THE plight of the Bateq tribe in Kg Kuala Koh came to light after 14 of them were suspected to have died of pneumonia earlier this month. All allegedly suffered breathing difficulties.
The government has yet to ascertain the cause of their deaths, which some parties claimed are caused by river pollution.
According to data from the Health Ministry, the Bateq in Kg Kuala Koh comprise 39 families, totalling 185 people.
To date, more than half of the villagers, or 99 of them, have fallen ill with respiratory-related diseases. Leptospirosis and tuberculosis were initially reported as possible causes of the villagers’ sickness, but have since been ruled out.
The families have now shifted from their wooden huts to makeshift tents some 2km away.
They don’t have water to bathe, cook or wash their clothes and are relying on the goodwill of people for their drinking water.
Since the outbreak, the Orang Asli have had to hike for almost an hour through the jungle to get clean water.
They say the rivers near the village, where they used to get their water supply, are now contaminated.
The community, stricken by fear of the unknown disease, buried their dead relatives according to their customs without reporting the deaths to the authorities. – June 12, 2019.
An Orang Asli woman from the Bateq tribe wandering in a jungle near a kampung next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.A child from the Bateq tribe crying as he has a blood test sample taken by a health officer during an outbreak which claimed the lives of 14 Orang Asli at a kampung next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.Orang Asli waiting for the health screening at their kampung next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.Muhamad Pokok, the tok batin (village head) from the Bateq tribe at the graves of Hamdan Keladi and Romi Hamdan, who were buried near their kampung after an outbreak which claimed the lives of 14 Orang Asli at Kuala Koh in Gua Musang, Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.A general view showing a mining area in Kuala Koh, Gua Musang, Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.An official from the Kelantan Land and Mines Department visiting the mining area to inspects for water pollution in a river that flows to the Kuala Koh village in Gua Musang, Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.An Orang Asli boy from the Bateq tribe bathing at a well at a kampung next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.The grave of Din, a teenager from the Bateq tribe who died from an outbreak which claimed the lives of 14 Orang Asli, in a kampung next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.Officers from the Fire and Rescue Department’s hazardous materials (Hazmat) unit taking water and soil samples from the mining area, which some claim to be the cause of an outbreak at Kuala Koh in Gua Musang, Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.A general view of the ponds used as filters at a mining area in Kuala Koh, Gua Musang, Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.An Orang Asli child from the Bateq tribe resting at a makeshift shelter in a kampung next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.Mamat Ong, whose two children are being treated at a hospital after experiencing severe cough, high fever and breathing difficulties, waiting at a makeshift shelter along with other villagers next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.An Orang Asli child from the Bateq tribe is carried by his mother at their village next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.An Orang Asli woman from the Bateq tribe resting with her children at a makeshift shelter in a village next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.A man bathing his child using bottled water at their makeshift shelter in a village next to the entrance of the Kuala Koh national park in Kelantan. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Najjua Zulkefli, June 12, 2019.
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