THE FINAL STATEMENT

SCHOOL OF ACTING JUSTLY, LOVING TENDERLY AND TREADING HUMBLY WITH

GOD
SALT V 2015
INTRODUCTION
We, the 20 tertiary Catholic students from the various tertiary institutions of Malaysia, gathered
at the Tanjung Tepalit Lepo' Gah', Ulu Baram, Sarawak from the 24th January 7th February 2015 to
participate in the School of Acting Justly, Loving Tenderly and Treading humbly with God (SALT)
2015 organised by the SALT Movement in partnership with Save Sarawak Rivers Network (SAVE
Rivers). This is the fifth SALT organized since 2008. Besides focused learning related to the
theme, Youth for Ecological Justice in Baram: Solidarity with the Indigenous Peoples as Stewards
of Creation, SALT V is a school with safe and critical space for effective networking, fostering a sense
of teamwork, partnership and camaraderie among the participants. It is a process of mutual
enrichment through information sharing, training on Native Customary Rights (NCR), the Federal
Constitution, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the United Nations Declaration
on the Rights of the Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) through interactive learning especially by
experiencing the reality of the Orang Ulu communities in Long Liam, Long Apu and Long Anap
situated in the area to be affected in the future by the proposed construction of the Baram Dam
in Ulu Baram, Sarawak. Below are the aims and objectives of the program which inspired us to
participate actively.

AIMS OF SALT V
1. Develop critical understandings and strategies to uphold the fundamental human rights
through effective advocacy at international, regional and grassroots levels guided by
principles of the the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Indigenous Peoples
(UNDRIP) regarding the standards and violations.
2. Create a platform for students and local community in Baram to come together to
analyze the conditions of the Indigenous Peoples in terms of socio-political,
economical, cultural, spiritual, religious and enviromental perspectives.
3. Develop a common critical understanding on the realities faced by the Indigenous Peoples
and to empower students and young people to advocate with/as Indigenous Peoples.
4. Evaluate the present efforts, plan further actions and campaign characterized by social reforms
for the indigenous peoples against institutionalized discrimination at all levels.
5. Create awareness about the link between the Indigenous Peoples and the environment,
especially their contribution and efforts at arresting global climate change.
OBJECTIVES
1. To enable participants to promote the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the
Rights of the Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in the protection of Native Customary
Rights (NCR).
2. To help our youth understand the intimate relationship between the Indigenous Peoples
and their land and territories, and the impact of unsustainable development, market oriented
cash crop plantations and neo-liberal global capitalism.
3. To arrive at a common critical understanding of the struggle faced by the Indigenous Peoples
in Baram and how development contributed to their poverty and marginalization;
4. Respond to the struggle of the indigenous community in Ulu Baram by developing
advocacy tools and a strategy for joint solidarity to campaign against the dam.
5. To build a movement of university students and young people who are committed and equipped
to advocate against Baram Dam.

OUR CRITICAL OBSERVATIONS

The proposed Baram Dam is a project that is going to be built in Ulu Baram which will
directly affect twenty six Indigenous Peoples villages. The dam is to be built in order to
produce electricity for villagers at Ulu Baram. Unfortunately, the processes that have taken place over
the past few years by the relevant authorities are highly questionable as they do not follow principles
of democracy and human rights standards. There are twenty six villages that will be affected by the
building of the Baram Dam*. Based on the observations in Long Liam, Long Apu and Long Anap,
there are various economic sources of the communities such as self-sustenance, gathering of natural
resources, receiving government subsidies, working as government servants and receiving financial
contribution from

family

members

from

outside

the

village.

Most

communities

are

economically dependent on the land. The communities are also facing problems in developing
their economic status because there is no basic infrastructure to commercialise their agricultural
products. Besides that, their land and forest which are their main source of income are also threatened
by the logging activities and the possible construction of the Baram Dam.
The villagers have their traditional governing institution which will be affected by the dam.
Traditionally, the decision making process was done through consensus with the whole members
of the villagers. The role of the community leader is to facilitate the discussion among the
community and once the decision has been made the community leader will endorse the decision
as the communities decision. Currently, the current village governing institution

is

being

indiscriminately manipulated by the government for their own political agenda to proceed with
the proposed Baram Dam project. However, they are other institutions such as Village
Security and Development committee, Community Based Organization (CBO) and religious
leaders are to help the community to address various issues and problems, besides becoming the
platform for the villagers to unite and voice out their opinions and positions.
Moreover, with referral to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples (UNDRIP);i.

