The world of Tzu Chi July 2020 (Vol.124)

2020 • 07 32 pecial Feature The villagers of Kampung Ketam survive on little; one of them, Ruhill Minah binti Taji, resorts to gathering leftover food or rice left by the road for birds to feed her family. Living on bare necessities Reported by Voo Siew Jin Photograph by Tan Boon Tiong K ampung Ketam, a 45-minute drive from the township of Lahad Datu, is a small village located by the side of the main road, populated by about 30 to 40 households. The villagers depend on fishing, collecting scraps from the nearby landfill and plucking oil palm fruits in oil palm plantations for a living. During the MCO, the villagers had been deprived of their source of income and subsisted on seafood from their catch and sweet potatoes and yams from their farms. Most of the villagers belong to either the Sulu or Bajau ethnic group and rarely communicate with the outside world; some of them are unable to understand Malay. The villagers are used to living on the bare minimum of resources and are content with their current living conditions despite the inconsistent supply of proper meals. On June 6, 2020, the villagers frantically fled their homes and hid themselves in the nearby woods at the sight of the volunteers, mistaking them for law enforcement officers coming to detain undocumented residents. Nevertheless, the misunderstanding was soon resolved and the villagers were relieved to learn that the aim of the volunteers’ arrival was to provide assistance. Fleeing is an inevitable part of the villagers’ lives. Mothers equip themselves with an “escape kit” containing snacks and clothes for their children to pacify the little ones and prevent them from crying in order to avoid catching the attention of the authorities. On the afternoon of June 7, the volunteers