MIRI – Natives in rural Tinjar sub-district in northern Sarawak have found pig carcasses in the forests near their settlements.
They suspect that these are animals that died of the African swine flu and dumped in the forests by pig farmers.
Social activist Willie Kajan today told The Vibes that natives living along Sg Bahin in Tinjar have complained of finding pig carcasses inside the forests.
Tinjar is about 100km inland from here.
“Villagers in a Kayan settlement along Sg Bahin said they found rotting carcasses on the way to their farms.The carcasses are that of farmed pigs and not wild boars.
“The natives alleged that there are pig farmers who are dumping infected animals in the forests.”
Kajan said some of the natives had alerted the district office of the matter.
“There must be a more organised way of culling and burying dead pigs.”
The swine flu outbreak is already causing residents in Sibu town in central Sarawak to suffer from air pollution and potential health issues due to the mass culling of infected pigs.
Residents are complaining that the culled pigs are starting to cause serious air pollution, said Dudong assemblyman Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.
Over the past two weeks, the African swine flu had spread rapidly in central Sarawak, spreading outwards to pig farms from Sibu town to the outskirts.
Pigs in at least 14 longhouses in the outskirts of Sibu district had been infected. – The Vibes, February 25, 2022
