The 41 families living at a squatter colony outside of Sarawak's Bintulu will be meeting with the Human Rights Commission in their last ditch effort to save their homes from being demolished.

The families were slapped with eviction notices from the landowners to move out from the squatter colony, about two kilometres from Bintulu town in northern Sarawak.

A spokesperson for Suhakam office in Kuching told malaysiakini that a dialogue with the squatters will be held next Wednesday at a hotel in Bintulu.

Suhakam will be represented by three of its commissioners - Siva Subramaniam, Khalid Ibrahim and Dr Mohd Hirman Ritom.

Malaysiakini has highlighted the plight of the squatters on Aug 4 after their spokesperson, James Jok, an Orang Ulu, made a desperate plea to the authorities to help them find alternative housing after Power Domain Sdn Bhd, the private landowner, issued them with eviction notices.

The squatter colony sprouted more than two decades ago following the economic boom in Bintulu with the implementation of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) and many other gas and oil-related industries as well as growing timber processing and plantation activities.

According to their spokesperson, the squatters - who are mostly odd-job workers in the area - have conceded that they could not continue living in the colony and have sought for help from the government to provide then with an alternative site.

Some of the original squatters have since moved to other places. However, about 200 squatters comprising men, women and children are staying put.

They are asking for more time until the authorities are able to find alternative housing for them.

Iban farmers facing eviction too

Meanwhile, Suhakam also plan to meet the Iban farmers in Sebauh, whose plight was highlighted by malaysiakini yesterday after a property-based company in Bintulu sent them an eviction notice.

The farmers have been given until Aug 22 to quit their land.

The company has been issued three parcels of the land for commercial development and the natives led by Tuai Rumah Nor Nyawai of Rumah Nor claimed the company was encroaching into their native customary rights land.

The Suhakam spokesperson also said the three commissioners plan to meet with representatives of the 64 Iban families to listen to their grouses and to find a solution to their plight.