Perwaja Steel Closure Is Inevitable

Published by Free Malaysia Today on 12 December 2014.

The Terengganu government has assured the 1,500 workers of Perwaja Steel Sdn Bhd that their welfare will be cared for although Perwaja will cease operation by year end. Trade and Industry Committee chairman Tengku Putera Tengku Awang said the state government has urged China-based Eastern Steel Sdn Bhd to employ Perwaja workers.

“The state government has negotiated with Eastern Steel who agreed to employ skilled Perwaja workers. However, Eastern Steel did not set a quota for the workers,” he told reporters after winding up debate in the state assembly today.

Established in 1982, Perwaja changed ownership several times and was beset by financial problems, forcing operations to be closed. Eastern Steel is Malaysia’s largest steel plant with investment of RM1.8 billion on a 500-hectare site in Teluk Kalong, Kemaman.

Tengku Putera said the state government via the Workers Coordination Committee was willing to meet with the Perwaja workers involved. “The retrenchment of Perwaja workers was decided one year ago but the first phase only began in early September. The closure is inevitable, although some capital injection and a rescue plan had been implemented,” he added. The state government is also willing to provide assistance to Perwaja workers who want to venture into business.

- BERNAMA

Link: 

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2014/12/12/eastern-steel-to-absorb-perwaja-steel-workers/

China Businessman Paid Malaysia Politicians To Receive Honourable Title

By KEITH BRADSHER. Published on 19 Nov 2014 by The New York Times.

CAA Resources has been at the center of the push here, reopening Malaysia’s most famous mine. Discovered in the jungles of eastern Peninsular Malaysia in 1916 by a Japanese geologist, Bukit Besi became one of the world’s largest mines as it supplied the Japanese steel industry through World War II.

The British seized the mine as war spoils after Japan’s surrender and handed it over to a British company. The British mining company initially struggled with Communist insurgency attacks on its rail lines, including bombings that destroyed three train stations, but nonetheless became a big supplier of ore for Japan’s postwar industrial revival.

Then, in 1971, the mine closed because of what a historic marker here describes as bureaucracy and labor union troubles. The site sat idle for most of the next four decades.

Learning from the mistakes of his predecessors, Mr. Li, the 27-year-old CAA chief and scion of a Chinese family that had grown wealthy in the mainland iron ore industry, immediately worked to build ties with local and national political leaders, as well as with Malaysian royalty.

“If you’ve got these two to support you, then you can do anything you want, because the natural resources are all controlled by them,” Mr. Li said.

Mr. Li, who owns 56 percent of CAA, said that he had paid for each of the ruling party politicians with indirect stakes in the mine to receive the royally granted title of “dato,” which roughly translates as “the honorable.” It costs about $100,000 to arrange each royal grant, he said.

Although anti-corruption groups have campaigned against such arrangements, particularly indirect stakes, Mr. Li said he was simply following common practices in Malaysia. A government-linked industry group in Beijing announced plans on Oct. 24 to introduce standards for Chinese companies in areas like labor rights, environmental protection and community relations.

To avoid potential labor issues, Mr. Li has largely imported workers, who are not unionized. CAA Resources brought in about 40 mining engineers, accountants and other professionals from China, and filled the rest of its work force with laborers from low-wage countries like Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam. The workers are on 12-hour shifts, up to seven days a week, and are paid based mostly on how much iron ore each shift can produce, Mr. Li said.

Pacing across the jungle mine, Mr. Li described his recruitment pitch to potential hires. “You can save a lot of money, there is nothing to do here,” he said, “I say, ‘Each of you will be a hero, you will take back 100 percent of your savings, your wife will be happier, your children will be happier.' ”

He has avoided filing an environmental-impact statement by erecting an eight-foot-high, blue corrugated-steel fence across the middle of the site with a gate, and calling it two mines, each less than 500 acres. Only mines over 500 acres require environmental approval.

Now, CAA’s biggest challenges are from outside forces.

For one, Bukit Besi’s ore is less rich in iron than what rivals produce in Australia or Brazil, although better than most Chinese ore. Less concentrated iron ore needs to go through a costly extra step, known as beneficiation, before it can be sold. That eats into CAA’s profit.

Transportation, too, is a costly proposition. Australian and Brazilian iron ore mines are connected by rail lines to deepwater ports that can handle some of the world’s largest bulk freighters. That limits their shipping costs to China at around $8 a ton. By contrast, it costs $16 a ton to ship Malaysian iron ore to China because Malaysian ports are shallower — although a deeper port is scheduled to open by the end of next year.

But CAA benefits from a home-field advantage of sorts.

The Chinese steel industry — and the Chinese government, which guides purchasing policies — has been reluctant to rely exclusively on Australia and Brazil, given its past difficulties. In the years before the global financial crisis, such players sharply increased ore export prices.

“There is a strategic imperative — China does not want to be solely dependent on Australia and Brazil,” said Tim Huxley, chief executive of Wah Kwong Maritime Transport Holdings, a big Hong Kong shipping company active in carrying iron ore to China. “They’ve done that before, and it cost them a lot of money.”

With migrant workers, CAA’s labor costs are tiny compared with those of mines elsewhere. The company has brought in Chinese mining equipment at less than half the cost of American or Japanese equipment — and has the connections with manufacturers to get broken parts fixed quickly.

So Mr. Li insists that his company’s Malaysian mines could still cover their costs and show a modest profit shipping ore back to China at prices close to $80 a ton.

“We’re still positive by this time,” he said. “The open pit process has low costs.”

Read more here: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/20/business/international/chinese-interests-look-to-malaysia-for-cheap-iron-ore-and-profits.html

Army Officer Recycles Military Surplus & Creates Fashionable Bags

By Angel Canales. Published by ABC News on 14 August 2014.

DENVER–Serving in the military while also being the CEO of a fashion company can be an intimidating but also a rewarding experience. It’s also a perfect match for U.S. Army 1st Lt. Emily Núñez, 24, who saw a need and filled it, helping her fellow veterans along the way.

“It has been challenging at times but the two roles complement each other. As an officer in the US Army your job is to lead soldiers and to motivate them to accomplish a task. As the CEO, my job is to ensure that we’re accomplishing our social mission while keeping the team excited about what we’re doing,” she says.

Núñez is the CEO and co-founder of Sword and Plough. Sword and Plough creates bags and other accessories out of repurposed military surplus, like shelter halves tents, laundry bags and sleeping bag covers.

Although Núñez was committed to a career in the military, she and her sister Betsy Núñez, 26, co- founded Sword & Plough in 2012.  Growing up in a military family Emily followed in her father’s footsteps and joined the Army. She currently serves as an Intelligence Officer with the Group Support Battalion in the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Carson, Colorado. Prior to joining the military, Núñez enrolled in the Army ROTC at the University of Vermont and and Middlebury College in Vermont in 2008. It was there during her senior year that the idea to launch her entrepreneurial venture was born.

