Holding IOI accountable - The Nut Graph

Estate manager Tan Kim Har could not make it for the meeting on 24 Aug 2010. A brief meeting was held with Ellevenson instead, for the civil society groups to seek a response from IOI on the villagers' grouses. — Estate manager Tan Kim Har could not make it for the meeting on 24 Aug 2010. A brief meeting was held with Ellevenson instead, for the civil society groups to seek a response from IOI on the villagers’ grouses.

Ellevenson was clearly uncomfortable with the surprise visit by the villagers and civil society groups.

Palm Oil Monitoring Initiative project coordinator Shafinaz Suhaimi (left) speaking to estate assistant manager Ellevenson.

Villagers and civil society groups visited IOI Pelita Plantation's Tegai estate office on 23 Aug 2010 to make an appointment to meet the estate management the following day. — Villagers and civil society groups visited IOI Pelita Plantation’s Tegai estate office on 23 Aug 2010 to make an appointment to meet the estate management the following day.

Baby's grave. An Indonesian baby died during delivery this year because the mother could not be sent to a clinic near the village in time. The mother survived. Unlike other graves, this one has no cement marker, but is instead sprinkled with small pink flower petals. The indigenous peoples have their own separate ancestral burial site. — Baby’s grave. An Indonesian baby died during delivery this year because the mother could not be sent to a clinic near the village in time. The mother survived. Unlike other graves, this one has no cement marker, but is instead sprinkled with small pink flower petals. The indigenous peoples have their own separate ancestral burial site.

Villagers claim three Indonesian workers were buried on the community's native customary land without their knowledge. — Villagers claim three Indonesian workers were buried on the community’s native customary land without their knowledge.

Indonesian workers' children. — Indonesian workers’ children.

The living quarters of IOI Pelita Plantation's Indonesian workers. — The living quarters of IOI Pelita Plantation’s Indonesian workers.

Acting Tuai Rumah Lah Anyie gestures towards grass that he claimed was dying because of weedkiller sprayed right up to the river. Right behind him is the river, Sungai Tegai. Villagers deem its water no longer safe for drinking after they found dead fishes in it.

Weedkiller was mixed right beside the river without proper safety measures. Estate assistant manager Ellevenson William Dueed, who rode past on a motorbike, said the bottles only contained water. A check by the community revealed otherwise.

IOI Group's environmental policy. Point number six reads: “We are committed to … avoid unnecessary use of hazardous materials … and take all reasonable steps to protect human health and the environment when such materials must be used, stored and disposed of.” — IOI Group’s environmental policy. Point number six reads: “We are committed to … avoid unnecessary use of hazardous materials … and take all reasonable steps to protect human health and the environment when such materials must be used, stored and disposed of.”

IOI Pelita Plantation lorries and workers continue to trespass on the community's native customary land. — IOI Pelita Plantation lorries and workers continue to trespass on the community’s native customary land.

Harrison says the community was compensated accordingly when Petronas wanted to build a pipeline (seen behind him) across the disputed land. The indigenous lawyer questions the reason native customary land rights were recognised in that case, yet not in the situation with IOI Pelita Plantation.

Payajok, 50. Two thirds of her land and crops were destroyed by Rinwood Pelita Plantation in 1996. Later, she and her husband planted oil palm on their remaining land.

Another plaintiff, Emang Anyi, who is also in his 50s. The remaining two plaintiffs are acting Tuai Rumah Lah Anyie and Emang Jau.

Lawai Anyi, a 53-year-old Kayan, is one of four plaintiffs representing 92 families from Long Teran Kanan in the court case.

A map of the disputed land. A land survey was conducted by the community and the Borneo Resources Institute using Global Positioning System (GPS) from 2002 to 2004.

Lawyer Harrison Ngau Laing (standing) represents the villagers in the court case against IOI Pelita Plantation. A mix of Kayan, Kenyah and Malay is used throughout the meeting.

Adults listening attentively during the meeting.

Acting Tuai Rumah (village chief) Lah Anyie speaking at the community meeting.

Villagers attending a community meeting on 22 Aug 2010 to discuss the 13-year legal battle with IOI Pelita Plantation.

Kindergarten and primary schoolchildren hanging out before school in the morning.

SK Long Teran primary school. To continue with secondary school, village children usually move to a boarding school in Bakong.

Longhouse in Long Teran Kanan. At the end of the road is the entrance to a kindergarten and primary school.

A trip from Miri town to Long Teran Kanan takes around four hours.

THE indigenous peoples in Long Teran Kanan, Sarawak have been engaged in a legal battle with an oil palm plantation over their native customary land for more than a decade.

In 1996, Rinwood Pelita Plantation, a joint venture between Rinwood and Sarawak’s Land Custody and Development Authority, bulldozed everything on the community’s land. Outraged, the Kayan and Kenyah villagers sued the company in 1997. They won the court case earlier this year in March. But until today, the villagers have yet to receive the appropriate compensation for their lost land, destroyed crops and properties.

