Oil palm smallholders biggest losers in tiff with India, says Kadir Jasin
（FMT Reporters -October 23, 2019）
PETALING JAYA: Prominent blogger A Kadir Jasin said the boycott threat on Malaysian palm oil by India could hurt Felda settlers and smallholders.

He said the latest spat, which was sparked by Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s criticism of India’s policies in Kashmir, would only worsen the fragile economy brought upon by the US-China trade war.

“This isn’t the time to be engaging in jingoism and trade wars. Little trade tiffs here and there will only add to the worsening of the situation,” he said in a Facebook post.

Mahathir’s remarks last month accusing India of invading Kashmir sparked outrage in India, where many have called for a boycott of Malaysia.
Media reports said India may review its imports of palm oil and other Malaysian products, while an Indian trade organisation has advised its members not to buy palm oil from Malaysia.

Kadir said a palm oil planter in Sarawak is now left with some 90,000 tonnes of stock after buyers either cancelled or deffered their contracts due to uncertainty.

“If it’s bad for big growers, it couldn’t be good for Felda settlers and smallholders,” he said.

“I don’t want to say more. The government should know better,” said Kadir who is Mahathir’s special adviser on media and communications