The idea to create her fashion company came to Núñez after a talk at the Middlebury’s Center for Social Entrepreneurship. During the Social Entrepreneurship Symposium at Middlebury Jacqueline Novogratz, founder and CEO of Acumen Fund talked about businesses that had incorporated recycling into their business model. Núñez took note and put her social entrepreneur spirit to work. She began to think about what around her was routinely wasted and could be recycled and turned into something powerful. ”I was aware that there was a lot of military surplus that was wasted, thrown away or burned,” Núñez says.

Emily told her sister Betsy about her idea to turn a military shelter halves tent into tote bags.  ”When she first told me about her idea I was so surprised and happy that she shared that with me. I knew this was something that could be very special and could become something really unique,” Betsy says. From that conversation the sisters continue to build on the idea and business model.

Sword & Plough’s name comes from the biblical phrase to “turn swords into ploughshares” from the Book of Isaiah.  For Emily and Betsy it means re-adapting military technology for a peaceful civilian purpose. The sisters are giving these fabrics and materials another purpose as stylish designs. “Some of the materials we use have been used by the Army and military since the Civil War,” Betsy says.

Emily and Betsy never went to school for business and they didn’t have any experience in fashion either but that didn’t stop them. “It was a challenge to start the business but at the same time it was a huge opportunity,” she says. The sisters thank the Middlebury Center for Social Entrepreneurship for helping them every step of the way.

To build the company, they sought out support and mentorship from other groups. They attended the Dell Summer Social Innovation Lab in July 2012. During the three-week program, they were able to build their business plan, supply chain, brand name and a prototype bag.

The idea caught on and last year Sword and Plough participated in Mass Challenge, the largest startup accelerator and competition in the world.  Some 1,200 young companies from all over the world applied for 120 spots.  Sword and Plough was selected and they were awarded $50,000 to grow their business. Preparing for that pitch was nerve-racking, Betsy says. At the time, Emily was serving in Afghanistan and they practiced over Skype how they were going to prepare their pitch.

The company’s social mission is to empower and promote veteran employment, strengthen military civil relations and reduce waste. All items are made in the US and the company works with veteran owned, operated and staffed manufactures. “I really wanted to create a product that would physically touch civilians in a beautiful way and to remind them of veterans and the sacrifice that they made but also the challenges that they encounter as they transition into civilian life,” Emily says.

For Emily, veteran employment was their main company goal. During her time at the Army Airborne School at Fort Benning, Georgia, she heard about veterans having difficulties finding meaningful employment. “I spent a lot of time with soldiers of all different ranks and services and many of them told me about friends of their who were getting out of the military and faced challenges as they tried to find employment and that experience always stuck with me,”  she says.

The company’s launched started on Kickstarter in 2013 with a goal to raise $20,000.   Their campaign exceeded their goal and raised over $312,000 and so far have provided jobs to 35 veterans and recycled over 15,000 pounds of military surplus.

Sword and Plough items are on sale on their website and they are being sold in Toms Marketplace.

Emily and Betsy are  happy to be accomplishing a social mission with their company. “I want Sword & Plough to be a leader in the field of social entrepreneurship that is able to communicate effectively the awesome skill that veterans bring to communities. As a fashion brand over the course of the next five to 10 years we want Sword & Plough to be known as a strong American heritage brand,” Emily says.

Link: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2014/08/surplus-tents-become-fashion-items-as-army-officer-ceo-creates-jobs-for-vets/

It’s A Misconception To Think Sarawak Chief Minister Is Really Retiring

By Barry Porter and Manirajan Ramasamy. Published by Bloomberg News on 10 February 2014.

Abdul Taib Mahmud plans to retire as chief minister of Sarawak, after running Malaysia’s commodities-rich eastern state for more than three decades.

Taib, 77, intends to inform Sarawak’s head of state to of his intention to resign, Malaysia’s official Bernama news agency reported, citing the chief minister. The decision comes seven months after the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission formed a multi-agency task force to expedite investigations into claims of graft. Taib has denied corruption allegations, and press reports say he may seek to become the state’s governor.

During his 33-year rule of Malaysia’s biggest state, Taib’s government handed out concessions for logging and supported the federal government’s mega projects, including construction of the country’s largest hydroelectric dam. Oil palm plantations spread as loggers rolled back the frontiers of Borneo’s rain forest, home to nomadic people and rare wildlife such as orangutans and proboscis monkeys.

Some stocks linked to his relatives fell after the Berita Harian newspaper first reported on Feb. 5 that Taib planned to retire as chief minister and become the state’s governor. Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd. (CMS), a construction and building materials maker, rose 3.8 percent today after declining 8.6 percent last week after the report.

‘More Powerful’

“It’s a misconception to think he’s really retiring,” said James Chin, professor of political science at the Malaysian campus of Australia’s Monash University. “When he moves up to governor, he becomes even more powerful. Certain things need his signature. He appoints the chief minister. All mining leases must be signed off by him.”

Taib and his allies control 25 Sarawak seats in Malaysia’s national parliament. That’s enough to ensure the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition falls from power should they ever choose to switch support to the opposition, said Chin. Prime Minister Najib Razak’s alliance was returned to power in May 2013 by its narrowest margin since independence in 1957.

Taib told Bernama he would step down from his current position by the end of this month. He is Malaysia’s longest-serving chief minister, in power longer than Mahathir Mohamad, who retired after 22 years as prime minister in 2003.

Important Role

“Taib is not really gone from Sarawak politics,” Ibrahim Suffian, a political analyst at the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research, said by phone. “From behind the scenes or even as the new governor, he will play an important role including handling economic issues. Most important now is who will be Taib’s successor.” Opposition parties have made some inroads in Sarawak in recent years, he said.

Taib had doubled up as the state’s finance minister, and minister for planning and resource management, according to his official website. He’s also president of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, or PBB, and state chairman of Barisan Nasional, Malaysia’s ruling political coalition headed by Prime Minister Najib Razak.

PBB met at the weekend and gave Taib a mandate to nominate his successor, the Star reported, citing party Chairman Amar Asfia Awang Nassar.

Local media, including the Star, have named three candidates short-listed by Taib to replace him. They are the party’s deputy president Amar Abang Johari Openg, senior vice president Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan and information chief Adenan Satem.

To contact the reporters on this story: Barry Porter in Kuala Lumpur at bporter10@bloomberg.net; Manirajan Ramasamy in Kuala Lumpur at rmanirajan@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Rosalind Mathieson at rmathieson3@bloomberg.net

Link: 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-02-10/commodities-rich-sarawak-s-top-minister-to-retire-after-33-years.html

Published by Today Online on 10 February 2014.

