POLICE have turned to one of its elite forces – the Orang Asli Senoi Praaq unit, which has a reputation for being “silent killers” – to end the poaching of wildlife in the country.

Since September last year, the unit has patrolled the jungles with Wildlife Department (Perhilitan) rangers to catch poachers, under Ops Bersepadu Khazanah (OBK).

The unit’s participation has been a major success, leading to almost daily arrests and RM23.2 million worth of seizures nationwide, according to police sources.

Who are the Senoi Praaq team members and what makes them special?

Senoi Praaq is formed of Orang Asli members in the police force. The word “senoi” means “people” and “praaq” means “war” in the Semai tribe language.

The unit in its early stages was under the Orang Asli Affairs Department. Indigenous people from the Temiar, Semelai, Temun and Semai tribes were recruited.

Trained by British SAS commandos, they became the elite force’s navigators in the jungle during the communist insurgency. Senoi Praaq members at the time were awarded the Maroon Beret by the SAS for their bravery.

Experts in jungle warfare, they had an uncanny ability to track down communists and were feared by the enemies. Many trackers from the 69 commando unit are from the Senoi Praaq unit.

They were dubbed “silent killers” by the CIA and were once clandestinely used by the United States in the war in Laos, only to be left behind to make the difficult journey back to Malaysia on their own, according to the book Death Waits in the Dark: The Senoi Praaq, Malaysia’s Killer Elite.

Now the same skills used to track communists in the Malayan jungle are being put to use again, this time to nab wildlife poachers.

OBK was launched last September after Perhilitan rangers found themselves facing many dangers conducting forest patrols on their own.

“We used to patrol with the Malaysian Armed Forces under a previous programme but when that ended, Perhilitan conducted patrols on its own. We faced many threats. Plans for OBK were made and the operation was launched in September, and it is a far more organised operation,” Perhilitan eenforcement division officer Alfenzi Abd Razak told The Malaysian Insight.

It also makes sense to employ the Senoi Praaq because of its expertise in navigating thick jungle. Some 20sq km is patrolled over 10 days, with rangers and Senoi Praaq members on the move 14 hours each day. Teams are rotated every two weeks.

Alfenzi said Perhilitan rangers learnt a lot from the Senoi Praaq about spotting poachers in the jungle.

“They taught us how to recognise ‘the enemy’ in the jungle by their tents and what they wear. Vietnamese poachers tend to wear military camouflage while Cambodian hunters can be recognised by their tents,” Alfenzi said.

Poaching in Malaysian jungles is usually the work of Vietnamese and Cambodians who encroach on forest reserves and build temporary camps which they use as their hunting base, living there for a month to three months at a time.

Wildlife rangers and the Senoi Praaq are authorised to shoot poachers if necessary, Alfenzi said.

They are trained by police in the use of firearms and taught the standard operating procedures when dealing with poachers.

Another task for OBK is the dismantling of wire snares and nets used to capture animals.

“Snares not only harm the animals, some of our officers have also been injured by them,” said Afenzi, adding that the method is used to trap tigers, bears, tapirs and larger mammals.

Senoi Praaq members have saved each other’s lives, too.

“If not for my squad members, I would be dead now,” said 18th Battalion Delta Force Battalion Officer Rosdi Ghani from Kelantan, in recounting an episode of when he fell into a ravine and was subsequently rescued by his team mates.

Rosli, who has 18 years of experience in the squad, said jungle patrols with Senoi Praaq members were always easier because of their familiarity with the terrain.

Typically, a joint team of Senoi Praaq members and rangers would spend 10 days in the jungle and rest six days at base camp, before setting out again.

“They have strong team spirit, are very respectful of senior officers and are easy to assign,” Rosdi said.

Senoi Praaq member Azhari Aziz from the Jah Hut tribe in Kuala Krau, Pahang, said he joined the unit in April last year because he wanted to put his knowledge and skills as an indigenous person to use.

“I was drawn to the tough training and hard work. I can also apply my tribe’s knowledge and experience of the jungle while on the job,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

“For example, we are experts in finding a way out of the jungle, we do not need a compass or map. We use the sun and water to find our way out. We also know how to track animals, based on their urine, and how to survive and find food in the jungle. These skills will help in OBK,” Azhari added.

Senoi Praaq members undergo basic police training for three months and then spend another three months with the General Operations Force, which is the light infantry arm of the police.

The police have provided two battalions of Senoi Praq from Bidor, Perak, to OBK, with each battalion comprising 500 members, said Bukit Aman Internal Security and Public Order Department director Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani.

“The Senoi Praaq unit is involved in this special task because the members are skilled as trackers and they are also accustomed to living in the forest environment.

“Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador rightly said that illegal foreigners are plundering and destroying the natural treasures of our country.”

Acryl Sani said ivory, tiger skins and pangolins were among the items seized under OBK from several forest reserves on the peninsula since last September. The number of people arrested so far is 115.

He said the detainees are investigated under the Wildlife Recovery Act 2010 (Act 716) and the National Forestry Act 1984. – February 1, 2020.