# data[].attributes.body
This particular assignment is truly an eye-opener. It provides me a broad overview and information of each group’s beliefs concerning death and afterlife which involves unique aspects of their funeral ceremonies and customs. Coming from a Malay community that embraces Islam as our religion, the funeral I have attended have all been very much the same which makes me know very little of other ethnics’ funerary rites. I discovered that each of these ethnics, Batek, Iban, Kadazan, Melanau, and Murut have their own way of performing it, their perspectives on death and afterlife differ from one another.

As for example, the Batek, who is not a believer of any organized religious beliefs, have a great respect for the forests and rivers as they believed that wilderness is animated by spirits. They would bury the corpse in a shelter that is high above the ground and deep in the jungle for quite some time. Meanwhile in the Iban belief system, the longhouse is regarded as a “Ritual Entity” belonging to a spiritual world of its own where most of the funeral process happened there before the deceased is moved to the burial ground.

Why is funeral rite important for these ethnics? It is symbolic, they are able to express their beliefs, feelings and thoughts about the death of their loved ones. Funeral prepares them to concentrate on the death and the excruciating pain that they feel about the death. When people care about  the deceased, they will attend the funeral if at all possible. By attending the funeral, it shows that they are there to support the living and to let them know that they are not alone in their grief.

Yours Truly,
Sha.

# data[].attributes.body
The Murut Tahol Culture in Sabah: The Historical Journey and Challenges

# data[].attributes.body
Tenom District Chief OKK David Jani, as a spokesman for the group, said there were no precise facts and contrary to the culture of the Murut community by stating: “The bodies were burned and stored indoors for seven days.”

“Cremation is not practised in Murut funerals,” he told reporters after holding a meeting with Murut customary leaders here on Thursday.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
KENINGAU: Heads of indigenous Murut from Tenom, Nabawan, Sook, Keningau and Pagalungan, and the Native Court will send a protest letter to the Ministry of Education (MOE) on Murut cremation recorded in the Form One history textbook, on page 196, and printed in 2009.

Tenom District Chief OKK David Jani, as a spokesman for the group, said there were no precise facts and contrary to the culture of the Murut community by stating: "The bodies were burned and stored indoors for seven days."

"Cremation is not practised in Murut funerals," he told reporters after holding a meeting with Murut customary leaders here on Thursday.

He said Murut funerals then and now are full of respect for traditions and beliefs.

David said the Native Court would take action, such as imposing a sogit against the authors and publishers of the textbooks because it was offensive to the customs of the Murut people in the state.

Present at the meeting were district chiefs OKK Majabin Dalinus (Keningau), OKK Sayau Tangkap (Nabawan), OKK Andayol Ampuli (Kemabong), OKK Yunus Kimin (Sook), OKK Tinus Lindas (Pagalungan) and Dalit Native Chief Masinggil Andingos.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Murut chiefs, Native Court protest over textbook | Borneo Post Online

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
KENINGAU: Heads of indigenous Murut from Tenom, Nabawan, Sook, Keningau and Pagalungan, and the Native Court will send a protest letter to the Ministry of Education (MOE) on Murut cremation recorded in the Form One history textbook, on page 196, and printed in 2009.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Timugon Murut people reside in a small, well-defined area in the Tenom Valley. Spanning about 20 miles from north to south, over half of the Timugon villages are situated on the western side of the Pegalan River, which runs south in the valley and some villages on its eastern banks.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The group is divided between lowland (Timugon) and highland (Tagol) subgroups. They speak the Murutic languages, a branch of the Austronesian family. The Tagol Murut language serves as their lingua franca.

CUSTOM
The Murut were the last of Sabah's ethnic groups to renounce headhunting. As with the Iban of Sarawak, collecting heads of enemies traditional served a very important role in Murut spiritual beliefs. For example, a man could only get married after he presented at least one head to the family of the desired girl.
The Murut were shifting cultivators of hill padi and tapioca, supplementing their diet with blowpipe hunting and with some fishing. They live in communal longhouses, usually near rivers, using the rivers as their highways. Many have now converted to Christianity, however they still maintain their culture, however a small number of Muruts are Muslims. Most Muruts now were well educated and trained at many well known institution local or abroad, and most of them holds important post in the government, professionals, or doctors and not to mentioned a very successful business persons.

Traditional dress for men was a jacket made of tree bark (Artocarpus tamaran), a red loincloth, and a headdress decorated with Argus pheasant feathers. Women wore a black sleeveless blouse and sarong, which fell just below the knees. Like most of the other indigenous groups in Sabah, the Murut decorated their clothing with distinctive beadwork and also made belts out of old silver coins. Another belt made of reddish-brown glass beads plus yellow and blue beads was hung loosely around the waist.
Murut wedding or funeral feasts can last several days. Ancient Chinese jars hold a prominent status in Murut customs. Jars are also a place of spirits, and larger jars were formerly used as coffins.

(Pic. Source : borneotravelblog.com)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
MURUT The Murut are an indigenous ethnic group inhabiting northern inland regions of Borneo. A large percentage of the Murut communities are in the southwest interior of Sabah, East Malaysia, specifically the districts of Keningau, Tenom, Nabawan, and Pensiangan, along the Sapulut and Padas rivers.

# data[].attributes.body
(Last Paragraph)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Introduction

My Christmas and New Year plans for last year had changed, quite abruptly and unexpectedly. Instead of celebrating what is closer to Roman Saturnalia - and more appropriate in 35 degrees Celsius than Jingle Bells, with the Rungus of the north of Sabah, I was urgently called to the death-bed of the mother of the Murut family that had accepted and adopted me some years ago.

This lead to a series of experiences that surpassed whatever I have encountered here in Borneo so far. It also left me, considered a full member of the family, a great deal poorer money-wise. However, the insight I have gained into the intricate tribal life of the Murut is invaluable. And at the end of the funeral rites I was 'rewarded' with a gift of exceedingly rare value: a string of beautiful Cornelian beads of great antiquity, treasured and valued by the Murut, and many other people of Borneo, much beyond gold. The few times I saw such ancient beads actually worn I did not even dream of ever coveting them, for I knew that they are rarely ever available for sale outside times of extreme distress. They are generally handed down from mother to daughter. When such beads leave the family, it is normally as part of the bride-price, and depending on how much they are coveted by the family of the bride, the string I was given could make up, with two ancient jars, half the dowry for a Murut girl.

The Cornelian beads belonged to the mother, together with some other, more recent beads, bangles, gold chains and earrings. These and other personal belongings were distributed between her direct descendants once the funeral rites were over. After long discussions amongst the father and his children, everybody received his share of the heirloom. I did not expect anything, still underestimating how serious the Murut are when they adopt someone in their family. The share - a very special one, for everybody else received gold - was a touching experience. Though there are no initiation rites that would mark one's integral acceptance into a Murut tribe (well, in olden days the taking of a human head might have done the trick...) this was to me the ultimate confirmation of my integration, and I know now the implications. Amongst the Murut I have my rights, but also my responsibilities, and without wanting to sound theatrical I accept these gladly, and will perform my duties whenever it is possible and within my powers.

Death

On the 20th of December 1999 I received a call from Keningau, from my elder brother, telling me that mother was dying. "Kami tunggu masa dia - we are waiting for her time," were his words, "bila kau pulang - when are you coming home?" The news was bad enough, but what struck me is that from all the Malay words he could have used to ask me to come and see them, he used 'pulang', meaning 'go home (to your parents place, where you belong to etc)'. It was the most intimate term he could have used, and the most personal, emphasising on the urgency of the case.

Not much later my younger brother Albert, stationed in Lahad Datu with the border police on the other side of the island, called me up to join him, his wife and son. They had just arrived at the airport, and on their way to town they picked me up. Together we took a taxi to Keningau.

Vaguely knowing what I was embarking on, I had nothing more with me than two t-shirts, a towel, and my tooth-brush: my standard equipment in my bag. But there was no time to drop by at my place, so I told myself that I liked travelling light anyway. We hurriedly proceeded to Keningau, where we arrived in the late afternoon. We went to the hospital at once, to see mother. When we arrived, and we were the last immediate family members to get there, mother opened her eyes for a last time. She was clearly conscious, but her body was so weak that she could not breathe without assisting apparatus. The tubes forcing air into her lungs made it impossible for her to talk. It were agonising moments, but the waiting for her do die was perhaps even more agonising, listening to the incessant pumping of the machine, and watching her bodily fluids drain out of her nose, in thin tubes.

When her heart ceased to beat at three thirty in the morning, the shock of her death was greater than anticipated. Most family members were present, and the hospital rang with cries and wailing.

She has died at the age of 51, succumbing finally to the cancer that the doctors had tired to remove a year ago. She leaves nine children, three of them not yet married, two not even yet 15 years old.

I found it quite remarkable that the hospital staff would let us be there at this time, in such numbers. Though there are strict visitors' hours, these seem to be the moments when the place is quietest. During all other times, the hospital is animated with families and friends of the patients, and the children's playground, strategically placed next to the maternity ward, is noisy until late in the evening. The hospital is very airy, and in all rooms there are large open window bays. Mosquito netting on the windows keep too much tropical insects at bay, but in all it is a very 'human' hospital, with nothing of that particular antiseptic smell and feeling penetrating everything, including mind and moral of patients, and visitors alike.

The husband and brothers had made arrangements virtually over the bed of the dying mother. When she finally passed away, things went unusually quick for the otherwise laid-back Murut. The body was transferred to the morgue, where a Chinese funeral undertaker and his assistant proceeded to embalm the body, preventing it from rotting too quickly in the hot climate. They also dressed her, and then laid her in a simple wooden coffin - at an exorbitant price. This was quite against the will of the mother, who would have liked to be buried in a traditional, hand hewn coffin made from the trunk of a hardwood tree. She had also requested that her body be kept in the funeral house of her ancestors - another wish which could not be granted. She had been married, and thus 'belonged' to her husband and was to be buried in his own cemetery.

When the sun rose at six in the morning, her body, still at the morgue, was presented to the ever-increasing flow of friends and relatives. There was much wailing and crying, and people tried to know what would happen next. Her body was to be transferred to Labang, the house of her father, and from there eventually to Tataluan. Albert could organise a Landrover through the police, for it needs a good off-road vehicle to arrive in Labang.

Carefully, the coffin was lifted into the back of the car, bedded on mattresses for the bumpy road, and covered with a tarp against the dust. The husband followed the coffin, and it must have been a most awkward journey, more so that he was tightly squeezed at the back with hardly any space to sit down properly, on a hard bench, with a dusty and bumpy road ahead. Starting at eight in the morning, it took them nearly the whole day to arrive in Labang.

Preparations

Someone organised a lorry, and as soon as the shops in Keningau were open, we went to buy food supplies. The lorry, usually transporting gravel, was soon spilling over with hundreds of kilograms of rice and sugar, packs of noodles, coffee, cooking oil and other foods difficult to get by in the jungle. There were also dozens of chickens and some guinea fowl, vegetables and a drum of fuel for the outboard engines of the boats and the generator set for electricity. The lorry could not go to Labang. Instead, all the supplies were brought to Sepulut, from where they were conveyed to Labang by boat, in a five-hour journey. There were about 10 boat (over-)loads.

