Land acquisition problems in China ' adopting land acquisition act 1960 of Malaysia as an alternative procedure

Land is scarce and it is the most important resource that humans rely on. Therefore, the protection of land interests is extremely important. Land acquisition deprives the owner's interest on land. A fair and adequate compensation as well as transparent procedures are crucial for land acquisition. The aims of this study are to investigate the adequacy of compensation for land acquisition in China as compared to the Malaysian framework, and to enhance the understanding of land acquisition procedures and determination of compensation in both China and Malaysia. A case study was conducted to investigate whether the compensation for land acquisition in China is adequate and equitable. Two sets of compensation have been calculated, one based on the current compensation standard executed in China; and the other, calculated based on the market value of the land. The finding reveals that the compensation based on the current compensation standard in China is inadequate. The compensation determined by compensation standard executed varied with the market value of the land. In order to better protect the dispossessed owners in China, the compensation for land acquisition should be based on the market value of the land and other related matters such as betterment, severance, injurious affection, incidental expenses and accommodation works should be given due consideration

The privatization of public streets and urban spaces in Malaysia

In the last two decades, Malaysia has embedded good neighborhood principles in its planning plans that promote diversity and accessibility in urban residential areas. However, the emerging trends of the privatization of public streets and open spaces in urban residential areas in Malaysia offer the opportunity to study complex urban governance processes in a democratic and developing country. Using empirical evidence, this article recounts the fascinating saga of how various actors - urban planners, resident associations, residents of open neighborhoods and residents of guarded neighborhoods - responded to the privatization of public streets and open spaces in Malaysia. While planners described Greater Klang Valley as a diverse city in Malaysia, they sometimes tolerated the privatization of public streets and open spaces through neoliberal policies

Home Owning Democracy for the Urban Poor: A Case Study of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Abstract Home ownership for the urban poor poses a major challenge to metropolitan management and urban governance. The key aim of this study is to determine the role of the state in providing the opportunity for the urban poor to become home owners. Secondly, it also seeks to examine the level of sustainable owner-occupation amongst the urban poor given the opportunity to enter into homeownership. Drawing upon a case study of low-income housing in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur the study establishes that for many decades the governance of Kuala Lumpur has played an active role in designing and implementing a wide range of housing policies to house the low-income groups. The study argued that the establishment of strong institutional capacity is vital towards successful implementation of urban poor housing programs. Further insights into the level of sustainable owner-occupation amongst the households of low-income housing project confirm that the state has been successful in providing decent and affordable housing to its urban poor

Influence law of multipoint vibration load on slope stability in Xiaolongtan open pit mine in Yunnan, China

The purpose of this work was to explore the influence law of vibration load on rock mass structure and slope stability. Based on the type and transmission way of vibration stress wave, the main stress in the horizontal and vertical directions was analyzed and the superposition effect of the stress wave was revealed. After the mechanical analysis of the sliding mass, the calculation formulas of the anti-sliding force and the sliding force were derived and the damage mechanism of blasting vibration to the structural plane was defined. In addition, according to the structure and lithologic parameter of the slope as well as the vibration monitoring data, the west slope stability of Xiaolongtan open pit mine was analyzed. The results show that the time-dependent stability factor is proportional to the vibration speed and the peak values appear at the same time. Vibration load promotes the breakage of the structural plane leading to the drop of the west slope stability factor by 0.23%. Under the multipoint simultaneous blasting, the fluctuating laws of the stability factors are consistent. The more the start-up points are, the higher the weakening degree to the slope stability is. Under the multipoint allochronic blasting, the stability factor depends on the synthetic waveform structure of all vibration waves. The greater the blasting time difference is, the lower the weakening degree to the slope stability is. Selecting the reasonable quantity of start-up points and time difference could fully reduce the adverse influence of vibration load to slope stability

Planning implications of guarded neighborhoods in Malaysia

The increased prevalence of enclosed communities began to draw attention from researchers and commentators worldwide as early as the 1970s. Although much of the early discussion concerned communities in the United States, gated communities were well documented on most continents and in diverse contexts by the 2000s. In Malaysia, in response to perceived market demand for residential enclaves due to globalization and modernization, a number of private developers have created bespoke gated communities. However, less research has been conducted on the retrofitting of existing residential neighborhoods (guarded neighborhoods) with security measures or the `ad hoc' privatization of such neighborhoods. Therefore, drawing on case studies of older, access-controlled residential communities, this article investigates urban planners' perceptions of talks about the planning implications of guarded neighborhoods in the Malaysian state of Selangor. As individual local community groups mobilize to levy what amounts to an additional local tax to finance dedicated guards and gates at the street level, urban planners regularly encounter a conflict between `good-neighborhood' principles and the importance of social-spatial integration. Malaysia's government authorities encourage citizens to enclose local spaces despite the legal prohibition on enclosure and the adverse effects of such interventions on physical and social integration in existing urban residential neighborhoods

Home ownership dilemma among middle income household: A comparison between employment in public and private sector in Malaysia

<p>Middle income households (MIH) are currently argued as facing dilemma in purchasing their first house in the open market in Malaysia due to arising house prices. MIH working in the public sector were provided by the government with low interest rate housing loans while MIH working in the private sector were mostly left to survive on their own. One of the questions that arise is whether there is a distinct difference between middle income household capability and affordability level to purchase a house in these two employment sectors. The recently launched National Housing Policy (NHP) that was previously embedded in the five-year Malaysia Plan has highlighted and supported the issue of middle income household but the implementation of guidelines is yet to be announced by the government. The main focus of this paper is to distinguish to what extent the inequality of capability and affordability level of middle income household between those employed in private and public sectors. Secondly, the paper aims to determine the role of the government in the housing market closely relating it to NHP. Based on a case study of major cities in Malaysia, mixed method approach was applied to a total of 760 respondents working in public and private sectors that has owned a house. The findings show that there is a small disparity between middle income household in the public and private sectors. Despite a small disparity, there are significant similarities between the capability and affordability level between employments in both sectors. The importance of this study demonstrates there is minimal inequality between employments in public and private sectors. Thus, the problem of affordable housing falls on the income group as a whole which demands more policies and intervention by the government together with the involvement of employers in the private sector to address this issue.</p

A qualitative exploration on the awareness and knowledge of stakeholders towards Urban Heat Island phenomenon in Greater Kuala Lumpur: Critical insights for urban policy implications

Despite its notable role in the exacerbation of urban climate, Urban Heat Island (UHI) was poorly addressed, communicated and integrated into local urban policies of many developing countries. Such scenario often queried the level of UHI understanding amongst the key players who were involved in urban policy formulation. Hence, a qualitative study using Focus Group Discussions (FGD) was designed to investigate the awareness and knowledge level of stakeholders such as policy makers and practitioners in Greater Kuala Lumpur (GKL), an expanding socio-economic hub of a developing tropical country. The findings demonstrated a variable lack of awareness and knowledge about the concept of UHI, its status in GKL as well as organizational engagement in adaptation and mitigation initiatives among the study participants. Essentially, policy makers illustrated a facile awareness and knowledge towards UHI issues whereas practitioners displayed a more robust portfolio of factual understanding regarding the corresponding issues. In line with National Urbanization Policy's (NUP) aspiration to optimize urban developments that provide high quality of life, this study sheds some light on the exigency for UHI awareness creation and capacity building among the policy makers. This study also provides impactful prepositions for the articulation of necessary actions towards evidence-based urban policy formulation in future. © 201