IOI Group inherited the court case in 2006 when they took over Rinwood Pelita Plantation. Renamed IOI Pelita Plantation, the company promised villagers in a November 2009 meeting that they would not appeal if the company lost the court case. This was revealed in the minutes of the meeting.

However, the company filed an appeal in April 2010 after the Miri High Court declared that the provisional land leases issued by the state to the company were “null and void”. Despite the High Court’s ruling, IOI Pelita Plantation continues to trespass on the community’s native customary lands. Already deprived of their right to livelihood, plantation activities are now threatening to pollute the villagers’ last water catchment area as well, The Nut Graph found on a trip into the village in August 2010.

Through the years, the community has tried to negotiate with the company, and sought help from their elected representatives and other government agencies but to no avail. Frustrated, the embattled community invited representatives from the Palm Oil Monitoring Initiative, the Sarawak Dayak Iban Association (Sadia), and the Sarawak Indigenous Lawyers Alliance to their village in August 2010. In investigating the villagers’ claims, these groups found evidence that IOI Pelita Plantation has violated the standards of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), of which IOI Group is a member.

The Nut Graph found, for example, that oil palms were planted near the river without any space for a buffer zone. Chemicals were also mixed and sprayed close to the river, risking the contamination of the villagers’ water source.

RSPO principles also require oil palm companies to maintain open communications with all stakeholders, including affected communities.

“As a founding member of RSPO, IOI’s behaviour on the ground is appalling,” says Palm Oil Monitoring Initiative project coordinator Shafinaz Suhaimi. She adds that nothing much has changed for the community since the court ruling in March, and that every moment of delay is costing the community.

Next week: A short-lived joy in Baram, Sarawak

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Comments

lkl says

September 28, 2010 at 4:43 pm

I wonder when the days will come when concerned citizens can wield their collective purchasing power to compel big corporations to discharge their social responsibility conscientiously.
- Surya Borhanuddin says
  
  September 30, 2010 at 9:30 pm
  
  Maybe can start now and keep shouting. Companies selalu nak jaga reputation kan…
Surya Borhanuddin says

September 30, 2010 at 9:29 pm

Hello Nut Graph,

Mana IOI’s side of the story? Or do we have to wait for next week’s continuation?

In your editorial policy, you say:

“We will give all legitimate stakeholders of an issue a fair chance to have their views heard and published”.
- Jacqueline Ann Surin says
  
  October 2, 2010 at 10:48 pm
  
  Thanks for the important reminder 🙂
  
  The journalist did try to get IOI Pelita’s side of the story. The captions for the picture gallery state that IOI’s estate assistant manager Ellevenson William Dueed, for example, claimed that the containers by the river held water.
  
  He was also paid a visit at his office for a response to the villagers’ grouses. Additionally, estate manager Tan Kim Har was not present for the meeting with villaagers on 24 Aug so that he could give his company’s side of the story.
  
  Our understanding was, IOI’s employees on the ground were the best people to respond to the villagers’ grouses yet they were either reluctant or unable to.
  
  Still, that does not mean that we should not strive harder to clarify IOI’s point of view or at least to demonstrate that we did our very best to get their side of the story. We are attending to it for the second part of the story.
  
  Thanks for holding us up to the standard we promised we would.
  
  Jacqueline Ann Surin
  Editor
  - Surya Borhanuddin says
    
    October 3, 2010 at 1:21 pm
    
    Thank you for your kind reply. It would have been nice if the attempt to get IOI’s side of the story was written into the story, you know lah not everyone will look at the pictures.
    Look forward to the next part of the story.
Nazeri Abghani says

October 4, 2010 at 12:07 am

RSPO appears to be adequate in ensuring good governance by the big players on the ground. But are the local communities sufficiently equipped to be the ears and eyes to validate the aspirations of RSPO? Most players seem to be on the list, but if they were all adhering to RSPO as they should, would we be facing all these issues?
Tuai Lah says

October 14, 2010 at 11:08 am

I am one of the Long Teran Kanan community and was there when these Palm Oil Monitoring Initiative groups (Sila, Sadia, Tenaganita etc) came to visit our village and lands. Some of the sites where IOI has trespassed upon were shown to these groups. Saya mengesahkan cerita di atas memang betul. But how I wish it could be published with more detail our suffering and grief, termasuklah kubur haram itu.

One more thing I would like to tell everyone out there: apabila kita pergi ke IOI Mentegai office for “talks” with IOI reps, we met the assistant manager Mr. E Dueed. But the IOI reps have twisted [the intention] of our visit by saying we “menceroboh their office”. Oleh itu mereka pun pergi membuat laporan polis. By right, who is the penceroboh, [especially in the face of] the Miri high court ruling? Is IOI really upholding the principals of RSPO as it claims? Macam itulah kejam dan jahatnya IOI Pelita.

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