State compensates more than required by law — Director

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KUCHING: The government need not compensate communities affected by development projects beyond what is stipulated by the law, but is doing so because it is concerned for their welfare, said Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) director JC Fong yesterday.

He said this during a focus session on working with project-affected communities during the International Hydropower Association (IHA) World Congress.

Fong, who is also state legal counsel, was explaining the state government’s stand on compensation and resettlement brought up by Murum Penan Development Community chairman Labang Paneh earlier in the session.

He pointed out that there is no law in Malaysia which obligates the authorities to seek prior consultation or approval from any land owners, whether native or non-native, if their land was required for development projects.

“Constitutionally, all that is required is any deprivation of property must comply with the law and adequate compensation dispensed to the affected owners.”

He added that the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as well as ethical principles set up by the World Bank to reflect the aspirations of the indigenous people to be consulted when their lands were affected by such projects, had not been made part of the domestic or municipal law because they had not been rectified by parliament.

Nevertheless, the state government had agreed to consult and engage with affected communities.

Secondly, state or national interest must prevail over personal or individual interest, which is part of Malaysian jurisprudence, upheld by the court and follows basic common law principles, he said.

Thus, SEB and the state were doing more than they needed to by providing facilities such as sanitation, clean water, and service centers, and coming up with the Murum Resettlement Action Plan which would help to improve the Penan’s current standard of living.

He also voiced concern over the long-term wisdom in offering large sums of cash as compensation if the communities did not understand how to manage their money, citing Batang Ai as an example where many people were poor again despite receiving much compensation.

Meanwhile, Save Sarawak River’s Network chairman Peter Kallang questioned the reasoning behind why the government needed to have legislation before it could justify doing something that is morally and ethically right for communities affected by hydropower dams.

He urged the authorities to consider the hardships still faced by the displaced communities such as those at Sg Asap in Bakun, and find solutions to their problems.