Palm oil smallholders protest against EU's proposed palm oil ban

KUALA LUMPUR: Some 1,800 palm oil smallholders took to the streets today to protest against the European Union's proposed palm oil ban today.
Representing the group, National Association of Small Holders (NASH) president Datuk Aliasak Ambia said the proposed ban would threaten the livelihood of some 650,000 smallholders and over 3.2 million Malaysians who rely on the palm oil industry.
"Not only that the rural communities would be devastated and thousands would be driven into poverty by the proposed restriction, the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals would also be undermined as well," he said prior to submitting a petition signed by tens of thousands of Felda settlers to EU representatives today.
Also present at the submission was Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) chairman Tan Sri Shahrir Abdul Samad who pointed out that the proposed EU ban on palm oil biofuels, under the Renewable Energy Directive, is discriminatory and it must be removed.
Among the demands listed in the petition were for the EU to withdraw the proposed ban on palm oil biofuels immediately, all discriminatory provisions against palm oil in the directive must be removed and that the EU must commit to a fair and non-discriminatory approach to palm oil in future.
In October 2017, the Environment Committee of the European Parliament voted for an effective ban on all palm oil biofuel exports to the EU after 2021 and an effective exclusion of advanced palm oil biomass from the EU market, all while other oilseeds are allowed to be sold inside the EU until 2030.
The ban was then endorsed by the Industry, Research and Energy Committee of the European Parliament last November.
Meanwhile, Shahrir said the ban by the EU was similar to a threat and economic imperialism as it deprived the country of its main revenue source.
"They want to subject 3.2 million people who are mostly rural farmers back into poverty," he said.
Shahrir said he was however doubtful the protest would impact the European Parliament's motion to vote on the matter today.