Malaysia: Protest at Pengerang refinery project

Mohd Farhaan Shah The Star 30 Sep 12;

PENGERANG: The Himpunan Hijau group held a demonstration over the RM60bil refinery and petrochemical project at Kampung Sungai Rengit here.

The protesters, mostly members of non-governmental organisations from outside the area, arrived early and were clad in green T-shirts.

They carried placards and banners highlighting the destruction to the environment and effects of the project to the livelihood of the residents.

It was largely a peaceful gathering which started at about 10am with speeches by several state opposition leaders. The crowd dispersed after noon.

Pengerang MP Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said the opposition was using the project as a political move to instil hatred towards the government.

She added that the opposition had been twisting facts about the project to gain votes.

She blasted the protest organisers for saying that she was invited to attend the event. "I did not received any invitation from them. This is the way Opposition works which is lying to the people," she said.

PAS vice-president Salahuddin Ayub told reporters at the rally that the party never opposed the project but reminded the Government of the welfare of the people in Pengerang.

"There are nine fishing villages that would be affected due to the project.

"The Government should have moved the project further down to Desaru where the spillover effect will benefit the people without affecting their lives," he said.

Salahuddin's statement seems to contradict his Pakatan Rakyat ally, Johor PKR chief Datuk Chua Jui Meng, who had called for the project to be scrapped.

Present at the rally were Johor DAP chief Dr Boo Cheng Hau and several Bersih 2.0 committee members, including Wong Chin Huat and Hishammuddin Rais.

Thousands protest against Malaysia petroleum hub
Channel NewsAsia 30 Sep 12;

KUALA LUMPUR: Thousands rallied in southern Malaysia on Sunday against a government-backed US$56 billion petroleum hub they say will force thousands out of their homes and damage a fishing community.

Environmentalists from across the country gathered in the sleepy coastal town of Pengerang where the project, spearheaded by state oil giant Petronas and also involving private companies, is due to be completed by 2016.

A coalition of local NGOS say the 170-billion-ringgit Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex -- an industrial park for the oil industry -- will harm the livelihoods of local residents and fishermen in an area famed for its lobsters.

On Sunday protestors, mostly dressed in green, heard opposition leaders promise to cancel the project if they come to power at national elections that must be held by the middle of next year.

Organisers said 8,000 demonstrators took part although reports estimated the crowd to be less than half that figure.

"We want development but not when it oppresses the people. The government must give the public the right to decide on the location of such projects," Anis Afida Mohd Azli, who is leading opposition to the project, told AFP.

She added the NGOs will hand over a list of demands to the state government on October 8.

The protest movement began early last year as local anger mounted against the 22,500-acre petrochemical hub.

Prime Minister Najib Razak has faced numerous protests over projects allegedly harmful to the environment since taking power a year after his Barisan Nasional suffered its worst ever electoral result in 2008.

A green movement, largely supported by the opposition, has gained momentum in recent years with Australian rare earths producer Lynas Corp bearing the brunt of the backlash over a planned plant near an eastern resort town.

- AFP/ck