Archived press release

Forest people condemned to deportation

18 February 1997

Forest people living in the region of the controversial Bakun Dam in Sarawak, Malaysia,have been condemned to deportation by a decision of the Malaysian Appeal court. The decision, announced yesterday (17/2/97), removes the last legal obstacle to the construction of the controversial Bakun Dam Hydroelectric Project (Bakun HEP) [1]. The Appeal Court's ruling overturns a High Court decision made last year which ruled that the Bakun HEP was illegal because federal environmental laws had not been complied with [2].

Three representatives of the people of the Bakun region, one of whom was represented by a Friends of the Earth Malaysia lawyer, had won an earlier judgement in the High Court against the company Ekran Berhad, which is leading the development of the Bakun HEP, and the government. The Federal Government, Sarawak State Government and Ekran Berhad then took this decision to the Malaysian Court of Appeal.

Sarah Tyack of Friends of the Earth said:

"The Appeal Court ruling spells disaster for the 10,000 people of the Bakun Region who will be flooded from their homes. This ruling means that the people of Sarawak are arbitrarily deprived of their right to the full consultation and representation that should have been provided for all Malaysians under Federal legislation. We are urging major institutional investors and pension funds not to invest in the Bakun Hydroelectric Corporation, which is not only unethical but carries a high financial risk due to expected long-term technical problems and overly optimistic performance forecasts." [3].

In the UK, Friends of the Earth, along with other concerned groups, are writing to major institutional investors and pension funds to urge them not to invest in the Bakun Hydroelectric Corporation [4]. Meanwhile in Malaysia, the Coalition of Concerned NGOs on Bakun [5] is calling for the Malaysian Government to reverse the effects of the decision through legislative changes.

NOTES TO EDITORS

[1] The Bakun HEP, which is due for completion in 2002, will be constructed across the Balui River in Sarawak. It will supply electricity to the Malaysian Peninsular 650 km away. The Bakun HEP is a highly controversial project which has been criticised for its potential environmental and social impacts by human rights, indigenous and environmental groups in Malaysia and worldwide since it was first proposed in 1962. The project was revived in the 1980s, but was shelved in 1990, a decision which the Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir,said was "proof that Malaysia cares about the environment". The Prime Minister then supported the move to take it forward again in 1992.

Nearly 10,000 indigenous people in Sarawak, eastern Malaysia, are to be forcibly removed from their native land to make way for the reservoir which will flood over 69,000 hectares of rainforest. Many tribes people have said that they will resist relocation as they have not been fully consulted, nor sufficiently compensated.

Concerns outlined by the Bakun Regional People's Committee in the letter dated 16 January 1997 include:

• The Malaysian government has consistently failed to provide the Bakun residents with information or to hold an open dialogue with them about the resettlement scheme;
• The land at the resettlement site belongs to other indigenous communities, therefore communal conflicts are likely due to increased competition for less land and resources;
• The government has 'advised' the people of Bakun to accept jobs as labourers in the oil palm plantations which are to be set up by the Bakun HEP developers;
• The Bakun residents consider the 'gift' of one million chicks to rear on their new resettlement site as an insult;
• No compensation figure has been set and the residents have been told that the army and police will be used to remove residents who refuse to leave.

[2] Following the Appeal Court ruling, the Bakun HEP developers do not have to clear the Bakun HEP through the Kuala Lumpur Environment Ministry nor comply with the federal Environmental Quality Act of 1974.

[3] "Bakun High Dam: High Risk?" Published by Delphi International Ltd, 36 Great Queen Street,London WC2B, Tel: 020 7404 2963.

[4] the Bakun Hydroelectric Corporation (BHC) is due to be listed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange in the near future. The company is to own and operate the Bakun dam

[5] The Coalition of Concerned NGOs on Bakun comprises around 40 non-governmental organisations in Malaysia.

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust