MARCH 16 — Urban renewal has been much the talk of the town.
Criticisms have rained on the government’s proposed legislation on urban renewal. PAS and its allies in Perikatan Nasional have opposed the proposed legislation, claiming it could displace poor urban Malays from their homes.
On February 26, PAS deputy youth chief Mohd Hafez Sabri said the party was planning to hold a mega rally against the proposed legislation.
In response, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim warned parties not to use the freedom to protest to spread misinformation in the name of Islam and the Malays.
Accusing the Islamist party of harbouring ill intentions towards the government, the prime minister said the proposed legislation is meant to redevelop impoverished urban Malay areas that have long been neglected.
“These areas, such as Kampung Kerinchi and the Seri Perlis flats in Kuala Lumpur, are run down and in dire need of repair,” he said.
“We want to use the [proposed legislation] to help poor residents, the majority of whom are Malays. So why are you protesting? I want to remind you — do not abuse this freedom to lie and cast aspersions in the name of Islam and the Malays.”
Anwar also expressed bafflement at the “jealousy and resentment” shown towards the proposed.
On Saturday (March 15) Anwar again warned parties not to sabotage the government’s ongoing efforts to redevelop neighbourhoods in “squalid conditions”, with the residents trapped in poverty.
Anwar has repeatedly stressed before that the proposed legislation, set to be tabled in Parliament later this year, will not alter the status of affected lands and dismissed accusations that the government was eroding Malay land rights.
Urban renewal has been regarded as a sound approach to promoting land values and improving environmental quality; rectifying the urban decay problem and meeting various socioeconomic objectives; and enhancing existing social networks, improving inclusion of vulnerable groups, and changing adverse impacts on the living environment. (Helen Wei Zheng, Geoffrey Qiping Shen and Hao Wang, “A review of recent studies on sustainable urban renewal” Habitat International 41 (2014) 272 – 279)
Urban renewal is a term that many dictionaries define as the process of slum clearance [and] physical redevelopment of an urban area. (C. Couch et al., “Thirty years of urban regeneration in Britain, Germany and France: The importance of context and path dependency”, Progress in Planning 75 (2011) 1 – 52)
The government is therefore spot on in calling the proposed legislation as one on urban renewal — that is, the process of slum clearance and physical redevelopment of an urban area.
Urban is not the only term used; there are others, such as urban regeneration, urban redevelopment, urban rehabilitation, and urban revitalisation. All share similar meanings in the town-planning field, the significant difference being in terms of scale.
The government is pushing for renewal of rundown areas while critics warn of displacement. — Picture by Yusof Mat Isa
More than 10 years ago, Helen Wei Zheng, Geoffrey Qiping Shen and Hao Wang wrote as follows:
“Urban renewal projects [specifically] facilitate good-quality housing and reduce health risks to the community; promote the repair of dilapidated buildings; and improve the effective use of the building stock and land resources in the city. In these respects, urban renewal can significantly contribute to sustainable urban development if it follows a sustainable path.”
If urban renewal can significantly contribute to sustainable development if it follows a sustainable path, there should not be criticisms that are not on “grounded perspective” against it.
There should not also be criticisms if urban renewal can be seen as a form of ihya al-mawat, which literally means giving life to, or revival of, the dead land.
Some of the country’s urban slums can be summed up in a Malay saying: hidup segan mati tak mahu. They must be given life to or revived.
Ihya al-mawat is well established in Islamic law and jurisprudence that many Muslim scholars can explain, including those in PAS.
Accordingly, I do not wish to go into details and specifics of ihya al-mawat. In any case, I am not one.
If urban renewal is urban regeneration, urban redevelopment, urban rehabilitation, and urban revitalisation, then it fits into the literal meaning of ihya al-mawat.
Proponents and opponents can meet on common ground. Why oppose for the sake of opposing.
Urban renewal can be a form of ihya al-mawat.
*This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
