Ulu Padas refers to the headwaters of the Padas River, an area of approximately 80 000 hectares at the southwestern-most tip of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. This steep mountainous area, with elevations ranging from 915 to 2070 metres, remains among the few parts of Sabah’s forest estate  with  extensive  old-growth forest (Figure 7.1) (Mannan and Awang 1997: 2).^[2] Globally, Ulu Padas is of considerable conservation significance. It is believed to rival Mount Kinabalu in terms of plant endemism and species diversity, particularly within pockets of rare kerangas or heath forest throughout the area. This area is part of the larger Central Bornean Montane forests, a transboundary ecoregion that extends over the Kelabit Highlands of Sarawak and Indonesia’s Kayan Mentarang National Park (Figure 7.2). The contiguous oak-chestnut forest is also believed to support the seasonal migration of the bearded pig (Sus barbatus), a major source of meat for Borneo’s upland communities (Hazebroek and Kashim 2000).

Source: Sabah Forestry Department 1997

As early as 1992, Ulu Padas was identified in the Sabah Conservation Strategy as a distinct biogeographic zone warranting inclusion in the state’s protected area network. To pursue these recommendations further, in 1997 WWF-Malaysia in association with the Ministry of Tourism and Environmental Development, and supported by the Danish Agency for Cooperation and Development, commenced the ‘Identification of Potential Protected Areas’ component of the Sabah Biodiversity Conservation Project. In Ulu Padas, botanical collections confirmed early suspicions of  biological  significance,  identifying  11  distinct

forest types and an impressive array of endemic species (Phillipps and Lamb 1997). The combination of high annual rainfall, high elevation and steep terrain was highlighted in recommendations for catchment management. The Padas River supplies water and generates hydroelectric power for the urban and agricultural areas of Sabah’s southwestern region (Sinun and Suhaimi 1997; Paramanathan 1998). Social assessments revealed interest and support at the community level for conservation and associated development opportunities (Towell 1997). Community apprehensions that logging in the surrounding Forest Reserves would threaten their way of life also featured frequently in formal and informal discussions. At the conclusion of the 1997 study, stakeholder workshops and discussions were held in order to share this information and seek a common vision for this area, which included recommendations to convert the Ulu Padas Commercial Forest Reserve into a Protected Area (Payne and Vaz 1998).

The Ulu Padas community comprises two villages with a combined population of approximately 500 people, centred at the mouths of the Pasia and Mio rivers, both tributaries of the Padas (Figure 7.3). The Lundayeh people of Long Pasia and Long Mio are mainly subsistence swidden and wet-rice farmers, although tobacco, coffee, vegetables and fruits are increasingly being planted. Wild game is the primary source of protein and hunting is an integral part of Lundayeh identity. Rivers supply fresh water and fish, and the surrounding forest is an important source of food, medicines, firewood and building materials (bamboo, rattan and wood) (Hoare 2002: 41–73). Local people regularly access forest resources far beyond existing farms and homesteads, particularly for medicines and rare plants that only occur in the pristine forest areas (Kulip et al. 2000). These are also the best hunting grounds. The remoteness of the villages (123 km by logging road from Sipitang) and seasonality of cash incomes make the forest both a lifeline and a safety net for local people.

Generally, the Lundayeh of Long Pasia and Long Mio assert customary claims to land that their forefathers cleared and farmed before them according to the traditional system. They view the area to be their ancestral heartland and see maintaining aspects of their unique way of life as essential to maintaining their ethnic identity. Through their activities, local people reaffirm their long history and connection with the area. Over generations, their agricultural cycles have shaped the environment, developing a mosaic of forest in different stages of regeneration^[3]and altering the species composition of amenity forest (Hoare 2002: 152–6). This is also a cultural landscape dotted by burial sites, headhunting monuments, historic foot-trails to neighbouring villages in Sarawak and Kalimantan, and trees and farms planted by ancestors. A rich local folklore explains the formation of rock monuments and striking geological features (Vaz 1999) (see Figure 7.4).

