Rumah Jeffery (the “Iban community”) is an indigenous community located in the Sarawak rainforest of Borneo, Malaysia. The rainforest is central to their identity and way of life. The Iban community faces serious challenges due to the lack of formal recognition of their land rights.
This issue affects many Indigenous peoples across Sarawak. The region’s timber products are in high demand in countries such as France, the Netherlands, Japan, South Korea, and the United States. The difficulties faced by the Iban community reflect a broader crisis impacting Indigenous communities, with timber plantations being a primary driver of deforestation in the area.
The Sarawak government’s refusal to publish maps of leases or surveyed Indigenous territories hinders a full assessment of the communities affected. A study by the Malaysian environmental NGO RimbaWatch found that concessions overlap with at least 246,177 hectares of native customary land in Sarawak.
The Sarawak government granted Zedtee Sdn Bhd (“Zedtee”), a Malaysian logging company, a lease for a timber plantation that overlaps with the Iban community’s territory. Zedtee proceeded to log part of the rainforest without obtaining permission, violating the principle of free, prior, and informed consent—an established principle of international law that affirms the right of Indigenous peoples to approve or reject projects affecting their lands, territories, or resources.
Zedtee’s logging activities in Sarawak resulted in significant loss of tree cover. When residents attempted to stop the bulldozers, the Sarawak Forest Department threatened them with arrest. Zedtee subsequently filed a complaint, leading to an eviction order. Authorities issued the notice without giving the Iban community an opportunity to contest the decision or participate in the process. No alternative housing or compensation was provided. The village chief has appealed to multiple government offices to overturn the order; however, Human Rights Watch (“HRW”) reports that no official response has been received to date.
HRW found that the Sarawak government breached its own land laws by failing to provide compensation before carrying out activities on native customary land, as required under Section 15 of the Sarawak Land Code. HRW urges reform of the Sarawak Land Code to align with international Indigenous rights standards and calls on timber-importing jurisdictions to prevent the entry of products linked to human rights abuses.
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