Raub rally protesting of the use of cyanide in gold mining at Bukit Koman

Well, now a days the struggles of ordinary people are getting more coverage especially through alternative media, blogs, etc - and mainstream media is also forced to cover it...

People have always been struggling for their rights - and today the numbers that are coming out in support is growing in numbers...and this is good..

Green rally underway in Raub

1:46PM Sep 2, 2012

The sleepy hollow of Raub, Pahang has become the latest hotbed of environmental activism as thousands gathered to oppose the use of cyanide at a nearby goldmine.

Residents of Kampung Baru Bukit Koman, who live adjacent to the goldmine, claim that the use of cyanide had badly affected their health but the government and the mining company - Raub Australia Gold Mining Sdn Bhd - has disputed this.

Led by the ad hoc Ban Cyanide Committee, the residents have been opposing the company since 2007, even before the company began operations, through the courts and appeals to the federal government, to no avail.

With every avenue exhausted, Raub activist are determined to stage a major protest today and the authorities have allowed them to use the Raub sports complex field, better known locally as Padang Milo.

The police have barred the group from holding any processions and have requested Raub Australia Gold Mining to have a representative present at the protest to receive a protest note.

LIVE reports follow:

1.30pm - It is good weather here in Raub. At least 2,000 people are already here in Padang Milo donning the Ban Cyanide Committee's trademark green t-shirt bearing the words Himpunan Hijau.

Incidentally, there are a large number of people at the nearby Dataran Raub, managed by the Raub district council, which was the venue originally requested for by organisers. - to follow live reports visit Malaysiakini...Malaysiakini, 2/9/2012, Green rally underway in Raub

Maybe, the earlier report is also of interest...

Tomorrow's Raub rally wins support of 60 NGOs

5:57PM Sep 1, 2012

A total of 60 NGOs have thrown in their support behind tomorrow's Raub rally protesting of the use of cyanide in gold mining at Bukit Koman.

In a joint statement issued today by the Pahang Raub Ban Cyanide in Gold Miining (BCAC) and some 34 other NGOs, they claim that the local mining facility employing toxic cyanide has led to increased incidents of skin diseases, eye irritation, coughing and general unease since operations commenced in 2009.

"The plant is situated very close to the Bukit Koman New Village. The distance between mine and the closest house occupied by villagers is a mere 100m.

"Those who are relatively well off and could no longer bear the sufferings eventually moved out from Bukit Koman, leaving behind mostly elderly persons and children," the statement read.

This endorsement follows the Tuesday pledge of support from some 24 youth and environmental organisations.

The coalition added that the air quality at Bukit Koman has also consistently deteriorated.

"The monitoring results indicated that Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) and Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN), both non -existent in natural ambient air, have at times shot up to a level that exceeded any permitted limits. This could constitute the cause(s)of the health problems reported," they said.

‘Pleas fell on deaf ears'

Tomorrow's rally dubbed "Himpunan Hijau Raub" is aimed at voicing dissatisfaction at Bukit Koman residents' deteriorating quality of life since the gold mine began operations.

"Yet more painful is that all complaints and appeals made to the authorities have fallen on deaf ears. They did nothing to prove that the mines are safe.

"The government allows this doubtful polluting factory to run 24-7 non-stop. On the other hand, objecting residents have been ill-treated with harassments and misinformation for the last three years," they said.

BCAC is part of a loose coalition of green groups born out of local environmental struggles, particularly in Pahang and Selangor.

In February, anti-Lynas groups had organised a 15,000-strong "Himpunan Hijau Kuantan rally" against Lynas' rare earth processing plant in Gebeng which was similarly backed by enviromental groups from Rawang, Bukit Koman, Cameron Highlands and other green movements.

‘Cyanide is opposition propaganda'

Meanwhile, national news agency Bernama quoted Pahang Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob as saying that claims of the health of locals being affected by cyanide use at the gold mine is mere opposition propaganda.

"This is a propaganda created by DAP. The Health Ministry which had conducted a study at Bukit Koman has verified that no skin diseases have been found," he was quoted as saying.

He added that the state govenment, too ,conducts its own study at Bukit Koman from time to time to monitor the environment.

Adnan (right) claimed that DAP deputy chairperson Dr Tan Seng Giaw who is a skin specialist had admitted that there was no concrete evidence that Bukit Koman residents were suffering skin diseases caused by the gold mining.

 - Malaysiakini, 31/8/2012, Tomorrow's Raub rally wins support of 60 NGOs

See also earlier posts:-

Cyanide - Better to not use it in Raub to mine gold than to risk human life, wildlife and environment

78% residents claim health affected - around gold mining using cyanide in Pahang, Malaysia

 

Is the cause of this cancer or that miscarriage this radiation or some chemical poisoning? It is certainly not possible to show 100% proof that that this or that was the cause of this or that disease or medical condition or mis-carriage or death.... 

But a caring government will ensure that its citizen's health is always a priority - and even possible and probable risks are eliminated in favour of the health and well-being of its people...

S.M. Idris tells us that Lynas Thorium Waste Is A Real Threat

Lynas thorium waste : A real health threat

SM Mohd Idris 5:12PM Jun 11, 2012

During the last few weeks the public has heard the wildly positive and optimistic views of both the government and some local scientists concerning the Lynas plant in Gebeng, Kuantan.

On 20th March, the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti), Dr Maximus Ongkili, told the Dewan Rakyat that the Lynas plant is safe and not harmful to public health.

He said that the effluent from the plant contained low radioactive material. He explained that the effluent was not categorised as a radioactive material waste by the International Atomic Energy Agency, as it contained natural radioactive material ('Ongkili: Proposed Gebeng Rare Earth Plant Is Safe', Bernama, 23 March 2011).

