Don: Rural folk want map to determine land ownership

http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/09/25/don-rural-folk-want-map-to-determine-land-ownership/#ixzz2ftFwDR60

by Eve Sonary Heng, reporters@theborneopost.com. 

Posted on September 25, 2013, Wednesday

UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE: Sean Chai of Santumn Enterprise with the helicopter.

INNOVATIVE ICT APPLICATION: A Ba Kelalan photo-montage map.

LOW-COST: Unimas campus trials with the helium-filled balloon.

KUCHING: Rural communities are showing increasing interest in grassroots initiatives to develop maps of their territories.

In a statement yesterday, a visiting professor from the Institute for Social Informatics and Technological Innovation at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) Dr Roger Harris said in a recent Global Conference on Community Participatory Mapping on Indigenous Peoples’ Territories held in Samosir, North Sumatra, indigenous groups from countries including Malaysia, Nepal, Panama, Mexico and Brazil, explained how they had adopted affordable, high-tech mapping technology to retrace the history of their land ownership and to catalogue their natural resources.

He said in Sarawak, eBario Sdn Bhd, the organisation that operates the multi-award-winning eBario telecentre, has initiated the eBario Innovation Village Project as a living laboratory to incubate innovative grassroots applications of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) capable of stimulating development within Malaysia’s isolated rural and indigenous communities.

In partnership with Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) and with funding support from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the project is testing low cost aerial photography for community mapping, using digital cameras attached to tethered helium-filled balloons and radio-controlled model airplanes.

“The resultant photographs are stitched together by computer to form an aerial view covering a wide area which is then geo-tagged with global positioning co-ordinates to form detailed maps.

“Such maps can be used for a range of applications including land-use planning, claims for land rights, eco-tourism, development of agriculture, hydrology, animal migration plotting, indigenous knowledge inventories, environmental surveillance, documentation of climate change impacts, dispute resolution, road mapping, forest management and cataloguing of cultural sites. Low cost technologies and the skills to use them bring these applications within the reach of grassroots communities,” he said.

The eBario-Unimas team is working with Sean Chai Ching Loong of Santumn Enterprise, a local firm that specialises in aerial photography with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Using both helium-filled balloons and UAVs, the team has begun to generate high-quality photo-montages that form the basis of detailed maps.

This month, the team visited Ba Kelalan in the highlands of northern Sarawak to test their approach in the field.

Community representatives expressed their interest in the results and have asked the team to return to extend their coverage into surrounding areas.

“Detailed maps are generally not available to the general public, or they are either prohibitively expensive or insufficiently detailed for the purposes that rural communities would wish to use them.

“Modern maps are based on aerial photographs but with low cost technologies and contemporary computer software, rural folk need not be excluded from their use. Actually, aerial photographs provide a truer representation of reality than even the most detailed maps,” he explained.

As more ICTs become available to Malaysia’s rural communities, and especially to those in isolated and remote locations, as with the eBario initiative and its sister projects in Ba Kelalan and other locations, so the residents can be facilitated towards more activities which they themselves prioritise and which cater to their specific needs.

Curtin, eBario, association ink MoU

http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/09/07/curtin-ebario-association-ink-mou/

Posted on September 7, 2013, Saturday

MIRI: Curtin Sarawak is extending its expertise in the development of student learning activities, training, research and collaborative projects with eBario Sendirian Berhad and Rurum Kelabit Sarawak.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the project was signed recently between eBario chief executive officer Councillor John Tarawe, Laila Raja for Rurum Kelabit and outgoing Curtin Sarawak pro vice-chancellor Professor Ian Kerr.

Present to witness the signing were incoming pro vice-chancellor Professor Jim Mienczakowski, Curtin Sarawak Research Institute (CSRI) director Professor Aaron Goh, CSRI senior research fellow Dr Lisa Marie King and Supang Terawe of Rurum Kelabit Sarawak.

Mienczakowski said the MoU marked an important milestone for Curtin Sarawak and demonstrated its commitment to engage with local communities in its pursuit of academic excellence.

King, who was instrumental in establishing the cooperative relationship between the different parties, echoed Mienczakowki’s sentiments.

“As a member of CSRI, I am keen to apply my knowledge and expertise to enhance the well-being of communities in Sarawak. Our close engagement with eBario and Rurum Kelabit Sarawak will lead to significant activities and joint projects that can have a positive impact, both on the university’s learning experiences and the communities,” she said.

eBario Sdn Bhd is an award-winning initiative that runs projects and activities such as the eBario Telecentre, eBario Innovation Village, Radio Bario, eBario Knowledge Fair, Bario Slow Food Festival and eBorneo Research.

Tribute to a Kelabit paramount chief

http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/07/20/tribute-to-a-kelabit-paramount-chief/

by Lucy Bulan. Posted on July 20, 2013, Saturday

DEEPLY ROOTED: A family portrait.

Ngimat Ayu

A PIONEER, innovator and paramount chief of the Kelabits, Ngimat Ayu passed away on July 18, 2013 at the age of 92, leaving a legacy of immense love and kindness, outstanding leadership and tremendous wisdom.

Surrounded by his wife, children and grandchildren as he breathed his last, Ngimat Ayu was one Kelabit who had lived a full life and stood tall and strong amongst all odds.

As news of his passing began to reach people, especially Kelabits in Malaysia and those living in other parts of the world, condolence messages began pouring in to his immediate family members and relatives.

Many recalled fond memories of Ngimat Ayu and how much he will be missed.

Indeed, this man whom his grandchildren call a legend had left a lasting impression on everyone – young and old – who were fortunate to have met him.


Family history


Born on July 15, 1921 in Pa’ Main, Bario in the Kelabit highlands, Ngimat Ayu, whose given name was Gerawat Aran, was one of four children of Tagung Aran @ Ngemung Sakai and Sineh Tagung Aran.

His siblings were Lu’ui, Muda and Dayang (Tepuh Luyuq dedtur). Because he was quite sickly as a child, and according to Kelabit custom of meman anak, Gerawat was adopted and brought up by his uncle (his father’s youngest brother) Tekapen Raja and Edteh Kedieh Aran.

In 1955, he married Martha Padan from Long Pupung, Kerayan. In those days, he was one of the rare ones to get a bride from Kerayan, Kalimantan, a marriage arranged by their relatives. And as is the Kerayan custom, he had to pay a huge dowry for this beautiful, hardworking maiden of noble ancestry.

They were blessed with seven children – Abel, Anne, Felicity Ruran, Linda, Evelyn, Nancy Daun, and Scott Apoi. They became adoptive parents to three children of Gerawat’s sister and brother-in-law Tepuh Luyuq, both of whom had died early from sickness – Datin Sri Mariam Balan, Maria Peter Lu’ui and the late Tony Ngimat Ayu.

Following the birth of his eldest child, Abel Ngimat, Gerawat changed his name to Ngimat Ayu according to Kelabit tradition. Then on the birth of his first grandchild, Stephen Baya Peter (the son of Maria Peter Lu’ui), Ngimat Ayu changed his name to Belaan Tauh.

Meantime, Ngimat Ayu had adopted five other children. Today, he has 31 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren.

Before going to school, young Ngimat Ayu (known then by his given name Gerawat) worked with the Allied Forces in the Japanese Resistance Army.

He remembered being in Ba’Kelalan and Belawit when the Japanese surrendered, and helped the Allied Forces to escort the Japanese out of Belawit.

He also fearlessly assisted Major Tom Harrison to fish out the Penan and the Iban from Indonesia who were believed to have murdered Hardin, the Resident of Marudi at the end of 1945.

Gerawat attended the first school set up by Major Tom Harrison in Pa’ Main Longhouse at the age of 24.

“Many parents were reluctant to allow their children to go to school,” he said.

“They insisted that they themselves had done very well without schooling —why waste time in school?”

But young Gerawat’s father was one of the chiefs responsible for the introduction of the first school in the community, so Gerawat became one of the first of 19 students to attend school when the school first opened in 1946.

The school Tom Harrison started had one teacher, Paul Kohuan from East Timor.

He taught Gerawat until Primary Four in Pa’ Main School, after which Tom Harrison brought Gerawat to Kuching to work in the Sarawak Museum.

His job was to collect and record artifacts for the Museum.

While working, he continued his Primary Five and Six education in Merpati Jepang through night studies.

Young Gerawat and his peers went to school with one vision in mind: to return to the Kelabit Highlands and serve the community (nuuh bawang), and to uplift their living condition.

So on completion of his primary school education, Tom Harrison told Gerawat he was to go into the medical line as there were enough Kelabit teachers already.

He acquiesced without question.


The medical assistant-dresser


Gerawat started his training as a medical assistant (then called dresser) in Kuching in 1951, and was the first Orang Ulu to be trained as a dresser.

