The first time I heard of Baram was when I received an email from my friend, Lana, the director of CREST. There have been floods in the district of Baram, near Miri, Sarawak. She was sourcing for volunteers for the crisis relief team and for finance to help the villagers affected by the floods. “This really is not the right time,” I thought as I glanced at the files in my office. Writing a cheque to CREST should be enough on my part. I could not get a good night’s sleep since then. So I volunteered to join the relief team.
On 16 March, we took a flight from LCCT (KL) to Miri airport. There were 4 members in this team. All except me were men. Being a rose among thorns has its advantages: my “brothers” carried all the heavy loads including my baggage (kononnya nak tunjuk macho), nobody complained (at least I did not hear of any) when I hoarded the bathroom, I was given the front passenger seat and I have a room all to myself throughout this trip.
From Miri to Kuala Baram, we travelled by taxi. The road is straight and newly tarred, thanks to SHELL. Then we took the express long boat to go up the river. For the next 4 days, we travelled from one village to another: Marudi, Long Ikang, Long Lama and Long Bemang; on the river by a small motor boat and on land by a Toyota Hilux 4WD. Purchased and distributed the relief supplies to the villagers. When we travelled on the river, I remained on the lookout for crocodiles. To my disappointment, I spotted only a five feet basking under the sun throughout this entire trip. The ones I saw in the JB zoo were larger than that. No, I am sure that I did not miss anything. Believe me, we had to take a small boat that was only slightly wider than my hips and had to cling on to both sides for our dear lives. I paid my utmost attention to the waters around us.
The villagers (mostly Kayans, Ibans and Penans) did not ask for much, only for what is necessary to survive the crisis and to move on with their lives.
Tok Kampung of Long Ikang was once a brave warrior. However, he could not protect his village from the floods. He looked so defeated and resigned to fate. He was grateful to the churches that contributed when we arrived with the relief supplies for his people. We were told that the river has changed. It used to be clear, deep and teeming with marine life. The massive logging, quarry and clearing of the land for palm oil plantations have eroded the lands. This caused the soil to be flushed by the rain into the river. Years of accumulation of the soil has raised the level of the river.
Tok Penghulu of Long Bemang informed us that the floods were more frequent in the recent years. There were 10 times last year. Our government has sent representatives to estimate the extent of the crisis. Each family has been given RM50. That was a month ago.
Contrary to what I have learnt in my Form 3 Geography, the long-houses are no longer made of wood or bamboo. They are about 100 units of modern concrete buildings joined together to form a long-house. If an estimated value of each unit is RM20,000, then a long house will cost RM2,000,000. Therefore, it is unrealistic and impractical to expect the people to shift to higher grounds. Most of the villagers are farmers and fishermen, hence, could not afford to build another long-house. The massive logging and quarry activities together with deforestation are choking the river and robbing the livelihood of these indigenous people. The increasingly frequent floods not only damaged the long-houses but also destroyed the padi and the fields.
The whole eco-system in this district has been brutally jeopardised. Even the wild animals are dwindling in numbers. That was why I could not spot anymore crocodiles. The greed of human beings in the name of “development” has no bounds. When will enough be enough?
When we left for KL on 20 March, I was caught in a dilemma. On one hand, I could sleep peacefully knowing that I have done my part. On the other, there remained so much to do...
Today is Earth Day, the annual celebration on the 22nd of April all over the world. It is intended to inspire awareness for the Earth’s environment on a daily basis; to promote a sustainable environment and to protest against environmental pollutions. How do you and I play our parts? Here are some suggestions:
- Cultivate the habit of recycling,
- Cut down on petrol, electricity and water consumption,
- Call on our government to recognise and protect more lands as reserved lands for the indigenous people,
- Protest against the industries that cause pollutions,
- Boycott the product(s) or investment(s) of those industries,
- Apply more pressure on our government and legislators to promote and enforce eco-friendly legislation, and
- Set an example for the next generation.
"Shahrizat Keeps Mum On Penan Report"
ReplyDeleteBy Zedeck Siew; The Nutgraph.
