KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian government has been urged to impose conditions, corrective measures, or if necessary, suspend or revoke the license of Lynas Malaysia Sdn Bhd (Lynas) to prevent any intentional aid or support for acts considered wrongful under international law.
President of Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM), Meena Raman, said the government should also require Lynas to prove that its operations, contracts, and supply chains do not and will not contribute to or facilitate violations of international humanitarian law that may contribute to genocide, war crimes, or crimes against humanity.
She said this includes demanding full transparency regarding the terms, scope, and intended end use of its agreement with the United States Department of Defense.
“In addition, the government must require binding guarantees that materials refined in Malaysia will not be used in weapons systems deployed in any operations where violations of international law occur.
“Such conditions should be included as prerequisites in the license issued to Lynas.
“At present, the latest license granted to Lynas does not contain these conditions and this must be corrected,” she said today.
Recently, a coalition of 57 organizations urged the Malaysian government to ensure that operations by Lynas Rare Earths Ltd do not violate international law, following the company’s agreement to supply rare earth oxides to the United States Department of Defense.
In an open letter to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, the coalition stated that the agreement, valued at approximately US$96 million over four years, links processing activities in Malaysia to overseas military supply chains.
Lynas, the largest rare earth refiner outside China, signed a binding letter of intent with the US Department of Defense to finalize a four-year agreement to supply rare earth minerals to the country’s defense sector, ensuring that the US defense industrial base continues to have access to light and heavy rare earth oxides essential for modern manufacturing.
Under this arrangement, the Department of Defense will allocate approximately US$96 million (RM377.62 million) to purchase rare earth oxides from Lynas. –
Original source: UTUSAN MALAYSIA