“When I began my practical training in Kuching, I still had my Orang Ulu haircut and elongated earlobes, and the patients always asked to see the medical assistant, not knowing I was the one.

“I always told them ‘he is inside his room’ but treated them myself and only referred complicated cases to the senior medical officer,” he said.

Gerawat’s training was so comprehensive that he knew how to stitch wounds, conduct simple surgery like cutting off elongated earlobes, treat leprosy, pull out teeth, order and disburse medication and even deliver babies.

On his initial return to the Kelabit Highlands, Gerawat was accompanied and introduced as a dresser by SAO Kusil Tingang and Tom Harrison.

He was based in Pa’ Main, but made regular monthly trips to each outstation village in the highlands — from Long Banga in the south to all the villages in the Kelapang and Debpur basin, and to Kuba’an, Long Lellang and Seridan villages.

Even after being joined by other dressers later, he continued to be the travelling ‘medicine man’ for years, organising groups of porters from each village in making monthly trips to Lio Mattu to collect and carry medicine sent from Marudi for him to disburse.

He came up with the idea of using used cooking oil tins as storage containers for his medicine.

He stored them at each village so that he could reduce the number of porters to go around with him.

“I worked alone as the only dresser in the highlands for years. I never ran out of medicine. I made sure there was regular supply all the time even though transportation was very difficult.

“Everything had to be transported by boat from Marudi to Lio Mattu, and by land from thence to Bario. Today, you people have aeroplanes and helicopters to carry medicine to Bario, and you still have not enough stock of medicine! I cannot understand this,” he lamented.

Gerawat @ Ngimat Ayu served as ulu dresser altogether for 15 years (1951-65).

The effectiveness of his service, assisted afterwards by other health assistants, can be seen from the rapid disappearance of leprosy, skin diseases, malaria and fatal epidemics (kedta in Kelabit) that had plagued the Kelabits for generations and almost wiped out the tribe at one point.

One of his achievements had been to inculcate clean habits among the people.

“I got people to drink only boiled water and remove their livestock from under their longhouses and to disallow dogs from living together in the longhouses. I faced a great deal of opposition especially in this but with support from Tom Harrison and the missionaries, we succeeded in changing peoples’ lifestyles,” he said.


The paramount chief


In 1965, Tom Harrison arranged for an election of a new Penghulu to replace the then Penghulu Lawai Besara.

Four contestants stood for the post (Inan Mulun, Ulit Mattu, Galih Balang, and Ngimat Ayu) and Ngimat Ayu was elected.

He had to quit his post as medical assistant and thence began his long history as the paramount chief of the Kelabit.

Ngimat Ayu served as the only Kelabit Penghulu from 1966-1997.

And then in 1998, the government decided to appoint a Pemanca as the new paramount chief of the Kelabit.

Penghulu Ngimat Ayu was appointed and he served as Pemanca until 2005 with three new Penghulus as his assistants: Henry Jalla of Bario, Tulu Ayu of Long Seridan, and Gan Tuloi of Long Peluan. Ngimat Ayu was a visionary and an innovator.

During his tenure as the paramount chief, he witnessed the opening up of Bario Lem Baaq to rapid development, including the Codification of the Kelabit Customary Laws (the Adet Kelabit 2008), the building of an all-weather-airport, the introduction of ICT through e-Bario, the building of the inter village road within Bario and the road connecting Bario to the outside world, to name a few.

He strongly supported the idea of Bario Ceria and the provision of power supply through the solar farm in Bario, especially after the failed hydro-hybrid project.

His magnificent art of negotiation, extraordinary hospitality to guests and locals alike and his tremendous leadership skills have enabled him to gain much favour from people in authority on behalf of the Kelabit community.

His special ability to identify with young and old, educated and uneducated, strangers and family alike has endeared him to a multitude of people, making him easily approachable and loveable.

As far as he was able and available, he visited every sick person he knew, went to every funeral, attended every wedding he was invited to and was able to laugh and cry with people he knew.

In a nutshell, Ngimat Ayu made time for everyone.


Straddling two worlds


Ngimat Ayu has straddled many eras and was a pioneer in many fields.

He served as the first Orang Ulu medical assistant (ulu dresser) from 1951-65 and left his job to become the first elected Penghulu of the Kelabit from 1966-97.

He was then promoted to become the first Kelabit Pemanca from 1998-2005.

Ngimat Ayu was born (in 1921) before the Japanese Occupation and before the impact of the rule of the White Rajah had been fully felt by the Kelabit.

He had personally experienced the hardship under the old way of life but understood the value systems, the customs and traditions that gave the Kelabit their identity.

He lived through and fought during the Japanese Occupation and helped bridge the gap between our Indonesian neighbours and our people after the Indonesian-Malaysian Confrontation in the 1960’s.

He embraced Christianity as a first generation Christian in the highlands and witnessed the extraordinary impact their faith had on the Kelabit community.

He participated in the resettlement exercise whereby the neighbouring villages were relocated to Bario Lem Baaq during the Confrontation.

Thus, he experienced the hard work and excitement of opening up new horizons and fresh boundaries as well as the pain and loss of leaving the familiar.

As Penghulu, he was instrumental in settling many legal issues related to this relocation exercise in a peaceful manner.

Ngimat Ayu was a student pioneer of the first school in the Kelabit Highlands, and lived to see even his grandchildren finish university education.

He saw the schools in the Kelabit Highlands grow from the first primary school to lower secondary school level.

Before he died, he said: “My dream and vision is to see the secondary school in Bario reaching Form 5 level so that more students can reach Form 5 level instead of dropping out of school. Please don’t give up on the vision.”

Ngimat Ayu is one Kelabit man who has lived a full life, faced countless challenges and still stood tall and strong against all odds.

Clothed with God’s full armour, he was able, having done everything, to stand (Eph 6:13).

He leaves behind a legacy of immense love and kindness, outstanding leadership, and tremendous wisdom.

He is greatly missed by family, friends, the whole Kelabit community and all who knew him.

Farewell our father, cousin, uncle, grandfather. Rest in Peace. Until we meet again.

Bringing JOY to the highlands

http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/01/06/bringing-joy-to-the-highlands/

by Chang Yi. Posted on January 6, 2013, Sunday

JOANNA Joy is not only the MAS agent in Bario but also the owner of a large Bario pineapple garden and a homestay business.

PINEAPPLES FOR LUNCH: Kelabit friends bringing Bario pineapples for the afternoon meal prepared at the homestay. All dishes are individually cooked for each group.

A mother of two young adults who have been educated in Kuala Lumpur — one already working and the other completing his studies — she has, in response to the call of familial duty, returned to the Bario Highlands to look after her aged mother and adopted parents.

When she was a little girl, her parents allowed their relative to adopt her. So, she has two sets of parents like many of the indigenous people of Sarawak.

Joanna who had her early education in Bario, studied in Institut Teknologi Mara after completing secondary school. Upon graduation, she worked and got married and then found a job outside Bario – the usual story of young Kelabits. However, the highlands had been beckoning to her.

Her children are now fairly independent and chasing their own dreams. Her daughter has graduated with an MA in biotechnology from University Malaya and her son is studying to become an IT programmer from ITM.

The conditions were, thus, right for her to return and contribute to her hometown in the state’s scenic highlands.

Besides looking after her aging mother and adoptive parents, Joanna has put her time to good use by helping her people wherever she can. Presently, she is also holding down two jobs — as operational manager of Bario Airport and MAS agent.

She said she is not going to retire yet because she still has many dreams to fulfill. A few years ago, she started a pineapple farm on a piece of land near the airport. And not long ago, she opened a homestay business.

When friends from West Malaysia and overseas visit her, she is happy to show them her pineapple farm. She planted the young suckers with the help of her relatives, and is now harvesting as many as 10 to 15 fruits a day — sometimes more. Any surplus will be made into jam.

Challenging problems

However, Joanna has problems using her food processor to make jam. When the Bario dam is low, there is virtually no electricity for the community. And since power supply is dependent on the water level in the dam, it is not everyday that she can use her food processor to make jam. Fortunately, there is a generator at the secondary school in the area which she can rely on when the need arises.

HOME-MADE: Joanna’s home-made pineapple jam.

Joanna also faces a serious problem in her pineapple business. Sending the fruits by air to Miri is very expensive. She sells her pineapples at RM2 per kilo to passengers and relatives.

Malaysian Airlines allows free luggage of 10kg. Passengers are weighed before checking in with their hand luggage. Each pineapple easily weighs up to 3 kilos. If someone buys a box of pineapples, he or she may have to pay an extra RM30 surcharge because of excess baggage.

Relatives bringing a pineapple or two for their family or friends would usually wait for a friendly passenger to help hand-carry the fruits for them to Miri. That’s the way of the people in the highlands – always ready to help each other.

