Land Surveyors Bill goes against NCR lands

By M Urit

2001-10-31 | In the context of Sarawak, NCR lands are continuously being labeled unproductive (in basically economic sense only which is limiting in itself in understanding productivity) and how indigenous communities continue to be threatened by, among others, logging, the loss of land to alienating estate plantations, the unfair deals, and the loss of food self-sufficiency.

In the context of Sarawak, NCR lands are continuously being labeled unproductive (in basically economic sense only which is limiting in itself in understanding productivity) and how indigenous communities continue to be threatened by, among others, logging, the loss of land to alienating estate plantations, the unfair deals, and the loss of food self-sufficiency.

One of the activities is for the communities to carry out surveying of Native Customary Rights (NCR) lands, with the objectives of:

- documenting present land use systems and discussing future resource management;

- documenting land ownership to achieve acknowledgement by the government;

- documenting a cultural landscape (sacred places, grave yards, abandoned village sites, significant historical events, oral history etc) and local history to strengthen indigenous identity;

- initiating conflict resolution of disputes over resources claimed by different land users;

- resource inventory,

- participatory delineation of boundaries (eg: conservation areas, gardens, permakai menoa etc)

- active participation in regional land use planning

As in the case of Rh Nor, we know that since the government is none-supportive of alternative land use beyond large scale plantations, communities have turned to their own alternatives and mapping has been a tool to not just support community assertion to their NCR lands, but also shows the potential for communities to be involved in better land use management. Agroforestry, small-scale cash cropping and protection of other forest resources, river and other eco-systems, and other sustainable developmental projects are what communities and NGOs have been working on.

Since the government has been rather slow and inactive in surveying NCR lands for possible gazetting, just like those enjoyed by the Malay Reserve Lands beneficiaries, the community have been turning to survey their own lands to produce maps of not only portion of lands being claimed by various Dayak communities, but also marking on the maps of significant oral histories for the benefit of future generations.

In addition, with Sarawak's vast areas, on the ground surveys by the local communities are actually helping to improve upon the government-produced maps by verifying ground conditions with arial surveys - something which if the government were to rely on conventional ground survey by the Land and Survey staff, would take us well beyond the year in which Sarawak is supposed to achieve a developed status.

But it is obvious now that the government sees it differently. Perhaps spurred by the fact that numerous more cases are pending in court concerning NCR lands, and where community maps have been accepted by the court, the government sees this as a threat, and so moves quickly to stop community from surveying their own lands.

Negative Effects of the Land Surveyors Bill

The Bill will, among others has the following effects:

- Curtail community people from "mapping" their oral history;

- Prevent community-produced maps from being accepted by the Court (eg: Rh Nor case);

- Prevent community people from engaging professional land surveyors with the high cost invovled;

- Deny the Dayak communities from exerting their rights through their own survey of their NCR lands;

This Bill has the direct effect of dictating to the court what is considered acceptable evidence and is effectively anti-NCR lands. As such, the Bill should not have been introduced in the first place and if the government is committed to NCR lands, then it should show this by exempting the NCR lands from this Bill.

Otherwise, it is just hiding behind the excuse to control land surveyors while the main effect is targeted at the NCR landowners. With severe penelty (refer to the Bill section on Penalty), NCR landowners will be punished further.

Attached files

• PDF: Land Surveyors Bill 2001