Unfortunately, he failed to give the effluent the proper name: Technologically-Enhanced, Naturally-Occurring Radioactive Material (Tenorm).

Tenorm and Fallacy of Molten Salt Reactor (MSR)

Tenorm is produced when activities such as uranium mining, or sewage sludge treatment, concentrate or expose radioactive materials that occur naturally in ores, soils, water, or other natural materials.

In other words, this natural radioactive material has been made dangerous because it was removed from the ground and concentrated by mechanical and chemical processes.

It has been exported by Australia and will be left in Malaysia as waste by Lynas.

The radioactive material does not disappear once it reaches and is processed in Malaysia, and this dangerous material will be left in Malaysia.

Malaysians will need to keep this securely away from humans for hundreds of thousands of years.

Lynas and AELB have made the Tenorm sound like low level waste by merely diluting the waste until it conforms with IAEA regulations.

Diluting does not make the radiation ‘go away', and if the diluting liquid evaporates, you will again have concentrated radioactive material very harmful to people. The uranium and thorium will not evaporate with time.

Bear in mind that Australia has categorically stated that it will refuse to receive radioactive materials from other countries.

During the recent parliamentary select committee (PSC) public hearings on Lynas, nuclear physicist Dr Abdul Rahman Omar reportedly praised the value of the thorium wastes i.e. one tonne of thorium "can generate 1 gigawatt of electricity a year which is worth RM 1 billion to RM 2 billion, multiply this by 2,000 tonnes a year that the factory will produce, then it is worth between RM2 trillion to RM4 trillion in electricity". (Read nuclear energy and nuclear reactor).

He added that this technology dubbed Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) was mooted by the Americans at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, between 1968 to 1972 but was abandoned in favour of uranium due to its abundance. "China is now working very hard on using thorium for energy generation".

Alternatively, the gypsum by product produced from Lynas could be sold to China which would extract the thorium for energy production", he said ('Lynas' thorium can generate RM4 trillion in energy', Nigel Aw, Malaysiakini, May 21, 2012).

However, according to an article published in the UK Guardian (23 June 2011), debunking thorium as a greener nuclear option, it states that "There is a significant sticking point to the promotion of thorium as the ‘great green hope' of clean energy production: It remains unproven on a commercial scale. While it has been around since the 1950s (and an experimental 10MW LFTR (liquid fluoride thorium reactor) did run for five years during the 1960s at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the US, though using uranium and plutonium as fuel) it is still a next generation nuclear technology - theoretical".

The article further states that although China has announced that it intends to develop a thorium MSR, nuclear radiologist Peter Karamoskos of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), says "the world shouldn't hold its breath".

He added that "Without exception, [thorium reactors] have never been commercially viable, nor do any of the intended new designs even remotely seem to be viable. Like all nuclear power production they rely on extensive taxpayer subsidies; the only difference is that with thorium and other breeder reactors these are of an order of magnitude greater, which is why no government has ever continued their funding".

The article states that "Those who support renewables say they will have come so far in cost and efficiency terms by the time the technology is perfected and upscaled that thorium reactors will already be uneconomic. Indeed, if renewables had a fraction of nuclear's current subsidies they could already be light years ahead".

Health risks of thorium and other tenorms
All other issues aside, thorium is still nuclear energy, say environmentalists, its reactors disgorging the same toxic by-products and fissile waste with the same millennial half-lives.

Oliver Tickell, author of ‘Kyoto2', says the fission materials produced from thorium are of a different spectrum to those from uranium-235, but ‘"nclude many dangerous-to-health alpha and beta emitters".

Anti-nuclear campaigner Peter Karamoskos goes further, dismissing a ‘dishonest fantasy' perpetuated by the pro-nuclear lobby. "Thorium cannot in itself power a reactor; unlike natural uranium, it does not contain enough fissile material to initiate a nuclear chain reaction. As a result it must first be bombarded with neutrons to produce the highly radioactive isotope uranium-233 - "so these are really U-233 reactors'," says Karamoskos.

"This isotope is more hazardous than the U-235 used in conventional reactors", he adds, "because it produces U-232 as a side effect (half life: 160,000 years), on top of familiar fission by-products such as technetium-99 (half life: up to 300,000 years) and iodine-129 (half life: 15.7 million years).

"Add in actinides such as protactinium-231 (half life: 33,000 years) and it soon becomes apparent that thorium's superficial cleanliness will still depend on digging some pretty deep holes to bury the highly radioactive waste".

Referring to the UK, The Guardian article says that "with billions of pounds already spent on nuclear research, reactor construction and decommissioning costs - dwarfing commitments to renewables - and proposed reform of the UK electricity markets apparently hiding subsidies to the nuclear industry, the thorium dream is considered by many to be a dangerous diversion".

Citing Jean McSorley senior consultant for Greenpeace's nuclear campaign: "Even if thorium technology does progress to the point where it might be commercially viable, it will face the same problems as conventional nuclear: it is not renewable or sustainable and cannot effectively connect to smart grids. The technology is not tried and tested, and none of the main players is interested. Thorium reactors are no more than a distraction".

According to Dr. Rosalie Bertell, who is a radiation expert, thorium reactors also produce a lot of Americium, which is much more toxic than plutonium. "I do not think that, even if thorium some day becomes a viable option, they will ever want to separate out the thorium from the Malaysian waste, where it has been significantly diluted so that it appears to be below regulatory concern.

"You cannot say it is a valuable commodity and also release it as of no concern! Moreover, you are not dealing with pure thorium, but with radioactive material with a long list of radioactive decay products some of which are very radioactive. New reactors will get their thorium from India or Australia. Malaysia would be considered a secondary or tertiary source," she states.

