Thursday, September 29, 2011

No Dam For Baram

29 August 2011



Besides the colossal environmental devastation and severe consequence on the ecosystem that the dreadful Baram Dam will bring, it will also rage a permanent degeneration of the ethnic identity and heritage of the populaces who live in the region. Based on the number of villagers, the most affected are the Kenyah followed by the Kayan and Penan population. These are also the same majority groups of people who are most affected by the Bakun Dam which was just commissioned. The same like it was done in Bakun, the decision in building the Baram Dam seems to be in total disregard for all those who area affected. It is built for the benefit of others rather than those who live in Baram and for the long term good of the Baram.

As one of those affected I just can’t understand this injustice and this outrageous and abusive exploit. This seems to be a senseless exploitation which is primarily driven by avarice coupled with immorality. For us who are directly and adversely affected parties, no one can blame us in thinking that this is a calculated, intentional and purposeful manoeuvre to wipe out our races. Why it could be seen as an act in complete disregard for our wellbeing and opinion could be proven by the priority given to the preparatory construction activities done even before the proper Social Impact Assessment (SIA) and the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) are completed or perhaps not even started and made accessible to affected and interested parties. In doing this, it seems the construction of the dam is to be implemented whatever the findings or recommendation would eventually be available if and when the EIA or SIA is done.

The Baram is the least developed part of Sarawak and arguably the least developed area in the whole of Malaysia. So far, the only so called “development” which are seen in Baram are the colossal and exhaustive exploitation or extraction of the Baram natural resources; these are like reckless harvestings of the timber, extraction of lime stone, sand dredging, vast oil palm plantations and now the dam for hydropower electrical generation. So far, practically all the beneficiaries of these so called developments are big companies owned by big tycoons from outside the Baram. Most of the workers employed at these facilities are also from outside Baram and a lot of them are foreigners. So to say that these “development” bring employment is a fantasy. Like all the past exploitation of the Baram resources there is little doubt that employment spin-off from the proposed dam is “just a pie in the sky” for the Baramites. As seen at the construction stage of the Bakun and Murum dams, the locals are not employed in significant numbers during the construction or their involvement in the operations after completion of the construction. We do not see how the dam can bring significant economic opportunities for the locals.

Recently, I had a conversation with the headman from one of the village which is within the proposed reservoir area of the Baram Dam. He criticised those who do not plant rubber or not building new longhouse for fear that these would be flooded when the dam is completed; he said that he did not believe that the government would build such a dam. He said that if such a dam was to be built, the government would have already been busy consulting the affected people and getting their consent. The reaction by this particular headman reflects the effectiveness of the discreet process practiced in building the dam. The dam construction although it will affect a lot of people, at the moment is one dark secret kept away from those living in Baram. If it is occasionally mentioned by the proponents, the subject would be down-played, watered-down with downright euphemism. However, the reality as we learnt from newspaper reports and information dripping from the project supporters speaks of an affected area covering 38,900 hectares (389 sq km) or ½ the size of Singapore Island. It will be constructed of around 180 metres above seal level and will generate 1,200 MW of electrical power. So, with these realities no one can blame the fear which was noted by the headman. This fear is shared by many in the whole of Baram whether they are living above or below the proposed dam site.



At least 90% of the land mass which will be flooded by the dam’s reservoir will be the Native Customary Rights land (NCR). The foreseeable fiasco resulting from this will no doubt be contributed by the now famous government’s interpretation of NCR which differ from that of the native’s custom (Adat). The native’s interpretation is recognised by the judiciary as proven by the various court cases where the native claimants have won. This will again result in more cases of dissatisfaction among the people affected. With the single mindedness of the government in constructing the dam, the people, for whom they are supposed to bring development, will unavoidably be marginalised. For the Orang Ulu their very survival from generation to generation has been based on the land. They are basically farmers and gatherers. To disregard this fact would be to purposefully disorientated and thus destroy the harmonious way of life. Flood from the dam and the infrastructure associated with the construction will definitely bring irreparable damage to the whole environment. It will destroy a heritage for which all Malaysian or human race should respect and harness.

Relocation of the people to make way for the Baram Dam will definitely result in a permanent social damage. The Kenyah and Kayan people traditionally live in longhouses. Even the very structures of the longhouses are traditional in nature, reflecting the social structure of the communities and thus keeping the Kenyah and Kayan together from time immemorial, enabling them to face famine, wars, epidemics and natural tragedies. These structures are delicate and are now facing a lot of challenges from modern lifestyles and globalisation. Mass relocation of the people will no doubt spell the end of the traditional social structure.

In the traditional Kenyah and Kayan community, each longhouse normally comprise a group of people who are of the same dialect. For the Kenyah they could be Lepo Tau, Badeng, Lepo Aga, Jamuk, Long Sebatu etc. For the Kayan they could be Uma Baluvah, Uma Kelep, Uma Pu etc. The people of each dialect have from generation to generation, their bonds to each other make it possible for them to live in a family like attitude towards one another. Even in the face of large rural-urban migration, the Kenyah and Kayan consider their ancestral villages as their real home. They maintain their houses in the Baram and they normally go back on festive occasions like Pusau Anak, Christmas or Suen. Relocation of the people for the dam would also pose a direct challenge to this bond that is part of the social structure.

The social structure of the dam will not bring development but severe and permanent damage to the whole environment and the people. Development must be for the immediate and long term good of all the people with minimal, repairable or no damage to the environment. The decision for major project like the construction of massive dams should be made by the people. It must be a collective decision, which is made based on well informed decision. The people must know the pros and cons of the dam. Information must be made available freely to them and only after that can they decide. So looking at the proposed Baram Dam, none of these are met. Baram Dam is not required to bring development to Baram.




Press Statement release by:

Peter N. J. Kallang
Chairman Orang Ulu National Association Miri (OUNA)
Chairman Persatuan Kenyah Association Miri

New dam, same old story

Thursday August 25, 2011

NORTH VIEW
By STEPHEN THEN

With folk uprooted for the Bakun and Batang Ai dams yet to benefit from the electricity produced by the projects, one wonders how long the 20,000 people now sacrificing their ancestral land for the Baram dam will get theirs.

I DON’T really relish the thought of seeing another gigantic dam being built after spending the past 15 years watching the Bakun dam develop from start to finish.

It was exactly 15 years ago in August 1996 that the first dynamite hole was drilled into a mountain slope along a bank of Balui River to blast off the construction of three river diversion tunnels through the mountains — the first phase of the Bakun dam project.

I remember the day well. I was in the first batch of media personnel invited by Ekran Bhd (the developer) to visit the site.

Some 30 reporters, photographers and television crew members endured an arduous journey up the Rajang River and through the Balui River to the site earmarked for the 210m main dam wall.

It was a 12-hour boat ride from Sibu via Belaga, Song and Kapit, and we had to shoot up the Pelagus rapids, which at that time was a raging one. In 1996, there was no road from Bintulu to Bakun. The road was completed much later.

I still remember seeing the then Ekran Bhd chairman Tan Sri Ting Pek Khiing smashing a bottle of champagne onto the hillslope after the blasting ceremony, an event witnessed by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who was then the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

During the ceremony, the VVIPs told the press that the project would deliver electricity to the rakyat and solve all their power woes.

They said the project would light up homes in urban and rural Sarawak and channel electricity via submarine cables across the South China Sea to the peninsula.

That was August 1996.

Since then, I have visited the dam eight times, the last in October last year when the flooding of the reservoir started with the damming of the diversion tunnels.

Today, Bakun has been completed, but sadly, the promise that rural folks would benefit from the electricity has not materialised.

The electricity is only for industries in the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE). The project to cable electricity to the peninsula states was shelved due to high costs.

Power transmission lines from the dam run high over dozens of settlements along a 150km route from Bakun to Bintulu.

These settlements will not benefit from the electricity because they are not connected to the state grid. The dam is connected directly to the main grid and there is no power line connecting Bakun to the settlements.

I saw the same situation at the Batang Ai dam in Sri Aman Division in southern Sarawak where the settlements closest to the site were also without electricity supply.

As in Bakun, the transmission lines bypass them.

