We have heard all this while about NCR lands owned by the Ibans, Kayans, Kenyahs, and Penans have been forcibly taken from them or their lands have been leased to companies without their knowledge.
This time the “robbery” happens to NCR lands belonging to the Bidayuhs from Bau, who are the most loyal supporters of the Barisan Nasional.
The following story is such a story of the predicament of the Bidayuhs in Bau. The story was first published in Free Malaysia Today and The Borneo Post and is published here for the readers of The Broken Shield.
KUCHING: The villagers of Kampung Stenggang in Bau have alleged that the Land and Survey Department of “robbing” their native customary rights land and has leased them to a company without their knowledge.
The land which is about 1,986 hectares is within the vicinity of their village and the department has awarded provisional lease to a company.
“Apparently this is an act of robbery and we are very angry upon learning of the news,” said village headman Motion Sodiep in a joint statement issued together with Carolus Joim Langis, the newly appointed chairman of a special task force to deal with the matter.
“We are furious because the Land and Survey director had given the said land to the said company without consulting us,” added Joim, pointing out that even the Penghulu in the kampung was not consulted.
They had lodged a complaint with several authorities including Human Rights Commission (Suhakam).
They had also lodged a Police report against the illegal encroachment of their land which they had cultivated many rounds for generations since 1920.
They said that department should have checked the status of the land and the historical background with the community leaders and elders of the village.
According to them, the director of the department had “quietly” given away their land to the company via letter of award dated 23 November 2009.
“Such letter was never extended to the village headman, to the Penghulu or even the district officer.
“It was extended only to his officer, Superintendent of Lands and Surveys and to the ministry.
“Such an act is tantamount to robbing the people of their land and indeed an abuse of administrative powers. We strongly condemn this act,” they said.
The villagers would also consider taking legal action against the Land and Survey and the company.
This time the “robbery” happens to NCR lands belonging to the Bidayuhs from Bau, who are the most loyal supporters of the Barisan Nasional.
The following story is such a story of the predicament of the Bidayuhs in Bau. The story was first published in Free Malaysia Today and The Borneo Post and is published here for the readers of The Broken Shield.
KUCHING: The villagers of Kampung Stenggang in Bau have alleged that the Land and Survey Department of “robbing” their native customary rights land and has leased them to a company without their knowledge.
The land which is about 1,986 hectares is within the vicinity of their village and the department has awarded provisional lease to a company.
“Apparently this is an act of robbery and we are very angry upon learning of the news,” said village headman Motion Sodiep in a joint statement issued together with Carolus Joim Langis, the newly appointed chairman of a special task force to deal with the matter.
“We are furious because the Land and Survey director had given the said land to the said company without consulting us,” added Joim, pointing out that even the Penghulu in the kampung was not consulted.
They had lodged a complaint with several authorities including Human Rights Commission (Suhakam).
They had also lodged a Police report against the illegal encroachment of their land which they had cultivated many rounds for generations since 1920.
They said that department should have checked the status of the land and the historical background with the community leaders and elders of the village.
According to them, the director of the department had “quietly” given away their land to the company via letter of award dated 23 November 2009.
“Such letter was never extended to the village headman, to the Penghulu or even the district officer.
“It was extended only to his officer, Superintendent of Lands and Surveys and to the ministry.
“Such an act is tantamount to robbing the people of their land and indeed an abuse of administrative powers. We strongly condemn this act,” they said.
The villagers would also consider taking legal action against the Land and Survey and the company.
13 comments:
So what are the people going to do ....nothing ...still happily being lead by their noses with promises blaa blaa blaaahh...nothing changes!
All talk no action is the norm and one day they will find thay have lost even their voices!
Observatorium
Nothing new as we all have heard this long ago.Stealing land is what this gov't have been doing for ages. Not only this happens in rural areas,it also happen right in the city where prime land belonging to gov't are sold to cronies.Not only this, football fields are disappearing right before your eyes. Gov't , nurses , teachers, gov't servant quarters are been sold to big construction companies . You can see all this happening now.
Blame no one but ourselves becos we have been blindly voting all these crooks for 43 years. You and I have too be blame becos we have soft ears. When election comes, these crooks will come along and we knowingly heard all their dirty tactics but after a few rounds of meeting and a few can of beers plus some dirty ringgit, we vote for them again. So you see it us that have prolong all these suffering. Not only we are suffering every now and then , but this sufferings is going to be handed down to our children and great grand children. So why are we all so stupid. Yes, the answer is our greed and we are all blind by this greed.
Even so may times these crooks came and steal our land , our fishes, our trees, our jobs, our everything etc, we still can't wake up.
So today, let me tell you I have woke up and I have swear before my true God that I will never vote for BN. I will do this becos I don't want my children to blame me for been greedy and cause all this sufferings. So the dice have been cast.It's up to you all to do what you want to do. If your conscience is clear, then repeat what you have done. You will regret for the rest of your life.
Change it what we all need and we must urgently tell all these folks that our mistakes are never to be repeated. We suffer becos of what we do but we never allow this to happen to our children. The stealing must be stopped.The only way out is to vote PR NOW.
