While the fight for equality between men and women is still ongoing, we must admit that we’re not there yet. Across Southeast Asia, arranged marriages are still happening, inheritance would be primarily passed down to male heirs, and after Aung Sun Suu Kyi was unlawfully deposed in a coup, currently there’s not a single female country leader in all of Southeast Asian countries.
Some people say that we live in patriarchal society, and that is generally true. But while it’s quite rare, there are several societies across the globe that are still maintaining their unique matriarchal way of living and there are two in Southeast Asia. Let’s take a look on how these two tribes are challenging the patriarchal world.
Minangkabau, Indonesia
Minangkabau is the name of the tribe living in West Sumatra, Indonesia. With around 5 million in population number, Minangkabau is the largest known matrilineal society in the entire world, making its uniqueness even more special. Traditionally, each clan in Minangkabau would have a woman leader who will have the highest authority called ‘Bundo Kanduang’.
The people of Minangkabau or the Minangnese, were originally animist where they believed that all things in nature are animated and have spirits. The first kingdom ever established in the region is called Pasumayan Koto Batu Kingdom with Sri Maharaja Diraja as the first King. After that, Hindu-Buddhism influence started to arrive in Minangkabau around the 12th century and reached its peak when Adityawarman established the Pagaruyung Kingdom in 1347.
After Hindu-Buddhism lost its influence in Minangkabau, Islam started to replace it and embraced by most of the population in a very high percentage which is around 97%. Due to Islam’s influence which dictates that men have a higher authority, women’s roles in leadership started to erode especially in the city areas. But in the highland areas, where traditional customs are still being respected in the highest manner, women still hold the highest authority and responsible for decision makings.
Even though the old traditions start to wane, in general Minangkabau society, the high inheritance such as lands, houses or vehicle would still pass to the women heirs of the family. This is why it’s pretty common to see large families in Minangkabau with 5 or 6 sons with the daughter being the youngest child because most families would need a daughter to make sure their wealth stay in their family.
The Cham People, Viet Nam, Thailand, and Cambodia
The term Cham came from the Champa Kingdoms which reached its peak between 11th to 15th centuries which is known as the ‘Great Champa’. But after that, Champa started to decline gradually and significantly. There are various reasons that caused this from the rise of the Dai Viet kingdom on north of Champa territory, loss of trade routes, the Mongol invasion and the rise of Khmer Empire.
Now, the people of Cham still faced discrimination from the rest of population where they live now which is mainly in Viet Nam, but also in Cambodia and Thailand. They were seen as the descendants of conquered people, have their own language, and most of the Cham people are Muslims which is a minority in Viet Nam, Cambodia and Thailand and hence, the marginalization and discrimination.
But even though they face hardships every day, the Cham people are still thriving and adamant about defending their own way of living, one of them is the matriarchal society. In the Cham’s society, the bride’s family would take initiative in arranging a marriage. Her parents would search for the best groom-to-be for their daughter, and the woman has the right to choose to accept or not. If she accepts the choice given to her, then the groom must follow marriage arrangements from the bride and then move to the bride’s house to live together.
The matriarchal way of living is clearly visible in the Cham society even in their famous pottery making. The men would be involved in baking the pottery and kneading the clay. But the women are responsible for the important parts such as shaping the clay. But this doesn’t mean that the Cham women doesn’t respect the men. Both men and women are responsible for taking care of their family and they have clear division of labor.