The rights to the land of the Indigenous Peoples at Long Liam, Long Apu and Long
Anap will be violated if the construction of the dam takes place. The articles in the UNDRIP
can be used as guidelines to defend the rights of Indigenous Peoples.

ii.

The objections that have been made by the representative of the communities, SAVE
Rivers, and other civil society organizations have been ignored by the state and local
government (violation of Article 23 of UNDRIP).

iii.

In deciding the implementation of the Baram Dam the government has failed to fulfil

its

commitments towards the UNDRIP which asserts the rights of Indigenous Peoples to
determine their own development or use of their lands and resources and that they should

not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories without their own free, prior and
informed consent (violation of Article 10 and 32).

According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Article 1 states that all human
beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and
should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Article 7 states that all are equal before the
law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled
to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this declaration and against any
incitement to such discrimination. Thus, the government should protect the rights of the
Indigenous Peoples from exploitation by the commercialization of their lands, territories and
resources.
There will also be environmental degradation with the construction of the Baram Dam resulting
in the forest and rivers being destroyed. We are strongly against the private companies who are
involved in the dam construction for they are neglecting their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
and actively violating the Native Customary Rights (NCR) land in the name of development. The same
applies to the banks and financial institutions that are financing this project.

SALT 5 Theology: Our Faith Reflections

We believe that our spirituality demands that we fight for the Indigenous Peoples from oppression
and suffering. We consciously advocate with/for the rights of the oppressed and the marginalized. This
is our preferential option for the poor. Hence we must immediately stop the oppression towards the
Indigenous Peoples spirituality. We believe that our spirituality helps in our journey for the
marginalized as in Jeremiah 1: 6-7 says that O Lord God, I said, I cant do that! Im far too
young! Im only a youth! Dont say that, he replied, For you will go wherever I send you and
speak whatever I tell you to. We also studied the relationships between God, us, the villagers and the
people affected as well as the politicians and private companies involved. We prayed for wisdom and
strength for us to carry on the fight, for motivation, perseverance and faith for the people involved so
that with God they will be saved from the threat of the dam, and for humility for the politicians
and the private companies so that they will drop the plans for the dam, and leave these people in peace.
We also pray that the spirit of God will help the Indigenous Peoples fight injustice and be with them
in their darkest times. We shall ensure that the Catholic Social Teachings and the radical life
of Jesus are used to inspire all of us to join in this struggle.

RECOMMENDATIONS TO VARIOUS ACTORS IN SOCIETY

Through our experiences and learning, we demand the society:
Baram Community

To encourage to all villagers to cooperate and achieve consensus to reject the dam;
To ensure equal participation between women and men in all decision making processes;
To collectively take ownership of preserving clean environment;
To ensure the culture is preserved, documented and practiced;
To encourage villagers to demand sufficient and prior information on the proposed Baram Dam,
so that they can make an informed decision;
To encourage the youth to participate actively in the anti dam campaign especially at the
blockade;
To encourage the working youth outside of Baram to return and contribute to the
community in holistic ways;
To the community leaders that they should reject corruption at all levels and objectively
represent community in all administrative matters;
To reject and report any illegal logging activities.

Campus Level (CSG, CUS, CSS, CVS)

To conduct open forums and panel discussions on social awareness about the issues faced by
IPs using the various tools used in SALT 5, in order to generate critical thinking among
the students;
To insert issues on the dam project into campus level activities, to facilitate solution
through formation;
To strengthen the bond between ordinary members and leaders to ensure a collective voice to
fight against the dam project.
To form an advocacy group for Indigenous Peoples rights by indigenous students to be
recognised by Catholic Bishop Conference of Malaysia Singapore Brunei Youth Commission
(CBCMSBYC). Church
To guide the campus students in struggling for the rights of the Indigenous Peoples by providing
solid formation on the Catholic Social Teachings. This includes supporting students
financially, giving opinions, motivating and other supports possible in the advocacy
against the dam;
The church leaders especially bishops, priests and religious to be the prophetic voice and role
models against oppression in the Baram Dam issue.
The Sarawak Government
To stop the Baram Dam project immediately;
To respect and honour the Indigenous Peoples Rights under the Law which is enshrine
in the Federal Constitution, Sarawak Land Code and international instruments such
as UNDRIP and UDHR, to uphold human dignity;
To use the principles of Free, Prior and Inform Consent (FPIC) in the decision making process
in regards to development plans involving Indigenous Peoples rights;

 To consider the relevant claims by the communities, SAVE Rivers and civil society
organizations about the Baram Dam issue and thereafter protect the Indigenous Peoples
rights;
To be transparent and pro-citizens especially towards the Indigenous Peoples as stated
in the governments 1Malaysia slogan Rakyat Didahulukan, Pencapaian Diutamakan
(People First, Performance Now).
Opposition Parties
To cooperate in voicing out the citizens complaints especially the villagers that are affected by
the dam project so as to work together and support the people;
To campaign and spread the issues of Baram Dam and its effects on the environment;
To be the checks and balance in society and country especially under the current ruling party;
Do not repeat the same mistakes as the current ruling coalition is making with regards to
development and human rights issues.

Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB)

To consider the consequences of the construction of Baram Dam that will affect the
environment and ecosystem;
To respect the rights of the Indigenous Peoples in Baram and the state of Sarawak;
To conduct more research on alternative renewable energy sources and implement the
alternatives replacing the proposed Baram Dam.
Mass Media (TV, Radio, Internet, Newspapers, Academic Magazine)
To provide the correct and concise information regarding Baram Dam.
To air the information regarding Baram Dam issues through TV, radio, internet, etc to make it
widely known, and revealing the positive and negative effects, in order to make the issue
known for public debate;
To spread information without being biased and to use accurate data in presenting the
information;
To educate people on UNDRIP especially to the Indigenous Peoples on their rights;
To be alert and updated on any new information and developments regarding the
proposed Baram Dam and to disseminate these new information;
To show more concern towards the Indigenous Peoples rights and not to take advantage
of their struggles.
General Public
To encourage every Malaysian to get involved in the campaign to stop the Baram Dam
because the impact of this project will affect all Malaysians;
To be aware of their rights and responsibilities to reject projects that cause environmental
degradation and violation of human rights.
Civil Society Organizations (CSO)
We strongly hope CSO will continue to support the struggles of the Indigenous Peoples
and the marginalized to strengthen their organizations mission especially at the KM 15 Baram
Blockade.

 To empower the indigenous students and youths with knowledge and skills related to Human
Rights and Citizenship;
To continue the advocacy and network building to stop the Baram Dam;
To recruit and train students and youth into their organizations in order to increase the number
of activists, particularly from the Indigenous Peoples community;
To produce more creative materials/media which will be used to deliver complex legal
and human right documents to grass root community in simple forms and vernacular
languages;
To be in solidarity with the marginalized community and facilitate the engagement between
them and authorities.

UNITED NATION
To put pressure on the government of Malaysia to stop the Baram Dam since we have adopted
the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP);
To send UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of the Indigenous Peoples to Sarawak to
investigate all the human rights violations faced by the Indigenous Peoples;
To recommend on behalf of the Indigenous Peoples for the International Financial
Institutions not to fund the Baram Dam project.

SALT V 2015 Declaration on the Indigenous Peoples in Malaysia

Last but not least, we, the members of the School of Acting Justly, Loving Tenderly and
Treading Humbly with God (SALT V) 2015, hereby declare to uphold the dignity and rights of the
marginalized Indigenous Peoples through our actions of raising their issues and working with
them at various levels. Since Malaysia has adopted the United Nations Declaration on the
Rights of the Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(UDHR), we demand the government, specifically the state government of Sarawak to implement
and honour the UNDRIP, Native Customary Rights (NCR) status and uphold principles of the
UDHR in terms of the protection of Indigenous Peoples lands, cultures, customs and way of life.
As human beings, they are to be treated fairly and justly. Hence, the Baram Dam project must be
stop immediately.

APPENDIX
Article 10 of UNDRIP
Indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories. No relocation shall take place
without the free, prior and informed consent of the indigenous peoples concerned and after agreement on
just and fair compensation and, where possible, with the option of return.
Article 23 of UNDRIP
Indigenous peoples have the right to determine and develop priorities and strategies for exercising their
right to development. In particular, indigenous peoples have the right to be actively involved in developing
and determining health, housing and other economic and social programmes affecting them and, as far
as possible, to administer such programmes through their own institutions.
Article 32 of UNDRIP
1. Indigenous peoples have the right to determine and develop priorities and strategies for the development or
use of their lands or territories and other resources.
2. States shall consult and cooperate in good faith with the indigenous peoples concerned through their
own representative institutions in order to obtain their free and informed consent prior to the approval
of any project affecting their lands or territories and other resources, particularly in connection with the
development, utilization or exploitation of mineral, water or other resources.
3. States shall provide effective mechanisms for just and fair redress for any such activities, and appropriate
measures shall be taken to mitigate adverse environmental, economic, social, cultural or spiritual impact.