The Kyrgyz People of the Afghanistan Pamir

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Introduction

As we have come to know, the Huaorani people are among the fiercest hunting and gathering tribal people in the Ecuadorian Amazon. For a time they lived in complete isolation up until the 1950s when Evangelical Christian missionaries sought to convert them to Christianity. Since then, they have become an endangered people as the Christian missionaries had opened the gate to other forms of Western exploitation such as the crude oil company threatening their way of life. Most Huaorani say that they regret the day they have even come in contact with the Christians as many Huaoranis have contracted certain diseases that they are not immune to such as polio. The development of cancer is another major disease that has been brought on by the constant polluted air and water from the oil spills and crude exhaust from the oil companies. With the ongoing threat of Western development tarnishing their way of life, the Huaorani people continue to struggle for survival.
From the hot jungle of the Amazon to the cold mountainous plains of the Central Asian mountains, there is yet another group of people who are struggling from the same fate. The Kyrgyz are a pastoral nomadic tribal people who reside in the Wakhan Pamir of Afghanistan completely isolated from the outside world. Because of their deserted and isolated location as they are landlocked with within the borders of Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, and Uzbekistan as well as the harsh winter cold environment, their way of live has become increasingly difficult to sustain their way of life. Mortality rate of women and children has increased substantially and it has been expensive for men to afford a bride as the women have become scarce.
The trade of opium from Afghan drug ...

... middle of paper ...

...apitalist West and the communist East, the Kyrgyz, like the Huaorani, has seemed to stick with their cultural traditions while exploring new opportunities in the process.

Bibliography

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Callahan, Ted. "The Kyrgyz Of The Afghan Pamir Ride On." Nomadic Peoples 11.1
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Kazemi, S Reza. "Context & Culture: On the Roof of the World: The Last Kyrgyz in
Afghanistan." Afghanistan Analysts Network. Web. 26 Nov. 2013.

Kreutzmann, Hermann. "Ethnic Minorities And Marginality In The Pamirian Knot:
Survival Of Wakhi And Kirghiz In A Harsh Environment And Global Contexts."
The Geographical Journal 3 (2003): 215. Academic OneFile. Web. 12 Oct. 2013.

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