Besides pineapples, Joanna’s family also plant rice. If she cannot farm the land herself, she will ask other padi planters for help — perhaps on a sharecropping basis.

In the past, her parents had no problem planting enough rice to feed the whole family for a period of two years. Will she allow her land to lay fallow for the next few years?

In fact, Joanna is having to face many issues related to growing rice and pineapples in the highlands. Can she get a grant to start a pineapple jam cottage industry? She has been sourcing for help from friends and government agents but to no avail so far.

She sells her home-made jam at counters that are open to her but she has to remember not to over-produce because her refrigerator cannot operate 24 hours a day due to limited electricity supply in Bario.

Moreover, many of the better educated younger women who bemoan the lack of basic utilities – adequate electricity supply, for example – in the area have left to find work elsewhere.

Airport Homestay

WITH VISITORS: Joanna (right) and her visitors in front of her homestay.

Homestay business in Bario is irregular. Things usually pick up only during festive celebrations.

However, for holiday-makers – both local and foreign – homestay accommodation and related facilities are available in Bario as well as nearby villages which offer attractions like kayaking and salt mines.

One popular setup is Joanna’s Bario Airport Homestay which offers good food. The chef frequently comes up with “very refreshing dishes.” Fresh talipia from Joanna’s pond next to the homestay is available everyday!

Dessert consists of a huge plate of freshly-plucked pineapples, and vegetables bought from the surrounding homesteads although green-thumbed Joanna grows most of her own vegetables.

Joanna Joy is a shinning example of an enterprising Kelabit woman who meets her challenges with plenty of cheers. If the challenges she is facing can be overcome, many younger highlanders would probably stay back to work and help boost the local economy.

With plantation roads linking Bario to Marudi, the future looks good for those Kelabits hoping to return home after their retirement — and even for the younger ones after their education outside the highlands.

According to a young government officer in Marudi, there might be more jobs in Bario in the future as more businesses can be opened up. With so many possibilities, the rural-urban migration which has been affecting many Bario families, could see a reversal.

On the road

http://www.theborneopost.com/2012/10/21/248759/

by Chang Yi. Posted on October 21, 2012, Sunday


Penan mothers and early childhood learning 

THE tebung (hollow wood drum) of Bario sounds the wake-up call at 5.30am like clockwork everyday. And indeed it is the clock of the Highlands.

FOR A BETTER FUTURE: A Penan mother walking her child to school in the early hours of the morning.

The beautiful rainforest sound resonates through the forest, rousing the late wakers among the fauna as well as the little children of Bario Asal and the surrounding villages.

The tebung (at least one in each Highland village) also belts out the same wake-up call in the other settlements although not all at 5.30am like Bario. For example, at Pa Adang (a Penan settlement) in the upper reaches of the Lawas valley, the wake-up call is at 6am.

Usually, by this time, many Penan mothers from Aral Dalan will be walking along the lonely path to Bario Asal where their children attend pre-school and primary classes. They walk for one hour (from six to seven) and surprisingly – to many urbanites – will arrive at school fresh and happy. This is a feat not many city people can easily fathom.

After placing their children safely at school, the Penan mothers walk for another hour home. Their next journey (on foot) to Bario is at 11am to pick up their children. After that, it’s another hour’s walk home. Walking long distances is part of Penan life from time immemorial.

Pre-school education in Sarawak and Malaysia in general provides a simple meal cooked by the teachers and teaching assistants. Hence, the Penan mothers do not have to bring lunch packs to their children. Most of the Penan children are underweight. Some even look just three years old – not five!

According to medical doctors serving in Sarawak, Penan children may be small due to various factors like lack of proper nutrition and good healthcare. Genetically, the Penans are small in stature and very fine-boned.

In the early mornings at the Bario Highlands, the temperatures can be as cool as 23 degrees celcius or lower. And it used to be even lower when luxuriant tall trees covered the mountains and no roads were known to the Penans.

The Penan mothers and children who walk to Bario, wear wind breakers or warm woollen clothes. And some of the children are so used to being barefooted that they don’t necessarily wear shoes (most cannot afford shoes anyway).

WAITING FOR MUM: A Penan boy waiting for his mother to pick him up from school.

The mothers I met said they were from Aral Dalan, a Kelabit village now giving them generous space and shelter. Some of these Penans are actually building their huts near the National Park of Pulong Tau. Being nomadic in the past, they cannot say exactly where their original settlement was because they were free to roam and hunt a long time ago.

So far, upon settling down, they are co-existing well with their Kelabit neighbours in Aral Dalan and Bario Asal.

The state government and its various agencies have long been finding ways to identify suitable areas for the Penans, “locate” them and “resettle” them like at Batu Bungan in the Baram.

Geographically, the Penans used to be known or classified as nomadic tribes who moved from place to place in the north eastern parts of Sarawak and the upper reaches of the Limbang and Lawas Rivers. Further south, they were found in the Kelabit Highlands and the Belaga region or the upper Rajang.

Last nomadic tribes

Today, some remnant groups are known to be the last of the nomadic tribes of Sarawak. Several groups have settled down and are receiving good education. About 100 Penans have obtained diplomas and degrees since the formation of Malaysia while one or two are already millionaires.

Bario is a special case because more than 20 Penan families have settled at Aral Dalan, a village about one hour from Bario. According to some villagers, the Penans have moved to this part because their children can attend school at neaby Bario. Besides, the environment near the National Park of Pulong Tau also seems most viable to their lifestyle.

Young Penan parents are sending their children to pre-primary and primary schools in Bario. Moreover, many are fairly comfortable with the kind Kelabits who share the same religious beliefs.

The Penan parents also like the primary school teachers from all parts of the state – Kapit and Sibu, for example. According to a little Penan boy, these teachers are not only caring but can also teach very well.

PART TIME JOB: This Penan girl is working temporarily for the primary school in Bario.

For the very first time, they are interacting and having good social life in school. Furthermore, they can broaden their outlook by participating in everyday learning in the classrooms with children from the other communities such as Malays and even Bidayuhs (children from the Army Camp at Bario).

Several children at the Bario Primary School are of mixed parentage – Kelabit-Chinese and Lun-Bawang-Kelabit.

It is from their primary school experience that the Penan children are able to have a wider world view.

One young Penan girl, now working temporarily at the primary school, said she hoped to get a permanent job with the government. This, she added, would give her and her family a steady income.
She is looking forward to the day when she either goes for further studies or gets a permanent job with the government. She is not afraid to leave Bario for other parts of the world.

THUMBS-UP: These two Penan children walk long distances everyday to attend pre-school in Bario.

According to a professional in Marudi, many of the myths about the Penans are not being debunked. He noted that with better government facilities being provided in the remote areas, more and more Penans are settling down.

Penan parents now realise the importance of keeping their children in school throughout the whole school year as opposed to the common perception that Penan parents will take their children out of school during the fruit season.

Perhaps, this is still being done by some Penan parents in the remotest parts of the state but it is very rare because of changes to their lifestyle, good advice from the community leaders and better educational facilities provided by the government in the interior.

More and more Penans want their children to be educated and get permanent jobs as teachers and government servants after leaving school.

As one Penan mother puts it: That’s why I’m willing to walk four hours everyday to send my two children to school. It’s their future. It’s also my future.

Whispering Hope

http://www.theborneopost.com/2012/10/14/whispering-hope/

by Chang Yi. Posted on October 14, 2012, Sunday


A YOUNG Kelabit girl cried for days when she could not further her education in Marudi. Elsewhere, the Bario Government Secondary School had been set up and she was to join the first Form 1 batch in the new school with the rest of her Bario Primary 6 peers.

NEW HOPE: Rokiah with the Penan children she met while they were walking to the school.

She felt as if her dream of joining older relatives in Marudi and Miri were dashed. However, three years later, upon completion of her Form 3 in Bario, she moved further afield – to study at St Teresa’s School in Kuching.

Her life from thence would be fairytale-like. And dearest to her heart, she was able to help her family in ways she never dreamed of. Instead of becoming a doctor herself, she married a doctor and not only brought up all her younger siblings but put them through college and university. Now, after bringing up her own two children it is time for her to do something for her community in the Bario Highlands.

This is the story of a Bario-born Kelabit lady, PDNR Datin Pearl Jai Mohan (PJK) and District Extension chairman (2012-2013) of Inner Wheel District 330. In West Malaysia, she is often mistaken for a North Indian lady because of her name and their unfamiliarity with the Kelabit ethnic group.

Recently, she and her friends went to Bario to carry out an Inner Wheel Whispering Hope project. They donated six large boxes of materials, including pencil cases and other items, to the Bario Primary School students.The excess luggage (for the donation) charged by MAS was RM300.

