Monday 18 May 2015

We don't want Baram Dam, anti-dam citizen groups demand



 By Doris Yoong
MIRI, May 18, 2015 - Anti-dam citizen groups have expressed their strong objection for the proposed construction of the Baram Dam, saying that Chief Minister Adenan Satem was not fully informed after meeting a few hundred unnamed people at a closed door session.

 They urge Chief Minister Adenan Satem to immediately withdraw his statement granting Sarawak Energy Berhad's (SEB) permission to proceed with the Baram Dam.

Insead, they said the chief minister should consult with affected landowners and other stakeholders, and take heed of academic studies showing that Sarawak’s future energy demands can be met by innovative technologies that do not have a destructive toll on forests, the climate and communities.
 Caption: Anti-dam protesters strongly objecting to the proposed construction of Baram dam.


According to Thomas Jalong, Jaringan Orang Asal Se-Malaysia (JOAS) president,:“First and foremost, the residents of the affected longhouses have never given their free, prior and informed consent for the Baram Dam.

"If this project is built as proposed, it will go against the will of the affected landowners of Ulu Baram, all logical evidence of demand-side energy needs, and the law of the land - our national constitution.

"It is a shameful attempt to intimidate people who have been standing strong to defend their rights to livelihood, maintaining road blockades for more than a year and a half," Jalong said.

He said Adenan's recent speech in London about the preservation of forests is meaningless in the face of his statement that the construction of the dam will go ahead.

"Now he is evidently willing to back the narrow interests of SEB over the rights of
thousands of people and at the expense of vast forested areas that serve as the very lungs of our land.”

As Peter Kallang, chairman of  Save Rivers, explained: “We question who exactly are the leaders that Adenan has consulted and for whose interests do they really speak? Why did they have a ‘closed door’ meeting?

"No one can speak on behalf others, especially without consultation. We invite the Chief Minister himself, to come to Baram, to the site of our blockades and hear directly from those affected.

"This is the longest blockade in the history of Sarawak. Since 2008, so many letters and petitions,
representing the voices of thousands opposing the Baram Dam have been sent to the Chief Minister.

"Are all of these people now to be totally ignored?

"We shall continue to protect our land, following the path of justice through the court system and calling for our rights to be respected.”

Mark Bujang, Chairperson of Borneo Resources Insitute Malaysia Sarawak, added: “It is also notable that Adenan should is accountable as the Chair of the Natural Resources and Environmental Board (NREB).

"If any Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report has been completed for the Baram Dam, no one knows because there has been absolutely no transparency in the process, and local people, as the very ones who are acutely aware of the ecological consequences of such mega-projects, have never been consulted.

"Adenan should not be quick to jump to the conclusion that the majority of people are accepting the Baram Dam, when he only met with a select few unnamed people in a closed door session.

"These actions serve to reveal a disturbing lack of transparency and accountability to the majority of people living in Ulu Baram, whose voices and concerns are being completely disregarded.”

Caroline Nyurang, co-chair of the Save Rivers Youth Committee, expressed her perspective by saying
that: “We can see for ourselves Sarawak Energy’s track record at Murum Dam, where the displaced
people have yet to receive their promised land allotments, have substandard housing, and face severe food insecurity.

The youth of Baram want a brighter future for ourselves and upcoming generations.” She continued, “That is why we assert our rights to land and life together, across the generations.

We, as residents of Baram, are taking a stand with our legitimate community leaders and remain steadfast in refusing to negotiate away our future.”

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