SAVE Rivers: 650 have signed petition against Tutoh/Apoh cascading dam
A petition opposing the construction of the Tutoh/ Apoh cascading dam is said to have collected 650 signatures in under two months.
In a statement yesterday, Miribased civil society organisation SAVE Rivers said the petition represents the concerns of 19 communities in the affected area, comprising the Kayan, Penang, Tering, Berawan, and other ethnic groups.
“We ran this petition after repeated discussions with the communities affected in the Tutoh/Apoh Baram area, and it was important that we show what the majority consensus is on this issue from the groundup,” said SAVE Rivers managing director Celine Lim.
According to her, the petition shows a deep-seated concern regarding the lack of transparency and consultation in the decision-making process for the dam project.
“We have, in all our direct communication with the Sarawak Premier’s office since last October, highlighted our deep concern on the lack of transparency and consultation and repeatedly demanded that our Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) as Indigenous People be respected.
“Until today, we have not received any acknowledgement or response to all our letters and enquiries. In fact, their only response is them ‘debunking’ our claims in the press,” Lim said.
Willie Kajan from Long Terawan questioned the identity of signatories of approval letters from the affected communities received by the state government.
“So far, we have only seen photos of interactions of the government representatives with our governmentappointed community leaders ie temenggong, penghulu, ketua kampung, and other progovernment groups, etc.
“But no one else outside this group is aware of the content of these interactions, and there is no active effort to inform the majority as well,” he claimed.
In this regard, Senator Abun Sui, representing Belaga – another affected area – called for broader public engagement.
“It is better for the government themselves to organise general public events for consultation and consent purposes directly because many of these government-appointed community leaders and even the representatives have failed to organise these sessions themselves.
“The government cannot bulldoze their plans without open dialogue with all affected parties and this is not reserved just with the community leaders/ representatives. Consulting them alone is not majority consent,” he said.
Kajang Kalo from Long Nen said the lack of feasibility studies and direct consultations with the affected communities has raised significant concerns.
“We are so confused because no feasibility studies have even been carried out yet, and no direct consultations have been carried out with us. We are the communities that are living in this very area, yet we are still in the dark about the impact of this project,” he said.
The signed petition has been submitted to the Premier’s Office, with copies distributed to relevant parties.
Lim said the petition is still ongoing, expressing confidence in collecting more signatures in the coming months.
She said plans are underway to address these concerns during the State Legislative Assembly sitting in May.
She also demanded for all related stakeholders from government agencies, corporate investors, finance system, and policymakers to respect the concerns of the majority and not downplay them as premature or resistant to development.
“Any clean energy transition must prioritise the needs and concerns of the vulnerable and marginalised groups. Decarbonised infrastructure needs to be fair and equitable for all members of society and communities should not be sidelined in the name of climate action,” she added.