Orang asli
The despised
the orange asli consigned
to the fringes
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Orang asli
The despised
the orange asli consigned
to the fringes |
| The other sons of the soil APART FROM LOSING their ancestral lands, the indigenous peoples (numbering some 120 distinct groups who are usually grouped as the orang asli of the Peninsula, the Anak Negeri of Sabah and the Dayaks and Orang Ulu of Sarawak) have been subjected to all kinds of other discrimination. Tijah Yok Chopil, secretary of the Network of Perak Orang Asli Villages who hails from Kg Chang, Bidor, recalled how her schoolmates used to treat her as “disgusting”, calling her names like orang hutan (jungle person). “I asked, why did this happen? Am I from another country? Even nowadays on TV, our leaders will always talk of Melayu, Cina, India and sometimes Kadazan and Iban. But they never mention the orang asli. Except maybe during elections.” Raba’ayah Sidin, an orang asli from Selangor, lamented that it was the authorities, not the community, who decided who their leaders would be. Perak Orang Asli Network founder-adviser Tijah Yok Chopil, 40, using her laptop at her village in Kampung Chang Lama Sungai Gepai in Bidor, Perak. “However, the Government has increasingly interfered in our traditional systems, especially in the selection and appointment of our customary leaders.” Article 20 of the United Nations Declaration for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UN-DRIP) gives indigenous peoples rights to their own political, economic and social systems. UN-DRIP was agreed to by Malaysia on Sept 13 2007. “We can’t bring cases to the World Court to compel adherence. But UN-DRIP has moral authority as the Government has told the world that it will follow these standards,” says Colin Nicholas, founder of an advocacy group, COAC (Centre for Orang Asli Concerns). Freedom of religion (Article 12 of UN-DRIP) is another issue. Zulinda Zulkifli from Perak said that the orang asli were being “heavily pressured” to enter a certain religion. Jenita Engi, an orang asli from Negri Sembilan, added, “We have our own religion but they ask us to change it. We are criticised for believing in traditions like our bomohs.” |
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Aliens at home Another issue is that of identity cards. JOAS (Jaringan Orang Asal SeMalaysia) president Adrian Lasimbang: Many indigenous people (especially the impoverished ones in the deep interior) lack these as they do not have access to Government infrastructure responsible for documenting citizens. “The new immigrants from the Philippines and Indonesia have got ICs and become ‘instant bumiputras’. “But our own people don’t have ICs. Some don’t dare go to town to find work for fear of getting caught.” Without ICs, they cannot vote. And thus, the people of the interior have no political voice to lobby for their rights. Jenita recalled her harrowing encounter with enforcement officers: “I was detained in a Rela operasi Central Market. I told them I was a Malaysian with an IC. They said ICs can be faked. I was made to squat down like some illegal immigrant,” recalled the qualified nurse who speaks English. Perak Orang Asli Foundation chairman Suki Mee told "The Star" that only RM10 of every RM100 of Government allocations for the orang asli actually reach the people. “Funds for the orang asli should be administered by the orang asli,” Zulinda insisted. The Department of Orang Asli Affairs (Jabatan Hal Ehwal Orang Asli or JHEOA in Malay) came in for stinging criticism Yusri Ahon from Pahang said, “JHEOA uses our name and claims to represent us but there are few benefits for us.” Tijah said she managed to get “permission” from JHEOA to run her own oil palm plantation. “From my small plot of one acre (0.4ha) plus, I can earn up to RM600 per month. Yayasan Orang Asli Perak chairman Suki Mee. “Others have their land run by the Jabatan under a replanting scheme. They have much more land, six acres (2.4ha) each, but only get a few hundred every six months or so. “Where does the money go to? We don’t see the accounts. “In the end, many villagers are forced to work as labourers for RM12 a day.” Outsiders in charge Nicholas of COAC noted, “JHEOA has persistently ignored calls for it to be managed by the orang asli themselves, the usual excuse being that there are no orang asli who are qualified.... This is no longer valid, as there are orang asli today who have higher qualifications than JHEOA managers.” I had thought that being bumiputras would confer “special rights” on the indigenous people. Extracts from A cry from the margins By ANDREW SIA Go to the top |
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