But Mr Taib’s influence over the sprawling Borneo island state is likely to remain strong as he is expected to take on the job of state governor, a more ceremonial role than his current post.

His departure will raise doubts over whether a successor will be able to maintain Mr Taib’s political balance between defending the interests of native Sarawak residents, and supporting the national Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. The state is majority Christian in Muslim-majority Malaysia.

Sarawak, the country’s largest state, has been increasingly crucial to the long-ruling BN coalition as its support wanes in peninsula Malaysia. Without the 25 seats that Mr Taib’s party and his allies won in last May’s election, the national coalition would have lost its majority in the 222-seat parliament, likely ending its 57-year rule.

Mr Taib’s party emerged from the election as the coalition’s second-largest party after the ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), boosting his sway over national politics.

Mr Taib has short-listed three possible successors, including his housing minister who is seen as having close ties with the federal government and Prime Minister Najib Razak.

“I think the big question is what happens over the longer term, whether his successors will develop minds of their own,” said Mr Ibrahim Suffian, head of the Merdeka Center polling firm.

Mr Taib, who travels by Rolls Royce and private jet, has been under pressure to step down amid a growing focus on alleged timber corruption in the state.

Environmental groups say that under his rule, Sarawak — which accounts for a quarter of the world’s tropical log exports - has lost 95 per cent of its virgin forest. Sarawak officials say 84 per cent of the state is forested although this includes massive oil palm estates planted in place of forests.

UNDER INVESTIGATION

Mr Taib has been under investigation by Malaysia’s anti-graft agency since 2011 and is regularly accused by activist groups of enriching his family through his control over awarding huge infrastructure contracts.

Ms Clare Rewcastle-Brown, who has long been a critic of Mr Taib and who runs the Sarawak Report website, said Mr Taib was merely “moving upstairs” into the new role and would maintain his overall influence on state affairs.

“He will never willingly give up power as it would be too dangerous for him and threaten the business empire he has built up across Sarawak,” she said.

Mr Taib is presiding over a US$100 billion (S$127 billion) plan to harness the state’s rivers into 12 dams by 2020 and transform it into an energy hub that can power smelters built by Japanese and Australian firms and also light up the rest of Borneo island.

Shares in Cahya Mata Sarawak, owned about 40 per cent by Mr Taib’s immediate family, snapped three days of losses to rise 2.5 percent today on expectations Mr Taib will still have a say in how the state awards infrastructure jobs.

Timber companies such as Ta Ann Holdings and Jaya Tiasa that benefit from logging licenses awarded by Mr Taib rose 2.3 per cent and 1.3 per cent respectively.

All the counters outperformed the broader market which inched up 0.4 per cent. REUTERS

Read more here:

http://www.todayonline.com/world/asia/controversial-malaysia-state-boss-due-retire?singlepage=true

Published by Free Malaysia Today on 12 February 2014.

Research by Swiss NGO, the Bruno Manser Fund (BMF), has shown that Taib’s family raised US$16.94 million (RM55.9 million) from the sale of one of his San Francisco properties. The historical 11-storey building at 260 California Street in San Francisco’s financial district was sold by Sakti in mid-2012. Sakti, a US company, is allegedly controlled by Taib via his closest family members.

Documents released by the late whistleblower Ross Boyert back in 2010 showed that 50% of Sakti’s shares were held “in trust” Taib by his two brothers – Onn and Arip – and his three children. The Swiss NGO said in a statement that Taib’s majority control of Sakti was kept a secret because the Sarawak constitution prohibits the Chief Minister from actively running commercial interests.

The constitution states that the head of government and the Governor “shall not hold any office of profit and shall not actively engage in commercial enterprise...The Sakti sale is a textbook example of money-laundering. A foreign politician who acts in an illegal and unconstitutional way should not be allowed to operate freely in the United States. The US and the Malaysian authorities have to act decisively and confiscate all Taib assets whose origin cannot be explained,” the statement said.

Read more here:

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2014/02/12/bmf-taib%E2%80%99s-us-property-sold-for-over-rm55-mil/

Blessed with oil money, but why is Malaysia in huge debt?

By Ng Kee Seng. Published by The Ant Daily on 14 January 2014.

Can any oil producing country in the world make all her citizens millionaires via prudent management and savings?

Norway achieved that on Jan 8, 44 years after striking oil in the North Sea in 1969. But it only set up its oil sovereign wealth fund (SWF) in 1990, meaning it took the Norwegians only 23 years to be millionaires.

According to a Reuters report, everyone in Norway became a theoretical crown millionaire on Jan 8 in a milestone for the world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund that has ballooned thanks to high oil and gas prices.

The fund owns about one per cent of the world’s stocks, as well as bonds and real estate from London to Boston, making the Nordic nation an exception when others are struggling under a mountain of debts.

A preliminary counter on the website of the central bank, which manages the fund, rose to 5.11 trillion crowns (US$828.66 billion or RM2.7 trillion), fractionally more than a million times Norway’s most recent official population estimate of 5,096,300.

It was the first time it reached the equivalent of a million crowns each, central bank spokesman Thomas Sevang said.

Not that Norwegians will be able to access or spend the money, squirreled away for a rainy day for them and future generations. Norway has resisted the temptation to splurge all the windfall since its oil strike.

Finance Minister Siv Jensen told Reuters the fund, called the Government Pension Fund Global, had helped iron out big, unpredictable swings in oil and gas prices. Norway is the world's number seven oil exporter.

“Many countries have found that temporary large revenues from natural resource exploitation produce relatively short-lived booms that are followed by difficult adjustments,” she said in an email.

The fund, equivalent to 183 per cent of 2013 gross domestic product, is expected to peak at 220 per cent around 2030.

“The fund is a success in the sense that parliament has managed to put aside money for the future. There are many examples of countries that have not managed that,” said Oeystein Doerum, chief economist at DNB Markets.

Note the key word: Parliament. In Malaysia, only the prime minister has access to national oil producer Petronas’ funds and accounts.

Malaysia is the 27th largest oil producer in the world, rolling out 693,700 barrels/day. Only 114 countries were listed as at 2009 and 2010. Norway rolls out 2,350,000 bbl/day.

What’s the financial position of Malaysia? A federal debt of up to RM800 billion! (as revealed by then Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir at end of 2012).

And do we have such an oil SWF to save for rainy days for the rakyat and country? None.

According to a written reply in Parliament by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Petronas had contributed RM3 billion to the National Trust Fund (or Kwan, the acronym for Kumpulan Wang Amanah Negara) as at June 2011.

He also said the money had been invested in various financial instruments and that Kwan’s fund currently stood at RM5.43 billion.

