Voices From The Rainforest

by Bruno Manser

Voices from the Rainforest tells the story of logging in Sarawak, its devastating effects on indigenous people, and government collusion with their suffering. It's a chronicle of injustice, brutality and resistance, recounted by Penan themselves, while Manser's illustrations bring the rainforest to life. This book is an essential record of the injustices suffered by the Penan in the 1980s and 1990s, and a reminder that the struggle is not over yet.

294 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2015

Reviews

[books.bintulu · Rating 4 out of 5]

February 2020: Voices from the Rainforest

Back from visiting Lamin Dana, I decided to learn about the local so went to library and found this book. Picked it up because it has sketches so probably I won't get bored reading non fiction.

Went home and googled about the author (sebab pelik apa mat saleh ni buat dalam hutan). His story pun dah interesting.

It is quite heartbreaking to read the testimonies circa late 80s to 1991. I realized I dont really know about the indigenous people in Malaysia, their culture and their lifestyle - so much to learn! Respect each other. Tak kenal maka tak cinta.

Sustainability is the key.

[Thavakumar Kandiahpillai · Rating 4 out of 5]

A passionate book on a multi faceted subject.

The issues raised are best looked at separately. It would be utopian to seek a single outcome for all of them.

Two of the issues are complex and there are no easy solutions.

i) whether it realistic for any group of people to avoid modernity and all its ills and conveniences is a difficult question. As much as every community has a right to do what it prefers to do, history shows this has not succeeded anywhere. Especially when the majority sees them standing in the way of seeming economic gains. The issue is one of minority v majority rights, in which a balance tends to be achieved only to the extent of practicality.

ii) the issue of using tropical timber v local timber in non tropical countries is equally complex but ultimately, as Manser suggests, consumers and consumer nations need to make informed, honest choices.

Two other issues seem simpler.

iii) exporting round logs or barely processed timber is only for quick, short term gains. Value adding the products at the source country is plain common sense, especially when the exporters have the know how and capital to make finished products. If a country can bulld skyscrapers and manufacture cars and computer chips and almost anything else, value adding by manufacturing furniture or door beams cannot be too hard. A lot more value will be retained and more people will gain from employment and the value chain.

iiv) it would be very odd indeed if a sitting or retired politician or minister gets contracts or concessions awarded by his colleagues. If concessions are to be awarded, surely an open tender process with all the usual conflicts of interest safeguards will the most transparent way to award them.

[Curvy Exterior · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Good: Accurately captured the perspectives of indigenous population in Sarawak who suffered from land encroachment which led to starvation, fish depletion, reduced wild game and loss of plants. The value of biodiversity in human life from food security to hunting game was observed well. The money and power trail were noted from politicians, enforcement agencies and businessmen.
The Bad: Indigenous people treated as if they don't exist and not worth listening to. Unity of purpose among the people were easier said than done as each had a life to live and cannot spare their time and effort protesting for long, resulting in change of alliances. It was shameful to note that they were sprayed tear gas by the police.

[Cin · Rating 4 out of 5]

For interested malaysian readers, the book is available as a reference at the National Library of Malaysia.