PLEASE JOIN IN THIS IMPORTANT ACTION OF GLOBALRESPONSE AGAINST THE DESTRUCTIVE TIMBER-MAFIA, COVERING UP WITH LABELS! SUPPORT THE PENAN PEOPLE(see also http://www.bmf.ch)

An important way we can prevent the destruction of the world’s remaining forests is by buying sustainably harvested wood and wood products. As consumer demand for certified timber increases, more logging companies are applying for certification. This is the case in Malaysia, where the Malaysian Timber Certification Council offers certification for sustainable forest management. But MTCC’s certification is flawed. Consumers in Europe, North America and Australia cannot be assured that MTCC-certified timber was sustainably harvested. In fact, the certified forest is claimed as Native Customary Land by the Penan indigenous people, who have waged a 2-decade battle against logging in their forest homeland. Please support the tenacious and courageous Penan people in this fight against irresponsible logging, and insist that Malaysia adopt (even better standards than) the world-recognized standards of the Forest Stewardship Council, which are still weak concerning certain sectors). Otherwise, forest certification will lose consumer confidence (altogether), and the world will lose an important strategy for conservation. See the Global Response action alert below or at www.globalresponse.org, and write your letter today. A model letter is available here.

To support this campaign with a financial contribution, click here or mail your check to Global Response, PO Box 7490, Boulder CO 80306 USA.

PLEASE CIRCULATE WIDELY! ************************************ GLOBAL RESPONSE ACTION ALERT #3/05

Stop“Certified” Logging / Sarawak, Malaysia August 25, 2005 Also available at www.globalresponse.org “We have not been consulted on this matter. We strongly reject this certification, which was approved against our interests. We have been living here in peace until the timber companies came to disturb our life and encroach into our forest.Many of us have suffered due to the Samling logging operations: our rivers are polluted, our sacred sites damaged and our animals chased away by people who deprive us of our livelihood and culture.For many years, we have been raising our voice to protest against Samling activities, but neither the company nor the government is listening to us. We cannot accept that Samling timber be now awarded with a certificate to continue offending our Native Customary Rights. We stay united and we are determined in our protest against this offense of our rights. Here, we renew our firm demand that Samling stop destroying our forest.” -- Letter from the Penan people and headmen of the Upper Baram region of Sarawak, Malaysia, to the Malaysian Timber Certification Council, January 25, 2005 For two decades, the Penan indigenous people have tenaciously defended their rainforest home against the constant incursions of logging companies. In the Malaysian state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo, 90 percent of primary forests already have been logged. Now the Malaysian Timber Certification Council (MTCC) has certified a private logging company to “manage” one of Sarawak’s last remaining primary forests, where over 400 Penan families live. MTCC certification means that the Samling Plywood company will market wood from the Sela’an-Linau Forest as products from a “sustainably managed forest.” Environmentally conscious consumers will be pleased to purchase these products. But they are being sold a lie. An investigation by Greenpeace International found that MTCC certification “is not a guarantee of either legality or environmentally responsible forest management, and worse, MTCC timber may be stolen from indigenous peoples’ lands.” The problem is that MTCC standards do not match up with standards established by the Forest Stewardship Council. FSC criteria for “sustainable forestry” are accepted worldwide. But MTCC procedures fall short by allowing illegal or non-certified logs to be mixed in with the logs from certified forests – so consumers can’t know what they’re getting. MTCC does not require independent tracking of wood from the forest to the sawmill, offering many opportunities for illegal timber to be mixed with legal. And MTCC ignores the FSC requirement of respect for territorial claims and land rights of indigenous peoples. Since 1998, the Penan have been in a legal battle to win Native Customary Rights to about 50 percent of the Sela'an-Linau forest. Additional areas claimed by the Penan are currently being mapped (click here for map). Since 2004, when MTCC certified the Samling Plywood companyto sustainably manage this forest, the Penan have effectively blocked Samling from entering their territories. The Penan have a 20-year history of erecting blockades against Samling loggers in the company’s previous concessions. In 1993, special units of the police and military forcibly removed over 1,000 protesting Penan, killing three and injuring over 200 people. The Penan celebrated an important victory in 2001 when their protests convinced the German government to withdraw funding from a Samling forest certification scheme, killing the project. Under pressure from the government, most of the nomadic Penan settled into longhouses during the last 5 decades. They still rely on the forest for hunting and gathering and to maintain their cultural and spiritual traditions. In the settlements, the Penan suffer from malnutrition and water-borne diseases. Erosion from the logging operations turns their rivers to silt, killing the fish and spreading disease. Penan leaders and villagers are demanding that MTCC revoke the certification it granted to Samling for management of the Sela’an-Linau Forest, and allow them to defend their claims for Native Customary Rights in court. Samling’s certification was awarded by MTCC without due consultation of the Penan in one of the most disputed forest areas of Sarawak. Samling only gained access to the now certified area by relying on the use of police and military force. It is extracting timber against the declared will of the affected communities and threatening one of the last remaining primary rainforests of Sarawak. MTCC certification for “sustainable forest management” is flawed, and should not be recognized on the world market. How can we help? The Penan are calling for international support. Please urge the MTCC and the government of Malaysia to revoke Samling’s certification in the Sela’an-Linau Forest. Requested Action: Please write a polite letter to the Prime Minister of the Bahamas. Local environmentalists request that you also send a copy of your letter to one of the country’s major newspapers, the Tribune. Bring this issue to the attention of your travel agency, too. Pressure from tourists and the tourism industry is essential to winning this campaign! A model letter is available here. Tell them that as a conscientious consumer you appreciate Malaysia’s commitment to certify sustainably managed forests and forest products. Express your concern that MTCC’s certification does not guarantee that all timber products are harvested legally, sustainably, and with respect for the rights and lands of indigenous peoples. Tell them you believe that as currently practiced, MTCC certification should not be recognized on the world market. Tell them you support the Penan people and Sarawak NGOs that are protesting the certification awarded to Samling for the Sela’an-Linau Forest Mangement Unit. Remind them that the Penan claim Native Customary Rights in the Sela’an-Linau Forest. While their court case is pending, all logging in the region must be halted. Urge MTCC to adopt the Forest Stewardship Council’s policy of respecting indigenous peoples’ land rights.

Addresses:

Dato’ Dr Freezailah B. CheYeom Malaysian Timber Certification Council 19 F, Level 19, Menara PGRM No.8, Jalan Pudu Ulu, Cheras 56100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Email: mtcc@tm.net.my Fax: +603 9200 6008 Y.B.

Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities 6-13th Floor, Lot 2, G4, Precint 2 Federal Government Administration Center 62654 Putrajaya, Malaysia Fax: +603 8880 3482

Salutation: Dear Sirs Postage from US: 80 cents

This Global Response Action was issued at the request of and with information provided by the headmen and Penan people of the Upper Baram area, the Center for Orang Asli Concern (COAC), Rengah Sarawak (www.rengah.c2o.org/) , IDEAL and Bruno Manser Fonds (http://www.bmf.ch/ ).

For more information about the Penan, see www.context.org/ICLIB/IC29/Davis.htm and www.rimba.com/spc/spcpenanmain1.html. For more on forestry certification, see www.fsc.org/en/. On indigenous opposition to the Samling certification, see www.rengah.c2o.org/assets/pdf/de0101a.pdf. The Greenpeace report, www.rengah.c2o.org/assets/pdf/de0105a.pdf.

Special thanks to Karen Walkingshaw for her research.