A Visit to Orang Asli Community - Che Wong Tribe

The Orang Asli (Aboriginal) community is an entity scattered throughout the nation in Peninsula Malaysia. Traditionally, they practise animism and have their own customs and beliefs. Their world view is largely influenced by nature. They believe forests, mountains, lightning and others have their own meaning in the universe.

Located just about an hour and forty minutes away from the city of Kuala Lumpur, the village is an exciting destination for nature lovers and heritage enthusiasts who are looking for new places and sights to explore. The sponsorship from 7-Eleven crew who had offered their care and love by bringing loads of groceries for the community. The visit to this village, with donated groceries and learning center decoration activities, were expected to benefit 30 Orang Asli families and 50 kids in total. Living on the fringes of the forest, the kids from Che Wong Orang Asli Community in Kampung Sg Enggang, Lancang had a pleasant surprise when we paid a visit to learn more about their community.

In order to fully gain a better insight into the lives of this unique community, our team also helped the community to decorate their learning centre. The learning center is an initiative by a volunteer teacher who has dedicated his time to provide the kids education. The population of the community is around 500 people, coming from 100 families. Most of them are relatively shy due to the limited social exposure and development. Generally, most of them work on their own, such as farming, fishing, hunting and so on.

We distributed the bags filled with grocery items, and also spent some time interacting with the orang asli community to understand their ways of life. We were proud everyone come together to contribute their support to this meaningful cause and make this visit a success. Our visit to the orang asli village was an eye opening and rewarding experience. We enjoyed a great time with them and volunteered our time to learn and understand the way of life of the aboriginal people.

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The highlight behind the cause: From the social strucutural and organizational aspects, the Orang Asli community still preserve the importance of cooperation in their daily life. Spending a day or may be two to fully encapsulate what life is like in this unique community. The Orang Asli will happily invite you in for a meal or a drink. Mingle with them and you will discover many interesting and unique traditions and beliefs that can only be found in Malaysia. However, many indigenious families remain too 'relaxed' about matters related to education. Transport is also a primary hurdle for students in the interior settlements. Without any initiatives taken, these natives will always remain in the grip of poverty and the vicious cycle will continue generation after generation.