Mawta
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Mawta is a Mara word for natural famine related to bamboo flowering (Melocanna baccifera), a rare phenomenon that occurs once in every 50 years, when the most common tree of the forest in the region - bamboo flower and produce a fruit rich in nutrients, the fruit attracts a plague of forest rats feasting and reproducing in a rapid rate; once they finished the bamboo fruits they start attacking crops in the fields devouring all the standing crops leaving nothing to the farmers for harvest. The effect lasts up to 5 years. MFRC is working to help the victims meet their basic needs by distributing their daily needs and how to initiate an alternate methods of farming or livelihood through sympathisers and donors across the globe.
Mawta is a phenomenon that is seen only in certain areas in Southeast Asia - mainly India-Myanmar border states. Mawta is also known as Mautam in Mizo, Mautaam in Zomi, etc.
The effected Areas:
1. INDIA:
Northeast Indian states like Mizoram and Manipur that are lying adjacent to Western Myanmar Chin state too are effected by the same phenomenon. The state governments of Mizoram and Manipur, and also the central governent at New Delhi have responsed to these famine effectively besides the helping hands from NGOs like World Vision, Seventh Day Adventists, Jewish Voice Ministries, Global Youth Network Canada are all working for the victims in the Indian side.
2. Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh:
Chittagon Hill Tracts in the eastern part of Bangladesh bordering the Indian state of Mizoram is also effected by the same phenomenon, the World Food Programme (WFP) is effectively working with the local NGOs to help the victims.
3. BURMA - MYANMAR:
In Burma, also known as Myanmar, the junta is doing nothing for the suffering population in Chin state in Western Myanmar bordering Mizoram and Manipur states. The Mawta too is experienced by Kachin state in Eastern Myanmar. Chin people were already suffering under the oppressive military rulers in Nay Pyi Daw, the new capital of Burma, now renamed as Myanmar, the only means of the survival of the poor people in the state was their farmlands untill this Mawta phenomenon strikes and devastated their only dreams of survival.
MFRC is working mainly for the Mawta effected people in Chin state. The worst effected people in Chin state are the people groups or tribals living in the most remote part of the state where there is no proper transportation and commucation. The area includes most villages of Lautu, Zophei, Mara, Sengthang, and others.
Recently, Human Rights activist and British MP Baroness Cox and her team visited Aizawl, the capital of Mizoram state and met certain leaders from Chin state, most of them are leaders of Mara people in East Maraland, who in turn formed Mawta Famine Relief Committee (MFRC) to work efficiently in distributing the relief efforts and also to make sure that the sympathisers and donors across the world can directly donate to the worst effected people who are languishing in the most remote part of Western Myanmar.
MRFC had helped more than 64 villages inside of the Chin State and MFRC has also treated more than 3800 people who suffered from malnutrition and illness related to starvation during the visit of Sasa, a medical student in Armenia who is also one of MFRC members and a native of Chin state.
Kindly browse around the website to know more about Mawta.
Thanking you,
Webmaster
Mawta.org
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January 2nd, 2009 at 10:38 pm
[...] Mawta [...]
January 3rd, 2009 at 10:23 am
[...] this conference, various issues related to famine caused by mawta/mautam phenomenon will be discussed and a review of the past works carried out by MFRC will be presented [...]
January 3rd, 2009 at 8:36 pm
[...] this conference, various issues related to famine caused by mawta/mautam phenomenon will be discussed and a review of the past works carried out by MFRC will be presented [...]