The electricity is only for the benefit of industrial users, residential estates, commercial centres and offices located hundreds or thousands of km away from the dams.

Those who were uprooted from their ancestral homes to make way for the dams do not benefit from the electricity.

Unfair, isn’t it?

Senior Iban leader Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing agrees that this should not be the case.

In interviews with The Star and a local newspaper, Masing admitted that locals in Bakun, the Sungai Asap resettlement scheme and Belaga district should also enjoy the 24-hour electricity from Bakun.

“These folk still use generator sets to produce a limited amount of electricity,” he said.

As a matter of social justice, Sarawak Energy Bhd and Sarawak Hidro (the Bakun dam manager) should supply electricity from the dam to these local folk whose lives had been affected by its construction.

Masing said he would try to ensure that the electricity be connected to Sungai Asap, where 15,000 relocated from the Bakun area now live.

He said he would also try to ensure that the rest of the 40,000 population now located in the surrounding settlements and Belaga town were also connected to Bakun to enjoy 24-hour power supply at cheaper rates.

This sounds nice, but in reality, it is easier said than done.

The Star has learnt that to draw electricity from the dam and the Sarawak main grid to the settlements from Bakun to Bintulu would cost more than RM60mil.

A lot of infrastructure work has to be put in place before this can happen. So far, no “volunteers” have come forward to offer the money.

When asked on this, Dr Masing admitted that Sarawak Energy and Sarawak Hidro had said that the move would be extremely costly.

“So far, no decision has been made as to whether the electricity from the Bakun dam will be connected to the settlements near Bakun or Belaga town.

“I hope it will be done for the sake of social justice for the Bakun folk,” he stressed.

I sincerely hope that Dr Masing’s wish will become a reality soon.

As it is, the harsh reality is that the Bakun dam, just like the Batang Ai dam, has not benefited the very people whose lives had been uprooted and ancestral land sacrificed for the dams.

The promise of jobs for locals also did not materialise. Even after 15 years, there is still a lot of unemployment in Sungai Asap and the number of jobs at the Bakun dam is limited.

The latest additions of hydro dams in Sarawak will be in Baram district in the interior of Miri division in northern Sarawak.

Three days ago, Baram MP Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan announced the setting up of a government-appointed committee to handle resettlement and compensation issues of more than 20,000 folks from 25 longhouses who will be uprooted for the 1,000MW Baram dam in Long Kesseh, some 200km inland from Miri city.

It looks like there is no turning back — the Baram dam project is on.

Already, an access road to the dam site is being opened up.

The Baram dam will be half the size of the Bakun dam and cost RM7.3bil — about half the cost of the Bakun dam. But in terms of population of natives affected, it will eclipse the mighty Bakun dam.

In Bakun, an original population of about 10,000 were uprooted. In Baram, however, this will happen to at least 20,000 from 25 settlements.

Sagan, also the committee’s chairman, said that efforts would be made to ensure the local Baram folk benefit from the electricity from the dam.

The mistakes made at the Bakun and Batang Ai dams would not be repeated in Baram, he said.

I hope he is right.

Disaster looming over Bakun

Joseph Tawie | August 25, 2011

KUCHING: An impending disaster is looming over Bakun Dam following the state government’s failure to implement the recommendations detailed in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report, according to environmentalist Dr Ellie Luhat.

Luhat, who is the chairman of Bakun Community Safety Committee (BCSC), warned that disaster would strike the area in the next three to five years.

“There was a study of the EIA reports where recommendations were made. But somehow when the implementation was done, these recommendations were forgotten.

“One of the recommendations was that we get rid of as much as possible the biomass – the trees, branches, twigs, scrubs, and plants – before the dam is to be impounded.

“But they failed to get rid of all these.

“Over the years, these trees, branches and twigs will get rotten and become very toxic to the water and fish.

“According to the EIA reports, if they are not removed, such toxic can cause environmental disaster in three to five years’ time,” he told FMT.

The RM7.2billion Bakun Dam has come under severe criticism over its shoddy construction, safety, displacement of the indigenous communities, health hazards and its impact on the environment

Deaths and isolation

Earlier this week, it was reported that some 30,000 residents in the Kapit, Belaga and Nanga Merit upriver areas were cut off from the rest of the world because the voluminous Rajang River had depleted following the impoundment of the Bakun Dam.

The current dry spell and the channelling of the Rajang water to the Bakun Dam were blamed for the situation.

State Land Development Minister James Masing in an immediate reaction said he anticipated the situation to worsen.

His pessimism was further confirmed when the management of Bakun hydro-electric dam reportedly said that the water is expected to be released through the spillways in October.

Said Luhat: “We have to anticipate this (disaster) will occur… there were signs but no one is observing all these things.”

“The EIA recommendations must be implemented,” he said.

Early this month, some 10 people working in the Bakun area had reportedly died of mysterious ailments.

But state health director Dr Zulkifli Jantan quashed speculations of mysterious diseases and “curses from angry spirits” in the Bakun area when he confirmed that some of the deaths were due to “melioidosis” and “leptospirosis” diseases.

(Leptospirosis is present in rat urine while melioidosis is a water-and-earth-borne bacteria. The symptoms of the former include dry cough, fever, headache, diarrhoea and vomiting. Symptoms of the latter include pain in chest, bones, or joints and skin infections.)

Luhat, who had brought the deaths to light, said: “Now the cause has been confirmed. I believe what has been revealed by the director is only the tip of the iceberg.”

Special committee set up for massive Baram Dam relocation exercise

Wednesday August 24, 2011

By STEPHEN THEN
stephenthen@thestar.com.my

MIRI: A special committee has been formed for the relocation of villagers affected by the RM3bil Baram Dam, which is expected to be the biggest such exercise to be undertaken in the state.

Called the Baram HEP Community Consultative Committee, it is headed by Baram MP Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan with Telang Usan assemblyman Dennis Ngau as deputy chairman and a political secretary to the chief minister, Robert Laing, as vice-chairman.

The committee will have representatives from Sarawak Energy Bhd, State Planning Unit, Regional Corridor Development Authority (Recoda), community associations and headmen of the affected settlements.

“It will be the biggest relocation exercise in Sarawak, eclipsing even the Bakun Dam that involved 10,000 people,” Jacob told reporters after chairing the committee’s first meeting here yesterday.

He revealed that more than 20,000 people from 25 longhouses and riverine settlements would be resettled for the building of the dam in Long Kesseh, more than 200km from here.

“Massive development is coming to Baram, but there is a lot of fear among the people concerning the project because of misinformation by the opposition parties and some non-governmental organisations.

“That is why the state has decided to establish this special committee to deal with folk who have to be resettled,” Jacob said.

He said the committee would start negotiating with the affected folk on land compensation soon.

According to him, construction of the access road into the dam site had started.

He added that the authorities were addressing other developments that included preparing the Environmental Impact Assessment and Social Impact Assessment studies by Sarawak Energy Bhd, identification of resettlement sites and, the drawing up of a blueprint on the resettlement scheme.

Asked on the fears of the affected folk, he admitted that there were widespread worries from those who would have to be uprooted.

“I acknowledge their worries, but development is a necessary thing in order to bring progress to the people. Baram cannot be left behind, so this Baram Dam project is a necessity and it must go on.

“Certainly, the construction of the dam will definitely affect the people and their livelihood, but that is why this special committee is formed, to make sure their interest and welfare are protected,” Jacob stressed.

Dry spell hits Bakun area

Tuesday August 23, 2011

By STEPHEN THEN
stephenthen@thestar.com.my

MIRI: The water in the Bakun hydroelectric dam reservoir has not risen to the level that was initially predicted because the area has been hit by a dry spell.

Managing director of Sarawak Hidro, which manages the dam, and chief engineer Zulkifle Osman told The Star yesterday that it had been an uncharacteristically dry month.

“The rainfall for the whole month was not what we had expected. We expected more rain, but since the start of August, we have been badly hit by a dry spell. On Aug 20, only one millimetre (mm) of rain fell throughout Bakun region,” he said.
Too little rain: Water released from a diversion tunnel of the dam in this file pic.

