The Kelabit Attitude to the Penan: Forever Children

Interventi The Kelabit attitude to the Penan: forever children MonicaJanowski The Kelabit homeland at the headwaters dependanceon permanentwet rice fields foods and of cultivated foods other than of the Baram river is one dominated by in the Barioarea. An airstriphad already rice. However, such imported foods, al- forest. A human enclave has been carved beenbuilt at Bariofrom which there were though prized as associated with status out of the primeval forest through agricul- regularscheduled flights to Marudiand because money is used to buy them, are ture, which has tamed and controlled a laterto Mirias well. At the time of the re- not acceptable as full replacements for small piece of the natural environment. settlement and soon after, government wild foods or cultivated vegetables and Nevertheless, Kelabit agriculturalists in servicescame to be concentratedat Bario fruit. Most of these foods are tinned or this environmenttraditionally relied heav- - schools, clinic, administrativeoffices. packet, not fresh. It does not appear to be ily on the forest as the source of much of Because of this, the people who came to considered acceptable to eat only such their food, building materials and materi- Bario because of the Confrontationdid foods with rice at the rice meal; efforts are als for handicrafts. not returnto theiroriginal homes but re- made to collect wild plants to cook as Rice is the focus of Kelabit agriculture. mainedin Bario. Indeed,since thattime vegetables at the rice meal. Meat is a par- There appears always to have been a dis- migration to Bario from other Kelabit ticular problem. Traditionally, domestic tinction between the type of rice agricul- communitieshas continued. animals were only slaughtered for irau ture practised in the area now known as Relianceon rice cultivationcontinues feasts, and even today almost no animals Bario in the north of the Kelabit High- to be heavy in Bario. It has, in fact, ac- are slaughtered for the sale of their meat lands' - and probably, in the past, in other quiredan addeddimension: certain of the for everyday consumption. Meat is very sites south-west of Bario - on the one varieties(known in theHighlands aspade rarely brought up from the coast. Bario hand and that practised in other parts of adan and pade dari) grown in wet rice people are always very keen to buy meat the Highlands. In the Bario area only wet fields in the Kelabit Highlands can be from wild animals brought in by men rice fields (late baa) were made, in con- sold at high priceson the coast andthese from communities outside the Bario area, junction with gardens (ira) in which other aretherefore exported to the coastby air, and high prices (by Highlands standards) crops were grown. In other parts of the generatingsubstantial income. However, are paid for this meat. However, despite Kelabit Highlands dry rice fields (late althoughlate baa now cover a largearea shortages and the import of foods, a large luun) were made, in which other crops at Bario,there is inadequateland for the proportion of food in Bario - perhaps a were planted together with the rice. Both makingof ira gardens,and therefore sup- third of the foods consumed as side dishes late luun and late baa were impermanent plies of cultivatedfoods other than rice at the rice meal and a quarter of snack fields; they were shifted regularly from areinadequate. foods - continues to be wild. place to place. Everywhere in the High- Relianceon the foresthas decreasedin In the community of Pa' Dalih in the lands, there appearsto have been a similar Bario since the 1960's. The heavy con- southern part of the Kelabit Highlands, reliance on the forest as the source of a centrationof populationin the Barioarea where I did fieldwork from 1986 to 1988 large proportion of vegetables eaten with - wherethere are eight longhousesand a and again in 1992-3, the traditional reli- rice at the rice meal, of fruit, and of pro- populationof perhapsa thousand- has ance on the forest has changed little. The tein food. The fact that there was no per- meantthat there are not adequateforest forest has remained a great provider. Al- manent agricultural area in the past must resourcesfor all. Forest - both primary most no food is brought in from outside. have heightened the sense of dependance andsecondary - is now furtheraway, and Seasonings and sugar make up the major- on the forest. what forest resources exist are far too ity of foods from town. In the early and mid 1960's there was a small to providethe level of unmanaged The Kelabit eat food in two main con- resettlement of a large proportion of the resourcesto whichthe Kelabitare accus- texts: at the rice meal and as snacks. Kelabit population to Bario. This oc- tomedelsewhere in the Highlands. Snack foods include meat eaten on its curred at the time of the 'Confrontation' Foodscan be broughtin by airinto Ba- own, fruit, starch