“I can’t think of a better way than using food to invite people to the table,” said Elroi Yee, an investigative reporter and producer of the Dari Dapur campaign. “We need stories to be shared that show migrants and refugees have a place in Malaysian stories.”
The stories and flavors of Tamil puttu, Cambodian nom banh chok, jungle food Kachin shan ju, Yemeni chicken mandy and Rohingya ludifida flatbread flavor those stories, telling the stories. Their story in Dari Dapur’s video features Malaysian celebrities who have tasted culinary history and heritage.
launched by OHCHR In December 2022, the campaign collaborated with untitled kompeni, a social impact production group based in Kuala Lumpur, to bring these compelling stories into the heart of public discussions.
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‘Food always brings people to the table’
Through seven short videos, celebrities visit the kitchens of migrant workers and refugees to share home-cooked meals around the same table, hearing about lives, hopes and dreams. each other, and learn what they have in common.
“Whenever you cook food and invite guests over, everyone comes back smiling and happy because the food always brings people to the table,” says Chef Wan.
“No matter what culture, where we come from, everyone needs to eat,” he said.
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Plantation day trip
Liza, a Cambodian plantation worker, not only shares a meal with her guests, Malaysian comedian Kavin Jay and food Instagram user Elvi. On a day trip to visit her at the plantation, Liza showed them how she cooks nom banh chok, a fragrant fermented rice noodle dish.
“To have someone come visit me, see me and meet my friends, I’m happy,” Liza said.
Swapping jokes around the table, Mr Jay said “everyone has a migration story”.
“It doesn’t matter what your race is, if you look back far enough, you’ll find your migration story,” he said.
Similar exchanges around the dinner table take place in other Dari Dapur episodes that feature refugee and migrant chefs with social justice influencer Dr Hartini Zainudin, rapper hijabi Bunga, educator Samuel Isaiah, Tamil movie star Yasmin Nadiah, Chinese-language radio DJ Chrystina, and Nurul politician and activist Izzah Anwar.
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‘It’s exactly the same!’
From Myanmar to Malaysia, fast pace is common in an episode that sees journalist Melisa Idris and US Ambassador Brian McFeeters sit at a table with Ayesha, a Rohingya community coach.
“I want to know them, and I’m happy to be able to explain what I’m doing and who I am. [to them],” said Ayesha as she prepared the iftar party for her guests.
Putting them down at a table full of traditional food with some of her friends, Ayesha is frank.
“I had never cooked for other communities before,” she admitted before the heated conversation about Eid.
Ms. Idris and Ayesha’s friend, Rokon, shared similar childhood memories, from her Malaysian village and to his family’s home in Rakhine, Myanmar.
The way they treat me today, if we can be such a kind host as a nation, it will go a long way. – journalist Melisa Idris
“Exactly alike!” cried Miss Idris. “Sometimes we focus on the differences and don’t realize that we have almost identical traditions.”
After the party, she shared her gratitude and a revelation.
She says it’s clear how “the media has been complicit with other refugees and migrants, in normalizing hate, sowing division and targeting a community.” money has been marginalized as a scapegoat for our fear during a pandemic.”
“They gave us the best; they gave us everything,” she said tearfully. “The way they treat me today, if we can be as polite a host as a nation, that would go a long way.”
‘Cut through the noise’
To design the campaign, OHCHR commissioned research that reveals the complex relationship between migrants and Malaysians. The results showed that the respondents all agreed that respect for human rights is a sign of a decent society and that everyone deserves equal rights in the country.
About 63% agree that their communities are stronger when they support everyone, and more than half believe they should help others no matter who they are or where they come from. About 35% of respondents strongly or somewhat strongly believe that those fleeing persecution or war should be welcomed, with an equal number eager to welcome those who cannot get the epidemic. health care, education, food or decent work.
“Migration is a complex and often abstract issue for many Malaysians,” said Pia Oberoi, senior adviser on migration for the Asia Pacific region at OHCHR, “but storytelling is one thing. Great way to cut down on the noise.”
Migrant worker Suha hosted actress Lisa Surihani at the oil palm plantation where she worked and where they ate meals and told stories about their lives.
Cow feet and friendship
“Our research shows that people want to hear and see the everyday lives of people on the go, to understand and appreciate that we have more in common than what divides us,” she said. says and adds that the campaign is built on shared realities and values. personification of the words of Universal Declaration of the Rights of Man75 years old this year.
With the production of these short films, she said, “we hope to inspire Malaysian storytellers to share the storytelling space and get us all to rethink how we relate to each other. with its migrant and refugee neighbors.”
On a vast oil palm plantation, actress Lisa Surihani enjoys a meal of kaldu kokot – beef leg soup – prepared by host Suha, an Indonesian plantation worker.
“What I learned is ‘try and don’t let what you don’t know affect the way you treat others,’” actress Lisa Surihani said in an episode of Dari Dapur.
“Whoever it is, our actions should be rooted in kindness,” Ms. Surihani said.
Learn more about Dari Dapur . campaign This.
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