Malaysia Country Profile
Environment, Natural Resources and Extractive Industry
Business Corruption
According to the NGOs Article 19 and CIJ Malaysia 2007, one of the most serious problems facing Malaysia is the impact of corruption on the environment, whether this be through skewing policies for private gain, allocation of grants to companies engaging in poor practice, failing to apply approved rules stringently or overlooking a failure to abide by the rules in project implementation.
Malaysia is one of the world's leading producers of tropical saw logs. In theory, forestry resources in Malaysia are managed on a sustainable basis, but in practice government controls on tree-felling continue to be flouted by loggers and illegal logging activities, such as unauthorised expansions of approved logging areas by altering documents and maps, bribing of forestry officers and smuggling. According to New Traits Times in May 2007, investigations began of six forestry officers from Pahang began for 16 cases of abuse of power related to altering of logging documents and maps. Furthermore, according to a 2009 article by Illegal-Logging.info, four forestry officers were arrested over the allegation of corruption.
Political Corruption
According to the Annual Report 2010 published by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), throughout the year 2010, the MACC received a total of 410 complaints in relation to corruption and abuse of power in the sand mining industry. According to the report, estimated losses of revenue as a consequence of illegal sand mining activities amounted to about MYR 745 million in 2010. During the same year, the MACC had also received 46 tip-offs on corrupt practices related to illegal logging, causing another loss to the government estimated at MYR 8.95 million.
According to an October 2009 article by The Star Online, the MACC arrested a director of a government department, together with 3 others, including 2 forest rangers, in relation to allegations of corruption over the acceptance of a bribe of more than MYR 100,000 in exchange for a logging compartment contract. In early 2009, the MACC reported that it would crack down on loggers as well as on a number of officials from public agencies which had been profiting from illegal logging activities. These agencies include the Forestry Department, the Malaysian Timber Board, customs administration, the police and the Department of Environment.