“The day before, only 4.5mm rainfall was recorded. On Aug 16, there was 41mm (4.1cm) of rain. For the rest of August, there was zero rain. The rainfall combined on the three days when it rained was very little as compared to the normal rainfall.

“And spread over such a huge reservoir, the three days of rain did not make any difference at all to the water level. That is why there was hardly any difference to the water intake for the turbines.

“The amount of water we could release from the Bakun Dam into the downstream area was only limited to the amount of water coming out from the lone turbine that is in operation now.

“There is no water coming down the spillway because we cannot reach that level yet. Only once we have reached the 214-metre level at the Bakun reservoir can the water flow down the spillway into the Rajang River and downwards to Belaga, Kapit and Sibu.

“The current water level at the reservoir is 207m and it has not changed because of the lack of rain.”

Zulkifle said that if the reservoir kept receiving zero rainfall or little rain, there was no way the water level downstream of the dam could rise.

On whether this dry spell was foreseen, he said it was unpredicted.

On whether the stagnant level had affected the functioning of the turbine generator, he said that had not been the case because the water could still flow down into the power generation house.

As long as the water could flow down, the electricity-generation process could go on, he said.

Zulkifle, when asked whether cloud-seeding could be carried out over Bakun, said the idea had not yet been discussed with the authorities.

On the amount of rain forecast over Bakun for the next few days, he said the weather would still be dry.

On the river transportation woes downstream of Bakun, he said the Kapit and Belaga local authorities had not informed him that those woes were directly caused by the dry spell in Bakun.

He said the low river levels downstream of Bakun might be a result of a combination of dry spells in other parts of central Sarawak, not just because of the lack of water coming down from the Bakun Dam.

The dry spell over Bakun and central Sarawak is rather strange because in northern Sarawak, especially Miri, there was occasional moderate to heavy rain during the past week.

Friday, September 9, 2011

BAKUN CURSES CONTINUE

By Agence France-Presse, Updated: 9/8/2011

Malaysia's Borneo tribes lose test case over mega-dam

A 12-year legal battle by indigenous tribes in Malaysia against their ancestral land being seized to build a mega-dam on Borneo island ended in defeat Thursday in the nation's top court.
Indigenous people present at the court said they were devastated by the ruling, while activists said it could encourage the government to requisition more land on Malaysia's part of Borneo and create "internal refugees".

"It is an unfair decision. I have not been fully compensated," said Ngajang Midin, 50, of the Ukit tribe, as tears rolled down his face. He has already moved to higher ground and the multi-billion-dollar dam has begun operations.

"My cocoa and pepper trees are underwater. My ancestors' graves are buried under the sea of water," he said.

The fight, seen as a test case, began 12 years ago when the state government of Sarawak requisitioned land for the controversial Bakun hydroelectric dam and a timber pulp mill on Borneo, famous for its biodiversity.

About 15,000 people were forcibly relocated to make room for the dam and a reservoir about the size of Singapore, which began generating power last month.

Many have made an unhappy transition to life in drab resettlement areas, and representatives of the evicted indigenous people launched a series of legal appeals.

But these culminated Thursday in a unanimous dismissal by a three-judge panel from Malaysia's highest court, the Federal Court, which found the eviction had not violated the tribal peoples' constitutional rights.

"I hearby dismiss the appeal and uphold the orders of the courts below," chief justice Zaki Azmi, of the Federal Court, said in the capital Kuala Lumpur.

Colin Nicholas, founder and coordinator of the Center for Orang Asli Concerns -- whose name uses the Malay term for indigenous people -- said the decision could turn the indigenous groups into "internal refugees".

"Natives use blockades and negotiations (and when it fails) they come to court for justice. But that justice was not delivered. It is disappointing," he told AFP.

"The fear now is these people will become internal refugees because they can be forced to relocate," he said.

Ngajang, who has moved to higher ground with his family, said he was afraid for the future.
"I fear we will be driven out from our own land. I will end up like a squatter," he said.

"Our lives are only filled with darkness and uncertainties."

The case was brought by members of indigenous tribes including the Iban, Dayak, Kayan, Kenyah and Ukit peoples, some of the many ethnic groups living on Borneo, which is split between Malaysia, Indonesia and the sultanate of Brunei.

A lawyer for the group, Baru Bian, said that more tribal people in Sarawak might now be forcibly moved in the name of development.

"There is a possibility the move to displace natives in Sarawak will gain momentum," he said.
About 200 cases of indigenous people fighting state acquisition of their land are ongoing in lower courts.

Transparency International has labelled Bakun a "monument of corruption", and analysts have questioned how the Malaysian government can ever recover the money it has sunk into the project.

The dam, one of the world's tallest, has been dogged by problems since its approval in 1993, and the delays have incurred large cost overruns.

The construction costs for Bakun have added up to at least $2.6 billion, making it among the most expensive infrastructure projects in Malaysian history.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

SINOHYDRO DENIES DAM UNSAFE

Some workers on Malaysia's biggest dam, due to open next year, claim concrete is being diluted with water - and passing quality tests

Toh Han Shih
Jun 20, 2011

Sinohydro, China's biggest dam builder, has rejected accusations it used unsafe construction methods to build Malaysia's Bakun dam, but acknowledges its construction processes did not fully adhere to correct procedures.

Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have alleged that under the watch of Sinohydro, a Chinese state-owned enterprise, improper construction practices in the dam were widespread and pose concerns for its future safety.

Malaysia-China Hydro, a joint venture between Sinohydro and Malaysian firm Sime Engineering, is the biggest contractor engaged in building the dam, which will be Malaysia's largest when it is completed next year. Writing in the online Sarawak Report, environmental journalist Clare Rewcastle alleged the practice of adding excessive water to cement, regarded as unsafe by the construction industry, was endemic in the building of the dam.

The online report includes photos and a video of water being injected via a hose into cement mixers before being used in the dam. It also included a photo of a document indicating that a batch of concrete was rejected by quality controllers because too much water had been added into the cement.

"It is well-known that the Chinese contractors were under extreme pressure from the Malaysian government during the period up to 2009 to get the dam finished as quickly and cheaply as possible, after a series of delays and cost overruns," the Sarawak Report said.

Building of the dam started in 1996 but was plagued by many delays, including changes of ownership, contractors and management.

"It's all supposition," a Sinohydro spokeswoman was quoted saying after seeing the video and photos. "The pictures show workers washing the silo of the machine. We can admit the cleaning process is not correct and doesn't follow instructions," she said.

The rejection of a batch of concrete because water was introduced could be proof that quality control was functioning, she said. The Sarawak Report cited an unnamed quality controller at the project who said many batches of cement with excessive water passed quality control tests because the measures were inadequate.
The quality controller said he often reported these problems to his superiors at Sinohydro, but got little response or support from them.

"I used to raise this issue and nobody took any notice of it. They would just say `okay, let it go, and warn them not to do it next time'. If I found them adding water to the concrete I would reject it as substandard, but I could not be everywhere all the time and I know it was happening when I was not there," he said.

"For years Sinohydro and the contractors have refused to take adequate action in response to official complaints of under-resourced quality controllers at Bakun," the article in the Sarawak Report noted.

Raymond Abin, national co-ordinator of the Sarawak Conservation Alliance for the Natural Environment, said: "The unsafe practices outlined by the Sarawak Report are true. The group is fighting dam construction in Sarawak, one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo.

"The source of its information is reliable as the information came from workers previously involved in engineering work on the construction of the Bakun dam. Only those workers who worked on-site knew the problem. The public has no access to the project site because it is strictly guarded," Abin said.

Responding to safety concerns, the Sinohydro spokeswoman said extensive testing had been conducted, and asserted the condition of the dam was in line with expectations. "The dam has been filling since October 2010. During all this process no defects have been mentioned. The dam is safe."

Countering claims by some NGOs that the dam was a wasteful white elephant, the Sinohydro spokeswoman said it was part of the long-term plan of the Sarawak state government to create more than 20,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy.
The Sarawak government's renewable energy plan would provide substantial employment opportunities and triple Sarawak's gross domestic product by 2020, she said.

