Kusum is an ordinary, 14-year-old Indian girl. She lives in Delhi, India, where she goes to school and wonders about her future—until she falls ill. She stops eating, isolates herself and suffers raving fits. ”Evil spirits have attacked the family,” says Bhagat, an old healer. Kusum’s family initially tries Western medicine, but then opts for traditional Indian spiritual healing. It
The Mosuo region lies in the mountainous Yunnan Province of China. The Mosuo people continue their practice of matriarchy and have big families. Traditionally, the people don’t have a marriage ceremony. If a man and a woman fall in love, they could just “tisese” that means being together without cohabitation. They don’t start a nuclear family, but stay with the
In 1999, the construction for the laying of the first optical fibre cable in South east Asia is now crossing Cambodia from the Thai border to the frontier with Vietnam. The cable is to link up with another running from Europe along Silk Road. The worksite provides employment opportunities for many Cambodians. Peasants with no land, demobilized solders and families