Residents call on govt to intervene Portuguese Settlement land reclamation works

KUALA LUMPUR: A group of residents from Portuguese Settlement in Malacca have called on the Federal government to intervene in the land reclamation works near the settlement.
They claimed that the Malacca Gateway project, where reclamation works will be done along the Ujong Pasir coastline, would affect the livelihood of the people, especially the fishermen in the area, as well as the settlement's cultural and historical value.
Save Portuguese Community Action Committee (SPACC) chairman Martin Theseira said he was informed that the developer had failed to get a proper Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) report for the project.
"The developer is using a EIA report used 17 years ago, and there is no recent study on the social impact assessment as well.
"There were no official discussions between the developer, the State Economic Planning Unit (UPEN), Environment Department and other representatives in regards to this matter," he told reporters at Parliament lobby today.
He asked the Federal Government to see if the project benefited the people of Malacca and expressed fears it would affect the Unesco World Heritage Site status given to Malacca and George Town in July 2008.
"Our concerns are well founded. For us, it is not only a matter of livelihood but also the survival of a 500-year old culture and heritage of which we cherish and are proud of," he said.
Theseira, accompanied by several residents and opposition MPs including Sim Tong Him (DAP-Kota Melaka), earlier submitted a memorandum on the matter to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Dr Shahidan Kassim at Parliament entrance.
Sim said there is no other Portugese settlement like the one in Malacca in South East Asia, and it has to be protected as "it is a living heritage."
"I hope the Malacca state government and Federal government will do something," he added.