"The Bakun Hydroelectric Project is the largest hydropower project in Malaysia with an installed capacity of 2,400 MW. It will significantly contribute to meeting the increasing demand of electricity in the country," said the website of Sarawak Hidro, a wholly owned subsidiary of Malaysia's Ministry of Finance which is the developer of the dam.

But Abin accused the Malaysian government and the dam builders of failing to take the safety of the dam into account. "They are more interested in completing the dam as the project has been delayed for so long. This is very serious because a slight tremor will cause the dam structure to break which can endanger human lives downstream and the entire Rejang River basin."

Grace Mang, China programme co-ordinator of International Rivers, an international NGO focusing on water, expressed concern over the environmental impact of the dam as well as its safety. "The size of the Bakun project has meant there has been a significant impact on the surrounding communities and the environment. But new information about the quality of Sinohydro's construction is certainly alarming," she said.

Sarawak Hidro did not respond to questions from the South China Morning Post

Monday, May 9, 2011

Dungau: Don’t take negative stance on Baram dam project

8 May 2011

MIRI: Residents in Baram should not take a negative stance over the state government’s plan to build a hydroelectric dam in the rural district as the project would stimulate more development.

Baram MP Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan said the project would stir economic activities and improve infrastructure standards in the area in the long run.

Although there might be a loss of some landed property, he assured that the government wanted a “win-win” situation with Baram’s people.

Speaking at the opening of the Sarawak National Kenyah Associa­tion (PKKS) biennial general meeting here yesterday, Dungau said the state’s plan to build the dam was to expedite Baram’s development.

The Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister said the decision to build Baram’s hydroelectric dam, projected to generate about 1,000 megawatt of electricity, was re-affirmed by Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud in last month’s state election.

Dungau, who is also PKKS patron, urged the association to help shape the mindset of the Kenyah community, one of the minority groups in the country, to be far-sighted and plan for their future generations.

He said the community, with a population of just about 70,000 nationwide, could contribute effectively towards nation building. — Bernama

Source: The Star Online

URL: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/5/8/sarawak/8641511&sec=sarawak

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Bakun Dam saga enters next chapter

20 April 2011

Behind The News - Yap Leng Kuen

Should project be viewed as a business deal or part of state development?

THE protracted story of the Bakun Hydroelectric Dam project, instead of ending soon, may be just going into its next chapter.

The latest saga in the tariff pricing disagreement between Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, owner and developer of the dam, and Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB), the offtaker and state utility board, is entering its fourth scenario.

The first round of talks just after the completion of the dam looked at its possible sale or lease; subsequently, Sarawak expressed its intention to buy over the dam.

News surfaced recently that the sale of Bakun was off and that it would be operated on a joint-venture basis.

The latest is that SEB has proposed to buy a 30% stake in the project.

The power negotiations too have undergone three changes from earlier suggestions of flat to escalating tariffs. Currently, the offer is for a starting tariff of six sen per KwH.

In February this year, SEB had indicated it was willing to pay six sen per kwh but Sarawak Hidro said it needed a flat rate of 9.5 sen per kwh on a 30-year concession.

On an escalating basis, SEB had offered 5.4 sen per kwh at 1.5% per annum (inclusive of a one sen water tariff to the state); Sarawak Hidro had countered with 6.75 sen per kwh, also at 1.5% per annum.

The power purchase agreement (PPA) negotiations went on a rocky path last month with different instructions from the state and federal governments. Early last month, the PPA talks were ordered off by the state and later in the same month, the federal government expressed the desire for the PPA to be concluded as soon as possible.

The question here is whether the Bakun Dam project should be viewed as a purely business deal or part of the socio-economic development of Sarawak?

As a business deal, the Government should make every effort to recover its investments.

If it wants to play its developmental role, it may consider taking a hit and absorbing some losses while helping Sarawak to achieve its industrial goals.

Under the study conducted by PwC, it is believed that the Bakun project is valued at between RM8bil and RM10bil; however, Sarawak's latest tariff offer of six sen per kwh values it at only RM6bil.

In contrast, coal-fired tariffs cost 28 sen per kwh.

Some ask if giving a hefty discount is justified, as more expensive dams are coming up. They say it is not fair that power from Bakun has to be sold cheaply to subsidise the construction of these additional dams.

Others want to know why the cost of transmission via the new grid system is much higher, at over four sen per kwh compared with the cost of only one sen in the peninsula.

Sarawak has said it needs 6.000MW-7,000MW of power by 2020. Bakun has a capacity for 2,400MW and Murum is able to produce 944MW.

Others still pose questions on why polluting industries should take advantage of the cheap, clean power from Bakun.

These heavy industries located in the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) have rebutted that they use advanced technology that do not pose a threat to the environment.

Scare tactics have been used which speculated on the possibility that the Bakun Dam project could end up being a white elephant if industries were not attracted to soak up the power at competitive rates.

Looking at the power requirements of Peninsular Malaysia beyond 2015, this power from Bakun may be transmitted back to the peninsula. Is it worth it to revive the idea of building the undersea transmission line especially in the wake of the nuclear scare and the limit on Malaysia's carbon footprint under the now expired Kyoto Protocol?

Already the pressure is on to conclude the tariff negotiations. Sarawak has signed non-binding agreements with four companies to supply power. Their plants are at the preliminary stages of planning and construction.

Source: The Star Online

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/4/20/business/8516081&sec=business

River travel along Rajang expected to return to normal by next month

2 May 2011

By STEPHEN THEN
stephenthen@thestar.com.my

MIRI: River travel for more than 30,000 residents living along the country’s longest river — the Rajang River in central Sarawak — is expected to return to normal by next month.

The water level is expected to start rising to its normal height again next month once the water from the Bakun Dam reservoir starts to flow into the Rajang after the impoundment of the dam is completed.

Belaga assemblyman Liwan Lagang told The Star yesterday that the river transportation woes that started in early October last year was expected to be over by June, after nine months of disruption.

“By next month, the flooding of the entire Bakun Dam reservoir is expected to be completed. The water from the dam will then flow down into the Rajang River (after passing through the power generation turbines) and this will raise the river level along the downstream stretch from Bakun to Belaga down and on to Sibu,” he said when asked yesterday on the latest development in the Bakun Dam downstream area.

Difficult to move: Villagers walking on the exposed banks after the Bakun Dam’s impoundment which caused the upper reaches of the Rajang River in Belaga District to become shallow and dangerous in some parts in this file pic.

“Travellers using boats, including the big express boats, will then be able to navigate to the upper reaches of the Rajang River, as well as the Belaga and Balui rivers again,” he said, adding, “There should be no more interruptions to river travel, even during the coming dry season.”

Last October 14, the Balui River, which fed the Rajang River, was dammed up to enable the Bakun Dam reservoir to be flooded.

The dam reservoir has to be flooded to at least 195 metres high in order for the water to be able to run down the water inlet to generate the eight power-generation turbines to churn out 2,400 MWs of electricity.

After the impoundment of the Bakun Dam started, two major environmental disasters hit the Rajang River — a massive logjam stretching 50km that swept thousands of logs into the Sibu rivermouth and then the entire river experienced a drop in water-level, resulting in some stretches drying up completely.

The logjam was cleared after about a week, but the river transportation to the upper reaches of the Rajang, Balui and Belaga rivers continued to remain problematic until now.

In some parts of the river, the volume had dropped by up to six metres.

The Balui and Belaga rivers confluence into the Rajang River and then flow 400km passing through Belaga town, Song Bazaar, Kapit town and then Sibu town before reaching the South China Sea.

Liwan yesterday said the information he gathered from the Bakun Dam site was that the water volume to be released downstream of the main dam wall would drastically increase and would be in time to mitigate the effect of coming dry season on the water level in the Rajang River.

“In fact, the water level is already rising because the amount of water flowing down from the diversion tunnel outlet is quite heavy since there is already a lot of water in the Bakun reservoir behind the main dam wall.

“For passengers using small longboats, they can reach up to Punan Bah settlement already.

“Once the Rajang River volume increases more, big speedboats and cargo tugboats will be able to go up into the deep interior as well,” he said.

