The Star, Malaysia : Mossy wonderland defiled

Monday, March 24, 2003

Mossy wonderland defiled

By S. S. YOGA
Pictures by LOW BOON TAT

YES, they did. No, we didn't. No, it was someone else. Yes, it was me but because they said okay first. No, both of them did. Er, maybe they didn't at all.

That just about sums up the Gunung Brinchang issue. Confused?

The misty, moss-covered fairyland which is Gunung Brinchang in Cameron Highlands before the filming of Puteri Gunung Ledang began which left behind a trail of mess and destruction.

Can't blame you if you are. So are the non-government organisations (NGOs) and the media. All this confusion could be easily cleared up if the parties concerned were to just divulge the documented information, which they claim they have.

We are talking about the merry-go-round of a controversy surrounding the filming of Puteri Gunung Ledang in the misty and wondrous Gunung Brinchang in Cameron High-lands. This fresh debacle in the highlands erupted just weeks after a land-stripping fiasco by a farmer in Blue Valley that raised the ire of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad and drew nationwide attention.

This new farce had everyone playing a guessing game over two questions that kept popping up throughout the whole sorry episode: Was there a permit issued? If yes, why was it issued?

The permit in question was for permission to film scenes for the movie in the forest reserves in Gunung Brinchang.

First, the details.

The site and backdrop for this movie is a simply amazing creation of nature, the mossy forest. Growing only at elevations above 1,500m, this temperate fairyland is high in the sky, away from the steamy tropical jungles. It is but four hours’ drive from bustling, traffic-choked and smoggy Kuala Lumpur!

The myriads of trails in untouched forest reserves in Cameron Highlands are open for trekking. The first thing that greets trekkers at the start of the trails is the lovely sight of a mossy carpet on the ground, on the trees and all around.

In between strangely gnarled and stunted trees, beautiful orchids, pitcher plants and ferns hug the landscape as if to seek warmth in this cool, damp place. There are also beautiful rhododendron trees amid the numerous flowering and non-flowering vegetation, while the mist curls in between the trees.

As you turn corners here along the trail, more entrancing sights emerge. An assorted group comprising folk from NGOs and the media were on a trail through this wonderland, many of them first-time visitors to this forest. Many were gasping and shaking their heads in wonderment.

“I never knew such a place could exist. Now I understand why people are upset with the destruction,” said a colleague as he breathed in the fresh crisp air.

One can find natural arches made of branches covered in moss and a mossy forest floor glistening as the sunlight reflects off the moisture delicately trapped in it. It could very well be the abode of a fairy princess. At the end of this arched structure is the sky peeping through and a vista of more mountains beyond.

“It's a beautiful forest, like something out of a Lord of the Rings movie,” said Worldwide Fund for Nature Malaysia (WWF) executive director Datuk Dr Mikaail Kavanagh Abdullah.

Reality bites

That description, though, refers to an untouched mossy forest. Alas, for the Puteri Gunung Ledang movie, the backdrop was altered, and not digitally either. Trees, some of them rhododendrons, were cut down; at first three, and now at least 15 at the last count. The slippery fur-like moss was stripped off tree trunks and the trail. Orchids, pitcher plants and the famous kacip fatima were removed or damaged.

The filmmakers added a platform measuring 15m by 4m made of bamboo, a roof of rhododendron branches, and wall hangings of introduced morning glory vines. The trail too was widened and wooden beams added to facilitate movement of the crew and heavy equipment. Due to the absence of moss, the wet weather and the frequent movement of the film crew, the peaty ground turned into a muddy mess that mucked up our shoes and attire.

The film crew and cast made their base camp by the side of the road leading up to the peak (this is the highest mountain in Malaysia that has a road leading all the way to the summit). It housed trailers, vehicles, tents and equipment. The crew apparently consisted of 80 permanent staff, with many more locals hired as extras or to help on the site.

A long ramp to facilitate entry to the trail for the heavy equipment was installed too.

Fortunately these orchids and pitcher plants were spared from damage during the filming.

Representing the producers of the said RM3.5mil (though it has also been reported that it costs RM6mil) movie by EnfiniTi Productions was its production and location manager Razaq Sahibjahn.

When met on March 10, Razaq expressed shock that EnfiniTi was accused of the environmental destruction. He claimed that the permit given by the Forestry Department contained guidelines that included no felling of trees, and the need to return the area to its pristine state once filming was done. Razaq said they observed it to the letter but acknowledged plants might have been damaged, and any more than that “was sabotage”.

In addition to his denial, Razaq claimed an alibi of sorts by saying that the crew was absent for four days from the site to film in nearby Gunung Jasar. This did not explain why two days after an inspection by a local NGO, the Society of Regional Environmental Awareness of Cameron Highlands (Reach) accompanied by the media, the number of trees felled had increased from nine to more than 15 and more vegetation damaged. This time the film crew was present in during the two days.

