The point is that mobile hunter-gatherers are able to walk away from relationships
that do not benefit them. They can move away entirely and disappear from
view, thus ending oppressive relationships. Through provision of credit, patrons
might strengthen their grip (Sellato 1994: 88–89, 165–166). Penan had their
ways of dealing with indebtedness: they “always had the option of dissolving the
relationship simply by moving to another watershed, an option no longer really
available to them once settled” (Brosius 1987: 106). The importance of mobility
as an escape strategy, which limits the degree of exploitation by patrons, has been
noted before (Couillard 1984: 98). When Penan were still nomadic, “maintaining
contact with them was something of a specialized enterprise. . . . Finding Penan was
not something that just anybody could do” (Brosius 1987: 110). Even in sedentary
conditions, Penan could repudiate debts or hold off paying as long as possible.
Without going into details, this is also a familiar situation with the Batek and the
Agta (Bion Griffin, personal communication).