Asked about the land linkage problem faced by more than 1,000 Penans in the Lusong Laku settlement deep in the interior near the Sarawak-Kalimantan border after a rickety bridge built by a timber company was washed away by floods last February, he said the Federal Government was to build a Bailey bridge there soon.

“The army was supposed to build the Bailey bridge. Last month, they were supposed to go in and get things done, but had to postpone their task because of the state elections.

“They are going in soon, but I have not been told of any deadline for them to complete the bridge.”

Source: The Star Online

URL: http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?sec=sarawak&file=/2011/5/2/sarawak/8590984

SEB to buy 30% of Bakun Dam for RM1.3bil?

20 April 2011

By YAP LENG KUEN
lengkuen@thestar.com.my

PETALING JAYA: Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB), the state utility company, is believed to have proposed to acquire a 30% stake in the Bakun Hydroelectric Power project for RM1.3bil cash, sources said. The payment would likely be in the form of equity of RM700mil and a shareholders' loan of RM650mil, the sources added.

Based on its latest offer of a starting tariff of six sen per kwh, SEB is said to be working on a valuation of RM6bil for the Bakun Dam project compared with the cost of construction of RM7.46bil.

It is learnt that Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, the owner and developer of Bakun Dam, finds the offer too low and is looking closer to seven sen per kwh, which will value the project at about RM8bil.

Sarawak Hidro's valuation is in line with the findings of a recent study by PwC, believed to be commissioned by the Finance Ministry (MOF), which valued Bakun at between RM8bil and RM10bil, sources said.

The Bakun Dam early this year

“Therefore, at SEB's valuation of RM6bil, it is believed that the valuation of Bakun will go down below its debt of RM5.75bil,'' the sources added.

“The MOF, which owns Sarawak Hidro, is handling these negotiations,'' said a source. “They will probably be working closely with SEB to find a mutually acceptable solution.''

The offer of six sen per kwh took into account a one sen water tariff the dam owner is obliged to pay to the state, sources said, adding that while asking for concessions from the Federal Government, the state should consider giving some leeway in terms of land charges and water levies.

Sarawak Hidro's price tag of RM7.46bil includes a RM950mil compensation to Ekran Bhd, the previous developer that could not complete the job, and RM500mil in resettlement costs.

Late last year, SEB had offered RM6bil to buy over the entire dam project. The MOF is believed to have cautioned that a sale of the mammoth project at below cost would be subject to scrutiny from the Public Accounts Committee.

Subsequently, SEB increased its offer to RM7bil with the following conditions:

The debt of RM5.75bil must be guaranteed by the Federal Government;

The equity portion of RM1.25bil would be paid over two years; however, there were no other details on this;

SEB wanted immediate control of the dam; and

The Federal Government must indemnify any potential cost over-runs.

Earlier talks had centred around possibilities of paying tariffs at flat and escalating rates; however, the parties could not come to any agreement.

This tussle involving ownership and power tariffs at the Bakun Dam has received the attention of top government officials.

It is believed to be in the agenda chaired by the Prime Minister at the oil, gas and energy committee under the Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu).

Sources said the talks were likely to last a few more months. “Both parties need each other badly,'' said a source, adding that they just needed to hammer out an acceptable solution for all.

The 2,400MW Bakun Dam is ready to supply 300MW in about three months' time, while SEB has signed term sheets with four companies Press Metal Bhd, OM Materials, Asia Minerals Ltd and Tokuyama Corp for supply of 1,300MW for their upcoming plants.

Source: The Star Online
URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/4/20/business/8514165&sec=business

Bakun hydro project to be joint venture

By JACK WONG
jackwong@thestar.com.my

13 April 2011

KUCHING: The Bakun hydro dam, which is expected to produce its first 300MW in three months, will become a joint venture between the Federal and Sarawak governments, said Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud.

He did not, however, reveal what would be Sarawak government's stake in the dam, which could produce up to 2,400MW when fully operational.

The dam is now owned by the Federal Government through Finance Minister Inc.

The Sarawak government has offered to take over the dam's ownership for RM7bil after the Federal Government agreed to sell it last year as the plan to transmit the electricity to the peninsula via underwater submarine cables was scrapped.

From left: Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, Tokuyama vice-president Toshiki Nakamura, Press Metal chairman Datuk Paul Koon, State Planning Unit director Datuk Ismawi Ismuni and State Secretary Datuk Amar Mohammad Morshidi Abdul Ghani after the signing.

“The Prime Minister has assured me and the state government that all the Bakun power will be given to industries in Sarawak,'' Taib said at the signing of power purchase agreement (PPA) term sheet between state-owned Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB) and four major investors in energy-intensive industries in Samalaju Industrial Park in Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (Score) here yesterday.

The four investors were Press Metal Bhd, Japan's Tokuyama Corp, Hong Kong-based Asia Minerals Ltd and Singapore's OM Materials, which is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.

Press Metal will set up a new aluminium smelter while Asia Minerals and OM Materials will each invest in a manganese smelter. Tokuyama's plant will produce polycrystalline silicon for solar panels.

Taib said the 944MW Murum dam project, now under development by SEB, would be operational in 2014, and that more dams would be built.

“For the (proposed) Baram and Pelagus dam projects, all the technical studies have been done. The Baram dam project will be a joint venture with Brunei.

“We (Sarawak) will have 6,000MW to 7,000MW (hydro power) by 2020,” he added.

The proposed Baram dam in northern Sarawak is expected to generate about 1,000MW while the Pelagus dam in the upper reaches of the Rejang River basin, where the Bakun and Murum dams are located, will generate about 900MW.

SEB, which has plans to develop several smaller dams, will export electricity to Brunei and Sabah.

Taib said the state had some 500,000 coal resources which could be exploited to produce electricity.

Source: The Star Online

URL: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?sec=business&file=/2011/4/13/business/8468803

Tariff deal to materialise soon for S’wak Hidro, S’wak Energy

4 May 2011

KUCHING: Recent news flow on the power tariff negotiations between Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd (Sarawak Hidro) and Sarawak Energy Bhd (Sarawak Energy) has been positive – implying that a deal could be on the cards soon.

According to a report, a power purchase agreement (PPA) between both parties would likely be signed in two months.

Both federal and state governments were believed to have reached a pact on tariffs for power off-take from the Bakun damn earlier last week.

It was likely to be between Sarawak Energy’s starting rates of six sen per kilowatt hour (KwH) and seven sen per KwH as requested by Sarawak Hidro, the owner and developer of Bakun dam. By extension, this would place the valuation of the RM7.5 billion Bakun dam to be somewhere between RM6 billion and RM8 billion.

At seven sen per KwH, Sarawak Hidro’s valuation was in line with the findings of a recent study by PriceWaterhouseCoopers – which valued Bakun at between RM8 billion and RM10 billion.

It was also reported last month that Sarawak Energy had proposed to take up a 30 per cent stake in the Bakun project for RM1.3 billion, RM700 million of which would likely be via equity injection and the balance RM650 million coming from shareholders’ loan. By extension, this implied a valuation of RM6 billion based on a Sarawak Energy’s offer of six sen per KwH.

Furthermore, AmResearch Sdn Bhd (AmResearch) gathered the 2,400 megawatt (MW)-Bakun dam was ready to supply its first 300MW of power by July.

“Sarawak Energy has moved quickly to sign PPA term sheets with four companiesPress Metal Bhd (Press Metal), OM Materials, Asia Minerals Ltd and Tokuyama Corp. These first batches of companies are expected to consume a combined 1,300MW for their respective plants, to be located at Samalaju Industrial Park in Bintulu.

“This was quickly followed by an agreement between Gulf International Investment Group Holdings Sdn Bhd and Aluminium Corp of China to set up an US$1.5 billion aluminium smelter in Similajau. The smelter is expected to take up 600MW of power initially based on a production capacity of 370,000 tonnes,” stated AmResearch in its sectoral update report.

The research house’s ground checks indicated that Sarawak Aluminium Smelting Sdn Bhd – a joint-venture between Rio Tinto Alcan and the Cahya Mata Sarawak group – could be a third player to set up an aluminium smelter in Similajau.

