. Gütersloh: Bertelsmann Stiftung, 2018. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Contact Bertelsmann Stiftung Carl-Bertelsmann-Strasse 256 33111 Gütersloh Germany Sabine Donner Phone +49 5241 81 81501 [email protected] Hauke Hartmann Phone +49 5241 81 81389 [email protected] Robert Schwarz Phone +49 5241 81 81402 [email protected] Sabine Steinkamp Phone +49 5241 81 81507 [email protected] BTI 2018 | Mauritius 3 Key Indicators Population M 1.3 HDI 0.781 GDP p.c., PPP $ 21088 Pop. growth1 % p.a. 0.1 HDI rank of 188 64 Gini Index 35.8 Life expectancy years 74.4 UN Education Index 0.758 Poverty3 % 3.2 Urban population % 39.5 Gender inequality2 0.380 Aid per capita $ 60.6 Sources (as of October 2017): The World Bank, World Development Indicators 2017 | UNDP, Human Development Report 2016. Footnotes: (1) Average annual growth rate. (2) Gender Inequality Index (GII). (3) Percentage of population living on less than $3.20 a day at 2011 international prices. Executive Summary Mauritius is not a transformation country in the classic sense.
  • The Place of Popular Religion in the System of Worship Among the Creoles of Mauritius

    The Place of Popular Religion in the System of Worship Among the Creoles of Mauritius

    THE PLACE OF POPULAR RELIGION IN THE SYSTEM OF WORSHIP AMONG THE CREOLES OF MAURITIUS by DANIEL DAVID MANIQUE C.S.Sp. Moderator: BENSON A MULEMI, MA. (Anthrop.) AN ESSAY SUBMITTED TO TANGAZA COLLEGE IN PARTIAL FUL- FILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS IN RELIGIOUS STUDIES OF ' THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN AFRICA. Nairobi-Kenya February 2000 DECLARATION 1, the undersigned, hereby declare that this Long Essay has not been submitted to any other Institute or University for academic credit. All sources have been duly acknowledged. / Signed. 'Lfl.r- /7 Daniel David Manique c.s.sp. Date- t I --- MODERATOR. Mr. Benson Mulemi, MA. (Antro.) __ _ . , t ) Date- 1 DEDICATION I gratefully dedicate this work to my parents. Mr. Gabriel and Mrs. Gisele Manique through whom I carne to be and who have brought me up in a decent atmosphere of love. My dad has died since, may the Almighty God grant him eternal rest. I also extend this dedication, in a special way, to the whole Creole community which is trying to mould together an identity of its own. 11 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT My first vote of thanks goes to God the Almighty for I Iis precious gift of life and good health throughout my studies. I can't thank my Spiritan community- Nairobi and our benefactors too well for all their hospitality, support and encouragement throughout my studies and during the writing of this work, may God bless them all. The rich experience and knowledge I have acquired from Tangaza College is also due to the efforts of the academic staff of Tangaza College to whom I say thanks! Many people indeed have helped me in this work.
  • Mauritius and Its First Woman President

    Mauritius and Its First Woman President

    INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL DIALOGUE a focus on current issues Issue 117/August 2015 Mauritius and its First Woman President Elias Phaahla Elias Phaahla is a researcher based at the Helen Suzman Foundation. The views expressed in this piece are solely his own and do not reflect those of the HSF. Global Insight aims to provide members of the policy community with concise but trenchant analyses of topical issues. Comments and suggestions are invited. Geopolitical Map of Mauritius - Source: CIA (2008) Abstract This Indian Ocean Island, situated over 2,000km off The appointment of Ameenah Gurib-Fakim as the the coast of East Africa with a population of 1.3 first woman president of Mauritius marked a million, has enjoyed relative political stability since momentous occasion in the political history of the 1968 when it attained independence from Britain and, island. Never before has a woman in this nation it has fared well as one of the top ranking nations in ascended to such heights, more so when taking into Africa on various governance indices. cognisance the fact that prior to this rise she was a Without doubt, the inauguration of Ameenah Gurib- political nobody and also an unknown in the main Fakim as president of Mauritius, who is also an political circles of the island. As president of academic of renown, warrants putting the polity of the Mauritius, what is her job description as set out in island and her person on the political spotlight. This the Constitution if not to uphold the rule of law, is because each time a woman breaks the political protect the Constitution and, appoint the prime glass ceiling to be at the helm of a nation-state, it minister and cabinet? Her functions as the president seems bound to send shockwaves, not least when do not extend beyond these confines as everything viewed against the backdrop of a continent that has else, including the direction of policy, has gained notoriety for the suppression of women.
  • BTI 2012 | Mauritius Country Report