A number of family members had cars and vans, and everybody tried to get a ride. I ended up with four of the brothers, with their wives and children. In all, we were 14 people in a Toyota Landcruiser, with luggage, but no life stock for a change. I was seated in the front, with one of the wives and her baby, breastfeeding, and a boy of seven on my lap. Only the driver was in the privileged situation and had no kids on his lap. When I twisted my head I looked at a maternity ward: three mothers shared the backseat, each with one bare breast to feed her baby, some more kids between their legs and Albert right behind me, also on the rear seat. Two more adults were sitting - or rather were folded away - with the luggage.

The car was in a bad state. Maintenance expenses had been avoided too long, and now several hundred Ringgits had to be spent to make the trip: a broken and particularly dangerous suspension had to be changed, the engine had to be overhauled, and two completely bold tyres had to be exchanged. This took more than half the day, and we only left Keningau in the late afternoon. As soon as we were on the dirt road leading into the interior it started raining. It was one of these tropical monsoon rains that drench everything immediately, and make the dirt tracks of the interior treacherously slippery. However atrocious these driving conditions in the overloaded car were, I offered to drive, partially because I had slept for three uneasy hours, which the others hadn't, partially because I was eager to have some space to sit... But I was soon again replaced by one of the elder brothers: I was driving too fast, and the ladies were afraid! I cannot understand their fear of speed (I certainly did not exceed 40 km per hour!). Even less can I understand that they can sit completely unaffected and fearless when the car swerves, glides and slides towards steep drops on either side of the road, and the driver is making more use of the clutch and brake than of the accelerator. The car even had the option of four-wheel driving, which was in working order - a small miracle. But then, four-wheel driving is something these people only use when the car gets really stuck in an unexpectedly deep and muddy pothole, or is already halfway down the ravine. Now and then again we were in some hair-rising close-disastrous situations, and my heart missed a few beats on that journey, but somewhen you stop counting the possible accidents. Instead, you start sending desperate prayers to whomever might listen to you, and you are grateful when you arrive in one piece.

We arrived shortly after midnight at the longhouse in Labang. The normally quiet village at this hour was wide awake with frenetic preparations for the funeral rites. A number of men were already dutifully drinking tapai.

After a short night, during which more cars and people arrived, a grey morning dawned to a gloomy day. A cow was slaughtered in front of the house, and by midday some one hundred people were served cow stew, sago and rice. Somehow the flow of food was constant, and the flow of people increased. They arrived by families, and each new arrival in the longhouse was soon acclaimed by the long, heart-rendering songs the Murut perform on the death of their people.

Albert was confused that his parents in law had not yet arrived, and we went on a three-hour journey down the river, hiked a car and found them in their village prepared for departure. They had had news of the demise of Albert's mother, but no transport. Their presence being a must, they reckoned that sooner or later someone of the family would pick them up. Soon we were back on the river with the entire family of Albert's parents in law.

All the relatives, close and remote, of the deceased have to attend the funeral. Some of the men have two and three wives. They all bring along their kids, some of whom are already married. They in turn bring their families and other relatives, which multiplies the number of persons exponentially. Parents in law of each married member of the direct family also need to be present at the funeral. They have to help in nature with the considerable expenses the rites entrain, too. The ladies work in the kitchen, and the men bring gongs and tapai, go hunting, and, seemingly most importantly, help to consume the sheer unbelievable quantities of tapai.

We returned to Labang in the afternoon, to find the longhouse bursting with people. But Albert assured me that this was nothing: "Wait until we get to Tataluan. There will be a lot of people, so many that there won't be enough space for everybody to lie down and sleep."

The next day I spent going up and down river, climbing slippery banks with rice-wine jars and other supplies, loading and unloading boats. We went all the way up to Tataluan, where the final ceremony was to be held. Tataluan has been abandoned a few years ago, and all its inhabitants moved to Labang and the surrounding areas, where they are closer to a school, and a clinic. However, important functions, like the different stages of marriage, birth and name-giving ceremonies and funerals of the people of Tataluan have to be held in the original longhouse. To this, the house had only recently been enlarged. The gallery was widened by the addition of an elevated sleeping platform some six feet wide. Not only does this look more authentic - the platform was an integral part of the traditional Murut longhouses - it also provides more space for the ever increasing family.

Some people had arrived two days ago, and cut the grass, reinstalled the water-pipe and made big fires in the kitchens to rid the house of its lesser desirable inhabitants of the insect kingdom. Amongst them was Lantir, and despite the work he found time to hunt. That evening we ate half a Samba deer, stewed to perfection, with a lot of wild chilly and lime. I was reminded that it was Christmas Day, and it was as perfect as it could have been, with a feast I'd travel around half the globe to taste it. Of course we were all urged to eat a lot, and I think I had almost an entire hind-leg by myself, and a few plates of rice. The Murut people literally stuff themselves when there is food - because tomorrow they might not be successful in hunting. I stuffed myself because I knew it would be long before I could taste such delicacies again.

We went back to Labang on a river eerily lit by the full-moon. The jungle was close and loud, but mysteriously black against the velvet sky. Being not particularly fond of white-water trips in leaking, overloaded, home-made longboats in the first place, this night-trip, where you can't see the danger ahead, added a new and exciting dimension of adventure to this sort of sport.

After the body had lain in state in Labang for two nights, and some outstanding bride-price had been settled, we could move to Tataluan. The reason why the body was kept in Labang was precisely of that old dept, which the second wife of the father of the deceased remembered very well. She had wanted an old brass gong, and now she insisted that the body be not moved until the gong was produced. It was an impressive testimony of how expensive a Murut bride can be, and how long you might have to pay for her. It may extend over her death. Brothers and sisters went about to look for the gong she wanted. Another unforeseen expense, but then a Murut funeral is an outrageous display of wealth, whether you have it or not.

The coffin was removed from the house under much clamour and wailing. It was slowly lowered down the steep banks of Labang. Rain had made the business particularly tricky, and some of the coffin bearers slipped into the water, under much laughter of the onlookers. However, great care was taken that the coffin took no harm, and it was safely placed into a boat. In a convoy of seven boats, the body was transferred to Tataluan. The journey took us about an hour, during which the gongs were beaten incessantly, and their dull but powerful rhythm, reserved for funerals, was heard above the outboard engines.

Funeral Practises

Everybody left Labang for Tataluan. They arrived in dozens of impressively overloaded boats - in tourist guides the very same boats are for 'eight adults and luggage'. I can assure you that they can be loaded with 16 adults (inclusive of the boatman) and as many kids, with luggage containing about all their possessions. Then you add two sacks of rice, half a dozen jars filled with tapai, a selection of gongs, a regular kitchen-sized gas cooker and its gas-tank, a couple of dogs, some chicken and other useful things you can think of. There is not much visible of the boat above the water, but that is not necessary. It is only important that the person bailing water is in Olympic conditions, and the boatman acutely aware where the dangers lie below the turbid surface of the river. Such boat trips are prayer time for me.

The normally abandoned longhouse sprang thus to life with such violence, and such force, that one had the impression it never had been abandoned even a single day. Immediately everything was in place, and everybody was working. Boats were unloaded, firewood was gathered, game was brought in, and food was prepared. It was not long and from seemingly nowhere entire families of chicken appeared under the longhouse. Life was complete, and it reminded me of the colourful accounts of how life was in mediaeval castles. At the height of the feast I tried to do a head-count. The constant movement made this impossible, but finally I estimated that there were some four to five hundred adults, and as many kids.

So many people together make some noise, and the confined, 50 yard long space of the longhouse gallery was not unlike an underground train-station during peak hours, only that in train-stations the transit of people is somewhat organised. There is rarely a minute of silence, especially not in the night, when the myriad of kids runs up and down the gallery instead of the riverbanks. To sleep in such conditions, there are two main solutions: you can drink until you drop. But then, curing a massive hangover trying to find some rest on the bouncing floor and under the hot tin roof of a longhouse during the day is not my preferred form of self-punishment. The other solution is to accept this breathtaking circus and display of exuberant life.

I, as member of the family, eventually had no other duties than drinking and mourning, and the distribution of cigarettes, with which I supplied myself generously before coming to the longhouse. This was, however, only a small part of my contribution. I was given a place to sleep in the family room in the longhouse, while many other relatives, and the guests slept in the gallery. Soon there were so many people that I had to recall Albert's words. Indeed, there was no more space for people to sleep, and even our room was often so filled with friends and relatives, that I stayed throughout the night drinking and partying. The Murut language has an ingenious word, which means 'drinking from the evening until the sun rises': angkatawang. There was a momentary panic - in which I did not believe - at the very beginning of the funeral: that there would not be enough tapai. The jars soon materialised as if by magic by the hundreds, and we could happily 'angkatawang' to our heart's content. In the middle of the gallery there was an ever self-renewing row of some 50 jars, and by the end of the eight days the rites lasted we had consumed more than four hundred jars, and killed every second day a cow. Every day the men came back from hunting with huge wild boars, deer, monkeys and fish. The extreme luck in hunting found a logical explanation, according to Murut belief system: the spirit of the deceased did not want her family and relatives to be in even more difficult situations than that of her death created; now she was aiding in hunting, and providing enough food to feed the congregation lavishly. Food was prepared over ever-burning wooden fires in the spacious kitchens, in enormous cauldrons, and it was served in pails and buckets. Punctually for mealtimes, three times a day the ladies would co-ordinate their appearance, and literally carry in piles of food, which would extend from one end to the other of the longhouse.

The room I was in, smack in the middle of the longhouse, was some kind of pivoting point, a passage for everybody, a waiting room, a meeting room, a place to rest, to change the babies' diapers, to discuss family matters and to eat. The impression of it being a passage was enforced due to the fact that our kitchen could conveniently be reached through a side entrance at the other end of the house and by crossing two other massive kitchens through some holes in the separation walls. This was a way to get relatively freely to the heart of the party (to the drinking row...) without having to step over people spread criss-cross in the gallery. Then there was another extension behind our kitchen, reached over a wooden bridge that was used as washing platform because there was a hole in the pipe providing water at most times. In the extension lived another two or so families, who also used our room as a passage. Planning houses without having to take into consideration the privacy of families, not to talk of individuals, makes building much easier.

The washing platform could also be used as a toilet in the night. That was about the only time when you could hope to have some private moments, which I find desirable especially for that particular business. Aiming sharply through one of the gaps between the planks of the bridge, more or less covered behind the half-rotten tree-bark wall of our hearth, one did as best as one could. Should someone have to use the bridge, and catch you unawares in your private affairs, then as an unspoken rule both parties would politely look the other way. The other option for that business was to go down to the river, where, with all those people, you'd always have some agreeable company. There was a mutual agreement as to where the ladies were to go, and where the men would squat, though in the night it was not always easy to find an appropriate spot. Best was indeed to go there with a friend, and discussing loudly the latest matters you'd sink your posteriors together into the cool river, without having to fear some unwanted intruder disturbing your harmony.

