BALIK PULAU: More than 4,000 people, including 1,500 fishermen from the south coast of Penang island, their family members and representatives from 20 non-governmental organisations (NGO), held a protest at Pantai Sungai Batu here against the Penang South Island (PSI) project.
Bearing placards, they repeatedly chanted "Tolak Tambak" (reject reclamation).
Penang Fishermen's Association (Pen Mutiara) chairman Ibrahim Che Ros said this would not be the last protest they would organise.
"As long as the reclamation project is on, we will continue to protest. This will not be the end of it.
"After this, we will march to Parliament to submit a memorandum to the prime minister to say we reject the project and other reclamation projects planned in the state.
"We will also send the a copy of the memorandum to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong," he said after the protest this morning.
On Thursday, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said Penang would do away with two of three artificial islands that would be reclaimed from the sea off Penang island's south coast under the controversial PSI project.
He said this would mean a scaling down PSI to 49 per cent, as the largest of planned islands, Silicon Island, measured about 920ha while islands B and C, measured about 560ha and 320ha respectively.
During a recent visit to Penang, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the federal government would allocate additional funds to help the state government with the George Town-Bayan Lepas light rail transit (LRT) project.
Anwar had also asked the state government to scale down the PSI project.
Following his announcement, Sahabat Alam Malaysia president Meenakshi Raman, Consumers' Association of Penang president Mohideen Abdul Kader and Pen Mutiara had asked the state government to scrap the project and not just scale it down.
Ibrahim said Pen Mutiara also wanted to meet Chow as the state leader had never met.
"The state election is fast approaching. They must know who we are.
"We mean no threat. We just want the leaders to know we are against this reclamation project.
"Meet with us and settle this once and for all," he added, noting that he was speaking on behalf of 6,000 fishermen in the state, 2,000 fishermen in southern Kedah and 10,000 fishermen in northern Perak.
Ibrahim also invited Chow to go to sea with him to assess the amount of catch.
Southern Penang Fisherman Association president Arshad Omar said fishermen were not forced to participate in today's protest and that it was done according to the rules of the association, where a member should be in sync with Pen Mutiara's stand in whatever they are championing.
"Those who came today support of our cause," he said to loud cheers from the crowd.
Activist Khoo Salma Nasution, who spoke on behalf of the NGOs, said they supported the fishermen's fight and would champion their cause.
The protest, which lasted more than hour, was also attended by state Perikatan Nasional (PN) leaders.
In 2019, hundreds of fishermen from Penang and Perak, along with representatives from numerous NGOs, marched to Parliament to protest against proposed reclamation off Penang Islands south coast.
They submited petitions and a memorandum to then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and other ministers.
Fishermen and NGOs staged their first protest in the state in 2015, when the reclamation project was first mooted.