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Article: Caste: One in every 25 people suffers from caste discrimination based on the kind of work they do and their family origins. That is around 250-300 million people globally and 179 million in India alone. Many countries have laws against discrimination, some specifically against caste discrimination, but they are rarely enforced.
- Article from:
- New Internationalist
- Article date:
- July 1, 2005
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 New Internationalist Magazine. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Common features of caste systems (1)
* Physical segregation--for example, not being allowed to drink from the same cup or share the same water source as higher castes.
* Social segregation, including a prohibition on intercaste marriages.
* Work in traditional occupations often associated with death or filth.
* Debt bondage due to poor wages for lower-caste occupations. An estimated 25-60 million people in India are bonded labourers, working in slave-like conditions in order to pay off a debt. The majority are Dalits.
* High levels of illiteracy, poverty and landlessness.
* Perpetrators of crimes against lower caste ...