"The men had encroached on an Indian reservation and it is thought they were killed by indigenous people. Under Brazilian law, mining in Indian reservations is not permitted but that does not stop many prospectors." Read more at BBC News and CNN

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"The island nations of the south-western Pacific are considering allowing citizens to reclaim legal control of their local seas, in the hope they can use their traditional knowledge, customs and laws to protect fish stocks and biodiversity" Read more at New Scientist

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In his article in last week's New Yorker, Seymour Hersh made headlines with pointing out that the background for torture in Abu Ghraib didn't lie in inclinations of a few soldiers, but in decisions taken in the highest echelons of the US military. He also depicts the concepts about how to treat Arab people, how to dominate and humilate, which are en vogue among the neo-cons. A book valued for its insights is said to be "The Arab Mind," a study of Arab culture and psychology, first published in 1973, by the late cultural anthropologist Raphael Patai. "The bible of the neocons on Arab behavior", it helped them to understand that "Arabs only understand force and that the biggest weakness of Arabs is shame and humiliation". Jonathan Raban wrote an essay in last weeks Guardian, trying to explain why Abu Ghraib sparked less outrage in the Arab world than one might think: because "it is precisely what they expected from America". And last: read a shorter article in today's Independent about the latest pictures and - how orientalist mind frames continue to inform Western politics.

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Thomas Hauschild, cultural anthropologists, wrote an article in the FRR (german) about such notions as "honour" and "disgrace" and what they might have to do with torture and terror in Iraq.

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The interesting about this picture (a Halakwulup Boy from Tierra del Fuego/Southern South America, photographed from Martin Gusinde) (1)(Gusinde, Martin: Die Feuerland-Indianer. Bd.3 : Die Halakwulup. Vom Leben und Denken der Wassernomaden in West-Patagonien. Mödling : Anthropos, 1974, Picture 28 in the picture addendum at the end of the book) is that the question came to my mind, if this boy is actually "playing indian", while using a toy arrow and a toy bow. Of course not, he may only play "hunting", as he is already indian by definition. But this we can only decide to say by thinking about all the circumstances, and it involves thinking about abstract attributions. Because the mere action, which he is done during the game, would be definitly similar to the action by all other childrens in the world while "playing indian".

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Corinne Neudorfer, currently researching in Laos about Community Based Tourism, gives us insight about the typical problems that appear during fieldwork: about missing interview partners, missing laptops and of course, hours of illness in a hospital:

In the run up to my fieldwork I had to write proposals, make thoughts about my work and my approach. It was annoying, but I also thought that it can only be helpful to make some methodical thoughts. 'In the field its always different' - people say that so often, and yes, I knew it before, but compared to how different it is really then, its a useless sentence.

Well, I have to quit now with my short report, as my head buzzes, and coming to the hospital this morning was not a nice experience. To all that misfortune, I heared today, that my laptop disappeared from where I left it back in the north at the development organization. The laotic coworkers weren't able to find it. Apocalypse! I do all of my work on the laptop! I hope that this all is a huge missunderstanding.

Don't blame Corinne for her english, I've done the translation and some editing, KerLeone

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"Sein Ding machen" is an anthropological fieldwork (german) about the hiphop community of Basel/Switzerland. The author, currently living in Oslo/Norway, set up a forum for feedback or questions, so students also doing work on hiphop may contact him!

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Süddeutsche Zeitung reports (in german) about a little village in Surinam. While some residents would like to bring tourism to Kwamalasamu, others don't like the idea.
You have to login first (user:ethno pw:log123) to the Süddeutsche Zeitung and then go back to Ethno::Log and click the link again)

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Anthropologists and geologists from the Austral Scientific Research Centre have discovered the body of an adult who lived on the north coast of Tierra del Fuego (Argentina) 4,000 years ago. [more...] 'The body is very well preserved, totally articulate, with complete denture,' said anthropologist Monica Saleme. The skeleton, found beneath a 3,900-year-old 'conchero' (shell pit), may be the oldest so far discovered in the region. Shell middens of this type are quite common and indicate the sites of temporary habitations where hunter-gatherers would settle for several months at a time to feed on molluscs and other sea foods, and take time to make implements. The dating corresponds to the time of the world's highest sea levels - the burial is now almost 3,000 meters from the present coastline. The 1.7m body was buried in the foetal position on its right side, with the left hand under the head and knees close to the chest. Tools and utensils dating back 12,600 years and thought to have been produced by the selk-nam ona tribe have been found in Tierra del Fuego, but no human remains from so early a date. 'We can't say if [the skeleton] belongs to a selk-nam, although they inhabited the area,' says Saleme. The remains have now been taken to the main ASRC Cadic laboratory for further examination and DNA tests. Researchers are interested in the different migrations into Tierra del Fuego during the Holocene and the DNA tests will determine the body's migratory origin.

Source: MercoPress (17 March 2004) Via Sauseschritt

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The New York Times: Say No More. A long article reflecting the "Death of Languages". And a very good one, as the author is also thinking about the linguistic myth of the "last one speaking something". And by the way, he visited some of the last descendants of Yaghan and Kawesqar Culture, also known as Yamana and Alacaluf/Halakwulup of tierra del fuego. Via Sofa

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On 29 March 2004 Setha M. Low, City University of New York, speaks on "The Politics of Fear: The Ethnography of Gated Communities" at the New York Academy of Sciences:
"Across America, lower-middle-, middle- and upper-middle-class gated communities are creating new forms of exclusion and residential segregation, exacerbating social cleavages that already exist. While historically secured and gated communities were built in the United States to protect family estates and to contain the leisure world of retirees, these urban and suburban developments now target a much broader market, including families with children." Read more ...

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One of the great missing pieces of Britain's archaeological jigsaw may finally have fallen into place with the discovery of swords, ship nails and a silver Baghdad coin in a Yorkshire field. The Guardian

Suspected 9th Century Viking Boat Burial Discovered Metal detecting enthusiasts have uncovered a suspected 9th century Viking boat burial ground in a river side Yorkshire field. If the find is indeed what it appears to be, it will be the first such burial site found south of Hadrian's wall. Archaeologist at the Yorkshire Museum, Simon Holmes said: "I am 95% certain it is a boat burial. If this is indeed the case, it will be the first discovered in England and therefore one of the most important Viking discoveries ever made in Britain." Shortnews.com

News in German: "Wikinger-Grabschiff in Mittelengland entdeckt"

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