A visit to Orang Asli villages in Pahang has left a Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) delegation stumped and furious over the lack of care and basic rights accorded to the indigenous peoples by relevant government agencies.

Commissioner Prof Hamdan Adnan, who was in the group, urged the department of Orang Asli affairs (JHEOA), national registration department (NRD) and welfare department to take immediate steps to help the Orang Asli.

"There are 4,000 children in the state without birth certificates. That's a big figure. The fact that they have no birth certificates would almost make them stateless. The NRD should be more pro-active in registering these children," said Hamdan, who heads the complaints and inquiries committee.

The two-day visit last week was initiated on the strength of complaints to Suhakam. Also in the delegation were vice-chairperson Simon Sipaun, commissioner Abdul Monir Yaacob, two officers and a guide.

Hamdan said departments like the NRD and JHEOA should be more flexible in meeting the needs of the Orang Asli, who are disadvantaged by poor transportation, access and finances.

Activist groups have for years been asking for registration of the Orang Asli to be conducted within settlements.

Main concerns

The delegation discovered that many Orang Asli children studying in primary schools have been placed in classes based on age rather than educational attainment.

For example, a 10-year-old may be placed in Year Four, even if he or she has not received any formal education prior to that.

"Orang Asli students have been branded as performing badly in school. No wonder, with such practices in place. How can someone who has not been to school be expected to become a top student immediately?" Hamdan asked.

He said neither the children nor their parents could be faulted for the failure to enter the schooling system early or if the students drop out, since most schools are located far away from Orang Asli settlements.

For example, only 20 percent of Orang Asli children in the Kampung Bukit Solik Felcra scheme attend secondary school. Many drop out after primary school because of poor ability, inaccessible schools, poverty and the need for their help with agricultural work.

The Orang Asli also face difficulty in obtaining medical care. Hamdan related the case of Siyapek a/l Pakom, 34, of the Patik Jelutong settlement, who is paralysed from the neck downwards and who has been deprived of medical assistance.

"He was hospitalised for 19 days at the Pekan Hospital around this time last year. He was discharged and returned to his hut, and has been left there. The JHEOA is not bothered about him and nobody seems to care for him. His means of livelihood is gone," Hamdan said.

The commissioner said Suhakam would arrange for him to be admitted to the Kuantan Hospital.

"We will also write to the welfare department to care for him and his family," said Hamdan, adding that the JHEOA will also be contacted about Suhakam's concerns.

Suhakam has appealed to the government to assist Orang Asli traders who have to compete with business people who have encroached into the market for crops and game.

"Special places should be set up for their (Orang Asli) business and the government should lend them a hand," Hamdan said.

At an Orang Asli conference in March, delegates identified weaknesses in the Orang Asli Act 1954 as a contributory factor to the community's woes.