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Come 28th December 2002, the Penang State Scout Council will organize the Join-In Jamboree for the 20th World Scout Jamboree in Thailand. This Join-In Jamboree will be held on a large scale at Coronation Camp and will offer a wide range of activities in line with those offered at the World Jamboree. It gives Scouts an on-hand experience of Jamboree life.

The Join-In Jamboree lasts a full week, from 28th December 2002 will 1st January 2003. There will be a celebration to usher in the new year during the course of the Join-In Jamboree.

Background of the Join-In Jamboree

The first World Scout Jamboree was held in 1920 and these great international events have been held a four-yearly intervals ever since - with two exceptions, during the Second World War and in 1979 when the World Jamboree planned to be held in Iran had to be postponed.

Each World Jamboree is held in a different country and amongst those, apart from Thailand, which have acted as host are Austria, Canada, Greece, Japan, the United States and the Philippines. As many as 40,000 Scouts from every part of the globe may attend.

This appears a most impressive number. Against a world Scout population of 25 million, it is, of course, a tiny percentage. Problems of cost and travel mean that most countries are only able to send a representative contingent.

However, the rest of the Scout Movement goes with them in spirit and this is encouraged by the idea of a Join-in-Jamboree which enable those who remain at home to experience the reality of the World Scout Family by organising activities in some way related to the life and customs of the country hosting the World Jamboree and the World Jamboree theme. All Packs, Troops, Units, The Scout Fellowship, District and Counties can take part in a Join-in Jamboree. It is simply a matter of devising programmes or adapting programmes around the World Jamboree theme so that all Members have a chance to gain some international experience.

The opportunities are unlimited. They can range from exchanging letters with Scouts in another country, learning and playing the games of other lands, perhaps preparing and cooking a typical foreign meal, learning songs of other countries, making contacts on 'ham' radios and so forth.

Whilst Malaysian Scouts are involved in their own Join-in Jamboree activities, the same thing is happening in countries around the world and Scouts in this country find themselves drawn into relationships with them, answering their letters and enquiries about life in Malaysia, our crafts, customs and traditions. This means that Malaysian Scouts often have to carry out  research and investigations into things around them in order to be able to supply the information asked for by Scouts overseas! Thus the Join-in Jamboree opens up a whole range of discovery and broadens our knowledge of our own country as well as of places far away.

The 19th World Jamboree held over Christmas 1998 in the United Kingdom was the most recent basis for Join-in Jamboree activities. The Jamboree was held on a specially built site called Picaquin, south of Santiago. 34,000 Scouts attended from over 200 countries, amongst them a Contingent of nearly 2,000 from the United Kingdom. The field of Jamboree related activities which Scouts who stayed behind undertook was vast. For instance, Cub Scouts found no difficulty in making up games based on the theme of windmills, or cooking simple Latin American dishes, and so on. Scouts had international evenings, involving various Chilean games and crafts.

By the time the Scouts at home had learned Chilean games, cooked Chilean style food at camp and in Headquarters', and completed an absorbing programme of other activities, not only did they have good Scouting, but they got to know a lot more about Chile than they did before.

And that's what Join-in Jamboree is all about.

Preparations are now in hand for the 20th World Scout Jamboree in Thailand which starts in December 2002. The Penang state Scout Association will host a Join-In Jamboree on a large and official scale at Coronation Camp, in line with the 20th World Scout Jamboree in Thailand.

This Join-In Jamboree allow Malaysian Scouts who are not part of the Malaysian Contingent heading for the Jamboree, a chance to participate in activities that give them an outlook onto jamboree life and sub camping experiences. Besides, they will be able to communicate in real time through the use of ham radio and the internet with Scouts from all over the world, also attending the World Jamboree and Join-In Jamborees in their respective countries.

How To Participate

The Penang State Scout Council welcomes all Scout Groups and Leaders to participate in this Join-In Jamboree, the first for the new millennium. It will be an experience to be remembered.

Forms for the Join-In Jamboree are available at the Penang State Scout Council's headquarters at:

Address : Wisma Pengakap,
               1, Solok Scotland,
               10450 Penang,
               Malaysia

Telephone Number : (6)04-8282506

Fax Number : (6)04-8287230

About The World Jamboree - For more information on the 20th World Jamboree in Thailand, please click here