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KUALA LUMPUR – The Mah Meri Orang Asli tribe in Sepang, Selangor, are fighting for their customary rights, as the state government and two companies are trying to rid them of their land.
The tribe relied on their history and customs to assert their rights, along with other legal grounds, in an affidavit used to support its leave application for judicial review.
Tracing its history all the way back to the 15th century, early literature mentioned that the Mah Meri community had links with the indigenous peoples of Melaka, Pahang and Johor.
They arrived by ship at Bukit Bangkong, Sepang, and have remained there ever since.
“The Mah Meri populace live in scattered swiddens of the lowland coastal forest and behind dense mangroves that blanketed the coastline in Sg Sepang Kecil,” read the affidavit.
“They exploited the tidal mangrove creeks and shoreline, and planted their swiddens with rice, bananas, sweet potatoes and tobacco.
“They also hunted using blowpipes and traps. They engaged in trading activities and traded forest produce for cloth, salt and knives.”
By the 1970s, a majority of the Mah Meri people lived temporarily on the coast and made their living as shoreline foragers, collecting edible shellfish and performing other forms of fishing.
At these beach settlements, their populace had full access to the beaches, mangroves, mudflats and coastal waters, which they used to source their livelihoods.
“However, with the opening of the Avani Sepang Goldcoast Resort in 2014, the Mah Meri community were restricted from entering or foraging in certain parts of the coastal area,” stated the affidavit.
Based on the document, the tribe now argues that Kg Orang Asli Bukit Bangkong and other surrounding areas, including Kg Orang Asli Bagan Lalang, are on native customary land.
It disputed that on April 20, some Mah Meri villagers were served an eviction notice stating that they will have to leave the land within 30 days or face criminal action.
Following the exhibits attached, it is understood that the referred eviction notice is the one given to settlers at Kg Orang Asli Bagan Lalang by the Sepang Land Office and Permodalan Negeri Selangor Bhd (PNSB).
Among other things, the Mah Meri community bringing the case to court is seeking a declaration that it resides on aboriginal customary land, and a quashing of the eviction notice.
The applicants in the case are Haris Bagungoh, Raziaton Ramli and Marshalina Bakir, who are suing on behalf of the Mah Meri in Bukit Bangkong and its surrounding areas.
They have named PNSB, Mangrove Lifestyle Sdn Bhd, Mandira Persada Sdn Bhd, the director of the Selangor Land Office, Selangor government, director-general of Orang Asli Affairs, Orang Asli Welfare Department, Rural Development Ministry and Malaysian government as respondents. – The Vibes, July 29, 2021
