Apart from land rights, there are programmes by both Federal and State Government to
assist the community to uplift themselves from poverty by providing housing, education
and better access to healthcare.
The indigenous community in Malaysia is generally referred as Indigenous Peoples.
The Orang Asli (“Original peoples”) are the indigenous people of Peninsular Malaysia.
Orang Asli in Peninsula Malaysia
1. Right to Education
SUHAKAM visited five schools, eight Orang Asli settlements and attended three
conferences in pursuing the right to education for Orang Asli. The major issue identified
was absenteeism from schools, mainly in the interior, the lack of 3R skills (writing, reading
and arithmetic) among primary school children, and dropping out of school especially
during the move from primary to secondary school.
As for the adults, illiteracy is common among them too. It is estimated that about 75% of
the adults met during the visits were illiterate. Due to this, they find it difficult to protect
and defend their rights especially in relation to land matters and education.
However, it was observed that where parents and teachers collaborate as partners in
addressing some of these problems, they managed to reduce absenteeism and lack
of 3R skills. The children of these schools are very involved in school activities.
Apart from the above, an age-old problem confronting Orang Asli schools is the lack of
facilities. There are schools that still go without treated water and do not have 24 hours
supply of electricity. These situations hinder effective teaching and the learning process.
Nevertheless, Ministry of Education (MOE) has been making efforts to remedy the
situation. Among them is the establishment of a Special Training College to train Orang
Asli teachers and assigning them to Orang Asli schools and modifying the curriculum
for the students in the 96 Orang Asli schools.
2. Right to Orang Asli native customary land
SUHAKAM regrets the lack of commitment by the authorities, especially the state
governments, in recognising the land rights of Orang Asli. Most of the state governments
are not taking any measures to protect the land of the indigenous peoples but instead
have enabled logging and plantation companies to encroach on Orang Asli land
rights by leasing those lands to them. The state governments depend on forest revenue
and land is leased to private companies and state agencies for plantations, logging,
farming, and construction of dams, among others.
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SUHAKAM
ANNUAL REPORT 2018