1.1.Settlement
in Maraland
The
present Maraland that is the boundaries where the Mara people live is located
in the area bordered by India to the west, Myanmar to the east and Bangladesh
to the south. It straddles two nation-states of India and Myanmar. The land is
mountainous with a few valleys and flat areas along the banks of rivers.[1] It
is believed that the Maras entered the present settlement no later than 15th
century A.D. or beginning of the 16th century A.D, for the Kukis are
mentioned in connection with the reign of Tipperah Raja as described in earlier.
Mylai Hlychho thus believes that the Maras had already occupied the present
settlement in the middle of the 16th century A.D.[2]
The
groups as the Chapi, Hawthai, Iana, Tlosai and Zyhno moved western direction,
crossing the middle part of the Kolodyne river, below 23.30° North Latitude,
and settled at the present Mara District of South Mizoram, India. The other
groups as the Heima, Lialai and other sub-groups of the Sizo moved southwards
crossing the Kolodyne river below 23.15° North Latitude, and settled in the
North Arakan, the present Matupi, Paletwa and Thatla townships of the Chin
State, Myanmar. There are other Mara groups who settled in the south Thatla
Township, east of the Kolodyne River; known as the Sizos and the Locheis.[3]
1.2.Village
Administration
The
Mara people’s understanding of nationhood is different from the modern concept
of nation-state. For the Mara people, each people/group is a nation in its own
right by virtue of speaking a distinct language, having its own ruler (king),
and territory (land).[4] The
Mara villages are built along the ridges of the mountains on the top of the
hills where the air is fresh. These sites were originally chosen primarily
considering the strategy of defensibility against surprise raids of enemies.
This of course has a disadvantage because water supply was a perennial problem,
and it had to be fetched from springs below in bamboo tubes.
Before
British rule commenced in Maraland, each village was an independent unit under
its chief, who was assisted by his council of elders and the priests. Decisions
were usually made by the consensus of this council which met in the chief’s
house. The opinion of the strongest warriors of the village exerted
considerable influence on the decisions made by the chief and his council.
Though the chieftainship in Maraland was abolished by British India in 1924,
the old village council provided the basis for local democratic organization.
The study of the institution of
chieftainship has assumed an important arena in academic discourse of recent
times. It has generated a lot of debate amongst various researchers and
scholars alike, and there seems to be no concrete agreement over the use of the
term. It is apparent that chieftainship was inherent in their social and
political set up. This may be corroborated by the existence of different ruling
clans among the Maras like, Choza, Bôhia, Chhâchhai, Hlychho, Khuhly, Thlyuthâ,
Zawthâ, Nôhro etc. Of the Mara ruling clans, the Bôhia ascension to chiefly
power seems to have an unusual twist of fate. They are believed to be borne out
of a python and therefore having divine/supernatural element.
However,
a strongly patriarchal hierarchy has been found in Mara society. Men always
occupied high and respected positions not only in the family, but also in the
social life as a whole. They were solely responsible for their family affairs.
Even the right to inheritance was reserved for paternal descent. Women were
oppressed and had no rights either in the family or in society. In body, mind
and spirit, women belonged from birth till death to their fathers, brothers or
husbands. Women had no voice in the family administration and even if they
raised their voices; their words were never accepted simply because they were
the words of the women. The burden of women in the primitive Mara society knew
no bounds and they simply had to surrender themselves to this as their lot.
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