Just a measly RM5.43 billion compared with Norway’s RM2.7 trillion!

The administration and management of the trust is handled by Bank Negara with a panel under Kwan monitoring the collection of funds. And, digest this moronic joke: Najib said Kwan was set up to ensure that revenue from dwindling natural resources would benefit future generations.

After 39 years (Petronas was founded in 1974), all we have today is a federal debt of at least RM800 billion, and the international reserves of Bank Negara Malaysia stood at RM441.7 billion (equivalent to US$134.9 billion) as at Dec 31, 2013.

Now, it is clear why the Umno-led Barisan Nasional government is cutting down on subsidies. Its federal debt is so high that it cannot continue to borrow to serve the rakyat as before or Malaysia will go bust like Greece.

It’s time for Malaysians to take stock of the federal government’s lack of transparency and accountability in its financial management of the country’s wealth.

It’s utter nonsense and a disgrace for the 24-year-old Kwan to have a paltry savings of RM5.43 billion, unless Najib now wants to claim that the figure was erroneous and blame it on a scapegoat who prepared the written reply in Parliament.

What can RM5.43 billion (US$1.9 billion) do to help Malaysians and Malaysia during rainy days, like when our oil wells run dry?

Why is there no oil-based SWF for Malaysia?

Petronas is today a global player in oil and gas exploration.

Why is the government just satisfied with an annual RM100 million contribution to Kwan since 1988?

Where has Petronas’ hundreds of billions of ringgit in revenue over the past 38 years gone to?

Did Petronas’ oil and gas exploration presence in 32 countries outside Malaysia also contribute or help facilitate the bulk of the RM1.08 trillion in capital flight in the last decade?

Why avoid establishing an oil-based SWF for the people and country? Is it because financial transparency and accountability would be a pain?

Crude oil and natural gas are Malaysia’s two most abundant resources but their sustainability is being questioned with the country projected to become a net oil importer in a few years.

Now, let’s take a more detailed look on why other oil producing countries are doing better in terms of oil-based or non-commodity-based SWF management:

Kuwait (10th at 2,494,000 bbl/day), Libya (17th at 1,790,000 bbl/day), Kazakhstan (18th at 1,540,000 bbl/day), Algeria (15th at 2,125,000 bbl/day), South Korea (64th at 48,180 bbl/day) and Singapore (82nd at 10,910 bbl/day).

Malaysia’s non-commodity Khazanah Nasional, founded in 1993, is ranked 23rd with US$34 billion (RM110 billion) in assets and a Linaburg-Maduell Transparency Index (LM-TI) of 5.

The world’s largest SWF, Norway’s Pension Fund Global, was in 2009 registered with assets worth US$664.3 billion (RM2 trillion) with a perfect 10 LM-TI.

UAE-Abu Dhabi’s oil-based Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, established in 1976, is ranked second with US$627 billion (RM2 trillion) and a 5 LM-TI.

At third spot, China’s non-commodity SAFE Investment Company, which was founded in 1997, now manages assets worth US$567.9 billion (RM1.8 trillion), with a 4 LM-TI.

That’s the top three SWFs in the world. Now, let’s focus on our neighbours.

Singapore’s non-commodity Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, which was set up in 1981, is ranked 8th with assets at US$247.5 billion (RM802 billion) and a 6 LM-TI.

Following at 9th rank is another Singapore non-commodity SWF, Temasek Holdings, which was established in 1974. It has US$157.5 billion (RM510 billion) in assets and a perfect 10 LM-TI.

Even countries like Kuwait, which was severely damaged by Iraq’s bombing and brief occupation, Libya, Kazakhstan, Algeria and South Korea, which were far poorer than Malaysia in the 60s, 70s and 80s, are all managing their country’s wealth better than Malaysia.

Malaysia’s economic and financial standing is baffling, don’t you think so?

Link:

http://www.theantdaily.com/news/2014/01/14/blessed-oil-money-why-malaysia-huge-debt

Ng Kee Seng believes that God helps those who help themselves. In a healthy democracy, every Malaysian has a role in politics and nation-building.

Singapore: 2 Plagues And 2 Prosecutions

The Plagues

Singaporeans woke up to another day of haze on Tuesday as the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) hovered at 121 at 10am. The National Environment Agency released figures showing the country's air quality at 8am to be in the unhealthy range of 109-122. Anything above 100 is unhealthy. NEA figures showed the South region of Singapore to be the worst hit. The haze was the worst in 16 years at 10pm on Monday, with a PSI reading of 155, before dipping slightly to 145 at midnight.

Concerned readers of The Straits Times have sent their photos in showing Singapore, from Tanjong Pagar to Jurong East Central, shrouded in smog. Reader Yap Siew Meng, who sent in a photo montage taken on Monday, said that the haze was so bad that he could not open his eyes fully. Urged reader Joanne Hong: "The Government needs to do something. This is very bad for our children.”

Extracted from: 

http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/singaporeans-wake-another-hazy-day-readings-stay-unhealthy-level-20130

The number of people with dengue has crossed the five figure mark with 10,258 cases diagnosed by 3pm on Monday. But the rise in infections appear to have plateaued last week, with 813 cases - or two fewer than the week before. Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan had said last week that projections by the National Environment Agency had predicted 960 cases last week.

Singapore has just entered the hot season when mosquitoes breed faster and are more able to spread the disease. This morning, Dr Leo Yee Sin, head of the Communicable Disease Centre, said it was likely for the number of cases to exceed 15,000 this year.

Extracted from:

http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big-story/dengue-epidemic/story/dengue-cases-year-cross-10000-mark-fewer-new-cases-last-week-201

The Prosecutions

The case that has thrown the shameful failings of a core state institution into relief is that of Professor Tey Tsun Hang, who stands accused of accepting sexual favours and gifts from a student in exchange for better grades…

His academic work has been very critical of the Singapore government, also focusing in great detail on the failings of the judicial system and highlighting its shameful subservience to the overbearing powers of the Executive. 

Tey’s publications are well respected and have found a ready audience internationally, where it is harder to suppress the freedom of academic inquiry, and where ideas require true merit to become popular. [One of his article: http://singaporeconsensus.wordpress.com/2012/04/02/excluding-religion-from-politics-and-enforcing-religious-harmony-singapore-style/]

Of course, being a crusader for a clean judiciary does not automatically absolve an individual of criminal charges. The question then becomes whether it is true that Tey accepted favours in exchange for giving better grades.

In order to prove their case, the prosecution would have to prove that he had sexual relations with this student, accepted her gifts, and in turn gave her better grades than she deserved. The defence focused on disproving the last two of these accusations. 

