Borneo’s Indigenous Peoples Now Resist as Oligarchs Partition Their Ancestral Lands

Borneo’s original peoples fight back as oligarchy slices up their inherited land.

From Indigenous communities who lived in balance with nature for thousands of years to the upheavals of colonial rule and today’s industrial extraction, the struggle continues. 

Indigenous peoples are fighting back. They want their rights recognized. Land is not a commodity, they say, but an ancestral inheritance.

Picture the scene 40,000 years ago. In Niah Cave in Sarawak, early humans left their first trace. 

The “Deep Skull,” discovered in 1958, is still the oldest known human fossil in the region. It shows that Homo sapiens were already present in Southeast Asia. They were hunter-gatherers. They ate primates, including orangutans. They used simple stone tools. They painted cave walls with images that survived tens of thousands of years. New carbon studies from 2025 confirm this record. 

The ancestors of today’s Dayak, the Indigenous people of Borneo, settled the island long ago. Their lives were sustainable. Land was held communally. Conflicts over territory did not exist. With a small population and deep respect for nature, harmony prevailed. That was life before the storm arrived.

Colonial Lines That Redefined an Island

By the 17th century, Europe had arrived. The Dutch and the British, hungry for spices, timber, and resin, carved up Borneo. The 1824 Treaty of London formalized that divide. 

The Dutch claimed the southern and eastern regions that now form Indonesian Borneo; the British secured the north and west: Sabah, Sarawak, and Brunei. Their authority rested on military force and diplomacy. The Dutch East India Company subdued Dayak and Banjar kingdoms as early as the 1600s. The British established the colony of Sarawak in 1841 under James Brooke. 

Before their arrival, local kingdoms such as Brunei and Banjar held power. The island remained mostly green; exploitation was still limited. Yet the seeds of conflict were planted. Customary rights were ignored. The geopolitical borders drawn in this era still shape the island today. Borneo remains divided. Agrarian problems began to emerge.

Indonesia’s independence in 1945 brought new hope. But under Suharto’s New Order, from 1966 to 1998, Borneo suffered severe ecological and social damage. Jakarta imposed new administrative divisions. Provinces like East and Central Kalimantan were created to streamline resource extraction. Forests were cleared at staggering speed.

Two million hectares a year. Timber concessions went to large companies, aided by the military under its dual-function doctrine. Communities were uprooted. Transmigration reshaped demographics. Oil palm, coal, and timber flowed to Jakarta. Many argue that this period was harsher than colonial rule. The state ignored the 1945 Constitution’s protection of customary land. By the 1970s, East Kalimantan had lost half of its forests. Flash floods intensified. Tensions with Indigenous groups escalated.

The New Fight for Ancestral Land

By 2025, deforestation is even more aggressive. Two million hectares vanished between 2013 and 2017. Oil palm plantations keep expanding. Indonesia’s new capital, Nusantara, adds fresh pressure on the landscape. Dayak communities are resisting. They challenged the capital city law at the Constitutional Court.

They argue that investor privileges endanger their ancestral lands. Customary territory predates the state. Constitutional Court Decision No. 35/PUU-X/2012 confirms that customary forests cannot be classified as state forests. It strengthens communal rights. Another decision, No. 122/PUU-XIII/2015, requires scientific assessments before permits are issued; this is meant to protect Indigenous land. 

In Central Kalimantan, a 2020 regional regulation recognizes Dayak Iban customary forests, granting protection to 9,480 hectares. Yet conflict persists. Dayak Meratus communities reject the establishment of Meratus National Park. The FoMMA coalition calls for real collaboration. Conservation, they insist, must place Indigenous stewardship at its core.

Borneo is changing. The shift from sustainable Indigenous practice to extractive capitalism is stark. Yet the Dayak struggle offers hope. Reforming forestry laws and ensuring Indigenous participation in policymaking remain the clearest paths forward.

by: Rangkaya Bada