Malaysians from all walks of life are expected to turn out in force to join the Stop Lynas! Solidarity Walk tomorrow, in what supporters claim will be a rare case of civil society taking the lead in a public show of protest against the Lynas rare earth project in Gebeng, Pahang.

At least 1,000 people from Kuantan, Pahang and the city are expected to converge in front of the Australian high commission, where a six-member delegation is scheduled to present a memorandum to the Australian government at 3pm.

NONE Kuantan MP and PKR vice-president Fuziah Salleh, who has been a vocal opponent of the RM700 million project, said there has been “tremendous support” from the public for the event, with at least 10 bus-loads of people planning to make the trip from Kuantan to the high commission in Kuala Lumpur.

She pointed out however that it will be hard to gauge how many will actually turn up for the event.

“The support is good, but I really don’t know what the turnout will be like. This is not our usual (protest) crowd, this will be a different crowd, totally made up of civil society,” she said when contacted.

pkr supreme council meeting 0404010 fuziah salleh Fuziah ( right ) said while Pakatan Rakyat member parties will be present at the rally, the bulk of the people will be mobilised by residents from Kuantan, members of the People’s Green Coalition which is a group of pro-environment NGOs, student bodies and the Bar Council.

“This will be one of the few rallies that will be led by civil society,” she said of the event, jointly organised by the Green Coalition, Kuantan Environment Watch Group and the Save Malaysia, Stop Lynas committee.

The solidarity walk’s initial plan was for participants to assemble at KLCC at 2pm before marching to the high commission nearby, but Fuziah said they will most likely gather at the high commission itself to avoid possible confrontation with the police.

Growing unease over project

The Lynas Advanced Material Plant project met with public outrage starting last March, when some 100 residents from Kuantan and Gebeng gathered in front of Parliament to protest against the facility.

Despite repeated assurances from Lynas Corp and the government that the plant is safe and that radiation levels generated by the facility are negligible, it has done little to appease growing unease surrounding the controversial project.

The government eventually appeared to buckle under public pressure, forming an international expert panel review the plant’s safety.

The panel however failed to win over critics , who claim it is mere window dressing aimed at convincing the public to accept a potentially hazardous facility.