Days, nights, drinking, eating, everything became one after a few days, and I lost quite track of any notion of time. Spending most of the day in the longhouse, where it was constantly dim but relatively cool, I tired to stay far enough from the jars, but close enough to the food. I needed not worry. Everybody invited me to eat (and then to drink), so that I generally ended up having eaten six to seven times within 24 hours. Wearing loose sarongs, I realised only when I prepared myself for my return to 'civilisation' and put on my trousers, that I had gained some pounds!

It was on day eight that the burial ground was finally ready to accept the coffin. It was some kind of a 'new style' grave: a cemented box three feet deep in the ground, to be covered with a massive concrete slab. For the Murut, who traditionally do not inhume their dead, it was revolutionary, and gave rise to some discontented voices, especially because the deceased had not wished such a burial. But then everything changes these days. In olden days, and sometimes still now, a dead Murut is laid to rest in a huge jar, which, sealed, is displayed in the family grave-hut. This applies especially to those who still adhere to their own and original beliefs. Another way is to make a coffin from a hardwood tree, but these trees are becoming increasingly rare. Coffins made from the wood of belian are also stored in the burial hut. Modern coffins have to be sealed away in a stone-mausoleum, because the cheap wood they are made of tends to disintegrate very fast. The changes in life have come so fast over these people, that so far only three members of the original Tataluan Murut have been buried in such a way. I was also affirmed that this was an unnecessarily hurried funeral. Barely eight days the body was displayed, while in olden days, had someone died at the same time of the year, people would have waited until the end of the harvest, which was a month away. Sometimes a body was only removed from the house after an entire farming cycle - that was the most estimable way to honour the defunct, but sometimes also the only way. Since every family member has to be present during the funeral, and necessarily needs to be fed, the production of vast quantities of rice, meat and fish pickles, and of course tapai, had to be started with a new rice-cycle. During the time the body is kept in the house, the husband, or the wife, is not allowed to leave the house, not even down to the river to bathe.

Comparing traditional life-style, and considering the fast, often ruthless 'progress' it seems to me that there is a machinery behind the changes working for the obscure profits of a one-way consumer society. The Tataluan Murut have been asked to move to the present longhouse in 1969. When asked why, they state that the government wanted them to be closer so they could support and help them better. Indeed, Tataluan had a clinic, but that was only during a time when the Sabah Government was not yet fully controlled by West Malaysia, especially by the present Prime Minister. When the Sabah party lost out to West Malaysia, all support was withdrawn immediately. Curiously, this coincided with the moment when there was no more wood to be taken from the surrounding jungle. And just by coincidence, where the original longhouse of the Tataluan people was, there is now nothing left of the once lush forest. It becomes obvious that it was not only for better support, but for unhindered logging operations that the people were asked to move down-river! Then came the conversion to Christianity, and the prohibition to keep a body longer than seven days in the house. The reasons given for this measure were also to prevent the Murut from wasting their time, efforts and rice on month-long drinking sessions. This, of course, it was proclaimed, was only for their own good, because they should start saving money - but nobody told them why and for what, and what was to come. Not only do these rules encroach into the unique culture of the Murut, who have practised these customs for hundreds, if not thousands of years without bankrupting themselves. It prompts, above all, commerce in town, because in order to conduct the funeral rites immediately, the Murut not only have to buy a ridiculously expensive coffin, but, by a lack of time allowance, they have to buy, in most cases, rice and other food provisions in huge quantities. To this they have to take up loans, perhaps even sell heirloom jars. The loans get them in debt for years, and the lost jars make them poor forever. Under this aspect, traditional practices wreck people indeed, and make customs questionable, even and especially in the eyes of the concerned people. The ones who profit in the end are the funeral undertakers and shopkeepers, and the state. But it is clear that otherwise the government here would never get money out of the Murut, most of them belonging to the so-called hardcore poor who evidentially do not pay any taxes. And besides installing solar energy to give the people a reason to buy radios and TV's (so they can listen to shampoo advertisements even in the remotest corners of the country), the government has little means to definitively bind the Murut to its ideas, and insert them as dumb and cheap labour in a system and a new world of debatable benefits.

While the body is in the house, the spouse of the dead is not allowed to move from its side. He or she has to remain close to the coffin or jar, wearing white, and is not allowed to do anything, or to go out for any other purpose than relieving himself or herself. Bating is also prohibited, amongst a people taking a bath in the river twice a day a tough ordeal.

Burial

The removal of the body from the house, and its final journey to the graveyard, is the dramatic culmination of the ceremonies. Again and again the coffin is opened, so that everybody might get a last glance of the defunct. Depending on how long the rites lasted this might not be a pretty sight, though, I was told. When the coffin is lifted, ancient brass gongs are sound. They are beaten to an archaic rhythm as old as mankind. Their ominous, deep intonations are mysteriously mesmerising, and what to Europeans are the bells, to the people of Borneo are the gongs. But while the chime of the church bells is far away, exalting or moving, the sound of the gong, beaten amidst the people, is immediately seizing. It starts in the bowels. From there the vibrations mount to the heart, and clutch it firmly in its eternal rhythm, which finally ends up in the throat, grasping and threatening to choke. It is then when the hair-raisingly beautiful mourning songs, those dreadfully sad lamentations of the Murut sound again across the river. Losing themselves in the forest, they acclaiming loudly, sobbingly and heartrendingly the life of the deceased. It is instant chaos, where it is impossible to remain unmoved. Only the closest of the family follow the coffin to the grave, where those who have prepared the site wait to close the vault. Many people are working, and soon nothing but the heavy, fresh concrete slab under the freshly erected grave-hut remains. A few prayers are said, a few charms erected, and then the whole party goes back to the longhouse. There, on the bank of the river, the entire population awaits the group from the graveyard with plates and buckets, anything which can be used in throwing water, and an incredible water battle ensues. This is unique to the Tataluan Murut. With the water battle they break the spell of the funeral. They chase away any bad spirits that could have accompanied those from the grave. They break efficiently the gloomy mood of the affair, and soon everybody's face is lit up with a smile. The water battle is also the sign that all taboos that had to be observed for the past few days are now removed, and the swing in mood is palpable. Soon we were all back in the house, over the jars of tapai, but not as grieving congregation, but joyous gathering. Music is put on, and the people dance and are merry, of course the whole night through. It is difficult to stop Murut people from partying, especially after such a dreadful event, and the 'post-funeral' went on for another four days with the people still staying in the longhouse.

As for the family, the obligations are fulfilled. In the midst of the now happily partying people (on their own costs), it is discussed what heirloom is being distributed, and who gets what share. Those people who have arrived to help, and who have supported them in nature, like Albert's parents in law, are given jars and cloth, which had been brought by others especially for the funeral, and this purpose. The society still relies very much on family and exchange. In a closed circle, it becomes obvious that this system works perfectly. It was only when money, government and new religions started braking into this circle with all sorts of rules, regulations and hindrances that such a funeral is now a very costly affair, preventing people from 'developing' and 'succeeding' indeed.

Epilogue

Having nothing to do any more in town, the husband of the deceased is now staying at the longhouse in Tataluan, with a few others who hang generally out there, in the forest, hunting and, well, partying. They also have to look after the rice-fields, and it is now about time that they move with their entire family to live in a hut in the fields. The ladies weed, and the men hunt, and for many of my young friends this is the most glorious period of the year. More so because it is the perfect excuse for not being in town and working for a meagre salary in some dull factory.

Now, they are also making tapai, which will be drunk after the harvest, and then again on the hundredth day of the funeral. I am not only invited to go there, it is expected that I appear, and I obviously will not miss this opportunity of disappearing again for a week or so in the jungle. There is life. Not always an easy life, but a passionate, vibrant, exalting life.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Introduction My Christmas and New Year plans for last year had changed, quite abruptly and unexpectedly. Instead of celebrating what is closer to Roman Saturnalia - and more appropriate in 35 degrees Celsius than Jingle Bells, with the Rungus of the north of Sabah, I was urgently called to the death-bed of the mother of the Murut family that had accepted and adopted me some years ago.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
ETHNONYMS: Sabah Murut: Idahan, Tagal, Taggal, Tagol, Tagul; Sarawak Murut: Kelabit, Kemaloh Kelabit, Lun Bawang, Lun Daya, Lun Daye, Southern Murut

Orientation

The term "Murut" translates as "hill people," and refers to two culturally distinct peoples living between 5 20 and 3 20 N, in central Borneo. Linguistically, there are two main groups. The Sabah (or Idahan) Muruts speak a language that belongs to the North Indonesian Branch of the Austronesian Family, and numbered approximately 35,000 in 1972; the Sarawak (or Kelabitic) Muruts speak a language that belongs to the West Indonesian Branch of the Austronesian Family, and numbered approximately 5,000 in 1987. Though culturally distinct, the two groups share practices pertaining to warfare, burial, and religion.

Settlements

The Idahan traditionally lived in longhouse villages at the confluence of a river and a tributary; they now live in smaller longhouses that are spread out along the tributary, and there are no longer village centers. Kelabits inhabit fairly large longhouses (as long as 75 meters, and housing an average of 100 people), which are built in clusters on alluvial plains.

Economy

Idahan practice swidden agriculture, the most important crop being rice; corn, bananas, sugarcane, tobacco, citrus fruits, etc., are also grown. Wet-rice agriculture is practiced only by three lowland groups. Fishing is important, much of it being done with poison and traps. Idahan raise pigs as a form of wealth; they are used for sacrifices and to pay bride-prices and fines; dogs are raised for hunting. Kelabits, on the other hand, raise rice, primarily through the use of irrigated fields, and also produce large numbers of cattle. The baya is their system of labor exchange, in which groups of workers farm each other's land in turn. Surplus rice and cattle, as well as salt, are important items of trade. Kelabit families own parcels of wet-rice land individually.

Kinship

For the Idahan, the nuclear family is of paramount importance; the extended family has an undefined role. The Kelabits reckon descent ambilineally.

The Idahan prohibit marriage and sex between members of the nuclear family, with uncles, and with first cousins and their descendants for five generations. Formerly, first cousins who had sexual relations were speared to death, but such relations are now allowed if a payment is made. Polygyny is allowed. A prospective groom's father arranges the details of the betrothal and marriage with the prospective bride's family. His family should pay a betrothal fee, a bride-price, and the expenses of the wedding feast; with the exception of the bride-price (which may be paid much later), these fees are not mandatory. A man without a son may allow a daughter to marry without a bride-price if she and her husband care for him in old age. Residence is patrilocal. Kelabit marriages place a great deal of emphasis on social class; a man need pay a bride-price only when he is of low class and wishes to marry an aristocrat's daughter. There is no firm rule regarding postmarital residence.

Sociopolitical Organization

The Murut have no political unity above the village level. The Idahan once had three classes of slaves. A prisoner of war (the lowest class of slave) could become a member of the tribe as an ulipon. Marriage to another ulipon meant that the children would remain ulipon as well, and would also have to live with their owner. A slave's marriage to a free woman meant status as a debt-slave to his father-in-law, with whom he would have to live. Another salient feature of Murut social organization is the class distinction practiced by the Kelabits. There is a large distinction between "good" (Paran or aristocrats) and "bad" (low-class) people; this distinction is based on the amount of inherited wealth (jars, beads, gongs, etc.) a family has. The major difference between the two classes is that until recently the leading aristocrat had legal authority; in still earlier times, headhunting was a pursuit of the aristocrats as well. Presently, the Kelabit longhouse legal authority (Penghulu) is elected by popular vote.

