Johor Orang Asli at wits' end as eviction deadline looms

 

The Orang Asli community in Bekok, Segamat, Johor are left at wits’ end as the deadline looms for them to vacate Kampung Orang Asli Selai - a place they have been calling home for over 112 years - in four days’ time.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, Johor Orang Asli Action Committee chairperson Achai @ Juti Kais said the villagers are anxious over their fate come next Tuesday, June 20.

Achai expressed disappointment after receiving no response from Johor Menteri Besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi’s office and the Orang Asli Development Department (Jakoa) despite sending letters to them on the pressing matter.

“We are planning to stage a protest as there has been no response from both the Johor menteri besar’s office and Jakoa.

“We really urge both parties to reply as soon as possible as the deadline is fast approaching,” Achai told Malaysiakini. 

Malaysiakini previously reported that the residents were accused of trespassing on “government-owned land” and slapped with a notice by the Segamat Land and District office on May 22 to vacate the land.

They were given 30 days to vacate the land from when the notice was served. 

It appears that Segamat villagers are not the only ones facing this predicament, as Achai revealed the Orang Asli communities in Mersing and Kluang were served with the same notices on the same day.

The villagers fear they could lose everything and would be evicted, he said.

Achai also said they headed to Kuala Lumpur to meet with the Bar Council Committee on Orang Asli Rights (COAR) on Tuesday (June 13) to seek legal advice.

However, he did not divulge the outcome of the meeting.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, the COAR chairperson Seira Sacha Abu Bakar said she advised Achai and the group of Orang Asli who were at the Bar’s office to initiate a legal proceeding.

“About 24 of them came to see us on Tuesday and told us what’s happening at the moment.

“Upon the discussion, we found that getting court orders would be the best way to resolve the issue,” Seira said.

Sultanate land proposal

On March 16, Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar urged the state government to declare all Orang Asli reserves and villages as sultanate land to prevent misappropriation of the land.

The Johor ruler said this was necessary because some Orang Asli had converted state forest reserves into extensive palm oil and rubber plantations.

The Aboriginal Peoples Act 1954 (Act 134) protects Orang Asli reserves from alienation or disposal but state governments have the power to revoke this protection.

Meanwhile, Johor’s Sultanate Lands Enactment states that plots of sultanate land are owned by the ruler and cannot be sold, leased, or disposed of without the sultan’s written permission.

The “sultanate land” classification proposal drew brickbats from the Orang Asli community.

Achai said his committee sent a letter objecting to the proposal to the Johor menteri besar’s office on May 3. - Mkini