I think for all its rhetoric, the government has failed the first inhabitants of Malaysia badly. The malaysiakini report, Penan plight shocks Suhakam team is timely.

Some years ago the plight of the Penans was highlighted by a brave Swiss by the name of Bruno Manser. This intrepid and selfless warrior for the natives, whose lands were being robbed under our noses, highlighted the Penans' plight.

He was hounded by the Malaysian authorities and their spinmeisters painted him out as a troublemaker and declared him a national enemy. Of course, those who have brains know that he was merely protecting the unprotected. To our shame we didn't do more to aid this friend of the rainforest and the Penans.

If Hang Tuah was a hero, so was Bruno, and more for he fought for the survival of strangers who became his beloved friends and family.

Sadly he disappeared mysteriously and while speculations of one sort or another are rife, no one really knows what happened to him. He could possibly have been killed by his enemies or succumbed to an accident in the jungle.

I am not surprised at the bad attitude of the authorities and their indifference toward the Penans. The government has never shown itself as caring for the Orang Asli. Their plight is well-highlighted in malaysiakini.

The Centre for Orang Asli Concerns' website is worth visiting. I learned many things about my own country from this website and felt ashamed at how Malaysians allow their government to ill treat the most harmless of our fellow Malaysians.

If Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is such a nice guy as they say he is, why is he still allowing such injustices and inhuman conditions to exist in the Orang Asli communities? Why isn't he giving priority to these people? Or is building multi-million dollar mosques and white elephants more important?

I am glad that in recent times people are beginning to expose the sins of the authorities against the environment and the natives of Malaysia. It is our duty to do that, whatever our religion or race. We are indeed our brothers' keepers, and especially when they suffer neglect.

The rainforests are the only thing we have left that others don't have. Reports that coastal environments are being devastated by development are shocking but not surprising. Before greed destroys our natural legacy, the people must goad the government into action.

When politicians are busying themselves in building their own business empires, don't expect them to act to protect the environment which their businesses are destroying. Property developers are a dime a dozen anywhere, but the rainforests once destroyed cannot be replaced.

The natural habitats of the Penans are their only means of survival. Other disgruntled Malaysians can emigrate overseas or into the cities or countryside. But the Penans have nowhere to go because they are vitally linked to the rainforests. They belong to the land and vice versa.

Many years ago, I accompanied a friend who worked as a government doctor into the interior of the mainland. The attitude and behaviour of the guide disgusted me. He had such a bullying manner toward the Orang Asli, and when he was at their settlement, he took what he fancied like a modern-day Conquistador.

But what I saw that night shocked me. Apparently the Orang Asli were afflicted with a strange sickness and their infants were dying by the dozen. At night we would see a mother take her baby home from the makeshift clinic to die at home. It was heart-wrenching. The New Economic Policy has skirted over them, yet they are the most needy.

It is not enough for Suhakam to merely highlight the problem but it should work perspicaciously to seek redress for the victims of government negligence. It should in no uncertain terms let the authorities know that the neglect of the Penan, the theft and destruction of their traditional lands spell the end of their existence.

We worry about the extinction of our wildlife and rainforests. But forest dwellers like the Penan are more precious. If they want to live in the rainforests as their ancestors have done for a long time, we should give them that option but not forego funds that should be reserved for those who want to advance in the mainstream of the country's development.

Modern governments, whether they are in the West or developing countries, are really quite irresponsible and incompetent in their management of their minority natives. But it is not my intention to go into that. Suffice to say, the government must do something to help the suffering Orang Asli, including the Penans.

For a start, stop trying to transform them into pseudo-Malays. The cultural genocide committed by former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the present administration has to stop. The authorities should stop trying to convert the Orang Asli into Malays by financial incentives, neglect, or other unethical and unconstitutional means.

When we consider the conservation of our natural environment we should not overlook the plight of the forest dwellers. It is time the government acts to alleviate the plight of our fellow native Malaysians.