Lis seen at his pineapple farm in Long Menging, Baram.
Lis Deng
MIRI: About one year ago, Lis Deng received a gift in the form of two goats from a kind-hearted Bruneian man.
The Penan, who is in his mid-20s, said he never expected a random person would present him with such an ‘extraordinary’ gift, and he could not believe his eyes when the pair of goats were delivered to him at his uncle’s house in Long Menging, Baram.
“The two goats were literally the first gift I had ever received in my life. I came to know the Bruneian man when I went to Limbang early last year with a relative to buy some rations.
“He told me he had a goat farm back in Brunei and asked if I wanted to try breeding them in Long Menging,” Lis told The Borneo Post in a recent interview.
He said the Bruneian had sent him two goats – a male and a female – which have since produced two kids.
“Today I have four goats and have not encountered any problem so far in taking care of them. In fact, it is quite easy to breed goats,” he said.
Apart from breeding goats, Lis also plants cash crops such as chillies and pineapples.
“I have always loved agriculture. To date, I have some 1,000 pineapple plants and hundreds of chilli plants.”
Long Menging is made up of no more than 10 Penan families, and Lis counts himself as a resident even though he does not own a house there.
He would sometimes stay with the settlement’s headman Kala Konet, who is a relative, or put up at the home of other relatives there.
Growing up an orphan
Born in the middle of the Ba Magoh jungle in Baram, Lis grew up an orphan and remembers very little about his birth parents, who both died in an accident in the jungle when he was very young.
In recalling the incident, Kala said Lis’ parents were processing sago – the Penan community’s staple food – when a palm tree, which was being cut by several others, fell on the couple and killed them on the spot.
Lis grew up in the care of his uncle, who lived a nomadic lifestyle – the two moved from one jungle to another.
“Lis and his uncle continued with their nomadic lifestyle, but other members of the community had, since the early 1980s, started moving out of the jungle to lead a semi-nomadic life.
“We settled down in Long Menging within the Ba Magoh area, and Lis joined us very much later when he was a teenager,” said Kala.
Citizenship in limbo
It was not until very much later when he came out of the jungle that Lis realised that apart from having a name, he officially did not have an identity.
“I know nothing of my birth date or who my parents were, except for stories about them told to me by my relatives,” he said.
According to him, the then-Miri Special Mobile Unit (UKBM) – a unit under the National Registration Department (JPN) – went to Long Menging in August 2019 and like many other Penans without birth certificates and identity cards, Lis tried to apply.
“I was later told that my application was rejected. No reason was given as to why it was rejected,” he said.
Although disheartened by the rejection, Lis was determined to make full use of his life and not dwell on his uncertain citizenship status.
Having decided to venture into agriculture, he hopes to one day become a successful entrepreneur, but he also knows that he needs to keep on working hard.
“Now that I have the goats, which will keep multiplying, and also my cash crops, I hope to be able to achieve my goal.
“I also hope the relevant agencies such as the Agriculture Department would continue to carry out more talks for the rural people, especially the Penans, so that they too could take part in the agriculture sector,” he said.