Firstly, it relied on evidence in the form of cheques issued in payment of the gifts that were allegedly given by the student. These cheques proved that Tey had himself paid for the items in question. Secondly, it relied on detailed academic records audited by National University of Singapore (NUS) staff, which clearly indicate that the grades the student received from Tey were completely in accordance with the quality of her work, and were marked according to the exact same standard as that of other students in the class.

These two pieces of evidence should have immediately cleared Tey of any corruption charges. If it can be proven that there were sexual relations between him and the student, then this would constitute a clear and shameful breach of ethics and professionalism. It would then warrant internal discipline proceedings at the NUS level, without sufficient evidence or cause to institute criminal proceedings. 

Read more here: http://trialoftsunhang.blogspot.com/

Alleged sham investments by the City Harvest Church — a registered charity  — came under the spotlight as prosecutors questioned their first witness, Lai  Baoting, the church’s former assistant accountant. Through Lai’s testimony they tried to show that the church’s finance  manager and fund manager were involved in the investments.

The pastor and founder Kong Hee, 48, and five officers have been charged  with varying degrees of involvement in a scheme to siphon off Sg24 million  (19 million) to finance the singing career of his wife, who goes by the name  Sun Ho in the music industry. In addition, more than Sg26 million in church money was allegedly misappropriated to cover up the original diversion…

Edwin Thong, one of the defence lawyers, said Thursday that an external auditor did not question the authenticity of the investments. The six accused appeared light-hearted, whispering and smiling at some  points during the hearing.

“Christian, remember the goodness of God in the frost of adversity,” Kong tweeted after the court adjourned Thursday, quoting from 19th century British preacher Charles Spurgeon.

Scores of church members trooped to the court for a second day Thursday to  lend their support, with some queuing from 4.30 am to ensure a seat. The church, which has a membership of more than 30,000, has affiliates in  neighbouring Malaysia and other countries. It is known for services that resemble pop concerts and had assets  estimated at more than Sg100 million in 2009. The pastor’s wife, now in her early 40s, was hoping international stardom  would help spread the church’s message, according to previous reports in the  Singapore media.

Read more here: 

http://www.nst.com.my/latest/singapore-presses-embezzlement-case-against-church-leaders-1.280508

In 1993, Dr Chee Soon Juan was sacked by his employer the National University of Singapore for allegedly using research funds to send his wife’s doctoral thesis to the United States. Just a few months earlier, he became the first Singaporean academic to join an opposition party and contest in the general election.

Extracted from: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/218455

Sarawak Chief Minister, his Cabinet and State Assembly now get paid TRIPLE!

Published by The Malaysian Insider on 22 May 2013.

Salaries of Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, his Cabinet and lawmakers were tripled today despite the Sarawak chief minister being linked to corruption by environmental pressure group Global Witness earlier this year.

The Sarawak state assembly approved the pay rise today, but backdated to January 1, 2012. This will involve some RM17 million, state news agency Bernama reported today.

The Members of the Administration and Members of Dewan Undangan Negeri (Remuneration, Pensions and Gratuities) Bill 2013 also provides for increased remuneration for the state assembly speaker, deputy speaker and political secretaries.

The remuneration of the chief minister (picture) will rise from RM13,000 to RM39,000; deputy chief minister, RM11,500 to RM35,000; senior minister and state assembly speaker, RM9,000 to RM30,000; ministers, RM9,000 to RM27,000; assistant ministers and assembly deputy speaker, RM7,000 to RM21,000; state assemblymen, RM4,500 to RM15,000 and political secretaries, RM3,000 to RM9,000.

The last pay adjustment for the state leadership was in 1992.

Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh said a review of the remuneration was done in view of the increasing expectations of the people.

“Sarawak is as big as Semenanjung (the peninsula) and a lot of Members of the Dewan Undangan Negeri (state assemblymen) have to cover a large territory, particularly those who serve the rural areas,” he said.

Wong said the new bill would take effect by next week.

Last month, Taib challenged Global Witness to debate him on the issue of illegal land deals in Sarawak, and accused the international environmental activist group of having a hidden agenda by visiting Malaysia’s biggest state in a “sneaky way”.

The chief minister was cast into the international spotlight last month after Global Witness released a video documentary alleging the state Barisan Nasional chief to have received millions of ringgit in kickbacks over land deals that have denuded the Borneo state.

He refuted accusations that only five per cent of forests is left in the state, saying that the true picture can be found by looking at the state using Google’s satellite images.

Google maps the Earth using periodic shots taken using satellite imagery and aerial photography in its applications Google Earth and Google Maps.

Taib had also said that he will not co-operate with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) regarding his graft allegations as he believes the government body to be “naughty” and “dishonest” in its investigations.

Link: 

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/sarawak-ministers-assemblymen-get-hefty-pay-hike

By Joseph Tawie. Published by Free Malaysia Today on 22 May 2013.

Thirty six non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have jointly condemned the International Hydropower Association (IHA) for organising its congress in Sarawak where human rights and environmental crimes are allegedly being perpetuated.

In a statement to FMT, the groups said they were “appalled” by HA’s insistence on holding the congress in Sarawak despite being aware of global pressure on Chief Minster Taib Mahmud and the state government. “The 4th IHA Congress prides itself with the theme Advancing Sustainable Hydropower, with a dedicated session discussing sustainability, which is not only making a mockery of the importance of sustainable development but also trying to pull wool over our eyes.

“IHA cannot pretend that it is not aware of the displaced and disenfranchised indigenous communities affected by Batang Ai, Bakun and the soon-to-be completed Murum dams in Sarawak. “Delegates and supporters of the Congress cannot ignore the well- documented social disruptions and dismissed the ecological destruction these dams had caused to one of the world’s biodiversity centres by justifying hydropower as renewable energy,” the statement said.

It said that the mega dams with its destructive social and environmental impacts were not a desirable sustainable energy source or option and this had been adequately argued by the authoritative report of the World Commission on Dam way back in the year 2000.

“The sustainability claim is a sham with the state government’s declared intention to construct a dozen of new dams by 2020 as part of its industrialisation programme via the regional development plan called Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) by enticing foreign investments with cheap electricity supplies.

“This admission called to question the outdated development model favoured by the state government particularly when a large part of rural communities/population in Sarawak has no access to electricity. “Furthermore, this scandalous plan threatens to flood a further 2,300 sq km of the Sarawak rainforests and directly and indirectly affects 30,000 to 50,000 natives from 235 settlements,” it pointed out.

The statement further added that beneficiaries of this ‘damn’ plan are the business fraternity especially entities that are connected to Taib and his family. “Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB) – the main sponsor of the Congress and the state power monopolist – had awarded contracts worth RM680mil to three companies closely linked to the family of the Chief Minister namely Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd, Sarawak Cable Bhd and Naim Holdings.

