Local heroes save many from express boat tragedy

BELAGA: Three friends from Rumah Sekapan Panjang are hailed as heroes by people here for saving more than 100 passengers of the Kawan Masin Sungai Bungan in the upper reaches of the Rajang on Tuesday.

Using just two boats powered by outboard engines Harudis Busan, 41, Harimi Taju, 30 and Nerius Busan, 36 drove back and forth from the bank to the capsized vessel to pick up survivors in the turbulent water.

According to Harudis when met yesterday,it was very fortunate they with their boats were a short distance from the where the boat capsized.

He recalled the engine of the express boat was dead and  was pushed helplessly by the strong current onto a rock before it listed and capsized.

“I saw an express boat was about to capsize and most of the passengers on the roof were jumping down into the river,” he said.

Without any second thoughts the trio got into their boats and drove straight for the passengers floundering in the strong current.

“When we reach there, the boat had already overturned and those in the water were struggling to swim to the shore in the turbulent water,” said Harudis.

He remebered the first persons he picked up were a father and a son.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/05/31/local-heroes-save-more-than-100-from-watery-death/#ixzz2Uq7b4SbN

A tragedy that should not have happened. The Star

WE are all saddened by the latest Belaga boat tragedy where 23 passengers returning home for the Gawai harvest festival were feared to have drowned after an overloaded express boat capsized after hitting a boulder in the middle of Balui River in the Belaga district in Central Sarawak.

The boat was reported to have carried 204 passengers when it was only allowed its official capacity of 74.

The main contributory cause to the tragedy was clearly overloading which exceeded the permitted capacity.

The other reason was perhaps the boat was racing past rapids and dangerous torrents in the raging Balui river.

In October 2010, an express boat tragedy occurred in Tatau, Bintulu, which claimed 13 lives.

Obviously the safety issues and lessons from that incident had not been taken seriously by the boat operators and we are now faced with another tragedy.

Overloading of passengers and goods is a perennial problem in the express boat service which is a popular mode of transportation in Sarawak.

Boat operators must always be conscious and responsible for the safety of their passengers.

They must never compromise safety for profit as they have a duty of care in ensuring the safety of each and every passenger.

As for the passengers themselves, they are also responsible for their own safety.

They should not get into the boat when it has exceeded its capacity.

I send my deepest condolences to the families of those who perished while I hope that the remaining survivors can still be found.

Steps have to be taken to prevent more boat tragedies.

There should be more patrolling by Sarawak Rivers Board along the rivers to enforce the riverine regulations and safety laws on passenger load and other requirements.

There should be more efforts to educate passengers to avoid crowded boats.

The other safety measure is to ensure that all passengers wear life jackets throughout the riverine journey.

What is also important is self-regulation for one’s own safety. We must always be mindful of safety.

One life lost is too many. It is my sincere hope that the authorities, boat operators and passengers will learn from the bitter lesson of this latest tragedy.

Think Safe, Act Safe and Be Safe all the time.TAN SRI LEE LAM THYE

NIOSH Chairman

Express boat capsizes in Balui River, two bodies found so far (updated)

The Star

By PHILIP HII, ANDY CHUA and STEPHEN THEN

Location of the incident (marked in black).

BELAGA: An express boat, jam-packed with 204 people rushing to get home for the Dayak harvest festival of Gawai, capsized in the middle of the Balui river here with many feared dead, some 400km from Sibu.

The boat was carrying passengers three times the official seating capacity of 67, with many of them sitting on the roof.

It capsized after hitting a boulder in the middle of the raging Balui river in Belaga district in central Sarawak while plying the Bakun-Belaga-Kapit-Sibu route, in the mid-morning hours Tuesday.

Tragic incident: A photo of the overturned boat taken by Liwan.

As at 4pm Tuesday, a few dozen survivors had been rescued and it was said that two bodies had been recovered, including that of a pregnant woman.

A massive search and rescue operation involving the police, Fire and Rescue Department and volunteers from Belaga, Kapit and Bintulu and Sibu has been launched.

They are now attempting to locate the missing, some of whom are believed trapped beneath the capsized express boat, said Belaga state assemblyman Liwan Lagang.

Liwan, who is State Culture and Heritage Assistant Minister, said it is still unclear how many people were actually on board the express boat.

"The survivors said the incident happened while they were on their way from the upper reaches of the Balui River, not far from the Bakun Dam, to Kapit. They were about an hour from Belaga town when their boat capsized.

A picture said to be of the overloaded boat taken before it capsized.

