Local community news in high demand among Orang Asli - report

 

The village of Kampung Pasik, reachable in about three hours via an off-road route from Gua Musang, Kelantan, is home to the indigenous Temiar people.

In the 1970s, some villagers there were hired as extras to act in a film, which became an experience they still cherish until now, about five decades later.

That is part of the reason why Temiar villagers, who were respondents in a new study about information access for youths and marginalised communities, said their preferred media option is community radio.

The community radio would be able to fill the information gap for the villagers, who say there is a need for more local and relevant information in their village, especially for those who lack stable access to traditional and digital media.

The sentiment for more hyper-localised news is similar among Orang Asli villagers in Sabah and Sarawak as well.

This was part of the findings of a qualitative information ecosystem assessment (IEA) conducted by international NGO Internews together with the Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) from August to October 2020. The report on the findings was published on Monday, April 19.

Among others, the IEA was conducted in Temiar settlements in Gua Musang, Kelantan; Melangkap and Pitas, Sabah; Kampung Lebor in Serian, Sarawak; as well as in Nanga Bekatan in Julau, Sarawak. All the communities included have varying degrees of electricity and mobile coverage.

For many of these Orang Asli settlements, access to traditional and digital media is limited. For example, newspapers are not available at Nanga Bekatan as it is not only 100km away from the nearest township Julau, it is only accessible by boat.

Melangkap and Pitas in Sabah also suffer from unstable power supply as the report noted Sabah fares worst in terms of electricity supply interruptions compared to Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia. This affects their access to information as most respondents reported they prefer watching television for information.

What respondents care about most

The Temiar in three settlements – Kampung Langsat, Kampung Pasik and Kampung Kaloi – said the most important information for them is about community rights, customs and land rights.

“These have been persisting issues that undermine their survivability and self-determination as the natives of Malaysia.

“The Temiar communities in Gua Musang are constantly on alert for security breaches such as encroachment of their land by plantation companies and loggers, as well as potential kidnapping of their loved ones,” read the report titled ‘Information Ecosystem Assessment Malaysia: Aspirations and challenges among youths and marginalised communities’.

Temiar parents also always connect with teachers through their phones to check on their children, following the 2015 incident of the seven Orang Asli children who disappeared from their boarding school in Pos Tohoi, Gua Musang.

Aside from security-related issues, which Orang Asli respondents tend to trust more than any other type of news, they also said they were concerned about job opportunities, the weather, government directives and market prices of commodities.

Currently, in Nanga Bekatan, Sarawak, about one out of four respondents said they are affected by the information they receive.

As the main activities in Nanga Bekatan include planting black pepper, the Orang Asli there are more concerned about the price of black pepper.

The community there was said to have bad experiences with logging companies, making native customary reserve (NCR) land a major issue for residents there.

“Examples of local news are new projects for their locality, current prices of black pepper, what their assemblypersons have been doing for their constituencies, and whether their requests for new infrastructure have been addressed. Health-related information is also as important, particularly about the Covid-19 pandemic,” the report says.

It also notes that many also expressed the need for information about marketing opportunities, as the Orang Asli women are keen to learn about marketing their handicrafts, while the men want to search for lucrative markets for their produce.

Conversely, the report says, in the more well-connected Kampung Lebor, 68 percent of the respondents said they take seriously the information they receive regarding new projects near their village, Covid-19 and the status of their NCR land.

However, the residents of Kampung Lebor also expressed they want more local news that is relevant to their lives.

Meanwhile, in Melangkap and Pitas in Sabah, the IEA revealed that 78 percent of them prioritise current issues while 69 percent prioritise job opportunities.

“The youths expressed their wish to get information that is affecting them, especially one that leads to job and business opportunities.

“Women, particularly, were interested to know more about reproductive health as they believe the subject has never been discussed openly before. They also care about issues affecting women and families.

“The communities in Melangkap and Pitas are aware of their rights and privileges as natives of the land. Respondents cited that they want more information on this matter and how they can fight the violations towards their rights,” the report states.

Challenges for community media

While there is a clear need for hyper-localised sources of information in the communities, the Orang Asli also recognise there are many challenges in setting up and maintaining their own local media projects.

Among the most cited obstacles from the respondents include a split in the community, political interference and the high costs of setting up and maintaining their own media project.

“(Sabahan) respondents are excited about the prospect of having their own community media but most of them are worried that any split in the community will threaten its establishment.

“They are also worried about the cost. It might be prohibitive since they cannot contribute their meagre income to support community media.

“Participants are aware that there is always the opportunity for abuse or misuse of this type of facility for political purposes. However, they would not tolerate excessive political information or campaigning,” the report states.

Similarly, the Temiar respondents all live below the poverty line and struggle to make ends meet, which is why the idea of a community radio appealed to many of them as the set-up cost for each household is not high.

Aside from community radio, a majority of the Orang Asli respondents from both Peninsular and East Malaysia said the Pusat Internet 1Malaysia (PI1M) is the most in-demand community media.

Respondents believe that a PI1M could open doors to many opportunities and it will improve the telephone signal and internet connection in their area.

The PI1M is usually a small centre, equipped with internet, computers and class equipment, which the federal government started building in 2013 to improve rural internet connectivity.

Some of the settlements included in the assessment already have an existing PI1M such as Kampung Lebor, which is expecting the construction of a second facility near the first one.

But villagers in Nanga Bekatan believe a community media would benefit not only their village but also more than 20 other longhouses along the river.

“Having built their own micro-hydro dam back in 2013, they felt they could undertake any project as long as they are given proper training,” the report says. - Mkini