Headmistress Dora Tigang was delighted to host a special morning assembly to welcome the three Inner Wheel members – Pearl herself, Rokiah Abdul from the Kota Kinabalu branch and Florence Enau, president of Sarawak Inner Wheel. In Bario, they were joined by Inner Wheeler Joanna Joy.

CARING GESTURE: The Inner Wheel members handing over presents for the students of Bario Primary School to headmistress Dora.

The morning assembly gave the ladies the opportunity to speak from their hearts to the children.
Pearl told her own story of how she aimed high and how she has been able to give back to her beloved homeland.

Why was she giving pencils, for instance? When she was in primary school, she had to be creative in using pencils down to the last centimetre by using the stalk of ‘resam’ to extend her pencil. She had blisters in her little finger because she was writing with short pencils. Nowadays, she values pencils more than ever.

The disciplined primary school children, all sitting cross legged on the floor of the wooden Astaka (open assembly hall), were awestruck by her gracious presence and her short but effective speech.

Rokiah advised the students to study hard so that they could become pilots and doctors. She advised them to stay healthy and be active.

TEA BREAK: Having afternoon tea with Marilyn, sister of popular Kelabit doctor Dr Roland Mattu whose children are working in KL.

Florence, who spoke in English, advised them to learn English and go far, saying anyone could do this if they worked and studied hard and believed in themselves.

According to Dora, the children were very good in both Bahasa Malaysia and English because they and their parents were very enthusiastic about learning English. Tourists who come to Bario also help to open the minds of the people to the outside world.

At the end of the assembly, the students showed their appreciation in the Bario student way – clap clap clap clap … muah muah muah muah.

Still barefoot

“Many of the Penan students are still not wearing shoes,” remarked the observant Pearl.

She was already thinking of how to send school shoes to them.

The Penan students, in particular at the primary school level, are boarders. School mothers or student hostel administrators look after them and give them a good boarding programme of food and accommodation.

Food is prepared by a local Kelabit cook in the employ of the Sarawak government who has worked here for six years. By 11 o’clock, he has already prepared a balanced meal of curry chicken and a local vegetable with fragrant rice. Rice is fresh from the farm whenever parents bring extra rice to share.

Lovely children

The ladies also visited the pre-school department and met the lovely little Penan and Kelabit children – almost all of them undersized and dressed in a variety of clothing.

The favourite garb was long pants with an overly long dress and a sweat shirt on top. Pink is definitely the ‘in’ colour for the girls and blue of various shades for the boys. The pre-school teachers see to their snacks and the cleanliness of the classroom. There are 28 of them. Many of these Penan kids have walked one hour with their mothers to the school and they do that for more than 200 days a year!

In a separate project, the Miri Inner Wheel Club, headed by Florence, made a special charity drive and collected items to be donated to the Penans in the village of Arul Dalan. Home essentials like kettles and cooking pots are very much needed by the Penans who live in Arul Dalan, a newly set up Penan settlement about one hour’s walking distance from Bario Asal. Other donations include baby clothes and even a parang. A great essential is canvas which the Penan villagers appreciate.

The Penan children need more clothes and perhaps even special tuition to help them master their lessons in the primary school.

The Penan pre-schoolers have to walk one hour to school and one hour back. Their mothers walk one hour to bring them to school, then one hour back to their homes to do their chores. After that, they walk another one hour to school again, then one more hour to bring their children back home.

It is no wonder these Penan women are pencil-slim. They walk four hours a day just to make sure their children are safe in school and are back home in time to be with the family. Many modern city women don’t do so much on their treadmills!

Pearl and her friends are definitely thinking of more ways in which the Inner wheelers can help. They might see another project coming to Bario in November.

Bario woman elevated as High Court judge

http://www.theborneopost.com/2012/09/29/bario-woman-elevated-as-high-court-judge/

by Khabil Kiram. Posted on September 29, 2012, Saturday

Supang and her husband, Geoffry William Mariner.

SANDAKAN: Former Judicial Commissioner Supang Lian, whose humble beginning started in the far-flung village of Paq Umur in Bario, Sarawak, was yesterday elevated to a High Court judge and will return to serve in her native Sarawak as High Court judge in Sibu effective mid-October to replace Justice Datuk Yew Jen Kie.

“Who would have dreamt that an indigenous girl from the rainforest of Borneo from an ethnic group barely 5,000 in number could possibly become a High Court judge?

“One thing is certain and it says a lot for our nation … that the people with a background like mine are given that opportunity,” said Supang in her speech during her elevation ceremony.

She attributes her success to her late father, who imbued her with a strong sense of independence and self-belief.

“My father was among the first Kelabit from the highland to have obtained some form of formal education and at a young age he was recruited into the British Constabulary Force and was stationed mainly in Kuching.

“When we grew up, he spoke of the world far and beyond the mountains and as was then possible in the longhouse setting, he nourished us with a greater latitude to find our own ways in life, for he believed in us and inspired us to reach for the stars,” she said.

Supang also expressed her fondness for Sabah, averring that Sabahans are welcoming, unassuming and friendly, leading her to the discovery “that everyone here can sing and dance.”

She expressed tremendous thankfulness for the position of trust bestowed upon her as well as gratitude to a long list of people, including her Irish husband, Geoffry William Mariner and her other family members, fellow judges and members of the legal fraternity.

No one will be left out in nation’s march towards progress, says PM

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/11/23/sarawak/9957041&sec=sarawak

Wednesday November 23, 2011

by ZORA CHAN: zora@thestar.com.my

PUTRAJAYA: Barisan Nasional will keep its promise to bring development to rural areas, particularly in Sarawak, to ensure progress throughout the country.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the Government was committed to this through its ongoing Rural Transformation Programme.

“The Government understands the predicament of rural folk and their thirst for development.

“We’ll make sure that development in the country will be inclusive and people from every nook and corner will feel and enjoy the nation’s progress,” said Najib.

“When Barisan promises to do something, we are sure to deliver them,” he said when welcoming a delegation comprising Lun Bawang and Kelabit community leaders and village elders from the highlands of Ba’Kelalan and Bario to Seri Perdana here yesterday.

The 32-member delegation was led by Lawas MP Datuk Henry Sum Agong and it was, among others, aimed at thanking the Federal Government for upgrading an abandoned logging road from Long Luping to Ba’Kelalan using soil stabilisation technology, as well as to raise other urgent matters in Henry’s constituency.

The project, spanning 75km and included a few access roads to several villages, started in mid 2009 and was completed in September.

Ba’Kelalan is about 150km from Lawas. The stretch between Lawas and Long Luping remains a logging track.

Najib said the upgraded road between Long Luping to Ba’Kelalan was the first to use such a method, with help from the army through the Jiwa Murni community outreach programme.

He said if the Government used conventional method, it would cost about RM250mil and a few years to complete.

“This is a huge amount for a rural area with such a low population and deemed not feasible economically.”

“However, the people are desperate for the road and through the Jiwa Murni programme, the road has been sealed and this only costs RM52mil. This project also shows that the army and people are inseparable,” he said.

The upgraded road has shortened travel from Lawas to Ba’Kelalan from eight hours to three, and sometimes two days depending on road and weather conditions.

He said the impact of the project was tremendous to the people as villagers enjoyed lower transportation cost and cheaper daily necessities.

Giving examples, Najib said: “I was told that a can of soft drink used to cost RM3 but now it’s RM2, while a cylinder of gas that costs RM60 is now RM45 in Ba’Kelalan.”

Looking at this success, he said, more rural areas would benefit from the Defence Ministry’s Jiwa Murni programmes.

Therefore, more rural roads would be built with help from the army which is faster and cost effective compared to conventional methods by the Public Works Department.

Earlier, Henry said Lawas was in dire need of a new airport as the present one had limited space for expansion and was often flooded during bad weather.

“Lawas also needs a technical school that offers diploma courses because presently the area does not have such an institution for school-leavers.”

He said the highlands of Ba’Kelalan and Bario also required a primary school.

“The Bailey bridge over Sungai Pengalih along the Pan Borneo highway built under the Colombo Plan also needs to be upgraded as more and more heavy vehicles are using it.”

Henry added: “The people are also requesting for dirt roads / logging tracks connecting Ba’Kelalan and Bario, Ba’Kelalan and the border with Indonesia, and Lawas to Long Luping be upgraded as well.”

Petronas holds education camp at SK Bario

http://www.theborneopost.com/2011/10/27/petronas-holds-education-camp-at-sk-bario/

Posted on October 27, 2011, Thursday

MIRI: Some 80 SK Bario pupils attended the Petronas Science Educamp programme at the school from Oct 21-24.

Pupils from Primary 4 to 6 took part in experiential learning activities with emphasis on Science, Mathematics and English.

