Eighteen people will be holding a 100 hour fast beginning 8pm this Thursday as a form of protest over several environmental and community issues.

Event organisers Malaysian Youth Against Public Hazards said the hunger strike will cease at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Day.

Participants, which will also consist of teenagers and retirees, will only be drinking bottled water during the event.

Among others, organisers said the event was aimed at creating public awareness about the possible threats posed by the Lynas rare earth refinery, the use of cyanide in gold mining in Pahang, the Pengerang oil refinery project and the numerous dam projects in Sarawak.

In a press release yesterday, the organiser's spokesperson Tan Woen Tian said activists from various NGOs will be speaking at Dataran Merdeka on a number of topics.

Among others, Bersih 2.0 steering committee member Wong Chin Huat will be speaking on nationalism while PSM secretary-general S Arutchelvan will be speaking on the civil society movement.

Speeches will take place between 8pm to 10pm.

“We urge the public to come give support to the hunger strike participants and also to learn more about environmental issues affecting the country,” he said.

He said others who are interested in joining the fast will need to fill up a registration form on the group's Facebook page .