By : KOH LAY CHIN
AS we welcome Peninsular
Malaysia’s 55th year of independence this year, we celebrate once again the
people who continue to inspire us and give us hope for a better Malaysia.
We first published The Nut
Graph’s Merdeka Awards in 2009. Four years later, we continue to be reminded of
the immense talent in the country. And we continue to be moved by fresh
initiatives from citizens of all stripes. Our selection comprises awardees who
uphold constitutional freedoms and civil rights, empower citizens and/or care
for the environment or the cities we live in. They are people whose actions
contribute towards making Malaysia a better democracy and place to live.
We do not claim that this
list of awardees is definitive or exhaustive in any way. Indeed, these are our
picks. We welcome readers to include theirs in the comments section to make the
picture complete.
At The Nut Graph, we tip our
hats off to the following Malaysians, in no particular order:
Sabah
government
It must be something when
WWF-Malaysia praises a state government for its actions in protecting the
environment. In July, WWF-Malaysia applauded “the Sabah state government’s
passing of the Bill to prohibit coastal areas in Kota Kinabalu to be alienated
to others”.
An amendment to the Sabah
Land Ordinance 1930, the Bill that was passed bars any development on the Kota
Kinabalu seafront from Tanjung Aru to Likas Bay. The passing of this law
garnered plenty of praise from other environmental NGOs. And rightfully so. The
amendment helps protect the state’s precious coastal areas, mangroves and coral
reefs.
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