A GROUP of men allegedly linked to a plantation company have blocked the only access road to scores of Orang Asli kampung in Gua Musang, Kelantan, in retaliation for their continued blockade at a forest reserve.

It is the latest flare-up between the Temiar tribe and planters over access to the rich virgin forests in the remote Kelantan district, which is also an important water catchment for the state.

For about five months now, the Orang Asli have maintained blockades to prevent logging lorries, back hoes and heavy equipment from entering and stripping the Ulu Kelantan forest reserve which they said is the community’s lifeblood.

On Friday, a group of men believed to be from a plantation company tried to get past the Khaleed blockade, claiming they were headed to a durian farm.

Upon being denied passage by those manning the blockade, said Orang Asli welfare activist Mustafa Along, the men parked their vehicles at the barricade, effectively blocking entry into and exit from 27 kampung in the area.

For Pos Simpor, Pos Tohoi and Pos Gop villagers, the road was their sole access to the outside world, said Mustafa of the Kelantan Orang Asli Village Network (JKOAK).

“They even halted a van picking up a sick person from Pos Gop. The van had to turn back without picking up the patient,” Mustafa told The Malaysian Insight.

Teachers from the Pos Tohoi school were also barred from travelling to Gua Musang, he said.

Siti Kasim, a lawyer representing the Orang Asli, posted a video on Facebook in which she said her clients were threatened with bodily harm.  

The Centre for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC) support group said the men wanted to access land that had been logged and cleared to start planting durians.  

But they were stopped by the Orang Asli blockade.

“(The men) came on Saturday to try and destroy the Orang Asli blockade. But the Orang Asli stopped them. So, in retaliation, they are not allowing people to leave and enter the villages,” said COAC coordinator Dr Colin Nicholas.

Photos posted on Mustafa’s Facebook account show the two groups on opposite sides of a barricade engaged in a face-off.  

One photo showed a 4WD vehicle and a lorry parked in front of the barricade to block the way. Other photos appear to show the leaders of the putative planters’ group, one sporting a red scarf tied around the head and another in a neon vest.

Mustafa said community representatives lodged a police report on Sunday but the authorities have yet to take action. – July 31, 2018