The Penan of Baram in Sarawak thought their lives would change for the better after the National Taskforce was set up in 2009 to study their problems.

However, four years later, Amelia Balan, 22, and other Penan women continue to suffer the same problems plaguing their village in Baram Tengah.

The promises of the government to offer them protection from sexual attacks, birth registration and citizenship problems and water and healthcare facilities have yet to be fulfilled.

NONE Disappointed with the stagnant developments in her village, Amelia ( right ), has come forward with four other Penan women to ask new Women, Family and Community Development Minister Rohani Abdul Karim to deal with the matters affecting her people.

For a community living several hours from the nearest National Registration Department (NRD) office, obtaining birth registrations and identity cards (IC) are a continual challenge, despite a recommendation in the National Taskforce Report that NRD conducts frequent visits to the village.

"It is hard to register as a citizen as the NRD officers rarely visit Baram. Most of the Penan have no IC or birth certificates, even the children and elders," said Amelia.

She added that in her village of 150 Penan people, water supply had become increasingly scarce ever since a water pipe burst two years ago.

"Now we have to rely on the polluted Sungai Banau to cook and shower, which has caused many villagers to fall ill," she said.

'Our community will be destroyed by the dam'

For 35 year-old Catherine Bitang, the promises of more clinics, schools and longhouses for the community have been not been delivered either. Instead, the multi-million ringgit Baram dam has been built in the vicinity.

"They're only building the dam, but what use have we for it? They (government) want progress but there is nothing we can benefit from it. A mini-hydroelectric generator might save our Penan community," she lamented.

NONE Catherine's ( on the left in picture ) community, located near the dam, will be flooded and destroyed when it is completed in 2018.

The native customary land, which is the lifeblood of the economic, social, cultural and spiritual well-being of the Penan, also faces extinction due to logging activities, said Juliet Bulan Singa, 21 ( above, right ).

"The land is like a hospital for our people as we rely on the forest bounty for our medicinal needs as well as for food. Now that we lack basic necessities, our lifestyle has become difficult," she said.

Tabita De', 32, added that medical supplies were insufficient and inconsistent, as visits by doctors were regular in some villages but not in others.

"They usually come in once a month, but sometimes cancel appointments due to bad weather. The lack of manpower means they also cannot reschedule another appointment," she said.

For Gadong Ngok, a mother of four, finding transport to send her children to school is a constant struggle because of her financial constraints.

"Many children have forgone their Form Five as the families don't have enough funds to support them. My son wants to do Form Six but I, too, have no money left for him," she said.

There are 15,000 Penan in Sarawak, with 10,000 of them living in the Baram Tengah region while the rest are in Hulu Baram.