"When the boat overturned, there were people still trapped inside.

"A search and rescue operation was started immediately after the authorities were alerted about the incident," said Liwan, who flew to the site to check on rescue operations and meet with survivors.

Local community leaders in the Belaga district have also joined in the search and rescue efforts.

Teams of young men from numerous riverine settlements are combing the riverbanks and downstream stretches.

On dry land: Some of the survivors who swam ashore looking out at the overturned vessel.

A community chief in Bakun, Penghulu Saging Bit, when contacted by The Star, said that the site of the tragedy is at a place called Giam Bungan.

"The place is between the Belaga and Kapit. There is a small stretch of rapids there.

"From what we have been told, the boat had started picking up people from the upper reaches of the Balui River not far from the Bakun Dam.

"The passengers were mostly local natives from the Kapit and Sibu Divisions working in various plantations near Bakun.

"Many of them are timber and oil palm workers. They wanted to go home for Gawai.

"The boat was said to have started the journey from upper Balui near the Bakun Dam at about 6am.

"By the time it reached the Belaga town area (at about 8am), it was already packed with people.

"About 30 minutes later, the incident happened. Some survivors said they felt the boat hitting something, and then it capsized.

A call to the Belaga police station revealed that almost all its personnel had rushed to the scene, including the police chief and his assistants.

Meanwhile, Bernama reported a total of 181 passengers managed to swim to safety while 23 others remain missing.

Belaga OCPD DSP Bakar Sebau said survivors were now sheltering at two longhouses not far from the site of the incident.

"We are still continuing with our search for those who are still missing," he said.

He said the incident occurred between 8.30am and 9.00am Tuesday after the express boat, Bakun Mas Express Boat, developed engine problems after hitting wood debris in the river.

The Balui River is a tributary of the Rajang River at a confluence near Belaga town and runs all the way to Kapit town and then Sibu town before entering the South China Sea.

Two years ago, 13 passengers died in a similar express boat tragedy in Tatau district near Bintulu town.

Boat tragedy in Sarawak: 14 missing, 170 saved

KUCHING, May 28 (Bernama) -- A total of 181 passengers managed to swim to safety while 23 others remained missing today after an express boat capsized in the Rajang River near Belaga, an interior town in central Sarawak.

Belaga OCPD, DSP Bakar Sebau, Tuesday said those who managed to save themselves were now sheltering at two longhouses not far from the site of the incident, which was about 40-minute express boat journey from Belaga town.

"We are still continuing with our search for those who are still missing," he said when contacted from here.

He said the incident occurred between 8.30am and 9.00am today after the express boat, Bakun Mas Express Boat, developed engine problem after hitting wood debris in the river.

Bernama earlier learnt Tuesday that the express boat, "Bakun Mas Express Boat" was from Bakun, in the upper part of the river and had passed Belaga bazaar at around 8am.

-- BERNAMA

Kumang Gawai

15 beauties vie for Kumang Gawai pageant tonight

By YU JI 
yuji@thestar.com.my 
Photos by ANDRE OLIVEIRO

BEAUTY pageant winners often go into careers quite unrelated to their glamorous beginnings.

Take 1992 Kumang Gawai winner, Pamela Ragam, for example. She won the pageant on her first try at just 19 years of age, then followed up on her winning streak at the 1993 Kuching Festival Queen pageant, where she got second. She also made it as a Miss Sarawak finalist the following year.

Currently, Pamela, 35, is a businesswoman. She runs a modest stationary supply sole-proprietorship in Kuching.

“In the first place, I got into the beauty pageant scene unplanned,” Pamela told StarMetro. “I wasn’t that hopeful, but to my surprise, I became the Kumang. It was a great feeling and I was relatively successful at other pageants later on.”

But what impeded her early career was not lack of determination, instead, it was lack of opportunities.

“Back then, there wasn’t much of a modelling scene,” Pamela recalled. “And I don’t think the scene has improved much since then. In Peninsular Malaysia, yes; but not here, unfortunately.”

Beauty tips: Pamela advising the finalists during rehearsal on Thursday night.

Pamela is head coach to the 15 finalists for this year’s Kumang Gawai pageant. Speaking to StarMetro at the final rehearsal on Thursday night, Pamela said she felt honoured to be imparting her knowledge and experience.

“Looking at all these young girls, I see part of me in them.”

To be good in a beauty pageant takes nerves. In fact, it is no surprise that a few of the finalists this year are Mass Communication degree graduates and students.

