Sharifah Zubaidah Syed Abdul Kader

Progression of Policies and Laws Towards Addressing Climate Change and Sustainability Issues: Recent Initiatives from Malaysia

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), of which Malaysia is a party, was adopted as a basis for a global response to the effects of climate change. Malaysia also ratified the Kyoto Protocol, but being a developing country is not subjected to any commitments towards reducing greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions at present. Nevertheless, from a domestic compliance perspective, Malaysia’s commitment is evident through various national responses demonstrating its seriousness in addressing climate change issues. As a developing country however, Malaysia is cautious that any response to climate change must be balanced with its continuing need to grow, to increase its per-capita income, and to raise its living standards, in accordance with the principle of sustainable development. This chapter focuses on changes that have taken place within Malaysia’s policies and laws in dealing with the compelling climate change issue, while taking into consideration its various needs. To this end, new policies have been launched, and laws passed, dedicated to climate change, and in tandem with the country’s pursuance of sustainable development. This work seeks to examine how these policies and laws help Malaysia reinforce the nation’s resilience to climate change implications while pursuing its priority for continued development.

Legal Issues of Land Acquisition in Zanzibar

The Constitution of Zanzibar 1984, the Land Tenure Act 1992 and the Land Acquisition Decree 1909 introduces conflicting concepts of ‘acquisition’ and ‘termination’. As there is a law on acquisition and another for termination, the land acquisition officers are faced with difficulties in selecting the right approach, not to mention that the law on termination does not have provisions in guiding the termination process e.g. notice and inquiry. The land acquisition institutions also seems not to be taking orders from a single authority, rather than the whole government and the local government having command in acquiring land rights and interests. The practicalities of the land acquisition which are enlighten in this paper, have identified the use of force in acquiring private lands for private investment. Other issues include discrepancies in paying compensation, deficiencies in the inquiry and notice and lack of court’s approval prior to acquiring private land rights. The authors use different approaches to reveal significant issues in the land acquisition process in Zanzibar. These methods include an analysis of case laws and legislative instruments. The interviews conducted with the land officers and deprived land holders early 2015 are also referred. This paper concludes with recommendations for the Zanzibar Government to consider, such as amendment of laws and backing up the land acquisition process with principles of transparency, accountability and public participation.