WUNRN
NOTE TRADITION OF JOGI WOMEN WORKING
Afghan Jogi, sometimes known as gypsies, have few legal rights, despite having been in Afghanistan for hundreds of years.
By Najibullah Frotan in Balkh (ARR No. 322, 17-June-09)
Zahra
sits in the shade of a tree next to Rauza, Mazar-e-Sharif’s dominant monument.
She wears a long green coat, her hair tied back with a scarf, a dirty box
beside her. For a few coins, she will read the palms of passers-by, telling
them their fortune.
She is from the Jogi, an ethnic group known in various countries by different
names. Their counterparts in Europe and North America are often called gypsies.
“Work is hard, but I am used to it,” said Zahra. “When I was small I used to go
with my mother, and I learned astrology.”
Palm-reading is a Jogi tradition, as is the practice of women working, said
Zahra.
“It is our custom that men should stay at home while women go out to earn
money,” she explained. “Any woman who does not work is called a coward.”
Before she is engaged, a Jogi girl is asked whether she can earn a living, said
Zahra, and only after she agrees can the marriage take place.
The Jogi say they have been in Afghanistan for 150 years, migrating from
Azerbaijan, Bukhara, and other areas. But they are still living without civil rights
– they are denied even the basic privilege of Afghan citizenship, the tazkira,
or identity card.
This is completely unacceptable, says Saheb Nazar, a leader of the Jogi in
Balkh province.
“Don’t we belong to this land?” he demanded. “Aren’t we humans who have been
created by God? [If not] the government should just kick us out, then, so we
will understand that we do not belong here.”
The Jogi are scattered in various provinces of Afghanistan, but face the same
situation everywhere, said Nazar.
“We are not granted the status of human beings,” he fumed. “We do not even have
tazkira. You cannot find a single piece of land in this country that belongs to
the Jogi. We live in tents or ruined buildings where people throw their
garbage. Jogi have not received even one kilogramme of wheat out of the
billions of dollars that this government has received in aid.”
He demanded that the Afghan government give the Jogi at least identity papers
and some land to live on.
There are no exact statistics about the Jogi of Afghanistan, but according to
the Jogi themselves there are about 1,000 families living in Balkh province
alone.
Abdul Khaleq Rostayee, chairman of the department of population in Balkh, told
IWPR that his hands were tied regarding the Jogi.
“Yes, they came here many years ago,” he said. “But they have never asked for
tazkira. Unless they select a representative and register themselves with the
ministry of the interior, we cannot give them identity cards.”
Nazar rejects this claim, insisting that his people have tried many times to
register, but are not even allowed to enter the offices of government
officials.
“We are looked down on,” he said. “Officials hate us. They do not even consider
us as human beings. Where are we supposed to go?”
Without a tazkira, he added, Jogi children cannot attend school, adults cannot
get passports.
“I have an invitation from my relatives in Azerbaijan,” he said. “But I cannot
go, because no one will give me a passport because I have no tazkira. Nobody is
giving us the right to live in this country.”
Sayed Mohammad Samey, head of the human rights commission in Mazar-e-Sharif,
capital of Balkh province, told IWPR that his office has begun comprehensive
research on the Jogi.
“We are saying that Jogi should have full rights like any Afghan citizen, or
like any human being,” he said. “They should be able to take full advantage of
Islamic and civil law in this country. The government is obligated to give them
tazkira.”
Mohammad Saleh Gardesh, the head of the publications department of the Sadat
Institute of Higher Education in Mazar, told IWPR that his institute had
conducted a number of studies of the Jogi.
“There are two main theories for the origin of the Jogi,” said Gardesh. “Some
think that they belong to a Kushan tribe called Yogi.” The little-known Kushan
period in Afghanistan lasted from the first to the fourth centuries AD.
“With the passage of time, their name changed to Jogi,” continued Gardesh. “The
other theory is that they are from India, and have come to Afghanistan many
years ago. A large number of Jogi now live in Pakistan, and share a similar
language to the Punjabis. From the attire and language of Jogi living in
Afghanistan today, we can conclude that they came from central Asian countries
such as Tajikistan 200 to 250 years ago.”
To a large extent, the Jogi stand apart from the rest of Afghan society. They
own no land or property, and spend most of their lives in tents. The men
generally stay at home while the women go out to beg in the cities or villages.
Like many outsiders, Jogi fall victim to negative stereotypes. Rumours are
spread that they are not really Muslims, that they engage in promiscuity or
have other outlandish practices.
“This is nonsense,” said Nazar, the Jogi community leader. “We are Sunni
Muslims. We accept the words of the one God and the teachings of the Prophet.
Our major customs and ceremonies are like those of other Afghans. There may be
some small differences in tradition, that is all.”
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