BRUNO MANSER AND SARAWAK

Bruno Manser was an environmental activist. He was born on 25 August 1954 in Basel, Switzerland. He was well-known in Switzerland for his public activism for rainforest's preservation and the protection of indigenous people. He also famous for supporting indigenous rainforest's tribe in Borneo that is Penan people, which are a nomadic aboriginal people living in Sarawak, Malaysia and the Penan people are living in the jungle where they believe the jungle spirits will protect them from any disaster. Manser came to Sarawak to fighting the timber operators that Penan people claim are destroying their forest home. Besides that, Manser wants to help to preserve the forest in Borneo which is more than 70% of Sarawak’s rainforest has been cut during the past 20 years.

Bruno Manser has lived in the jungle of Eastern Malaysia state of Sarawak, on the island of Borneo for 6 years that is from 1984-1990. He had lived with the nomadic band known as the Along Sega who became the figurehead for their struggle. He had been labeled as a fugitive and a provocateur by the Malaysian officials and being called an “enemy of the state number one.” On 17 July, 1991 Manser had made a protest internationally in Sarawak. He had chained himself at a lamp post and with a banner during the G7 summit until cut loose by the police. Then, he left Sarawak before coming back again in 1999. This time he coming back and paragliding onto the front lawn of Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud. He had made a deal with the government by offering a truce in exchange to create a biosphere reserve for the Penan. However, he was being deported. To make Manser satisfied with the reason of it, the Sarawak government officials note that 95% of the state’s economic mostly goes to the federal coffers. Due to this, it lead Sarawak has no choice but to earn money from the natural products which is timber.

Bruno Manser's action to help the Penan people is wrong. We can change people into the modern world's lifestyle but we cannot change somebody mentality or belief on certain things that can be said sensitive. In the case of Manser, he has a great intention to help the Penan people and to preserves the forest from cutting by irresponsible people and companies.