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Reserve land near Kg Buah Pala: Another option

Anil Netto
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Uninhabited land next to Kampung Buah Pala which could be turned into an eco-village – Photos by Anil

The worried Buah Pala village folk are at a loss over what to do. Few outside the village seem to understand them. They have been labelled as greedy and demanding after being offered 24 two-storey terrace houses – which they feel is not enough as there are about 40 families in the village.

One lanky village youth keeping watch, a walkie-talkie attached to his waist, told me his household has 12 members. “How are we to fit into a terrace house?”

Villagers say a strip of uninhabited state land lies adjacent to the village. A villager pointed out to me where the land stood. I ambled down the slope, past the enclosure of grazing cows on the right and found an open space, filled with undergrowth along a fairly long monsoon drain. I ventured in cautiously – the strip seemed to extend deep inside, and it appeared wide enough for houses to be built. This was probably the 2.4 acres of state reserve land a few had been talking about.

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Sarawak water cuts: El Nino or deforestation?

Anil Netto
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Some 18,000 people in eight divisions of Sarawak, including Kuching, are facing water shortages due to a current drought.

This dry spell is caused by the El Nino phenomenon, says Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister George Chan.

How convenient to put all the blame on “El Nino”.

I spoke to an environmentalist and he said El Nino could be just one of the factors.

Given the size of Sarawak and its low population density, he said one would expect that there would be enough water in the state. Moreover, he said, even in the driest season, rivers do not dry up in Sarawak and water still flows into the sea. But he pointed out there is inadequate infrastructure and inadequate planning for water supply and distribution.

Perhaps one of the biggest problems, he said, is the mismanagement of water catchment areas.

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Kg Buah Pala: That RM3.5 million figure…

Anil Netto
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The Kg Buah Pala villagers have been portrayed as greedy, demanding, and unreasonable. This is partly due to the mixed signals coming from the committee, the seemingly conflicting statements and misrepresentations of those speaking on their behalf including those with vested interests and even those in the state government.

Guan Eng even claimed – incorrectly as it turned out – the villagers want RM3.5 million bungalows or compensation. Where did he get that from? But the damage is already done as it is all over the media.

As a result of such statements in the media by those intent on portraying the villagers as greedy – and the village committee’s own public relations blunders along with outsiders taking advantage – public opinion may have swayed against the villagers.

I have been to the village a few times, and I have never heard of a demand for RM3.5 million bungalows or any similar demand.

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Kota Damansara folks against Carrefour project

Anil Netto
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Carrefour Kota Damansara3

A satellite image of the Carrefour project site, which lies at the lower-half of the green patch in the middle. The school juts into the green, immediately above the project site. Residents fear that the narrow road on the perimeter of the patch could be converted into a one-way street when congestion increases.

About a hundred Kota Damansara folks staged a protest next to the construction site for Carrefour hypermarket yesterday. They have been campaigning against the project in their area since November 2007.

This is the latest protest against the project. In April 2008, about 400 residents staged a similar protest.

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Buah Pala residents agree in principle, but…

Anil Netto
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In the confusion that surrounds the Kg Buah Pala crisis, a different version of events over the last 24 hours has emerged.

About 80 per cent of the villagers participated in a meeting last night along with several activists. The villagers are understandably upset – there is a strong sense that they have experienced a grave injustice.
The meeting was witnessed by Sungai Siput MP Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj, who revealed some of the villagers’ main reservations over the developer’s offer.

According to him, the villagers have agreed in principle to the developer’s proposal – but subject to further fleshing out and clarification to ensure they are given a decent deal that protects their interests.

They are willing to dialogue and negotiate further with the developer and the state government on these points.

  • Their main reservation centres on the number of houses: 24 terrace houses is simply not going to be enough given that there are over 40 families (though not as high as the 60-odd families mentioned by some villagers). So they need more than 24 terrace houses.
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On the arrests of teens at the Abolish ISA rally

Anil Netto
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Also, check out a poll on the ISA at the news portal of the Home Affairs Ministry, no less.

As at 8.06pm, 91 per cent of over 9,000 respondents want the ISA abolished – an identical result (91 per cent) to what my own blog poll revealed in May.

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Kg Buah Pala: Face of anguish

Anil Netto
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Muniammah
Anguish etches the face of Muniammah, 75, at the front door of her home, as she stares out at an uncertain future. – Photo by Anil

Earlier, Muniammah had come up to a few visitors to the village, her hands clasped as if pleading with us for help: “Where will we go after this?” she asked, almost in tears. “We don’t have any money for rental.”

Her parents arrived from India decades ago – she doesn’t know exactly when – and her mother lived in Kampung Buah Pala until she was 90.

She showed a couple of us around her family home, her back hunched as she struggled to walk up the steep path leading from the lane to the front door.

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Buah Pala villagers miss noon deadline

Anil Netto
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1300: Kampung Buah Pala residents have not met a noon deadline to accept a compensation offer by Nusmetro, according to a contact at the scene.

In a just concluded press conference, they expressed anxiety over the conditions attached to the offer. They claimed that Nusmetro’s offer itself was illegal as the temporary title to the land in the Koperasi’s name prohibited any transaction.

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Kg Buah Pala: More questions

Anil Netto
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Let’s go back a bit and look at the timeline:

3 October 2005 – Nusmetro enters into a joint venture with the Koperasi.

5 October 2006 – Planning permission is given by the local authorities.

27 March 2008 – Temporary title (Borang 11AK) (99 year lease) is registered in the name of the Koperasi. The title contains a restriction saying that there can be no transfer, lease, sub-lease or any transaction.

There are also two caveats shown on this temporary title document:

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Is Selangor next?

Anil Netto
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After Perak, is the BN now eyeing Selangor? That is the question that seems to be on quite a few minds.

Malaysians politics is now in a state of flux, with both the BN and the Pakatan suffering a series of setbacks.

This is a piece I wrote for Asia Times:

No winners in Malaysia’s political tussle
By Anil Netto

PENANG – The political situation in Malaysia is in a state of flux as both the ruling coalition and the opposition alliance face mounting challenges and uncertainties.

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