Book documenting rich cultural heritage of highlanders of Sarawak and Sabah launched

BARIO, Aug 9,  2015 -  Communities living in the Kelabit and Maligan highlands in Sarawak and Sabah have  something to be proud of – a book documenting their rich cultural heritage and folklores is finally published.

Entitled, Highland Tales in the Heart of Borneo, the 92-page book is a colourful showcase of the community’s past, present and future that are very much intertwined with their natural surroundings in the picturesque highlands of Ba’ Kelalan, Bario, Long Semadoh in Sarawak and Long Pa’ Sia, Sabah.

PKR candidates: Vernon Aji for Layar, Noel Changai for Bukit Saban in state election

By BR James

BETONG, Aug 9 - Sarawak PKR information chief Vernon Aji Kedit has been nominated as a  potential candidate for Layar in the next Sarawak state election.

Aji's nomination was proposed at the division quarterly meeting at PKR Service Centre in Pasar Baru Medan here, last Friday.

The meeting, which Aji chaired, also proposed the divisional vice chairman Noel Changai Bucking as a potential candidate for Bukit Saban.

Aji (4th from left, Changai (5th from left) with Betong Division committee members

Adenan is right on large scale deforestation in Sarawak, says forest council

KUCHING, Aug 9 - Forest Stewardship Council has said that over 80 per cent of Sarawak’s forests  have been reportedly cleared, proving Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem right in saying of an unchecked logging activities and clearance for agriculture and urban development taking place in the state over the years.

In the peninsula, over 60 per cent of its forests have been cleared over the years.

SFC said most of the country's forested areas are found within its national parks.

"The World Bank estimates that trees are being cut down at four times the sustainable rate," SFC said in a statement today.

Serious gaps in laws, policies and administration in recognising NCR land, seminar finds

By Simon Peter

KUCHING, Aug 9 - Despite Malaysia’s endorsement of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in 2007, which outlines the rights that the government should respect and recognise, serious gaps in our laws, policies and administration in recognizing Orang Asal customary land continue to persist.

The finding is part of a seminar held during the national-level Perayaan Hari Orang Asal SeDunia

(PHOAS) to celebrate the achievements of the Indigenous Peoples, hosted by Jaringan Orang Asal

SeMalaysia (JOAS).

Sarawak PKR's 18 Points Roadmap - Sarawak4Change

18-Point Roadmap

Our first duty is the complete removal of the cancer that is Barisan Nasional. This Roadmap outlines the difficult path toward healing and transforming our great nation. Our centrist policies signal a new era of equality, opportunity, and possibility. We’re working for a stronger, fairer Sarawak.