Thursday, August 13, 2009
Negotiation still on-going..
5.28pm Buah Pala.
The residents are now still at confusion on what's the next cause of action, Lawyer Darshan Singh is in the scene now and Police personel and the villagers are talking to the residents regarding the final agreement letter and the authorities are now persuading the residents to sign the final agreement paper!
5.31pm Buah Pala-Malaysiakini After speaking to the villagers for about an hour, Lawyer Darshan told newsmen that the villagers would not sign the document. "It's like hanging rope and a trap for the villagers. "The document is legally seeking the villagers' own admission that the land was not theirs," he said. Darshan has already lined up several cases to be filed on the behalf of the villagers. Among the cases were an application to caveat the land by the residents, application for a stay of execution against demolition attempt by the developer and land owner. Another application is to seek a court declaration that the state government shall allow the villagers to have legal representation in negotiations. On Aug 18, the villagers' case for a review of the Federal Court decision on June 24 will be up for hearing. Darshan also plans to file another application to review an earlier Court of Appeal decision on May 11 that ruled the villagers not having a locus standi to seek a full trial over the village land deals. -Rwindraj@cryingvoices
It's not over yet for Kg.buah Pala...
By Rwindraj - Cryingvoices.
I thought it has ended, and the villagers are free for another month but I was wrong, after the promises from the bailiff, there are yet another contract to be signed by the Villagers, the contract is rather complicated and not siding the villagers, it's like a trap for them, stated in the contract ;
1. The Villagers has been given until 1/9/09 to vacate their homes.
2. After the 1st of Sept 09, the villagers has no right or can't be an obstacle and has to co-operate with the developer before and during demolition.
3. On the 1st of Sept the Developer will be getting an execution order from the court to demolish the houses.
4. In any case if the villagers are not abiding by this agreement, the developer will demolishing this village without any further notices.
Do you think that we should sign this contract? Its merely a contract to trap the villagers, there is only one choice given to the villagers.. demolish now or later! and if they have signed the contract then the villagers are consenting the developer, court and everyone that they are leaving this place to allow the developer to demolish without any complications. The person who has signed this contract is the Makkal Sakthi Political party 3 representatives including its leader Thanenthiran! I dont know why they want to sign such paper! something is wrong here...
2 of the villagers representatives and the reps from the developer were there on the discussion of the postponement of the demolition decision, some sources says that they have been given exactly one month from today and some said that they has time until 31/august 2009. We are still waiting for the final desicion and say from the villagers! Villagers reps are still negotiating with the bailiff regarding the contract, hope all will be on the side and advantage of the villagers! Rwindraj..@cryingvoices
Resilient villagers stop bulldozers in their tracks - Malaysiakini
This morning, bulldozers had rumbled into Kampung Buah Pala. With their engines firing, the mechanical monsters were all set to devour the houses standing on a bitterly disputed piece of land.
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Women and children had joined the menfolk to form a human barricade, to prevent the sledgehammer-armed workers from putting their tools to work.
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It was alleged that several villagers were hurt during the commotion.
M Mahadevi, 51, was said to have been hit with batons, resulting in her sustaining injuries to her stomach. She was later taken in an ambulance to the Lam Wah Eee private hospital for treatment.
Another villager, S Kamini, 18, claimed that she and her 50-year-old mother were assaulted by the police personnel.
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Villager M Salligan, 58, also alleged that he was 'beaten up' by police personnel. According to him, at least 10 villagers were hurt.
Kampung Buah Pala association assistant secretary C Tharmaraj accused the police of 'resorting to violence' to disperse the villagers.
Police chief: It's all rumours
Contacted later, George Town police chief Azam Abd Hamid denied that the police had assaulted the villagers and accused them of spreading rumours.He denied giving any orders to employ force and called on the villagers who claimed to have been assaulted to file police reports.
Earlier in the morning, some 50 demolition workers had attempted to enter the village through the back entrance, but were spotted by the villagers and driven away.
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The police had also stopped the media from entering the village, but some journalists have managed to slip through.
At present, negotiations are underway between the developer and the villagers. Sources claimed that the demolition could be postponed until the end of the month.
Consumer Association of Penang (CAP) officer NV Subarrow told Malaysiakini that all DAP legislators had (allegedly) switched off their mobile phones.
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In the morning, police escorted court bailiffs and developer Nusmetro Sdn Bhd director Gary Ho to paste a court demolition order at a house.
At about 12.45pm, the villagers' lawyer Darshan Singh Khaira arrived at the scene but was stopped by the police.
Using a loud hailer, the lawyer told villagers that the demolition would be the 'graveyard' for the DAP government in Penang.