“It’s a combination of knowledge and confidence,” Pamela said. “To me, there’s no clear distinction between urban and rural kids or how well they’re educated. I feel that having the kind of confidence to present yourself, in any situation, but especially on stage, is innate. Some kids are just more confidence than others.”

But with so much emphasis on knowledge these days, are beauty pageants losing its lustre?

“I think there will always be a time and place for beauty, for grace,” Pamela said.

“Furthermore, the Kumang Gawai is an opportunity for Dayaks to show off our tradition and culture. It’s a chance for girls across Sarawak to get together and learn from each other. In today’s society, any exposure is good.”

Keeping in step with the times, the pageant winner this year will go on to become Sarawak Dayak National Union’s (SDNU) ambassador.

As such, the judging criteria has been tweaked, placing more emphasis on public speaking skills. The pageant’s main organiser Senorita Linang said 20% of the judging criteria will be based on speaking abilities.

“At the very least, the finalists should be fluent in English and Bahasa Malaysia,” Senorita said. “Poise and personality will cover another 30% while the remainder is on beauty.”

The pageant, which will be held tonight, is the highlight of SDNU’s annual Gawai Dinner. Initially, more than 20 girls signed up for the pageant. Besides the ambassadorship, the winner will also walk away with RM5,000.

The second place winner will receive RM3,000 and third place, RM2,000.

Meanwhile, The Star is sponsoring a RM1,000 prize for the pageant’s Miss Photogenic subsidiary title.

Social Development and Urbanisation Minister Datuk Seri William Mawan Ikom will officiate at the dinner at the Christian Ecumenical Centre, Jalan Laksamana Cheng Ho in Kuching.

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Saturday May 15, 2010

15 beauties vie for Kumang Gawai pageant tonight

By YU JI 
yuji@thestar.com.my 
Photos by ANDRE OLIVEIRO

BEAUTY pageant winners often go into careers quite unrelated to their glamorous beginnings.

Take 1992 Kumang Gawai winner, Pamela Ragam, for example. She won the pageant on her first try at just 19 years of age, then followed up on her winning streak at the 1993 Kuching Festival Queen pageant, where she got second. She also made it as a Miss Sarawak finalist the following year.

Currently, Pamela, 35, is a businesswoman. She runs a modest stationary supply sole-proprietorship in Kuching.

“In the first place, I got into the beauty pageant scene unplanned,” Pamela told StarMetro. “I wasn’t that hopeful, but to my surprise, I became the Kumang. It was a great feeling and I was relatively successful at other pageants later on.”

But what impeded her early career was not lack of determination, instead, it was lack of opportunities.

“Back then, there wasn’t much of a modelling scene,” Pamela recalled. “And I don’t think the scene has improved much since then. In Peninsular Malaysia, yes; but not here, unfortunately.”

Beauty tips: Pamela advising the finalists during rehearsal on Thursday night.

Pamela is head coach to the 15 finalists for this year’s Kumang Gawai pageant. Speaking to StarMetro at the final rehearsal on Thursday night, Pamela said she felt honoured to be imparting her knowledge and experience.

“Looking at all these young girls, I see part of me in them.”

To be good in a beauty pageant takes nerves. In fact, it is no surprise that a few of the finalists this year are Mass Communication degree graduates and students.

“It’s a combination of knowledge and confidence,” Pamela said. “To me, there’s no clear distinction between urban and rural kids or how well they’re educated. I feel that having the kind of confidence to present yourself, in any situation, but especially on stage, is innate. Some kids are just more confidence than others.”

But with so much emphasis on knowledge these days, are beauty pageants losing its lustre?

“I think there will always be a time and place for beauty, for grace,” Pamela said.

“Furthermore, the Kumang Gawai is an opportunity for Dayaks to show off our tradition and culture. It’s a chance for girls across Sarawak to get together and learn from each other. In today’s society, any exposure is good.”

Keeping in step with the times, the pageant winner this year will go on to become Sarawak Dayak National Union’s (SDNU) ambassador.

As such, the judging criteria has been tweaked, placing more emphasis on public speaking skills. The pageant’s main organiser Senorita Linang said 20% of the judging criteria will be based on speaking abilities.

“At the very least, the finalists should be fluent in English and Bahasa Malaysia,” Senorita said. “Poise and personality will cover another 30% while the remainder is on beauty.”

The pageant, which will be held tonight, is the highlight of SDNU’s annual Gawai Dinner. Initially, more than 20 girls signed up for the pageant. Besides the ambassadorship, the winner will also walk away with RM5,000.

