Protests against Lynas in Sydney during AGM
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 — A small group of demonstrators gathered outside Lynas Corp in Sydney to protest against its rare earths refinery in Kuantan which they say is unsafe for locals, Australia’s national news agency reported today.
According to the Australian Associated Press (AAP), the protestors outside the company’s annual general meeting numbered some 20 people and included Malaysians, environmental activists and a New South Wales (NSW) senator Lee Rhiannon.
“There’s very strong opposition from the local community in Kuantan and there’s every reason that this toxic waste should not be left in Malaysia,” the AAP quoted Rhiannon as saying.
“The refinery should not even be built,” she added, and demanded Lynas stop construction on the plant, which has been reported to be 85 per cent complete.
AAP also cited a protestor named Ken Ooi who was worried about the plant’s impact on his fishermen-relatives living near the plant.
At the AGM, Lynas executive chairman Nick Curtis (picture) was reported by AAP as having told shareholders the plant was safe, but admitted the company had not done enough to reassure locals.
“We acknowledge, that notwithstanding earlier community outreach programs in 2009 we have clearly not done enough to build community confidence,” he was cited as saying today.
Public protests over the radioactive hazards and waste management plan posed by the RM1.5 billion Lynas Advanced Materials Project (Lamp) in coastal Kuantan this year prompted a nine-man panel of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to investigate.
Lynas received a favourable report from the IAEA, the AAP said, but was told to provide a long-term waste management plan.
