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Malaysia’s Bakun dam online but criticisms persist

admin — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 03:20:16 +0000

The first turbine is spinning, electricity is pulsing out, and the water level is climbing in the Borneo jungle behind Malaysia’s huge $2.2 billion Bakun hydroelectric dam.

But questions continue to swirl around the viability of a project described by critics as a graft-plagued human and ecological disaster — and as opposition mounts against a dozen other planned dams in Sarawak state.

The first turbine from French giant Alstom began producing electricity in August and the dam’s reservoir in the Malaysian portion of Borneo island has swelled to the size of Singapore since impoundment began a year ago.

After years of warnings about the impact on Sarawak’s pristine jungles and the forced removal of thousands of local tribespeople, the dam’s head Zulkifle Osman sees light at the end of the tunnel.

During a tour of the facility, the managing director of Sarawak Hidro who has overseen construction since 2000 defended the dam despite an electricity surplus in the state and the lack of a market for its power.

“It is a chicken-and-egg game,” Zulkifle told AFP.

“I am confident there will be a lot of demand for electricity in Sarawak.”

But dam opponents say the situation confirms warnings about Bakun as an ill-planned and unnecessary boondoggle.

The facility is located on the Balui River, a mighty waterway that drains a vast rainforested area of northern Borneo — home to orangutan, spotted leopards, rare plants, and a renowned biodiversity.

The project was first approved in 1986 under then-premier Mahathir Mohamad as a cheap electricity source for more-developed peninsular Malaysia even though the country is a net oil and natural gas exporter.

But in a 2005 report, anti-graft watchdog Transparency International termed the dam one of the world’s “Monuments of Corruption,” citing years of delays, ownership changes, and overall costs that more than doubled.

“No users have made any legal written commitment for the usage of the energy,” said Elli Luhat, a former Sarawak forestry official, now an environmental activist.

“I have a real fear that Bakun dam will one day become a white elephant.”

Tribal residents say warnings about the dam’s ecological and human impact are coming true.

Residents living in the shadow of the dam, one of the world’s highest at 205 metres (673 ft), say the river’s biodiversity has degenerated, fish catches have plunged, and once-clean waters smell foul and are unsafe to drink.

Silting has occurred, inhibiting navigation in the river, natives say.

Climbing into his boat in Uma Nyaving village about 10 kilometres (six miles) from Bakun, Kayan tribesman Richard Let complained of the thinning fish numbers.

“Now there is not enough for my family and the fish are small. The river is choking under silt and is making it difficult to fish with our boats,” said Let, 31.

Downstream from the dam, nearly 12,000 indigenous Kayan, Kenyah, Ukit and Penan people live in traditional wooden longhouses in a resettlement area in the town of Sungai Asap. Their ancestal homes are now underwater.

They enjoy amenities unknown when they dwelt in the forest — piped water, electricity, schools, Internet access and health services.

But Bulan Merang, 43, who moved to Sungai Asap 12 years ago, struggles to feed her eight children amid high food prices and new social strains.

“Children no longer respect their elders. Even my 21-year-old son says I am a useless woman whenever he gets drunk,” she said.

The tribes, who previously grew rice and bananas and hunted wild boar, say their new land is infertile. Age-old hunting grounds are submerged and they must purchase staple foods.

“We were not dependent on money (before). Here everything is money,” Bulan added.

Ironically, Sungai Asap’s electricity comes not from Bakun but from a huge diesel-powered generator — the dam’s electricity is sent away on power lines criss-crossing the green terrain, headed to a state grid already at capacity.

Sarawak is rich in natural resources but poverty is rampant. Its leaders are keen to diversify from mining, agriculture and forestry and into high-tech industries and say ample power sources are needed to lure foreign investment.

“I am confident the power from Bakun will be taken up. MITI (the Ministry of International Trade and Industry) is working hard to get investors,” Zulkifle said.

Zulkifle brushed aside concerns over the safety of Bakun, one of the world’s largest rock-filled embankment dams, calling it “sound.”

He said released water was treated to ensure it was clean and denied corruption allegations.

“All the money that is paid is audited. We are scrutinised,” he said.

The dam was meant to help cut Malaysia’s dependence on oil and gas for electricity generation. Up to 90 percent of output was to be sent to more industrialised peninsular Malaysia via undersea cables.

But economic downturns over the years forced protracted construction delays and shuffling of contractors, and the cable plan was shelved on cost concerns.

The Malaysian chapter of Friends of the Earth says nearly a quarter of electricity capacity in Sarawak already is unused, noting that the country as whole also has an electricity surplus.