Religion and Expressive Culture

Among the Idahan, women who know how to perform the required rituals may become spirit mediums ( babalian ) and do such things as curing and performing exorcisms of people and houses. Spirit mediums among the Kelabits, however, are old men who contact guardian spirits for advice about things such as rice planting. The Kelabits practice secondary burials. The death feast that accompanies the secondary burial is extremely expensive and takes place only every few years, usually on the occasion of the death of an aristocrat whose family can bear the expense for themselves (and for the poor, who take advantage of the occasion simultaneously to bury their own dead ritually). Kelabits are also known for their megalithic culture.

Bibliography

LeBar, Frank M. (1972). "Kelabitic Murut." In Ethnic Groups of Insular Southeast Asia, edited by Frank M. LeBar. Vol. 1, Indonesia, Andaman Islands, and Madagascar, 158-163. New Haven: HRAF Press.

LeBar, Frank M. (1972). "Murut." In Ethnic Groups of Insular Southeast Asia, edited by Frank M. LeBar. Vol. 1, Indonesia, Andaman Islands, and Madagascar, 153-154. New Haven: HRAF Press.

Prentice, D. J. (1972). "Idahan Murut." In Ethnic Groups of Insular Southeast Asia, edited by Frank M. LeBar. Vol. 1, Indonesia, Andaman Islands, and Madagascar, 154-158. New Haven: HRAF Press.

Saging, Robert Lian R., and Lucy Bulan (1989). "Kelabit Ethnography: A Brief Report." Sarawak Museum Journal 40:89-118.

DANIEL STROUTHES

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
ETHNONYMS: Sabah Murut: Idahan, Tagal, Taggal, Tagol, Tagul; Sarawak Murut: Kelabit, Kemaloh Kelabit, Lun Bawang, Lun Daya, Lun Daye, Southern Murut The term "Murut" translates as "hill people," and refers to two culturally distinct peoples living between 5 20 and 3 20 N, in central Borneo. Linguistically, there are two main groups.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The Murut people is known as a subgroup of the Kadazan-Dusun and their dressing is also similar with the Kadazan-Dusun. They are actually an ethnic group of Sabah, which is located at the northern corner of Borneo. In Sabah, the Murut people live close to the northern inland region. Majority of the Murut communities are actually located in the southwest interior of Sabah, specifically in the districts of Keningau, Tenom, Nabawan, Pensiangan, along the Sapulut and Padas Rivers. The name "Murut" is also known as 'the hill people' and the language that they used to speak in is called the Tagol Murut. Besides that, the Murut people are also known as a native ethnic group, which undertakes 29 sub-ethnic groups. As we know that, The Murut population are all located in Sabah and it is their largest community there, but there are also some who inhabit the rural areas in Limbang Division, which is located in Sarawak, and in Brunei, the Murut population can also be found in the Temburong district, which is one of their more populated places but due to some issues, their population was reduced in recent years.

As we can see from the Murut population in Sabah, there are almost around 140,000 of them, while in Brunei, there is almost around 1,500. The Murut people once supplied military might, not as a normal army but as a special army to the Sultans of Brunei and they were also determined as one of the seven aboriginal groups that are considered to be bumiputera in Brunei.

Besides that, most of the people describe the Murut people as a 'Pangait', also known as a silent headhunter, who were also known as 'hook' and they were the last of Sabah's ethnic groups to abdicate as headhunting in the late 60's. They usually collect the heads of foe and did beheading as it traditionally brings pride and the highest honor to a person in Murut heroism, which also serves as a very indispensable role in the Murut spiritual belief. For them, taking the heads of their foes actually served a very exact function in the Murut society. For example, a man of Murut can get married after he has presents at least one head that has been hunted to the family of the girl that he want.

Based on the Murut people who were born in both Brunei and Sabah, they are characterized as being Christian and Murut people who call themselves Christian are nominal believers. Among all the church member, there is a muddle of Protestant and Roman Catholic combinations. Based on the Brunei statistic expose, the Murut community has 30% of "tribal religionists", which are known as animists, 58% of Muslims and the others rest are Christian. Unfortunately, all of these numbers can bewildering since they are all counted as a household as having the same belief as the head of the household rather than individually.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Murut people is known as a subgroup of the Kadazan-Dusun and their dressing is also similar with the Kadazan-Dusun. They are actually an ethnic group of Sabah, which is located at the northern corner of Borneo. In Sabah, the Murut people live close to the northern inland region.

# data[].attributes.body
TRADITIONAL MELANAU WOODCARVING (BILUM) IN DALAT, SARAWAK
(Page 37-40)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Sarawak Cultural Village, showcasing the unique Melanau people or tribe who make up about 6% of Sarawak's population. Originally known as a-likou (People of the river), the current name Melanau was apparently given by one of the Sultans of Brunei in the 19th century. A legend some say of this. Broken into six different groups, there are the Melanau Mukah, Melanau Dalat, Melanau Oya, Melanau Matu-Daro-Rejang, Melanau Ba'ie (Bintulu), Melanau Balingian and Melanau Miri. Originally animist, most of the modern Melanau are now Muslims.

Sarawak Cultural Village - The Melanau Tall house

History states that the Melanau tribe were once seafaring people who lived by the coast and due to much pirate attacks, their homes began to get higher and some resulting in over 40 feet high. The Melanau peoples home is also called a Melanau Tall House. At the Sarawak Cultural Village, there is an exact original Melanau tall house on display. This is one of the last few homes of tribes you will see before exiting the village. (Update 2012: This is the last original Melanau tall house in Sarwak)

The Melanau Tall House is one amazing structure. It is built from single hardwood timbers used as stilts and as high as 30 to 40 feet, this skill is no longer used. Currently there are only about 2 or 3 actual Melanau homes like these left in Sarawak where one of them is here at the Sarawak Cultural Village.

Melanau people were once traditional fisherman, sago and padi farmers with some skilled boat builders but the current Melanau are no longer into the old skills. They live a common life like local Malays do in the towns.

I have to apologize as I lost some of the images from inside the Melanau House so you will not be seeing what it is like inside. It is similar to the other longhouses with different crafts and the house is two levels inside. On the left, you see me standing half way the 25 feet wooden stair leading up to the house.

The main stairs going up and down from the main entrance is also very unique. Apparently back in the day, when there were pirates attacking the Melanau, they would hurry everyone up to the tallhouse and then pull up the long timber staircase so no one could then come up. The main structural poles supporting the tallhouse would be greased so the attackers would have problems trying to climb up and thus giving the Melanau people a chance to counter attack the enemies from the top. Creative right?

Tibau swing in the foreground

One of the festivals that the Melanau celebrate is the Pesta Kaul (Kaul Festival, a thanksgiving to appease the spirits of farm, land, sea and forest) which is held around late March and early April. The main highlight of the Pesta Kaul is the Tibau, which is a giant swing about 20 feet high. Here, Melanau youth would dive down to catch a swinging rope in this daunting test of skill and courage.

Melanau bamboo dance

The Melanau people have a bamboo dance which is rather unique. You may get to see this dance performed by the Melanau people under the tall house during certain times so please check with your guide. They also perform this dance at the main cultural show. Finally, it is hard to miss this amazing tall house as it is the most prominent building in the entire Sarawak Cultural Village. Visit this site to learn more about the Pesta Kaul and Tibau.

You can also read about my other articles on each of the ethnic tribes found around Sarawak namely the Iban Tribe, Penan Tribe, Bidayuh Tribe and the Orang Ulu People. You can also visit the official website for the Sarawak Cultural Village.

Entrance Fee to the Sarawak Cultural Village

Sarawak Cultural Village Opening hours are:
0900 - 1715 daily

They are two Cultural Shows per day which are:
1130 - 1215
1600 - 1645

Sarawak Cultural Village Address;
Pantai Damai, Santubong,
P.O.Box 2632, 93752 Kuching,
Sarawak, Malaysia.
Tel: (6082) 846 411
Fax: (6082) 846 988
Email: enquiry@scv.com.my

If you are planning to visit Kuching or Sarawak, make sure you allocate one day to visit this amazing 'Living Museum' which is only about 45 minutes from town. It is an award winning attraction and has been around since 1989. One of the highlights of Borneo is the Sarawak Cultural Village.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Sarawak Cultural Village, showcasing the unique Melanau people or tribe who make up about 6% of Sarawak's population. Originally known as a-likou (People of the river), the current name Melanau was apparently given by one of the Sultans of Brunei in the 19th century. A legend some say of this.

# data[].attributes.body
(Page 3 (Pua Kumbu))

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Issuu is a digital publishing platform that makes it simple to publish magazines, catalogs, newspapers, books, and more online. Easily share your publications and get them in front of Issuu's millions of monthly readers.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Most Ibans are located in the Malaysian state of Sarawak. It is believed that the term "Iban" was originally an exonym used by the Kayans, who referred to the Sea Dayaks in the upper Rajang river region when they initially came into contact with them as "Hivan".

# data[].attributes.body
Part 6

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Back in Tambunan: The Monumpuli (Final Farewell)

# data[].attributes.body
Part 5

# data[].attributes.body
Part 4

# data[].attributes.body
Part 3

# data[].attributes.body
Part 2

# data[].attributes.body
Part 1

# data[].attributes.body
Point 4.

# data[].attributes.body
(Page 3-4)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
KOTA KINABALU, June 8 - Even though the person in front of us was clad in the traditional Kadazan gaung of a gold-trimmed black shirt and holding the spiritual kombuongo talisman, it was hard to believe this is a Bobohizan - the spiritual shaman or ritual specialist of the indigenous Borneo tribe.

For one, Adam Gontusan is not a woman.

Most Bobohizans are betel nut-chewing women with wrinkled faces and a wise disposition. Even standing against the authentic backdrop of a wood and bamboo hut in Monsopiad Heritage Village, at the heartland of the Kadazan people in Penampang, the 25-year-old Gontusan is hardly the picture of a traditional Bobohizan.

But modern technology, lifestyle changes and Western ideas over the decades have changed many traditions of this, the most populous tribe in Sabah.
Cultural keeper

The Bobohizan's role in the Kadazan community was a pivotal one.

They were doctors to the sick, advisors to the troubled, midwife to the pregnant, mothers to the community, mediator in conflicts, keeper of the culture but above all, the spiritual leader.

"They are essentially the expert on spiritual matters and ritual specialists. Kadazans beliefs are rooted to spirits in Nature and the Bobohizan is the medium between our world and that of the spirits... to maintain harmony between the two worlds," said Kadazandusun Language Foundation chief executive officer Rita Lasimbang.

"When matured, they are also the top of the social order, followed by the village chiefs and then the warriors," said Lasimbang.

To become a Bobohizan, years of "Bobohizan school" followed by even more years of apprenticeship are needed to permanently etch the many inait or ritual prayers in one's memory, along with cultural knowledge, beliefs and practices passed on orally and through observation.

