Water is God's gift, say religious groups

by Fauwaz Abdul Aziz     Published 6 Aug 2007     Source : Malaysiakini

Despite the authorities' refusal to permit the seminar from being held at the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, six religious groups declared over the weekend their united stand on the human right to water.

At a Saturday forum in Kuala Lumpur, they inked their endorsement of a 'Merdeka Water Declaration' on the sacred right of access for all peoples' to water.

The groups included the Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (Abim), the Archdiocesan Office for Human Development (AOHD), the Buddhist Missionary Society of Malaysia (BMSM) and the Council of Churches of Malaysia (CCM).

Religious forum on water 'forced' to switch venue

by Fauwaz Abdul Aziz     Published 4 Aug 2007    Source : Malaysiakini

Organisers of an inter-religious seminar on water privatisation have been forced to make last-minute changes to their plans, as certain quarters have withheld permission to hold it at the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, its original venue.

The half-day seminar, entitled 'United for Water: Religions Speak on the Right to Water' and scheduled for today, has the backing of eight religious organisations and a number of civil society organisations.

National Mosque officials were said to have been supportive of the event and had extended their cooperation and its facilities to the seminar organisers.

Local interest blocs behind FTA drive?

by Fauwaz Abdul Aziz     Published 7 Jul 2007     Source : Malaysiakini

Complex international developments have led the European Union (EU) to knock on the doors of Asean member-countries to lobby for bilateral free trade agreements (FTA).

In Malaysia as elsewhere, however, internal interests are also pushing the government to sign onto the Asean FTA with EU.

It is high time, said an economist, to look at who these interests are rather than blaming it all on a neo-colonial agenda of external forces.

Expect lopsided results, warns lobby group

by Fauwaz Abdul Aziz     Published 27 Jun 2007     Source : Malaysiakini

All Malaysians - not just Malays - stand to lose out to big business should a free trade agreement (FTA) be signed between Asean and the European Union (EU), cautioned lobby group Monitoring Sustainability of Globalisation.

Its director Charles Santiago was picking up on revived public debate on the New Economic Policy (NEP) following criticism by European Commission (EC) envoy to Malaysia Thierry Rommel ( photo ) who described it as a deterrent to foreign investment.

While it is high time the government corrects the flawed aspects of the NEP, scrapping it in the context of FTA negotiations will not necessarily level the playing field for non-bumiputeras, Santiago said when contacted.

Water: A challenge to religious leaders

by  Fauwaz Abdul Aziz     Published 31 Mar 2007     Source : Malaysiakini

Religious leaders in the country were challenged today to apply the teachings of their respective scriptures on water and declare their opposition to the 'profitisation' of the natural resource.

At the forefront of the call was Council of Churches of Malaysia's (CCM) general secretary Hermen Shastri, who urged church leaders to ink their objections to the privatisation of water treatment, supply, and management at a profit and at the expense of the people.

"Water was created by God as a gift for all people," Shastri told participants at a forum on Religion and the Human Right to Water held at Universiti Malaya (UM) in Petaling Jaya.
The event was organised by the Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) and several other non-governmental organisations.

M'sia pressured to ease up on GM food regulations

by  Fauwaz Abdul Aziz     Published 27 Feb 2007    Source : Malaysiakini

The government has been urged not to bend to US pressure to scrap its proposed laws that would bring in mandatory labeling of genetically-modified (GM) foods.

Groups lobbying against the US-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) said this amounts to meddling and provides yet another reason for the government not to proceed with the negotiations.

The labeling proposal is one of the provisions of the Biosafety Bill that has already been approved by the cabinet but has yet to be tabled in Parliament. The bill governs the production and sale of GM organisms and their by-products.

Gov't in 'unholy haste' over FTA

by Fauwaz Abdul Aziz     Published 26 Feb 2007    Source : Malaysiakini

Political and civil society groups today decried the government's 'unholy haste' to sign the US-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and demanded that more time be allotted to deliberate the issues at stake.

They said International Trade and Industry Minister Rafidah Aziz's rush to forge a Cabinet consensus for the FTA belied not only claims that Malaysia was not beholden to US pressures, but also assurances that a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis has already been conducted.

Two weeks ago, it was reported that Rafidah briefed ministers on 58 contentious issues holding up the FTA. They are expected to submit their views this Wednesday, following which a decision would be made on whether the FTA would be feasible or not.