A need to reach out to the orang asli

WHEN an orang asli villager in Sungai Kejar of Perak’s Royal Belum State Park was asked how many people in the area had been lost to the disease they call serawan, his answer was: “Satu ratus, dua ratus ... tiga ratus!”

Given that the Sungai Kejar settlements have only around 300 inhabitants (according to official numbers), the man’s claim was likely to be wide of the mark.