The practitioners are most often women, as the men's primary job was to hunt while the women took care of the home.

In sub-ethnic groups like the Dusun Darat in Kota Belud, they are known as Bobolian, while to the Dusun Lotud in Tuaran, they are referred to as Tantagas. Their language and rituals may differ but they serve the same purpose.

"Before, people came to me for natural remedies, and I used plants my aunt and mother taught me about. Any reason they don't feel right, they come to us. Sometimes, people feel their departed relatives are still roaming the house and I have to 'meet' them to find out what is wrong," said a Tantagas from Tuaran, who declined to be named.

She said these requests have lessened over the years, although she was called upon to contact the spirit mountains following last year's deadly earthquake in June.

For the majority of Sabahans, the most they will see of the Bobohizan is the Magavau thanksgiving ceremony which plays out publicly at the uber popular state-level Harvest Festival.
Penampang's last hope for a Bobohizan

Gontusan had a typically middle class urban upbringing in the state capital, the second son of a cafe owner who brought the whole family to church every Sunday.

"Growing up in a Catholic family, I never thought I would end up doing this, but when you get a calling, you follow it," he said with a smile.

Gontusan's early mentor was the sixth direct descendant of legendary Kadazan warrior Monsopiad, the late Dousia Moujing and his wife, both of whom were Bobohizan during their time. But they, along with other elder Bobohizan in Penampang, were too old and not able to conduct any rituals or fully pass along their knowledge.

Still, he persisted and with the support of his family, is currently learning from a Bobohizan in Kimanis, a town about a 90-minute drive from Kota Kinabalu.

Gontusan, now the assistant cultural manager at the cultural village, used to get some flak for his unconventional undertaking but is often able to silence his critics by showing his old Kadazan language skills.

"Memorising the inait - prayers-is not easy, the language is old, complex, and there is a lot to memorise. But I am really into it," he said.

His services are mainly called on for rituals to rid houses or people who are being bothered by evil spirits and he has to conduct exorcisms - people no longer need help with herbal remedies or spiritual guidance.

A Bobohizan's tools are the kombuongo-strings of pellets made from a swamp grass where his personal guiding spirit or divato resides, the sindavang - brass instruments for a repetitive sound and his padang - a sword for protection.

Gontusan also covers himself in a black sarong while they chant and enter a trance where he is no longer conscious of his actions or conversation.

"When I start the ritual and enter the world of the spirits, I am no longer aware of what I am saying, and those around me have to listen in order to hear what conversations are taking place. It is also during chants that my third eye is opened and I can see spirits," he said.
A dying culture

Gontusan is one of two people in Penampang pursuing the art of the Bobohizan, a jarring comparison to its heyday when each village in Sabah used to have at least one.

"Actually, it doesn't bode well for the young ones, even if there is interest there are no senior Bobohizans left here from that era. In other districts, there are also few or no new learners left. The new generations might not get to know what a real Bobohizan can do," said Lasimbang.

Part of the reason of their rapid decline, both in numbers and significance, is the introduction of organised religion, be it Christianity or Islam over the decades which conflicts with the beliefs of Kadazan spiritualism.

Gontusan said the younger generation are also not interested in the beliefs of the old days, with so many other distractions of the modern world.

"It's also just not a big part of the lifestyle now, and a lot of work for not a lot of returns," he said.

However, Lasimbang has seen a revival of interest recently, as people are now eager to preserve their culture or at least marry it with their current beliefs.

"You see adaptations of some rituals and customs into their own faiths. For instance, on the 7 th day ritual, where family members of the dead switch off all lights and the spirit of the dead will return, Christians may still conduct the ritual but with a different meaning - like turning off the darkness and going into the light.

"You can say that we are at a transition period. Things are not so clear cut as people are adapting their new religion with older cultural beliefs. But we might see a new kind of belief emerging," she said.

In other districts, some of the Bobohizan are practising Christians and Muslims and somehow marry the two religions.

"I think this is the new generation. Before people used to condemn this practice as evil witchcraft. But now I see that they are beginning to relearn and appreciate this part of their culture.

"But I'm very happy to continue preserving this practice, even if I am the only one," Gontusan said.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Bobohizans: The shamans of Sabah teeter between old and new worlds | Malay Mail

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
KOTA KINABALU, June 8 - Even though the person in front of us was clad in the traditional Kadazan gaung of a gold-trimmed black shirt and holding the spiritual kombuongo talisman, it was hard to believe this is a Bobohizan - the spiritual shaman or ritual specialist of the indigenous...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
VIEW OF DEATH AND RITES AMONG THE KADAZAN PENAMPANG OF SABAH BORNEO MALAYSIA

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Ethnicity: Kadazan-Dusun, Chinese, Bajau, Malay, Bugis, Murut

First language/s: Kadazan-Murut, Bajau, Malay, Hakka, Cantonese, Murut, Mandarin

Religion/s: Animism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism

Most of Sabah's more than 3.5 million people can be considered as minorities within the context of the whole country, since they are for the most part non-Malay and are either indigenous (approximately 60 per cent), Chinese (about 9.1 per cent) or from ethnic groups originating from southern Philippines, Indonesia or other parts of Malaysia. Some of the largest minorities are the Kadazan-Dusun (about 17.8 per cent), Bajau (14 per cent), and Murut (3.2 per cent). These are in fact broad categories, with for example 13 main languages spoken within the Kadazan-Dusun grouping. About 500,000 people speak languages from four indigenous language families: Bajau, Dusunic, Murutic or Paitanic. Around 5.7 per cent are ethnic Malays.

There is a great diversity within these numerous indigenous and other minority communities. The Kadazun-Dusun, for example, traditionally lived in longhouses and planted rice on the fertile hills and plains of Sabah, as well as conducting some nomadic swidden or shifting agriculture. A majority of Kadazun-Dusun are now Catholics or animists, and some have converted to Islam, but some of their ancestral animistic beliefs are maintained in festivals such as the Pesta Kaamatan, or Harvest Festival. Younger generations have moved away from many of these traditions and some occupy prominent professional posts.

The vast majority of Bajau are Muslims, and like the Kadazun-Dusun are a grouping of distinct ethnic groups who share related linguistic and cultural origins. They were, until very recently, a nomadic, seafaring people, possibly originating from the southern Philippines, who are sometimes referred to as Sea Gypsies, practically living on their boats, the lepa-lepa. This traditional way of life has for the most part disappeared as many now live in settlements on the west coast, particularly around Mengkabong and Tempasuk.

The Murut also bring together a number of other ethnic groups and speak 15 distinct languages which belong to the Murutic branch of the Austronesian family of languages. They tend to be concentrated in the south-west interior of Sabah and, as the term Murut indicates, they are traditionally 'hill people'. Many Murut have converted to Christianity, though some have more recently converted also to Islam, and occupy various official and prominent professional posts.
Historical context
Much of the interior of Sabah remained relatively untouched for centuries under the sway of nominal rulers in neighbouring Brunei. Islam itself was a late arrival, starting from about the early fifteenth century when the Malacca empire entered the Muslim world and spread its influence into Borneo. This led to the establishment of a Sultanate in Brunei which controlled all of Borneo at its high point. Sabah, in the northern part of Borneo, was to be controlled later by the Sulu Sultanate, and eventually pass to the control of the British North Borneo Company in 1881. It became a British protectorate in 1888, then the colony known as North Borneo in 1946, before eventually joining the Malaysian federation in 1963 as Sabah.

The demographic importance of Sabah's indigenous communities allowed their representatives to play significant political and legal roles soon after independence, with one political party associated with the Kadazan-Dusun, the United Pasok-Momogun Kadazan Organization, governing Sabah from 1963 to 1967, and another, the Parti Bersatu Sabah, also able to rule from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s. This in turn ensured that these communities have had extensive legal and constitutional provisions to guarantee - at least to some degree - traditional land rights and customary law.

The relative political strength of the indigenous population began to weaken from the 1980s due partially to internal divisions within and between the various indigenous-affiliated parties. Additionally, the Malay and Muslim segments of the population are increasingly on the ascendant, not least following an influx of perhaps as many as a million Muslims - many of them from Indonesia or the Philippines - into Sabah, which has tipped the ethnic balance in the state and which seems in recent years to have shifted political power away from indigenous peoples.
Current issues
Refugees and illegal immigration - arguably facilitated and even encouraged by state authorities - have altered Sabah's ethnic composition to such an extent that indigenous peoples are in effect being politically marginalized and, as a consequence, their rights relating to landownership and resource allocation have been increasingly watered down in recent years.

By permitting an influx of perhaps more than a million Muslims from the southern Philippines and Indonesia from the 1990s to settle and acquire voting rights (even if their presence is not always admitted in official figures) the current government under the UMNO (United Malays National Organization) party has ensured its political domination over Sabah since it derives most of its support from Muslim groups. Indigenous non-Muslim peoples such as the Kadazan-Dusun, Muruts and Chinese are declining into demographic and political insignificance, while Muslim groups have become dominant both in demographic and political terms. Indonesians are thought to have only constituted about 5.5 per cent of the population in 1960 but represented 21.3 per cent in 1990. Estimates suggest that the figure is much higher today, though these figures do not necessarily include all illegal immigrants.

Though in theory indigenous peoples in Sabah are supposed to benefit from some of the programmes for Bumiputeras, the trend has been for authorities to direct these mainly towards the now dominant Malays and Muslims. Indigenous peoples and non-Muslim minorities such as the Chinese are clearly under-represented in the political and economic arenas.

Customary landownership has also been weakened and is increasingly threatened. Since the mid-1990s, when a political party connected with indigenous peoples last lost power in the State of Sabah, the land rights of indigenous peoples theoretically protected under the Sabah Land Ordinance 1930 and the Sarawak Land Code have increasingly been restricted or set aside for logging and other development activities. Large tracts of native customary land have been included in forest reserves for which logging concessions are awarded - usually without the knowledge of indigenous peoples. Though in theory the land should eventually revert to indigenous communities, recent cases, for example in Tawau, demonstrate that they are instead often used for other purposes, such as by other government agencies, or sold to corporations for plantations.
Updated January 2018.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Indigenous peoples and ethnic minorities in Sabah - Minority Rights Group

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Ethnicity: Kadazan-Dusun, Chinese, Bajau, Malay, Bugis, Murut First language/s: Kadazan-Murut, Bajau, Malay, Hakka, Cantonese, Murut, Mandarin Religion/s: Animism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism Most of Sabah's more than 3.5 million people can be considered as minorities within the context of the whole country, since they are for the most part non-Malay and are either indigenous (approximately 60 per cent), Chinese (about 9.1 per cent) or from ethnic groups originating from southern Philippines, Indonesia or other parts of Malaysia.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A long time ago, Kadazan culture believed in arranged marriages, as the children in the olden days did not have money or dowry required to get married like today, making them highly dependent towards their parents for choosing a lifetime partner for them. Initially, the parents from the young man side will go visit the family of a prospective bride and discuss to wed their son to the future bride. The parents of the bride will be left to consider the proposition, sometimes they will ask for a picture of their future son-in-law. Most importantly, they will want to know if the young man's family will be able to come up with the required nopung (which means dowry).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Get to know the Indigenous Kadazan People of Borneo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A long time ago, Kadazan culture believed in arranged marriages, as the children in the olden days did not have money or dowry required to get married like today, making them highly dependent towards their parents for choosing a lifetime partner for them.