Kg Buah Pala: Penang CM urged not to mislead the public on issue of compensation
Some say that the demands of the residents are unreasonable and overly excessive. And that the offer of a landed property by the PR state government is too generous and sets a dangerous precedent in the state, especially when no BN or any state government has done so – Press statement by Penang State governmentThe state government has claimed that by offering the villagers a landed property in the shape of 1200 sq feet double storey terrace houses, it has set a dangerous precedence & it has not been done before.
But it must be pointed out that the villagers in 10 kongsi & other places in Sg Ara had been given compensation of 4000 sq feet double storey detach houses for each family way back before 2004.
How can the present state government especially the CM claimed that they are setting a dangerous precedence & never before the landed property has been offered to any villager when the truth is as clear as the day light?
The villagers in Sg Ara who are part of the employees of the same Brown estate & stayed on the lands were given a better deal than those in Kg Buah Pala even though the lands in Sg Ara had the similar strait settlement land grant as given to the villagers of Kg Buah Pala.
Are the CM history blind or are they trying to mislead the people of Penang in order to be seen as the people’s heroes or are they just lying through their teeth?
Even though we are supporting the Pakatan Rakyat but we cannot go around spreading outright lies or even half truth. If we do not stop it now, it will be a one term wonder for the current state government. Ubah sebelum parah!
Taman Desa Ria was developed by Palmex & the developer offered the 4000 sq feet double storey houses to the affected villagers that form part of the new Sg Ara township.
At Taman Desa Ara, the villagers were offered wih the same size house for each family, why did the LGE government claimed that they have set a dangerous precedence?
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Press statement by Penang State Government on the compensation offered to the Kg Buah Pala villagers:
The Offer Of Double-Storey Terrace House With 99 Years Lease To Residents Is A Successful Effort By The State Government To Gain Recognition For Kampung Buah Pala Residents To Remain As Legal Rightful Landowners.
The Penang State EXCO unanimously endorses the “win-win†formula worked out by the Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, Deputy Chief Minister 1 Mansor Othman and Deputy Chief Minister 2 Professor P. Ramasamy to resolve the Kampung Buah Pala issue. Despite the developer and the landowner of Kampung Buah Pala possessing the eviction and demolition order granted by the Federal Court, they have acceded to the request of the PR state government not to implement it on 4.8.2009 but to defer until Friday.
Some say that the demands of the residents are unreasonable and overly excessive. And that the offer of a landed property by the PR state government is too generous and sets a dangerous precedent in the state, especially when no BN or any state government has done so. However there are special circumstances for Kampung Buah Pala in that they were allowed by the original landowner to live there during the British colonial days before the land reverted to the government.
Even BN and UMNO have conceded that the residents have been staying there over100 years. The BN state government under Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon had alienated their land twice to Koperasi Pegawai Kerajaan Pulau Pinang in EXCO meetings on 18.8.2004 and 8.6.2005 without consulting the residents. Worse the land was alienated by BN at a ridiculously low land premium of RM 10 per square feet. After losing their land which was “robbed†from them by BN, the BN land robbers treated them as illegal squatters with no rights to own their land.
The offer of a double-storey terrace house with 99 years lease to the residents is a successful effort by the PR state government to gain recognition for Kampung Buah Pala residents to remain as legal rightful landowners and not as illegal squatters.
The actions of one or two residents together with outsiders with their own agenda of undermining the Penang Pakatan Rakyat government only deepen suspicions that they do not want to see a solution but want the demolition of all houses to be carried out so that it can be used against Pakatan Rakyat. For the one or two residents together with outsiders who have houses, it is easy to demand everything when they have a house to go back to after Kampung Buah Pala is demolished.
The Penang PR state government urges the residents to seriously consider and accept this final solution that will allow them to remain in the land and receive a double-storey terrace landed property. If they agree in principle, then all the other details can be worked out by the PR state government, which has been sincerely helping the residents despite being unjustly blamed and criticised for an injustice committed by BN. Kampung Buah Pala residents should move on by considering the win-win formula of legally owning a 99 year leased land with double-storey terrace house.
PROFESSOR P RAMASAMY
Taking Advantage of Buah
A well known advantage taking Indian so called politician is here with his new party called Makkal Sakthi. At the last minute and trying to win peoples heart by claiming he is the one made the bailiff to postponed the demolition process till another month, I find this news is the most interesting one throughout the strugle. Dont believe anyone, the only person was there for the villagers are the villagers themself and not from outside influences! They struggled since morning with all the baton and pushes and got their minor winning today! Bravo High Chaparral residents!!
Rwindraj@ Cryingvoices..
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Live from Kg.Buah Pala
By cryingvoices-Rwindraj
0800hrs : A road bloack has been setup at both entrance to Kg.Buah Pala
0808hrs: A temporary police post has been setup near the village opposite RTM quaters.
