Black cloth to adorn Kuantan anti-Lynas protest

There will be a sea of black cloth fluttering in the sky at the Occupy Balok-Gebeng rally at the Balok beach in Pahang on Saturday, with the organisers gearing up to prepare anti-Lynas banners using the colour of mourning.

Some 500 banners, in black with white wordings, will be held up on the beach while thousands of pieces of black cloth will be distributed to participants to create their own banners, Himpunan Hijau steering committee member Clement Chin (right) said.

"We want to send the message that this is a very solemn and critical moment, for Lynas is about to start operations. We can't wait any more," Chin said.

Himpunan Hijau chairman Wong Tack said a team of 20 volunteers were working against time to complete the 500 banners by Saturday.

"We are telling Lynas that we are sending it to hell," Wong said.

'A flame of rising anger'

Starting at noon on Saturday, the 24-hour occupy event is yet another grassroots protest against the Lynas rare earths refinery in Gebeng, Pahang, despite the parliamentary select committee (PSC) giving the green light for it to operate.

Wong said the event would have a slew of activities catering to the young, including a green fellowship, two rounds of concerts and an exhibition on the former Bukit Merah Asian Rare Earth (ARE) site and camping.

Prominent NGO leaders and politicians, including poet and Bersih co-chairperson A Samad Said, PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu and another PAS leader, Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, will also speak at ceramah sessions.

The first day's event will culminate with "a flame of rising anger" session at 11pm, with the organisers putting up a mock-up of the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (Lamp), which will then be burned by the participants.

Wong (above) said an artist group from Kuala Lumpur has been asked to conduct this session and that they were still collecting brown coloured boxes as material for the mock-up of Lamp.

This session will be followed by an 11km march on Sunday morning, from Balok beach to Lamp in Gebeng. Protesters and members of public are invited to join in from any point along the route, using any mode of transportation.

The organisers said they have informed the police by sending the Kuantan police station the itinerary of their programme.

Meanwhile, when asked to comment about PSC report in parliament today, Wong said they expected the outcome but the Kuantan folks are not letting it go easily.

“Lynas may be receiving its TOL but we can assure them the people of Kuantan will never allow their evil acts to go unchallenged. If the TOL is issued, the authorities will see wave after wave of people’s actions,” chairperson Wong Tack said.

He said Himpunan Hijau will organise wave after wave of protest until Lynas, which he dubbed as “the world’s largest radioactive dump”, is stopped.  

“Leaders of the current regime will not pay attention to the suffering and anxieties of the community of Kuantan. They are in the midst of their own political life and death struggle. Correcting their wrongdoings is not on their agenda,” he added.