In other words, there is no economic possibility or feasibility that anyone will use the Malaysian waste for thorium when there are large direct sources of thorium to be had immediately in Australia or India.

Dr. Bertell is a nuclear health expert who has done extensive research on nuclear health impacts all over the world including the Marshall Islands, India, Germany, Ukraine, US and Canada. She has been a consultant to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the US Environmental Protection Agency. She was a key witness during the Bukit Merah court hearings.

However, contrary to the world experts, the local medical and nuclear so-called experts have recently testified to the PSC that the thorium produced from Lynas was too low to pose significant health dangers.

In contrast to what the PSC has been told by the local so-called experts, the health impacts of radiation are not benign. In a comparative study by V. T. Padmanabhan et al of inhabitants of regions of normal and high background radiation in Kerala from 1988 - 1994, the researchers showed that thorium health damage from monazite sands was evident (International Journal of Health Services Vol. 34 No. 3 pp483-515, 2004).

The study revealed that there was a high incidence of heritable anomalies in the high background region (HBRR). There was a statistically significant increase of Down syndrome, autosomal dominant anomalies and multifactorial diseases and an insignificant increase of autosomal recessive and X-linked recessive anomalies in the HBRR.

The main findings of the study have been summarised as follows:

• The relative risk for chromosomal, autosomal dominant, and multifactorial anomalies is higher in the HBRR.

• For congenital anomalies (WHO's International Classification of Diseases, ICD 740-757), there is no difference between the areas. Within the study and control areas, ‘nonmigrant' couples have 51 percent and 61 percent excess relative risk (ERR), respectively, in comparison to ‘migrant' couples. The ERR among the related versus the unrelated couples is 96 percent in the HBRR and 41 percent in the NRR (normal radiation region).

• Rates of multifactorial anomalies and multiple deaths are higher in the HBRR. Again, the related and the nonmigrant couples have higher risk than the migrants and the unrelated, respectively. The rates among the migrants in both areas are more or less the same.

• If all untoward outcomes other than Down syndrome and Mendelian anomalies are grouped together, 6.4 percent of the unrelated ‘migrants' in the NRR are affected versus 16.4 percent of the related couples in the HBRR.

The authors suspect that exposure to radiation was genetically significant. "Besides the external radiation from beta particles and gamma rays from the soil, there is the possibility of internal exposure through air, water, and food. Soman (27) estimated the per capita daily uptake of radium-228 by the study population as 4.72 Bq. 

"Based on the average consumption of sardines, Van de Laar (18) estimated the daily intake as less than 0.01 Bq per person. Since the coastal land is less fertile and farming and husbandry are restricted to small pockets, the internal exposure is mainly from poultry products, fish, and accidental ingestion of fine grains of monazite in childhood."

They revealed that the mean cumulative exposure to external radiation during the reproductive life of people living in the high-background radiation regions is 18 rads for women and 22 rads for men, six times the exposure in the normal radiation region.

Conclusion

Thorium from Lynas is Tenorm and a radioactive waste which has serious health risks.

We urge the PSC and the government to seriously weigh the published and reviewed scientific findings and views of the international experts quoted above before decisions on Lynas are made.

We strongly urge that Lynas be NOT allowed to operate in Malaysia. - Malaysiakini, Letters Section, 11/6/2012, Lynas thorium waste : A real health threat

78% residents claim health affected - around gold mining using cyanide in Pahang, Malaysia

Well, here again was a mining operation that was considered safe by Malaysian authorities and been going on - but recent survey by the community shows differently. Likewise, the case may be with Lynas.. 

 

78 pct Bukit Koman folk have 'cyanide-related' ailments

Wong Teck Chi 12:54PM Jun 21, 2012

A recent survey done by Bukit Koman villagers revealed that 78.1 percent of the residents in surrounding areas were suffering health problems, which is believed to be related to cyanide used in local gold mine.

Topping the list was skin itchiness and rashes (50.1 percent), followed by eyesores/itchiness/dimness (43.9 percent), dizziness/headache (35 percent), fatigue (34.5 percent) and cough (33.4 percent).

The survey was carried out by the Bukit Koman action committee against the use of cyanide in gold mining on May 19 and 20. The group interviewed 383 residents house by house in Bukit Koman and surrounding areas within a 1km radius.

It also revealed that the figures were higher among the residents who stay in Bukit Koman New Village, where 84.8 percent of the villagers said they have suffered at least one health problem, while 57.2 percent said their health conditions worsened after 2009, when the gold mine started operations.

Residents of the Bukit Koman New Village had for a long time alleged that cyanide, which is used in the nearby mine, had led to a range of skin, eye, and respiratory ailments.

This is the first time they have carried out a survey scientifically to substantiate their claim.

Analysing the survey results, environmental and occupational safety consultant Tan Hui Chun said the figure of skin disease and coughing is “alarming” because it is 10 times higher than the normal rate, which is usually 5 percent.

Dermatologist Khim Pa, who has 26 years experience in practice, also added that the results clearly showed that there is “irritating” material on the air which caused the health problems.

“It is quite clear that more than 50 percent of people facing itchiness means that there is something in the air irritating to the eye and the skin... It is worse on the expose parts of the skin.

“If the same particles go into the lungs, they will cause coughing,” said the doctor during a press conference held yesterday at the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall.

Bukit Koman action committee member Hue Shieh Lee said the committee will submit the survey results to relevant government authorities and hopes that the Minerals and Geoscience Department will revoke the licence of the gold mine to protect the residents’ health.