foods other than rice with Indonesia. It was linked to a shift to rio to make up for the shortageof wild (mainly maize and cassava) and sugar 55 Janowski cane. The eating of snack foods is a casu- they cook as side dishes on an everyday fail, as requiringconstant attention and al matter;they are freely shared and casu- basis is wild, and abouthalf of the fruit assiduity to ensure its success. It is the ally eaten with little significance being whichthey consumeis wild or semi-wild 'difficult'option. placed on who provided them and with- (plantedat some time in the pastbut then An examinationof Kelabitattitudes to out the pattern of consumption having abandonedto grow in what has become huntingand gathering makes it quiteclear any social consequences. forest). that,to them,this is a way of life whichis The rice meal (kuman nuba', literally Withoutside dishes,a rice mealcannot paradigmaticallypleasant. In contrastto 'eating rice [in the form in which it is be a rice meal. These side dishes consist rice-growing,hunting and gathering is the cooked for the rice meal])', on the other of cultivated or wild vegetables and of 'easy' option. It representsthe achieve- hand, consisting of rice and of side dishes wild meat. A very large proportionof ment of nothingin termsof social adult- (penguman) - literally 'something to eat food in suchside dishesis wild. Evencul- hood, lun merar-hood.It is somethingto with (rice)', is loaded with significance. It tivated vegetables are grown in a way indulgein, ratherthan an accomplishment is normally consumed within a hearth- which tends to equatethem much more to be proudof. Thisis despitethe factthat group, the basic commensal unit. This with wild plantsthan with rice, andto as- hunting, in particular,is an extremely unit is more or less the equivalent of the sociate them therefore with the forest. strenuousactivity. Iban bilek (Freeman 1955). If it is shared Thus,the rice meal containswithin itself In Pa' Dalih, everyone,both men and with members of other hearth-groups, a relianceon foods fromthe forest. women,young and old, is involvedvery this has important consequences in terms However,this undeniablereliance on regularlyin economicallyproductive ac- of the generation of status. It is the con- the forest is veiled, publicly. The rice tivities, includinghunting and gathering sumption of the rice meal which is con- meal, which in fact consists of rice to- of food, in the forest(polong). Men hunt sidered to truly nourish. Should a person gether with side dishes, is describedas for meatand fish andgather other protein be hungry, they must 'eat rice' (kuman kuman nuba', 'eating rice'. This reflects food in both the primaryforest (termed nuba'). Snack foods are not supposed to the pivotal significanceof rice as a crop polong raya, literally 'big polong') and be eaten to satisfy hunger. and as a food. Rice symbolizes true hu- the secondaryforest (termedpolong i 'it, The Kelabit reliance on rice as staple man food. literally 'little polong'), while women starch food is more apparent than real in To the Kelabit, the successful growing gathervegetables on a daily basis in the nutritional terms. In practical fact, a very of rice and its consumption at the rice 'littlepolong' andin amug(growth of up large proportion of the calories consumed meal may be said to represent ulun, which to aboutthree years on previouslyculti- by the Kelabit, perhaps up to one-third, is can be translatedas 'true human life'. For vatedland). Thus productive involvement provided by starchy snack foods. Howev- the Kelabit, only humans can 'have life' with the forestis very pervasivethrough- er, to the Kelabit it appears that rice is the (inan ulun). Other animals 'live' (mulun) out Kelabitsociety. major starch staple upon which they rely. but cannot 'have life'. However,while all individualsinvolve Rice-growing appears to the Kelabit as Ulun, although it is something all hu- themselvesin this productiverelationship the only feasible way of life. They reject mans have, is not something all humans with the forest, only 'big people' (lun the possibility of any way of life other have to the same degree. It is possible to merar), involve themselves properlyin than one which focuses on the cultivation have 'strong life' (kail ulun) or 'weak life' rice-growing.'Big people' involvethem- of rice. The fact that they have rarely been (kaya' ulun). The degree to which an indi- selves muchless in huntingand gathering forced to resort to root crops to bulk out vidual attains ulun is related to the degree thando individualswho do not yet have their rice due to a bad rice harvest, as to which he or she attains full adulthood. childrennor involve themselvesproperly many other Borneo groups are forced to Adults are termed lun merar, 'big people'. in rice-growing.Once a coupleis married do, is a matter of great pride to them.

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