A Dukha Child Playing with his Reindeer
According to the legend, Santa Claus rides a sleigh pulled by 9 reindeers across the night sky on Christmas Eve. We all know that Santa's reindeers are from Alaska, but, little is known about the reindeers of Mongolia and the people whose culture and existence they are a part of.
Far from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital city, lies the vast taiga (snow-forest) of Siberia. The forest spills over the Russian border into Mongolia. The most famous part lies beyond Lake Hövsgöl at the country’s northernmost point. This is where the Tsaatan or the Dukha live. They are a group of nomadic herders, who live in the remote wilderness and are untouched by modern civilization.
The Dukha are originally from the Tuva region of Russia to the north. Tuva was for many years an independent country until it was annexed by the Soviet Union in 1944 and the Dukhas fled to Mongolia.
Dukha Men Riding the Reindeers in the Wilderness of the Taiga
This tiny community of nomadic reindeer herders is one of the few remaining tribes of its kind and is considered one of the most endangered tribes. Harvard anthropologist Hamid Sardar-Afkhami spent years living with the Dukha and documenting their way of life. According to him, there were once around 200 families living in this remote part of Mongolia, however, now probably only 40 families are left with about 1,000 reindeers.
They move from one pasture to another every 7-10 weeks. Traditionally they would select a white male reindeer from among their herd, ritually sanctify it, and allow the sacred animal to lead their reindeer and families to the next grazing lands.
Threats Faced by Dukha and Their Herds
Dukha elders feel that their culture is eroding. The new generation is not able to speak Tyvan, their native tongue. Since the 1950s they are feeling the pressure to assimilate to traditional Mongolian culture. The government had banned many of the Dukha's cultural traditions too. New laws forced all working-age adults to come down from the taiga and work in fish factories. The rights to land and the herd were controlled by the state. The situation, however, improved a little in the 1980s when there was a democratic reform in Mongolia. Dukha regained their rights to their reindeer. Though their life was centered around the reindeer's, they were their only form of exchange. Dukhas were forced to slaughter them for food and for meat to trade; they had to sell the reindeer to buy the things they need.
Life Now
Since 2011, the majority of the Dukha live in the Tengis-Shishged National Park. New laws ban hunting, fishing, and cutting down trees. In the taiga, the winters are extremely cold, and without any wood, they are unable to keep themselves warm in the harsh weather of Northern Mongolia. An increase in gold mining and timber cutting around the taiga are destroying the reindeer's habitat. The Dukha have survived for thousands of years as reindeer herders, and rarely killed any of their animals. Unfortunately, the situation may force them to give up this traditional way of life if nothing changes.
Tengis-Shishged National Park
Strategies to Save Dukha and Their Herd
Efforts that began in 1999 to form a united representation by the Dukha under a reindeer-herding cooperative to foster their own concerns, rights, and economic resources must be expedited.
Dukhas' legal rights to their ancestral lands must be confirmed and recognized, and positive collaboration and partnering should be enhanced with government ministries, tourism operators, and nature protection officials.
Efforts to realize advanced cooperation between Mongolia and Russia for transborder interaction among related reindeer-herding peoples remain a continuing priority for the Dukha people and organizations seeking to support their cultural sustainability.
If the Mongolian government does not decide to go with this solution, they must recognize the Dukha's needs and provide them with a certain amount of money each month so that the Dukha people can survive.
References
Never heard about Dukhas. Thanks to author for bringing their struggle infront of the world.
Wow..so well written... Did not know about this tribe.. Hope that the government does the needful to preserve them...We need more these people and tribes like this for our environment as they lead a sustainable lifestyle without harming nature...