Indigenous communities’ petition from Sarawak reaches ITTO in Yokohama – despite initial refusal to accept it

Penan and Kenyah communities from the Upper Baram region of Sarawak, Malaysia, have gathered hundreds of signatures calling for an end to logging on their ancestral lands.

Yokohama, 11 November 2026: During this year’s session of the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC) in Yokohama, Japan, NGOs submitted a petition on behalf of Indigenous Penan and Kenyah communities from Sarawak, Malaysia, raising concerns about logging activities on their ancestral lands.

The petition challenges the cancellation of the Baram Peace Park, an Indigenous-led conservation initiative in the Upper Baram that was endorsed by the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) under the name Upper Baram Forest Area (UBFA).

When the conservation project was cancelled, a logging licence was granted to Borneoland Timber Resources Sdn. Bhd. The company has since been logging in one of Sarawak's last remaining primary rainforests outside fully protected areas. According to the petition, the logging operation has disregarded the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), contributing to conflicts with local communities.

The petition calls on the ITTO to launch an independent and transparent investigation into the cancellation of the UBFA and the subsequent logging activities, examine its own role in these developments, and suspend all ongoing and planned ITTO projects in the Upper Baram until the concerns have been addressed. It also demands that affected Indigenous communities are meaningfully involved in all future decisions concerning forest management in their territories, with their right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) fully respected.

The petition, signed by more than 300 community members most affected by the logging, states: “Please understand that these matters are not merely about policy or project management. This directly affects our Traditional Territories, our lifeblood, our rights and the future of our communities. We have spent decades protecting these forests and striving to develop a community-led conservation model for those who depend on them.”

To the disappointment of the Indigenous community representatives, ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru initially refused to acknowledge or accept the petition. The petition was subsequently handed over to ITTO Chairperson. ITTO Director Satkuru emphasized that there is “no commitment as to whether the chairperson accepts this document or endorses the content.”.

After years of unsuccessful dialogue and continued impacts from logging, the communities hope that their concerns will finally be heard and addressed by the ITTO.

Joint press release by Keruan, SAVE Rivers, JATAN, FoE Japan and Bruno Manser Fonds