SEREMBAN: Kampung Sebir Orang Asli village head, Tok Batin Uval Bujang, is unhappy with the state government for not gazetting the customary land.
The state government has the authority to gazette the land, he said.
"We are unhappy with the state government because they do not consider that the customary land rightfully belongs to us and they have been disrespectful to the elders on the Customary Board.
"The graves are proof that our community has been living here for ages and they should know that we have been conserving the land rather than destroying it," he said.
He is also angry because the developer did not seek permission from or send any notices to the Kampung Sebir community to inform them about their activities.
He added that the felling activities have destroyed some of the settlement's main sources of income.
Uval said the villagers will submit a memorandum to Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan,
"Before the country achieved independence, our ancestors were already living on the customary land, so there are some graves dating back 300 to 400 years in the old site.
"After that, the land was gazetted and we moved to the existing reserve, but many of us still depend on the produce and trees, like timber and rubber in the customary land, for income," he added.
He added that he was irked by a representative of the developer, who brazenly asked for RM500,000, to stop felling the trees in the area.
"How can they ask us for money? Who are they to do so? I told him that he had no right to put a price on the land and we would not give it up," he said.
After the incident, Uval lodged a police report followed by two more when the developer ignored him and continued to fell trees.
"The police have visited us a couple of times and they have also gone to the Land Office to investigate our claims. However, if nothing is done we are considering legal action because we cannot simply ignore the encroachment activities going on," he added.
Bukit Kepayang state assemblyman, Cha Kee Chin, said he hoped the state government would show due compassion and consideration to the community.
"Although it is stated under the National Land Code that the Orang Asli cannot claim ownership of the land they refer to as customary, some consideration should be given to this group," he said.
He explained that the code does not recognise the customary land as belonging to the Orang Asli, and the state government has the authority to revoke the status of the land.
"The Orang Asli should be given due respect for their age-old customs. For them owning a piece of land is more valuable than cash.
"They were not brought up as city-dwellers and as such, land has always been an essential part of their lives. They depend on it for shelter and food," he said.
He urged the state government to stop issuing logging licences to ensure that encroachment activities will not destroy the reserve until the issue is settled.
"It would be unfair to the Orang Asli community if licences continue to be issued. All parties should be patient and wait for the outcome," he added.
==========================
I have submitted a written question for the coming State Assembly regarding the issues in Kampung Sebir on 16 March 2009. Hopefully the question will not be rejected and thus i can get the answer that the villagers want and i can ask further oral questions in the Persidangan end of next month.
The state government has the authority to gazette the land, he said.
"We are unhappy with the state government because they do not consider that the customary land rightfully belongs to us and they have been disrespectful to the elders on the Customary Board.
"The graves are proof that our community has been living here for ages and they should know that we have been conserving the land rather than destroying it," he said.
He is also angry because the developer did not seek permission from or send any notices to the Kampung Sebir community to inform them about their activities.
He added that the felling activities have destroyed some of the settlement's main sources of income.
Uval said the villagers will submit a memorandum to Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan,
"Before the country achieved independence, our ancestors were already living on the customary land, so there are some graves dating back 300 to 400 years in the old site.
"After that, the land was gazetted and we moved to the existing reserve, but many of us still depend on the produce and trees, like timber and rubber in the customary land, for income," he added.
He added that he was irked by a representative of the developer, who brazenly asked for RM500,000, to stop felling the trees in the area.
"How can they ask us for money? Who are they to do so? I told him that he had no right to put a price on the land and we would not give it up," he said.
After the incident, Uval lodged a police report followed by two more when the developer ignored him and continued to fell trees.
"The police have visited us a couple of times and they have also gone to the Land Office to investigate our claims. However, if nothing is done we are considering legal action because we cannot simply ignore the encroachment activities going on," he added.
Bukit Kepayang state assemblyman, Cha Kee Chin, said he hoped the state government would show due compassion and consideration to the community.
"Although it is stated under the National Land Code that the Orang Asli cannot claim ownership of the land they refer to as customary, some consideration should be given to this group," he said.
He explained that the code does not recognise the customary land as belonging to the Orang Asli, and the state government has the authority to revoke the status of the land.
"The Orang Asli should be given due respect for their age-old customs. For them owning a piece of land is more valuable than cash.
"They were not brought up as city-dwellers and as such, land has always been an essential part of their lives. They depend on it for shelter and food," he said.
He urged the state government to stop issuing logging licences to ensure that encroachment activities will not destroy the reserve until the issue is settled.
"It would be unfair to the Orang Asli community if licences continue to be issued. All parties should be patient and wait for the outcome," he added.
==========================
I have submitted a written question for the coming State Assembly regarding the issues in Kampung Sebir on 16 March 2009. Hopefully the question will not be rejected and thus i can get the answer that the villagers want and i can ask further oral questions in the Persidangan end of next month.
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