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Ushar Daniele

Lingan bin Man pulls up to the fishing jetty in the early afternoon, guiding his small boat towards a narrow strip of wooden planks as waves crash against the dock.
On board are his wife and toddler. Together, the Malaysian family inspects the day’s catch: 2kg (4.4lbs) of clams after three hours at sea.
“I can sell this for US$7,” the 52-year-old said.
For fishermen in Kampung Sungai Kurau, a village on Pulau Carey, an island in Selangor state, this has become the new normal.
Members of the Mah Meri community say their catch has steadily declined over the past five years, leaving many struggling to make ends meet.
Now the villagers fear further disruption as plans move ahead to expand a port into waters they say form part of their traditional fishing grounds.
“We are fishermen. We don’t know anything else other than fishing,” said Kamal bin Agil, 53, resting on the jetty.
The Mah Meri Orang Asli, an indigenous group, have lived on Pulau Carey for generations, with many relying on artisanal fishing and coastal resources for their livelihoods.
Mangroves and beaches hold cultural significance tied to traditions such as the annual Hari Moyang ancestral day.

Lack of transparency
Community leaders worry the project could encroach on traditional fishing grounds, disrupt mangrove ecosystems and threaten the long-term future of their villages. They say there was no transparent consultation before it was approved.
Village chairman Lanuza Luyon said a social media post was how he learned about the plan to expand Port Klang with a third terminal, allowing it to handle up to 30 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) annually by 2060.
“I saw it on TikTok, and I started asking myself: when did these people meet me? When did they hold discussions with us?” he said.
Selangor Chief Minister Amirudin Shari maintains that state officials held talks with the Mah Meri community twice, in August 2024 and 2025, although detailed designs were not finalised at the time as federal approval was still pending.
“The Selangor state government has on numerous occasions engaged with the Orang Asli community, especially concerning developments which can directly affect them,” Amirudin said in an interview.
In December, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim called for the four-phase, US$6 billion Port Klang expansion to be accelerated, with the first part expected to be operational by 2030.
He said ecosystem sustainability and the interests of Orang Asli residents would be safeguarded during development, which also includes the construction of a 16km (9-mile) wharf and is tied to wider plans to develop a port city and logistics hub on Pulau Carey.
“National development must go hand in hand with social justice and environmental responsibility, as this is where true and sustainable progress lies,” he said in a social media post.

Amirudin told This Week in Asia that environmental and social studies, including assessments on fishing access and community livelihoods, would be carried out as part of the development master plan.
“The state government is aware that 80 per cent of the fisherfolk in Pulau Carey are from the Orang Asli community and access to fishing will be part of the assessment under the Pulau Carey development master plan,” he said.
About 576 hectares (1,423 acres) of land across five Mah Meri villages had been gazetted under the Aboriginal Peoples Act and the National Land Code, Amirudin added.
Disputes over consultation are not uncommon in Peninsular Malaysia, according to legal experts, because existing laws do not explicitly require developers to obtain the consent of Orang Asli communities before major projects proceed.
Yogeswaran Subramaniam, a Malaysian lawyer specialising in Orang Asli land rights, said that although Malaysian courts recognise customary land rights, indigenous communities often struggle to pursue and enforce legal claims against state authorities.
“The affected community could challenge the environmental impact assessment process or seek compensation and legal declarations if their customary land rights are infringed,” he said.

The Department of Orang Asli Development confirmed it was formally consulted and took part in inter-agency discussions on the proposed development. But it said specific engagement with the Mah Meri community in Kampung Sungai Kurau had yet to happen, as the project was still in the early planning stages.
“Engagement with the community is a key component and should be conducted before any final decisions are made,” it said.
Maritime ambitions
Malaysia’s push to increase port capacity also reflects growing competition among Southeast Asian shipping hubs as they vie to take advantage of shifting global trade flows.
Port Klang handled 14.64 million TEUs last year, a 4.1 per cent increase from 2023, according to Lloyd’s List 2025 rankings.
“There is pressure for Malaysia to expand capacity at Port Klang to remain competitive,” said Shankaran Nambiar, an economist at the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research.
“With Singapore rapidly expanding its Tuas megaport, Malaysia has to step up its port facilities if it does not want to lose out.”
Nambiar said Port Klang was likely to face capacity pressures without expansion and the new terminals could allow Malaysia to capture cargo spillovers from Singapore, offering more cost-effective alternatives for shipping lines.
The expansion also fit with Malaysia’s push to become a logistics and industrial hub as companies diversified supply chains under the “China plus one” strategy, he said.
“If Malaysia wants to benefit from these shifts, it has to strengthen its port infrastructure and develop itself as a major port industrial city,” he said. “Otherwise, it risks falling behind competitors such as Vietnam and Thailand.”