Panel hopes Yen Yen will contest in Raub

In a related development, Hue also commented on speculation that local parliamentarian Ng Yen Yen may transfer to a “safe seat” in the coming general election in view of the controversial issue.

She said the tourism minister, who was accused of being ignorant about the Bukit Koman issue, should stay in the Raub parliamentary seat and the villagers will give her “a taste of losing”.

“Ng (right) is our representative in parliament, she should have listened to our voice and talked about the Bukit Koman issue. But unfortunately, she has always said this is a political issue, not a health issue.

“We are hoping that she will come back to taste what is a loss. If the election is clean, I believe we can say good bye to her.”

Also present during the press conference were fellow committee member Chong Choy Yen and Bukit Koman villagers Hue Ah New, Woon Soon Fatt and his seven-year-old son Woon Chee Hua.

Ng had previously said that the mine is safe, and the state Local Government, Environment and Health Committee chairperson Hoh Khai Mun had recently told the state assembly that the water was cyanide-free, while the toxic chemical’s presence in the air is within limits. - Malaysiakini, 21/6/2012, 78pct Bukit Koman folk have 'cyanide-related' ailments

LET'S HOPE THAT OUR MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT, ESPECIALLY THE HEALTH MINISTRY IMMEDIATELY LOOK INTO THE MATTER. 

It may not be 'cyanide' - but certainly something connected to the said mining operations may be affected the health of the local community - and if it is in the water/air, it will certainly affect the health of people in Pahang - Malaysia. The government needs to immediately check to determine whether the people's health and life is at risk.

While Trengganu said 'No' - Pahang agreed to allow a dangerous rare earth plant in Najib's home state

The Consumers' Association of Penang (CAP) and Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) are very concerned with the Pahang government's decision to go ahead with the proposed rare earth plant in Gebeng despite the fact that this refinery is a disaster waiting to happen.

In 2007, SAM was invited by the Terengganu government to give a briefing on the dangers of rare earth and SAM's experience dealing with the exposure of radioactive waste in Bukit Merah, Perak. Following this, the project was rejected by the Terengganu government.
In the last three years, CAP and SAM have objected vehemently to the proposed rare earth plant due to the potential public health and environmental impacts of radioactive and hazardous waste that would be generated.

There has been no full public disclosure of this proposed project. A detailed environmental impact assessment was not required due to a loophole in our law. Thus there was no avenue for the public to review the proposed mitigation measures and potential risks, and raise their objections.

The company has said that there will be low level exposure to radiation. This is alarming as there is no safe level or threshold of ionizing radiation exposure. Long-term, low-level (chronic) exposure to radiation is harmful because living tissue in the human body can be damaged by ionizing radiation.

The exposure to radioactive waste can contribute to increased incidence of childhood leukaemia, cancer, miscarriages, impaired immune systems with an abnormal low white blood cell counts, high lead levels among children which would lead to lead poisoning.

Children are much more vulnerable to the harmful effects of radiation disasters than the general population because their bodies absorb and metabolise substances differently, and because they are more likely to develop certain cancers from such an exposure. There is also a high possibility that children born to parents that have been exposed to radiation could be affected by those exposures too.

The other issue of concern is that there no known way to safely dispose the waste which is generated from this refinery.

Given all these risks, is the government prepared to sacrifice lives for the sake of profits?

Taking into account the seriousness of the risks involved in running such a plant, we strongly urge the government to call off this project immediately.


SM Mohamed Idris is Consumers' Association of Penang president. - Malaysiakini,11/3/2011, Kuantan rare earth plant threat to public safety

Let us remember Papan - Bukit Merah, I was privileged to have been present in that large impressive 10,000 persons protest march initiated by the local residents...

News of the setting up of a rare earth refinery in Pahang is sending jitters down the spines of Malaysians who remember the drawn-out battle against a similar plant in Bukit Merah, Perak.

Malaysiakini recalls what happened.
1982 Asian Rare Earth (ARE), a joint-venture between main shareholder Mitsubishi Chemical industries Ltd, Beh Minerals, Lembaga Urusan dan Tabung Haji and several bumiputera businesses, begins operating its plant at Jalan Lahat, Bukit Merah.

1984 6700 residents of Papan (16 kms from Ipoh), where ARE is dumping its waste, sign a petition against it to the government while up to 3000 take part in several demonstrations and a hunger strike.


Up to 3000 residents including women and children take part in several demonstrations and a hunger strike.

Meanwhile, environmentalists, radiation experts, physicists and industrial waste experts from abroad visit the site and declare it unsafe with radiation up to 800 times the accepted levels.


1985 Residents of Bukit Merah obtain a stop work order from the High Court.

1986 Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) deems the site safe, after an ARE clean up, as only some parts have more than acceptable radiation level.

1987 AELB issues a licence to ARE to resume work, to demonstrations involving up to 10,000 residents. More than 20, including women, were injured in one incident while 60 were detained by police. None were charged.

Eight residents take legal action against ARE, and up to 3000 marched 8 kms to court on the last day of proceedings. More than 100 were in the next month detained under the Internal Security Act and released after two months.


1989 Two children aged five and 11 and a 19-year-old man were diagnosed with acute leukemia. Other cases like brain cancer, septicemia and other complications are reported.


Seemingly healthy children exposed to radiation were tested and found to be less healthy than those in Carey Island, although the children of Bukit Merah were better nourished.

According to 1986 statistics, Bukit Merah should have only one case of leukemia in thirty years. By the time the plant shuts down, eight cases would have been diagnosed. Seven patients will not survive.

There are also reported cases of birth deformities involving children of workers at the plant.


