Thursday, November 29, 2012


Gender Roles
The Baka are extremely coexisting. The male-female relationships are completely egalitarian where sex role flexibility is a norm and language is genderless. Husbands and wives participate in a wide range of activities and nothing is singled out to be meant for a male or female. Women are just as essential to the work team as men and share responsibilities evenly. Women contribute to the diet among the people and are involved in the exchange of food as much as men. Both genders take on a role in hunting which is also usually done together. It is not uncommon to see the men gathering food and firewood, fetching water, cooking, cleaning, and tending to babies. It is equally common to see a women taking on heavy work and taking part in discussions with men. Unlike many African cultures, child bearing is not just the mother’s role. Fathers are actively involved in the caring of their infants. The Bake men engage in more infant caregiving than fathers in any other known society spending almost fifty percent of their day holding or within arm's reach of their infants. (Cervantes, Quixote).
Some of the small differences found in research was on an occasion where an anthropologist named Paul Raffaele arrived at a Baka village by the name of Mossapola, he described the women to be wearing tattered sarongs while squatting around several fires as they warmed water and cooked their cassava. The men were said to be uncoiling large nets by the beehive huts. The night that he left the village, the women were said to be singing a chant of welcome to the great rain forest spirit while the men danced wildly to the music of drums (Raffaele). Another situation where differences among men and women are seen is during marital conflicts. Though these conflicts are rare, they do sometimes occur. Quarrels between men and women are commonly carried out by the women tearing down the man’s house to reveal their displeasure. The women tend to be more skilled at house building therefore the huts in which the Baka’s live are seen as a woman’s property. Normally the woman is stopped halfway through by the man and the conflict is settled through some sort of discussion. If the woman is not pleased with what the man has to say, she will continue to tear down the house which is when the rest of the village people with usually get involved to resolve the dispute (Cervantes, Quixote).
Morals and Values
The Baka’s value several characteristics including positivity, trust, respect, cooperation, and empathy. They possess an enlightened moral code that has been in place long before the missionaries attempted to impose their world view on them. Under this code are rules against killing, violence towards women, adultery, lying, theft, blaspherry, devil worship and sorcery, lack of love for children, disrespect for elders, and other forms of misbehavior. They also have never engaged in cannibalism, human sacrifice, mutilation, sorcery, ritual murder, intertribal war, debilitating initiation issues, and other cruel customs. (Cervantes, Quixote).
Another value that is embraced as a norm is the lack of privacy among tribe members. The Baka’s are rarely ever alone. All activities including eating, drinking, bathing, and even sexual intercourse all take place within close proximity. (Cervantes, Quixote).
Family is a highly valued aspect of life for the Baka. Parents are expected to respond to the needs of children with warmth and calming attitudes in order to raise them into a positive world image. Child neglect and abuse are almost unknown in the Baka society; cruelty to children is the most serious violation under the Baka laws and commandments. (Cervantes, Quixote).
Another extreme value in the Baka culture is the strong faith and worship they have toward the forest. They reflect this appreciation by carrying out positive attitudes toward the world, maintaining feelings of independence, and a sense of basic trust. They express this faith through their great molimo songs which is another reason why music is such an important aspect to their lives. (Cervantes, Quixote).

