Activities on CAP.

CAP is a grassroots non-profit, non-governmental organization registered as a society with the Registrar of Societies, Malaysia since 1970. Through the years, the scope of CAP's concerns has expanded from matters of daily living such as product price and quality to more complex problems of meeting basic human needs, saving the environment from further deterioration, safeguarding human health, advocating for food security and sustainable livelihoods. CAP has also been actively engaging in human development activities through education, training, capacity building, community based programmes, womens empowerment, and in advocating a form of development, lifestyle and culture which is ecologically sustainable. As a defender of consumer rights and interests, CAP organizes community awareness campaigns on a broad spectrum of consumer, health, social, economy and environment issues that involves research, education, capacity building, organizing and media work. In carrying out its activities, CAP reaches out to a wide range of people in the Malaysian society including rural communities such as farmers, fishermen, plantation workers, squatters, urban consumers, teachers, school children, university students, women youth and religious bodies. CAP publishes an extensive range of educational materials such as the popular bimonthly consumer newspaper "Utusan Konsumer", pamphlets used in life-skill training courses and books in four languages. Though based in Penang, CAPs outreach activities cover the whole of Malaysia.

Section
To carry out the various activities, CAP has the following sections: SECTION

RESEARCH 1.

Has various subsections, each focussing on specific issues such as health and nutrition, food and product safety, pharmaceuticals, basic needs, environmental problems, market malpractices, finance, workers rights, unethical advertising practices, culture and lifestyle, and issues related to women.

2.

Studies and surveys on these issues are carried out and sometimes, tests are conducted to check the safety and quality of foodstuff and consumer products.

COMMUNITY 1.

AND

RURAL

SECTION

Works with communities such as plantation workers, fishermen, farmers, rubber smallholders, tenants and squatters, etc and helps them articulate problems related to their livelihood and living conditions

2.

Also provides them with basic consumer education on issues such as food, nutrition and health. This is done through talks, discussions, house-to-house counselling, slide shows and exhibitions.

EDUCATION 1.

SECTION

Provides consumer education for many groups, including school and college students, teachers, women and youth groups, and religious organisations. Organises seminars, workshops, exhibitions and drama competitions on consumer issues.

2.

Attention is particularly given to school students as they are the future parents and policy makers. The section has helped to set up consumer clubs in more than 200 schools in Penang and other states.

3.

Through its consumer education programmes, CAP hopes that a new generation of conscious, concerned and committed citizens will emerge.

COMPLAINTS 1.

SECTION

Handles complaints from the public on all kinds of issues (eg: poor quality products and services, food adulteration, tenancy problems). About 3,000-4,000 complaints are received annually through the mail, by phone and personal visits from irate consumers.

LEGAL 1. 2. Handles public interest cases and represents communities in need of legal assistance.

SECTION

Works closely with the Complaints Section to provide legal advice to consumers and to monitor laws that affect consumers.

PUBLICATIONS 1.

SECTION

Produces CAPs news magazine, Utusan Konsumer. The Utusan has four editions English, Malay, Chinese and Tamil. All editions are published bimonthly.

2. 3.

Produces a bimonthly magazine for primary schoolchildren, called Pengguna Kanak-Kanak. Works closely with the other sections to produce books, reports and pamphlets on various consumer issues. Also produces educational kits and posters for distribution to the public and for use during CAPs education programmes.

MEDIA SECTION

1.

Produces and maintains audio visual materials (videos, cassettes and slides) for use during CAPs education programmes. Coordinates CAPs major campaigns (eg: the anti-smoking campaign and the anti-alcohol campaign).

2.

Organisational information
The Consumers Association of Penang, based in Malaysia was founded in 1970. Its activities are conducted from its office in Penang which is run by a staff of dedicated people, who are engaged in education, community organizing and mobilization, research and advocacy, litigation and publications. Its primary aim is to ensure a sustainable model of development that meets the basic needs of the poor and is also socially just and sustainable. Unlike consumer organizations in the western world that advice consumers on the value for their money, CAP stresses value for people. CAP is indeed a unique organization that focuses on sustainable and ethical consumption and challenges current aggressive advertising industry that is unfettered and shapes peoples consumption to lifestyles and behavior that is unsustainable, unethical and inequitable. In emerging economies like Malaysia, CAP challenges the unsustainable model of production and wasteful consumption patterns. It has a wide array of popular publications that teach the wider public to be ethical and rational consumers. Using health as a major entry point, CAP educates consumers to change their habits to simpler and more meaningful lifestyles, while at the same time advocating for appropriate policies and laws to be in place. Through the years, CAPs work has lead to the exposing unethical business behavior in sectors like chemical products, food, pharmaceuticals and health etc. CAPs advocacy has led to some improvements in the laws to regulate these practices. In the past 2 years, CAP has also intensified its work in training NGOs in the region such as from China, Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos, which are not exposed to unethical business practices of companies, the changing of consumption patterns and the advancing of unsustainable production systems etc. In the newly emerging markets, it is important that advocacy and education efforts are undertaken to prevent the repeat of the unsustainable models of the North from being replicated. Many of those who have come for our training have begun to translate our publications to their own languages and are interested in undertaking activities similar to that of CAP for a more sustainable and equitable society. Consequently, CAP has a strong program on education, which also reaches the schools and starts from the young to be good and responsible consumers and citizens.

Without any Politics Interferes

Environment

Management Plan" and "Safety Case for Radioactive Wastes Disposal"

Lynas Radioactive Waste Management Plan (RWMP) raises more questions about theprofessionalism, competence and ethics throughout the review and compliance process.The inclusion of other controversial provisions on the use and recycling of radioactive waste; arbitrary classification of radioactive waste which differ radically from the latestInternational Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) classification of radioactive waste; miss a significant and surprising the Decommissioning and Termination of plan and nonidentityPermanent Disposal facilities and casual dismissal by the Lynas, although it is ready tostart operating, make RWMP fatally flawed, making the process of public review and cancelRWMP does not mean that as an expert

Teluk Bahang Escape Theme Park Resort: Model or mockery?

Penang Island is facing environmental rape as it faces widespread damage because of uncontrolled development resulting in barren hill slopes and erosion taking place at hillsides that are being developed. The rapid development in Penang has brought a toll to the islands environment and disdain to residents who have to face more environmental deterioration and traffic congestion. The latest development is the proposed Escape Theme Park Resort near the Teluk Bahang Forest Reserve, Penang National Park and the Teluk Bahang Dam. The 12.14ha land for the development of the theme park belongs to the Penang Water Corporation and has been leased out to Sim Leisure Consultants.

Socio-econimics Put a hold on FTAs with the US and EU

The Malaysian Government last week has been negotiating free trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States of America (via the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement or TPP) and with the European Union (EU). These negotiations were taking place, simultaneously in Auckland, New Zealand (from Dec 6 to 10) and in Brussels, Belgium (Dec 6 to 9). The Consumers Association of Penang is deeply concerned about the implications of these FTAs on the various aspects of Malaysias development.

The highly problematic bilateral Malaysia-US FTA negotiations were stalled before, but the US is very likely to demand the same things in the TPP in the current round of negotiations.