The River Gypsies


                     The River Gypsies

The 1 million river gypsies of Bangladesh are known as Bede.
Bede or Beday is a nomadic ethnic group of Bangladesh. The Bede traditionally live, travel, and earn their living on the river, which has given them the name of "Water Gypsy" or "River Gypsy". Bede people are similar to gypsy people. They travel in groups and never stay in one place for more than a couple of months. The majority of the Bedes live on snake related trading, such as snake charming(training), snake catching, snake selling, etc. They also sell lucky heathers, herbal medicines, which they claim have magical properties. Bede's other occupations are in the entertainment services (e.g. monkey shows, magic shows) and petty trading. Many villagers believe in the magical powers of the gypsies. They can make evil spirits leave someone's body according to magical powers. Some of them beg on the busy streets of big cities like Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna. They do not have any kind of formal education and they do not use medical facilities. Most of them speak Bengali. Most of them are Muslim but also practice Hinduism, Shamanism and Animism along with Islam. They are related to other South Asian nomadic groups, such as the Dom. The Bedes are a marginalized group. About 98 percent of Bedes live below the poverty line, and about 95% of Bede children cannot attend school. Historically the Bedes were unable to vote as they did not own land, nor could they apply for banks loan or microcredit for the same reason. However, in 2008 the Bedes were able to win their right to vote.most boats are broken. It costs more than 1,000 dollars to repair a boat. Some Bede live in boats but don’t travel anymore. Most live in camps on encroached land or rented houses.The Bede women are the primary bread-winners, while men traditionally stay at home. In the old days the women worked as traditional healers, visiting local villages, but today they mostly wander around the capital Dhaka, removing insects from teeth, ears, and eyes or selling Tupperware. The Bede were denied the right to vote until 2008. These traditional doctors and spiritual healers were once highly regarded in Bangladeshi culture. But their gradual decline began some 60 years ago. Now they are seen as outcasts, partly because of their dietary habits and because their women do not wear the purdah and often touch the bodies of male patients.The Bede traveled in groups for 10 months every year, stopping in almost 90 villages. The two other months were for rest, marriage, and other social functions. Here, a local non-profit established a school for the children, on a boat.Their way of life decaying, the Bede culture is being lost. An estimated 98% of the Bede people live below the poverty line, 95% are illiterate, and it is common to marry children as young as 11 or 12. They have almost no education and no alternative livelihood skills, but their population is increasing. While the average household size in Bangladesh is 4.2 people, among the Bede it is 7.5. As the villages of Bangladesh modernism, demand for the Bede's traditional healing services has declined. The Bede are struggling to preserve their centuries-old heritage as they find themselves in abject poverty. Despite all this, most Bede are passionate about their centuries-old skills and healing secrets; they do not want to abandon their traditional lifestyle because they believe they were born to be river nomads.

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