TANJUNG Tokong fishermen in Penang are determined to defend their livelihoods and their village from continuous development threats.

They said they are tired of being moved about in the name of progress.

Some of these fishermen have relocated four times in the past 10 years when their homes were taken over for development.

The latest threat to their homes and fishing grounds comes from a project by a private developer and a state-owned company to build an international school, a public jogging track and a water sports centre on land the fishing village sits on. 

“We are in the right. If we have to go to war, so be it. The plan is to wait and see,” 70-year-old Kamaruddin Othman said.

“Now there is no other way; if the government takes our land, we will probably fight,” the father of 10 told The Malaysian Insight.

Their village was built in 2005 on 1.3ha of land with 78 buildings after their old homes were destroyed in the 2004 tsunami.

Recently 12 buildings were ordered to be demolished because they were sitting on land earmarked for development in the concession agreement between the state government and the international school.

The properties to be demolished are four residential homes, a fire community cabin unit and a toilet, a marine life transit pond, bonsai plant nursery, and fishing equipment stores.

Kamaruddin’s properties – a house and a marine quarantine and equipment storage facilities – are set to be destroyed.

“I’ve moved four times but I didn’t own much then. Now I have four children, engines, trawls, four sampan boats.

“The first time I moved was in the 90s, because of development. They didn’t replace my home. We wanted a place close to the sea.

“Until now, it is still unresolved (the issue of fishermen). Where else can we go?” said Kamaruddin.

The affected owners have been offered ex-gratia in the form of cash. Owners of homes were offered RM42,000 each and equipment stores, RM9,000 each.

The fishermen, however, rejected the cash payment and instead demanded that the government to give them replacement properties with a temporary occupation licence (TOL) so that they will not have to face the same problem in the future.

State government silent

Secretary of the fishermen’s village association, Syahifah Hawa Zamzuri said the residents would only demolish their properties if the government agreed to their demands.

“It’s not the ex-gratia we need. If were were to take the money, where would we keep our boats, engines, nets… we cannot keep all these in apartments.

“But the state government has not responded to us. They left it to the Malaysian Fisheries Development Authority (LKIM) and the Fisheries Department to help the fishermen,” she said.

Syahifah stressed that residents have applied several times but all were rejected by the state government.

The first time they applied for a TOL was in 2012, followed by that in 2013 and 2014.

“In 2021 we re -applied for village settlement, but it was rejected in March 2022, a year later.

“But we will do it again, and this time we want to use LKIM’s help,” she said.

Syahifah said the residents were determined not to move and will remain in the area despite the government giving a deadline until July 16 or face demolition action.

“We will not allow for the demolition. We have asked our lawyers to write to the state government to allow us to use the land in the nearby area… to make it easy for us to move and not give another reason to be moved again to another place in the future.

“It means we can move, but the state government has to issue a black and white letter of permission saying we moved and were given approval to build huts or whatever, but to this day we have not received any response,” she said.

The village is home to 90 families.

Refugees in own country

A check by The Malaysian Insight found that the residents have also built chalets, aquatic life reservoirs and crop fertigation, which is a source of side income if they could not go to sea.

They also worked together to clean the beach from rubbish carried by waves as the location of the beach often attracts local and foreign tourists.

Syahifah Hawa stressed that her association regretted the treatment given by the Penang government to the fishermen because they seemed to be neglected.

In fact, the residents also held meetings with international school representatives and expressed their desire to live together in harmony but the school did not agree with the residents’ proposal.

“This is not a compensation issue. Fishermen are not afraid of being tossed by the waves, fishermen can sell fish to collect money.

“The amount of ex gratia the government wants to give is RM42,000 for a house unit. We can get RM42,000 by working hard.

“We just don’t want to move around like the Stone Age nomads, we don’t want to be refugees in our own place.

“It is as though it is very difficult for the state government to take care of fishermen. The government takes care of the animals such as turtles but we humans are neglected.”

Penang Infrastructure and Transport Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari in response to The Malaysian Insight said the beach occupied by the residents was an embankment land which was part of a concession that had been awarded previously.

Residents, he said, started building on the land from 2005 without approval and without paying anything to the authorities.

“It should be remembered that all coastal reserves are government-owned land and no buildings are allowed to be built except with the approval of the state government.

“If there are people who want to use the land, TOL must be obtained first,” said Zairil Khir.

He also assured that the areas developed by the international school, such as the jogging track and water sports centre, are for general use and not exclusive to the school.

“It needs to be emphasised that the beach will not be used exclusively by the school. It will be a public beach for the use of the public.” – June 15, 2022.