THE FOREST OF KUALA LUMPUR

As posted by Dr. Mahathir Mohamad at Che Det on May 6, 2011 11:45 AM

1. It is great to watch Kuala Lumpur grow. We see everywhere the cranes marking the sites of new development. There are skyscrapers in every corner, great skyscrapers of fantastic shapes and heights. Kuala Lumpur now looks like other great cities of the world.

2. But if you look again you will see that it is still quite green, greener than most other cities. New landscaping with mature trees have contributed towards this greenness.

3. But there are here and there patches of forests, as dense as the well-known tropical forests of Malaysia. They are thick with undergrowth which make them as impenetrable. The trees are tall and so leafy that they cut off all the light of the sun in the day time. You cannot see through these miniature forests and I think you cannot walk through them either.

4. They make Kuala Lumpur truly green and at times you feel as if you are driving through a forest. How wonderful to be able to drive through forests right in the middle of the city. Then you emerge to see the towers of the skyscrapers, the shopping complexes and the manicured streets once again.

5. The experience is unique and it is characteristic of Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.

6. Sadly I have seen these forest patches disappearing one after another to be replaced with hard concrete and granite towers of development. I fear in time, in not too long a time, the forests will all disappear. Their green will no longer colour Kuala Lumpur. They will no longer give shade to passers-by. The sunlight will be hard and hot, bouncing off tarred streets and concrete pavements and heating up the air above.

7. We need to develop. But we need to care also for the environment. The patches of forests of Kuala Lumpur are unique. We should try to preserve them even if it will cost us a lot of money.

NO FLY ZONE

As posted by Dr. Mahathir Mohamad at Che Det on April 29, 2011 10:45 AM

1. What does the ordinary man imagine a no-fly zone is about? I believe he would imagine a sky without any planes flying. At most he would expect to see only military aircrafts of the enforcing nations flying over the zone to ensure the aircrafts of the targeted country are not flying over the zone.

2. In the case of the Iraqi no-fly zone, the enforcing nations apparently believed that "no-fly zone" is about blockading the zone to deprive it from receiving supplies of all kinds including food and medicine. As a result an estimated 500,000 Iraqi children were born deformed or were still-born due to the affect of bombs and shells with depleted uranium used in the Gulf War against Iraq.

3. Now once again a "no-fly zone" has been declared over Libya, this time by the United Nations. The Arab countries have also supported this resolution.

4. News reports now tell of bombs being dropped and targets being shelled by the Americans and their allies against Libyan forces and civilians. There is no report on Libyan aircrafts being shot down or chased out of Libyan airspace. Some reports claim that weapons have been supplied to rebels.

5. Are all these things included in the term "no-fly zone"? If they are were they stated in the resolution by the United Nations? Were the representatives of the Arab countries aware that this is the meaning of "no-fly zone".

6. If they were not stated and the Arab nations were not told, then why did the Americans and their allies take all these warlike actions.

7. It would seem that the United Nations needs to state carefully the meanings of the resolutions passed by its "organs". Otherwise the innocent members may be conned.