Friday 14th March 2014, marks the International Day of Action for Rivers.  Every year around 14th March, thousands of people around the world lift their voices in celebration of the world’s rivers and those who struggle to protect them. NGO International Rivers has provided global coordination for this event since it was created during the […]

The Bruno Manser Fund’s newly released Sarawak Geoportal shows a new 500 km Petronas pipeline’s trail of destruction between the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) With their new Sarawak Geoportal, the Swiss NGO, Bruno Manser Fund, brings transparency to a controversial gas pipeline project by Petronas, Malaysia’s national oil and gas company.

New information and documents handed to Global Witness and The Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4) raise questions about the role of outgoing Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud and his son Mahmud Abu Bekir Taib in a lucrative waste disposal agreement with a German firm. A joint venture was formed between the Sarawak Government

High Court orders the outgoing Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud to appear in court over his commercial activities in Malaysia and the United States of America (KUCHING, MALAYSIA) A Malaysian lawyer-cum-politician is challenging the succession plan of outgoing Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud with a lawsuit filed with the High Court in Kuching, the capital

A new interactive web-database launched by the Bruno Manser Fund creates transparency on land use in the Malaysian state of Sarawak. The site releases hitherto confidential official maps and detailed information on land use changes and rainforest destruction in Sarawak. A large database containing hitherto confidential 1:50,000 topographic maps of the Malaysian state of Sarawak

We, the undersigned, register our strongest objection to the speculated appointment of Taib Mahmud as the Head of State (Yang di-Pertua Negeri) of Sarawak after his resignation as Chief Minister for 33 years. Considering that his assumption of the dignified office would be a national disgrace, we hereby list out the reasons why he must

16 February 2014 For immediate release New documents suggest that Malaysian politician’s family laundered funds from Hong Kong companies that administered kickbacks from the Malaysia – Japan timber trade OTTAWA (CANADA) The Swiss NGO, the Bruno Manser Fund, has lodged a police report against the Malaysian Taib family with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)

One of Sarawak’s largest palm oil refiners “Wilmar” has told the state of Sarawak that it will no longer buy palm oil from companies that are planting in cleared forest and peat swamp areas out of environmental concerns. Wilmar buys 45% of Sarawak’s crude palm oil (CPO) and their largest shareholders include Perlis Plantations Bhd, HSBC, Citibank

10/02/2014 Bruno Manser Foundation Press Release: Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud cannot become governor of the Malaysian state because of his illegal commercial activities – Bruno Manser Fund calls on the Malaysian King to respect the constitution and to deny Taib the office of Governor of Sarawak – Malaysian judiciary urged to prosecute Taib Mahmud

BARAM dam blockades have entered their 100th day today as villagers affected by the dam vow to continue to protect their ancestral lands from the building of the proposed RM4bil hydroelectric dam. Hundreds of villagers, on a rotation basis, have manned two blockade sites – KM15 and Long Lama for the past 99 days with only

According to a report by Malaysian news agency Bernama today, Bengoh state assemblyman Jerip Susil has urged the Sarawak Forest Department and the police to take immediate and firm action against the company and people engaged in illegal logging on Native Customary Rights (NCR) land in Krokong and Tringgus in Bau, Sarawak. Jerip, who is the state assistant

Chief Minister Taib Mahmud unveiled his latest development initiative this week under the title the Darul Hana Development Project. According to Taib, the development will take between 10 – 15 years and will benefit 14,600 residents from 3,647 families in 12 traditional villages along the Sarawak River. Yesterday opposition politicians expressed concern over the project

The indigenous communities of Baram in Sarawak have erected two protection blockades to stop the government controlled Sarawak Energy Berhad from building the Baram Dam. Indigenous communities from Baram have been camping at the sites since the 23rd of October 2013 and are determined to continue the blockades for as long as it takes to stop

The following notes are taken from an end of mission statement by the Special Rapporteur on Right to Food Mission to Malaysia from 9th – 18th December 2013  The indigenous peoples in Malaysia comprise the Orang Asli, in Peninsular Malaysia, and around 100 ethnic and sub-ethnic groups in Eastern Malaysia. The Orang Asli number some

GRASS (Gerakan Rakyat Seluruh Sarawak) Press Statement 10/12/2013 Indigenous Peoples of Sarawak and Sabah commemorate Human Rights Day with demand to State Government to respect their rights  MIRI – Today is Human Rights Day and it is on this date that in 1950 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, proclaiming its principles

7 December 2013 Peoples Movement of Sarawak (Gerakan Rakyat Seluruh Sarawak, GRASS) will hold peaceful rallies across Sarawak in conjunction with Human Rights Day on 10 December. Gerakan Rakyat Seluruh Sarawak (GRASS) or Sarawak Peoples Movement will hold statewide rallies in major towns and cities in Sarawak to commemorate and celebrate Human Rights Day which

PRESS RELEASE – Monday 2/12/13 (LONDON/KUCHING) In an exclusive interview with Radio Free Sarawak earlier today, native land rights (NCR) lawyer Abun Sui Anyit announced that indigenous Penan protestors at the Murum dam site have been strong armed by the state government into accepting a token compensation package of just RM23,000 per family and have

A documentary highlighting the struggle of indigenous communities fighting against Taib Mahmud’s mega dams in Sarawak was launched by SAVE Rivers over the weekend. Over the past weeks, the state government and Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) have thrown accusations at foreign NGOs who have supported the protests of local people, saying they are behind a

Indigenous communities from Baram and concerned grassroots NGOs have expressed disgust at Taib’s remarks in front of Headmen yesterday suggesting protests against the Baram Dam were merely caused by stupid local people listening to foreign NGOs and not thinking for themselves. Press Statement from Concerned Baram Citizens 26th November, 2013 We refer to the statements

Sarawak Report took part in a global initiative today to highlight human rights concerns at the Murum dam site in Sarawak. Malaysian representatives in 15 countries received a letter signed by over 30 organisations representing national, regional and international civil society groups that called for good faith negotiations with the 1,500 Penan indigenous people who are being

Story & Photos by Colin Nicholas – Centre for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC) 21/11/2013 The Penan community affected by the Murum Dam project in Sarawak is being forced to resettle even when the alternative longhouses and the facilities are still being constructed. The Penans do not want to move but they are being forced because,

Residents from 26 villages surrounding the sacred Sadong mountain range have succeeded in calling for the government to stop logging on their sacred NCR land. Last Sunday, roughly 1,000 residents from the 26 villages surrounding the mountain range staged a peaceful protest at Kampung Taee. They protested against the permit issuance, which was granted to a

NOTICE OF MOTION Kim Booth MP on tomorrow to move – That this House notes that: (1) 1500 indigenous Penan people are currently being resettled, in many cases forcibly, for the impoundment of the Murum Dam in Sarawak; (2) Some have resisted their forced relocation and are blocking the access road to the dam; (3)

A group of Penan from Murum have travelled to Kuala Lumpur to hold protests outside the federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman and will head to Parliament tomorrow to urge the authorities to look into their plight. The Penan are scheduled to meet the Inspector-General (IGP) of Police Khalid Abu Bakar at Bukit Aman in

A forum on land, justice and human rights on the situation of the indigenous peoples in Sarawak was held in Kuching yesterday. The forum was attended by ambassador and head of the European Union delegation to Malaysia, Luc Vandebon. Also present were Bandar Kuching MP and also Kota Sentosa assemblyman Chong Chieng Jen, Batu Lintang assemblyman