Police at the Murum Dam site arrested Ngang Buling on Thursday morning and tried to disperse other protesters by firing shots into the air.
More than 300 protesters had gathered at the site, where a controversial dam is being built, reported Free Malaysia Today.
Ngang Buling, the leader of the protesters, was arrested and is being held at the Belaga police station.
Some of the protesters tried to prevent police from taking Buling into custody, after which one of the police officers fired shots in the air, reported the Borneo Post.
Swiss-based Bruno Manser Fund in an immediate reaction called for the Ngang Buling’s immediate release.
“We ask Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to intervene with the Sarawak state government and to halt the Murum Dam impoundment until a decent solution to the resettlement has been found,” it said in a statement issued today.
#Malaysia: police fire shots into crowd of locals protesting #Murum dam construction. See picture via @SUARAM_INTL pic.twitter.com/nVXjPWXW5p
— ARTICLE 19 Asia (@article19asia) October 3, 2013