The planned eight turbines will have a capacity of 2,400 megawatts when installed by 2014. Current Sarawak demand is 1,000 MW.

Then-finance minister Anwar Ibrahim suspended the Bakun dam and other big schemes in 1998 amid a regional financial crisis, angering Mahathir, who was known for backing grandiose projects.

It was revived in 1999 after Anwar was ousted in a falling-out with Mahathir, with Sarawak Hidro acquiring the project from original private Malaysian developer Ekran.

The dam’s capacity remains far too much for Sarawak and only the undersea cable could salvage its viability, said Anwar, now opposition leader.

“Otherwise we will have a white elephant. Sarawak does not need all that power,” he told AFP.

Despite the Bakun controversy, the state has plans for a dozen more dams, angering local tribes.

There are about 200 cases in Malaysian courts brought by indigenous people fighting state acquisition of their land for dams, timber concessions, or other developments. — AFP

Japanese woman to hang in Malaysia for drugs

admin — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 05:24:47 +0000

A Malaysian court sentenced a Japanese woman to death on Tuesday for smuggling methamphetamine into the country in what an official said was the first such case involving a citizen of Japan.

A high court in Shah Alam near the capital Kuala Lumpur found Mariko Takeuchi guilty of drug trafficking, said a court official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorised to make public statements.

A customs official who also requested anonymity said the verdict marked the first time a Japanese national had been arrested for smuggling drugs into Malaysia, which is known for its tough anti-drug laws.

Drug smuggling carries a mandatory death penalty by hanging in Malaysia.

Takeuchi, a 36-year-old former nurse, was arrested in October last year at Kuala Lumpur International Airport after arriving from Dubai with 3.5 kilogrammes (seven pounds, 11 ounces) of the drug.

Takeuchi has testified that she was duped by a man into carrying a bag containing the methamphetamine but did not know the drugs were inside.

She will be eligible to appeal the verdict.

The customs official said Dubai is a frequent transit point for drugs destined for Malaysia, which are often then sent on to other countries such as Australia.

As of earlier this year, Malaysia had nearly 700 prisoners, mostly men, on death row. More than two-thirds of those involved drug offences. — AFP

Choi holds off Tseng to win in Malaysia

admin — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 21:57:47 +0000

South Korea’s Choi Na-Yeon held off a hard-charging world number one Yani Tseng to win the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia in an exciting finish at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club on Sunday.

The world number four carded a nervous 3-under 68 to finish on 15-under 269 to claim the top prize of $285,000.

Taiwan’s Tseng, who edged past Choi to win a tournament last week in South Korea, had to settle for second despite equalling the course record with a six-under 65 to end the competition at 14-under 270.

“This week I had a great feeling. So I played very well,” Choi told reporters.

“I kept watching the leaderboard. She (Tseng) is so intimidating.”

The duo were tied for the lead on 14-under until Choi’s tee shot from the 17th landed less than 10 feet from the hole and she coolly putted in to give her some breathing space.

Over at the 18th, the 22-year-old Tseng missed a 20-foot birdie putt and a chance to regain a share of the lead.

Her course-record 65 was a gallant effort from the world number one, but not enough to collect her seventh title of the season.

For Choi, who has had nine top 10 finishes this season, the victory in Malaysia was her first of the season.

The 23-year-old attributed her win to a new found ability to relax.

“When I started to play this year, I think I put too much pressure on myself. Then I told myself that I should play one shot at a time and play with fun,” Choi said.

Meanwhile Tseng vowed to win on her home turf next week with more consistent play.

“I am expected to do my best and to win next week. I should play with more consistency and treat everyday as the last day,” she told reporters.

Tseng who has had a dominating year, winning six of the 18 LPGA events she’s played in and finishing in the top 10 11 times, heaped praise on her rival Choi.

“She played very well. For sure I felt some pressure. Last week I won, this week, she won.”

After winning twice in Australian LPGA events early in the year, Tseng was propelled to the top spot.

Tseng is expected to hold her number one position with only five LPGA tournaments left on this year’s schedule. — AFP

Malaysia Unveils Plan for Handouts

admin — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 04:12:44 +0000

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak unveiled a government spending plan for 2012 that pledged cash handouts and more benefits for ordinary Malaysians, while also shoring up the country’s finances and reining in its budget deficit at a time of global economic uncertainty.

