It was not long after about 40 men were arrested by police at the Simpang Petei logging site on Tuesday, that more than 200 Orang Asli folk came from all around the villages in Gua Musang and camped out near Parit.

This time they are also calling for the authorities not to harass the community and to release the men who were arrested earlier.

“We are not criminals, so why arrest us? We are just asking for what is rightfully ours.

“We urge the authorities to release our family members. We will continue with our struggle until they are released, and are willing to fight to the last drop of blood,” an Orang Asli man named Nasir told FMT.

The group were joined by local and foreign NGOs, who have been providing aid and also legal support to the Orang Asli for a few months now.

“We are not going to budge, so please have some pity and let us be. Stop bullying us,” an Orang Asli man named Gapeh Angah said, while also appealing to the authorities to release the men who were arrested.

The barricade at Simpang Petei was said to have been demolished under instructions from the Kelantan government, after the police arrested the Orang Asli on Tuesday.

On Oct 3, the state government ordered a freeze on logging activities in the Balah permanent forest reserve in Gua Musang after 200 villagers formed a blockade in late September to prevent lorries from transporting extracted timber out of the reserve.

The Orang Asli claimed the logging activities near their homes were adversely affecting the environment and their livelihoods.