Kelantan State Government: Stop Exploiting Orang Asli's Arrest Over Logging Matters

Image: Bernama

On Wednesday, 47 people from the Orang Asli community in Kelantan were detained by the police for putting up barriers at Simpang Petei and the entry route to Pos Bihai and have been remanded for two to three days to assist in the investigation. The orang asli refused to move from the spot in the interiors of Gua Musang where the state Forestry Department was conducting an operation.
 

Image: MalaysiaKini

The protest barricades were set up by the Temiar orang asli since September to stop logging activities at the Balah forest reserve and Kuala Betis, Gua Musang. The community had previously complained about how these uncontrolled logging and land clearing caused erosion in the area and harmed their livelihoods. Pusat Komas (Komunikasi Masyarakat) who stands together with the orang asli community has repeatedly tried to engage with the state government to discuss this matter and reach a consensus.

Image: The Star

To the orang asli's dismay, the Kelantan government had issued a notice to the community in Gua Musang on 6 November to remove the barricades by 20 November. They were told that they could face up to five years’ of jail time or fines up to RM5,000 or both if they are convicted under Section 32 of the National Forestry Act 1984 (Amendment 1993). The officials also directed the notice to any permanent forest reserve in Kelantan without the authorisation of the Kelantan Forestry Department.
 

Image: Malay Mail Online

However, the orang asli tribe maintained their stand to protect the forest reserve and their ancestral land despite the warning, which led to the authorities resorting to demolish the barricades by force. The Forestry Department, police and General Operations Force entered the blockade on 29 November and arrested 41 orang asli activists. Personal cameras and mobile phones were also seized and the makeshift barricades were completely destroyed.

Image: Siti Kasim's Facebook

Pusat Komas had spoken out and urged the state government to address the root of the problem and identify more amicable solutions instead of targeting the defenceless orang asli community in the name of law.
 
Lawyer and native rights activist Siti Kasim who was at the scene of the operation shared a two-minute video on Facebook depicting how the state forestry authorities approached the blockade. The operation took seven hours and involved 210 enforcement personnel.  Watch the video below:

In response, the Kelantan police have urged NGOs to stop exploiting the issue of the Gua Musang orang asli arrest and warned that stern actions will be taken to those who seek cheap publicity by manipulating this matter. State police chief, Datuk Dr Ab Rahman Ismail said they were monitoring a few NGOs believed to be exploiting the orang asli community to set up the anti-logging barriers.
 
"We are aware that there are people who have made viral on social media, the arrest of the orang asli in the operation, giving a negative impression that police had conspired with the state Forestry Department when we were only assisting the department,” he said. He added that authorities will take legal action against those who tried to tarnish the image of the police.
 
State Agriculture, Biotechnology and Green Technology Committee chairman, Datuk Che Abdullah Mat Nawi also agreed that NGOs’ actions in instigating the orang asli community would only worsen the matter because they are not providing suggestions for solutions.
 
“We hope the NGOs do not seek cheap publicity as it will only cause difficulties for the orang asli. We should focus on helping to resolve the issues. NGOs should be bodies that are good at pacifying the Orang Asli and resolving the issues in the right manner and not influencing or inciting them to continue with the blockade,” he said.

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