Political analysts said Mr. Najib had at least one eye on the election that must be called within the next 18 months. Over the past month this aristocratic son of the country’s second prime minister has staked out the center ground of Malaysia’s politics, pledging to roll back laws that allow for detention without trial and to allow a greater degree of media freedoms in what is still a very closely controlled country.

For Mr. Najib, who took over the ruling United Malays National Organization party about a year after it lost its customary two-thirds parliamentary majority in a March 2008 election, Friday’s budget speech appeared to mark the next step in a plan to secure a strong mandate in this Muslim-dominated but ethnically diverse nation.

“There was something for all of the key groups in there,” said James Chin, a political-science professor at Monash University in Kuala Lumpur. The right wing of Mr. Najib’s ethnic-Malay party will likely be placated by the two billion ringgit ($631.2 million) of infrastructure contracts reserved for bumiputra-owned (ethnic-Malay-owned) businesses, while ethnic-Chinese voters will likely be relieved by the absence of new taxes.

“International investors got some reassurance on the budget deficit, too,” Mr. Chin said. “Mr. Najib needs to get this right and secure a strong majority whenever the elections come or else he could get kicked out by his own party.”

To help finance the 2012 budget, Mr. Najib, who is also the country’s finance minister, said the government plans to privatize and list state-owned plantation operator Felda Global Ventures Bhd. by the middle of the year. That could create the world’s largest publicly traded palm-oil producer by planted area, as well as draw substantial foreign investment into the country’s stock market.

Other major proposals in the 2012 budget would encourage foreign investment in sectors including financial services, logistics and health care and limit the budget deficit to 4.7% of gross domestic product. It is 5.4% this year.

The budget wouldn’t ramp up government largess as much as many economists had feared. Mr. Najib struck a note of caution by limiting development spending—which analysts say has been used in the past to win political support—to 48.34 billion ringgit, only slightly more than this year’s 48.60 billion ringgit. Mr. Najib said the government expects the economy to expand 5% to 6% next year, compared with 5% to 5.5% growth projected for this year. The bump would be partly thanks to his spending plan, he said.

“Global developments would certainly have a direct impact on the Malaysian economy,” Mr. Najib told Parliament. “With these developments, the government will put in place measures to stimulate domestic economic activities, in particular public and private investments.”

Targeting a relatively low deficit of 4.7% now might leave Mr. Najib better placed to pump more money into the economy later if the global environment deteriorates sharply, economists said. Governments across Asia are growing increasingly concerned that debt crisis in the euro zone may further damp the tepid recovery in key markets—not only European countries, but the U.S. and Japan as well.

In the meantime there will also be several cash handouts, including a one-off payment of 500 ringgit to all households with a monthly income of 3,000 ringgit or less. Civil servants’ wages and pensions will rise, while the compulsory retirement age will increase to 60 years old.

Mr. Najib’s budget also allots 50 billion ringgit for education, an area he has repeatedly singled out as a key to nurturing the long-term development of Malaysia’s economy. — The Wall Street Journal

Malaysia to start security law reforms next week

admin — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 07:49:07 +0000

Malaysia will move to abolish two minor security laws next week but wait to scrap the tougher Internal Security Act (ISA) until next year, the prime minister said.

Prime Minister Najib Razak pledged last month to abolish the dreaded ISA, which allows indefinite detention without trial, and reform other laws which opposition leaders and activists have long criticised as outdated and cruel.

Najib said late Friday that he would table motions in Parliament next week to scrap two laws which restrict criminal suspects’ movements and allow for them to be exiled.

“Whatever we can speed up, we speed up,” Najib was quoted as saying by the national news agency Bernama as saying.

“This indicates that we have a comprehensive agenda to make Malaysia not only developed economically but also to be on par with other nations which practise the so-called modern progressive democracy,” he said.

But a motion to scrap the ISA would only be tabled in Parliament next March as the government is still drafting two other laws to replace that legislation and prevent criminal acts and violence, Najib said.

His aide confirmed Saturday that the government would aim to pass motions to repeal the Banishment Act and the Restricted Residence Act in the next Parliament sitting, which begins Monday and ends in December.

Najib made a surprise announcement as part of his Malaysia Day speech on September 15 that several security laws would be reformed, a promise that came with snap polls widely expected to be called well before their 2013 due date.

Activists have long criticised the decades-old ISA and other laws, which have been used to detain terror suspects and alleged human traffickers but also opposition politicians and activists.

They say those guilty of crimes should be charged in court and not held indefinitely. — AFP

Baghdatis back to winning ways in Malaysia

admin — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 19:51:17 +0000

Cypriot crowd-pleaser Marcos Baghdatis began the Malaysian Open with a 7-6 (7/3), 6-4 win over American sixth seed Alex Bogomolov on Monday.

