Kesan Perpindahan Secara Paksa oleh Projek hidroeletrik Ulu Jelai

124 hektar tanah adat dan wilayah  daripada 14 buah kampung Orang Asli di Cameron Highland, Pahang akan ditenggelamkan oleh projek hidroelektrik Ulu Jelai atau Empangan Susu. Di mana 3 buah kampung akan dipindahkan. Dokumentari ini mendedahkan kesan penempatan semula ke atas Orang Asli Kampung Susu oleh pemaju projek iaitu TNB. Abdul Latif kata mereka ibarat hidup dalam penjara setelah dipindahkan dari kampung lama.

http://youtu.be/_5Xtxir8MdQ

Susu Dam or Ulu Jelai hydroelectric project at Cameron Highland would flood 124 hectares of customary land and territory belongs to 14 Orang Asli villages and force relocate 3 villages. This documentary exposed the negative social implications of forced resettlement by TNB on the villagers of kampung Susu.

Cost of resettlement of Ulu Jelai Hydroelectric Project

The Ulu Jelai HEP project is in Cameron Highland. Major component is building the Susu Dam on Bertam River, 80 metre high with 372 MW capacity. The dam will flood an area of 124 hectares, basically all are customary land and traditional territory of Orang Asli from 14 villages. 3 villages will be flooded and resettled, which are Kg Susu, Kg Tiat and Kg Pinang.

Chairman f TNB Leo Moggie claimed Orang Asli from this 3 villages will enjoy full facilities but villagers of Kg Susu who had been resettled told us that the PPRT houses were poorly built and water supply are not enough.

CEO of TNB Che Khalid Mohd Noh said TNB will compensate Orang Asli on crops and property losses in the project. What he failed to tell them is, they are not going to get any compensation nor substitution for their customary land which is 124 hectares which they are going to loose once the dam start its impoundment.

In every single statement TNB made to the media, they only mentioned that: " 14 Orang Asli will be involved", but fail to recognize that the land to be submerged is customary land which belongs to Orang Asli.

However, to comfort the Orang Asli of Kampung Susu who had been forced to move, TNB promised
verbally that each family will be given 6 acres of farm land in Raub to earn a living. Similar case had happened to the Penans and Kenyah of Murum who were resettled last year to Metalun and Tegulang, no sign of compensation or replacement of the land they lost was noticed. They same tragedy most probably would befall Orang Asli in Pos Lanai(  a few thousand of them) if they accept the proposed Telom Dam.

Ulu Jelai HEP: Another Nightmare Dam Project in Pahang

(31st aug2014). 44 households of Orang Asli from ethnic Semai  from Kampung Susu, Cameron Highland were forced relocated by TNB( dam developer) and JAKOA, accompanied by policemen loaded with weapons on 6th June to a temporary resettlement area under the Susu Dam, which is still under construction.

They were only given RM700 as relocation fees and thousands Ringgit as compensation to the crops which has been destroyed by the dam under construction. This was told by Abdul Latif, a villager of former Kampung Susu who has moved to the resettlement area. He said: " We are like prisoners here because we have no land to work on and no forest resources to earn our living."

The 6 hectares of farmland per family as promised by TNB and state government of Pahang which they are depending on for livelihood are still uncertain, while hundreds hectares of their traditional land and territories is going to be flooded once the Susu Dam or Ulu Jelai HEP starts its impoundment probably by end of 2015.

Similar misfortune befalls the Orang Asli in this area were and are happening in Bakun, Murum di Sarawak and several areas in Peninsular Malaysia. Yet Pahang government and TNB still insist to build more dams in Pos Lanai and Pos Lenjang, both are in Lipis District of Pahang. At the moment, no EIA of these project is seen or published but TNB already bringing drilling machines to both proposed dam sites, persuading and instigating the locals to accept SEIA survey.One of the SEIA survey form is shown below:

During our field work visit( Action Committee of Pos Lanai Orang Asli who oppose Telom Dam and Peoples Documentary) to Kampung Susu on our Malaya Merdeka Day, several Orang Asli interviewed by us shown their regret over the resettlement program and they advised the people of Pos Lanai and Pos Lenjang to " Pertahankan tanah adat kamu"( protect your customary land and traditional terrotary) before its too late.