The Malaysian government seemed to have come to head with other countries as well as interest groups over the issue of preserving traditional indigenous knowledge at the seventh conference on biodiversity (COP-7).

Jannie Lasimbang, director of Pacos Trust, an indigenous peoples' coalition based in Sabah, said Malaysia is the only country left standing in the way of a number of provisions related to indigenous rights under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

Interest groups, she said, are particularly concerned over Malaysia's decision to stand against all other signatories.

During last December's preparation meeting in Montreal, Malaysia would not agree with the wording to of a provision which gives indigenous communities the "right to grant or refuse access" to knowledge belonging to them, unless the term "consistent with Article 8(j) and subject to national law" be inserted.

The proposal, document 3/7, extends onto Article 8(j) of the CBD, which Malaysia is signatory. Article 8(j) says that local legislation should as much as possible protect indigenous knowledge and practices, and that any promotion of such knowledge must first obtain prior consent and involvement of the communities.

Not undermining indigenous rights

Fearful of possible moves by Malaysia to limit indigenous rights, Malaysian non-governmental organisations held a meeting with the Malaysian delegation this afternoon to discuss the issue.

At the meeting, Science, Technology and Environment Ministry's secretary general Leong Ah Hin denied that Malaysia's call for the inclusion of "national law" was an attempt to undermine indigenous rights.

Rather, the government's position was to be on the "safe side and not open itself to uncertainty over the wording of the text," which may be used against it, said Leong, who is also head of the Malaysian delegation.

"We are fearful that other things may creep into the convention that are beyond our control," he said.

Subjecting the paragraph to national legislation also means that the text remain consistent with article 8(j) of the convention, which also gives precedent to local laws, said Science, Technology and Environment Ministry's legal advisor Peh Suan Yong.

This is necessary, Peh said, because the proposed text is an extension upon 8(j), and would therefore need to be consistent to the original text which Malaysia had signed.

"We take the postion that any extension or extrapolation would require affirmation that it is consistent with national legislation."

No local legislation

Indigenous groups however disagreed.

The rights of indigenous groups to have prior consent over knowledge and practices belonging to them, should be an implicit obligation, if Malaysia is truly committed to protect indigenous rights, said Jannie, who also coordinates the lobby of indigenous groups at COP 7.

It is even more crucial that Malaysia sign onto the provisions, particularly as there is no local legislation that protects indigenous knowledge from being stolen, she said.

"We have seen this happen often enough, where (indigenous knowledge and practices) is carted away and used without the slightest bit of recognition," she stressed.

She added that it is also not pragmatic to call on indigenous groups to wait for local legislation to catch up with international standards, particularly as there has been no indication of any attempt locally to improve the rights of the asal communities.

Controversial position

Meanwhile, Malaysia's opposition to two other provisions on indigenous rights is expected to generate controversy as the sticky points are discussed by signatories over the next few days of the conference.

Malaysia is also the sole opposition to the provision that requires indigenous people to consent to any decision by the state to designate land lived by indigenous groups as protected areas, as well as have a say in the management of these areas.

It is also alone in wanting replaced the recommendation "alleviate poverty" with the weaker "support poverty reduction efforts", which NGOs attending COP 7 has come to strongly criticise.

On Thursday, Malaysia's attempts to water down goal 2.2 on the issue of protected areas was stopped short when other coutries refused to go along with its insistence that the "involvement of indigenous groups and local communities" be merely "encouraged", and not "enhanced and secured".

"One hopes that peer pressure will prevail upon Malaysia to come up with a strong programme of work in relation to ingidenous peoples and local communities," said yesterday's issue of NGO newsletter ECO, released daily by interest groups attending the conference.