Malaysians, tourists, Malaysian tourists, and all of those in between, we can now add scenic rice paddy fields to the growing list of beautiful things of which we are undeserving. Sigh.
Social media users have been flocking to Sekichan, a scenic seaside village just outside of Kuala Lumpur best known for their luscious rice fields, fresh seafood and as the setting for your Auntie’s favorite 2011 local Chinese drama, The Seeds of Life, and they are leaving a unfortunate mark.
While many of the area’s visitors are taking advantage of the beautiful field backgrounds for their Instagram and social media posts, they’re also unwittingly undoing the extensive hard work and labor that farmers have put in to growing their damn crops.
According to Oriental Daily, pleas from farmers via clear signboards asking tourists to stay off their rice have fallen on deaf ears, and many a camera-snaps: Many visitors over the school holiday and Raya period continue to defy their pleas and tread far and wide in search of their perfect frame.
The number of visitors to the area has increased in recent time, seeing 20% more visitors than at the same time last year.
Local tourism boards are trying to educate visitors, explaining that farmers are only able to harvest crops twice a year, and a trampled plant will result in a loss of income for them.
Sin Chew Daily has previously reported that there are many pathways along the fields for visitors to walk along, yet many continue to simple walk through the fields, in search of their unfettered photo-op among the ACTUAL crops slash livelihood of another human being.
Great, so humanity really has no excuse this time, do they? Come on, people – we are better than this.
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