The Sarawak government has refuted a global NGO's claim that it sells illegally felled logs to Japan and was responsible for the state's loss of forest cover.

NONE "I don't think so and I don't think that happens ... to me this is more of an allegation," second Minister of Resource Planning and Environment Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan ( left ) was quoted as saying by The Borneo Post .

Awang Tengah said that Sarawak's timber exports to Japan, reported to be worth up to RM2.6 billion a year, were all investigated, permitted and checked by relevant agencies.

He was responding to a Global Witness report released on Tuesday, which alleged that Japan's unchecked demand for Sarawak timber has withered down the state's forest cover to 5 percent of its original cover and threatened the livelihoods of indigenous communities.

Even though the report named major Japanese trading companies and two major Sarawakian conglomerates, Awang Tengah still called on Global Witness to come up with proof and not make baseless allegations.