Other analysts say projects like the Port Klang expansion reflect broader changes in global trade.
“As trade flows shift, ports across the region are competing to secure long-term relevance in regional shipping networks,” said sustainability and policy analyst Renard Siew.
But scale alone would not determine success, he said, adding that infrastructure projects must balance economic development with environmental protection and community livelihoods through holistic impact assessments and transparent stakeholder engagement.
Back at the jetty in Kampung Sungai Kurau, Lingan watches the tide roll in as he counts his day’s catch.
Change is inevitable, he says, but for the families in his village, the sea is everything.
“The ocean is our office, our education and our income; we are nothing without it.”


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Malaysia

Malaysian fisherman Lingan bin Man pulls up to the jetty in Kampung Sungai Kurau with his family. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Lingan bin Man fears losing Pulau Carey’s traditional fishing grounds to the Port Klang expansion. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Lanuza Luyon, the Kampung Sungai Kurau village chairman, says locals were not consulted about the port expansion. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Mah Meri fishermen at sea. The Mah Meri Orang Asli are an indigenous group. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Shipping containers are seen stacked at Port Klang, Malaysia. Photo: AP

Graft and gridlock: in Anwar’s Malaysia, reformist cracks widen

Illustration: Huy Truong

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (left) pictured at the Asean summit in Kuala Lumpur last year. Photo: AFP

Malaysians take part in a protest calling for MACC Chief Commissioner Azam Baki’s resignation outside the agency’s headquarters in Putrajaya, Malaysia, last month. Photo: Reuters

Rafizi Ramli, former People’s Justice Party deputy president, is expected to announce a new “political direction” in June. Photo: Handout

Anwar and Umno chief Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (centre, right) attend the party’s general assembly in Kuala Lumpur in 2023. Photo: X/anwaribrahim

1 holy month, 1 year’s income: Malaysia’s Ramadan bazaar boom

Asyraf Ahmad (left) sells drinks at his Ramadan stall after switching his business model from food. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Traditional Malay kueh and other sweet treats are laid out for sale at a Ramadan bazaar stall in Putrajaya. Photo: Iman Muttaqin Yusof

Chicken is grilled over charcoal at Nur Afifi’s stall in Putrajaya, where he says one month of sales can help cover the rest of the year. Photo: Iman Muttaqin Yusof

Office workers buy food for iftar at the Putrajaya Ramadan bazaar, one of the capital’s busiest evening bazaars during the fasting month. Photo: Iman Muttaqin Yusof

Sahar Ahmad has sold “murtabak” at Ramadan bazaars for two decades but now feels the pinch of rising costs. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Vendors display the prices for their fried goods at a Ramadan stall. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Preparations for the evening sales begin as early as 12pm in Selangor. Photo: Ushar Daniele

A revived alley in Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown tests the balance between heritage and renewal

Pedestrians now walk through Jalan Sang Guna to access Chinatown. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Murals painted around the entrance to Jalan Sang Guna. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Cheong Yoke Choy (third from right) was a key figure in the development of Drury Lane, now Jalan Sang Guna, in the early days of Kuala Lumpur’s development. Photo: Handout

Story panels explaining the history of Jalan Sang Guna now line the revitalised lane. Photo: Ushar Daniele

Malaysia’s Anwar under pressure after parliamentary setback complicates reform push

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government is facing a period of turbulence as Malaysia edges closer to its next general election. Photo:  EPA

Malaysia’s lower house parliament building in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: AP

Democratic Action Party Secretary General Anthony Loke said all 40 of the party’s MPs were present during Monday’s vote. Photo: Xinhua

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Malaysia’s government says the Port Klang expansion is sustainable and essential. Local Mah Meri fishers fear for their livelihoods


Malaysia’s government says the Port Klang expansion is sustainable and essential. Local Mah Meri fishers fear for their livelihoods.


Malaysia’s US$6 billion megaport imperils Mah Meri way of life

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Malaysia’s government says the Port Klang expansion is sustainable and essential. Local Mah Meri fishers fear for their livelihoods

Malaysia’s government says the Port Klang expansion is sustainable and essential. Local Mah Meri fishers fear for their livelihoods