FAMILIAL ADAPTATIONS TO THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF ...

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surplus product and accumulation of resources
capacity, - differential
variation
investment
in the extent of the employment
households
of wage labourers
and the proletarianization
by
of men and women
households,
of differentiated
and differences in crop mixes and agricultural
Variation in
mechanization.
women's contribution to social production
of
is
this
also
pattern
a correlate
of social differentiation of the peasant household.
Proletarianization in Bahiya is of a specific
correspond
kind that
to
does
the
not
polar dichotomy land consolidation-proletarianization.
The designation "landless" peasant is seasonally variable
peasant.
for
"Landless"
any given
peasants strive to have access
Such
to
access
land
may
constantly.
be acquired in the form of sharecropping
short duration
arrangements
or through
for
informal (and illegal) short-term leases at
exorbitant prices.
While "landless" peasants, during certain periods,
wage
gain
labourers,
their income
the
as
poor peasant's household labour
semi-proletarianized,
force is also
supplementing income with wage
addition
labour.
to "landless"
Thus, in
peasants whose income derives
wage
almost
labour,
totally
poor peasants
from
(those with less than one
their
feddan)
inco:ie
derive
from wage
part
labour.
of
They are not proletarian in
of
the
the
full
word
sense
since they have certain control of
the
the
production
means of production
process. Among
and
these poor peasants,
women's
family labour,
non-capitalist
including
production, subsidizes
semi-proletarian
the wages of
villagers.
the
In fact, these peasants'
subsistence involvement
production in
is a means of reproduction
The
of
women
their
of
labour
wage
power.
labourer and poor peasant families,
contributing
in addition
to the
to
cultivation of subsistence
labour
crops,
power
often
as
sell
wage
their
earners, depending of the
accessible
size of
to
landholding
their families from one agricultural cycle to another.
For proletarianized and semi-proletarianized families, remittances from
migrants may allow women to forego wage labour employment and confine their
efforts to family production. On the other hand, in the early days of a
male's emigration, when remittances are irregular, or, non-existant, a woman
whose labour was once confined to family production may be forced to become
a wage earner for varying periods of time, depending on the consequent
pattern and amount of remittances.
Aromatic plant culti.vation, once a lucrative
seldom
source
been
of
a
income,
realistic
has
option for poor peasants.
under
Although
conditions
poor
of
peasants,
seasonal labour shortage and
self-exploitation
through increased
of family labour, are well-suited
harvest
to
of
maintain
jasmine,
the
they
daily
cannot devote their entire small
aromatic
areas
plants
of land
or
to
other commercial crop cultivation.
require more than
Aromatic
one harvest
plants
season to mature, and poor
cannot
peasants
survive
ordinarily
with income from their land
importantly,
for this period.
they cannot
More
give up the subsistence crops such
and
as
corn.
wheat,
Nor
rice,
can they give up the cultivation of feed for their animals.