Orang Asli (lit. “original people”, “natural people”
or “aboriginal people” in Malay), is a generic Malaysian term used for
people indigenous to Peninsular Malaysia. Officially, there are 18 orang
asli tribes.
Orang Asli kept to themselves until the first traders from India
arrived in first millennium AD. Living in the interior they bartered
inland products like resins, incense woods and feathers for salt, cloth
and iron tools. The rise of the Malay sultanates, coinciding with trade
in Orang Asli slaves, forced the group to retreat further inland to
avoid contact with outsiders. The arrival of British colonists brought
further inroads in the lives of Orang Asli.They were the target of Christian missionary and subjects of anthropological research.
Slave raids into Orang Asli settlements were quite common feature back
in the 18th and 19th centuries. These slave-raiders were mainly local
Malays and Bataks, who considered the Orang Asli as ‘kafirs’,
‘non-humans’, ‘savages’ and ‘jungle-beasts.’ The modus operandi was
basically to swoop down a settlement and then kill off all the adult
men. Women and children were captured alive as they are ‘easier to
tame.’ The captives Orang Asli slaves were sold off or given to local
rulers and chieftains to gain their favour. Slaves trade soon developed
and even continued into the present century despite the official
abolition of all forms of slavery in 1884. The derogatory term sakai was
used to refer to the Orang Asli until the middle of the 20th century
meant slave or dependent. Many of the elders Orang Asli still remember
this period of their history, and they detest being called Sakai.
In 2000, the Orang Asli comprise only 0.5% of the total population in Malaysia. Their population is approximately 148,000.
Text adapted from Wikipedia’s article on the Orang Asli.
Most of the photos here are photograph by my daughter using Panasonic DMC Lumix LX3.During her field work trip to Pos Orang Asli Senderut,Kuala Lipis in Pahang.
Photo edited by myself.
Orang Asli is not
like what we expected. We can change them to be like others. BUT
changing time must be consistent and taking long time. Their children
really want changes. They want to go to school BUT we do not plan for
them. Short thinking we are cruel to them and let them living in the
forest hunting wildlife which we want to conserve for future generation.
Some one have to do it.
