A quaint collection of towns and villages at the south-eastern tip of the peninsula, the remote, largely agricultural and fishery-based Pengerang is a thriving enclave, the sustaining centuries-old traditions of the local Malays and Chinese.
This may soon change with the announcement of the RM60bil Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (Rapid) project, set to be built on its shores, along with the RM5bil Pengerang Deepwater Oil Terminal. The announcement sent the residents of Pengerang into an uproar, as they predicted that their fishing activities will be disrupted and they themselves evicted from their homes.
More than 11,000 Muslim graves and 3,000 Chinese graves will be relocated due to the projects. Charges of insensitivity against the developer arose when tombstones were found in a drain near the project sites.
