MEDIA ADVISORY
10 October 2005
Friends of the Earth International
Malaysia: Penans' Plight Requires a Stop
to Logging and Plantations
Penang (Malaysia) October 10, 2005 --
Representatives from Friends of the Earth
International (FoEI), the world's largest
grassroots environmental federation, sounded
the alarming bells for the plight of the
indigenous Sarawak Penans of Malaysia at the
end of the FoEI annual general meeting here
today.
The Sarawak Penans live in extreme poverty
with hardly much access to basic needs like
proper housing, food, clean water, education
and healthcare as well as identification
documents.
Friends of the Earth International
understands that for the past two decades the
Malaysian Government frequently made various
statements that financial assistance and
facilities have been provided to the Penans
on the pretext of solving their problems.
However, this assistance and facilities
have yet or have failed to improve the lives
or livelihood of the Penans.
Penans say that logging on their native
customary lands and the lack of respect for
their native customary rights are the main
problems faced by them. Increased logging
activities on the Penans' native customary
lands are causing them much problem.
Regrettably, the State Government of
Sarawak had intensified the problems further
by issuing licences over large areas for oil
palm and tree plantation projects to private
companies without giving due regard to the
rights and culture of the Penans whose
livelihood is greatly dependent on the forest
and its resources.
Extensive and indiscriminate logging and
looming threat of total clearance of forests
for plantations in and around the Penan areas
of settlements have unjustly deprived them of
their rights of free access and usage of
their lands and resources for their very
sustenance.
Lack of healthcare is another major
concern where the health of the Penans has
deteriorated as a result of air and river
pollution, exposure to heat as well as lack
of nutritious food due to the depletion of
forests because of logging activities. The
lack of healthcare centres located near the
Penan areas is another factor which
contributes to why some of the Penans are of
constantly poor health. Further, until today,
a large number of Penans still do not possess
identification documents.
Friends of the Earth International
strongly urges the Malaysian government to
act urgently on the demands put forth by the
Penans, including these:
-
Recognise the ancestral and native
customary rights on Penan lands and give
special rights or privilege to the Penans
to continue to obtain their source of food
and produce from their forests. Logging
must cease in these areas.
-
Revoke the provisional leases or
licenses issued for large scale plantations
which are on Penan customary lands
-
Expedite the approval of the Penans'
applications for Communal Forest
Reserves
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT
In Penang (Malaysia) Meena Raman, Friends
of the Earth International Chair, Tel:
+60-12-4300042 (cel) or email
meenaco@pd.jaring.my
|