“We would like to thank Petronas for bringing a new fun learning experience to the pupils and teachers in Bario,” SK Bario headmistress Dora Tigan said during the closing ceremony.

Spearheaded by Petronas Sarawak Regional Office, Miri in collaboration with wholly-owned subsidiary Petrosains, the programme targets pupils in remote areas.

Corporate affairs senior executive Suffian Sabeli said the main objectives of the programme included exposing pupils to varying concepts of science and technology, as well as igniting an interest in science and technology careers.

It is also designed to assist teachers to think out of the box by seeking alternative teaching resources. In December, another programme will be held at SK Ba Kelalan, Lawas.

Similar programmes were carried out at SK Long Bedian and SK Long Bemang in Miri Division; SK Long Tuma, SK Long Luping and SK Long Napir, Limbang Division; SK Batu 36 in Sibu Division; and SK Dua Sungai, Mukah Division.

MASwings to adopt ‘unique’ water village

http://www.theborneopost.com/2011/08/18/maswings-to-adopt-unique-water-village-latest/

by Sandra Sokial. Posted on August 18, 2011, Thursday

KOTA KINABALU: MASwings, which sees the potential of Kampung Tanjung Aru Baru as a tourist destination, has expressed interest to adopt the village.

Describing the water village as unique, MASwings managing director Datuk Captain Mohd Nawawi Awang said they have agreed in principal to adopt the village in response to the call yesterday by its Village Security and Development Committee chairman Matsah Saad.

“I do believe that the village has potential to be developed into a tourist destination. It is a water village and houses are built on stilts above the sea.

“It is very unique and is not available in many places,” Mohd Nawawi told reporters after presenting Hari Raya goodies to 100 underprivileged people from the village and Kampung Tanjung Aru Lama.

He said the adoption programme may be extended to two schools in Kundasang and Kudat, and currently talks are ongoing to discuss details of the programme which is expected to take off by this year end or early next year.

“This is part and parcel of our corporate social responsibility (CSR) project, dubbed the ‘Wings of Love’ which is aimed at reaching out to those in need, and focusing on three main fields, namely community service, education and environment,” said Mohd Nawawi.

He said similar project is carried out in Sarawak where MASwings, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines, has adopted two schools, one in Bekalalan and the other in Bario.

Touching on yesterday’s event, he said the two villages were selected due to its proximity to Kota Kinabalu International Airport.

In his speech earlier, Mohd Nawawi said he is willing to act as the middle person to bring the villagers’ grouses and concerns to the highest authority.

“We understand there are a lot of expectations from the people when we adopt a village, but it is part of our CSR. A lot of funds are needed to reconstruct a village, so being a corporate company, we can only help to forward what they need to the higher authorities,” he said.

http://www.theborneopost.com/2011/07/19/govt-dedicated-in-developing-orang-ulu-youths-%E2%80%94-rep/

by Samuel Aubrey, reporters@theborneopost.com. Posted on July 19, 2011, Tuesday

KUCHING: Despite the government’s efforts to send youths from ethnic minorities for skills training, there are still those few who chose to remain jobless, choosing to return to their villages after successfully completing their training.

Telang Usan assemblyman Dennis Ngau said that during his visits within his constituency, he met Orang Ulu youths who had returned to their settlements despite possessing skill certifications which guarantees good income.

“They were hesitant to venture into the job market, and some were even undecided giving the excuse that they wanted to make the decision at the village. Only a few took up the offer to stay with me while they looked for jobs.

“Some even blamed the government for not providing them with work. These youths should have the commitment to look for jobs because the skills certificates they posses can land them a job anywhere,” he said during a welcoming dinner for 36 participants of the Prime Minister Department’s sponsored Skills Training Programme for Ethnic Minorities (PLKEM) on Sunday.

On PLKEM, Dennis said this truly represented the BN government’s commitment to ensure ethnic minorities in the interior are not left behind from the mainstream of development.

He believed PLKEM would ensure a balanced socio-economic development and social wellness within the community and provide quality human capital for Sarawak’s Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE).

“The PLKEM is a unique and exclusive programme for Sarawak’s ethnic communities in terms of capacity building for SCORE. As a representative of the ethnic communities, I want to express my appreciation to the federal government for providing allocation and opportunities for our youths,” he said.

PLKEM and other skills training programmes for school leavers are the most effective method to empower ethnic minorities to stand on their own feet he said.

Meanwhile, Sarawak Human Resource Development Council for School Leavers executive secretary Dr Zufar Yadi said the PLKEM has benefitted 915 youths from the state’s ethnic minorities since 2009, involving allocations of RM28.5 million.

He said the targeted groups are Penan, Tagal, Bukitan, Bisaya, Lun Bawang, Kenyah, Kedayan, Punan. Kiput, Kayan, Saban, Murut, Berawan, Kejaman, Kelabit, Bakong, Sekapan, Dusun, Sebob and other ethnic minorities in Sarawak based on the interpretation of the Federal Constitution. Under this programme, the youths are sent to six training institutes namely Pusat Latihan Pembangunan Belia (PLPB) Kuching, Sarawak Skills Development Centre (PPKS) Kuching or Miri, Pusat Latihan Kemahiran Yahos, Pelita Maslaut Maritime Training Centre, Kolej Yayasan Sabah and Kolej Yayasan Negri Sembilan.

He revealed that the youths are given financial assistance of RM6,000 to RM7,000 for every level of skill certification to cover training fees, accommodation, hand tools, sustenance allowance and return transportation.

“The allowance for transportation is for student who comes in from his village and when he returns, not just one way. It covers the costs of transportation even by 4WD vehicle from the village to the airport,” he said.

The 36 participants have come from Kapit, Belaga, Bintulu, Baram, Miri Limbang and Lawas. They would be enrolled at the PLPB Kuching managed by the Chief Minister Department’s Quality and Human Resource Management Unit.

Green project to save interior folk from pollution set to become national model

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/7/12/sarawak/9081134&sec=sarawak

Tuesday July 12, 2011

By STEPHEN THEN
stephenthen@thestar.com.my

MIRI: A pioneer project is taking shape in the mountainous interior of Bario to devise an environment-friendly method of waste disposal for rural communities without modern waste disposal system.

If successful, this first such project in the state and perhaps even in the country, may become the model for other rural waste disposal options nationwide.

The pioneer project in the northern region is impressive not only because of its significance but also because it was sparked off by a group of university students and the local communities in Bario.

Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry, after getting wind of the effort, now wants to help make it a success and then use it as a blueprint for rural waste disposal and management for the nation, says Datuk Sebastian Ting, the political secretary of Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin.

Not so isolated anymore: The once pristine Bario highlands in the northern region is fast becoming polluted due to excessive human activities and development projects.

It all started when several students from Curtin University of Technology, Sarawak Campus visited the Bario highlands recently and found the once clean and clear rivers there polluted due to blatant waste discharge.

Kelabit student Rachel Kedung Bulan decided to rope in a few mates from John Curtin Leadership Academy, a volunteer group to start a project called ‘Don’t Dump In Bario’ or in local Kelabit dialect — Ngebata Ngeribed Bario.

Rachel formed a team made up of Mohsen Taheri, Eze Oriekwo, Syed Jamal Kazmi and Joanne Liew to kick-start the project to carry out an education campaign to stop blatant rubbish and waste dumping into the rivers in Bario.

The group also set up a project to reduce, reuse and recycle, and then designed a proper system to dispose of human and household wastes in a green manner.

Rachel said the beautiful pristine image of Bario was getting tainted by too much development projects that had resulted in serious environmental repercussions because of the absence of rubbish or waste disposal treatment plant in the area.

“In the past, the rivers in Bario were so clean, people could jump in and swim any time. That is no longer possible. Rubbish are flowing down the rivers freely,” she said yesterday.

She attrributed this to the development taking place in Bario today and the freer movement of goods and people.

According to her, the once isolated settlements there were now accessible not only by air but also by road.

“Bario is facing unprecedented influx of people and tourists and this surge in human activities along with the construction of roads have resulted in a sudden increase in the amount of wastes and rubbish generated. We need to restore the beautiful image of Bario.”

Elaborating on the project, she said what they were undertaking would involve three phases.

“The first phase involves an education campaign against blatant dumping of wastes and rubbish in Bario.

“The second phase, to reduce, reuse and recycle while the third phase is to devise a sustainable long-term system to decompose biodegradable wastes and green disposal methods that will carry minimal impact on the environment,” she said.

Curtin Sarawak University Life manager Haslina Abdul Malek told The Star that Rurum Kelabit Sarawak Association and Sarawak Shell had joined in the effort, with Shell giving RM10,000 to help finance the project.

“An environmental expert from Japan (Naoko Sumiyoshi) is also joining in to give technical advice on how best to handle the project.

