Human Rights and Tourism

by | Oct 16, 2013 | Life | 13 comments

Human rights. The basic etymology of words would tell you the term together only wishes to explain a simple concept of existence with dignity and respect. It nowhere mentions the right to be rich, poor, famous or privileged. It only tells what is bare minimum to be considered a human in this world.

And of course bare minimum is a lot and hence is violated, extensively.

Having said that, blog action day demands us to write about it. Talk about one odd human right we believe is close to our heart. Which causes us immense pain.

And today we speak about tourism and human rights. Being a traveling enthusiast, I cannot help but notice over my journeys how much of discomfort we humans cause to nature and more often to fellow humans as well.

Safari. Human. Human safari. What do these two words explain to you? Put etymology to it and despite that, the worrisome details of this ‘trip’ will not be exposed.

Jarawa tribes. Andaman Nicobar islands. Does this not bring to mind the gory details of that video which went viral all over the internet and finally surfaced on the news channels.

Fifteen thousand rupees that’s it. That is all it took a couple of people to go on a human safari. Where they could watch scantily clad women dance, men beg for food and of course poor children also not spared in this. This particular tribe has been an endangered species for quiet sometime. And Supreme Court of India has repeatedly been demanding a closure of the highway which leads to their inhabited areas. But govt has been reluctant to follow through because there could be possible ‘connectivity’ issues.

Not far from this country another case exists. In the land of Botswana. The Kalahari bushmen tribes have been prevented to enter their own region. The land which is now being used by their government to promote/attract tourism. And the below advertisement will expose the hypocrisy of the relationship.

They are using images of kalahari bushmen tribes to attract tourists

I want to draw a few basic points to this debate in the light of discomfort caused to tribal people in such cases.

  • Unlike us their immunity is not developed against many common forms of diseases. And it has been noted in the past how many tribal people died due to simple fever or pneumonia infections.
  • Also their society as a whole has different anthropological understandings. And sometimes or in most cases, nudity is an acceptable form of existence for them. At such times, mocking travelers and tourists tend to affect them mentally
  • Their livelihood is often an offshoot of the land they inhabit. For example, Kalahari bushmen depend entirely on hunting for food. And asking them to be away from their land makes their survival impossible.
  • The tour companies mostly exploit them sexually or otherwise as a way to cater to the needs to the travelers. Due to the primitive forms of living and education, most of their cases go unheard. And some of the worst kinds of human rights violation take place in such areas. 

The above points are only the tip of the iceberg, but of course provide a larger picture. 

Organisations world over have been fighting for their cases. And a lot of them have succeeded in providing justice. One such organisation is Survival International. And I would suggest all of us to read their most heartwarming and positive outlook through their page Good News. Its a great reminder that no true action of charity goes unrewarded.
The moment I heard human rights, I knew I had to write about this. As educated people on the go, we need to respect the people we affect in our travels. We need to know what we are being sold in the name of packages, is that affecting nature? Is that causing a paucity of some resource? Are the people in their well taken care of? Remember human rights’ innermost thought is no one man’s pleasure should come from another’s sacrifice. 

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Blog Action Day is an annual event, that has been around since 2007. It aims to bring bloggers around the world to focus on a particular issue every year. It is hoped that this will stimulate discussion on the issue and raise awareness and funds for the not-for-profits working in this area.
Blog Action Day 2013  will be on 16 October and will focus on the topic is Human Rights.
And a few of us are celebrating this day together, voicing our opinions for the general awareness of the issues at Write Tribe and Blog Action Day. 



13 Comments

  1. Kalpana Solsi
    Kalpana Solsi on October 16, 2013 at 7:12 pm

    When I visited the Andaman Islands I heard about the Jarawa tribes and in local language they are referred to as ‘adivasis’. The tourists offer them Chips packets etc and since they are not used to processed food they fall sick.This is inhuman.

    Reply
  2. Mina Menon
    Mina Menon on October 16, 2013 at 7:42 pm

    I hv heard of these tribes in andaman n nicobar but i dint know of this other news! Thank you for sharing this…

    Reply
  3. Jairam
    Jairam on October 17, 2013 at 12:20 am

    Wow, I guess the only species that does this to its own bretheren are humans and this post at some levels makes me ashamed to say that I am human.

    Reply
  4. Jini Fernandez
    Jini Fernandez on October 17, 2013 at 7:43 am

    Humans exploiting other humans! Sad to know that even the respective governments have a hand it.

    Reply
  5. shilpasharmaonline
    shilpasharmaonline on October 17, 2013 at 8:52 am

    Human safari!!!! It sounds so inhuman. We’re a cruel lot, aren’t we? 🙁

    Reply
  6. Corinne Rodrigues
    Corinne Rodrigues on October 17, 2013 at 3:04 pm

    Anything that seems alien to us, we treat with disrespect. If only we gave the tribals their due – they have so much to teach us about life and living! Great area to focus on, Richa!

    Reply
  7. vishalbheeroo
    vishalbheeroo on October 18, 2013 at 9:28 am

    Very well written, Richa. It is sad that many tribals can’t even enter their own land and even in India, lands are grabbed to give to large corporations. What do the commoners get? It is a blatant violation of human rights.

    Reply
  8. sheethalsusan
    sheethalsusan on October 18, 2013 at 10:06 pm

    Seems like we are exploiting our fellow beings for our own comfort and happiness.
    Good writeup!

    Reply
  9. Haddock
    Haddock on November 7, 2013 at 6:36 pm

    Was not aware of the Jarawa Tribe. From what I read (and understand) they will be waiting for the next batch of tourists.

    Reply
  11. shimaa shaker
    shimaa shaker on June 9, 2014 at 9:14 am

    شركة تنظيف شقق بالمدينة المنورة
    شركة تنظيف فلل بالمدينة المنورة
    مكافحة حشرات بالمدينة المنورة
    تسليك مجاري بالدمام
    شركة تنظيف منازل بالدمام
    شركة مكافحة حشرات بالدمام
    شركة تنظيف شقق بالمدينة المنورة
    شركة كشف تسربات المياه بالمدينة المنورة
    تخزين عفش بالمدينة المنورة
    شركة مكافحة حشرات بالخبر
    شركة تنظيف منازل بالدمام
    شركة كشف تسربات المياه بالدمام

    Reply
  12. shimaa shaker
    shimaa shaker on June 9, 2014 at 9:15 am

    شركة كشف تسربات المياه بالدمام
    شركة تسليك مجارى بالدمام
    شركة تخزين اثاث بالدمام
    شركة تنظيف منازل بالدمام
    شركة تسليك مجاري بالدمام
    شركة تنظيف بالدمام
    شركة تنظيف خزانات بالمدينة المنورة
    شركة كشف تسربات المياه
    مكافحة حشرات بالمدينة المنورة
    تنظيف خزانات بجدة
    شركة تنظيف منازل بجدة
    شركة تنظيف فلل بجدة

    Reply

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