Posted on July 28, 2012, Saturday
FOR YOU: George Sigar (left) presents a Formadat publication to Pemanca Philip while Pak Lewi looks on.
‘Formadat’ stands for ‘Alliance of the Indigenous People of the Highlands of Borneo’.
“It is a trans-boundary, grassroots initiative started by indigenous people in the highlands in the Heart of Borneo – the Lun Dayeh/Lun Bawang, Sa’ban and Kelabit,” said a press release issued.
This year the meeting was organised in conjunction with Bario’s annual Slow Food Festival where Formadat celebrated with members its vision and heritage for their homeland.
Head of Indonesia Formadat, Pak Lewi Gala outlined a vision for the sustainable future of Borneo.
He said: “We Lun Dayeh, Kelabit, Lun Bawang and Sa’ban, the indigenous people of the highlands in the Heart of Borneo, share a common heritage and common land.
“We come together in Formadat to increase awareness and understanding of the highland communities, build local capacity, and encourage sustainable development in the Heart of Borneo.”
The highlands of Borneo comprise the Malaysian sub districts of Bario, Ba’ Kelalan and Long Semadoh in Sarawak, Long Pasia in Sabah, and the Indonesian sub-districts of Krayan and Krayan Selatan in East Kalimantan.
This area constitutes a geographical, environmental and cultural land in the Heart of Borneo, one of the few remaining places in Southeast Asia that still holds huge tracts of tropical rainforests.
According to the head of Malaysia Formadat, Penghulu George Sigar from Ba’ Kelalan, they established Formadat in October 2004 as an indigenous organisation to facilitate and share information, as well as discuss common issues and strategies regarding the future of the highlands.
“Our mission is to create awareness and understanding of the highland communities, maintain our cultural traditions, build local capacity, and encourage sustainable development in the highlands in the Heart of Borneo by protecting our natural resources and traditional knowledge.
“Our organisation has been registered in Sabah, Sarawak and Kalimantan. WWF-Malaysia and WWF-Indonesia have been our partners in helping us on conservation, livelihood and capacity building,” he said.
He said they looked forward to welcome more partnerships with the governments of Malaysia and Indonesia, and other organisations to support their initiative for achieving sustainable conservation in the Heart of Borneo.