The Baka Society as Seven Lessons for Effective Teamwork
Lesson 1: Members respect and trust each other.
Given the potential hardships of the forest, survival depends on interdependence for the Baka. Food is not always plentiful and hunting can be dangerous therefore there must be instructions that everyone must follow in order to overcome such threats. Trust and mutual dependency play a crucial role here. Without trust, the hazard of these existing dangers would multiply so each person needs to be depended upon. If the trust is not present, other factors that affect team behavior become irrelevant because when there is no sense of understanding and togetherness among the members of a team, the group soon becomes dysfunctional. However, trust does not occur automatically. Trust grows best if the basics were met for each team member in childhood and delicately taught through life.
The entire camp of any village is consistently supporting one another in any issues and always stands together as one. The peace among the tribe is a majorly emphasized factor and will take whatever measures to maintain that such as gathering around a marital conflict among two members of the tribe to help resolve the issue.
Everyone in the Baka society possesses the right to expect, demand, and give participation in all events. Obedience to authority figures is minimal among the Baka due to the idea that no single member has the right to force someone to do something against his or her will. No one is ever afraid to speak his or her mind resulting in a minimal power gulf between the group members. Interaction and involvement is encouraged of all members. Disputes are settled in by conflictive construct and he or she in questions always has the right to get others involved in the matter until a resolution is found.
To give team members a sense of purpose and focus, team goals and methodologies need to be distributed very clearly. If a goal is ambiguous or ill-defined, the group can potentially lack motivation and commitment to the task. Although goals have to be within realistic boundaries, group members are encouraged to "stretch." When one’s stretch goals are achieved, it gives the individual a sense of pride in their work.
Baka elders want their youngsters to share a common heritage with them. To reinforce the behaviors of the heritage, rewards and punishments are handed out when necessary. Sharing, cooperation, independence, and autonomy are among the basic values in the Baka society.
Teamwork is a balancing act. It is a form of participation that can flourish only in an environment that encourages individual freedom and creative opportunity all the while following the overall organizational goals. Teamwork possesses an interdependent balance between the needs of the individual and the needs of the organization. However, to make such a balance work each member of the team needs to recognize the limitations on his or her freedom.
The Baka society is characterized by a disarming informality. It is difficult to talk about a single leader. Unlike other African societies, the Baka groups have no "big men" among them due to their view that leadership is not a monopoly of one glorious leader. No single person has an ultimate authority leading them not to be intimidated by rank, seniority, or status. Respect may be given to elders, but it is based not on wealth or status but simply on knowledge and expertise. 
(Cervantes, Quixote).

The Pygmies Plight

High-Performance Teams: Lessons of the Pygmies
1999 Business Search Premier, Electronic document,

This post was written by Bria Bequette.

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Baka Culture: Teeth Filing

The people of the Baka are very attached to their culture. It is the only way they are identified as Baka, and not other indigenous tribes. They have managed to keep true to their culture despite land infringement by loggers and visits from the Catholic Church. 
One cultural tradition, exercised by the Baka, is the painful practice of teeth filing. Usually performed on children or teenagers, it involves using a knife and a hammer to file the teeth into points. The process is painfully long, lasting about 45 minutes. The owner of the newly filed teeth must not eat for 4 days while the teeth heal. The goal of teeth filing is to provide an ease of eating tough meats and most Bakas are proud to have it done. They claim it makes life easier, despite suffering large amounts of pain during the process.They think it makes them more attractive to someone of the opposite sex, and without it they will be ridiculed. 


Not all Bakas feel the same way, however. The tradition is still popular, but younger members of the tribe are beginning to resist the practice. Some Bakas even have their newly sharpened teeth removed because they cannot stand the pain.

http://www.condition.org/smi8c.htm

The continuation of this practice shows how deeply the Baka are rooted in their culture.


2008 Teeth Filing: Painfully Pleasant for Baka Pygmies. Electronic Document, http://www.postnewsline.com/2008/02/teeth-filing-pa.html
 Accessed November 24, 2012

2008 The Pygmies' Plight. Electronic Document, 
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/The-Pygmies-Plight.html 
Accessed November 26, 2012

Monday, November 26, 2012

Music & Rituals


   Without music and dance the Baka would lose the very essences of their civilization. It has defined them for centuries orally transmitting their culture through song, music, and dance. Musical rituals are consistent from birth until death, enacting all events from healing to hunting. A day within the Baka tribe would be entranced by music. True understanding of the Baka musical system requires an in depth knowledge of multiple musical forms and vocal techniques. A majority of the music is established from repetitive melodic-rhythmical formulas and improvisation. Instruments such as the cylinder drums, ached harp, musical bow, and unique rattles are used by the Baka. Several of the instruments were attained through trade, while others are crafted exclusively by the Baka people.  

 


  
www.pygmies.org
2012 Baka Pygmies website, electronic document,
http://www.pygmies.info/baka/music.html, accessed November 27, 2012. 