“We hope to come up with a green waste disposal system for Bario before end of this year,” she said.

Ting said the ministry was excited with the Bario project not only because it was the first of its kind but also because it could serve as a model for other rural communities, if successful.

“It is a well-known fact that rural settlements in the deep interior of Sarawak and other states do not have any modern waste disposal system or waste treatment plants.

“If Bario can come up a waste disposal system that is green, it can be used as model for other rural settlements as well,” he said.

Asked what his ministry could do to help the Bario project, he said it could seek specialist help for the Bario team and also get more funds from other relevant ministries such as Rural and Regional Development Ministry.

Ting said he would be visiting Bario next week to meet the team and to see for himself what sort of help the ministry could offer.

Picture perfect

http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/Pictureperfect/Article/

Picture perfect

2011/01/15

jehan@nst.com.myShare |

PHOTO: (From left) Wo Su Shyan, Daniel Ting, Arindam Sarkar and Lau Shyh TzerA photography contest inspires students to do their bit for society, writes
NURJEHAN MOHAMED

MOTHER Nature is a great teacher.

And a group of Taylor’s University students recently learnt some valuable lessons by capturing her in all her glory.

Some 40 students made their way to Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) for a photography contest organised by the School of Computing and IT (SOCIT) last August.

The competition, titled IT’s Green @ FRIM, was open to all students of the university to educate them on green computing habits.

Aside from sponsored prizes, the 12 best entries got spots in Taylor’s 2011 calendar, which is being sold to raise funds for the 1Taylor’s-Bario Community Engagement Project.

The Bario project is part of Taylor’s Education Group’s corporate social responsibility initiative to help rural schoolchildren in Sabah and Sarawak.

Since 2007, the group has built hostels at SK Mengaris and SK Koromoko, both in Kota Marudu, Sabah.

Last year, the aim was to build one at SK Bario, Kelabit Highland, Sarawak.

The result of the photography competition is the 2011 desktop calendar, which is available from the Taylor’s Corporate Communications Department.

The calendar features 12 photos and accompanying captions conveying green messages from nine students.

The photos look professional, belying the fact that they were taken by young photography enthusiasts. One student’s entries were taken with an entry-level compact digital camera.

In keeping with the environmental theme, the dominant colour throughout, unsurprisingly, is green.

Aside from the first two pages that give information on the institution and the project, there is hardly any indication that this is an institution’s calendar.

The only blemish is the lack of details on Malaysian public holidays — it only indicates the ones celebrated nationally or in the Klang Valley, which may limit its appeal.

Still, the eye-catching graphics and the fact that the proceeds of the RM20 calendar goes entirely to the Bario project may encourage sales.

Daniel Ting, Wo Su Shyan, Lau Shyh Tzer and Arindam Sarkar — whose pictures are featured in the calendar — say they had joined the competition because of a love for photography.

“Besides photography being one of my hobbies, I had signed up to support a SOCIT event,” says Ting, a Foundation in Computing student.

Arindam, a Bachelor of IT student from Calcutta, India, had joined because he felt the natural surroundings at FRIM was a good place to test out his new compact camera.

For Lau, the motivation to take part was the venue — he had never visited FRIM prior to the contest. Wo, on the other hand, was happy to do something for charity, albeit indirectly.

Although the four initially had one goal in mind — to get winning shots — they came away with a keener interest to help solve social and environmental problems.

“After learning about the Bario project in Sarawak and the issues affecting SK Bario schoolchildren, I realise how lucky we are in Kuala Lumpur.

“The people there don’t even have proper infrastructure such as reliable water and electricity supply,” says Wo, who has just completed her degree in Computer Science.

She has since started saving energy whenever she can and persuading her friends to do the same.

Arindam has practised water and power conservation from childhood because India is an energy deficient country.

“I was glad to know that a place such as FRIM exists here; I wish the city had this greenery everywhere rather than just in an enclosed area,” he says.

Ting says the competition gave him a better appreciation for nature.

“Looking at things we normally overlook and capturing the many faces of Mother Nature made me realise this is something I want future generations to have too,” he says.

As the use of technology increases in the world, he feels it is up to Computing students to spearhead the green IT movement.

“There are always cheaper ways of doing things but they are not necessarily ethical or environmentally friendly,” he says.

The 20-year-old has started practising some of the lessons learnt during the event — such as putting his computer into hibernation instead of standby mode and finding the most efficient way to complete tasks as opposed to taking short cuts.

This change in habit goes beyond computing. For instance, he is now also more careful about the amount of water he uses while washing his hands or brushing his teeth.

Lau, like his peers, has become more aware of his carbon footprint.

“Everyday actions such as turning off the power of electrical products when they’re not in use may seem small but every single simple step makes a difference,” says the Bachelor of Computer Science student.

Taking part in the photography contest also inspired the 20-year-old to do more for society.

Lau initiated a Children Behind Us programme with some friends to educate Somalian refugee children in Puchong. Children Behind Us is a youth-led initiative which aims to provide underprivileged children with basic education.

“We met with the founder who did the pilot in Jakarta and he guided us on how to work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees,” he says.

For him, the most pertinent lesson he learnt from SOCIT’s event was the importance of caring for the planet and taking action.

For details on the Bario project and Taylor’s 2011 calendar, contact Caren Lee at 03-5629-5197 or caren.lee@taylors.edu.my

Producing highly skilled child educators

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=86535

Producing highly skilled child educators

by Geryl Ogilvy Ruekeith. Posted on January 12, 2011, Wednesday

KUCHING: National Permata (Early Childhood Education Development Programme) centres will be set in every parliamentary constituency in the country as part of the government’s plan to produce many world class early childhood education teachers.

PHOTO: MALAYSIA BOLEH: Fatimah (front, third right) poses with (from right) Abu Bakar Marzuki, Dr Sabariah and Saidatul and course participants as they give a 1Malaysia sign to symbolise that each would succeed during the three-week programme.

To be implemented under the 10th Malaysia Plan, this would ensure proper running and development of the programme throughout the country, said Prime Minister’s Office National Permata Department secretary Saidatul Akhma in her speech yesterday.

Pointing out that it was important to have sufficient high skilled educators in the early childhood education sector, Saidatul said that the course would have world class syllabus and that it was important to promote and attract as many individuals (teachers) to attend Permata’s courses.

She was representing Special Officer in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Siti Azizah Sheikh Abod at the launch of ‘Series 18 and 19, 2011 Educators’ Course’ held at the Sarawak Foundation auditorium at Jalan Sultan Tengah, Petra Jaya near here.

“When it comes to the development of early childhood education and care, Sarawak is among the most committed and aggressive states in the country.

“Sarawak is the only state that has the full commitment and back up from its state government. Permata’s objective would be difficult to materialise and would not have succeeded if not for the full cooperation from the Chief Minister’s Department here which was given the mandate to administrate and develop this programme,” she continued.

Saidatul also expressed her admiration for the Chief Minister’s Department, which has managed to give quality education to the rural communities such as those in the interior of Song and Bario.

In 2009, the National Permata Department allocated about RM17.9 million for the building, repair and upgrade of about 49 pre-schools in the state, which in turn strengthened the educational and co-curriculum programme here.

Minister in the Chief Minister’s Department Datin Fatimah Abdullah who officiated at the launching said that a total of 94 pre-school teachers would be taking part in ‘Series 18 and 19, 2011’ of the Permata Educators’ Course starting Jan 9 till Feb 3 here.

The almost one-month course, held at Sarawak Foundation, is made possible with contribution from the Prime Minister’s Office National Permata Department.

“This course is very much welcomed here as it would give new perspective to pre-school educators in producing a paradigm leap in the teaching and learning process of early childhood education, especially in its agenda to increase the quality of early childhood education in this country,” she continued.

Fatimah, who is also chairperson of Sarawak Early Childhood Education Development Council (MPAKS), further said the state realised the importance of early childhood education for a cognitive and effective development of children, which also included the development of socio-emotion of children from all ages.

Last year, a total of 74,610 children in the state received early childhood education in 81 pre-schools and 2,015 kindergartens. About 85 per cent of the centres were managed by the public sector.

Fatimah also announced that for this year, the sixth annual ‘Pre-school Educational Convention’, organised by the state government, would take place in Bintulu and its focus would be on ‘Multiple Intelligence Development’ among the children.

The ceremony yesterday also saw Fatimah launching Sarawak Early Childhood Education and Care online portal on social networking site Facebook.

Also present at the launch yesterday were director of Human Resource Development and Quality Unit of the Chief Minister’s Department Dr Sabariah Putit, Sarawak Foundation director Mohamad Abu Bakar Marzuki and Sarawak Islamic Council’s Education Services Bureau director Datu Dr Adi Badiozaman Tuah.

