Residents of a rural estate in Bukit Tagar in Hulu Selangor are protesting against a private company that is intruding into land that they have occupied for some 70 years.
Some 300 residents have been living on 650 acres of land on the fringe of Selangor, under a temporary occupation land (TOL) scheme.
Some have raised families there for three generations, working as farmers planting fruits and vegetables and lately, working in oil palm plantations.
But last week, they received a shock when a plantation company put up a signboard on their land, stating, "Private property - trespassers will be prosecuted" and a put up roadblock on a dirt road leading into the plantation. Some parts of the land have also been fenced up.
"Since they have lived there for 70 years, and have worked on the land - how can the government do this - take their land without consulting them?" asked Paul Sinnappan, a co-ordinator with the People's Service Organisation (PSO).
"Selling the land to the rich does not making land available to the poor. An injustice has taken place," Sinnappan said.
PSO is linked to the Oppressed People's Network (Jerit), which has been fighting for the land rights of poor people in the country.
The residents have invited the local government authority to intervene in the matter but the officials have not responded.
Taking matters into their own hands, the Hulu Selangor villagers launched an initial protest last Wednesday, with some 60 people taking part.
Oil palm trees cut down
"They broke down the private property signboard and demanded that the so-called new owner come and meet them. They also broke down a gate put up to prevent them from entering their land.
"Then they marched some 200 metres, to where the owner had cut down more than 100 oil palm trees they had planted," Sinnappan told Malaysiakini.
He said police came, but left without taking any further action. The villagers later found that a facility has also been erected to collect sand from a small river nearby.
"An argument broke out between the people and two persons who were inside the factory-like facility. The owner, until the end, did not turn up," Sinnappan said.
This made the villagers suspect that the company has plans to carry out some kind of development there.
The stanadard practice is for holders of TOL land to use the land until the government wants it back. They have to renew their TOL permits every year with the state district office.
Malaysiakini is withholding the company's name for the presence, pending its response to our queries.
Checks with the Companies Commission of Malaysia revealed that the company, formed in 2009, has a retired army major-general as one of its directors.
Its records show that up until June last year, the company owned assets amounting to less than RM1 million.
Sinnappan said that despite a second protest held by the residents this morning, no executive from the company came to meet with them, while security at the sand extraction facility was beefed up.
PAS and PKR reps were among those who were at the protest this morning.
He said the residents have now formed a six-person multi-ethnic committee, reflecting the residents' composition there, to proactively try and claim back use of the land from the state, using their TOL permits.
The residents said they have consistently renewed these permits with the local district office, up until 2012 when they were told that all TOL land came under the jurisdiction of the Selangor Menteri Besar's office in Shah Alam.
They are planning to lodge a police report and are looking to the Selangor government for answers.
Some 300 residents have been living on 650 acres of land on the fringe of Selangor, under a temporary occupation land (TOL) scheme.
Some have raised families there for three generations, working as farmers planting fruits and vegetables and lately, working in oil palm plantations.
But last week, they received a shock when a plantation company put up a signboard on their land, stating, "Private property - trespassers will be prosecuted" and a put up roadblock on a dirt road leading into the plantation. Some parts of the land have also been fenced up."Since they have lived there for 70 years, and have worked on the land - how can the government do this - take their land without consulting them?" asked Paul Sinnappan, a co-ordinator with the People's Service Organisation (PSO).
"Selling the land to the rich does not making land available to the poor. An injustice has taken place," Sinnappan said.
PSO is linked to the Oppressed People's Network (Jerit), which has been fighting for the land rights of poor people in the country.
The residents have invited the local government authority to intervene in the matter but the officials have not responded.
Taking matters into their own hands, the Hulu Selangor villagers launched an initial protest last Wednesday, with some 60 people taking part.
Oil palm trees cut down
"They broke down the private property signboard and demanded that the so-called new owner come and meet them. They also broke down a gate put up to prevent them from entering their land.
"Then they marched some 200 metres, to where the owner had cut down more than 100 oil palm trees they had planted," Sinnappan told Malaysiakini.
He said police came, but left without taking any further action. The villagers later found that a facility has also been erected to collect sand from a small river nearby."An argument broke out between the people and two persons who were inside the factory-like facility. The owner, until the end, did not turn up," Sinnappan said.
This made the villagers suspect that the company has plans to carry out some kind of development there.
The stanadard practice is for holders of TOL land to use the land until the government wants it back. They have to renew their TOL permits every year with the state district office.
Malaysiakini is withholding the company's name for the presence, pending its response to our queries.
Checks with the Companies Commission of Malaysia revealed that the company, formed in 2009, has a retired army major-general as one of its directors.
Its records show that up until June last year, the company owned assets amounting to less than RM1 million.
Sinnappan said that despite a second protest held by the residents this morning, no executive from the company came to meet with them, while security at the sand extraction facility was beefed up.PAS and PKR reps were among those who were at the protest this morning.
He said the residents have now formed a six-person multi-ethnic committee, reflecting the residents' composition there, to proactively try and claim back use of the land from the state, using their TOL permits.
The residents said they have consistently renewed these permits with the local district office, up until 2012 when they were told that all TOL land came under the jurisdiction of the Selangor Menteri Besar's office in Shah Alam.
They are planning to lodge a police report and are looking to the Selangor government for answers.
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