Expedite land gazettement, Shah Alam Orang Asli folk plead with Jakoa

 

Abd Rahman Shah Abdullah, also known as Wak Apuk, 56, is a fifth-generation member of the village.

He hoped the gazettement process would be completed this year, failing which they may have to resort to legal action.

Lim said Jakoa’s intention to move forward with the gazettement application was encouraging.

“I hope Jakoa will also consider the big picture and reach an agreement with the forestry department to allow the Orang Asli to continue using the area even inside the forest reserve,” he said.

Gazettement ‘top priority’

Kampung Orang Asli Air Kuning is home to 72 Temuan families, some of whom have been there for nine generations. Wak Apuk said only about 46.2 acres of customary land remain today.

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“In 2001, a developer took 272 acres of our land and turned it into an urban residential area, agreeing to build 30 single-storey bungalows and 53 flats for us,” he said.

He said the bungalows have been completed, but construction of the flats did not start until recently.

Even if the housing development was completed, Wak Apuk said, some of the villagers were likely to remain due to their deep-rooted connection to the land.

“We are originally from here, so we will stay here. We will not move. As indigenous people, we do not typically venture outside of our original place,” he said, adding that their ancestral graves were also located around the village.

For years, the villagers have been relying on wells for their needs.

As such, Wak Apuk said, the gazettement was important as it would grant them access to basic facilities such as clean water and electricity.

He said the villagers had been digging wells for water and had used solar panels set up by NGOs previously to generate electricity, although some of the panels are no longer in working order.

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Above all, he said, the gazettement would protect their customary land from future encroachment by developers.

“When they take our land, we, Orang Asli, face all sorts of problems including cultural shock (due to forced displacement),” he said.

“Generations of Orang Asli here have never lived in urban areas. They would not be accustomed to the concept of paying quit rent and assessment rates, with some undoubtedly unable to meet these payments.”

FMT has reached out to Jakoa and Jakoa Selangor for comment. - FMT