“The smelter is expected to consume between 900MW and 1,200MW of power against an annual capacity of up to 720,000 tonnes,” said AmResearch.

The research house continued to favour Press Metal as an early beneficiary of crystallisation of long-term power supply with Sarawak Energy. To be sure, the group is currently the only direct play on the commissioning of Bakun dam.

AmResearch pointed out that Press Metal’s recent capital raising manoeuvres positioned the group to embark on Phase Two of its expansion programme that could potentially triple capacity to 360,000 tonnes by end-2012.

Source: Borneo Post Online

URL: http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=127687

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Bakun: Empty promises, damned lives

COMMENT Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's visit to the Bakun area on Jan 15 was trumpeted as a gracious offer of largesse to the displaced peoples from the Bakun area who have been resettled at Sungai Asap since 1999.

He promised a RM62 million road linking Belaga and Bakun; a RM46 million clinic, and has “agreed in principle” to write off the remaining housing loans of about RM41 million owed by some 1,500 families who were displaced by the Bakun dam. Can this offset the “ethnocide” of the displaced Bakun indigenous peoples, the “damned lives” at the Sungai Asap Resettlement Scheme?

NONEMore than 10,000 indigenous natives from at least 15 different ethnic communities had to give up their ancestral homes and preferred environment at a time when the dam had been suspended during the financial crisis at the end of the 90s. Among these groups of indigenous peoples displaced are the Ukits, who are the only ethnic community of its kind in the world with their distinct language and culture. Theirs is now an endangered culture.

I was amazed to read that Najib was “the first prime minister to set foot in Belaga town”! That means that the prime minister most responsible for this monstrous project, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, had never set foot in Belaga despite the long drawn-out saga of this accursed dam during his reign!

Now, even when I was a young lecturer at NUS, I managed to visit Belaga in 1978. And soon after the resettlement of the displaced peoples, I again visited the area with the other members of the fact-finding mission in 1999.

NONEYet no Malaysian prime minister had bothered to see for themselves this part of Malaysia where more than 15 different ethnic communities lived in some of the most beautiful forest environments of Malaysia and where the biggest dam in SEAsia was to be built to displace these indigenous peoples!

The only word that sprang to mind when we observed the state and morale of the displaced people and their shocking “new” living environment was ETHNOCIDE. That was just six months after the resettlement.

“Ethnocide may be defined as the process whereby a culturally distinct people loses its identity due to policies designed to erode its land and resource base, the use of its language, its own social and political institution as well as its traditions, art forms, religious practices and cultural values.

“When such policies are carried out systematically by governments on the pretext of social progress, national unity, economic development, military security, then such governments are guilty of ethnocide…”
(Shanthi Thambiah, 'Cultural Diversity and Indigenous peoples' in Kua Kia Soong edited, 'Mother Tongue Education of Malaysian Ethnic Minorities', DJZHLC, 1998:19)

Having witnessed this process of “ethnocide” at Sungai Asap, I have always said that this displacement of the 10,000 Bakun peoples was the single most dastardly act of the Mahathir administration and the Taib state government. For this, all component parties of the Barisan Nasional must bear full responsibility. Permit me to refresh your memory regarding “Operation Exodus”.

Affected communities not fully consulted

Ever since the project was first proposed, concerned Malaysian NGOs have consistently raised the issue of the lack of clear information and accountability with regard to the Bakun project. Just about every aspect of the project, including the plans for resettlement, was shrouded in secrecy, vague promises and poor consultation with the affected victims and NGOs.

It is clear that the hurry to resettle these indigenous peoples was linked to the fact that the contracts for the Asap Resettlement Scheme had been given out before the onset of the economic crisis. It was also calculated that money could be made from oil palm plantations in the resettlement area.

The displacement of the Balui population was thus part of the plan to convert them into wage labourers for these plantations. The state is in fact subsidising these plantation interests not only in creating this pool of cheap labour but in the budget allocation for the Asap Resettlement Scheme.

NONEThe affected people were promised, by the authorities, adequate plots of land (3 hectares), reasonable housing, jobs and other facilities at the Asap Scheme. Yet, until their final exodus, they had no knowledge of how the Asap Resettlement Scheme had been designed. Nevertheless, they were required to sign a sales & purchase agreement on arrival as a condition for obtaining the keys to their new homes.

As a further pressure for the indigenous people to move to Asap, the authorities closed all support services (schools, clinics, etc) in the original longhouses and all those who stayed behind or moved further upstream were warned that they were trespassing on state land and liable to be forcibly evicted. Those who refused to move to Asap were told that they would lose their right to their compensation payments.

This is hardly the situation within which such a traumatic experience for the indigenous peoples who had lived for generations in their ancestral homes, should have taken place. Instead of receiving all manner of assistance to settle in to the new life, they had to put up with veiled threats and (empty) inducements.

The entire “Operation Exodus” has shown a failure of planning and decision planning. The state of the Asap Resettlement Scheme itself further confirms this fact.

Damned Lives


As a member of the fact-finding team in 1999, I was shocked to witness, first hand, the appalling state of the site, considering it was scarcely a year old. Lack of an adequate sewerage system, lack of rubbish disposal, lack of proper access roads were serious faults, threatening the health and longer-term sustainability of the communities.

The plumbing, made of PVC pipes, can be seen under the houses, and is connected to the septic tank. Leakages in some of these pipes were already noticeable, despite the newness of the scheme. No apparent remedial action had been forthcoming from the authorities. Sewerage waste at some of the longhouses flowed directly into the river near the long houses (we saw this at the Long Geng and Long Ayak resettlement area).

NONEThe longhouses do not have a proper drainage system. There are no concrete drains and there are already sections of stagnant and putrid water in the mud drains which take discharge from the houses. This is unsanitary and poses a health hazard, being mosquito breeding grounds and pose risks to children who may play with the water.

Rubbish collection is another problem faced by the community in the resettlement area. It is non-existent. The access road is too narrow for the rubbish collection lorries. Rubbish disposal is an essential service.

During our stay at the site, we noticed at one longhouse residents were tipping rubbish into the stream, while at another, it was being dumped in a heap not far from the longhouse. They had no alternative. The question is: Who planned this site and how could the design have been passed with such basic flaws?

The situation with regard to the housing provided at Asap is also appalling. Not only is the design and condition of the new houses inadequate, but indigenous people were being forced to pay some RM52,000 for a unit through a contract that has not been explained to them and is written in English legalese.

The price of the house was extraordinary, given its shoddy quality, its location and the paltry amount of compensation paid for the original buildings which were of far greater substance and relevance to the people. Sarawak is supposed to be one of the world's main suppliers of wood. (For comparison, a concrete properly finished low-cost house in peninsular Malaysia costs only RM25,000!)

The longhouses are of standard design. Each longhouse has fifteen units (bilik). They are arranged on two storeys. Downstairs is a hall and a kitchen, with a bathroom and toilet. Upstairs is just one open room, presumably for sleeping. The common balcony is much narrower than a traditional longhouse design, meaning it is difficult to use for traditional communal activities.

Other than the roughly cemented toilet and bathroom floors, and the bathroom and toilet walls which are of asbestos, the houses are made of wood - very poor quality wood at that. The doors and wall panels are of plywood, the floor boards are thin third-grade soft wood with gaps between the planks, while the main pillars are thin belian wood.

The long houses at Asap had been designed without any indigenous peoples' inputs. Instead, a British-based company (Bucknall's) was given the contract! And from our investigations, no certificate of fitness had been issued before the resettlement and this was a serious irregularity in the planning process for the site. The state authorities had in fact acted against the municipal laws of Malaysia.

Residents claimed that they had asked for ten acres each at Sg Asap. They were promised seven but only received three acres. Three acres of land is hardly sufficient to meet their needs. The fertility of the soil is inadequate for much of the land is situated on swampy or hilly areas. The size of the land is also inadequate.

Further, despite prior warnings, the state authorities had failed to provide for the circumstance whereby the indigenous people had to abandon their previous land (and crops) but thus had no time to cultivate the new land. There was thus a dearth of vegetables and fruits available at the site.

