Penusah Tana: The Forgotten Struggle, is the story of the forest-dwelling Penan tribe of Sarawak, on the island of Borneo.
Historically, the Penan maintained a harmonious relationship with the rainforest, one that could have went on forever. Today, however, the Penan’s relationship is nearing its end, along with the rainforest itself. For the past fouty years, logging companies have been systematically chopping the forest down.
It wasn’t until the early 80s that the Penan started to feel it. But once they did, they knew it was an imminent threat — and so the Penan vowed to do everything in their power to stop them.
One way to accomplish this, the Penan felt, was to start setting up blockades. The Penan have set up dozens of blockades over the years, always doing their best to defend the forest and their way of life.
But they’ve been fighting a hopeless battle. Only 5 percent of Sarawak’s rainforest remains untouched; a number proportioned to the few Penan still holding on to their traditional life.
The Penan don’t have much hope left. They simply can’t keep fighting with corporations, the government, police and military: in a state of permanent struggle with next to no international support.
And as they look the future, they see new corporate schemes to dam the rivers and fill the dead forest with tree farms for biofuel and the pulp and paper industries. How long can they go on like this?
Penusah Tana: The Forgotten Struggle
- Watch on Dailymotion
- Learn about the Penan at Survival International, Bruno Manser Fonds, and the Borneo Project
- Visit the Filmmaker’s website
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I sympathize the penan who are being robbed of their live hood.I also sympathize the Ibans who have lived in the ulu ( interior) for centuries, where their forefathers born, live and died.they believe all these while that the land they cultivated and crops the planted planted to be theirs, only to find out that the land is state land unless you have the land title.since time memorial the government recognize their right under something the called NCR or Native customary rights.now all the Ibans living along the Balleh River and the ulu Rejang river find themselves landless.They become squartters on their own land.