However, in the eyes of the government, despite local people’s perceptions of customary claims, only an ‘island’ of State Land of approximately 12 300 hectares has been set aside for local people to make formal applications for Native Title. The remainder of the Ulu Padas area is classified as Commercial Forest Reserve and is within a Forest Management Unit of close to 290 000 hectares which has been concessioned to Sabah Forest Industries.

Sabah Forest Industries (SFI) is a former state-owned entity managed by majority equity holder Lion Group Holdings since early 1994 (Asian Timber, February 2000). In addition, the Ulu Padas Forest Reserve, an area of almost 30 000 hectares proposed as a new Protected Area in the Sabah Conservation Strategy, has been incorporated into a binding 99-year lease agreement (1996–2094) with SFI (see Figure 7.3). SFI’s concession is divided into two categories: (1) Industrial Tree Plantation areas, where natural forest is cleared for pulp and paper and replaced with fast-growing species; and (2) areas under Natural Forest Management ,which are meant to be managed for the sustainable harvest of timber according to the state’s Forestry Guidelines. SFI’s integrated timber complex is the major industry in the nearby town of Sipitang, employing over 2000 people and linked with numerous other contractors and businesses.

The imperative to secure community ownership of forests in the Ulu Padas intensified with the profound changes in the surrounding landscape between 1998 and early 1999. By this time, tropical timber was progressively being sourced further in the uplands, more than 100 km from Sipitang. As replanting with Acacia and Eucalyptus had not kept pace with the demand from the mill, logging roads were becoming more and more invasive, penetrating deeper into the forested interior of the Upper Padas. At higher elevations, logging operations targeted the giant Agathis trees of the old-growth montane forest. SFI had become one of Japan’s main suppliers of sawn Agathis timber (Asian Timber, February 2000). Logging activities within surrounding catchments silted up the tributaries that run through the two valley settlements. Long Pasia’s famous ‘red river’,^[4] usually coloured a clear red by the tannins leached from leaf-littered cloud forest, had become the colour of milky tea. Flooding and declining forest resources were also experienced. Long Mio had already been contending with similar problems with the Mio River as a result of logging activity upstream around Muruk Mio, a distinctive peak in the region.

The impacts experienced by the community stimulated a period of heightened environmental awareness and protest, not only about the commercial logging activities in the Forest Reserves (Daily Express, 18 April 1999; The Star, 19 April 1999; New Straits Times, 21 April 1999), but also about the lack of security given to the community’s customary lands. The local community argued that their way of life and livelihoods were at risk. ‘Allocate an area for the Lundayeh’ was the appeal from the President of the Lundayeh Cultural Association of Sabah (Daily Express, 11 April 1999). Similar views were expressed at a village meeting, the minutes of which were sent to the Chief Minister’s Department.

Our forefathers did not bequeath us wealth of gold and money. Our only inheritance is the land along the banks of the Lelawid and Melabid rivers which they cleared and farmed — this land has been handed from generation to generation. For this reason, we are appealing to the Natural Resources Office for this land to be removed from the Sabah Forest Industries area for us. This land will be divided among the relevant families and also given to village members who do not have land (Minutes from Long Pasia village meeting, 15 September 1998).

At the time of initial WWF-Malaysia dialogues with the community in 1997, the significant reduction in the extent of traditional resource areas and the onset of logging activities were seen to impose unprecedented threats to their environment, economic activities and quality of life. The community had made several attempts to raise their concerns with higher authorities but had little success at obtaining assurances that their customary claim to land and forest in Ulu Padas would be recognised or that logging would be controlled. Furthermore, in response to the increased accessibility created by SFI’s logging roads, external parties were manoeuvring to gain access to the timber on State Land forest. Most villagers were gripped by a sense of anxiety and apprehension.