Ramadan shoppers cheer as school kids protest climate change

Youth activists group, Klimate Action Utara Malaysia (Kaum) and a group of primary school students today held an anti-plastic waste and anti-climate change protest in Bayan Baru, Penang.

Eleven students from SJK Tamil Sungai Ara held pro-environment placards with messages such as "Stop Reclamation", "Greed Disaster", "Climate Chaos Due To Flood, Drought" and "Care for Climate Change - Earth Burns, People Suffer".

They walked several rounds around a Ramadan bazaar while chanting slogans like "No to Plastic" as shoppers cheered them on.

Last week, Education Minister Maszlee Malik visited the Sungai Ara school and was rather impressed with the students' initiatives to promote a green, healthy environment.

The event today comes a day ahead of a similar protest in the capital tomorrow organised by Klimate Action Malaysia.

The group is part of the Second Global Climate Strike For Future, an international youth movement to raise awareness about climate change.

Met at the bazaar, Kaum representative Nur Zulaikha Zainal Abidin said the NGO and its supporters will continue to hold such events to raise awareness on climate change.

"We would like to invite youths to join us as it is important to start caring for our environment before it is too late," Nur Zulaikha said.

She said Kaum called on the federal and state governments to acknowledge the "truth of irrefutable science that we are in a climate and environmental crisis."

"We call on the government to treat and declare this crisis. We also call upon them to consult environmental and climate experts to help implement mitigation and adaptation policies to protect our nation's citizens," Nur Zulaikha said.

"We call for a rapid transition to net zero carbon emissions by 2030 and for natural resource use policies which prioritise people and the environment above the pursuit of profit," she added.

"We also call for greater transparency, regulation and enforcement of our environmental protection policies and laws," she said.

Today's event was supported by several NGOs including Penang Forum and Consumers Association Penang, both of whom are strongly against land reclamation for the creation of three artificial islands off the southern coast of Penang. - Mkini