VIDEO l 10.58 min

A documentary on the controversies surrounding the Sarawak mega dams by international NGO the Borneo Project premieres on internet TV channel KiniTV today.

‘Damming Our Future’ is the first in a series on the proposed Baram mega-dam, which critics say will displace thousands of indigenous people and threaten flora and fauna species with extinction.

“The documentary unveils the brutally destructive facts of this initiative, amplifying the voices of people who are threatened with displacement.

“It also documents the hardships of communities that are forced to leave their homes and communities,” said the Borneo Project, which has worked with indigenous communities to protect their rainforests and land rights over 20 years.

The documentary comes soon after the first anniversary of the Baram dam blockade, to prevent dam developer Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB) from accessing the construction area since October 2013.

The Baram dam will inundate 26 villages and displace between 6,000 and 20,000 people, but SEB says the community will be relocated and compensated.

“What would happen if middle class families of Kuala Lumpur were facing forced relocation?

“Would their rights to their homes and communities be respected?” Borneo Project director Jettie Word compares.

In the documentary, Baram natives voice their frustration of fighting against the unstoppable.

"We depend on the land, the trees, the forest, the river, the grass," says one.

"We have many children and grandchildren, where will we find our living if we are displaced?" weeps a grandmother as scenes show generations of people who completely depend on their land for their living.

Two additional films in the series that focus on alleged corruption and forced relocation will be released early next year. All of the films will also be available on KiniTV .

The 12 proposed mega-dams will flood more than 2,000 square kilometers of tropical forest and displace thousands of indigenous people.

The impoundment will also affect wildlife species, with critics raising alarm on possible extinctions.

The mega-hydro projects are part of the Sarawak corridor of renewable energy (Score), a state initiative targeted for completion in 2020.