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Extracted from Malaysiakini
Rape of
Penan women: NGO faces more hurdles
Tony Thien | Nov 14,
Swiss NGO
Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) is worried about the
Malaysian authorities' handling of enquiries into the alleged sexual abuse of
Penan women by logging company workers in
Despite two recent
police reports lodged by Penan women who became pregnant after being raped by
loggers, Malaysia's Inspector-General of Police Musa Hasan had claimed in a statement to the Borneo Post that "none of a total
of 10 rape cases" investigated by the police in Baram had been linked to
the allegations made public by BMF in September.
The Borneo Post is
currently conducting a campaign to whitewash the
On Nov 7, the newspaper carried a front-page report in which Musa Hassan was quoted as saying that
investigations into the sexual abuse of Penan women by logging company workers
had been "more or less stalled due to the refusal of the NGO concerned,
the Bruno Manser Foundation, to cooperate with
police."
In
hiding
A similar
statement by Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu
was reported by the Malaysian national news agency on Nov 12.
BMF said it formally rejects these allegations and wishes to clarify that “we
have not been contacted by the Malaysian police on this issue.”
“BMF is willing to come forward and make a statement to the police
in Bukit Aman in order to
bring about justice and help improve the victims' situation.
“We are concerned about the lack of a political climate that could restore the
trust of the sexual abuse victims in the Malaysian legal system.”
It said that according to Penan sources, several victims and key witnesses are currently
hiding in the forest because they feel intimidated by the way investigations
are being conducted.
In earlier instances, reports of sexual abuse such as a case reported by a
Penan victim at the Kuching central police station on
