12-18 May 1996
Chiang Mai / Chiang Rai, Thailand
Second International Conference on Hani-Akha Culture

Indigenous Participation at the Hani-Akha Conference

No Longer the 'Other'

By Deborah E. Tooker

What was unique in the first conference and was further seen in the second conference was the degree to which the field is constituted mainly by Asian researchers. The areas in which the Hani and Akha peoples live have, with the exception of Thailand, been closed for some time to Western researchers. Thus, the number of Western researchers in this field is small. With recent, more open policies in these countries, Western researchers have now been put in contact not only with Hani-Akha communities in these countries, but also with significant indigenous research traditions, especially in China where minority institutes exist.
Additionally, a main goal of the conference was to include as many knowledgeable Hani and Akha as possible, even in areas where only (or mainly) non-formal educational practices prevail. The latter group was not required to give a written paper but each was required to give an oral presentation, all of which were taped. This also meant that the conference created the unusual context of bringing together Hani and Akha peoples from China, Thailand and Myanmar; peoples who are normally living at some distance from each other and are not in regular contact. This convergence produced lively comparative discussions on Hani and Akha culture and genealogical systems. Mr. Baw Lo Tsa Joe Mah Po (Akha, Phami village headman, Thailand) described this convergence as like the strength derived when rivers come together to form a sea.

In all, there were 47 presentations from people based in 11 countries, 26 of which were by Hani-Akha indigenous researchers based in China, Thailand and Burma. Other countries represented were Netherlands, United States, Sweden, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Russia. Additionally, eight other people based in France, China, Vietnam, and Thailand submitted papers but were not able to attend the conference. One purpose of the conference was to overcome linguistic isolation in order to allow for more creative interaction of traditions. Thus, three main languages were used: English, Chinese, and Akha with all presentations being simultaneously translated into the other two languages.

Hani-English Dictionary
In his opening speech, Mr. Chantaboon Sutthi, Director of the Tribal Research Institute, Chiang Mai, Thailand, provided an historical overview of the Akha in Thailand, including their migration into Thailand from Burma (Myanmar). A representative from each of the organizing groups also gave some brief remarks, including a brief speech by a representative from the Netherlands Embassy to Thailand, Mrs. Drs. Annelies Boogaerdt. This was followed by two speeches to introduce participants to the main conference theme of culture and development in the Hani-Akha areas. One speech by Dr. Chayan Vadhanaputhi, Director of the Social Science Research Institute, Chiang Mai University and a second by Dr. Leo A. von Geusau. These were followed by Dr. Paul Lewis who introduced the first Hani-English Dictionary which was being published by the IIAS and Kegan Paul International in conjunction with this conference. Participants were introduced to the six main conference themes through keynote speeches on each. The six themes were: (1) Ecology, introduced by Mr. Li Qi Bo (Hani, Institute of Nationalities Studies of Honghe Prefecture, China); (2) Traditional Medical Systems, introduced by Mr. Ah Hai G'oemeh (Akha, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture Nationalities Committee, China); (3) The Position of Women in Hani-Akha Society, introduced by Mrs. Cheng Guifen (Akha), of the Nationality Committee of Jinghong City, China. Mrs. Cheng discussed the image and reality of the life of Akha women with "a carrying basket on their backs, a baby in a sack around their shoulders and spinning cotton with their hands" from a PRC 'feminist' perspective; (4) Traditional non-formal educational systems, introduced by Mr. Qian Yong (Hani name: Alo, Yunnan Federation of Literary Art Circles; Vice-Chairman of the Hani Nationality Studies Commission of Yunnan); (5) Genealogies, Ancestor Service and Modernisation, introduced by Mr. Mao Youquan (Hani, Institute of Nationalities Studies of Honghe Prefecture, China); and (6) Hani-Akha and Inter-ethnic Relationships, joint panel with Mr. Buseu Dzoebaw (Akha of Thailand), AFECT, Mr. Li Qi Bo (Hani of China), and Mr. A Hai (Akha of China).

