Currently, the Mondulkiri Indigenous Peoples Association for Development (MIPAD), which has been supported by Plan International Cambodia, is carrying out its activities within the framework of the project “Disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation of communities indigenous in Mondulkiri”. In this regard, MIPAD has sent a project team to study and research the history of textile weaving and Bunong ethnic minority group weaving team to obtain more research documents. In addition, the association has formed a group of weavers, mostly women, and has received training in weaving techniques in addition to the weaving skills they had acquired from their ancestors. And this work also adds to the agricultural work that has been affected by climate change.
The textile weaving of the Bu nong ethnic minority can weave such as scarves (The Kama, the language of Bunong), blankets, broadband (Yus), handkerchiefs and bags. The weaving process is similar in size to size, while the style is not as easy as it is different in its production. The weaving process is long or short, depending on the production of various materials in large or small sizes. Usually knitting a 20×180, 20×200, 25×180, 25×200 scarf takes 4 days and is used for all events. A skirt with red and black colors, and together with some signs such as vegetables, seeds, pigeon egg, size 50×200, 60×200 takes 60 days and according to routine it takes 1 year. In addition, it was used in the wedding in which the groom’s family offers to the bride’s family, and then they use it to cover the head of buffalo that they already kill and use in the ceremony as souvenirs and objects. After the ceremony, the mother of the bride can wear it as a blanket or skirt. A black and white stripe, consisting of the signs for human, trees, mountain, buffalo, cow, and the Pythagorean scratch sign; size 50×200, 60×200, 70×200, takes about 90 days, traditionally takes 1 year and 3 months, and is used for the same ceremony as scarves. A small bandwidth can exchange a small buffalo, a cow or a goat. A blanket of red, black and white, consisting of signs such as a small stream, houses, humans and mountains of size 250 × 300, 250 × 400, takes 180 days; traditionally it takes two years. In the past, the indigenous people, Bunong, weaved only when they did not have to engage in agriculture. As a result, Bunong weaving takes a lot of time and the result of weaving is really valuable to them.
Due to its color, it was originally white, black and red. To obtain a black color, Bunong collects small (non-specific) trees and grinds those trees to receive black ink. Once they received it, they mixed black ink with cotton thread to get black cotton. For the red, they traditionally used fruits that were shaped like rambutans, and they made it as a red liquid and then mixed it with cotton to make it red. The indigenous people, Bunong, popularly plant cotton for the purpose of their weaving culture.
Bunong weaving culture, all weavers must have enough equipment before they can weave, and all of them are Kei (Nak Cha, the language of Bunong) and Hong. And Weaving and Design (Korm), there are designs that can be noted that it is the ancient Bunong indigenous community, such as: kitchen, Kaisna, arrow, guord, human, tiger nose, python, cucumber seed, pigeons, snake, spider . nest, worm eyes, mountain, streams, hand person, walking trail, great silvery water beetle, wasp, grasshopper, tiger jumbo, mosquitoes, trees, waterfalls, wild stream rabbit, pumpkin, rice. Each of the represented designs: Arrow and Kaisna represent the hunting of the Indigenous Peoples (Bunong). The kitchen represents the place of food. The python, the snake image, the tiger nose image, and the large silver water beetle image represent fierce wildlife. The images of guord, cucumber, pumpkin and rice represent the planting of crops. The images of a waterfall, wildlife, stream, mountain and water represent the livelihood landscape of the Bunong ethnic minority. Rabbits represent wise and intelligent people. Creating design is making fabrics look more attractive and beautiful. In that, the use of color also has its meaning, since color is the emblem of the hot element. Light colors are the cold element that refers to the beauty of nature and natural freshness. As a result, they look beautiful in the Bunong weaving culture as well as in the design of each textile.
Nowadays, the weaving culture of the Bunong Indigenous Peoples in Cambodia has not aroused people’s interest, as until now, many of them focus only on agriculture and pay very little attention and spend less time to practice the weaving skills that their ancestors have left behind. Due to climate change, agriculture as well as cultivation of the plant has been severely affected and the family situation of the Bunong Indigenous Peoples has been challenged in their lives. Therefore, the Mondulkiri Indigenous Peoples Association for Development, with the support of Plan International Cambodia, has endeavored to provide training in agriculture, seed selection, plant protection, planting techniques, as well as studying the tradition of the weaving and giving them extra skills to be able to earn extra income on top of doing farming or agriculture.