Kampung Jemeri spokesman Azman Idom said the Orang Asli regard their ancestral land as their primary source of income and economic survival. PETALING JAYA: The Orang Asli community in Kampung Jemeri, Pahang, say state government aid is insufficient and that they would prefer to improve their livelihoods through recognition of their rights to ancestral land. Azman Idom, a spokesman for the villagers, said each household in the village received about RM1,500 in government aid every year.
“But it is simply not enough to sustain our families’ needs,” he said at a forum titled “Indigenous Youth Speak Up” here today. Azman said the community would prefer to work on their ancestral land, adding that it was their primary source of income and economic survival. However, he said the community was involved in a dispute over the ownership of the land.
Before the dispute, the Orang Asli community earned between RM1,200 and RM1,500 a month, according to Azman. “We question the need for us to continue relying on government assistance without the opportunity to build our own economy from our land, as we always have in the past,” he said. He said that while the state government stressed the importance of the Orang Asli community’s development and education, they knew such development could not be achieved without economic growth.
He also said the community was prepared to fight for their land rights but lacked funds, “so we cannot hire a lawyer”.
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