Razaq said he did not want to make a police report on his allegations, as he did not want to “prolong the matter”.

The comment from Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob that the issue was blown out of proportion drew the ire of Reach which consists of local residents who value and want to protect their natural heritage and who blew the whistle on this in the first place.

“It is still against the law and you have to observe the law. If we allow this, then another person will come along and say you can't stop me as you have allowed someone else to do it,” said Reach president Ramakrishnan Ramasamy.

Under various sections of the National Forestry Act 1984 (Amendments 1993) any persons found in violation of trespassing without a permit may be fined up to RM50,000 and jailed up to five years. Those found guilty of felling trees also face the same penalty.

Ramakrishnan said that besides the trees, vegetation comprising at least six orchid species (including one endemic to Malaysia, Epigeneium longipes), five moss species, one pitcher plant species and one species of kacip fatima were damaged. Razaq seemed unfazed by it all and said they would eventually all grow back.

Ramakrishnan took exception to this as he explained that the moss especially was the result of thousands of years of growth. Additionally the moss acts like a nursery for many other types of vegetation including many beautiful and sought-after orchids.

Dr Kavanagh said that the mossy forest is like a bonsai forest and, just like the commercial bonsai trees, this forest is very precious to nature for many reasons.

“Part of the reason why the trees are stunted is that it grows on rocky outcrops that have little water. It pulls the moisture out of the air much like a condenser. It is a fragile forest and any disturbance will affect the climate here and eventually the whole make-up of the forest will change,” explained Dr Kavanagh.

On March 16, it was announced that a Reach project had recorded a big increase in the number of orchid species in Cameron Highlands. It speculates that increases in temperature might have encouraged the growth of lowland species here and that might be what you see in Gunung Brinchang too if the temperature goes up due to disturbance.

Fables and foibles

Razaq said that EnfiniTi, which is producing this film of a famous Malaysian legend or fable, is a subsidiary of Ten on Ten Productions that he says is in turn a subsidiary of NTV7. The film boasts stars such as Tiara Jacquelina (who is linked to Ten on Ten and is the wife of Agriculture Minister Datuk Dr Mohd Effendi Norwawi), M. Nasir and Indonesian actress Christine Hakim.

The legend of Puteri Gunung Ledang is steeped in mystery. Equally mysterious is the issuance of a permit by the State Forestry that Razaq claimed he obtained but could never produce a copy of.

Easy enough, the Forestry Department should have been able to set that record straight. Not quite, for when State director Datuk Mokhtar Mat Isa was contacted by The Star, all he could say (twice) was that the matter should be closed as it had dragged on for too long. He added that since the Pahang Menteri Besar had already made a statement, there was no necessity for another.

It was pointed out to him that no one had yet corroborated Razaq's claim to have a permit. Mokhtar then repeated his first statement.

Cameron Highlands district officer Haron Abdul Kader said he had a copy of the permit (which included both Gunung Brinchang and Gunung Jasar) but when asked by the press for a copy, he said: “I cannot because as you know, it is an official government document and it falls under the Official Secrets Act.”

If a permit that is given to a member of the public is considered an OSA document, what does that make our road-tax discs, for instance? Haron by the way had purportedly given permission for the movie to be filmed there even though the area is under the jurisdiction of the Forestry Department, permission he claimed was based on the “verbal approval” of local Forestry officials.

What a tangled web we weave.

Ramakrishnan said he was puzzled as to why such a simple matter as producing a copy of the permit could not be done. He felt that ample time had already been given to all concerned to do so.

To add fuel to fire, there is evidence to show that the felling and removal of trees and vegetation was not only on the Pahang side of the forest reserve but also on the Perak side, according to Reach sources and media observation. The permit, if it exists, would not cover the Perak side.

Mokhtar said he would not comment until he saw the report and Perak Forestry claimed it had never given permission. Perak Forestry officers were later asked to investigate these new findings.

Dr Kavanagh wondered why the Pahang forestry department had not alerted their counterparts in Perak on the possible encroachment. He said that there were major implications that resulted from this.

“We have to investigate this loophole in the system. For example, if someone is caught on the Pahang side bringing out wild orchids from the Perak side, would the prosecution by Pahang authorities fail because of this technicality?” posed Dr Kavanagh, adding that this could result in the culprit going scot-free unless the Perak side took up the case.

Are we any nearer to solving this mystery?

As it is, if this issue were to be made into a movie, it would leave viewers baffled and dissatisfied, especially with the unresolved ending. Perhaps there would be a sequel due, one which nature lovers hope will have a satisfactory resolution – Mystery Of Gunung Brinchang: Solved.