KUALA LUMPUR – Elite Agriculture Sdn Bhd has won the right to clear land in Bera for the purpose of oil palm cultivation.
The company had faced opposition from Kg Lubuk Perah’s Orang Asli, who said they have customary rights to the land.
On October 9 last year, Elite Agriculture initiated a civil action to obtain repossession of the plot in question.
The suit came about after it said its workers who tried to carry out land clearing were “blocked, chased and threatened” by the Orang Asli residents.
Up until May 2016, several attempts were made by workers to enter the area, but they were prevented from doing so by the villagers.
The company has lodged several police reports on the matter.
Elite Agriculture has a 99-year lease on the land, according to a grant attached to its affidavit.
The defendants’ affidavit-in-reply contains sworn statements by village head Hajemi Din.
“The defendants and their ancestors were born, raised and lived as an Orang Asli community on the 2,214ha land in Kg Lubuk Perah and the surrounding area for six generations, which is more than 100 years.”
Besides their claim that they have customary rights to the land, the defendants also said they have the right to roam the area freely, without disturbance by other parties.
Hajemi said the Semelai ethnic group living in the area is recognised by the Orang Asli Development Department, and that his appointment as village head is stated in a letter.
He pointed to a telephone conversation in 2015 with then Pahang menteri besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob, in which the leader confirmed that most of the land belonged to the Orang Asli.
Hajemi said he was informed that only 80.9ha can be cleared, and that the state government would “return” a portion designated as the community’s land.
The plaintiff, however, said the conversation cited by Hajemi is hearsay. – The Vibes, February 18, 2021
