Hello everyone!! How's it going?
It has been a really exciting two weeks for the dream team!
We attended the KOMAS film festival in London and hosted the London working group in the recent 2009 Northeast Malaysia Forum! Not only we had plenty of fun, we met some really inspiring individuals at both events and recorded malaysian dreams on video for the very 1st time!
The KOMAS freedom film festival 2009 presented a series of thought provoking documentaries with focus on social justice and human rights in Malaysia. For those who missed the event, not worry, the documentaries are now available for streaming on their website!
Do check them out and share them around :)
One of the documentaries featured a letter written by Darrell, a 10 year old boy from the UK, to Dr. Mahathir, calling the logging practices in Malaysia 'disgraceful'. True to his form, our dear Tun writes back with the full might of his scorn (and hilarious sarcasm). A copy of this letter and Tun's reply (page 1, page 2 & page 3!) are also available on this website.
What do you think? Can you see Darrell's point? Can you see Tun's? How would you go about producing change?
Till the next fortnight,
Watch this space for our dream videos! (we're posting them up soon!)
The Dream Team
I wonder how much Mahatir knows about forests?
ReplyDeleteFirstly, logging only provides a one time benefit which by the nature of the industry has disproportionate benefits. Logging is capital intensive - who has the money to buy trucks, chainsaws etc? Who has the clout to buy pieces of land (which should go to the indigenous people but you robbed them of their land)
In Malaysia's case, no way does it benefit the poor. It benefits the rich politicians in Sarawak who because BN is so desperate for their support can do whatever they like and rape the state.
He uses seemingly logic to simplify the truth.
Forests maintain many ecosystem services for FREE to the people which Mahatir clearly doesn't get. Doesn't he know that many rivers become undrinkable because di kawasan pedalaman people still rely on river water to drink? The erosion caused by logging fills them with mud and how can poor people afford water treatment?
I can't believe some people still respect you. You're blatant attack on anything Western you use as a tool to cover up your misdeeds.
Shame on you.
I can't believe this guy ever governed our country. All he can think about is himself.
ReplyDeleteFirstly, logging economic benefits that he tries to present with his simplified logic is very very unequally distributed. Most of the economic rent from logging is captured by a few who can afford the equipment needed to log, namely the politicians and logging barons of Sarawak who do as they please because BN needs them to hold the majority.
Secondly, logging is a one time gain while Malaysia's forests are some of the oldest in the world. Our forests provide as host of ecosystem services such as water catchment, flood prevention, biodiversity protection, climate regulation and non-forest products such as tourism etc. When you take away the forests, these are all gone.
What happens? Our rivers get muddy. The poor who rely on the river for their water source drink polluted water or have to buy it. The fish die, their protein source is gone. Floods - who suffers? Drought - who suffers?
Not those who have fatten their pockets by making us believe that our natural resources should be exploited for short term gain, not managed sustainably for future generations.