Another Kuala Lumpur-based anti-logging activist was denied entry into Sarawak last night about three weeks after human rights group Suaram director Cynthia Gabriel was barred from coming into the state.

Contacted today, Coordinator for the Centre for Orang Asli Concerns Colin Nicholas said Sarawak immigration authorities barred him based on a 1998 "order from the top".

"This is on account of my anti-logging activities," he said, adding that he was put back on the same flight which he took from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

"I was sent back to KL within 30 minutes of landing in Kuching," he said.

Nicholas said he went to Sarawak to attend a friend's wedding and to take part in a meeting.

"It is amazing that some people can consider anti-logging activities a threat to the people or is it a threat to some oldie's political and economic security?"

"It is only a minor inconvenience to me, but it does reflect a very sad state of affairs in Sarawak, especially for its marginalised peoples," he added.

The activist said he was also puzzled why the 1998 decision was imposed on him yesterday when the Sarawak authorities had allowed him entry into the state just last month.

Different rules

On Aug 18, the authorities denied entry to Gabriel (left) and she was told that her name had been on the 'blacklist' since 1998.

Both Nicholas and Gabriel are Malaysians.

Sarawak has a different set of immigration rules from that used in Peninsular Malaysia as a result of an agreement signed during the formation of Malaysia in 1963.

Sarawak retained exclusive control over who enters the state. Even Malaysians living in other states have to go through immigration checks.

State director of immigration Robert Lian recently said the state had "very good reasons" to deny entry of those people on the blacklist.

He added that the department does not normally divulge or make public the reasons for the 'deportations'.