1992 The Bukit Merah residents win their suit against ARE but the High Court's shutdown order is stayed upon ARE's appeal to the Supreme Court. The proceedings are adjourned.

1994 ARE announces that it will cease operations even though the case is pending.

2011: Mitsubishi is reportedly engaged in a RM100 million clean-up effort in Bukit Merah, and contributes hundreds of thousands of ringgit to the local community. - Malaysiakini, 10/3/2011, Fast backward: What happened in Bukit Merah

An Australian mining company said Thursday it plans to finish building a huge rare earths processing plant in Malaysia late this year, in a possible challenge to China's stranglehold on the metals.

The Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (LAMP) in Kuantan is scheduled to begin producing rare earths, which are indispensable in making many high-tech products, in the third quarter of 2011, a Lynas spokeswoman in Sydney told AFP.

"The Lynas Advanced Materials Plant is scheduled to come online in the third quarter of 2011," she said.

The facility - which will refine raw material from Mount Weld in Western Australia - is described by the giant firm as "the largest of its kind" and set to provide the first new source of supply of rare earths outside China.

The firm was two to four years ahead of any other producers outside China because rare earths projects take several years to develop, Matthew James, vice president of corporate and business development at Lynas, told AFP in October.

He said the project, which had been eight years in the making, had about 1.4 million tonnes of the elements at Mount Weld. The company plans to double output from the Malaysian plant to 22,000 tonnes a year by the end of 2012.

Rare earths such as super-magnet dysprosium and red-glowing europium are vital components in hard-drives and computer screens, while the metals are also pivotal in making laser missile systems, wind turbines and solar panels.

'Repeating pass mistakes'

The project has however drawn criticism from Malaysian environmental groups, which said they were "appalled" the government had approved it, after a similar plant in another Malaysian state was forced to halt in 1992 due to protests.

"We do not want a repeat of what happened in Bukit Merah where the impacts are still felt until today," SM Mohamed Idris, president of Friends of the Earth Malaysia said in a statement.

The Bukit Merah rare earths plant, which was opened in the 1980s, ceased operations in 1992 after an uproar from local residents who blamed it for a number of birth defects.

Mohamed Idris warned that the new refinery will produce huge quantities of radioactive waste, and urged the government to engage with environmental groups before going ahead with the project.

Raja Abdul Aziz Raja Adnan, the head of Malaysia's Atomic Energy Licensing Board, said Malaysia has only approved the construction of the Kuantan plant and has not yet given the green light for it to begin operations.

He said the board, one of the government agencies tasked with looking into the safety aspects of the project, will need to be satisfied that it will not lead to a major impact on the public and environment.

"We are looking from the safety point of view. We are continuously measuring the (safety) parameters and collecting samples, we will make sure they control the residue," he told AFP.

Breaking China's monopoly

Raja Abdul Aziz said the Australian firm has proposed turning waste from processing the ore - which is slightly radioactive - into concrete-like objects known as tetrapods to be used to build artificial reefs and sea walls.

He said the radioactive concentration in these objects must be "dilute enough to be very similar to the environment".

World attention has shifted to Australia's nascent rare earths industry after China, which dominates global production, began restricting exports, sending shudders through major consumers Japan, Europe and the United States.

In December, the United States called on China not to use rare earths as a "trade weapon" after Japanese industry said Beijing temporarily cut off exports in 2010 amid a territorial row.

China, which produces more than 95 percent of the world's rare earths, has denied any political motivations, insisting the restrictions on exports were due to environmental concerns and the need for a more sustainable approach.

This year the Asian giant has also tightened its grip over the industry by setting tough emission limits on miners producing the lucrative metals.- Malaysiakini, 10/3/2011, Lynas: Rare earth plant operational in Q3

58 Groups:- Employers must pay all medical cost of workers especially when it is a work-related accident or an occupational disease.

Media Statement – 20/1/2011

Employers must pay all medical cost of workers especially when it is a work-related accident or an occupational disease.

We, the undersigned 58 organizations, groups and networks are appalled that the Malaysian Government is now asking about 1.5 million migrant workers themselves, and not their employers, to buy a new Foreign Workers Hospitalisation and Surgical Insurance. If these migrant workers do not do so, the Malaysian government is threatening not to renew their work permits. The Malaysian Health Minister, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, also stated that the worker’s work permits will not be renewed if there are outstanding hospital bills. [Bernama, 7/1/2011, Foreign Workers with Insurance May Enter Hospital without Deposit]

What is worrying is that workers should never be required to pay for their treatment and necessary healthcare especially if the reason treatment is sought is a work-related or industrial accident, or some occupation-related disease.

With regard to migrant workers in Malaysia, who are required to get a clean bill of health before they enter Malaysia, and before they are given a work permit, it is only right for employers to be liable to pay for all treatment and medical charges if they do get sick in Malaysia. Further, it is generally the employer that determines where these workers must stay and work.

In Malaysia, whilst the social security of local workers are covered by the Social Security Act, migrant workers are covered by the lesser Workmen’s Compensation Act 1952, which unlike the former do not provide for continuous regular support and assistance until death for a worker who is a victim of an industrial accident or occupational disease. The Workmen’s Compensation Act, on the other hand, only provides for a one-off payment to the victim and/or their dependents where death has resulted from the injury/disease, that is a lump sum equal to sixty months' earnings or RM18,000, whichever is the less.

It is good that the Workmen's Compensation (Foreign Workers' Compensation Scheme) (Insurance) Order 1998, extended coverage to personal injury (and death) that is sustained in an accident which occurs outside the working hours of the workman. Given this fact, there only needs to be a minimum extension of coverage to cover any remaining matters that will require treatment, hospitalization and/or surgery, and this could be done quite easily by amending the relevant Act and/or broadening the scope of the current insurance that employers already do have to buy for their foreign workers.

