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Extracted from Malaysiakini.com
Penan forced
to put problems on hold
Fauwaz Abdul Aziz
Jan 17,
The Penan community’s
hopes have been dashed - a European Union (EU) forestry delegation is unable to
meet its request for a meeting while on a visit to
A source explained that the meeting could not be accommodated as the invitation
was received on Jan 12, after the EU delegation’s schedule of working visits
and meetings have already been finalised.
In a statement earlier, the Switzerland-based rainforest communities rights
group Bruno-Manser-Fonds said that Long Lamam headman Balang Toi and 15 other
Penan had hoped to meet the delegation.
Their
invitation had been extended about a week ago through a letter from European
and Malaysian non-governmental organisations to discuss logging-related issues.
When contacted today, EU ambassador to Malaysia Thierry Rommel said the Penan
community should not despair.
"This is only the first of many visits by the EU delegation, and I am
confident that there will be many more opportunities in the future to meet
them," he said.
The EU delegates will visit
The VPA is part of the EU’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade initiative
to stem trade in illegal timber and promote sustainable forest management.
Among the
issues the Penan had planned to raise were problems resulting from the issuance
of logging licenses, including the impact on their welfare and source of livelihood,
as well as on the environment.
A particular grievance is the recognition granted by countries such as the
They allege MTCC does not seriously address violations
by logging companies against forest- and environment-dependent communities such
as the Penan.