Several consequences had emerged from this. Firstly, the pressure on the existing land meant almost immediately that there was a severe shortage of fish, game and jungle products. This, together with the lack of vegetables and fruits, meant that the communities were thrust immediately into a wholly cash economy, spending significant sums on purchasing food and materials which had previously been obtained for free.

High transportation costs also meant that the cost of such purchases was relatively expensive.

To attempt to offset this, some of the indigenous people had begun to cultivate state land, outside of the demarcated land for the resettled communities. Again, there was not enough of this extra land, and this had already led to inter-community conflict. In addition, the cultivation of such land (considered “state land”) was likely to incur the wrath of the authorities, sooner or later, meaning such cultivation would be terminated.

It was not coincidental that while the mission was in Sarawak, the State Assembly actually passed an amendment to the Land Code to outlaw squatting on state land. This would have grave consequences for the indigenous peoples at Sg Asap who had been using state land beyond the three acres they had been given.

The mission found that this was a general practice of most of the people there. The other group of people affected by this amendment would be those who have chosen to move further upriver.

The failure by the planners to properly provide adequate alternative land again reflects an apparent inability to respect and honour what the indigenous people themselves had asked for, to properly respect and honour their culture and traditions, to respect and support sustainable farming and to respect and support provision for future generations.

It further indicates how the indigenous communities have been treated like objects in a process which has provided a hopelessly inadequate alternative life for them, under the guise of 'development'.

azlanThe residents have been displaced from a subsistence/ part-cash economy to a totally cash economy. Almost everything has to be paid for, including their staple rice, vegetables, wild boar, fish, even buah pinang and sireh which they used to get in abundance. There was a general loathing toward having to pay electricity and water rates. As they have no income, they have been living off their compensation money and this is almost finished now.

The cost of living for the households has increased dramatically after they move into the new resettlement area at Sg Asap. Now, the people are burdened with electric and water bills, which they never paid before. In their original home, they were using a diesel generator to generate electricity (the diesel was provided by the logging company at no cost) and the water supply came from the natural streams.

Although the state government had envisaged the displaced people as wage labour for oil palm plantations, in 1999 only one company had moved in. Even so, the seedlings would take at least five years to mature and allow harvesting work to be done.

From interviewing some local people at Asap, the plantation company Samling prefered to pay local people RM8 per hectare but they paid Indonesian labourers RM20 per hectare. Five companies had been given the green light to open up plantations, including the Sarawak Enterprise but only one had started. This again showed dismal planning by the authorities.

New social problems had arisen such as breakdown of family relations, distrust within communities; lack of social and recreational outlets for the youth; conflict between different communities, and disempowerment of women. We saw widespread despondency among the residents at Sg Asap; alcoholism had taken root and there was no motivation to produce their traditional handicraft beyond the plain floor mats…the symptoms of ethnocide.

Who benefits from the Bakun Dam?

The whole displacement process raises the fundamental questions of who defines and who benefits from development. The fact is that the indigenous population affected by the Bakun HEP have been asked to sacrifice their entire natural and cultural heritage in the name of development. Indeed, government spokespeople and others have lambasted critics as being anti-development and traitors.

Yet on closer examination of the way this whole project has been planned and implemented, it is clear that the indigenous people feel utterly betrayed and degraded by this so-called “development”.

They have been made to change a lifestyle which they controlled and from which they could plan their future, to one where everything has been planned for them and which has robbed them of their dignity, autonomy and ability to sustain their livelihood through integration with their traditional land and its resources.

It must be pointed out that the indigenous peoples of Bakun are by no means “backward” and living primitive lifestyles. Far from it. Most communities have been participating in part cash economy for a long time now. Their original long houses have produced quite a few university graduates and professionals. The member of Parliament for the area in 1999 was himself a former headmaster who had grown up at Bakun.

What they could have done with to improve their quality of life at their original long houses were better services: transportation, education facilities, clinics and hospitals, marketing and credit, etc. They could do with some sustainable means of power for each of their long house communities.

In other words, development must be based on the needs of the community and not the socially destructive projects such as the Bakun dam. Now their forest has been destroyed, their rivers have been depleted of fish and drinkable water and even the only means of transport since the days of their ancestors - the upstream tributaries of the Rajang – has been terminated by the accursed Bakun Dam.


KUA KIA SOONG, a former MP, was principal of the New Era College, Kajang. He is also a director of human rights group Suaram.

Source: Malaysiakini

Najib ‘saves’ Taib with new goodies

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak goes wooing voters in Sarawak with the announcement of a slew of rural projects.
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17 January 2011

SUNGAI ASAP: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s weekend visit to Sarawak may have saved Chief Minister Taib Mahmud’s political hide, which has come under “tremendous pressure” since the Sibu by-election in May 2010.

Literally taking the bull by the horn, Najib led off his government transformation programme by resolving a gnawing pain in Sarawak’s neck – the Bakun Dam resettlement issue.

On Saturday, more than 1,500 families at the Sungai Asap Resettlement Scheme heaved a huge sigh relief at the federal government’s decision to write off their remaining RM41 million housing loan.

The move will ease the burden of some 10,000 people who were affected by the resettlement programme following the construction of the Bakun Hydro Dam in 1996.

The settlers have long since been battling with the state government over earlier promises made to the settlers with regard to housing, and inadequate land allotment and utilities.

Sarawak, which is heading for its 10th state election, is very much dependent on its rural vote-bank. But an empowered opposition armed with a seemingly endless list of Taib’s corrupt adminstration and personal abuse is threatening to derail rural support for Barisan Nasional.

Last week in a much hyped series of meet-the-MPs, Najib had a session with three Sarawak MPs. What transpired is really anyone guess.

But over the weekend, Najib announced a slew of rural development projects starting with the discontentment of the Sungai Asap community.

Said Najib: “In principle, we agree to cancel the housing loan.

“The details and mechanism of how it will be done will be discussed with Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, the developer of Bakun Dam.

“We are doing this because we understand your plight and hardship.

“We are connecting electricity supply to Sungai Asap. We will be spending RM22 million to connect Sungai Asap to the main grid,” he told the delighted group of people at Rumah Belor, Sungai Asap.

Consolidating BN’s vote bank

Najib also addressed the community’s unhappiness over the size of land allocated to each family as part of the resettlement package pledged by the Taib administration.

The state governemnt had allocated only three acres per family which the resettlers said was insufficient to generate an income.

“We will find the best ways to allocate more land to each family to ensure the people have a better income,” he said.

Earlier in Belaga, he announced an allocation of RM62 million for the much-awaited 35km road project from Belaga town to Bakun Dam.

“The army will build it under the ‘Jiwa Murni’ programme to reduce the cost… if the Public Works Department were to build the road, it will cost RM350 million,” he said, adding that the government was aware of how vital the road was for the community.

The Belaga district communities were dependent on the Rajang River but the impoundment of the Bakin Dam had left certain stretches shallow.

“Construction of the road will begin next month. The federal government will allocate RM62 million for the project,” he said, adding that since November last year moves to bring treated water supply to Kapit town and the neighbouring communities were already underway.

The RM35 million water supply project is expected to be ready by October 2012.

Najib also said the Belaga district with its 28,000 population would see more infrastructure development to the tune of RM100 million .

Among them is a prefabricated steel bridge across the Linau River in Lusong Laku and a kindergarden for the local Penan community.

Najib said that the governemnt would also build nine resthouses for Penan pupils at Sungai Urun.

“Our desire is to see that no single race – no matter how small or isolated – will be left behind by the present government,” he said.

Source: Free Malaysia Today

URL: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/01/17/najib-saves-taib-with-new-goodies/

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Najib may dish out goodies to Bakun folk

13 January 2011

Regina Lee

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is scheduled to visit Sarawak again this weekend, amidst wide speculation that he will be dishing out compensation to villagers displaced by the RM7.3 billion Bakun Dam.

According to the natives who once lived in the dam area, the premier is expected to visit their village in Sungai Asap, where he is likely to hand over some form of the long-delayed compensation.

Residents of some 15 longhouses were moved out of the area to Sungai Asap – roughly 30km away – in 1998 to make way for the hydroelectric dam project.

While some of the residents have been given compensation, it is estimated that a lot more have not received theirs.