“We would like to call your attention to the latest report by the Bruno Manser Fund on these links which are substantiated with indisputable official documents. SEB itself is controlled by Taib’s cousin Hamid Sepawi. “CMS Bhd, an infrastructure development company which holds the monopoly of cement supply in Sarawak stands to gain from the dam scheme besides benefitting from the cheap electricity through its shareholding in a ferro alloy smelting plant in the SCORE.

“SEB granted CMS subsidiary company PPES Works, a contract worth RM23mil for the construction of the resettlement site for the victims of Murum Dam. “Sarawak Cable Bhd and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Universal Cable, secured three contracts for transmission line from SEB worth RM237mil. “Similarly, two subsidiaries of Naim Holdings Bhd – Naim Land and Naim Engineering – were granted contracts related to the dams by SEB, totalling RM406mil,” it said.

Both CMS Bhd and Sarawak Cables’ biggest shareholder is Taib’s son, Mahmud Abu Bekir Taib.

“So significant is the political link of these companies that a stock rally of CMS Bhd was reported in the two weeks after GE13 where its share price rose substantially (46%) as BN Sarawak led by Taib won convincingly in Sarawak,” the statement said.

The goup further called on IHA to stop its “green-washing attempt” on behalf of the Taib’s regime that is aided by industry players closely linked to him. “We also call upon the newly-minted ministers of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE); and Energy, Green Technology and Water (KeTTHA) to address this public concern that had so far been ignored by the Federal Government.“These environmentally-destructive dams are a threat to the country’s biodiversity and our commitment to fight climate change.

“Rotting biomass and organic matters that continue to be washed from upstream into the reservoir is a big source of emission of the global warming greenhouse gas,” it said. The statement also wanted Maximus Ongkili, Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water to explain to Malaysians, particularly Sarawakians, how the mega dams’ scheme fits into the country’s sustainable energy policy.

It also called on the World Wide Fund for Nature-Malaysia (WWF-M), the foremost environmental organisation in Malaysia, along with several other global conservation groups such as the Nature Conservatory to clarify the nature of their support of the IHA congress. These groups have been listed as partners at the IHA congress. Said the statement: “It is incumbent upon these organisations to ensure that their involvement is not manipulated and hijacked by IHA and the Sarawak state government.

“Finally, we reiterate our demand to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate the many corrupt practices of Taib Mahmud that had been amply documented. Inaction is not an option,” it said.

The statement was endorsed by Amnesty International Malaysia, Angkatan Nasional India Malaysia (AGNI),Angkatan Warga Aman Malaysia (WargaAMAN), Center for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC),Community Action Network (CAN), Damn the Dams Action Group, Education and Research Association for Consumers (ERA Consumer), Federation of Malaysian Indian Organisation (PRIMA), Himpunan Hijau, Jaringan Kampung Orang Asli Semenanjung Malaysia (JKOASM), Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (JERIT), Jawatankuasa Bertindak Wilayah dan Tanah Adat Tasik Chini, Jihad for Justice, Malaysia Youth and Democratic Movement (DEMA), Malaysian Indians Progressive Association (MIPAS), Malaysian Indians Transformation Action Team (MITRA),Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture (MADPET), Malaysians for Beng Hock, National Indian Rights Action Team (NIAT), People’s Welfare and Rights Coalition (POWER), Persatuan Masyarakat Selangor & Wilayah Persekutuan (PERMAS), Persatuan Sahabat Wanita, Persatuan Shing An KL & Selangor Women Section, Pertubuhan Pembangunan Wanita Malaysia PJ New Town Branch, Pusat Komas, Rakan Pakatan Rakyat (RAPAT), Respect all Race and Religion of Malaysia (RARE), Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia, Social-Economic Committee of KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall, SPNS, Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM), Tamilar Action Force (TAF), Tenaganita, Transparency International Malaysia, Water and Energy Consumers’ Association and Women Section of KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall.

Link:
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/05/22/groups-slam-iha-for-%E2%80%98backing%E2%80%99-taib/

Longhouse folk without electricity.

The Marginalised And The Elite

By Alyaa Azhar. Published by Free Malaysia Today on 2 January 2013.

Three members of a family in Pengerang, Johor, unable to cope with the loss of their home, committed suicide by inhaling charcoal smoke in an enclosed room yesterday. The family had received a notice informing them their home was being acquired for the controversial RM60 billion Petronas’s Refinery and Petrochemicals Development project.

They were told that they would receive only RM20,000 in compensation as the land on which their house was on was owned by another. Gabungan NGO Pengerang, a grassroots group opposing the oil plant, said the man sought help from the ruling political party, and had informed the party he wished to commit suicide.

The group’s treasurer, Chua Peng Sin, said the man, by name of Pang, suffered financial difficulties as he was earning a living helping out at a restaurant. He was forced to quit his job to care for his wife, who had suffered a stroke, and their child, who was diagnosed to be mentally disabled.

Read more here:
http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/01/02/family-in-pengerang-commits-suicide/

By G Vinod. Published by Free Malaysia Today on 2 January 2013.

PKR director of strategy Rafizi Ramli claimed that Deepak bought 19 types of jewellery, worth about RM13 million for the prime minister's wife. Rafizi also produced several documents, including invoices and bank payment records made to two luxury jewellery companies based in Hong Kong – Dehres Limited and Firestone Corporation Limited.

The payments for the jewellery were made by two companies linked to Deepak – Carpet Raya Sdn Bhd and Carpet Plus Sdn Bhd. Rafizi urged the authorities to investigate, alleging that the matter was nothing short of a corrupt act. He said that it would not be difficult for an agency like the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to investigate as each luxury jewellery is unique, with its own reference code. 

“For example, Deepak’s company made payment for the purchase of a diamond ring, code DR 2763, worth US$1.5 million. “So we have its code and the MACC could easily trace this matter if it hauls up Deepak for an investigation,” Rafizi said, adding that it would be difficult for anyone to forge a bank record.

Read more here: 

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/01/02/deepak-purchased-gems-worth-millions-for-rosmah/

Orang Asli Seletar Johor tuntut hak tanah ― Gabungan Penduduk Orang Asli Kg Bakar Batu dan Kg Sg Temun

Diterbit oleh The Malaysian Insider pada 27 Disember 2012.

Pada hari ini, 188 orang penduduk Kampung Sungai Temun dan Kampung Bakar Batu, Johor Bahru, yang berketurunan Orang Asli Seletar (Orang Laut), telah memfailkan kes saman pemula di Makhamah Tinggi Johor Bahru secara tindakan berkelompok terhadap Lembaga Pembangunan Wilayah Iskandar (IRDA), Pengarah Tanah dan Galian (PTG) Johor, Kerajaan Negeri Johor dan 10 pihak yang lain.

