Malaysia is a country of extreme contrasts. Peninsular Malaysia, bordering Thailand and Singapore, is noted for its modernity. The capital, Kuala Lumpur, until recently boasted the world's tallest building - the Patronas Towers - and one of the most modern airports in the world. It is also a major global financial center - ever since the mainstream entry of Southeast Asia into the globalized economy. In contrast, its second-largest city, Kota Kinabalu, feels more like a place from a third-world country. It is a sobering reminder of "progress" to arrive at Kota Kinabalu airport and, within seconds, to use an ATM card issued on a western bank account, on an island where tribal head-hunting had been common practice until only about a hundred years ago!

Malaysia has a wealth of indigenous diversity. Collectively labelled Orang Asal (or Orang Asli, meaning "original people"), there are almost a hundred different ethnic groups there. These groups total about 2 million people, yet their dispersion is highly disproportionate between the mainland and the Borneo states, Sabah and Sarawak. In the former they constitute less than one percent of the population, whereas in the latter the number is about 50%.

There are similar differences in ease of travel. Peninsular Malaysia has a relatively modern infrastrusture. The Borneo states, in comparison are almost entirely non-urbanized. Travel here to indigenous communities is still best achieved by a combination of road, dirt track and river boat. That is changing though. Particularly in Sarawak indigenous communities are losing their land increasingly to projects involving large scale plantations, logging, dams and development of tourist resorts. This same kind of "development" has been going on longer on the mainland and, not surprisingly, its Orang Asli have been largely assimilated with the now majority Malay settlers.

The visitor will have many opportunities to visit Malaysia's indigenous peoples - more so of course in Sabah and Sarawak. While the geo-political situation there is stable today, Borneo has seen some unrest in recent years involving its native peoples. Potential visitors should always remain up to date with developments in the general area (including Indonesia and the Philippines). That said, the wealth, diversity and cultural traditions of these peoples makes Malaysia a country worth visiting for anyone who has an interest in native, tribal peoples.

Books

Teo, A. C. K., (1996) Sabah, Land of the Sacred Mountain. Kota Kinabalu: Sabah Handicraft Centre.

V. T. King (Ed.) World Within the Ethnic Groups of Borneo. Kuala Lumpur: S. Abdul Majeed Publishing Division, 1994.

Benjamin, G., and Chou, C., (2002) Tribal Communities in the Malay World: Historical, Cultural, and Social Perspectives. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.