Miku Loyang, a Bakun native of the Kayan descent, told Malaysiakinithat up to RM7 million in compensation still had to be given out to the villagers to cover the cost of their land, crops, plantations and living quarters.

At the same time, he believes that Najib would also be giving out some form of goodies during his trip there in light of the forthcoming state election.

The full-term of the Sarawak assembly expires in July, which means that Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud will have to call for an election before then.

The Belaga state seat, under which Bakun falls, saw the BN candidate, Liwan Lagang, win by only a slim 227-vote majority in the 2006 state election, making it a “dangerous” seat for the coalition.

Najib to also attend Taib’s wedding party?

Najib is expected to meet the villagers affected by the Bakun Dam in Kapit, early on Saturday morning in Belaga, before making his way to Sungai Asap in the afternoon.

Although it is not stated in his official itinerary sent to media organisations by the Sarawak Information Department, it is understood that Najib will head back to Kuching for Taib’s wedding banquet on Saturday night.

Sunday morning will see Najib open the SUPP convention before heading for Samarahan to attend another programme.

Taib, 74, recently confirmed that a state banquet would be held to celebrate his recent marriage to a 28-year-old Syrian national, Ragad Waleed Alkurdi, said to be a former flight attendant.

It is understood that apart from Najib and his wife Rosmah Mansor, more than 1,000 VVIPs and dignitaries are expect the attend the function at the Dewan Santapan in the new state legislative complex. – Malaysiakini

Electricity for Bakun resettlers ‘only’ if state provides lines

19 December 2010

FMT Staff

KUCHING: Residents in the 15 longhouses in the Sungai Assap resettlement scheme will ‘only’ receive power from the Bakun project if the authorities provide the transmission lines.

“We will supply power from Bakun to the Belaga township and longhouses in Sungai Assap if there are plans by the relevant authorities to provide transmission lines, ” said the Bakun project management office.

The Sungai Asap Resettlement Scheme is home to more than 10,000 natives who were forced out following the state’s move to develop the RM7 billion Bakun Dam project in 1996.

At that time, the government had promised them a range of facilities. But much of what was promised is yet to be delivered. Many of the natives are also still awaiting their compensation of RM 20,000 and RM 50,000 from the government.

Speaking to newsmen after visiting the Bakun project recently, political secretary to the Prime Minister, Shahlan Ismail, said it was imperative that authorities engage the local community and resolve problems accordingly.

“The PM is very serious about the welfare of the people and wants their problems to be resolved quickly. The relevant authorities must engage and communicate regularly with the public on steps to be taken on the ground,” said Shahlan.

Shahlan was among several top officials from the Implementation Coordination Unit (ICU) in the PM and Deputy PM’s offices who had visited the settlement and Bakun project recently. The delegation also visited the Long Singu Penan settlement, Lusong Laku primary school and SMK Belaga.

On schedule

Sarawak Hidro managing director, Zulkifle Osman, who briefed the group said the impoundment of the 205-metre dam had begun in Oct 13.

“The threshold level is 195 metres, where dammed water will enter the inlet and turn the turbines to kick-start power generation.

“At the current rate, the impoundment of Bakun hydroelectric dam is ahead of schedule. As of Monday the water in the reservoir has reached 150.4 metres. It could reach the critical mass of 195 metres for power generation as early as April next year,” he said.

Zulkiflie also allayed commonly-held fears that the impoundment would further reduce the water levels in the voluminous Rajang river as had allegedly happened in October/November.

The dry spell coupled with the impoundment of the Bakun Dam had cut off river communications with communities in the upper reaches of Nanga Merit, Belaga, Song and Kapit, resulting in severe shortage of food supplies and hardship to locals in the vicinity.

Zulkifli said: “We don’t expect any untoward incidences. The water level between Belaga and Kapit town should be passable to normal riverine traffic, including express boats, by next July.

“But this could even happen earlier…as early as April if the present rate of impoundment continues.”

The Bakun Dam, which is the second highest concrete-rock filled dam in the world, is managed by Sarawak Hidro, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Ministry of Finance Incorporated.

Source: Free Malaysia Today

Bakun dam is 'white elephant' project


Monday, September 13, 2010

THE multi-billion-dollar Bakun dam in Borneo, already condemned as an environmental catastrophe affecting tribal people, is now battling criticism of it becoming a giant white elephant.

The dam, which will eventually submerge an area the size of Singapore, is nearing completion after suffering a series of setbacks and delays since its approval in 1993.

But at the last hurdle, the project has stumbled again. The project is seeing delays in winning the state government's permission to begin the flooding process and no deal is placed yet on purchasing its hefty 2,400 megawatt output.

Ambitious plans for an undersea cable to feed the Bakun's electricity to the Malaysian peninsula have been now abandoned.

This leaves the Sarawak state government as the only feasible buyer — and equipped with a very strong hand.

Negotiations with the dam developer Sarawak Hidro, a subsidiary of the national finance ministry, have reportedly been tough.

"It's a case where the owner of the project is naming an asking price that is very different to what the buyer would want," said Wong Chew Hann, an analyst at Malaysia's top bank Maybank.

"I understand there's quite a huge mismatch," she said. "I'm not sure what they've incorporated into the pricing, but the cost of the project has gone up so much since it was started."

As well as the cost of construction, there is the expense of compensating tribal people for their forced relocation from ancestral lands, and suppliers affected by the long delays.

"So the question is, are you going to incorporate all the compensation costs in the tariff price?" said Wong.

With the indigenous people from the Bakun catchment area long since resettled and its valuable timber resources felled for an equally long time, the dam has been ready to be flooded since April.

The state government had delayed permission, saying it was still evaluating river levels and the impact on boat transport.

A Sarawak minister reportedly said last week that the necessary permit has been granted, denying both that it had been used as a bargaining chip to lower the tariff and that Sarawak was facing an energy glut.

Sarawak Hidro managing director Zulkiflie Osman played down suggestions that he has been held to ransom by the state government.

"Both parties are working together and want it to be settled amicably, with a tariff acceptable to both parties," he told AFP, adding that he expected to strike a tariff deal before December.

The next of Sarawak's mega-dams, the Murum, which is being developed by the state government, is due to come online in 2013 but Osman said he was convinced the state authorities will not bypass the Bakun in favour of its own project.

Alongside the power purchase negotiations, the federal government is also said to be discussing selling the entire Bakun facility — built at a reported cost of 7.3 billion ringgit (2.4 billion dollars) — to the state government, but pricing and finance problems have emerged.

The Star daily reported in July that the federal government was seeking 8.0 billion ringgit while the state government offer was just 6.0 billion ringgit.

The Bakun's output far exceeds existing energy needs in Sarawak, a relatively undeveloped Malaysian state.

Sarawak is mostly destined for industrial users such as aluminium smelters, but these are still on the drawing board.

"The main problem is that currently there is no demand for such a big capacity yet, and in order for Sarawak Energy to purchase the dam they would need adequate funding," said an analyst with a major research house.

"The banks would ask for some kind of feasibility study, and as there is no real demand yet this project risks becoming a white elephant," said the analyst, who declined to be named.

Newspaper reports have questioned how the federal government can ever hope to recover the huge amount of money it has sunk into the project.

"Marred by too many disagreements, the 7.3 billion ringgit project could very well turn out to be a non-starter," the Star said last month, adding that with both the Bakun and Murum dams online there would be a "very real possibility" of a power glut.

Transparency International has labelled Bakun a "monument of corruption" in Sarawak, which has been ruled for three decades by the formidable chief minister Taib Mahmud.

There has also been fierce criticism over the botched relocation of 15,000 indigenous people, who have made an unhappy transition to life in drab resettlement areas.

Baru Bian, chairman of the opposition party Keadilan in Sarawak, said the Bakun project was designed purely to profit cronies, and not planned in the public interest.

"The dam is a waste of public funds, it's not necessary, and what is paramount is that it is disturbing and disrupting the lives of the natives and the environment — the trees and the forests."

AFP

Source: The Brunei Times
URL: http://www.bt.com.bn/science-technology/2010/09/13/bakun-dam-white-elephant-project