The second place winner will receive RM3,000 and third place, RM2,000.

Meanwhile, The Star is sponsoring a RM1,000 prize for the pageant’s Miss Photogenic subsidiary title.

Social Development and Urbanisation Minister Datuk Seri William Mawan Ikom will officiate at the dinner at the Christian Ecumenical Centre, Jalan Laksamana Cheng Ho in Kuching.

• 
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Anti-dam activists continue to make presence felt at hydropower congress. The Star report

Passionate: Kallang airing his views at the 'Working with Project-Affected Communities' focus session yesterday.

KUCHING: From donning traditional gear during protests to wearing suits and speaking as conference delegates, anti-dam activists continue to make their presence felt at the International Hydropower Association World Congress.

On the second day of seminars and talks at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching here, activists such as Peter Kallang managed to raise criticism about proposals to build more dams in this state.

Other critics who managed to speak during question time and at focus sessions included Ding Seling and Ding Juh, longhouse residents near the proposed Baram dam, and members of state government recognised bodies like Asap Koyan Development Committee director Henry Luhat.

Arguably, it was Kallang, who is Save Rivers chairman, who garnered the most attention.

He told delegates at two different talks yesterday that, one, the Government must not act and speak only “like a lawyer”, and second, some in the rural areas have protested simply because they felt they “didn’t have a voice”.

He also lamented access to information like environmental impact assessments was bound in red tape, leaving undereducated rural dwellers ill-informed, confused and easily manipulated.

Kallang then asserted that it was not wrong for the affected to stage blockades and protests.

“I will not apologise. We will go on demonstrating,” he said, addressing the delegates during the “Working with Project-Affected Communities” focus session, which was packed to the brim, despite other concurrent sessions.

When asked to respond to a state government official who said authorities were acting above and beyond what the Malaysian law required when resettling people, Kallang told reporters: “Is there a law to love your mother and father?

“It is an unwritten law, it is a general law that, if you do something like this, you must consider what the impact is. He (the official) is speaking like that because he is a lawyer. It’s quite inhumane.

“Go to the Sungai Asap resettlement, where there is just one school. The Penan resettlement is about 10km away (from the school). Because they have little money, they cannot afford the school bus. During lunch time, they cannot eat, because they don’t have money.

“The school says food is only provided for boarders. Why is the Government not doing anything? Is it not very sad?” he said.

However, Kallang did agree with certain relocation mechanisms. When asked on the large amounts of compensation requested by some affected, he said it was right for the Government to adopt a systematic way of helping rural communities, rather than give big payouts that could be squandered quickly.

Earlier, Sarawak government advisor and former state attorney-general Datuk JC Fong told the focus session it would be irresponsible for the authorities to allow large sums of one-off compensations.

He said significant compensations were provided to those resettled during the construction of Sarawak’s first hydropower dam at Batang Ai in the 1970s.

“I speak from experience. I saw these huge compensations, but those compensated became poor very soon thereafter, because money was not properly spent. They were back at the same level of poverty.”

Fong defended the state government’s track record and intentions for future development. He said there had been shortcomings in the past but that the state was a developing economy that was responsible to meet consistent growth rates, while tackling a steep learning curve.

The biggest challenge, Fong said, was to balance needs between those already developed — like urban folk and highly educated graduates — and rural people still living in a subsistence economy.

“These (latter group of) people affected are the ones who are transiting from the subsistence economy to being part of the modern, mainstream, cash economy,” Fong said.

Speakers like Labang Paneh, 36, married with five children, from Murum, spoke about his unhappiness with relocation.

An ex-timber camp worker, who could not speak English and needed the help of a translator, Labang told the focus session that those in power needed to pay greater emphasis on local needs.

Labang highlighted that the resettlement houses for those affected by Murum were “of high quality, but that none wanted a gas (cooker hub in the) kitchen”.

He said locals had submitted complaints and followed up with proposals for a “wood burning” kitchen instead. He said it was small details like that which would ease the transition.

“Tell the people simple things like when is the time to move, who will be moving first. If we don’t know clearly, then there will be resistance We know why we have low standard of living, and we know why others have higher standard of living — it is because they have better education.”

Save Rivers delegates say they’re against more mega dams from The Star

KUCHING: The Save Rivers Alternative Conference delegates have unanimously objected against building more mega dams in Sarawak.