Bridging the digital divide through eBario concept

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=83149

Bridging the digital divide through eBario concept

by Justin Yap
justinyap@theborneopost.com.

Posted on December 30, 2010, Thursday

KUCHING: Bario known as the ‘Land of a Thousand Hand-Shakes’ is the homeland to the Kelabit ethnic minority. The indigenous community that emerged from isolation only within the last half century has shown massive positive development from the results of eBario projects.

PHOTO: John Tarawe

eBario began in 1998 as a research project undertaken by the Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) with the support of the International Development Research Centre of Canada and the government of Malaysia. The objective was to demonstrate opportunities for sustainable development in a remote and isolated rural community from the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs).

“The project was undertaken against the background of the government’s aggressive adoption of ICTs for national development and the underdeveloped infrastructure as well as the scattered population of the nation’s largest state,” eBario Sdn Bhd project director John Tarawe told The Borneo Post during an exclusive trip to Bario.

Before the eBario project, communications were limited to rudimentary radio links and electricity was obtainable from household generators or solar panels. “At the heart of the Borneo island, Bario represents an extreme example of the digital divide,” said Tarawe.

According to Tarawe, a baseline study was conducted in order to understand the conditions of life and computers were progressively introduced, beginning with schools. “With the assistance of Telekom Malaysia, a community telecentre was established which consisted of computers with satellite (VSAT) access to the Internet as well as public phones and a reliable generator-driven power supply.”

In July 2002, the project was handed over by the research team to the community, with a local project manager and management committee. The project demonstrated that access to ICTs, specifically the Internet could precipitate significant improvements in the lives of such communities.

E-Bario has won many awards and was featured by the International Telecommunications Union as ‘one of the most notable of Malaysia’s Internet development initiatives.’

Due to the great success of the eBario project, the Unimas team was given the opportunity and honour by the government to replicate the same implementation model to five other nationwide remote sites throughout Malaysia.

Tarawe, who is also the telecentre manager for Centre of Excellence for Rural Informatics (CoERI) said the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti) had allocated RM4 million for the project. “Four projects have been implemented at Long Lamai and Ba’Kelalang in Sarawak, Kg Buayan in Sabah and Larapan Island in Semporna. The remaining will be used to upgrade the telecommunication facilities in Bario.”

With the implementation of telecommunication services in community villages, Bario is finally on the global radar. Riding on the new visibility, Bario is currently enjoying a steady trickle of visitors who are attracted by the unique culture and hospitality of the residents as well as the pristine highland rainforest environment.

Tourism is now a significant contributor to the local economy. There has been an increase in the number of lodges and restaurants providing accommodation and meals since eBario began. The increase in tourism has had the effect of doubling the number of flights between Bario and Miri.

“This has had a knock-on effect on the agricultural economy. Bario is famous for its rice, which is grown organically and is highly sought after due to its light taste and delicate fragrance. The increase in the

number of flights has allowed the farmers in Bario to send more rice to the urban markets and this in turn has stimulated rice production during that period,” Tarawe pointed out.

However, he also revealed that Bario’s rice production had drop significantly during the last few years because of the lack of manpower. In order to overcome this issue, CoRIE was currently working with National Padi and Rice Board (LPN) to introduce SMART farming concept for the community.

Another benefit relates to the use of the telecentre by the local clinic which became the first rural clinic in Sarawak with internet access. The medical technician at the clinic has been able to share medical information with doctors in the towns, obtain better information about the drugs at the clinic and about the common ailments among the residents.

The Kelabit community regularly conduct online discussions on topics that affect their future. “The eBario telecentre now allows Kelabits living in the highlands to participate in these discussions on an equal footing with their compatriots in the towns and overseas,” said Tarawe.

“Moreover, the entire Kelabit community is now developing online facilities to preserve their cultural heritage by capturing the recollections of the old folks and by assembling a digital library of Kelabit writings,” he added.

According to a study, the improved communications that Bario now enjoys with the outside world has lead to a number of significant changes. Family interactions have greatly improved and this had

been most keenly felt at the time of family emergencies, such as at times of sickness and bereavement.

Previously, relatives often heard about such emergencies well after the event when it was too late to act.

Additionally, the telecentre played a crucial role in coordinating search and rescue operations after a helicopter crashed in the nearby rugged highlands. Flight operations have also been enhanced by the improved communications that provide pilots with vital weather conditions that could be highly variable over short distances in the highland terrain.

“The eBario experience has been shared nationally and internationally with several agencies, including presentations organised by UMDP, UNESCAP, IDRC and the government of Malaysia,” said Tarawe, who is also the chairman of Kelabit Association of Sarawak and chairman of the Heart of Borneo Forum (Formadat).

The project team adopted Participatory Action Research (PAR) as the research methodology. Adopting PAR led the researchers and the community to jointly agree on a community development agenda that would be based on the use of the telecentre. The agenda consisted of a set of activities in which information systems and ICTs were embedded, but which also included associated human activities as well.

“The agenda serves as a long term vision for community interaction with itself, with the wider Kelabit diaspora, researchers and other external agencies leading to community development that is mediated by ICTs,” Tarawe explained.

MASwings rewards UPSR high scorers

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=80072

MASwings rewards UPSR high scorers

by Anasathia Jenis.

Posted on December 12, 2010, Sunday

TWENTY Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) high scorers went on a three-day education familiarisation tour of Kuala Lumpur under MASwings ‘Our Children Our Future’ project to foster academic excellence among Malaysia’s future generations.

EDUCATIONAL TRIP: The students and teachers at Subang airport. In the background is MASwings ATR 72-500 aircraft.

The students were from eight rural primary schools in Sarawak and Sabah. They were and accompanied by 10 teachers.

MASwings also invited the media from the two East Malaysian states along to share the experience.

Among the programmes were visits to Malaysia Airlines Complex in Subang and the Planetarium and Petrosains in Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC).

The highlight was a tea reception, hosted by Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansur, wife of the Prime Minister, at Seri Perdana.

For the four-hour flight to Kuala Lumpur, the group gathered at Miri Trails Guesthouse where they were met by MASwings staff. It was an exciting moment — a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity — for the students who got to explore the ATR 72-500 aircraft that flew them to the national capital. Who knows, one day some of them might decide to become a pilot or an air steward.

At Subang airport, the group were warmly greeted by MASwings managing director Dato’ Mohd Salleh Ahmad Tabrani and MASwings staff amidst the beats of kompang.

Souvenirs were presented to the students and teachers. This was followed by a briefing at the Malaysia Airlines Complex from Abdul Rashid Sharif, MAS manager Staff Affairs and Human Resources of Engineering and Maintenance Division.

Later, the group were taken on a tour of the engineering and maintenance building, the hangar and the training centre in the Complex. At the training centre, the group were shown an ATR72-500 aircraft simulator for enhancing crew efficiency.

The following day, the group visited the Planetarium and the tunnel-shaped aquarium before heading to the science gallery. They were treated to a popular cartoon animation ‘Upin Ipin’ at the Planetarium.

The next stop was Petrosains in the same building. Here, the group took about three hours to explore the exhibition gallery, showcasing the ‘wonders’ of science and technology related to the petroleum industry.

At KLCC, the group watched the 3-D animation cartoon of ‘Rapunzel’. It was something new to most of them.

For dinner, the popular Nasi Kandar was served.

Early the next day, before tarvelling to Putrajaya for a date at Seri Perdana, the group toured Kuala Lumpur city in Malaysia’s famous Hop-On Hop-Off bus, soaking in the view in a two-hour drive on the double-decker from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya. Along the way, they saw the new Istana Negara and another landmark still under construction.

Finally, on reaching Putrajaya, the group toured the area and lunched at Alamanda Shopping Mall before arriving at Seri Perdana around 2pm. There, the students performed the ngajat, and a traditional Sabah dance to the tune of a Gunung Kinabalu song for their gracious host.

Rosmah is patron of MASwings ‘Our Children Our Future’ project, a top-priority in MASwings community agenda.

At the tea reception, Rosmah handed over school bags and uniforms to the students. Also present was MAS managing director and MASwings chairman Dato’ Seri Azmil Zahruddin Raja Aziz.

The trip was a great opportunity for the students to experience life outside their rural settings.

A student of SK Pekan 2 Pitas Sabah, Cerollyn Carmila said she was happy to have had the opportunity her to visit other parts of the country.

“Thanks to MASwings for the familiarisation trip. It was an eye-opener,” she said.

Cerollyn’s friend, Beatrice Rinai Joannes, said she was grateful her hard work in obtaining As in UPSR had been rewarded by MASwings.

The eight rural schools from Sarawak are Sk Long Banga, SK Long Akah, SK Ba’Kelalan, Sk Bario, SK Mulu, SK Long Lellang, Long Seridan and SK Marudi. The two schools from Sabah are SK Rusop Pitas and SK Pekan 2 Pitas, in Tawau.