Pihak Orang Asli diwakili oleh Salim bin Palon (Batin Kg. Sg. Temun), Mat bin Inder (wakil Kg. Bakar Batu) dan Edy bin Salim (wakil Kg. Sg. Temun). Kami diwakili oleh peguam K. Mohan (K. Mohan & Co) yang bertindak untuk kami secara pro bono.

Untuk makluman, masyarakat Orang Asli Seletar telah menyuarakan masalah kami melalui pelbagai saluran pada tahun yang lepas. Antara lain, kami menghantar memorandum kepada Menteri Besar pada 15 Disember 2011

1. Apabila perkuburan kami ditolak pada 19 Januari 2012, kami telah membuat laporan polis dan kemudian berdialog dengan pihak berkuasa termasuk Jabatan Kemajuan Orang Asli (JAKOA) pada 27 Januari 2012.
2. Usaha kami telah membawa EXCO Kerajaan Negeri Johor, YB Asiah Ariff untuk melawat kampung kami beberapa kali dan pada 1 November 2012, beliau telah mengatakan bahawa perkampungan kami akan dikekalkan.
3. Lebih awal pada bulan Febuari 2012, YB Asiah juga memaklumkan bahawa Kerajaan Johor sedang mengenalpasti tanah di kawasan Selat Johor untuk tujuan pewartaan sebagai rizab tanah Orang Asli untuk kami.
4. Walau bagaimanapun, tanah dan wilayah adat yang kami diami secara turun-temurun telah dan masih diceroboh oleh ramai pihak yang tidak bertanggungjawab. Setelah sekian lama aduan kami dibuat kepada pihak kerajaan, janji-janji yang ditawarkan oleh pihak berkuasa secara mulut masih belum menjadi kenyataan dalam bentuk hitam putih.

Pada masa yang sama, adalah sangat ketara bahawa bahawa kawasan hutan bakau di sekitar muara Sg Skudai dan Sg Danga di mana kami diami dan mencari makan telah musnah akibat kerja-kerja pembinaan yang kononnya dibuat demi pembangunan. Tetapi siapa yang merasai buah hasil pembangunan ini?

Kami tidak tahu. Apa yang kami pasti, hidup masyarakat Orang Asli di sini semakin terancam kerana dengan hilangnya hutan bakau dan tercemarnya sungai dan laut, punca mata pencarian kami semakin berkurangan. Malah, tanah di atas berdirinya kampung halaman kami telah ditukar menjadi hak milik pihak-pihak ketiga yang tanpa pengetahuan kami.

Tujuan kami mengambil cara undang-undang adalah supaya ketidak adilan yang menimpa masyarakat kami dapat diperbetulkan. Sebagai orang asal di negeri ini, kami ingin terus hidup dan maju di atas tanah dan laut yang kami warisi dari nenek moyang kami.

Link: 

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/rencana/article/orang-asli-seletar-johor-tuntut-hak-tanah-gabungan-penduduk-orang-asli-kg-bakar-batu-dan-kg-sg-temun/

Berita lain: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/217515

Seorang ADUN BN negeri menafikan dakwaan PKR  bahawa parti pemerintah dan Jabatan Kemajuan Orang Asli (JAKOA) mengadakan "sesi latihan" untuk membimbing pengundi Orang Asli di Tapah, Perak untuk mengundi BN.

ADUN Ayer Kuning yang juga pengerusi BN Tapah, Samsudin Abu Hassan memberitahu akhbar Sinar Harian bahawa program itu, yang dianjur bahagiannya, adalah untuk mendidik pengundi Orang Asli cara yang betul untuk mengundi.

Beliau menjelaskan ia diadakan selepas mereka mendapati bilangan undi rosak di kalangan pengundi Orang Asli dalam pilihan raya umum lepas adalah tinggi. Samsudin berkata, pihaknya tidak pernah memaksa sesiapa untuk mengundi BN kerana ia hak pengundi untuk mengundi sesiapa yang mereka mahu.

Sebaliknya, tegas beliau, pihaknya hanya mendidik mereka cara untuk memangkah dan mengundi dengan betul. Katanya, terpulang kepada PKR jika mereka juga mahu berbuat demikian. Samsudin juga mengakui 5kg beras telah diberikan kepada setiap pengundi Orang Asli, tetapi menegaskan bahawa ia bukan bertujuan untuk memancing undi.

Whatever Australia does not want, dumps into Malaysia

Published by Free Malaysia Today on 11 October 2012.

Shares in Lynas Corp Ltd plunged 19% today as it faced another delay in opening its rare earths plant in Malaysia, raising the prospect the company may need to shore up its funding with a share sale. A Malaysian court yesterday extended a hold on the Australian company’s operating licence to Nov 8 while it decides whether to consider a review aimed at permanently blocking production at the US$800 million (RM2.5 billion) plant in Kuantan, Pahang, on the east coast.

Lynas received the temporary operating licence in September for the rare earths plant, the biggest outside China. It had aimed to start production this month, processing material from its Mount Weld mine in Western Australia, but said yesterday that would be delayed and gave no new timetable for the opening.

Its shares fell to a six-week low of A$0.69 in early trade and last traded down 16% at A$0.72, reflecting worries that the company will need to raise equity to shore up its funds the longer the delay runs. “Given the current delays, we believe the core tenet for our argument to sell Lynas is still applicable – namely risks surrounding funding, dilution, commission and waste disposal solution,” Foster Stockbroking said in a note to clients today.

Foster estimated the company, which had A$124 million in unrestricted cash as of June 30, would have only A$20 million in working capital available if the plant starts operating in November, and said it would probably need to raise funds through a sale of new shares. Lynas had A$205 million in total cash at June 30, but A$81 million of this can only be used for a future expansion of the plant.

Activists linked to the environmental group Save Malaysia Stop Lynas (SMSL) want the court to suspend the licence until two judicial review cases challenging the government’s decision allowing the plant to operate are heard. Lynas had hoped to open the plant a year ago, but has been delayed by community protests. The company says that its plant is safe and is not comparable to a rare-earths plant in Malaysia that was shut by a unit of Mitsubishi Chemicals in 1992, after residents there blamed the plant for birth defects and a high rate of leukemia cases.

Link: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/business/2012/10/11/lynas-shares-dive-19-on-rare-earths-plant-delay/

Another report: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/aussie-surgeons-malaysian-killer-to-be-sent-home-sydney-court-rules/

The Malaysian man who shot dead renowned Australian heart surgeon Dr Victor Chang in Sydney over two decades ago in a botched extortion attempt will be released on parole, after a Sydney court rejected an attempt by New South Wales Attorney-General Greg Smith to keep him behind bars.

