Native issues taken up by international NGO-star reports

International NGO sees red over 'green projects'
By STEPHEN THEN

MIRI: A London-based organisation wants the international community and governments to stop classifying energy-production projects as “green” if such projects affect the lives of native communities.

The latest report from Survival International, a global organisation involved in protecting tribal people, said native people and the envi­ronment were suffering more now because of so-called green projects being implemented by governments and rich corporations.

Survival International director Stephen Corry, in an e-mail to The Star yesterday, furnished a copy of the latest report entitled The Most Inconvenient Truth of All, in which the RM9bil Bakun Dam and RM3bil Murum Dam projects in central Sarawak were cited as among global projects that had harmed the indigenous people and environment.

The report also criticised similar projects in places in Africa and other continents.

“Bio-fuel is being promoted all over the world as the alternative green energy to fossil fuels.

“However, in the pretext of going green, the reverse is actually happening.

“From South America to Borneo, we are seeing the destruction of massive areas of jungles and the ruin of ancestral homes belonging to tribal people.

“Projects that victimise the people and harm the environment cannot be promoted or marketed as green projects,” said Corry.

Corry said the world community must see through the hidden agendas.

The report called for a complete global re-look of hydro-electric dam and bio-fuel projects because these were causing even more harm to the people and environment than previously.

Orang Ulu request for ministerial post

myy-bp-271109-lj-berawan

By Lucas Jalong Bato

MIRI: The Berawans supported the request made by the delegation led by Orang Ulu Baram paramount chief Temenggong Pahang Ding to the top BN leadership to include an Orang Ulu assemblyman in the state cabinet.

On Thursday the delegation made the request through the deputy chief minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu whom they met at Miri airport before his departure to Kuching. He was in Miri to officiate the Sarawak Kenyah Cultural Festival.

A Berawan headman TK Edmund Abang of Long Terawan said the Berawan community would like to see the assemblyman from Telang Usan Lihan Jok be included in the state cabinet at least holding the assistant minister post.

“Among the four Orang Ulu assemblymen Lihan is the most senior and deserved a shot at serving the community as an assistant minister. He has proven to be a hard working assemblyman for our constituency and if appointed as an assistant minister he would be more effective in serving the people,” said Edmund.

A councillor from Baram district council Garry Hashim believed Lihan would make a good assistant minister representing the Orang Ulu since the last time the community was represented was during the late Dr Judson Tagal who was the Ba Kelalan assemblyman.

A free lance tour operator Mathew Mawit agreed that an Orang Ulu should be included in the state cabinet in the spirit of 1Malaysia.

A youth leader from the Berawan community Alexander Laing supported the call for Lihan to be appointed as an assistant minister.

“I believe he will be a dynamic assistant minister because even while as an assemblyman he has served the people in his constituency tirelessly,” said Alexander.

During the recent minor cabinet reshuffle, the Orang Ulu was not included even though all its assemblymen are in the Barisan Nasional.

During the last state election in 2006 the Orang Ulu constituencies of Telang Usan, Ba Kelalan, Belaga and the new constituency of Batu Danau saw all BN candidates from the Orang Ulu community winning comfortably against the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

Meanwhile a former state cabinet minister from the Orang Ulu community Datuk Joseph Balan Seling when contacted by phone, pointed out that it is not easy for the top BN leadership to please everybody when it comes to appoint ministers in the cabinet.

“I am confident that the chief minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib has his reason because he has to see the overall political situation,” said Balan.

The Orang Ulu community has a political secretary to the chief minister Robert Laing Anyie.


myy-bp-010709-lj-berawan-P1, P2, P3, P4
Caption: HOPING: From left: Edmund, Garry, Mathew, Alexander.