a journey into the dense rainforest of malaysia reveals the nomadic batek tribe and their traditional style of vernacular architecture
writer, photography jon beswick
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
080 The Architectural Review / October 2010 / Exploring Eye
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
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