Malaysia: Aboriginal people take refuge in the jungle to protect themselves from the coronavirus

Text by: RFI Follow

The Orang Asli, who often already live below the poverty line and suffer from malnutrition, know that they are particularly vulnerable to the spread of the epidemic.

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With our correspondent in Kuala Lumpur , Gabrielle Maréchaux

The Malaysians call them Orang Asli, "men of the origins". About 200,000 people live on the Malaysian peninsula, and they did not wait for official confinement to protect themselves from the new virus.

“ Many communities have barricaded their villages before containment has even been declared. Now, because of the confinement and the difficulties in finding food and work, communities living near the forest have decided to go into the forest : first to self-isolate, a natural decision for them in such circumstances, and then to find food by themselves, "says Colin Nicholas of the Center for Orang Asli Concerns.

Dams

On the photos posted by his association, we can see banners where it is written " forbidden to foreigners ". We also see barrages of thin or thick trunks gathered, so as not to even let a man or a motorcycle pass.

A radicalism that Colin Nicholas explains directly. “ All the problems they have encountered in recent years have come from the outside world, whether it be lumberjacks, intrusions on their land, the development of projects that destroy their habitats, or even diseases. They know it : all that is bad for them comes from outside. "

The post-coronavirus also worries Colin Nicholas: if 40% of the Aslis Orangs are in the monetary economy as daily agricultural workers, many are not registered in the administrations to benefit from the aid of the Malaysian government.

Containment measures

Like many other states, Malaysia has ordered its citizens to stay at home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Since mid-March, it has also prohibited foreign travelers from entering its territory and no longer authorizes its inhabitants to leave the country.

Most of the infections in the country are linked to a worldwide Muslim gathering , which was held from the end of February to the beginning of March and in which nearly 20,000 people, coming from Bangladesh, the Philippines, Brunei, Singapore or Thailand, had attended.

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• Coronavirus
• Malaysia

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