# data[].attributes.body
(Page 3-4)

# data[].attributes.body
"Uprooting the village is just the start of a hugely elaborate burial ritual, in which the body is brought by procession to a hut, similar to the ones in the village, but constructed in a tree some 50 metres high. The body is covered and left with its possessions alongside it, together with food for the spirits. It is then left undisturbed for two to three years, upon which time the village returns to procure a bone from the skeletal remains. This is then buried, so returning the family member to the forest."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I am back in primary rainforest in peninsular Malaysia looking for an indigenous group called the Batek (or Bateq). The Batek are one of Malaysia's 133,000 Orang Asli, which simply means 'original people' in Malay. Of the Orang Asli there are three groups, further divided into 18 ethnic sub-groups, representing 0.5 per cent of the national population. Interestingly, despite their small number, the Orang Asli are not homogenous. Each group has its own language, culture, traditions and, to a certain extent, architecture. Yet as urbanisation intensifies, it pits traditional and modern lifestyles against each other. Many Orang Asli have now left their ancient tribal heartlands to live and work in urban areas.

However, the Batek still follow a nomadic lifestyle. As with other tribal groups, urbanisation, development and the logging of their traditional habitats has resulted in their numbers falling and has pushed them deep into the protected national park of Taman Negara. There are an estimated 750 remaining Batek living in this dense rainforest in an area over twice the size of London. The best way to access the remote region is by water, down the Sungai Tembeling river on a traditional wooden long boat. The journey is lengthy, but it offers the chance to contemplate the density and vastness of the rainforest.

The two main tribes in the area have built around 20 villages between them. I am with a local Malaysian man called Musa who spent three months living with one family group in a village near the river's edge. This group is the object of my visit. Musa tells me he had planned to live there for six months, but found the lifestyle too hard and left. Not much is happening in the village when we arrive. It is hot and the men and boys are resting on bamboo benches. The women and girls are all inside; only curious heads poking out indicate their presence.

The village comprises about a dozen huts, all of which are rectangular in plan and raised on stilts. The settlement is oriented parallel to the river in a sandy, man-made clearing. The raising of the huts is nothing to do with the proximity of the river but rather to encourage air movement beneath the building. Humidity here ranges from 30 to 90 per cent and to counter this, the men wear little clothing. The shape and size of the huts are determined by the limited roof-span and by palm widths. The structure is made from assorted hardwood branches lashed together, while the walls are bamboo, which is hammered flat and held in place by two sticks on either side. Roofs are pitched and overhang the bamboo walls.

It is heartening to see that, despite interaction with people from the nearby Malaysian village, corrugated metal sheeting hasn't yet reached the Batek. Instead all the roofs are constructed in atap, traditional leaf thatching. Leaves are removed from the plant's spine and re-sewn into a tile. Batek women, who are taught to weave from an early age, make all the roofs. The men make the huts and have been trained to do so since being given machetes when still young. I ask why the men can't make the roofs and am told they are too hasty in the sewing and leave holes. I am also told that it takes one day to build a hut. I reply that I've been working on a house that has been on site two years.

One end of the village acts as its communal heart. Here there is an open-sided hut for shelter from the sun and rain along with an impressive bamboo table for communal dining. Virtually everything in the village is shared, including the food, whether it has been hunted or gathered. Food is divided for the entire village with immediate family receiving portions first, then the extended family, then other families. When game is caught (such as monkey), members of the hunting party eat the offal and tail first, because these parts are the fastest to cook. Then the meat is divided so that each family in the camp gets some, with portions adjusted according to the size of the family. As with most tribes, the sharing of resources is not an act of kindness, but born of necessity.

The Batek also believe that all food belongs to the forest, so a person in possession of food has a moral duty to share. In addition, upsetting someone in the village may not only cause anger among the community but also to the spirits. The fear of supernatural reprisal is enough to ensure the Batek are a peaceful society. This also explains the social importance of communal meals and the grand bamboo dining table, complete with bamboo benches large enough to cater for the entire village. Bamboo is tied together using bark lashing to form benches, while the table top is constructed from flattened bamboo similar to the walls of the huts.

Although there is little activity in the village, soon there will be a mass exodus as the village relocates to another site. Though this may seem strange to us, the Batek have no concept of land ownership. Rather, they are just stewards, looking after the land. So they have no difficulty in moving every five months to allow the forest to replenish. All Batek are animists, without organised or codified religious beliefs. Instead they see the world, especially the river and jungle, as being animated by spirits. It is the respect for the spirits that command the entire village to move if someone dies. The departed are very important and are considered to act as intermediaries between this world and the next.

Uprooting the village is just the start of a hugely elaborate burial ritual, in which the body is brought by procession to a hut, similar to the ones in the village, but constructed in a tree some 50 metres high. The body is covered and left with its possessions alongside it, together with food for the spirits. It is then left undisturbed for two to three years, upon which time the village returns to procure a bone from the skeletal remains. This is then buried, so returning the family member to the forest.

Although sharing is at the heart of village life, some items are considered personal property, such as a blowpipe for men, or a hair comb for women. The blowpipe is a work of art, hollowed from two trunks of young palm using monkey bone tied to rattan. Once hollowed, a piece of cane is used to make the smooth barrel bore. Resin seals the mouthpiece. The darts are made from pine leaf, which is thin and flexible. The dart's plug creates an airtight seal. The tips are then dipped in a natural poison that can paralyse and kill a man. With monkeys watching from the trees, a villager demonstrates how it's used. Amazingly he's accurate to the millimetre from a distance of over 30 metres.

The duties of the men here are simple: make huts (without roofs), make blowpipes, go hunting and mate. Mating is done solely from within the village and the family units are large. When the family expands, the huts aren't extended as in the longhouses of other parts of the Malaysia. Instead the village just makes a new hut, as it only takes a day. Apparently having eight children or less is to be seen as a lazy man. I'm asked how many children I have - I have none. I'm made to feel very lazy.

Other personal items are acquired through interaction with the local Malaysian village. One boy, dressed in more westernised clothing, shows me where the food is cooked and how the fire is started. He uses two carved sticks and when one breaks, pulls out a classic red Victorinox Swiss Army knife and carves another. After some considerable effort the tinder is glowing and he tries igniting dried palms. When this fails he pulls out an old lighter and sets the lot on fire. Inevitably, the Batek way of life is changing, but not as hugely as it might be. Except for a few pieces of man-made tarpaulin, Batek architecture remains as it has been for thousands of years. There is no design here, so development is slow. Changes only occur when present solutions fail. Then the problem is tackled on a one-to-one scale using whatever is at hand.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Exploring Eye: The Batek tribe of Malaysia and their architecture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I am back in primary rainforest in peninsular Malaysia looking for an indigenous group called the Batek (or Bateq). The Batek are one of Malaysia's 133,000 Orang Asli, which simply means 'original people' in Malay. Of the Orang Asli there are three groups, further divided into 18 ethnic sub-groups, representing 0.5 per cent of the national population.

# data[].attributes.body
“It is their belief that the burial of a family member, particularly one who has died of an unknown disease, should be done far away from their homes, such as in the jungles, as they do not want their souls or other ‘bad things’ to return,”

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
GUA MUSANG: MORE than 16,000 Orang Asli from four tribes call Kelantan their home, and the majority of them practise age-old customs, especially when it comes to funeral rites.

Sources said of the majority, some 14,275 are from the Temiar tribe while the rest are from the Jahai (788), Batek (738) and Mendriq (367) tribes.

Sources said most of them lived in settlements in the interior parts of the state, such as Jeli and here.

"The Batek tribe is the third biggest indigenous community in Kelantan and most of them are still practising their old traditions, such as funeral rites.

"It is their belief that the burial of a family member, particularly one who has died of an unknown disease, should be done far away from their homes, such as in the jungles, as they do not want their souls or other 'bad things' to return," said one source.

The source said the Orang Asli believed that "bad creatures" would not disturb other villagers if the bodies were placed deep in the jungles.

However, not all Orang Asli tribes practise the same customs and traditions as the Batek tribe.

"Each Orang Asli tribe will have their own customs which they will follow and many of these customs are different from other tribes," said a source.

Former Temiar village head Ramli Lanas said his tribe did not bury their dead in the jungles even if the person had died of disease.

He said what had happened with the Batek tribe in Kuala Koh should serve as a lesson for the Orang Asli in Sungai Rual, where his village was located.

"I told them (his villagers) that they need to follow basic hygiene rules in their daily activities and to ensure the river water that they take for consumption is boiled first," said the 54-year-old.

Health officers continue to carry out checks on the Orang Asli, especially children, at the Aring Health Clinic and the Kuala Koh settlement.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
GUA MUSANG: MORE than 16,000 Orang Asli from four tribes call Kelantan their home, and the majority of them practise age-old customs, especially when it comes to funeral rites. Sources said of the majority, some 14,275 are from the Temiar tribe while the rest are from the Jahai (788), Batek (738) and Mendriq (367) tribes.

# data[].attributes.body
"As for funeral rites, Dam said the body was neither buried nor cremated but left inside a shelter which is then placed on top of a tree, about 40 metres above the ground, deep in the jungle."

“After some years, we will return to the place to see if the skeletal remains are in the shelter or have fallen to the ground. If they have fallen, then the departed person had committed a lot of sins,”

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
JERANTUT, March 16 - Besides its dense 130 million-year-old virgin rainforest, Taman Negara's Orang Asli community is also a unique attraction for visitors to the park.

These indigenous people belong to the Batek tribe - a nomadic group of hunter-gatherers - and they are a shy lot, as this writer found out during a recent visit to the national park by media members and tour operators, organised by Han Rainforest Resort in collaboration with Tourism Malaysia.

Arrangements were made for us to visit the biggest Batek settlement, Kampung Orang Asli Dedari, in Taman Negara, which is located close to Sungai Tembeling and only accessible via boat from Kuala Tahan.

About 10 families live there and the minute our group arrived, the children and women scampered off into their huts, which are made of branches, rattan and bamboo.

They were obviously bashful about meeting outsiders but, fortunately, their "Tok Batin" or headman, who only identified himself as Sena, was more friendly as he is probably used to meeting tourists.

Taman Negara is home to an estimated 1,000 members of the Batek tribe, and while some of them have settled in permanent communities, others still move from one temporary dwelling place to another, mostly located not far from their "lifeline", Sungai Tembeling.

For their food supply, the Batek are largely dependent on forest produce, such as fruits, yams and small animals like monkeys and squirrels which are hunted with a blowpipe.
Forest, their 'supermarket'
Like his fellow Batek, Sena, 48, is dark-skinned and short in stature and has a round face and thick curly hair. None of the children at his settlement attend school and they spend their days helping their parents to hunt, fish and pluck fruits.

