What about durian farms on tiger habitat? - Pahang rep cries hypocrisy
Tras assemblyperson Chow Yu Hui has accused the Pahang government of hypocrisy when it swiftly chopped down 15,000 durian trees on grounds that the small farmers illegally encroached into the Batu Talam Forest Reserve in Raub.
He said the state government did not appear to have the same commitment when it leased 1,213ha of nearby land to a consortium for its Musang King durian empire in 2018.
Chow (above) noted that local and international reports had said the land was a water catchment area and also a habitat for the endangered Malayan tiger.
He said the respectful manner in which the Pahang government treated big business, in contrast with the cruel and ruthless way it dealt with the farmers, showed its hypocrisy.
"The state government forcefully evicted the farmers and destroyed the land that they have cultivated for almost 30 years.
"The state government using the excuse of ‘environment preservation’ to clear the land is simply hypocritical and shameless," Chow added.
Furthermore, he said, the farmers did not chop down trees in the forest reserve to plant their durian trees.
In contrast, he said the 1,213ha land leased by the Pahang government to Royal Pahang Durian Group saw it being logged and replaced with durian farms.
Royal Pahang Durian had since formed a joint-venture with the state government to expand the durian business under the Royal Pahang Durian Resources-PKPP Sdn Bhd (RPDR-PKPP).
They are in dispute with farmers over another plot of land in the same area.
The state government had accused the durian cultivators of illegal farming and is trying to evict them as it had leased the land to RPDR-PKPP for its own durian plantation.
The farmers had obtained a stay of execution from the Court of Appeal, allowing them to continue operating on the disputed land pending their appeal against the eviction.
However, at the start of this month, the state government began chopping down durian trees in the area.
The state government insisted that the durian trees it cleared were not part of the court battle between the durian farmers and RPDR-PKPP but they were within the adjacent Batu Talam Forest Reserve.
The farmers, on the other hand, insisted that the destroyed trees were part of the legal dispute and that the state government was in contempt of court.
The state government had touted its efficiency in cutting down 15,000 durian trees in nine days - on grounds of maintaining the integrity of the forest reserve. - Mkini
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