ETHNOCENTRISM BLAMED IN EFFORTS TO HELP TRIBES
Ethnocentrism or the feeling one's own ethnic group is superior
had led to the mishandling os isolated tribes, says an expert.
Head of the Directorate of History and Traditional Values of the
Ministry of Education and Culture Dr. Budhisantoso said here on
Wednesday that officials or social workers often have the tendency
to force their own cultural values onto isolated tribes.
"They try to 'civilize' those tribes by bringing them into our
general cultural system, submitting them to our moral norms, or
converting them into one of the majority religions here,"
Budhisantoso said.
Yet, he said, isolated tribes already have their own culture
which is their most appropriate approach to life and means of
survival, Antara reported.
"These feelings of superiority exist in any member of society
with a so-called 'higher' level of cultural values," he said.
Budhisantoso said the officials or workers in charge of isolated
tribes should only present alternatives, instead of forcing them
to accept ways of adaptation to their surroundings.
"We should let isolated tribes choose their own way of living,
in accordance with their need to adapt to their unique physical
and social surroundings," Budhisantosa said.
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