0810hrs: There's about 20 villagers were present at the tent setup by the villagers, and about 10 reporters from various media is also present here.
The villagers are worried, tensed and some almost cried, this is the most sad scene that can be seen here at this moment.
There has been a group of about 50 chinese gangster with the Green Attire and with Weapons, standby at a perfect spot near shell about 500m from Kg.buah Pala, which has been noticed by one of the villagers, the group watched closely but chased away by police and the villagers!
Reporters were chased out of the scene, commotions here and there, at 1001hrs, the developers gangster team and the police come in big group!..
The gangsters are supported by police!, there is no reason for the police to chase the reporters!
Kg.Buah Pala Reports
Time is critical in Kg.Buah Pala now, a house belongs to mr.steven has been marked for demolition,
Light Strike force is team is using violence against the villagers, many of them are injured, a lady in the age of 51 by the name, Mahadevi D/O Muthu is injured in a critial situation, she has problem with her spines after attacked with a stick by Light force team, I cant update more pictures here due to time constrain, photos will be uploaded in the photo gallery!
There are no politician seen in the this area, no one comes to the plea of the villagers here, they are fighting on their own for the survival of their heritage land!
The develop has brought a bunch of Foreigners with Iron Rod who is in the front row before the police, police are protecting the developer rather than the villagers!
The Lady with the spinal Injury has been dened medical attention, she lost her consciousness and also suffering with hypertension and leg injuries. IT HAS BEEN ABOUT AN HOURS SINCE AMBULANCE IS STATIONED AT THE SPOT AND DENIED ENTRY TO RESCUE THE INJURED WOMAN. There are in total of 3 ladies injuries at this point of time. The developer Gary Ho, is leading the demolition team and he is with full police backup.There are no mercy here, they have given a 15mins for each house before the demolition.. This is so cruel, pakatan rakyat is a cruel and non-Human rights state government, they only torchure the people in this state said Mr.Maniam, a resident of this wonderful state!
GREAT NEW IS, NOT EVEN ONE DAP OR ANY OF THE PAKATAN RAKYAT ADUNS AND MPS ARE HERE AND REFUSED TO ANSWER ANY CALLS FROM BUAH PALA RESIDENTS.
LIVE: Bulldozers in Kg Buah Pala - Anil Netto
1324: The Koperasi’s blog says it does not agree to the proposal for the double-storey houses offered as compensation to be built on their land. The cooperative is believed to be holding a general meeting soon. The developer’s action today may be seen in that light – to show they are doing something about the project.
1312: The court bailiff stands on one of the bulldozers to address the crowd. But the shouting of the crowd drowns out whatever he has to say.
The bulldozers, facing the crowd, rev up their engines, but the crowd of villagers shout back, “Tutup enjin! Tutup engine!” A standoff ensues.
1241: The villagers’ lawyer, Darshan Singh, arrives, clutching some documents. He wants to meet the court bailiff, who is holed up with the developer in the village house they are using as a base. But police are blocking Darshan’s way, amidst shouts and chants from the crowd.
The OCPD has arrived and is now believed to be inside the mobile police base a short distance away.
1215: The stand-off between the villagers and the demolition team at the foothill continues.
The deadlines for the three houses were given more than half an hour ago. Police are taking up positions outside the three houses.
1207: It looks as if three houses have been targeted for demolition today. A 30-minute deadline has been given.
1202: About 200 villagers have gathered outside the house which the developer is using. Some of them have brought cow dung. Police are guarding the house.
1149: The developer appears to be using the house across the road from the open-air enclosure for cows as a base. A couple of villagers are also believed to be inside the house.
The developer walks to the house next to it and another house after that to talk to the occupants, but the villagers are resisting.
1132: Villagers are scrambling to the foothill as contractors emerge. A standoff ensues.
Meanwhile, more panic as villagers believe that contractors are coming from the top of the slope. The police inform an activist that they are not contractors but the court bailiff among others.
Two or three women are believed to have fainted. They are stretchered away through the barricades as the ambulance is not allowed in. The villagers ask why police cars are allowed in but not the ambulance, according to a source at the scene.
Villagers are trying to contact several DAP and PKR reps in the state government, but no one seems to be picking up their phones.
1058: One woman in her fifties has fainted and is now lying on a table. The older folks in the village look tired and weary. Another woman, Mahadevi, 51, who had just undergone a spinal operation recently, has been shoved.
The developer, lawyers and others are in one of the houses. TNB personnel are also believed to be at the scene.
1046: Some of the villagers say that the bailiff has given them 15 minutes to leave, according to one source. A lot of shouting going on.
