Flooding Indigenous

The case which entitled as “Flooding the Indigenous Voices” is about Hydro Energy Inc. and the Penan people in Sarawak, Malaysia. Hydro Energy Inc. is a dam construction company that 70% Korean owned and 30% Malaysian. The Penan are considered as one of the few nomadic people that remain in the rain forest.

Recently, the company has won a new hydro project to build a dam in Sarawak, Malaysia. This project is located at a remote area where there are some illegal Penan settlements. The Penan feel threatened by this massive dam project as this project will flood 69,000 hectares of their land. Mr. Cheah Kim Chuan has been hired by the company as the site supervisor. He has recommended the company to employ Upih Guling as head of the local laborers. Upih is one of the few Penan that decided to change his lifestyle and earn a living outside their community.

One night after dinner at the laborers’ camp, the head of the Penan settlements that near the project has confronted Upih, the laborers and some of the Korea engineers. In their conversation, the head of the Penan settlements has argued them to stay away from their ancestors’ land as the project is destroying their precious forest. He also blames Upih as Upih should know better about the importance of the land for them since he is also one of the Penan. More seriously, the Penan menace Upih that they will come with blowpipes if they are not going to leave and they will not be reluctant to use their black magic.

Upih is worried and he has approached this problem to Mr. Cheah. Both of them are worried as they know that the Penan people are very serious about the casting of black magic. In addition, two of the workers have fallen sick with high fever. On the next day, some of the workers tender their resignations and some of them even left the site immediately without giving any notice. Mr. Cheah decides to seek advice from Mr. Park Sang Hyon, the newly-appointed regional manager for the company. However, Mr. Park thinks that the black magic is ridiculous ask he asks Mr. Cheah to solve the laborers’ problems by himself. Five days later, the problem still not be solved.