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The beginnings of Sepilok OrangUtan Rehabilitation Centre - Burgess, Tom & Barbara Harrisson
The original idea of an orangutan rehabilitation project was proposed in 1961 by P.F. Burgess, the Deputy Conservator of Forests then. Soon after, Barbara Harrisson started a mission to rescue orangutans kept by locals as pets. Their idea was to rehabilitate these captive individuals in hope that one day they may return to the wild . In 1962, together with WWF, Barbara Harrisson went to Sabah . Keeping orangutans as pets have long since been in the habit of locals. Even Agnes Keith (author of 'Land below the wind') had a young orangutan under her care back in Sandakan in the 1930's. By 1963, logging had cut deep into the heart of Sabah or North Borneo and already then, Barbara and Tom Harrisson reported that the orangutans were threatened with extinction. Although Barbara's work alongside her husband Tom was invaluable in documenting early archaeological works and also on conservation of species in Borneo after WWII, Tom's larger-than-life character seemed to have overshadowed her importance.
Heimann, a U.S. diplomat who first met English cultural anthropologist - Tom Harrisson(1911-1976) in Borneo described him to be, 'a romantic polymath, a drunken bully, an original-thinking iconoclast, a dreadful husband and father, a fearless adventurer, a Richard Burton of his time..' . Tom Harrison first parachuted behind enemy lines in Borneo in1945. He was a British Army Major who commanded 7 fellow Special Operations agents . In his daring quest to quell the advancement of the Japanese Army, he cooked up an unbelievable plan ..to recruit guerrillas, set up an intelligence network and raise an army of Dayak headhunters who by the time the Allied troops landed, had killed or captured 1500 Japanese.
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As with all naturalists, anthropologists, adventurers and treasure hunters who traveled the world in the 1950's,- everybody knew everybody in this tight knit, elite community of explorers. David Attenborough had the pleasure of meeting Tom. And this he wrote, 'Explorer, museum curator, guerilla fighter, pioneer sociologist, documentary filmmaker, anthropologist-Tom Harrisson was all these things. He was also arrogant, choleric, swashbuckling, often drunk and nearly always deliberately outrageous. In spite of these contradictions, he became a key figure in every enterprise he undertook.'
For more on the life of Tom Harrisson, get this book titled 'The Most Offending Soul Alive: The Life of Tom Harrisson (Paperback) - by Judith M. Heimann (Author)'. And if you get to catch it on BBC Four, a documentary called Tom Harrisson - The Barefoot Anthropologist; narrated by Sir David Attenborough.
After the war, Tom Harrisson remained in Borneo and took on the position of curator of Sarawak Musuem. His passion for life knew no boundaries. In the course of his life in Borneo he contributed immensely to archiving, discovering and preserving parts of Borneo and its people as he saw it. He also pioneered the conservation of green turtles and together with Barbara helped establish the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre.
more on kabili-sepilok reserve...
Accommodation and Packages to North Sabah ~ Sandakan, Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, Gomantong Cave, Selingan Turtle Island , Lankayan Island , Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre, Sukau Area , Danum Valley , Tabin Wildlife Reserve & Lahad Datu
Malaysia Rainforests, Sanctuaries and Parks
Short Adventure & Nature Trips
Getting There and Away
Best Time to Go
