KUALA LUMPUR – The stateless Bajau Laut, as well as the rest of the Adat Laut community from Pulau Bodgaya in Semporna – where Tun Sakaran Marine Park (TSMP) is located – saw their village raided by local authorities this morning.
According to social advocacy group Borneo Komrad, empty houses were stripped down and community members were allegedly “intimidated” for refusing to surrender to authorities, with Sabah Parks Department officials and police reportedly present as early as around 7 to 8am.
Activist Syahfeeq Rondin said this is the fourth raid held this year alone against the community, and this time it was reported that seven houses were damaged. Previous operations were held between June and August this year.
“While villagers were informed last week that there would be a demolition operation taking place today (until December 19), they did not expect that the (authorities) would come that early.
“The villagers were just having their breakfast when they were approached by the authorities,” he told Scoop when contacted.
According to Syahfeeq, the villagers claimed that the officials were stripping down walls of empty wooden houses built on the sea. He also said that occupied houses were subjected to eviction, but the villagers defied instructions and insisted on staying.
He added that the enforcement officials allegedly “intimidated” the villagers by saying that they would be arrested and taken to the nearest police status for further actions
“However, when the villagers were getting ready to be taken to the police station and started to collect their documents, they were suddenly told to go to the police station on their boats and surrender.
“It was puzzling for them and asked why they should surrender themselves. They (eventually) declined and remained at their respective homes,” he added.
The Borneo Komrad activist said that he has yet to hear any news on the arrests of villagers or occupied homes being torn down. However, he was informed by villagers that their resisting peers saw their fruit trees being hacked by the officials.
“Some trees grown by the villagers before the creation of TSMP were cut down. Plus, there were a lot of mango trees that have borne fruit and are yet to be harvested. It is as if they are trying to scare off the villagers,” claimed Syahfeeq.
It was reported that around 20 mango trees were damaged.
In June, Scoop reported that authorities demolished 138 “illegal” houses in the TSMP between June 4 and 6. The operation involved multiple agencies, including the Sabah Parks Department, police, marine police, the Semporna district office, Eastern Sabah Security Command, the Immigration Department, the National Registration Department, and the Semporna District Council.
Public outcry ensued after videos emerged showing the demolished houses being burned, with human rights lawyers Rajesh Nagarajan and Sachpreetraj Singh condemning the actions as “barbaric.”
The subsequent operations continued to receive public and media attention, including the August 14 operation that saw four individuals, including villagers and Borneo Komrad activists, reportedly detained by Sabah Parks enforcement personnel after allegedly intervening in the demolition of illegal structures on Pulau Bodgaya.
The Adat Laut community continued to be subjected to the operations despite the assurance given by Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor on July 6 that the welfare of the community, who hold a special stateless status, remains a priority for both the federal and state governments.
Syahfeeq speculates that there is a “huge possibility” that local authorities continue to target the community due to their assumption that the Adat Laut communities are unaware of their rights despite having lived in TSMP areas as well as the vast sea area for decades.
“They think that the community members do not know their rights, so that they can continue having these demolishment operations at the time when the issue has cooled down,” he said, adding that these officials appear to be turning a deaf ear towards calls by state leaders for the community’s rights to be safeguarded.
Halt operations pending court case
Commenting further, Syahfeeq urged the state government to take into consideration the community’s intention to fight for their rights to live in the disputed area by filing a court case which would determine whether the Adat Laut community or the marine parks are the actual “intruders”.
He also called on the state government to instruct local authorities to halt the operations while waiting for the court case.
“When the case is heard at the court and the homes have been demolished, the state would face (repercussions) in the long term as they would have to adhere to (community’s) demands for (new) homes, should the court rule in their favour.
“Therefore, they should be firm with their often repeated stance that they want to safeguard the community’s rights and immediately halt all these (operations),’’ added Syahfeeq. – December 17, 2024