Categorise SK Long Napir as Penan school

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=73334

Categorise SK Long Napir as Penan school — Batu Danau repCategorise SK Long Napir as Penan school — Batu Danau rep

Posted on November 6, 2010, Saturday

PAULUS Palu Gumbang (BN-Batu Danau) has called for SK Long Napir to be recognised as a Penan school so that all its students could receive allowances as those in other Penan schools in the state.

At the moment, the school, located deep in Ulu Limbang has about 81 students including pre-schoolers.

From the number, 57 students (80.2 per cent) are Penans while the 24 others are Kelabits.

“Now that the Penan students in SK Long Napir are more than 80 per cent, it is only just that the school received recognition. Furthermore, it is to help the people,” said the Batu Danau assemblyman when debating during the State 2011 Budget at the State Legislative Assembly yesterday.

Gumbang also mentioned that the school used to be dominated by the Kelabits but as the Penans became more aware of the importance of education, more of their young have entered school.

On another note, he urged the government to implement as soon as possible the community’s much needed Batu Danau-Nanga Medamit-Tedungan water supply project under the national key result area (NKRA).

“I understand that no less than 49 settlements including longhouses and villages along the said areas will benefit from these projects.

“In addition, I also hope that the clean water supply projects could be extended to Kubong-Ulu Pandaruan areas comprising of Rumah Bujang, 12 1/2 Mile Kubong road, Rumah Ungkil, Kampung Reda, Rumah James Jimbau, Kampung Semabat, Rumah Baba Ajit, SK Penganan, Rumah Sintau, Lubok Kepayang and Rumah Manai.”

Regarding the rural electricity supply (RES), Gumbang said 12 projects costing RM4.7 million under the NKRA was supposed to be implemented in 2009-2010.

The contractor for the projects covering Kampung Anak Bukit/Kuala Awang, Tanjung Riman, Tanjong, Ranggu/Pengkalan Jawa, Pengkalan Gurah, Lembuak Tedungan, Nanga Medamit (including its health clinic), Tanjung Ungar (Limbang), Bawang Ubor and Pengkalan Madang have been identified and it was hoped that the implementation would commenced soon.

“Apart from the said areas, there are many more villages and longhouses in Batu Danau that do not have 24-hour electricity.

“The villagers are so accustomed to generate their own electricity but due to the increase in diesel cost, it has become a burden for the people.

“Therefore, I hoped that the government would speed up the implementation of the projects and I hope that these said areas could be included.”

The areas are Kelati, Teban, Tubai, Ensurai, Sungai Lumbong, Pulau Brunei, Ensungei, Staie and Nanga Merit.

Brain drain continues to put the country on the losing end

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/11/2/sarawak/7339395&sec=sarawak

Tuesday November 2, 2010

Brain drain continues to put the country on the losing end

By YU JI
yuji@thestar.com.my


REPORTS on the brain drain come and go every so often, but behind all the headlines and letters to the editors, there exists a real problem that will take generations to remedy.

First off, let it be clear, there can be no solving of the brain drain. The exodus of human capital is part and parcel of globalisation. It is the result of universities with international reach, the Internet and borders that are getting more porous by the day.

Indeed, when so much economic talk these days is focused on free trade agreements and foreign direct investment through which commodities and money move so freely, the very idea of nationality erodes.

This is not to say, however, that Malaysia’s brain drain should not be tackled.

In February this year, a report based on Parliamentary proceedings stated that between March 2008 and August 2009, about 305,000 Malaysians left the country for jobs elsewhere.

The figure was almost double the number of Malaysians who left in 2007.

Throughout the years, Singapore has been the recipient of some of the brightest and most hard-working workers from its neighbouring country. An estimate a few years ago claimed that about 40% of those leaving Malaysia headed for the tiny island nation.

Other countries that Malaysians prefer are Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Britain.

On a smaller scale, the brain drain happens inter-state as well.

The Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party has set up clubs in Johor, where the party says almost 40,000 Ibans are working.

Meanwhile, thousands of rural Sarawakians continue to arrive in the state’s towns and cities every year, looking for better salaries.

Take Bario, the fertile Kelabit Highlands, as an example. Well known for its rice, the area’s youths, however, have left in droves over the past three years.

Its rice production is in decline. Rice fields have been abandoned while some locals have started importing rice from nearby villages.

Even Padiberas Nasional Bhd, the country’s regulator and distributor of rice in the industry, said it faced great difficulties in promoting the award-winning Bario rice as the export volume was inconsistent.

To counter the migration of youths, farmers left behind in Bario have been employing Indonesian workers.

Multiply Bario’s situation by a few hundred and you have Malaysia’s scenario – talent leaving, influx of low-skilled foreigners.

The country’s policymakers have never denied there is a brain drain, yet they also seem to resist taking drastic measures. Some politicians have spoken up in support of a true 1Malaysia, but then balked at the smallest sign of trouble from certain groups.

What brain drain comes down to is opportunity. Simple as that.

National Heart Association Malaysia president Prof Dr Sim Kui Hian, rumoured to be a state election candidate, is among a few who had been enormously successful overseas, but eventually returned to Malaysia.

“When people ask me why I came back – mind you I left a better paying job overseas – I say it’s because I miss my laksa, my kolo mee.

“But when I really think about it sometimes, the reason why I’ve stayed back is because of the prestige. I like the challenge of heading a cardiac unit here (in Kuching),” he told StarMetro recently.

Dr Sim is a founding member of the Sarawak General Hospital’s Cardiac Unit, which is making a move to the Sarawak Heart and Cancer Institute in Samarahan.

Had there been no cardiac unit to be set up here, would Dr Sim have returned?

Why should talented people stay put anywhere when better, more challenging and more rewarding opportunities abound somewhere else? Even if you don’t feel that way, would you deny your child such an opportunity?

Opportunity is dependent on equality. The rate of the brain drain can only increase further if a disadvantaged social environment continues to be felt in a world made smaller by great leaps in technological progress.

The Gini Coefficient Index is the internationally-accepted standard to measure inequality, usually used to estimate the difference between the rich and the poor.

It’s saddening to note that the index shows that Malaysians have been growing apart in wealth in the past decade.

It indicates a trend where the rich are getting richer while the poor remain poor, or make so little progress on income levels that any increase is negated by inflation.

Surely, one of the best ways to improve on this would be to introduce the much-talked-about but long-delayed minimum wage scheme.

You see, setting a minimum wage will also positively adjust salaries up the job ladder. It will likely offset the brain drain to some extent.

The minimum wage scheme wasn’t introduced in Budget 2011, but a council was founded which would look into how the scheme could be implemented.

The worry, though, is whether such much-needed efforts will come too little too late. Much has been said about Malaysia falling into the middle-income trap.

Putting targets on higher income levels is a noble aim. And there is no reason to assume the country can’t reach them. Still, rebalancing income distribution and to stem the brain drain are faraway goals from where we stand.

Education aid for students from minority groups

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/8/6/sarawak/6807426&sec=sarawak

Friday August 6, 2010

Education aid for students from minority groups

By DIANA ROSE
drose@thestar.com.my


THE Sarawak Skills Development Centre (PPKS) has offered academic aid amounting to RM1mil to 40 students from minority groups, including three Penans from Ulu Baram, to take up courses in Miri.

The Penan students are Gelawat Madun, 18, from Long Latei, Martin Willy Paren, 21, from Long Luteng and Alex Wang, 21, from Long Win.

Gelawat will take up a course in graphics while Martin and Willy will pursue a Mechatronics course.

The cost of the journeys from their villages to PPKS in Lutong and their registration fees were borne by a Good Samaritan from Kuala Lumpur identified only as Tan.

Gelawat said that Tan had helped him and other fellow Penans when they were in school.

“He has a good heart,” said Gelawat.

PPKS executive director Baharudin Abdullah told a press conference yesterday the students were the second batch from minority groups sponsored by the centre.

He said the first batch of 106 students, of whom 18 were Penans, was recruited in June last year. They received sponsorship totalling nearly RM3mil.

He said the money was from a Federal grant channelled to the State Planning Unit.

Sarawak is the only state that gets this education aid for minority-group students to acquire technical skills in various fields of expertise.

Among the courses offered at PPKS are those in plantation management, graphics, tourism, electrical, mechatronics and electronics.

The students will undergo a two-year course with their tuition and allowance fees fully paid by the Government.

Of the remaining 37 sponsored students in the second batch, 11 were Kenyah, six Kayan, two Kelabit, four Lun Bawang, one Murut, one Suluk, one Kajang, four Kedayan, two Berawan, one Sino-Iban, one Sekapan, one Bisaya, one Batak and three Penan. Another one is yet to register.