Bernama reported that Liew Chiew Seng, who fired the fatal shots in a failed extortion attempt in 1991, was granted parole by the State Parole Authority last month. He was due to be deported to Malaysia by yesterday, but Smith had immediately appealed the decision. The case was dismissed today by the New South Wales Supreme Court.

Lawyers for Smith argued that to release Liew would “expunge” him of the remaining five years of his maximum sentence, because there would not be supervision for him in Malaysia. Liew, 69, is suffering from Parkinson’s disease and the parole authority was told earlier this year that time might be running out for him to leave Australia before he could no longer travel safely. He has been kept in the Long Bay jail in Sydney for more than a year past his 20-year minimum prison term.

The parole authority formed the intention to grant parole at a private hearing in May. The Serious Offender’s Review Council (SORC) and the Probation and Parole Service (PPS) both believe Liew will be unfit to travel if his health deteriorates further. A SORC report said Liew “was not sentenced to die in a NSW Correctional Centre. The overall fragility of his condition cannot be denied.”

The PPS report said it was “impossible to ignore Mr Liew’s deteriorating physical and mental health ... there is ongoing concern it will also continue to have a detrimental impact on Mr Liew’s capacity to return to Malaysia upon release”.

Liew was sentenced to a maximum 26 years in prison for firing the two shots that killed Dr Chang in a failed extortion attempt at Mosman on July 4, 1991. His partner in the murder, and the offender who provided the gun, Phillip Choon Tee Lim, was deported to Malaysia in 2010 after serving 18 years of his maximum 24-year sentence.

Australia’s first successful heart transplant was carried out by Dr Chang in 1984 and he was also voted Australian of the Century in 2000.

20,000 natives affected by Baram Dam to stay put

By Sulok Tawie. Published by The Sun Daily on 18 September 2012.

Over 20,000 natives, who will be directly affected by the construction of the proposed Baram Dam, will not go anywhere to be resettled, SAVE Sarawak's Rivers Network (SAVE Rivers) president Philip Ngau told reporters yesterday.

He said these natives are from 26 longhouses, above the dam site at Long Keseh, along the mighty Baram River. "A few thousand more natives from the longhouses located downstream of the dam will be indirectly affected," he said on the sidelines of a public forum on dams to be constructed in Sarawak and native customary rights land.

Ngau, whose longhouse, Long Laput, is not directly affected by the dam, said resettling these 20,000 natives will cause untold problems and miseries to them. "Where do these people go?" he asked, stating that the affected natives had not been told where they would be resettled. "Even if they have been told where to go, they have insisted that they will stay put, regardless," he said. Ngau said SAVE Rivers has asked the natives to stay put.

Borneo Research Institute of Malaysia (BRIMAS) director Mark Bujang said that it is unlikely that the government can solve the problems to be faced by these 20,000 affected natives. He pointed out that the problems faced by the people affected by the Batang Ai dam in Sri Aman Division and the Bakun Dam in Kapit Division have not be resolved.

Over 10,000 people, affected by the Bakun dam, have been resettled at the Sungai Asap resettlement scheme, but many have moved out. "The Sungai Asap Resettlement scheme is 50 % empty because many have left to go elsewhere or returned to the original places above the Bakun dam which are not submerged by the rising water," Bujang said.

"There are also others who built floating houses at the Bakun lake. There are 40 families from formerly from Long Jawe living on the floating houses. They have moved out of Sungai Asap," he said, stating that a few hundreds more families planned to build the floating houses at the lake.

Long Jawe is one of the longhouses submerged by the water of Bakun dam. According to Bujang, Sungai Asap is not a place to reside. "The government allocated three acres of land to each family. Even then the land is not suitable for farming because of the nature of soil," he said. "So, you can't plant padi or cash crop like rubber," he added. Bujang said that the state government has not been definite on when the construction of the Baram dam will start.

The RM4 billion dam, when completed, will generate 1,200MW of electricity. The dam will have a catchment area of about 41,200 hectares or 412 square kilometres of forested areas. Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB), the state government-owned power supplier, is currently conducting comprehensive tests on the stability of the rock structure on the dam site.

Link: http://www.thesundaily.my/news/492875

Related report: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/209262

Sekumpulan kira-kira 50 Orang Asal dari Baram mengadakan protes di hadapan bangunan sekretariat negeri Sarawak di Kuching semalam, membantah projek mega empangan yang akan menenggelamkan rumah panjang mereka. Mereka daripada 18 rumah panjang di Baram Hulu dan Tengah juga menyerahkan petisyen yang mengandungi lebih 1,000 tandatangan kepada Pejabat Ketua Menteri Sarawak.

Petisyen itu menyuarakan tentangan mereka terhadap rancangan membina empangan mega di Baram yang akan membanjiri kawasan tersebut seluas separuh saiz Singapura, serta menenggelamkan tanah nenek moyang mereka, rumah dan ladang-ladang di situ.

Dalam satu kenyataan semalam, Preiden Jaringan Orang Asal seMalaysia (Joas), Thomas Jalong, yang berasal dari Long Anap, Baram, berkata empangan itu akan menjejaskan kehidupan penduduk asal tempatan.

"Empangan akan pasti menenggelamkan tanah nenek moyang dengan lebih 20,000 penduduk dan dalam proses itu, ia akan mengakibatkan kami kehilangan rumah kita," katanya. Dengan itu, katanya, mereka secara tidak adil akan kehilangan tanah mereka, sumber mata pencarian dan rezeki, dan menghadapi masa depan yang tidak menentu,

Menurutnya, tanah itu bukan semata-mata sahaja menjadi sumber ekonomi bagi komuniti Orang Asal tetapi penting kepada identiti sosial, kebudayaan, kerohanian dan politik mereka.

12 empangan mega dirancang

Sementara itu, Rangkaian Selamatkan Sungai Sarawak (Save Rivers), sebuah gabungan yang dibentuk untuk menentang pembinaan 12 empangan mega yang dirancang bagi Sarawak, berkata bantahan itu diadakan untuk mendesak kerajaan mematuhi Deklarasi Pertubuhan Bangsa-Bangsa Bersatu mengenai Hak Orang Asal.

Presidennya, Peter Kallang berkata kerajaan negeri Sarawak perlu menghentikan semua kerja di atas jalan akses ke empangan kerana ia sudah pun menjejaskan masyarakat Orang Asal. Malah, wakil Jawatankuasa Bertindak Lindungi Baram, Philip Jau berkata perancangan untuk pembinaan empangan Baram tidak pernah telus.

"Mereka tidak bertanya rakyat pandangan mereka mengenai rancangan membina empangan tetapi sebaliknya telah memulakan kerja mengukur jalan masuk ke projek itu," kata Philip.