Author: Bruce Bonta
Semai Folklore
A news story in 2008 described a number of reasons for the relative lack of success by the Malaysian schools in educating their Orang Asli children. A current report brings the analysis up to date by concentrating on one of the major problems: cultural differences. Cultural differences between the Orang Asli and the majority of […]
The Living Museum of the Ju/’hoansi
The Ju/’hoansi people founded their Living Museum of the Ju/’hoansi San near Tsumkwe, Namibia, several years ago in order to help preserve and showcase for visitors their values and way of life. According to their website, “the Living Museum is an authentic open-air museum where guests can learn a lot about the traditional culture and […]
The Paliyans Have Ration Cards
The Times of India reported recently that the District Collector for the Madurai District was investigating reports of the illegal mortgaging of ration cards in a local Paliyan community. The official, S. Aneesh Sekhar, visited the Paliyans at the Alagammalpuram Colony, located about 60 km. from Madurai City, and explained the laws prohibiting such activities. […]
Baybayin and the Buid
The baybayin, the ancient writing script still used by the Buid to show off their love poems, was discussed recently in an online lecture for Canadian Filipinos. The presentation focused on the history of the baybayin rather than on their role as an important aspect of their cultural heritage. Earlier news reports examined the ways […]
Orang Asli Misinformed about Vaccinations
On March 7, the Malaysian news website Free Malaysia Today published a report (summarized here on March 19) analyzing the reactions of the different Orang Asli societies to the COVID-19 vaccines. Three months later, FMT updated their coverage of the same subject by providing new information. The journalist identifies some of the people interviewed with […]
Violence Intrudes on the Piaroa
Illegal mining in south central Venezuela is fostering conflict and even some violence among the normally peaceful Piaroa people. A lengthy analysis in the publication Caracas Chronicles on June 4 provides a lot of details about the stresses the Piaroa are trying to cope with. The author, who is not named to protect his or […]
Batek Register for Vaccinations
For the second time in less than two years, the Batek from the small village of Kampung Aring 5 have made the news in Malaysia. The village is located in the town of Gua Musang. The Malay Mail reported on May 29 that 50 Batek individuals from that village have registered to get Covid 19 […]
Zapotec Youth Gets Harvard Scholarship
A young Zapotec man has gotten a scholarship to attend Harvard University, an achievement that fosters pride among the people in his community, more widely in Oaxaca state, and among Mexicans in general. According to a news report on May 24, the 23-year-old scholar, Ramiro González Cruz, is from San Isidro El Costoche, in the […]
Tragic Death of a Birhor Child
On May 15, one of India’s major newspapers, the Daily Pioneer, published a report about the death of an 18-month-old Birhor boy. With the news media in India crowded by stories about the devastation of the pandemic, the coverage of issues in a remote Birhor village was interesting enough. More than that, the story was […]
A Small Victory for the Semai
The Perak High Court in Ipoh, Malaysia, recently extended a temporary restraining order that prevents two companies from proceeding with the construction of a hydroelectric dam on a river that is part of the ancestral territory of the local Semai people. A news story last year on November 13, as well as a more recent […]