A Strand of Hair
After these introductions, participants broke down into parallel working panels on each of the conference themes. Each working panel had to report back at a general meeting. The common themes were striking. It was generally recognized that the complex socio-cultural and historical formations of Hani-Akha culture contained within them a tremendous amount of knowledge accumulated over many generations. The importance of preceding generations is recognized in the Akha ancestor-complex ('With a strand of hair from each ancestor, one would have to hold nine handfuls of hair'). In some native perspectives, the power of ancestors was very much present. The varieties of knowledge discussed were: historical knowledge [for example, oral texts and ritual practices of the Akha are deeply embedded with images of high mountain wet rice terracing systems, suggesting that the Akha were originally terrace farmers (Tooker)]; political knowledge and knowledge of inter-group relationships, ecological knowledge, medical knowledge (both of medicinal plants: Mr. Ah Hai: at least 500 known medicinal plants as well as medicinal practices such as bone-setting, massage, blood-circulation techniques for infections, nutrition), knowledge of material techniques and the production of material culture, oral and non- verbal communication techniques, interpersonal relationships, genealogical knowledge, ritual knowledge, and philosophical/religious knowledge about the place of humans in the universe. The important position of women in this knowledge transfer was also recognized.
It was also recognized that the following factors were contributing to the breakdown in inter-generational transfer of this knowledge:
1. With population pressure/land pressure, loss of forested areas, economic 'development', modernization, the movement to market economies and urbanization, the traditional subsistence rice-growing economy which attempted to maintain a balance with nature, was disappearing. Mr. Bai Yubao (Hani, Yunnan Museum of Nationalities, Kunming, China) saw this as a general 'imperial' trend in history in which man tries to control nature. The rice agricultural cycle is intimately linked to traditional knowledge transfer.
2. In formal educational systems, the younger generation is learning a new mode of communication and knowledge transfer: writing. These formal educational systems are not connected to the traditional knowledge systems.
3. With formal schooling and life in cities, the younger generation was no longer learning from the older, knowledgeable generation.
4. Women seemed to be in an especially disadvantaged position with these developments (for example, in the selling of girls into prostitution to obtain cash in the new monetary economy).

With the recognition of the value of Hani-Akha knowledge as an important cultural resource, and the need to provide a legacy for future generations of Hani-Akha and improve the position of women, several suggestions were made concerning ways to preserve traditional knowledge while adapting to new circumstances:
1. Writing down traditional knowledge.
2. Using modern technology (radio, TV, video, etc.) to preserve traditional knowledge. Example: AFECT, Thailand is producing Akha music that is similar to Thai popular songs in melody but uses Akha poetic language.
3. Reaching out internationally for help in preserving traditional knowledge and for women's support networks (to Hani- Akha in other countries as well as to foreign sources of funding).
4. Encouraging respect for ancestors/elders through genealogical knowledge and the carrying out of ancestral service. Here the power of ancestral help and protection as a positive resource was also asserted by some villagers. Genealogical knowledge was also seen as a way for Akha and Hani to locate themselves in a large transnational network despite the fact that they are a stateless people.
5. Creating botanical gardens (to preserve medicinal plants with the disappearance of the forest).
6. Stimulating traditional non-formal educational transfer, such as having school students return to villages to learn.
7. Strategizing means of dealing with different governmental systems in different countries.

These are all ways of creating new Hani-Akha identities based on new socio-historical circumstances.

Brothers and Sisters
The closing ceremonies were presided over by the Governor of Chiang Rai Province, Mr. Ramon Booncherd, who announced the establishment of a new university in Chiang Rai to be named Mae Fa Luang University (after the good works of the King's Mother among Thai hill tribes) and opening next year (1997). Recognizing the relatedness of peoples in this region (as 'elder and younger brothers/sisters'), the university will accept students from all four of the Mae Khong Quadrangle countries (Thailand, Burma, Laos and China) and provide scholarships for minority students.
The conference also concluded with a determination to carry out the third conference (as Mrs. Midjeu (Akha, Kengtung, Burma) said: "If you come often, we are like relatives; if you come rarely, we are like strangers."). A Committee was set up headed by Mr. Ah Hai (Akha) of Xishuangbanna, China. Plans are to hold the next conference in 1999 in Jinghong City, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China. The co-organizers are also currently putting together the conference volume which will be a selection of the best papers offered at the conference.
The Second International Conference on Hani-Akha Culture took place in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, Thailand from 12 May to 18 May, 1996. The conference was organized by the International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS), Leiden, the Netherlands (Dr. D. Tooker) and the Southeast Asian Mountain People's Organization (SEAMP), an NGO located in Chiang Mai, Thailand (Dr. Leo A. von Geusau, Netherlands), with Dr. Inga-Lill Hansson of the Department of East Asian Languages, Lund University, Sweden serving as a third co-organizer. The Association for Akha Education and Culture in Thailand (AFECT), under the leadership of Mr. Aju Jupoh (Akha), provided on-the-spot conference organization as well as artistic leadership for the evening cultural events of Akha music and dance. The Tribal Research Institute, Chiang Mai, Thailand served as the government host institution for the conference. Financial sponsors were: the IIAS, the Asia Committee of the European Science Foundation, SEAMP-Nederland, SEAMP-Thailand, Development Agriculture and Education Project for Akha (DAPA), and AFECT.