Land Rights Victory for Berkeley Sister-City

Uma Bawang Keluan--the official sister-city of Berkeley--has been on the forefront of indigenous rights since 1987, and once again its achievements are a source of inspiration for surrounding villages. Earlier this year, villagers from Uma Bawang received a letter from Sarawak's Ministry of Resource Planning stating their communal lands would no longer be included in the massive Long Lama oil palm plantation concession. This was welcome news for Uma Bawang. For years they have opposed the inclusion of their lands in the concession by submitting dozens of letters of protest and maps showing land claims. They have also organized neighboring villages and threatened law suits. Since receiving the letter, Uma Bawang residents have shared the good news with other communities hoping to curb the rapid dispossession of native lands throughout Borneo.

Ailing BPP Taken Over by Sarawak Government

Sarawak's State Government recently announced plans to bail out and take over management of the Borneo Pulp and Paper (BPP) project--a massive tree plantation and paper mill in Central Sarawak. The government take-over sends a worry signal to the 13 local Iban communities which have actively opposed

BPP’s development for several years. The Iban, who claim the land has been appropriated from them without their consent, have launched protests and filed lawsuits. In May 2001, the community of Rumah Nor sued BPP and set an important legal precedent by winning rights to its native customary land. For the Iban, the buyout of BPP signifies that the Sarawak government is once again committed to moving the project forward. The government decision was made after BPP’s majority stakeholder Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) announced plans to pull out of the project due its staggering $13.9 billion corporate debt.

Passport Returned to Activist

In April, Jok Jau Evong, a Malaysian community organizer and legal rights advocate, regained the freedom to travel outside of Malaysia. The Sarawak Immigration Department confiscated his passport in 1993 due to his outspoken criticism of logging and plantation development on native lands. Jok Jau and his organization, Sahabat Alam Malaysia, challenged the confiscation. After a nine-year court battle, the Federal Court of Appeals ruled that his passport should be returned. Jok Jau was awarded court costs of approximately $2,500. The Borneo Project has worked closely with Jok Jau Evong for 13 years. In 1998, he received Condé Nast Traveler Magazine's Environmental Award, but without passport, was prevented from attending the awards ceremony in Los Angeles. It is hoped Jok Jau will be able to come to the United States for the first time next year.

Village Mappers Use Satellite Imagery

In March, the Borneo Project purchased satellite imagery covering all of Sarawak. For decades, the government has tried to control access to Sarawak’s geographic information. As a result, all detailed maps are classified, and a law passed in November makes surveying without a permit a jailable offense. The lack of base map information has posed a serious obstacle to community mapping efforts. With the purchase of satellite imagery, the Borneo Project can now better help indigenous groups create base maps. With base maps, villagers can use handheld GPS units to locate resource use, places of historical significance and to double check boundary information. Satellite imagery, which provides elevation, road and river information, is useful not only in the creation of base maps, but also for the tracking of deforestation, road construction and conservation hotspots.

Malaysia Bans Indonesian Log Imports

Reacting to Indonesia’s recent decision to ban all timber exports, the Malaysian government has pledged to stop buying logs from Indonesia. Whether the ban will be enforced by the Malaysian government remains to be seen. In recent years, Malaysia has become increasingly dependent on Indonesian timber. The Sarawak Development Institute estimates that 70% of the raw timber supply to Sarawak comes from West Kalimantan, without taking into account a “high volume of undeclared (illegal) hewn timber” (see p. 5). Malaysia’s ban on Indonesian log imports has been attacked by critics as a publicity stunt to counter allegations that the Malaysian wood products industry is dependent on illegal timber from Indonesia. The timing of the ban is suspect given that it coincides with Malaysia’s highly controversial timber certification program to promote its “ sustainably harvested” wood products.

Borneo Project Website Updates

If you haven’t looked recently, you really should.

New crafts for sale! We’ve just had a delivery of beautiful Penan weavings directly from Borneo. Choose from an exquisite array of baskets and mats.: www.earthisland.org/borneo/crafts.html

Find out more about the incredible inland lake in Danau Sentarum National Park in West Kalimantan: www.earthisland.org/borneo/danausentarum/

Other new additions include: a history of Sarawak, a list of what to boycott to help save the rainforest, a chronicle of the Penan struggle and information about orangutans. www.earthisland.org/borneo/borneo.html