Investigations conducted by the GPFG council found that there were “unacceptable risk” of non-compliance with environmental laws, poor forest management practises and large-scale forest destruction.
It also did not rule out that WTK’s intense logging operations inside primary forests in the “Heart of Borneo” might have caused the 50km clog up along the Rajang river in 2010 where the river was blocked by logs.
“The Council finds that WTK does little to reduce the environmental damage associated with its forest operations,” it said in a report.
In the case of Ta Ann, the council found that shocking forest destruction in the Heart of Borneo, including re-entry logging without Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs).
This is not the first time GPFG has divested its stake in companies found to have breached environmental practises.
In 2010, the fund also divested its stake from Sarawak timber giant Samling Global and one of its subsidiary Lingui Development Berhad for similar reasons.
“The conduct of the Sarawak government is also the main reason for the failure of negotiations between the European Union and Malaysia on a Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) within the EU’s FLEGT (Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade) programme,” it said in a statement, and called on traders to stop selling timber supplied by the blacklisted companies.
In March this year, Taib was cast into the international spotlight after Global Witness released a video documentary showing he allegedly received millions of ringgit in kickbacks over land deals that have stripped bare the Borneo state.
Deforestation rates in Sarawak are among the highest in the world, and only 5% of the state’s original forest cover remains unaffected by logging or clearance for plantations, Global Witness had said.
They should Blacklist them all! All are equally guilty of oppressing the natives, chasing out natives from their forest and lands, exploiting the natives at will without any regards to their well being, cheating the natives of their lands, their forest, short changed the natives on compensations and agreed payments on timbers cut from natives forest and all are corrupted to the core!