Extracted from Malaysiakini

Lundu Dayaks, backed by Suhakam, fight for their land
Tony Thien

A silent but effectual war has been launched on alleged fear and intimidation of the traditional Dayak Selako and Dayak Lara communities in western Sarawak in fighting against violations of their human rights, especially indigenous land rights.

The communities have become ‘victims of development' as lands they claim as rightfully theirs under native customary rights (NCR) have either been given to state agencies or private companies for logging or oil palm plantation and other development projects.

The Selako and Lara communities, numbering about 12,000 and regarded as among the smallest ethnic groups, are found only in the Lundu district to the west of Kuching, capital of Sarawak.

They are becoming increasing aware of their human rights, and are now active and vocal with the formation of a growing number of non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

Through the NGOs, working closely with the Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam), they have been voicing their complaints about encroachment to their NCR land, damage and pollution to their water catchment areas and serious riverine siltation, among others.

A Suhakam commissioner, after a visit to various sites affected by environmental degradation following continuous logging and plantation activities, said: “Development is supposed to make life better. Instead, it is making life worse for the villagers.”

Logging at Gunong Pueh and Gunong Gading has been going on unabated for a long time - since 1963 when Malaysia was formed. There is stark evidence to show degradation to the environment, with the most obvious being two rivers - Perunggang and Semapu - which have suffered from serious siltation and a water catchment area to feed nearby villages.

“Sungai Perunggang which used to be five feet deep has almost dried up, and it has affected even an important source of protein with the fishes disappearing,” Suhakam commissioner Prof Hamdan Adnan told accompanying reporters after a visit to Lundu recently at the invitation of a local non-governmental organisation (NGO), the Peruggang-Stukit Land Action Committee.

Angry and frustrated 

At a dialogue session in Kampung Keranji, Ketua Kampung Singking anak Tagoh of Kampung Serayan Ulu told Hamdan and another Suhakam commissioner Dr Hirman Ritom Abdullah from
Sarawak that “because of hillside logging, trees are dead, animals are dead, rivers are dead and I think soon we will all be dead.”

Speaking in an angry and frustrated tone, the 63-year-old Selako village chief who said he was prepared to lose his position for speaking out against the authorities, appealed for all logging activities to be stopped immediately to avoid a further degradation of the environment and causing more hardships to the local people.

The Suhakam commissioners were invited by the Perunggang-Stukit Land Action Committee, headed by Rahman Matu, the Kampung Keranji deputy chief, which has a population of about 250 people.

During the dialogue, attended by about 50 people from 14 Dayak Selako and Dayak Lara villages in Lundu, Rahman announced that a Perunggang-Stukit Bureau headed by him had been formed to defend their human rights, especially their rights to property, sources of livelihood from the land and to ensure security in the area.

He explained that the bureau would act as a bridge between the villages and the authorities and companies issued with either logging permits or leases for oil palm plantation in order to find amicable solutions to existing problems.

According to Rahman, several ketua kampung (village chiefs) and representatives from the 14 villages had met on April 15 and agreed that each kampung would send 10 representatives to the dialogue with Suhakam commissioners.

However, it is learnt that many ketua kampung and others had stayed away for fear they might lose their positions if they were seen as going against the government on the NCR and development issues.

Company pulled out

In their struggle for their lands, many of the villagers had warned plantation companies against encroachment by erecting signs on their NCR land along main roads.

One, in Bahasa Malaysia, read:
Kami minta pemaju memberhentikan penerokaan di kawasan kami degan segera (We request the developer to stop land clearance activities on our land immediately)

It is believed that a joint venture company, Sara HL Plantations Sdn Bhd, involving the Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) and a Johor-based group of investors had already stopped their activities and pulled out from the site at the end of last year.

The Johor investors are now said to be interested in negotiating directly with the NCR landowners, after a group of Selako NCR landowners filed a court action to seek a court declaration to annul the 60-year lease issued by the state government. Their lawyers are asking for a court injunction to stop all land activities. The court has set May 18 for the hearing.

Another sign, erected by a NCR landowner calling himself Dr Lorend, said: Pemaju tidak debindar kan meduroka tanah ataupun damun jikalau tidak ada pempasan atau bayaran atas tanaman dan tanah kami (Developer is not permitted to clear land or trees without making any compensation or payment for crops and our land - Dr Lorend)

A total of 14 Dayak Selako and Dayak Lara villages are effected by either logging or plantation activities that also involve government agencies mostly in joint ventures with private companies.

They are Keranji, Serayan Ulu, Serayan Hilir, Semapu, Judin, Sebako, Sebiris, Tubaro, Jempari, Sedamak, Sedaying, Tanjam, Opek and Jangkat.

Silip Jahiri, a representative of Kampung Sebako, urged Suhakam to use its office to call on the state government to carry out an urgent survey of NCR land to avoid continuing conflicts on the ground.

Ketua Kaum Bakar ak Tijor of Kampung Sedaying in
Lundu-Biawak Road said inspite of the areas around the villages having been declared protected forest by the government in 1952, companies had taken over a large area for oil palm plantations in recent years.

The estate is right at the door-steps of Kampung Sedaying, and KK Bakar claimed the villagers have no idea at all about what was going on.

“We've never been consulted nor have we benefited in any way from it. The estate is said to employ mostly Indonesian workers.”

A sign-board outside the entrance to the estate reads: Ladang Abadi Utama Sdn Bhd, Jangkar Realty Sdn Bhd, Sykt Ladang Dafa Sdn Bhd,
PO Box 6, 94507, Lundu, Sarawak

Villagers told malaysiakini the plantation companies first moved into the area nearly 10 years and have already harvested the fruits and are expanding the acreages "causing much concern and anxiety among our people."

Suhakam wants dialogue

Hamdan said after the site visit that the authorities should require developers not only to carry out Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) studies but also Social Impact Assessment (SIA) studies before granting any lease or permit for any land-related project.

The land should also be properly demarcated before leases are issued, he added.
Hamdan said Suhakam would call for a dialogue between the villagers and the various state government agencies and departments to find out exactly what is happening and to try and resolve some of the problems presently troubling the villagers.

Under the Malaysian Human Rights Commission Act, Suhakam could compel government agencies or departments to attend and obtain the necessary information and co-operation to deal with any complaints on human rights violations.

He said Suhakam was concerned about the quality of life which had been affected by new development activities on the ground.

"As it is, the quality of life (of the villagers) has grown from bad to worse," he commented, adding that it appeared they were getting ‘a raw deal' without much of the basic facilities being provided to them.

He said during the dialogue at Kampung Keranji five issues were raised, including the right to property, the need to protect people's livelihood, logging activities and the rights to compensation for loss of income and crops.

"What we're witnessing is what could be described as a plundering of their property, and sadly it is seen to be continuing," Hamdan told reporters.