Indigenous communities win temporary halt to forest clearing in Sarawak

MALAYSIA: In the lush heart of Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo, the sound of chainsaws has gone quiet — for now. After months of protest and global pressure, Indigenous activists in the Long Urun region have won a temporary reprieve — Urun Plantations has agreed to stop clearing land in their disputed forest.

For the Penan and Kenyah communities, it’s a bittersweet victory. The palm oil company, which carries a “sustainable” certification, had been accused of cutting into natural forests that residents depend on for food, medicine, and cultural life.

Local NGO SAVE Rivers announced that the Glenealy/Samling Belaga Mill — the last facility still buying palm fruit from Urun Plantations — has suspended its purchases. The moratorium followed a campaign by SAVE Rivers and The Borneo Project, which called on international producer SD Guthrie to stop sourcing from mills linked to deforestation.

“We’re happy, but it’s only temporary”

In Uma Pawa village, Eileen Clare Ipa said the community breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the company had paused its chainsaws. But the joy was cautious.

“I’m happy to hear that,” Ipa said, “but the moratorium is temporary. Who knows? In a few months or a year, they could cut the forest down again.”

For Ipa and her neighbours, the forest isn’t just land — it’s a living source of sustenance. They fish in its rivers, gather fruit from its trees, and rely on its resources to survive. But over the past two years, many of those trees — including valuable ironwood and meranti — have been felled.

Satellite images and field reports have shown widespread clearing near Urun’s headquarters since 2023. Urun Plantations, however, insists it was simply replanting old areas, not destroying natural forests. Its parent company, Sin Heng Chan, maintains that most residents support the plantation’s activities.

Taking the fight to court

The residents of Long Urun disagree. They’ve filed complaints with Malaysia’s palm oil certification body and launched a lawsuit in Sarawak’s High Court. Their case, backed by Senator Abun Sui Anyit, challenges Urun Plantations’ lease, arguing it overlaps with more than 54,000 hectares of Indigenous customary land.

Under Malaysia’s Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) rules, companies must obtain communities’ free, prior, and informed consent before clearing or planting. The residents say that it never truly happened.

In response, Urun Plantations’ general manager, Henry Choo, said the company has paused all new clearing since August and is working with an environmental NGO on a new sustainability plan.

Ongoing struggle to save Sarawak’s forests

What’s happening in Long Urun is part of a much bigger story across Sarawak — one where Indigenous communities stand between the promise of economic growth and the loss of their ancestral forests.

Celine Lim, managing director of SAVE Rivers, called the moratorium “a vindication of local resistance.”

“After nearly two years of standing firm, these results show the power of community and international solidarity,” she said.

Yet for residents like Ipa, the fight isn’t over. She wants Urun Plantations to abandon the cleared land entirely and allow the forest to heal.

For now, Long Urun’s rivers run a little clearer, and its trees stand a little taller — a fragile reminder that even small victories matter when your home is the forest itself.