    BTI 2012 | Mauritius Country Report

    BTI 2012 | Mauritius Country Report Status Index 1-10 8.11 # 17 of 128 Political Transformation 1-10 8.53 # 15 of 128 Economic Transformation 1-10 7.68 # 20 of 128 Management Index 1-10 6.99 # 9 of 128 scale: 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest) score rank trend This report is part of the Bertelsmann Stiftung’s Transformation Index (BTI) 2012. The BTI is a global assessment of transition processes in which the state of democracy and market economy as well as the quality of political management in 128 transformation and developing countries are evaluated. More on the BTI at http://www.bti-project.org Please cite as follows: Bertelsmann Stiftung, BTI 2012 — Mauritius Country Report. Gütersloh: Bertelsmann Stiftung, 2012. © 2012 Bertelsmann Stiftung, Gütersloh BTI 2012 | Mauritius 2 Key Indicators Population mn. 1.3 HDI 0.728 GDP p.c. $ 13671 Pop. growth1 % p.a. 0.5 HDI rank of 187 77 Gini Index - Life expectancy years 73 UN Education Index 0.659 Poverty3 % - Urban population % 42.6 Gender inequality2 0.353 Aid per capita $ 122.0 Sources: The World Bank, World Development Indicators 2011 | UNDP, Human Development Report 2011. Footnotes: (1) Average annual growth rate. (2) Gender Inequality Index (GII). (3) Percentage of population living on less than $2 a day. Executive Summary The 2010 general elections served as further proof of Mauritius’s functioning democracy. Furthermore, Mauritius’s calm and safe passage through the rough waters of the global economic and financial crisis in the past three years has shown the robustness of its economy and its high level of diversification.
  • Mauritius Country Report BTI 2016

    Mauritius Country Report BTI 2016

    BTI 2016 | Mauritius Country Report Status Index 1-10 8.09 # 13 of 129 Political Transformation 1-10 8.60 # 12 of 129 Economic Transformation 1-10 7.57 # 19 of 129 Management Index 1-10 6.74 # 15 of 129 scale score rank trend This report is part of the Bertelsmann Stiftung’s Transformation Index (BTI) 2016. It covers the period from 1 February 2013 to 31 January 2015. The BTI assesses the transformation toward democracy and a market economy as well as the quality of political management in 129 countries. More on the BTI at http://www.bti-project.org. Please cite as follows: Bertelsmann Stiftung, BTI 2016 — Mauritius Country Report. Gütersloh: Bertelsmann Stiftung, 2016. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. BTI 2016 | Mauritius 2 Key Indicators Population M 1.3 HDI 0.771 GDP p.c., PPP $ 18585.4 Pop. growth1 % p.a. 0.2 HDI rank of 187 63 Gini Index 35.8 Life expectancy years 74.5 UN Education Index 0.718 Poverty3 % 3.0 Urban population % 39.8 Gender inequality2 0.375 Aid per capita $ 117.8 Sources (as of October 2015): The World Bank, World Development Indicators 2015 | UNDP, Human Development Report 2014. Footnotes: (1) Average annual growth rate. (2) Gender Inequality Index (GII). (3) Percentage of population living on less than $3.10 a day at 2011 international prices. Executive Summary Mauritius is not a transformation country in the classic sense. The island state that lies in the middle of the Indian Ocean, some 1,100 kilometers away from Madagascar and 2,300 kilometers from mainland Africa, has established a viable democracy and market economy since its independence from Britain in 1968.
  • Religion and Diaspora: Islam As Ancestral Heritage in Mauritius

    Religion and Diaspora: Islam As Ancestral Heritage in Mauritius

    Journal of Muslims in Europe 5 (2016) 87-105 brill.com/jome Religion and Diaspora: Islam as Ancestral Heritage in Mauritius Patrick Eisenlohr Georg-August-Universität Göttingen [email protected] Abstract Orientation towards a point of political and historical allegiance outside the bound- aries of the nation-state is often taken to be a defining quality of diasporas, and this aligns with the ubiquitous tendency of Islamic practice to engage with sources of long- distance, or indeed global, religious authority. In this article, I shall investigate the dimensions of religious and political long-distance allegiances by analysing Mauritian Muslims as a diasporic formation. Looking at debates between proponents of Barelwi, Deobandi and Salafi traditions of Islam and disagreements between Urdu and Arabic as ‘ancestral languages’, I show the malleability of diasporic orientations manifest in such ‘ancestral culture’. This is not just a matter of theological contestation, but represents forms of belonging driven by local politics in a context where the state privileges the engagement with major, standardised forms of religious tradition as ancestral heritage. Keywords Islam – Mauritius – South Asia – heritage – citizenship Anthropology of Islam and the Notion of Diaspora Moving beyond older dichotomies of ‘folk’ or ‘tribal’ against ‘scriptural’ or ‘urban’ Islam (Gellner, 1981; Geertz, 1968), in recent decades anthropologists have problematised the opposition of local versus universal Islam (Bowen, 1992, 1993; Varisco, 2005). Recognising Islam as a profoundly trans-local, indeed global, religious tradition that at the same time is deeply embedded in a diver- sity of cultural contexts, they have turned their attention to the forms and © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2016 | doi 10.1163/22117954-12341320 88 Eisenlohr practices that mediate between the trans-local and the local in lived Islam.