NTFP Regional Meeting, 5-8 October 2005
A Time for Learning
by Joanna de Rozario, NTFP Exchange Programme
I have worked on the loss of land rights caused by deforestation and forest conversion these past years without realising how much the forest had to offer local communities. I joined the Regional Meeting on Indigenous NTFP Development and Resource Management in early October with little knowledge of NTFPs, only to find out that there was a long list of plants and trees that could be used for a large variety of uses. However, there were many lessons to be learnt as NTFP production faces new frontiers in marketing and production techniques, global demand and threats to its natural resource. This awed and baffled me as I heard the many stories shared by the host country Malaysia and across Southeast Asia and India.
Day 1
The Dayak Iban and Penan of Sarawak started the meeting by intensely listing all the NTFPs they used on a daily and not-so-daily basis. It was in their local language and I lost count as the list was numerous. However, they both mentioned the need to develop these products to meet market standards and the means to market them.
Interestingly, the sharing from the Bidayuh Kadazan sub-ethnic group of Sarawak on kasah mats cautioned the participants on focusing on developing a market and marketable products without also looking at the access and availability of the natural resource. It was a success story with a tragic ending. The kasah mats made from tree bark and rattan were developed to meet market standards and was promoted in Peninsular Malaysia and abroad. It became a huge success and I can vouch for that as my parents, sister and a number of relatives and friends houses are adorned with these mats. The demand for kasah mats was phenomenal to the extent that the local communities in Sarawak could not meet the demand due to the lack of rattan. In the end, they lost the entire market to Kalimantan.
There was also no shortage of NTFPs in Peninsular Malaysia. We anxiously waited for the presenter from the Semelai tribe to begin as he had brought along a bottle of liquor from forest fruits (tampoi). Sadly we had no chance to gulp down any in the pretext of tasting. He also caused a controversy with the resin (keruing oil) he had brought from his village. The NTFP experts whom I shall not name were baffled by the high price it fetched as well as the quality and texture. One of the experts found the answer in a book he had written (De Beer, Jenne & McDermott, Melanie J. 1986. The Economic Value of NTFPs in SEA). It was from a different species of tree besides the usual dipterocarps used for resin production.
In Sabah, the PACOS representative fascinated us with the implementation of tagal, a traditional form of natural resource management of fish stocks. It was a success story as tagal was being adopted by relevant state agencies with penalties enforceable by the traditional committees. Tagal will also be taken further to cover other natural resources i.e., forest, wildlife, etc.
We ended the day with NTFP-EP’s debut into the National Geography Channel with its Voices from the Forest video. It showcased stories on the Penan’s dependence on NTFPs and the forest, the Ikalahan tribe in the Philippines defending their traditional forest by developing a market for its products, the development of Modi (Modern Indigenous) in the Philippines which brings together modern designers and traditional artisans from local communities to develop marketable handicrafts and fashion, and finally, the sustainable harvest and production and marketing of wild honey in Danau Sentarum, Indonesia.
Day 2
The second day was set aside for sharing of experiences from outside of Malaysia. Indonesia shared about honey production, marketing and development. The local community representatives shared the various techniques used to create a hive, harvest honey sustainably and process it efficiently and hygienically in order to meet higher product standards. This was briefly highlighted in the video showed the night before. The NGO, Riak Bumi, assists local communities in promoting and marketing their honey – fetching double the price.
In the Philippines, Pastor Delbert Rice who chose to live with the Ikalahan tribe 50 years ago, jointly fought to protect their traditional forest by not only harvesting NTFPs from the forest but also processing them into jams and jellies. As the community lives far from urban Manila, the development, marketing and product research is conducted by a foundation they had formed called Upland Marketing Foundation. So far, there has been a steady demand for UMFI’s jams and jellies; the community has also ventured into the production of bottled water.
The experiences shared by India, Vietnam and Cambodia all spoke about the overexploitation of a specific natural resource. It was amazing for me to discover that the desserts and drinks I’ve been consuming since I was a child were actually made from NTFPs and also shared with neighbouring countries i.e., Vietnam (liana leaves which produce a herbal jelly known as cincau or leng kong) and Cambodia (malva nuts when soaked in water expands into an edible gel substance eaten in deserts). Both these plants were being threatened by overharvesting.
In the evening, we watched a stunning video by Keystone, India about the Kurumba honey gatherers in the Blue Mountains. The local gatherers basically balanced from roots of plants hanging over a 100 meter cliff in the midst of smoke and a zillion buzzing bees to scoop colossal honey hives. It was obviously a dangerous stunt which they faced once a year as it was their traditional livelihood. However, as all other natural resources, the forest in which the tribal communities depend on for NTFPs and where the bee hives are located are being threatened by tea plantations.
Day 3
It’s field trip day and there are smiles all around as we gather in front of the vans that would take two groups to two long houses. My group was going to Timboo Longhouse.We were met by traditional music and dance that led us through the long house where we were greeted by a long queue of just about everyone who lived in the longhouse. The Timboo Longhouse and communal land that the people depend on hold a long history which is now being threatened by oil palm oil. Timboo Longhouse has take its case to the courts and their lawyers are optimistic on a favourable outcome but the people must stay united and resilient in their struggle. The visiting participants from each country shared advice and experiences with the Timboo community in the hopes of further strengthening their cause and providing motivation, encouragement and solidarity. However, it was unfortunate that our group was unable to take a walk through the forest due to heavy rainfalls to identify the many NTFPs that are present. We drove briefly around the area and spotted mostly the agriculture areas planted with pepper, rubber and fruit gardens.
Day 4
The final day, our minds saturated with input and exposure, we now had to cough it up to make sense of it all and on what could be done next. We had four break-out groups with the themes Lobby, Natural Resource Management, Land Rights and Economic Concerns. The questions that were forwarded in the discussions helped us analyse the situation in Malaysia and highlight the main issues, provide possible steps forward, and help determine each organisations concrete contribution in implementing these activities and discuss the outcomes. Each group presented its discussion points which led to a few activities that could potentially be implemented. The seminar was concluded with Jenne de Beer and Crissy Guerrero presenting their views on how we could further implement these suggestions.
We ended the day and the conference with a bang of colour and culture from Malaysia, the rest of Southeast Asia and India. I was intoxicated by the variety of people and dances and songs as well as by the rice wine that was served in abundance. It was heartwarming for me to see both young and old enjoy a similar form of entertainment, rarely seen in the ‘modern’ world. It was a deserving end to a productive four-day meeting that was reflected in the diversity, warmth and earnest commitment of the people present. I heard that some of us sang and danced all night through. I only made it to 4 in the morning.
