Table 3 Orang Asli land status, 1990-2003 (hectares) Land status 1990 1999 2003 Change/Loss (1990-2003) Gazetted Orang Asli Reserves 20,666.96 19,507.4 19,222.15 -1,444.81 Approved for gazetting, but not gazetted as yet 36,076.33 28,932.2 28,760.86 -7,315.47 Total Orang Asli land with some legal status 56,743.29 48,439.6 47,983.01 -8,760.28 Applied for gazetting, but not approved yet 67,019.46 78,975.0 79,715.53 12,696.07 123,762.75 127,414.6 127,698.54 3,935.79 Total Source: JHEOA The dismal fact is that only 15.1 per cent of all recognised Orang Asli lands were duly gazetted as Orang Asli reserves. Another 22.5 per cent (28,760.86 hectares) had been duly approved for gazetting as reserves but, alas, the actual administrative gazetting was not done. In some cases, according to the JHEOA’s Data Tanah of the early 1990s, the approval for gazetting was given in the mid-1960s and mid-1970s, but to date the actual gazettement was never effected. In other cases, such as in Kuala Krau, Pahang, such lands that were approved for gazetting in the past eventually became re-classified as “Tanah Kerajaan” (JHEOA Data Klasifikasi Kampung 1997) —frequently without the information or consent of the Orang Asli concerned. What is also of concern is that even the area of Orang Asli gazetted reserves have been decreasing over the years. From Table 3, it will be seen that a total of 1,444.81 hectares of gazetted Orang Asli reserves were de-gazetted from 1990 to 2003. 24 ORANG ASLI – RIGHTS, PROBLEMS & SOLUTIONS