Malaysian Health Minister, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, was reported saying that this new insurance was to ensure that foreign workers’ medical bills in public hospitals, which to date total RM18mil, will not be a burden to the Government. (Star, 26/11/2010, Compulsory medical insurance policies for foreign workers from next year). However, this cannot be right as there should not be any outstanding migrant worker medical bills at all.

Under the Workmen’s Compensation Act, the employer is clearly liable to pay for the conveyance to the hospital, treatment, ward charges, medicines and other expenses incurred in the treatment and rehabilitation of such workmen (sec.15).  The employer is clearly liable to pay directly to the management of such hospital all fees and charges, and as such one wonders what unpaid medical bills the Minister is talking.

Further, attention also should be drawn to Workmen's Compensation Regulations 1953, in particular Regulation 18, which deals with the issue of excess fees, “A workman admitted either to an approved or a special hospital shall, where such hospital is a private hospital, himself be liable to pay the amounts of any fees or costs incurred on his behalf in excess of the maximum amounts prescribed by the Minister of Health under section 15 (3) of the Act, and, where such hospital is a government hospital, such excess amounts shall be paid from public funds.” Since, the Minister is talking about government hospitals, there is certainly no way that there exist outstanding medical bills when it comes to migrant workers.

The Malaysian pro-employer government has proceeded to further protect employers of migrant workers by limiting the maximum amount fees and cost that is payable by an employer under the Workmen’s Compensation Act. As of 1^st March 2007 (PU (A) 077/2007), this maximum liability of an employer for ward charges, including surgical ward treatment fee is RM300, for operation fees it is RM250, for X-Ray Fees it is RM100 and for other electric therapeutic charges it is RM100.

The rates stipulated are outrageously low given the fact that government hospitals and clinics charge migrant workers first class rates, and the lowest deposit for a migrant worker who needs to be warded is RM400, and if it was a surgical case, it is RM800-00. Operation charges can range from RM50 to RM3,000 depending on the type of operation. Ultrasound cost RM100. Radiology charges range from RM50-RM600. Lab charges range from RM5 to RM100 depending on the type of tests, and usually there will be quite a lot of tests needed.

But, even when the government does limit the amount that the employer is liable to pay, the excess as stipulated in Regulation 18 of the Workmen's Compensation Regulations 1953 is paid from public funds, and as such there really is no logical reason why there can ever be outstanding debt. It is really hoped that in Malaysia, the government does not expect the migrant worker to come up with the money themselves before the necessary treatment and/or surgery is done. Employers should make all the necessary payments immediately, and should thereafter do the needful to claim whatever excess payment from the public fund.

The Health Minister is naïve to insist that the migrant worker only need to provide their passport before treatment is given, as in most cases the employers and/or the agent do wrongly hold on to the passports of migrant workers. Sometimes, the passports are with immigration authorities and/or some other authorities. Hence, in the name of justice, all necessary treatment must be immediately provided to migrant workers on their arrival and registration, without insistence on the production of passport and/or payment of any large deposit. Let not the absence of a document and money be the cause of death or the loss of limbs of a migrant worker in Malaysia.

It is also very wrong to threaten to penalize the migrant worker with non-renewal of work permit, when any punishments in law should rightly be against the employer and should not in any way jeopardize the rights and the well being of migrant workers already in Malaysia.

We, the undersigned groups, hereby:-

a) Call on the Malaysian Government to ensure that all employers of migrant workers, not just those that employ domestic workers and in the plantation sector, be liable to pay for this new Foreign Workers Hospitalisation and Surgical Insurance;

b) Call on the Malaysian government to ensure that no worker would be made liable to pay for the conveyance to hospital, treatment, ward charges, medicines and other expenses following a work-related accident and/or for some occupational disease.

c) Call on the Malaysian government to repeal Maximum Amounts for Fees and Costs (PU (A) 077/2007), and ensure that employers of migrant workers be liable to pay reasonable amounts consistent with the rates imposed by the government for medical care and treatment of migrant workers at government hospitals.

d)  Urge the Malaysian government to review and remove the differential rates being charged for Malaysians and other foreigners, especially migrant workers, at government hospitals and healthcare facilities.

e)   Urge the Malaysian government to review the policy of ‘No Treatment until Production of Passport and payment of deposits”, and ensure that all who needs medical treatment and care are immediately given the said required care that will prevent loss of life and/or limbs.

Charles Hector

Pranom Somwong

For and on behalf of the following 58 organizations

Aliran

Archdiocesan Human Development Commission (AHDC)

Asia Pacific Forum on Women , law and Development ( APWLD )

Asian Migrant Centre(AMC)

Asian Migrants Coordinating Body in HK (AMCB)

Association for Community Development-ACD, Bangladesh

Association of Indonesian Migrant Workers in HK (ATKI-HK)

Building and Wood Workers’ International Asia Pacific Regional Office (BWI-APRO)

Burma Campaign Malaysia

Cambodian Defenders Project (CDP), Cambodia

Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC)

Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO)

CCC  Netherlands

Center for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC), Malaysia

Civil Right committee, Kuala Lumpur & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall

Committee of Asian Women, CAW

Democratic Party for New Society (DPNS), Burma

Health Equity Initiatives

Hsinchu Catholic Diocese Migrants and Immigrants Service Center (HMISC), Taiwan

IMA Research Foundation, Bangladesh

INFID, Indonesia

Johor Textile and Garment Workers Union

Judicial System Monitoring Program (JSMP), Timor Leste

Labour Behind the Label, United Kingdom

Lawyers for Human Rights & Legal Aid, Pakistan

Legal Support for Children and Women(LSCW), Cambodia

MADPET - Malaysians against Death Penalty and Torture

Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC)