The Batek have their own language but, explained Sena, the village headman had to be someone who could converse in Malay and have the ability to identify and collect useful herbs from the forest.

He said his community preferred to lead a simple and peaceful life, where the men go hunting and fishing while the womenfolk cook and look after the children.

He said their daily sustenance included shoots and herbs like ' umbut' and 'bayas', and tubers like 'ubi takup' and 'ubi keluna'.

"On some days, we only eat rice and we find this delicious too... we're poor and we only get to earn some money on and off," said the father of nine, who has been the Tok Batin for 16 years.

He said ever since tourists started stopping by at his village a few years back, he and his fellow villagers have been able to earn a small income by demonstrating how to make a fire without the use of matches and how to use a blowpipe. The women make bangles and necklaces out of rattan and bamboo for sale to tourists.

"Sometimes we make about RM200, which can last us for two months," said Sena, adding that the money was used for welfare purposes or to buy rice and meat.

He also complained that his people were often cheated by traders whenever they went to the nearest town by boat to buy rice or other foodstuffs.

"When they give a RM100 note for a bag of rice, they (shopkeepers) don't return their change to them. They are taking advantage of us because we don't know how to count."
Rituals
The Batek are animists and do not subscribe to any organised religious beliefs. As far as they are concerned the rivers and forests are animated by spirits, for which they have great respect.

According to Sena, their households have two stoves - one for cooking the meat of animals hunted from the forest and the other for preparing meat purchased at the market.

"It's our belief that we would be struck by heavy rain and thunderstorm if we use the same stove to cook both kinds of meat," he said.

The Batek do not believe in having elaborate celebrations for weddings or other functions. Dam, 43, who also lives in Kampung Orang Asli Dedari, said an unmarried man was considered ready for marriage if he could prove that he was a good huntsman. Each young man is given a blowpipe and after each successful hunt, the headman carves a line on it.

"If a man has many lines carved on his blowpipe, then it's proof that he is ready to get married and have children," said Dam, who has four children.

And, before a couple tied the knot, they would have to spend a night together in a house, he said, adding this was a "test" and that if one of them was not in the house the next morning, the marriage would be called off.

"We want to test their love for each other," he said, adding that the Batek men and women were very loyal to their spouses and would not remarry if their partner died.

As for funeral rites, Dam said the body was neither buried nor cremated but left inside a shelter which is then placed on top of a tree, about 40 metres above the ground, deep in the jungle.

"After some years, we will return to the place to see if the skeletal remains are in the shelter or have fallen to the ground. If they have fallen, then the departed person had committed a lot of sins," he explained. - Bernama

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Taman Negara Batek tribe rooted in simple existence | Malay Mail

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
JERANTUT, March 16 - Besides its dense 130 million-year-old virgin rainforest, Taman Negara’s Orang Asli community is also a unique attraction for visitors to the park. These indigenous people belong to the Batek tribe - a nomadic group of hunter-gatherers - and they are a...

# data[].attributes.body
(Page 6)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
“THIS FOREST IS OUR SUPERMARKET” COMMUNICATING SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH THE LENS OF BATEK

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Merapoh is a small Malay village in Pahang. It is home to an alternate entry point to the world's oldest rainforest, Taman Negara. However, did you know that it is also where you can find an indigenous Batek tribal community? The Batek are one of 3 main tribal groups within the Orang Asli, a Malay phrase meaning 'original people'. There are around 12 Batek settlements in Malaysia currently, with many still living in close proximity to the rainforest their ancestors called home. Although each separate population holds their own traditions and practises, their core beliefs remain the same. Even with times changing the Batek have managed to adapt whilst still protecting their unique culture and traditions. Primarily their connection with the rainforest. After years of collaboration with the incredible Kampung Becak Kelubi Batek through the Merapoh Rainforest Station, their culture is very close to our hearts. From my personal experience of working with the Batek, I hope to paint a picture of this fascinating society through a few interesting facts that we bet you didn't know!
They are traditionally nomadic jungle dwellers

Historically the Batek are a hunter-gatherer nomadic tribe. Their spiritual views tie their existence to the rainforest, and so traditionally they led their nomadic life in the jungle. The Batek are the original conservationists! They appreciated the rainforest and all that it provided them with, moving periodically through the forest so to not deplete resources and allow the rainforest to regenerate. Although they no longer permanently reside in the rainforest, the Batek environmental views are still the same.

Men and women are seen as equal

Unlike many hunter-gatherer communities, the Batek are highly egalitarian. This describes a general equality between the sexes. Men and women are both equal food providers for the community and either sex can hunt or gather. This view even spreads to marriages, with free choice of partners and equal decisions within the partnership. Furthermore, in the Batek language boys and girls that haven't reached puberty yet are simply called 'child'. There aren't any words for 'boy' or 'girl', and all children regardless of sex are treated the same.

The Batek believe in forest spirits

Unlike their Malay neighbours, the Batek reject Islam. Instead they have a unique way of viewing their world, mainly through Animism. This is the belief that all objects, places and creatures possess a spiritual energy. Their views are particularly connected to the forest spirits. Members of their community even wear flowers in their hair as a sign of respect when venturing into the rainforest.

They are known as the 'peaceful tribe'

As mentioned before, every member of the Batek is viewed as an equal and they don't believe in violence to settle problems. Therefore, any conflict between members is solved in the least confrontational way possible. If two members fall out, they try to sort out their problems themselves and if not possible, share their views with the community. Historically if conflict persisted, both members would temporarily leave the community till the problem is resolved, to maintain peace between their people.

The Batek conduct spiritual practises in the rainforest

Batek superstitions and practises vary between populations, but all link back to their animistic views. The Betak Kelubi community for instance practise respect for all living organisms in the rainforest and belief that if even a leech is harmed in any way, it will rain in retaliation. This communities' spiritual views also involve rainforest rituals. For example, whilst trekking, a Bidan (Batek elder) was seen deliberately making a cut on her hand, dipping it in a river and then flinging the water in the air, in the belief that this will stop the thunderstorm.

They speak a unique language

The Batek language is another fascinating part of their culture. It is purely spoken and not written, and is completely distinct from Malay. It has many dialects depending on the group, with some dialects considered different enough to be separate languages. Finally, like with most of their beliefs, the Batek's appreciation for nature and all living organisms is seen even in their language. For instance in the Betak Kelubi community, 'les' means ant, with a choice of about 20 words used after 'les' to distinguish the particular type of ant.

I have had an amazing experience learning about the Batek culture and history whilst interning for Ecoteer. If interacting with this incredible group yourself and experiencing their community life first hand sounds like something you might be interested in, have a look at our volunteer and internship opportunities at the Merapoh Rainforest Station.

Alternatively contribute to our fundraiser to help fund a permanent teacher for the Merapoh Batek community!
Photography by George Brill - Teacher Intern

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
All You Need to Know About the Indigenous Batek Tribe of Malaysia - Blog

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Merapoh is a small Malay village in Pahang. It is home to an alternate entry point to the world's oldest rainforest, Taman Negara. However, did you know that it is also where you can find an indigenous Batek tribal community? The Batek are one of 3 main tribal groups within the Orang Asli, a Malay phrase meaning 'original people'.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
KOTA BARU: The indigenous Batek people, in the Negrito category, (oldest ethnic group on the Malay peninsula) found mostly in Kelantan, Terengganu and to a certain extent in Pahang since 100,000 years ago, are renowned jungle experts.

Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK) Poverty Research and Management Institute director, associate professor Dr Wan Ahmad Amir Zal Wan Ismail said the Batek people were closely linked with the jungle to enable them to hunt and gather jungle produce in line with their life as a hunter-gatherer community in peninsula Malaysia.

He said the Batek people would normally enter the jungle together with several other family members and stayed in temporary tents called "haya" built along the Kuala Koh River.

''The period of stay in the tents are temporary and do not have a fixed time. Whether for a one month period, a week or shorter than that. Subsequently, they move to new locations,'' he said when contacted by Bernama here today.

He said that among the considerations to relocate were accessibility of jungle resources including quantity, or the distance to the temporary placements. Normally, the Batek people would not enter the jungle and build temporary shelters during the monsoon season, namely, between October until December, and sometimes until January.

Wan Ahmad Amir Zal said Batek males would forage deep into the jungle for bamboo, ratan, resin, agarwood, honey, frogs and other jungle resources.

Meanwhile, the womenfolk stayed with their children in the "haya" and also actively sought certain jungle resources including food and herbs.

He said the Batek women were very knowledgeable about the herbs in the jungle and it was normal for the men to often quiz them on the names of the herbs and their applications.

''As such, the Batek ethnic group is known for its intimacy with the jungle and expertise in jungle herbs compared to two other indigenous people in Kelantan, namely, Temiar and Menderiq,'' he said.

According to his study, titled "Empowering the Economy of the Batek Ethnic group in Kelantan" in 2012, the Batek people were also known as Batik, Ngok and Batek Herb which all meant the people of the jungle.

"But it does not mean, they don't stay in one place like other communities. The Batek people are beginning to put down roots in placements set up by the government through several development programmes, including the giving of houses through the Hardcore Poor Housing Programme.

"It is more suitable to categorise them as a semi-nomadic community. They put up at certain places including building and having their own houses. But at the same time they enter the jungle and move along the river banks for extended periods by building temporary shelters and foraging for jungle resources for use and to sell outside," he said.

He said the Batik people moved from place to place via river using rafts from bamboo or fibreglass boats.

"They use rafts for most activities, not only to relocate but also as means of entertainment for the Batek children," he said.

In the meantime, he said the Batek people did not explore the jungle arbitrarily to obtain jungle resources.

He said the group were knowledgeable of their jungle surroundings and could retrace locations which they had visited previously despite the absence of clear markers.

He said the Batek people also still used the blowpipe as their main hunting weapon to down squirrels, birds, monkeys and other animals.

"Their value of total reliance on the jungle renders them invulnerable to the pressures of normal and routine needs as they believe that the jungle will provide without fail," he said.

The Batek in Kelantan first received public attention after two of their members died believed to be from pneumonia from early last month.

Currently, 50 Batek people were reported to be still being treated at three hospitals in the state, namely, Gua Musang Hospital (37), Kuala Krai Hospital (12) and the Intensive Care Unit of the Raja Perempuan Zainab II Hospital, Kota Baru (one). - Bernama

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
KOTA BARU: The indigenous Batek people, in the Negrito category, (oldest ethnic group on the Malay peninsula) found mostly in Kelantan, Terengganu and...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The Batek (or Bateq) are an indigenous people (currently numbering about 1,516) who live in the rainforest of peninsular Malaysia. As a result of encroachment, they now primarily inhabit the Taman Negara National Park. They are nomadic hunters and gatherers, so the exact location of theirsettlements change within the general confines of the area that they inhabit.

The common phrase used to refer to them, 'orang asli', signifies a diverse group of which the Batek tribe is a part. It means 'original people' in Malay and was probably first used to identify these people by Austronesian-speaking settlers who arrived by boat from the islands of Southeast Asia. The Batek people were first documented by Europeans in 1878, when explorer-naturalistNicholai Miklukho-Maklai of Russia wrote about them.