Another source reports the same thing, adding that the villagers are chanting, “Hidup Kampung Buah Pala! Samseng keluar!”
1029: A court bailiff sticks a demolition order on one of the houses.
A commotion breaks out as village reps point out any action today would be in contempt of court as the Federal Court is due to hear their application for revision on 18 August.
The developer’s contractors are still around. Some reporters re-enter the village.
1008: The demolition team march into the village followed by the two bulldozers. A crowd of chanting villagers goes up close and eyeballs them. A police barricade separates the two sides. About a hundred Light Strike Force personnel are at the scene.
1003: The demolition team are moving in: about 200 people and two tractors or bulldozers.
0935: The situation appears tense in the village. Two bulldozers are believed to be around. Police continue to order out reporters and photographers, says an eye-witness at the scene. He believes some of the residents have confronted the demolition team at the Shell station and they may have dispersed (unable to verify that though). The entire area has now been blocked. As raindrops fall, it seems as if the heavens are weeping.
0929: People are milling around the second barricade. “Everyone seems to be just waiting,” reports a citizen journalist. One village family – husband, pregnant wife and two children – has left the scene. Lots of police personnel around. A tractor or bulldozer is inside the village, according to two different sources.
0920: About 200 police personnel, including riot police are now in the village. “They are coming,” one villager tells me, sounding upset. He said one of the villagers had spotted another group of men, believed to be the developers’ people, gathering at the Shell station along the main road.
A citizen journalist tries to enter the village but is unable to get past the second barricade.
0853: The police have asked reporters and photographers inside the village to move outside the road blocks that have been set up at the entrance to the village. About 50 villagers have gathered inside and some 50 police personnel are also present, according to an eye-witness.
0750: Police on motorbikes have been seen checking out Kg Buah Pala. The residents have been on tenterhooks since last night amidst speculation that something could happen today.
Kg Buah Pala: Developer moves in
The Star, Aug 13 2009 10:02 am -- GEORGE TOWN: Police have cordoned off the entire Kampung Puah Bala as the deadline for the residents to move out ends Thursday. Bulldozers have been put on standby to move in to demolish the houses after most of the residents failed to take up the offer of a doube-storey house. The situation is described as tense.
A small contribution to the Community and a Warning to the Foul Players, No matter who you are!
-By Conscious and Unconscious...
Rwindraj...
Live from Kg.Buah Pala 12.23am Aug 13th 2009I reached Kg.Buah Pala at about 2120hrs, the condition here is not as potrayed
the national medias, things here are in tense and the residents are suffering everyday, even now at 2344hrs, the residents are sitting at the tent set up here to discuss on this matter and worried on what will happen to them in the next morning, everyone is threatening them, playing with their feelings and treat them badly without understanding their feelings.
There is almost hopeless to trust the politicians here, I m very dissapointed with Lim Guan Eng and Prof.Ramasamy on this incident, what is business compare to the people that has trusted you and voted for you believing that they will be taken care and protected by the Assemblyman, Adun Saniswaran Nethaji Rayer is in his last moment enjoying his seat for the last time in politics, he will be no one in the next GE in this constituition.
He never cared and did anything to save the village and the villagers, All the statements given previously was based on political motive only. If at this moment, any political party or organisation saves Kg.Buah Pala, then the vote of the residents, their relatives and their friends will be for that party or organisation! The resident is in the desperate moment to save the Village, only I and the residents can feel the moments here, To all the bloggers and Reporters out there, please do not write anything unneccessarily without knowing what is the actual scenario here.
The promisses made by the Developer, contractor, state government are all lies and nothing is assured and promised to the villagers! The news in the medias are all baseless, the residents here are frustratred but strong in protecting the village, the news that says that they are not united is also baseless, they are still united and strong to protect the village and their rights! Finally, this is not the land of the state government!
This is the land presented to them by honorable British man and the family, Brown Family for their hardwork and contribution in developing this land to be a productive one..
Conscious and Unconscious,
Rwindraj @ Cryingvoices
Torchure and Suffering of a Resident in High Chaparral!
C.Tharmaraj, A resident from Kg.Buah Pala is in utmost presurre from the games played by everyone around them, Developer, state government, and the politicians, He is father of 4 kids aged 10,11 and 1 year old. another child is in the womb! Three of kids are having Fever and the wife is weak with fever too.
Apart from taking the task as a committe secretary to save Kg.Buah Pala, he is suffering with the pressure and stress given to him. Can u imagine on what kind of pressure he has to go through? By morning he doesnt know whom to concentrate, kids? wife? or their home... This is the cruel situation in Kg.Buah Pala and the pressure suffered by its residents! Imagine People... this is the cruel moment for a happily lived Villagers in the Historical Place!
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