Bogomolov, 28, has been in the form of his life this season, with career-best third-round appearances at both Wimbledon and the US Open.

But Baghdatis, 26, once ranked eighth in the world, claimed victory in an hour and three quarters, firing six aces.

The former Australian Open finalist has had a career punctuated by injuries, and now stands 60th in the ATP world rankings.

Neither player faced a break point in the opening set, with Baghdatis coming through comfortably in the tiebreaker, before going on to win the match. He will face either Somdev Devvarman of India or Russian Mikhail Ledovskikh in the next round.

Russian seventh seed Dmitry Tursunov, playing for the first time in Malaysia, overcame Chile’s Paul Capdeville 6-2, 2-6, 6-1.

The first-round contest, which took two and a quarter hours, saw the South American saving 10 of the 14 break points he faced.

Tursunov, 28, is looking to earn the seventh ATP trophy of his career.

Meanwhile, Belgian David Goffin won a confrontation between wild cards, as he eliminated Australian Matthew Ebden 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) for his second ATP victory of the season.

Goffin, 20, lost only seven points on serve in the opening set, breaking his opponent in the penultimate game. In the second, Ebden lost out in a tiebreaker. Goffin will face Tursunov in the next round. — AFP

Debutant Almagro top seed in Malaysia

admin — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 08:18:26 +0000

The Davis Cup has taken a severe toll on the ATP Malaysian Open starting Monday, with Spain’s Nicolas Almagro taking over as top seed after the withdrawal of world number nine Tomas Berdych.

Berdych, who helped the Czech Republic remain in the Davis Cup World Group, is suffering with a nagging shoulder problem that forced him out of the hardcourt event at the Putra Stadium in Kuala Lumpur.

Almagro, the world number 12, will be making his debut at the tournament and is awarded with a first-round bye, as the ATP World Tour begins its Asian swing.

He will face the winner from Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan and Spaniard Albert Ramos in the second round. The top four seeds all enter at the second-round stage.

The tournament is beginning its third edition, but holder Mikhail Youzhny is another notable absentee. He will not be in town to defend his title as he gets treatment on his injured back in Moscow.

But fellow Russian Nikolay Davydenko, a one-time member of the top five but now ranked a lowly 36th and without a title since April, when he won Munich on clay, will be back.

The 30-year-old takes the fifth seeding and begins against Ryan Harrison, one of three Americans in the field along with Alex Bogomolov, the sixth seed, and Ryan Sweeting.

The colourful Harrison carries a reputation as a hothead, with his display of temper during an opening-round loss at the US Open against Marin Cilic earning him a fine.

Serbian Davis Cup players take the second and third seedings, with Viktor Troicki and Janko Tipsarevic. Jurgen Melzer, of Austria, is seeded fourth.

Russian debutant Dmitry Tursunov and Japan’s Kei Nishikori, beaten in the 2010 first round by Marcos Baghdatis, complete the seedings.

Two young Australians are others to watch out for. Wimbledon quarter-finalist Bernard Tomic starts against Italy’s Flavio Cipolla and Matthew Ebden clashes with Belgian David Goffin.

Former Australian Open finalist Baghdatis, who has had a mixed year, is in on a wildcard entry, with the 2010 quarter-finalist from Cyprus competing in Malaysia for the third straight edition. — AFP

Seeds:

Nicolas Almagro (ESP x1)

Viktor Troicki (SRB x2)

Janko Tipsarevic (SRB x3)

Jurgen Melzer (AUT x4)

Nikolay Davydenko (RUS x5)

Alex Bogomolov (USA x6)

Dmitry Tursunov (RUS x7)

Kei Nishikori (JPN x8)

Malaysia PM seeks to quash Anwar trial subpoen

admin — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 21:35:24 +0000

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife applied Wednesday to quash a subpoena ordering them to testify in the sodomy trial of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, the premier’s lawyer said.

Anwar, 64, is charged with sodomising a young male aide in June 2008, a charge he says was cooked up with Najib’s involvement in a bid to cripple the opposition’s chances in coming elections.

Anwar’s accuser Mohamad Saiful Bukhari Azlan said he met Najib before filing a police report on the sodomy accusation. The defence, which has called on Najib to testify, says this indicates the case was manufactured.

The government has denied involvement in the accusations.