Until about 1970 much of inland peninsular Malaysia was difficult to reach for the purposes of logging, so the Batek were widespread throughout that region. Since it is now possible to harvest the trees in that region, the Batek are pretty much confined to Taman Negrara National Park and the surrounding region.

Language

The Batek language belongs to the Aslian branch of the Mon-Khmer language family.

Way of life

The Batek normally live in familial groups, in tents and lean-tos, with about 10 families forming an encampment. Each encampment generally has control of the land immediately around it, but since the Batek do not believe in the concept of private land ownership, the encampment considers it to be the caretaker of the land, rather than its owner. Also since they are nomadic once most of the usable wild plant resources have been depleted from a given location they will move to another spot, within their habitat.

The Batek economy is very complex, with some things such as land, having no right of ownership. Somethings where there is a personal property right, but social norms dictate that it be shared with the entire society such as food that is found by foraging. There are some things that are considered personal property, such as a man's blowgun, or a women's hair combs.
Source: http://www.mixhart.ca/blog/?p=480
Batek are a peaceful society. If a member of the group has a conflict with another member of the group they will discuss the matter privately. If that does not end the disagreement, each will publicly share their side of the argument in an attempt to have other members of the camp suggest a resolution. Since each adult member of the camp is equal, there is no internal leader or adjudication system so one or both of the aggrieved parties will leave the camp until cooler heads prevail.

Sharing

It is a moral obligation for Batek to share food for which they have acquired. Normally the person who harvests the food item will first give to their immediate family, then their extended family and finally the rest of the camp. If everyone is giving to everyone else, a family who is down on their luck will still have food to eat, although not as much as if they harvested it themselves.

Since the hunting and butchering of meat causes a large amount of food to enter the camp at once, there is a more formal and ritualistic way of dividing it, for example with a monkey, first the members of the hunting party eat the offal and tail, because they cook the fastest, then the cooked meat is divided into about 13 parts, so that each family in the camp gets some, with the portions adjusted according to the size of the family.
Source: http://www.mixhart.ca/blog/?p=480
The Batek do not consider this sharing of resources to be an act of kindness, they believe that all food items belong to the forest, so that the person who happens to be in possession of food has a moral obligation to share it. Since the dwellings are open, it is impossible to hoard food without others knowing about it, since selfishness is prohibited, it would not be considered stealing for another member of the camp to take food away from someone who was hoarding, if the taker was hungry.

They feel an obligation to give when they are asked for something. This feeling is reinforced by their belief that to refuse a request can cause super-natural harm to the person refused and by their knowledge that this will evoke the anger of the community at the offender.
Source: http://www.mixhart.ca/blog/?p=480
Although personal possessions like radios and tobacco belong exclusively to the person who acquired them, it is common for those items to be lent or sometimes even borrowed without the owner's knowledge. The Batek believe that if a requested favor is refused, the person who was turned down, will likely suffer misfortune, and when the misfortune happens everyone in the camp will be angry at the person who was unkind.

There are two more practical reasons that sharing and kindness are widespread in the Batek community, first each man has a blowgun, used mainly for hunting, so if all in the group did not get along, someone could be subject to violence. Also the rain forest is very hot and damp so keeping things long-term is impractical, food will rot and hardware will rust if it is not used frequently.

Modern challenges

External disagreements become a little more tricky, since the Batek do not have leaders or a military, the Batek are generally at the mercy of the Malaysian Government. Malaysia does not recognize Batek sovereignty so during the 20th century the Government gradually encroached on the Batek land, to use it for logging and farming. Since the 1960s the Government has encouraged the Batek to live in Pos Lebir and become non-nomadic farmers. Most Batek are unwilling to settle in Pos Labir because it has not been dedicated to the Batek, they would have to leave there if the Government asked and they would lose their nomadic lifestyle and their religion. One of the Batek summed up the situation by saying: "We Batek are rich if we have a cooking pot, digging stick, bush-knife, lighter, tobacco, salt and fishing pole. Also a man is sad if he doesn't have a blowpipe. We only want four or five sarongs, we don't need trousers. If we live here (in Pos Lebir), we need money, if we have money we buy a lot. But if we have no money, no problem, we reject possessions. When we live in the forest, we don't need them. We can dig tubers. If someone doesn't have food, others give it as in the old days."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batek_people

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Batek people: Indigenous group of Malaysia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Batek (or Bateq) are an indigenous people (currently numbering about 1,516) who live in the rainforest of peninsular Malaysia. As a result of encroachment, they now primarily inhabit the Taman Negara National Park. They are nomadic hunters and gatherers, so the exact location of theirsettlements change within the general confines of the area that they inhabit.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Location. About 1,500 Batek, an Orang Asli society (Malay for "Original People"), live in the forests of Peninsular Malaysia, many in the Taman Negara National Park and surrounding areas.

Economy. The economy of the Batek is based on gathering, hunting, and collecting forest products for trade, with occasional crop planting on a small scale. They have no concept of land ownership-the idea is absurd to them-and natural resources in the forest cannot be owned until someone harvests them. Wild foods and forest products are available for anyone who wants to take them. People who discover resources in the forest, such as a wild fruit tree, will share the knowledge with the band with no further special rights to it. An exception might be fruits from the orchards in the river valleys, where people might resent individuals from another valley taking them.

Beliefs that Foster Peacefulness. The Batek believe that one of their diseases, ke'oy, consisting of fever, depression, shortness of breath, and weakness, is caused when someone is angry with another without justification. While there are some spells that may help, the cure for the disease is for the person who is angry to control his or her feelings so the victim can recover. The person responsible for the problem treats the victim with various folk remedies, tells the victim's heart to be cool, blows on his or her chest for the cooling effect, and grasps and throws away the disease. This belief in ke'oy helps ensure that the Batek treat each other well, since victims receive group backing and angry people, who cause disease, may lose social support and be ostracized. Kirk Endicott delivered an engrossing analysis of the Batek as a peaceful foraging society in 2011.

Avoiding and Resolving Conflict. While they do not resolve conflicts in a formal manner, people frequently have public discussions of disputes in attempts to gain supporters for their arguments. When conflict resolution strategies fail, one of the parties to a dispute will often leave the group for a while to let feelings of anger dissipate.

Gender Relations. Men normally hunt while women gather vegetables, but both foods are valued equally and both sexes are part of the food-sharing network in their camps. Men sometimes gather vegetables, and women sometimes (though rarely) hunt-they have no rigid rules separating their sex roles. Both sexes gather the rattan that they trade for outside goods, and men and women both participate in government-sponsored agricultural activities. Marriages are based on equality, compatibility, and affection; couples make joint decisions about their activities. They normally have close, companionable relationships while they work together and enjoy their leisure time with one another. If the warmth of the relationship erodes, either spouse can divorce the other and count on the support of the band to assist with child-support and food sharing. However, the introduction of wage labor, farming activities, and guiding by Batek men, and not women, may be starting to erode their traditional gender equality in some communities.

Raising Children. Batek fathers as well as mothers spend a lot of time cuddling, holding, and talking with infants of either sex. Parents are quite relaxed about discipline: one two-year old child used a bamboo flute his father had just finished making as a hammer. The father didn't care since he could easily make another. Parents rarely strike a child or use physical force on them, since their word sakel means both to hit and to kill, an abhorrent concept to them. Parents may discipline children by warning them about tigers, strangers, or the thunder god that punishes people who violate religious prohibitions. Children play actively but not aggressively, and they lack competitive games. According to an article published in 2014, one of the Batek child-raising strategies is to have their children carry plates of food to other families, to teach them their sharing values.

Social Practices. Their camps consist of autonomous families that share enough interests to prompt them to converge together. They schedule and informally coordinate group activities such as fishing. They discuss group issues extensively and rely on natural leaders for their experience, judgment, and advice. These leaders can only be persuasive-they have no authority. The Batek tolerate the occasional lazy individuals, since their spouses often make extra efforts as if to compensate.

Sense of Self. The Batek identify themselves as forest people; the forest is their true home. Their shelters are scattered about wherever they decide to camp, with no symbolic defenses from the forest. While the thatch is still fresh and green, it is almost impossible to see a camp from even a few feet away. They prefer the forest because it is cool and, they feel, healthier than living in the heat of the clearings. They also prefer the forest because it gives them a refuge from other people.

Sharing. The Batek have a firm expectation that all food, including game that is killed and vegetables that are gathered, will be shared. When different groups come back to their camp near the end of the day, after the tubers and pieces of meat are carefully shared, the families cook their meals and then send their children carrying plates of food to others, despite the fact that everyone already has enough. This teaches the youngsters the importance of their sharing ethic. They also share other goods freely, whether they are obtained as gifts or purchased through their trading. Except for the elderly or infirm, each person can share without causing a strain and whatever is given will presumably come back at some point.

Strategies for Avoiding Warfare and Violence. The Batek are totally opposed to any interpersonal violence-they flee from enemies instead of fighting. The anthropologist Kirk Endicott (1988) once questioned a man about the Malay slave raids that lasted until the early 20th century: why didn't his ancestors shoot the attackers? "Because it would kill them," the man answered in shock. Violence, coercion, aggressive behavior, and physical retribution are so totally unacceptable to the Batek that they would ostracize anyone who was belligerent. Batek women, as well as men, are free from the threat of physical violence because of these beliefs. As of 2014, the Batek reportedly still flee into the forest to avoid trouble with their much more aggressive, and more numerous, Malay neighbors.

But How Much Violence Do They Really Experience? Kirk Endicott implies ( 1988), though he does not come right out and say so, that there is very little if any violence among the Batek. Karen Endicott ( 1992) does describe the way one woman, who was evidently quite unstable emotionally, struck her children at times when she got very angry with her husband.
Scholarly Resources in this Website:

"The Conditions of Egalitarian Male-Female Relationships in Foraging Societies" (Endicott, 1981)

"Property, Power and Conflict among the Batek of Malaysia" (Endicott, 1988)

More Resources in this Website:

Global economic, social, cultural, and religious forces do cause harm to the Batek, but their belief systems are nonetheless helping them to cope.

Reports from early 2014 describe the particularly harmful-to the Batek-practice of logging the forests in which they are trying to live, and a report from December 2014 reaffirms the harm that the logging causes.

Sources on the Web: Endicott and Dentan 2004; Center for Orang Asli Concerns; Orang Asli Archive; ATFP Report: Nomad Hunter-Gatherers; Wikipedia article
Updates-News and Reviews:
Selected Recent Stories

December 31, 2015. The Batek and the Forest

December 3, 2015. Batek Knowledge of Medicinal Plants [journal article review]

November 20, 2014. The Batek Anger a Malay Politician [journal article review]

July 10, 2014. Children Learn to Be Peaceful the Batek Way [anthology chapter review]

All Stories

All stories in this website about the Batek are listed in the News and Reviews Subject Listing

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Location. About 1,500 Batek, an Orang Asli society (Malay for "Original People"), live in the forests of Peninsular Malaysia, many in the Taman Negara National Park and surrounding areas. Economy. The economy of the Batek is based on gathering, hunting, and collecting forest products for trade, with occasional crop planting on a small scale.