Orang Asli Activist Slams Fashion Designer For Mah Meri Exploitation

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Orang Asli activist Shaq Koyok has accused fashion designer Anuar Zainal of disrespecting the customs of the Mah Meri community after the designer featured topless models wearing a Mah Meri mask in a show on Sunday.
Shaq, who is also a contemporary artist, said Anuar disrespected Mah Meri customs and exploited the tribe when he named his collection after it.
"The Mah Meri custom is sacred and should be respected.
"Instead, this fashion designer used it as a symbol, and an item which is sacred in the Mah Meri custom was displayed on half-naked models. This is inappropriate.
"It violates Mah Meri customs. We place a lot of respect and care on our spiritual and cultural objects," he told Malaysiakini.
"What the fashion designer did was wrong and cultural appropriation," added Shaq, who is from the Temuan tribe.
Orang Asli activist Shaq KoyokThe Mah Meri, known for their carving and weaving, use masks in various spiritual rituals, including to invoke the spirits of their ancestors.
Heritage group Pusaka said one of the most popular Mah Meri dances is the ‘Mayin Jo-oh’ - a traditional mask dance performed to invite the ancestral spirits or ‘muyang’ to join in the festivity.
"In this dance, the performers wear grotesque masks and perform movements and gestures to relate everyday events such as fishing and celebrations," the group explained.
During an exhibition in 2015, Mah Meri expert carver Ghazaly Uju told reporters that each mask is carved for specific rituals and cannot be touched or used casually.
Shaq, 28, said Anuar should be more cognizant of what the masks stand for if he intended to feature Orang Asli culture in his work.
"He did not bring about good," Shaq said.
‘I worked with Mah Meri tribe’
Anuar's collection, titled “Mah Meri”, was shown at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre as part of the CIMB Artober festival on Sunday.
The collection included Mah Meri weavings and carvings, and featured a Mah Meri model.
Meanwhile, in a statement, Anuar said he worked with various stakeholders including the Mah Meri community, to produce the collection.
"I have been studying this weave for three years, working closely with the tribe and their leader," he said.
Anuar added that the purpose was to showcase the Mah Meri tribe's talent for global recognition.
Taking to Instagram, he also responded to critics claiming "cultural appropriation".
"Ladies and gentlemen who did not attend the show should not make untoward statements. You could be committing slander," Anuar said. - Mkini

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