Zahari Sarip, the state agriculture and rural development committee chairman, said he voiced the matter at a meeting with the Orang Asli community at several of their villages recently.

“There were some who asked about the matter. I told them to hold a roundtable discussion, and not to do it openly as I am concerned there are parties who may take advantage.

“I myself was taken to look at an area in Kampung Sayong Pinang, Kota Tinggi where oil palm and rubber are being cultivated by the Orang Asli, so actually there’s no issue.

“The state government, however, is still in discussions with the Orang Asli community and we hope to resolve this matter,” he told reporters when asked about discussions between the state government and the Orang Asli community regarding the sultanate land issue today.

In March, the sultan of Johor, Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, said he was disappointed that some Orang Asli had been trespassing on government forest reserves for the purported large-scale cultivation of rubber and oil palm.

The sultan expressed his belief that there were some outside parties behind the acts taking advantage of Orang Asli native rights. The ruler urged the state government to gazette the Orang Asli settlements and reserves as sultanate land.

More than 200 Orang Asli gathered at Kota Iskandar, Iskandar Puteri, on May 8 to hand in a memorandum protesting against the suggestion to turn Orang Asli customary lands into sultanate land.