Manggagawang Kababaihan Mithi ay Paglaya (MAKALAYA), Philippines

MAP Foundation, Thailand

Mekong Migration Network (MMN)

Metal Industry Employees’ Union, Malaysia

Migrant Care, Indonesia

Migrant Health Association, Korea

Migrante International

Migrants Rights Council, India,

Myanmar Youth Knowledge Initiative

Network of Action for Migrants in Malaysia (NAMM)

NGOs in Myanmar Web Portal

PACOS Trust

Penang Office for Human Development (POHD)

Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (Empower)

Persatuan Masyarakat Selangor & Wilayah Persekutuan (PERMAS)

Pusat Komas

Sarawak Dayak Iban Assocoation

Solidaritas Perempuan (Women's Solidarity for Human Rights), Indonesia

Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM), Malaysia

Thai Committee for Refugees (TCR)

Think Centre, Singapore

Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2), Singapore

UNI Global Union-Malaysia

United Indonesians Against Overcharging (PILAR)

Verite Southeast Asia

Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, France

WARBE Development Foundation-Bangladesh

WIRDA (Women Institute for Research Development and Advancement)

Women's Legal and Human Rights Bureau, Inc. (WLB), Philippines

Workers Hub for Change (WH4C)

Hospital caused child to become HIV+ : Adequate compensation & monthly payments + cost of care/treatment

This is atrocious - RM100,000 is about RM760 per month for the last 11 years, and it certainly is insufficient compensation to be paid for the negligence of the hospital that caused a child to become HIV positive.

In terms of compensation, the hospital should have paid at least RM1 million as compensation, and a further RM1,000 or RM2,000 per month, plus all cost of treatment and healthcare, and the cost of the caregiver - maybe another RM2,000 per month. Treatment must be the best available in the market. There should be no need to solicit public donations or to utilize government money to assist this kid. The hospital is and should be made totally responsible - blood to be used for blood transfusion by hospitals must always be pre-tested for all transmitable diseases including HIV positive before being used. In fact, maybe the hospital should also be persecuted by the State - and maybe even an additional fine of RM5 million maybe should have been imposed, whereby this money should be placed in a fund to assist in the treatment and care of HIV+ patients in Malaysia generally.

Further, by reason of Malaysia signing those intellectual property agreements, that deal with copyrights, the cost of drugs needed by HIV+ and AIDS patients are just too high and will get higher with time. Oh yes, it was not just about CDs/DVDs, Computer programs, etc - but also affected medicines.[A smarter government would have not included medicines in these copyright agreements]

KUALA LUMPUR: Fourteen-year old Helmi longs to go to school, play football with his friends and become a scientist.

But his future looks bleak because of a mistake by a hospital in Segamat.

Helmi was given tainted blood by the hospital 11 years ago after being admitted for jaundice, which resulted in him becoming HIV positive.

His father Kamarul, 49, who is disabled, said the past eleven years had been a nightmare for the family.

Moral support: Mohd Khairun hugging Helmi at the press conference yesterday.

Kamarul, father of two children, who works as a road sweeper with the Seremban municipality, said the hospital finally paid the family RM100,000 in damages five years ago.

“At first, the hospital refused to take responsibility, but even when they did, we were not given a fair compensation.

“We were represented by a lawyer who swindled a large sum of the settlement,” he said, adding that they had been travelling from Segamat to Hospital Kuala Lumpur every month for medical appointments until they shifted to Seremban a year ago.

Helmi has now been diagnosed with AIDS and has not been to school for the past month.

“I don’t want my friends to find out about my illness. I am hoping to go back to school,” said Helmi at a press conference organised by the Umno Public Complaints Bureau yesterday.

Umno Youth community and complaints bureau head Datuk Mohd Khairun Aseh said they would do all they could to assist the family.

“I will meet the Federal Territories and Urban Well-Being Ministry to request that the family be provided with a low-cost home, so that they will be closer to the hospital,” he said.

To make a contribution to Helmi’s family, contact the Umno Public Complaints Bureau at 03-6207 8706. - Star, 9/11/2010, Future looks bleak for teen with AIDS

Acess to free healthcare for all in Malaysia without the threat of being arrested will improve general public health situation

Unless healthcare is made accessible and available to all persons in Malaysia, it is a problem.

Now, for documented migrants and foreigners, government medical facilities charge extra...I believe a Malaysian may be required to pay RM1 (or RM5 maximum), but a foreign national is required to pay an initial registration fee of RM50-00.

There seems to be no access to non-Malaysians without the necessary documentation. I estimate about 5 million undocumented migrants in Malaysia.

The 'higher rates' and the lack of access to migrants may result in many not coming to get required medical/healthcare and hence this increases the risk of all in Malaysia, especially when it comes to transmittable illness.

Hence, I believe Malaysia should immediately move towards universal healthcare for all. In fact, the fact that one does not the required documentation should not be a bar to getting and receiving healthcare. [Maybe, there should also be an assurance that hospital authorities will not report to the police or immigration authorities] Our primary objective must be healthcare - public healthcare.

Who brings in these diseases to Malaysia? It is so wrong to blame migrants, asylums and refugees for this, as we all know that these diseases can so easily enter this country today considering the number of people going in and out of this country everyday - tourists, Malaysians traveling back from overseas,... Hence, placing blame on just migrants, asylum seekers and refugees is an indicator of our prejudice, but we do not expect such prejudice statements to be made by the government, especially those who claim to have a medical education and/or background.