Technology: GPS and Cameras

In the rainforests of Africa's Congo Basin, hundreds of thousands of indigenous people live as hunter gatherers, depending on the forest's natural resources for their survival. Yet most have no legal rights to the land that has been their home for many years.

RFUK's "Mapping for Rights" program trains forest people to map their land using GPS devices, marking the areas they use for activities such as hunting and fishing -- as well as their sacred sites -- and the routes they use to access these vital areas.

But GPS technology is helping indigenous people map the land they call home and produce documents that can help preserve their access to the forest that is their lifeblood.

The GPS information is used to create a definitive map of the land used by these semi-nomadic communities, which can be used to challenge decisions that see them excluded from areas of forest.

As reported on CNN, a similar project has existed for more than 10 years in the Cameroon, where tribes in the Boumba Bek collected honey, mangoes and medicinal plants prior to it receiving National Park status under the jurisdiction of the World Wildlife Fund.
The Baka people were able to provide similar GPS based evidence and restore their right to operate within the region.
GPS offers an opportunity to these indigenous peoples to talk in the technological language that those contesting their rights have traditionally used to defeat them, and provides a very portable, low impact way of preserving their way of life.

The Baka people are also using video cameras provided by UNDP and the Global Environment Facility to document how climate change is damaging the forests where they live, and this is just one way the UNDP is helping indigenous people.

The Baka people also formed an organization called Okani (“rise up”) to help train other communities in filming and storytelling techniques to talk about their lives. Their first film showed how they are coping with the impacts of climate change, and the swift transformations of their habitat. Along with this the indigenous people also use videos to submit project proposals, and get grants.

CNN.com
2012 GPS technology maps land rights for Africa's 'forest people'. Electronic document, http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/13/world/africa/rainforest-community-mapping/index.html, accessed November 26, 2012.

MAPS.com
2012 GPS – FOR THE LOVE OF THE RAIN FOREST. Electronic document, http://custommaps.wordpress.com/tag/baka-people-cameroon-and-gabon/, accessed November 26, 2012.

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

The Baka are often called “The Forest People.” They live in Cameroon and are one of the indigenous groups that are well known for their singing. Many musical groups have used sound clips taken from the Baka to enhance their music. Because of their exposure to modern society through their music, some of the Baka no longer like being called “pygmy” because the name is diminutive.

The Baka wholly rely on the forest for their livelihood. They harvest honey, wild mangoes, yams, medicinal plants as well as hunt in the forests of CameroonThese indigenous forest people live in and around three national parks and make up some 30 percent of the 100,000 people living in the heart of the Congo Basin rain forest in Southeast Cameroon. These natural parks are being threatened by logging companies and poachers. Between the years 1990 and 2010, deforestation has claimed 18.1% of Cameroon's forest cover, or around 4,400,000 hectares.




This map shows the region that the Baka need for their foraging and hunting territory. This information is being used by the WWF, or the World Wildlife Fund, to propose natural resource management policies that will help preserve the cultural heritage and reinforce community identity among  the Baka and manage conflicts between local communities and administrative authorities. 


A study by Olivier Niounan Tegomo, a WWF Senior Field Research Assistant, reveals that Baka pygmies are excellent nature conservationists. It is forbidden by the Baka to set up snares or hunt female animals. They discourage the habit of hoarding food and consuming large quantities of meat and encourage their kin to eat moderately. It is also prohibited to stay in the same place in the forest for too long so as not to place too much of a strain on the resources in the area. In the Baka world, resources are used based on their abundance and there are internal social control mechanisms for natural resource use. The study recommends that the Baka be given more access beyond agro-forestry zones, to be allowed to enter the park between June and September to harvest wild mangoes,  to use footpaths within the park, and unfettered access to harvest medicinal plants throughout the year. 


MongaBay.com
2000 Cameroon Forest Information and Data. Electronic document,              http://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/2000/Cameroon.htm, accessed November, 20 2012

WWF
2008 Protecting Baka Pygmies Access to Forest Resources in Southeast Cameroon. Electronic document, http://wwf.panda.org/who_we_are/wwf_offices/cameroon/news/, accessed November, 20 2012.