PETALING JAYA, 19 May 2009: It has been almost six months since the Penan task force completed its investigations into allegations of sexual abuse against women in its community. Yet, the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry continues to keep mum about when the 2008 Penan task force report will be released.
Repeated calls by The Nut Graph to its minister Dauk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil's office for comment on the status of the task force report have been met with silence.
For full report:
http://thenutgraph.com/Shahrizat-keeps-mum-on-penan-report
The Terror Of Government Silence
ReplyDeletehttp://thenutgraph.com/the-terror-of-government-silence
The Nut Graph, 29 May 2009
DATUK Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil was the perfect picture of concern and care on the front page of The Star newspaper on 28 May 2009. The newly re-appointed women, family and community development minister was photographed at the Serdang Hospital with a five-year-old child who looked like he had suffered serious and constant abuse at home.
"It is so awful and very sad. Obviously the abuse must have been going on for some time," Shahrizat was quoted as saying after she struggled to compose herself.
Shahrizat, who is also Wanita Umno chief, has rightfully demonstrated shock at such abuse. However, she has yet to illustrate the same kind of alarm and urgency towards the plight of Penan girls and women in the interiors of Sarawak who were reportedly sexually violated and abused.
Indeed, since the report first emerged in mid-September 2008 about the sexual violence towards the Penans by logging company employees, eight months have gone by. A government-led task force into the Baram district completed its investigation in mid-November and yet six months later, Malaysians remain clueless about the plight of the Penan girls and women.
Despite public funds spent on setting up the task force, the affected communities themselves remain uncertain about the concrete measures that the government aims to undertake, if at all, to prevent further violations.
In the meantime, Shahrizat continues to pussyfoot around questions about the report's contents and evades questions about its status.
Why the silence?
One has to wonder, what's stopping Shahrizat as the minister in charge, and the Barisan Nasional (BN) cabinet as the government in charge, from treating the rape and sexual harassment of Penans girls and women with more urgency?
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/8/23/nation/6902931&sec=nation
ReplyDeleteSIBU: Fears of the people in Sibu of another flood became a reality yesterday when water as high as 2.96m covered the town after two days of incessant rain.
The water level readings were taken at 6am at Sg Merah and at Loba Lembangan, which is the central business district.
Residents along Jalan Lanang woke up to find most parts of the road heavily inundated, with water as high as 1m and impassable for small vehicles.
In the centre of the town, Jalan Central and Jalan Kampung Nyabor were badly affected.
A proprietor of a bakery, who wished to be identified only as Wong, said the water level at Jalan Central on Saturday night was only about half a foot but it rose to knee-height early yesterday morning.
He and his workers had to wake up early to carry his goods to higher ground.
State Assistant Housing and Urban Development Minister Datuk Dr Soon Choon Teck brought newsmen yesterday to Jalan Ahmad Zaidi, where a section of a dual carriageway was submerged and impassable.
“I will ask the Sibu Municipal Council to raise this part of the road soon,” he said.
Sibu Resident Sim Kok Kee said that though there were some requests, no one was evacuated as the water level did not warrant it yet.
The water level receded to 2.65m from 2.96m at 2pm.
However, he advised people in the region to be alert for the “king tide” in the next two days.
“According to the weatherman, there will be more rain in the next few days and with the expected king tide, I advise the people, especially in low-lying areas, to move their belongings to higher ground,” he said.
He pointed out that the water level in Kanowit and Kapit was still very high and would reach Sibu in the next few days.
Sim hoped the flood this time would not be that serious.
He, however, said the flood operation room which was activated yesterday was ready to assist the flood victims.
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/8/24/nation/6906990&sec=nation
ReplyDeleteSIBU: The flood situation in Sibu worsened yesterday, forcing 18 primary schools and two secondary schools as well as hundreds of shops in the town to close.
Houses at low-lying areas, which included Jalan Tiong Hua, Jalan Bukit Assek, Jalan Tong Sang as well as Jalan Lanang, were badly affected, with some areas inundated by about three feet of water.
The water level was at 2.90m at 8am but it went up later in the morning and started to recede around noon.