The Bar Council, through its Committee on Orang Asli Rights (“COAR”), undertook a fact–finding mission to Bengoh, Sarawak from 17 to 21 Sept 2015. The mission was carried out in response to the construction of the Bengoh Dam in the district of Padawan in Sarawak, Malaysia, and its corresponding impact on indigenous people, namely the Bidayuh.
Bengoh Dam is located 40 km from Kuching, the state capital of Sarawak. Its purpose is to secure Kuching’s water supply for the foreseeable future. The dam is also designed to prevent the back flow of saline water from reaching the existing Batu Kitang intake point and to mitigate flooding during the wet season. Work on the Bengoh Dam began in July 2007 and was completed in December 2010.
The mission aimed to look into:
(1) whether free, prior and informed consent had been obtained from the affected villagers before the Bengoh Dam was proposed;
(2) the impact of the Bengoh Dam on the indigenous culture of the affected villagers;
(3) the extent to which the affected villagers were aware of their native customary rights and their rights as indigenous peoples; and
(4) the effectiveness of politicians, government agencies and community leaders in addressing the complaints lodged by those affected.