Bakun Islands National Park
There is not enough information available to determine any Carbon Offsetting Projects. However, at the national level, the Malaysia Forest Fund (MFF) was established on 30 June 2021 to implement the REDD Plus Finance Framework (RFF), whose main role is to generate funding for the forestry sector through the transaction of carbon credits.[1] In May 2024, the MFF introduced its Forest Conservation Certificate to redirect funds from the private sector into forest conservation initiatives.[2]
The Borneo Project, is a California-based NGO that supported a petition in 2013 against the park being gazetted.
General: info@borneoproject.org
The Center for Orang Asli Concerns
There is no information about international conservation NGOs, foundations, or institutions publicly listed for the Bakun Islands National Park specifically. However, WWF has a strong presence in Malaysia including the Sarawak Region. Their regional strategy document for 2021 to 2030 asserts a commitment to the goal of over half of Malaysia being categorized as legally protected natural forests.[1] WWF Malaysia supports and assists in the Government’s alignment with the 30x30 project, which has been criticized by Indigenous advocates internationally as a guise for sweeping land grabs or ‘green colonialism’ in the name of conservation.
Forest Department, Sarawak.
Tel: 082-495 111
Fax: 082-495 200
Email: webmaster@forestry.sarawak.gov.my
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment,
Department of Environment.
Telephone: 03-8871 2000/2200
Fax: 03-8888 9987 / 03-8889 1040
The Malaysian Government - Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
There is no information about donors to the park that is publicly listed for the Bakun Islands National Park specifically. However, the Malaysian Palm Oil Green Conservation Foundation has mobilized more than RM40 million in capital to assist NGOs in funding wildlife conservation activities, biodiversity, and best sustainability practices across the whole of Malaysia.[1] Their partners are listed here: https://www.mpogcf.org/partners/
The Bakun Islands National Park was proposed by Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud and in 2013, was deemed to be gazetted through the state National Parks and Nature Reserves Ordinance 1998.[1] Approximately 10,000 Indigenous peoples, including Kenyah and Kayan communities, were affected by the construction of the Bakun Dam, with some 1,640 families resettled due to the project's impact. The park's establishment has been met with controversy, as it may displace an additional 500 Indigenous peoples, and concerns have been raised about the lack of consultation and recognition of Native Customary Rights (NCR) claims.[2]
The situation involves multiple human rights violations, including the forced displacement of indigenous communities, destruction of their homes and livelihoods, lack of consultation and consent, and potential exploitation of natural resources for personal gain.[1] Abdul Taib Mahmud, Chief Minister and Minister of Resource Planning and Environment, has spearheaded the plan to create the national park and potentially benefit from past logging activities through familial ties to Pacific Chemicals.
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From 1992-1993, Ting Pek King's company, Woodhouse, began timber operations in collaboration with Pacific Chemicals, largely owned by Abdul Taib Mahmud's family. This collaboration facilitates extensive logging activities in the Bakun area.
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In 1995, Pacific Chemicals was awarded contracts to manage and clear forest areas as part of the Bakun dam project. These activities involve significant deforestation in the region.
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In 1998, despite the Bakun project being put on hold due to the Asian economic crisis, logging activities continued, indicating a motive beyond dam construction. These activities allegedly aim to exploit valuable timber resources in the region.
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In 2011, the announcement was made by Abdul Taib Mahmud's government to create the 'Bakun Islands National Park,' which would lead to the displacement of indigenous communities. The lack of consultation and consent from affected communities raises concerns about human rights violations.
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In August 2013, Abdul Taib Mahmud issued a notice to gazette the remaining 18 islands in the Bakun Reservoir Lake as a National Park.
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From 2013 onwards, concerns have been raised about the lack of transparency and consultation in the process of creating the national park, with critics arguing that it violates the Indigenous peoples' right to Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) as per the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). The creation of the national park was seen as an attempt to extinguish the remaining indigenous claims to the land, with concerns about the displacement of indigenous peoples and the loss of their livelihoods.
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In 2019, the state government issued a notice to declare the lands within the Bakun dam area the "Bakun Islands National Park," listing 18 islands to be gazetted.
Indigenous peoples living in the Bakun area have continuously expressed their dismay at the need for more awareness about the notice and the absence of consultation. They argue that the lands still belong to them based on Native Customary Rights (NCR) and plan to submit objections to the state government.[2]
The Bakun Dam project is an embankment dam located in Belaga District, Kapit Division, Sarawak, Malaysia, on the Balui River, a tributary of the Rajang River. Once completed, it will be the world's second-tallest concrete-faced rockfill dam and generate 2,400 megawatts (MW) of electricity.[1]
On September 8, 2011, Malaysia's Federal Court, the highest judicial authority in the country, delivered a unanimous ruling against members of an indigenous tribe who had challenged Sarawak State's seizure of land to build the massive Bakun Dam.[1] The grounds for dismissal of the appeal adduced by two of the judges, who chose not to address the question of whether the seizure was unconstitutional, were largely technical. They concluded that the issues had not been “raised or properly canvassed before the court.”
Indigenous rights advocates, including lawyers and NGOs, continue to support the affected Indigenous communities in their efforts to challenge the creation of the national park and assert their land rights through legal means.[1]
It was recently announced that Belanum Native Reserve (BeNaR) will be the first-ever Indigenous Community Conserved Area (ICCA) or Indigenous Protection Area (IPA) established in the area impacted by the Bakun Dam. Led by the Uma Belor Indigenous community, the protected area will provide a wildlife sanctuary affected by the Bakun Dam and rely upon eco-tourism to generate income for the community. [2]
https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/234963
https://borneoproject.org/in-another-blow-bakun-to-be-gazetted-as-national-park/
https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/
https://www.iucn.org/content/protected-area-categories
https://iucngreenlist.org/country/malaysia/
https://borneoproject.org/score-sarawak/
https://lawnet.sarawak.gov.my/lawnet_file/Ordinance/ORD_CAP.%2027%20watermark.pdf
http://www.mchjv-bakundam.com/project.html