In conjunction with International Rural Women Day which is celebrated globally in October, we’re taking this opportunity to highlight one of the most powerful Orang Asli women we’ve had the privilege to work with this past year – Amai Zailiming from Kg. Padang.
A Woman Who Wears Many Hats
Speaking to Amai Zailiming (Amai is a term used to refer to older Orang Asli women) in Kg. Padang’s rumah adat on a hot afternoon, she sits down with us, with baskets full of corn in front of her, after working in her syntropic farm all morning with her husband. Her syntropic farm consists of various fruits and vegetables but is known mostly for her produce of corn, pucuk ubi, lemongrass and vibrant chillies. She hopes in time there will be much more produce so that she can share with her family and sell the rest to the community.
Before Global Peace started the syntropic farming project in Kg. Padang, Amai Zai’s farm and soil were not healthy enough to grow many trees. However, due to her passion, perseverance and interest in syntropic farming, her farm plot is now one of the healthiest and fruitful farms.
When she’s not tending to her farm, she’s building a washroom from scratch, which is another project from Global Peace Foundation. When asked if constructing a washroom is difficult, she says that nothing is easy at the beginning.
“I am learning and doing it because women need it. As a woman, a proper toilet is important – we get to do the laundry, wash ourselves and ensure our families’ hygiene.” Apart from that, she fills her time by helping out by fixing other villagers’ houses and making sure the children in her village are attending in-village educational sessions.
A Warrior
Amai Zai starts off by telling us how she’s come to be the person she is today – a woman, mother, fighter and survivor.
In 2013, she was ostracized in her own village for speaking up against the Tok Batin. Through that bitter experience, she has learnt to never back down from what she believes in. Adding a little context to that flashback, she told us that her village leader expected the villagers to listen to him even though his decisions were not aligned to the village’s values.
She then fought her way through it despite it resulting in her entire family being repudiated from the community. Starting from scratch once again, Amai Zai and her husband had to build their homes in Kg. Padang, which they call their home now.
When asked how she got the strength to leave and start over, she says “God gives me the strength to fight. Since 2010, I’ve been overwhelmed with challenges – my child got ill, the battle with the former Tok Batin, and all sorts of other difficulties – but my spirit never waned. For my children, my land, and my village, I am willing to fight.”
“If we don’t put in the effort, no one will. It’s been too long that the Orang Asli has been sidelined and I’ve had enough of it. I want the younger generation to make their identity known.”
Amai Zailiming, Kg. Padang
A Guiding Force
Amai Zai, just like most Orang Asli, grew up poor without even a bicycle or any means of transportation to go to school and that’s the only thing she regrets in life.
Global Peace’s in-village education programme, Mobile School, now has 22 students (the biggest class) from Kg. Padang and the nearby village all thanks to Amai Zai’s enforcement on education. She goes house to house to remind parents and children about the sessions each week. If she realizes that a child is absent, she then goes to the house to find out the reason why the child did not attend.
She iterates that Orang Asli children should not waste the opportunity to learn when they can, “If other children of other races can go to university, so can the Orang Asli children. We don’t have to lose our identity, but at least we can keep up with the world outside through education.”
She continues, “No one loses anything by studying. I’m illiterate today because I never got the chance. So my intention for the young generation of Kg. Padang is that they learn how to read and write, and maybe even speak abit of English so that we can have more visitors in our village.”
Most Importantly, An Orang Asli Woman
In the lens of Amai Zai, an Orang Asli woman’s role is not only important in the household and family, but also her community. She believes a woman needs to have her voice heard otherwise nothing will get done – be it at home or in the village.
“Women are the cornerstone of our community – from encouraging her children to get educated, to taking care of her family and the people around her. As a woman myself, my only hope is that I get to pass down whatever knowledge I have to those around me and that they use it to keep improving their lives.”
With fists in the air, Amai Zai’s true warrior spirit is shown as she speaks, “Being a woman, you need to have a never-backdown attitude. Never let anyone push you aside. If within yourself there is anything to be fixed, then do it. Otherwise, just keep going.”
Written by,
Pamela Victor
Communications Officer