Richard Riot is tipped to be a federal deputy minister, thus Bau Bidayuh can cool down now.
What to do next with Sab/Swk state govts selling ncr / state lands cheaply to some parties for planting oil palm but in fact a good number changed or try to change hands before any work done -PL terms were not met. Worst is most lands are in the hands of Malayan companies. What good to locals ? land/forest lost to unfrieddly parties, crime rate worsen, water dirty, ... YBs to demand Lands& Surveys to open book on who own what and how many, etc.
The case is now in court. One the culprits/broker is exposed, we will go for their land, if not them!
So what is the point of getting angry? Come election time. it's votes for the BN again.
I prefer the landowners to pool their resources together and start developing their land.
If its left idle, others may be tempted to "steal" it.
I know if without titles its hard to secure a loan, but they can start on a small scale before turning it into big time farming.
The Chinese folks along Asajaya are doing pretty well producing vegetables and everyday they have people to collect it from them, and sent to Kuching.
And the pieces of land they are holding is in no way comparable to ours, for most of us have plenty.
Its just that ours are not productive and generating as a source of income for us.
Maybe we change our mindset before we start embarking on this project?
We must make the land work for us.
Sayau endar tanah enda dikena & enda di perimba, dambi orang enggai ga kitai meri tanah pesaka aki ini suba, so think wisely and do whats best to get a positive results at the end.
Dayak people...burn their church, they will forgive. Rape their mother/daughters....overtime they will forgive. Rob their land..they made noise but no action, overtime too they will forget. But.....ban the arak & beer, they will go for all out war. BN know this trick all along...one can of beer & a chicken drumstick enough to buy their vote. Shame to say....I'm bidayuh.
Anonymous 16th April,2010 212.24 pm,
I agree if what you have said is referring to you yourself.
VOTE OUT BN and make Pakatan Rakyat the new government to resolve NCR land problems by amending the Sarawak Land Code so that their lands will be systematically surveyed and land titles given to them.
Ensure PR government reforms the Judiciary, PDRM and the civil service so that the respective components discharge their duties professionally and remain neutral politically.
The Bumiputras of Sarawak must be bold to change the BN government for PR. 50 years is enough! Say NO TO BN. Change BN for PR. Vote PR.
Dear Sir: I don't know what your true intention is, but by generalizing the Bidayuh as loyal supporters of BN party is totally inappropriate and unacceptable. I am a Bidayuh from Bau, and for your record, I had never voted for BN anytime during elections, be it federal or state level. My disgust over their records of abuse of power and raping of the state’s resources is just beyond your imagination. So, by labeling the Bidayuh as the MOST LOYAL SUPPORTERS of BN is totally a disgrace to me and my fellow Bidayuh who voted the opposition. Bear in mind that BN won the election in any of the Bidayuh's constituencies, particularly in Bau, was not merely because the Bidayuh people fully supported BN. The opposition’s candidate would have lost their deposits if this had ever happened, but so far none. Maybe you would think that this is just a petty issue and needed not to be raised, but it reflects the perception that the oppositions are totally useless in any of the Bidayuh area. You would feel the same if I labeled the Ibans in the same manner which I don't want to because I too have many Iban friends who supported the opposition and yet their constituencies are won by BN. Thank you and have a nice day.
The Dayaks are not the most loyal supporters of BN. Most are God fearing, simple minded, courteous, trusting and accommodating. They have been make use and "enslaved" by BN government to be subservient. The uneducated women folks and older men tend to vote blindly for BN ,while the younger, educated and discerning tend to procrastinate in registering themselves as voters.
We are duty bound to educate them about their rights and the secrecy of votings. Without any legal documents and proof of ownership to their land, the rural folks will be surviving on petence pension fund even for the civil servants who chose to retire in their kampung and longhouses. The NCR lands they inherited will reamin only imaginary lands which can be taken and given to other vested interests working in cohort with BN government.
I urge all concerned Dayaks and NCR land owners whose lands had been taken away, to gather and converge in a show of unity in Sibu during the Sibu by-election nomination day by protesting peacefully. Fight for our rights and seek justice and demand the BN government resolves the disputes before polling day. The Felda settlement residents whom BN government owed millions are doing that in Hulu Selangor. The Indians also demanded that they be reimburse for their investments in Maika shares before polling day.
We must not only vote DAP in Sibu by-election and defeat BN. We must also in a show of unity and force gather in Sibu to tell the BN government our displeasures in NCR land grap.
TIME TO MAKE BN BE THE OPPOSITION IN SARAWAK AND MALAYSIA. WHEN A FRIEND OR RELATIVE DIDN'T OWN UP TO HIS WORDS OR TAKEN YOU FOR A RIDE ON JUST A FEW OCCASIONS THE MOST NATURAL THINGS YOU WILL DO IS TO "CUT" HIM OFF. BN GOVERNMENT HAS TAKEN US FOR A RIDE FOR MORE THAN 47 YEARS IN SARAWAK SO THE TIME IS LONG OVERDUE TO MAKE THEM SIT ON THE OPPOSITION BENCH AND LETS WORK WITH PAKATAN GOVERNMENT.
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