Migrant workers, many of whom are here illegally, are the source of the spread of malaria in six states.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said there was a spike of malaria cases in Sabah, Sarawak, Kelantan, Pahang, Selangor and Johor.

"In some of these states, the increase in cases is due to migrant workers, many of whom are illegal, coming from countries where malaria is still endemic," he told the New Straits Times.

In addition, he said, these workers were mobile and posed a challenge to the ministry's efforts to ensure they completed their treatment.

"Some workers who are under treatment move in a state or to other states and it is difficult to trace them," he said, adding that the opening of new areas for plantation or development projects attracted migrants who were not screened and posed a health threat.

In Sabah and Sarawak, Liow said there was also a lack of access to government health facilities, especially among rural communities.

Although there was a dramatic decline in the number of malaria cases in the country, the disease remained a public health burden in rural areas in the six states.

"We have seen a decline in cases over the past 40 years. In 1960s, there were more than 200,000 patients a year but this year, as of October, there were 5,778 cases," said Liow, adding that this was a great achievement and the result of effective control programmes.

In 2000, there were 12,708 cases and last year, 7,390 cases were reported, which represented a 42 per cent reduction.

"As a country, we are moving in the right direction towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations, which is to halt and reverse the incidences of malaria by 2015."

He said the ministry was confident of achieving that target despite the presence of illegal migrant workers.

Malaysia, he said, had achieved major success in virtually eliminating malaria from urban and other densely populated areas. -New Straits Times, 28/12/2009, Migrants bringing in malaria

Which contaminated fish crackers source of cholera? Tell the public so people can protect themselves...

It is very good that they have identified fish crackers from 2 factories as one of the source of cholera outbreak - but which 2 factories. Have they taken the said fish crackers out of the market, shops...

Why are they not telling the 'brand name' , or more details, so those who bought it can also get rid of it and not get cholera..

Where are the public announcements on TV, Radio and newspapers?

The use of contaminated fish to make crackers, a favourite snack in the state, has been identified as among the sources of cholera outbreak Terengganu, Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said.

He said that fish samples taken from two cracker factories tested positive for the vibrio cholerae bacteria.

The fish could have been brought in from a neighbouring country through the Chendering fisheries complex which supplied fish to Kuala Terengganu and Marang, he said.

"Samples from raw chickens taken at the Gong Pauh wholesale market in Wakaf Mempelam as well as samples from two ice factories also tested positive for the bacteria," he told reporters after visiting patients at the Sultanah Nur Zahirah Hospital here.

He said that 20 premises comprising 11 ice factories, two cracker factories and the rest eatery outlets, had been ordered closed. Liow also described the cholera outbreak in the state, which was detected two weeks ago, as serious.

He said that hospitals had been receiving news cases on a daily basis, including 85 people with acute gastroenteritis admitted on Friday.

He said that so far 621 patients were admitted due to acute gastroenteritis.

Up to 7am Saturday, 482 patients were still being treated in hospitals, including 22 carriers and 138 tested positive for the disease.

He urged the people not to take cholera for granted as it could result in death and other complications. Meanwhile, a cholera outbreak is also reported in SEMPORNA, Sabah, but the situation is under control and not alarming, said Minister in the Chief Minister's Department Datuk Nasir Tun Sakaran.

He said that the authorities had taken precautionary measures including closing down the Semporna fish market which was believed to be the place where the outbreak started.

"I was told that so far 18 people are down with cholera in Semporna and they are now recovering in hospitals," he told reporters after visiting the fish market Saturday. He urged the public to observe hygiene and cooperate with the authorities to prevent the spread of the disease. - Bernama - Star, 21/11/2009, Terengganu cholera outbreak due to tainted fish crackers

2 migrants fell sick and died at the KLIA Immigration Depot. Could death have been avoided if the required healthcare was available?

More deaths of migrants in Detention Centres, and this time it is happening at the KLIA Immigration Depot.

Recall, that on 23/5/2009, a joint statement entitled "DEATH OF 2 BURMESE INDICATIVE OF STATE OF DETENTION PLACES IN MALAYSIA DENIAL OF HEALTHCARE IS A VIOLATION OF RIGHT TO LIFE" was issued, which is currently endorsed by 127 groups/organisations. [See:126 groups:- Death of 2 Burmese Indicative of State of Detention Places in Malaysia - Denial of Healthcare Is a Violation of Right to Life ]

In May, two Burmese migrants died in the Malaysia’s Juru Immigration Detention Centre from Leptospirosis, a disease that is usually caused by exposure to water contaminated with the urine of infected animals, such as rodents, cattle, pigs, horses, dogs and wild animals.

What was the cause of death of the 2 at the KLIA Immigration Depot? Leptospirosis? H1N1? Was it a disease whereby death could have been avoided if there had been the required healthcare?

DETAINEE DEATHS: Don’t make it No 3 says NGO

No one should go into a centre healthy and leave sick or worse, dead, says Tenaganita

Darshini Kandasamy

Friday, September 4th, 2009 07:18:00

Non-governmental organisation Tenaganita has called on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to investigate the health crisis at the KL International Airport Immigration depot in Sepang, where two detainees have died so far.

It was time the government took a stronger stand to ensure detention centres are kept clean and detainees healthy, it said.

Tenaganita coordinator Aegile Fernandez said it was wrong for anyone to die while under government custody. She also felt the country lacked the political will to make changes.

“Once again, we see deaths and illnesses in detention camps. This has been going on for years. Malaysia should follow international standards and keep detention centres- Malay Mail, 4/9/2009,

See also:- SUHAKAM reiterates 1,300 dead in 6 years in detention places - "...medical care overiding reason..."