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Seek public feedback before implementing amendments to Sarawak Land Code. SAHABAT Alam Malaysia expresses its very grave concern over the recent announcement by the Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, that the State's Land Code will be amended next month to allow for land transactions involving native customary rights (NCR). According to the Chief Minister, the proposed amendment is to recognise and protect all genuine transactions which involve NCR land. Unlike lands of non-indigenous people that are issued individual land titles which can be bought and sold, lands over which native customary rights are practiced do not have individual titles. Hence, there are problems in relation to transactions involving such lands. To rectify this, the Sarawak Government has proposed the amendments. At first glance, the proposal may seem to many to be beneficial to the indigenous communities in Sarawak. However, it is clear from the Chief Minister's statement that the State Government's intention in doing this is to further facilitate the acquisition of native lands to be developed into large-scale oil palm plantations. The fact that the proposed amendment seeks to provide a proper framework for the acquisition of such lands for development purposes, amounts to no real recognition of native rights over land. Instead, the proposed amendment seeks to further deprive and truncate the rights of the native peoples of Sarawak. Already, through its office in Marudi, SAM has been inundated with numerous complaints from indigenous communities all over Sarawak about the manner in which their lands are appropriated by state agencies and private companies for oil palm plantations, logging and other mega projects, without their consent and without sufficient compensation or any compensation at all. Many disputes have arisen between communities and these agencies and companies for this very reason. As the law stands now, Native Customary Rights over land may be extinguished via the Land Code. Surveys to determine the compensation payable are being questioned and challenged as being arbitrary. Some communities who are challenging the extinguishment of their land rights and compensation are those who have been affected by the Bakun Dam project and the Borneo Pulp and Paper Project in Bintulu. Amendments to the Land Code in the past were made to facilitate the privatisation of native lands for oil palm plantations and other mega projects. Consequently, the amendment which is currently being proposed is perceived as yet another devise to legitimise the appropriation of communal land for private purposes. The Chief Minister's statement that the proposed amendments will create greater marketable value for NCR lands reflects a lack of understanding of what Native Customary Rights actually are. For indigenous communities, land is not a commodity to be simply traded for money. Land is a living entity that is precious and holds a deep spiritual meaning for them. There is a deep reverence for land in traditional society and this also means that it cannot be simply bought and sold. In adat law, land cannot be alienated by anyone. Land is not only the source of the communities' livelihood but also holds deep social, spiritual and religious significance within communities. It gives them food; it provides them with their material needs. It is the dwelling place of their ancestors and the benevolent spirits that protect them. Land is their sweat, blood and life. It is the basis of their survival and their existence as native peoples. Any proposal to give market value to native lands does not appreciate the concept of communal rights and the cultural and spiritual attachment to land that indigenous communities have. The rights of the native peoples to their lands have existed under their customary laws long before the British came with their system of legislation and land titles. The Land Code should, therefore, seek only to further recognise and codify these customary rights and not to facilitate the deprivation of such rights. The concept of native title under adat has always been communal. If such rights are to be further recognised by providing a framework for dealings, then these existing rights or titles should be given with the incidence of communal ownership and not individual ownership. Communal rights to land used for farming (temuda) and the high forest for hunting (menoa) have and continue to exist. The State Government must give an assurance that these rights will continue to be recognised for purposes of protection from being appropriated by whatever method, and not jeopardised in any way. The native people of Sarawak must be left to determine the way their lands are used. The State Government's responsibility is to respect these rights and allow for their views to be heard before any decisions are made in relation to their land rights. If the Sarawak Government's intention is to bring real benefits to the native peoples, it must first recognise that there are many indigenous communities who are very unhappy about the way their lands have been appropriated and their rights ignored. In order to instill confidence in the native peoples that the Government is acting their interest. SAM urges the State Government to do the following:
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