Exploring feminism and gender equality among Orang Asli for women empowerment in Malaysia.

Background and Purpose: The Orang Asli of Malaysia are commonly experienced systemic discrimination such as protection of their rights, exclusion from decision-making processes, and stereotyping. Orang Asli women still face challenges in achieving women's empowerment, primarily due to their lack of awareness and prior knowledge of the issues. Therefore, the purpose of the study is to explore feminism and gender equality characteristics among Orang Asli women for achieving women empowerment in Malaysia. Methodology: The study employed a qualitative case study of multiple cases and multiple sites. The samples involved of 20 Orang Asli women from four main tribes. Data were collected using a semi-structured interview. The study used a thematic analysis, and data was analysed using the Atlas.ti 8 software. Findings: The study discovered four major themes emerged from the thematic data analysis: (1) knowledge of women’s rights, (2) the roles of women in family and society, (3) women and prospects, and (4) women and empowerment. Contributions: This article support both the policy makers and human rights activists to address the issues of indigenous women and the SDG 5 globally. This study implicates that the empowerment of indigenous women can contribute to the growth of women's rights and gender equality among indigenous population.