Ili Liyana Mokhtar New Straits Times 11 Nov 12;
PROTECTING NATURE: Sessions Courts nationwide to take up the role of such courts, says chief justice
KUALA LUMPUR: ENVIRONMENTAL cases will now be assigned to dedicated "green courts", Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria said yesterday.
He said the cases would be heard in Sessions Courts nationwide.
"If there is no Sessions Court in a certain area, the case will then be heard in a magistrate's court. At present, we have 76 courts nationwide," he said after opening a national seminar on Green Courts here.
Arifin said the courts would address cases, such as wildlife crime, pollution, illegal logging and fishing, and land clearing.
The three-day seminar is aimed at training judges and court staff on environmental issues and crimes.
This is the first time such a seminar was organised since the establishment of the "green courts" in September.
He added that the establishment of dedicated green courts was vital in preserving and protecting the nation's natural environment.
"As for the judiciary, I pledge to give our full commitment to enforcement agencies and that environmental issues will be our top priority," he said in his opening speech.
Arifin said he was glad the Environmental Quality (Amendment) Act, which was passed recently in Parliament, would be enforced next year.
He also said the amendment would pave the way for a more effective enforcement system where the act empowered the Environment Department director-general to arrest, or issue a stop-work order to persons carrying out activities which may cause environmental damage.
It also provides for the director-general, or any officer authorised by him, to have the power to investigate and arrest offenders.
Any person who contravenes this provision shall be liable to a maximum fine of RM500,000 or a jail sentence of up to five years, or both.
Malaysia is one of the very first countries in the region to have an Environmental Quality Act back in 1974.
It was reported earlier this year that Malaysia ranked 25th out of 132 countries in the Environmental Performance Index last year.
The rankings was announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
It puts Malaysia in the same league as high-scoring countries like Germany, Iceland, Fin-land, Denmark, Japan and Belgium.
