Luttes d'une association de femmes travaillant dans le secteur de la pêche à Udupi : entre maternage et marché

Abstract

This study was conducted in partnership with the UNRISD and was funded by the Swiss Network for International Studies. This chapter is the culmination of 3 years of ethnographic research with the fisherwomen of Udupi, on their ability to keep the fish market from incursions of male fish vendors and capital rich fish shops in the region. It examines the political negotiations between fisherwomen and the local administration, that have allowed them to keep their livelihoods, something that has slipped away from fisherwomen in other parts of the Mangalore, where Udupi is located. This chapter examines how both capitalism and the opening up of the market place to capital rich enterprises, affects the traditional livelihoods of fisherwomen and the strategies they have employed to keep selling fish.