Bruno Manser - Laki Penan

I first learned about Bruno Manser maybe 15 years ago when I saw a story about him on CBS 60 Minutes  The Swiss born Manser was showcased as a strident advocate for the Penan people of Malaysian Borneo.  Manser spent 1984-1990 living in remote settlements with the Penan, writing a journal of his experiences. Manser was in Borneo when the forests the Penan have occupied for millennia  came under assault from commercial loggers. It turns out the massive logging operations that were stripping trees from Penan territory were owned substantially by high ranking Malaysian politicians. 

Bruno Manser

Manser became a fearless champion of the Penan people, taking their story of  political exploitation and ecological destruction to a global audience.  The Malaysian government banned him from entering the country.  The high ranking Malaysian government officials behind the logging and the rapacious industry leaders they were in cahoots with put a price on Manser's head. 

Bruno Manser was last seen in a remote village in Borneo in May of 2000.  He is presumed to have been murdered sometime after that. The mystery of his dissappearance remains unsolved. He was declared dead by a Swiss court in 2005.  

Bruno Manser understood the threats against him, yet he plunged forward undeterred. Many would argue that he was reckless in his pursuit of justice for the Penan people. Maybe, but he deserves to be remembered as a hero, who gave his life defending the indigenous people and the tropical forest landscape that he loved. Hats off to Bruno Manser. He was an extraordinary human being.


Here is a link to the website for Bruno Manser - Laki Penan, a film done about Manser's life and death in Borneo...  http://www.brunomanser-derfilm.ch/p/manser_en.htm

Here is a link to aa You Tube presentation of a part of that film, with English sub-titles...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8RqHqdLVh8

Here is a link to the Bruno Manser Fund that carries on his work on behalf of the Penan and other indigenous peoples around the world.
http://www.bmf.ch/en/