The objection was contained in a declaration signed by 200 people from Bakun, Baram, Murum, Bengoh, Niah, Suai, Bintulu, Balingian, Mukah, Limbang, Simunjan, Melikin, Sri Aman and Sibu on Thursday night here.

“We are Kayans, Kenyahs, Penans, Bidayuhs, Ukits, Terings, Chinese, Malays and Ibans. Together as the people of Sarawak, we speak with one voice,” they said.

They charged that the 12 dams planned by the state government and Sarawak Energy Berhad would spell an end to their cultures, livelihoods and future.

“Our homes, our ancestral lands, our forests and our natural environment are gifts that our fathers and grandfathers have acquired and passed down to us, and they are the inheritance that we leave to our children,” stated the declaration.

The delegates said they rejected all mega dams and any form of development projects that would displace them from their ancestral lands.

“We demand that the government respect our rights to our land, our homes, our forests and rivers, and our right to decide our own future.”

They also wanted sustainable and community-based development that supported and guaranteed their livelihoods and preserve their natural environment.

“We invite communities from across Sarawak, Malaysia and the world to join us in our efforts to fight all mega dams so that we can protect our rights, culture, way of life and save Sarawak’s rivers,” they said.

undercurrent theme of Sarawakian beneficiaShell Sustainable Development Grants 2013.

KUCHING: Various conservation efforts in Sarawak remain the undercurrent theme of Sarawakian beneficiaries of the Shell Sustainable Development Grants 2013.

This was parallel with the Shell Sustainable Development Grants programme which focuses on environmental conservation and sustainable livelihood.

One such example is the fish farming project at the Tapang Pungga Micro Hydro Resevoir undertaken by the Sarawak Dayak Graduates Associate (SDGA).

SDGA committee member Dr Richard Belanda told The Borneo Post that this was the second phase of this project.

“The first phase of the project was the micro hydro resevoir itself,” he explained. “Now, with the fish farming project, we believe we can raise up to 10,000 fish fry in the resevoir, generating up to RM70,000 net profit per year from this.”

The resevoir has a capacity of 10,000 cubic metres, he noted, adding that the objective of this is to provide sustainable income for the Tapang Pungga Longhouse people as well as to protect the Sakum River catchment area from logging encroachment and to sustain the local fish species.

Shell Malaysia provided a grant of RM40,000 for this venture.

Richard said the aim of this project was also to provide an alternative income revenue stream to the locals, who opted for logging as a way to earn money.

Dr Benedict Poris

“The point we are trying to bring across is that there are a lot of other opportunities in rural areas without having to deplete natural resources. We just need the ideas to generate income.”

Meanwhile, Persatuan Warisan Bung Bratak is taking the helms for the conservation of the Bung Bratak Cultural and Biodiversity Heritage project which aims to conserve the only remaining virgin tropical rainforest within the Bratak region.

According to project deputy chairman Rayan Narong, this project will establish boundaries of the community rainforest, undertake more awareness raising programmes, tagging of historic materials and site and trees with the Shell Malaysia grant.

“We are also looking to divert some of the grant money towards research on the microorganisms and insects within the region,” he noted, adding that the group last year’s grants to conduct further research on the flora and fauna here.”

Shell granted this project with RM25,000 this year.

Part of the grant, Narong added, will also go towards the repair and upgrading of existing infrastructure as well as training the locals on homestay, handicraft and basic tourist guiding.

The third Sarawakian project given a grant by Shell Malaysia was the conservation of Bung Pengu Jembu.   Chairman Dr Benedict Poris in speaking with The Borneo Post underscored the importance of conserving the Bung Pengu Jampu community rainforest within the Padawan-Penrissen region as it held much potential in terms of herbal medicines, ecotourism and so on.

“There are rare species here, such as the amischotolype marginata, which are medicinally used to cure diseases,” he explained. “This is one of the reasons why we want to have this area gazetted as a heritage site.

“Also, we hope to develop the area to allow tourists to come and savour the natural living habitats. This will help improve the livelihood of some village communities especially those who still love off the rainforest.”

Last but not least is the conservation of the Bung Jagoi Natural Richness undertaken by JKK Pusat Jagoi in Bau.

The project was given RM25,000 by Shell Malaysia.

The aim of this project is to conserve the ancestral village at Bung Jagoi and the community rainforest along with the biodiversity therein.

The project also aims to be a potential centre for documentation of traditional knowledge especially for herbal medicine.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2013/05/20/conservation-the-main-theme-of-sarawak-grant-receivers/#ixzz2UD24mMCY