S.T.A.M.P

stamp

Who is S.T.A.M.P. ?

STAMP (Strategic Mission Program) facilitates the Body of Christ in engaging and touching the unreached Peoples for the Gospel by bringing God’s blessings to them. Their primary strategy is working with different partners to put in place an adoption commitment in holistic development for these people.

For more info or if you want to participate email to shankarpeter@gmail.com

ORANG ASLI

The Orang Asli are the indigenous minority of Peninsular Malaysia where there are many tribes in this area including the Semai. The name is a Malay term which translates as ‘original peoples’ or ‘first peoples.’ The Orang Asli, nevertheless, are not a homogeneous group. Each has its own language and culture, and perceives itself as different from the others.

The Orang Asli, numbering nearly 100,000 people, are made up of over 18 ethno-linguistic groups living in Malaysia. They reside in scattered villages, camps and estates, in the rainforest, mountains, and coasts, as well as in some towns and cities.

The Semai are by far the most numerous of the nineteen Orang Asli people groups in Peninsular Malaysia. The government categorizes them under the Senoi subgroup. They are about a quarter of the entire Orang Asli population and almost two thirds of the Senoi.

Many Semai refer to themselves differently, like mai darat (People of the Hinterlands). Sometimes in self-deprecation a Semai will use a base Malay word sakai (slave) when talking about how his people are in comparison with the other peoples of the Malayan peninsula. However, on the lips of a non-Semai the term is offensive.

They seem to know very little about their own history beyond the fact that they were the original inhabitants of the peninsula. Semai villages are found in the states of Pahang, Perak, Selangor, and Kelantan.

Since settling down on the peninsula, the Semai’s main means of livelihood has evolved into a mixed system of arboriculture, shifting cultivation, hunting, and trading forest products. Farming and hunting are their main economic activities. The more traditional Semai live in small, isolated camps on mountain slopes at high altitudes and grow mainly mountain rice, millet, and maize. They also hunt, fish, and gather. Others live lower down and grow mainly mountain rice. Yet others, who are quite adapted to Malay society, live even lower down the mountains, cultivating mountain rice and wet rice. Their literacy standard is, however, higher compared with the other Orang Asli tribes.

For the Semai the point of eating is to feel full. For a meal to be filling, it must include a starch dish, preferably rice. When rice is scarce, roasted or boiled tapioca root may be substituted. To eat meat, fowl, or fish without a starch dish is ridiculous to the Semai.

The Semai are largely animists, but a large minority profess Christianity. Many professing Christians, however, are still gripped by their old beliefs. They are more likely to believe in witchcraft than the pagan Semai.

The Semai’s main festival is the Genggulang. It is a festive ritual to appease land spirits for a good harvest and is still observed in many places where the people worship the rice spirit. In this ritual, the spirits are offered sacrificial chickens, flowers, and unhusked rice. Now, the festival has lost much of its religious meaning. It has become more of a cultural event similar to the way the Chinese celebrate Lunar New Year or Westerners celebrate Christmas. The Semai tend to be unconcerned and skeptical about religious dogma. For example, people describing life after death almost always conclude by saying, “That’s just a story of bygone days. I don’t believe it.”

Opportunities for involvement :

1. The Semai people need to be introduced to modern farming of a more practical and productive nature in place of their traditional methods. Agricultural training is needed for the Semai community.

2. Children are in need of tutors to help them with teaching English, Bahasa Malaysia, Maths & Science.

3. Children are in need of medical and dental assistance.

4. Pre-School education i.e. nursery and kindergarten’s are a need for children between the age of 4 to 6 years old.

Opportunities for short-term teams:

1. Kg Bakok, Betau, Kuala Lipis - 25 familes

2. Kg Cincin, Ringlet, Cameron Highlands  - 25 familes

3. Kg Cheruk, Ringlet, Camron Highlands - 15 families

4. Kg Pitom, Ringlet, Cameron Highlands - 40 familes

5. Kg Sumpar, Ringlet, Cameron Highlands- 20 familes

MINISTRY TO MIGRANT WORKERS

Today, there are about 1.8 million registered (or documented) migrant workers in Malaysia. 15 countries now supply workers in various employment sectors in Malaysia with the largest number coming from Indonesia (1.2 million ) followed by Nepal which provides 170,000 workers. Other sending countries include India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, Timor Leste and the Philippines

According to government estimates, there is an equivalent number of unregistered (or undocumented) migrant workers in Malaysia, and today that means at least 1.8 million undocumented workers. The actual figure of unregistered (or undocumented) migrant workers in Malaysia could be about 5 million. This estimate is supported by the fact that official entry-exit records in 2004 showed that there were about 5,852,997 persons or 38% of the total arrivals overstaying.

Many of these migrant workers in Malaysia come from countries where access to the gospel is limited. Opportunity for involvement includes:

1. Teaching English & Bahasa Malaysia to new recruits to Malaysia

2. Advocates for justice & fairness for foreign workers rights.

3. Giving orientation to  new recruits on the Malaysian culture, preapring them to make a good entry and transition to Malaysia.

Sea Gypsies in South Thailand

The Mokens, also known as the Sea Gypsies, are a tribe of maritime people who live in, and travel to, different islands and the littoral regions of the Andaman Sea. The Moken (around 3,000 people) maintain a somewhat semi-nomadic lifestyle. National boundaries are an unfamiliar concept to them and they travel extensively across the waters of Thailand and Myanmar.

Traditionally they built boats from trees and live in temporary villages or camps. They have lived along this coast for hundreds or perhaps thousands of years.

They are related to the sea-faring nomadic peoples that include the Orang Laut and Bajau of Riau-Lingga Archipelago in south-eastern South-East Asia.  Their ancestors have been known to travel and live at various times, as far north as the Mergui Archipelago off the coast of the Tenasserim Peninsula of Myanmar, and as far south as Langkawi in the Malay Peninsula.

Opportunities for Missions Teams:

  1. Medical teams can help with basic health-care needs & dental care. Many of the children have fungal infections & are under nourished & maintain poor hygiene.  Most of the Sea Gypsies have dental problems. Medical teams can bring in tooth brushes, tooth paste, bathing soap, hair shampoo, cotton buds, etc.
  2. Education on personal cleanliness & environmental hygiene. The Mokens need to be educated on some basic hygiene matters. Their surrounding areas are scartered with wood & sea debris.
  3. Education for women – birth control, child- care, cleanliness, etc. The Moken women need to be educated on personal cleanliness, birth control methods, child rearing skills, inter-personal relationships, HIV/AIDS education.
  4. Teaching English in the Sea Gypsy School. The school in Ko Rhao has about 40-60 children between the ages of 4-15 who are now being taught Thai, English &Mathematics. The children are very keen to learn English.
  5. Children’s ministry – Bible stories, arts & craft, etc . Vast opportunities for childrens’ work. Most  of the children don’t go to school & usally spend their time playing soccer or fishing.
  6. Sports  – Most Sea Gypsies play soccer. It is an excellent tool to build bridges with the community.
  7. “Community Cleaning” Projects-  an excellent way to rebuild the community.

Leave a Reply