WALKING THE TRAILS OF TAMAN NEGARA: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE FOOTPATH OF THE INDIGENOUS BATEK

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Badli Esham Ahmad
Mohd Amli Abdullah @ Baharum
Mohd Rozaidi Ismail
Zulkiflee Abd Latif
Muhammad Fuad Abdullah
Mohd Iqbal Mohd Noor

Abstract

Orang Asli (aboriginal people) in Malaysia are seen as marginalised, poor and without any proper education, and the Batek Hep of Taman Negara is not an exception. The Batek Hep is one of the eighteen tribes of aboriginal people of Malaysia and is from the Negrito subgroup. They are hunter-gatherers and foragers of forest produce. Batek is also considered an egalitarian society and dwells mostly along the main river in Taman Negara, Pahang as well as its tributaries. The paper intends to look at the changes that have taken place in the Batek society over the decade. The study is located in Taman Negara Pahang, and the focus is on education and culture. This paper uses the qualitative approach, and the data are taken from field observation notes, video recordings, semi-structured and informal interviews, as well as document analysis from previous research. The data collection period was from 2011- 2021, with visits to eight villages located in Taman Negara. Field observation notes and video recordings were taken during visits to the villages, and the interviews were conducted with the heads of villages, an adult woman, and young males. Over the ten years (2011-2021), it was found that the approach to education among the Batek has slowly changed, modernisation has influenced the younger generation but not the elders, the semi-nomadic lifestyle has changed, but the cultural values have been preserved. The paper ends with suggestions for the future direction of Batek Hep to elevate themselves from its current economic situation.

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