Sodomy is illegal in Muslim-majority Malaysia and Anwar faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Najib’s lawyer Salehuddin Saidin said he filed an application in the Kuala Lumpur High Court to strike down the court order for the premier and his wife Rosmah Mansor to testify.

“The subpoena is to call the witness to come to court to give evidence on behalf of the accused. So now we have filed an application to set aside this subpoena,” the lawyer told AFP, declining to elaborate.

He said the court had not set a date to hear the application.

The court had earlier ordered Najib and his wife to submit to questioning by Anwar’s lawyers as potential witnesses, and they were interviewed on August 12 but refused to talk.

The couple received the subpoena on Tuesday.

Anwar was deputy prime minister and next in line for power when he was ousted in 1998 amid a bitter falling out with then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad.

Anwar was subsequently arrested and convicted on separate sodomy and corruption charges widely seen as politically motivated. The sodomy conviction was overturned and Anwar was freed in 2004.

He led an opposition alliance to historic gains against the long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition in 2008 polls but the new sodomy accusation also emerged that year.

The defence is currently presenting its case in the long-running trial. — AFP

Malaysia suspends anti-graft officers after death

admin — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 19:11:57 +0000

Malaysia’s anti-corruption force on Saturday suspended three officers who are alleged to have broken rules when investigating a political aide who later died in a suspected suicide.

The suspension order came two days after an inquiry announced that Teoh Beng Hock jumped from the offices of the country’s anti-graft body following an “aggressive and unscrupulous” interrogation.

“Pending the investigation outcome, all three relevant officers have been suspended,” the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said in a statement.

The trio were believed to be involved in interrogating Teoh, a 30-year old aide to an opposition MP.

Authorities have come under tremendous public pressure to charge the three officers with culpable homicide since the inquiry report was released Thursday.

Teoh’s body was found in July 2009 beneath the MACC’s building after he was quizzed as part of an alleged graft probe.

A royal commission of inquiry conducted by a high-profile panel began in February after calls for an investigation into the mysterious death.

The inquest found in a 124-page report that Teoh committed suicide after being put under intense physical and mental pressure.

“He had been deprived of sleep throughout the night and into the morning and had had to endure persistent, aggressive and unscrupulous questioning,” it said.

Teoh’s family, however, insist that he did not kill himself and was due to marry his pregnant fiancee the next day. — AFP

Finland’s Granberg wins in Malaysia

admin — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 19:02:18 +0000

Finland’s Joonas Granberg fired a closing round of six-under-par 66 to edge out Thai teenager Panuphol Pittayarat and win the Worldwide Holdings Selangor Masters in Malaysia on Saturday.

The 24-year-old rookie, who set a new course record 62 in the opening round, became only the second Finnish victor on the Asian Tour with a 15-under-par 273 total at the Kota Permai Golf and Country Club in Malaysia.

Australia’s Adam Groom was in a tie with Granberg as he started the 18th but blew his chance of a maiden tour win by four-putting the last and had to settle for a share of third place with Filipino veteran Antonio Lascuna on 275.

Granberg said the win was more than he had bargained for.

“I thought I had a chance for a top-10 or top-five but now, I’m a winner,” he said.

The Finn, who came through Qualifying School in January, started the final round four off the lead but made a flying start with an eagle at the first from 10 feet before turning in 33.

He sank birdies on the 11th and 14th holes before pulling off what was eventually the clinching birdie at the demanding par three 17th.

“I just played it one shot at a time. I said yesterday that 66 would be okay and now I’m the winner. It’s amazing,” Granberg said.

Overnight leader Panuphol, 18, closed with a 71 to lose out by a shot.

“I had my chances but I didn’t take them,” he said. “The win was there for the taking but I didn’t capitalise.”

But it was Groom who felt sour after a disastrous double bogey at the par five 18th saw him close out an otherwise impressive 68.

The Australian was a picture of poise as he surged into contention by moving to six-under for the round through 17 holes, thanks to an eagle on the first and four birdies.

After narrowly escaping a hazard with a wayward drive on 18, a play-off loomed as he safely hit the green in regulation. But he sent his birdie attempt racing six feet past the cup and took three more putts for a seven.

“I played great all day. I was six-under before the last hole and probably played one of my best rounds in a while. I hit a bad tee shot but the positive part was that I was in contention. I made some money and that will put me in good position on the Order of Merit,” he said.

Sukree Othman of Malaysia provided the local cheers by soaring up the leaderboard with a superb 65 for tied fifth place with Australian Marcus Both (67) and Siddikur of Bangladesh (68) on 276. — AFP