CHANG LEE WEI

• BSc., M.Phil.
• Research Officer at University of Malaya

This article proposes a suitable ethical framework based on Islamic teaching in tackling emerging scientific and technological issues. The framework is based on the maqasid al-shariah or the higher purposes of the Islamic Divine law. Under this framework, there are five purposes of the Islamic Divine law which are protected, namely faith, life, int...

Despite the (serious) global concerns about the safety and genetic stability of genetically modified organisms, the Malaysian National Biosafety Board (NBB) has recently approved the field testing for genetically modified (GM) male mosquitoes. With this development, bioethical issues, which in some respect could adversely impinge on the social, eco...

Over the past few decades, there has been an increase in concerns about climate change in Malaysia and Indonesia. This has put pressure on both public-listed companies and small and medium-sized enterprises to modify the way they conduct their business. Therefore, in order to encourage the adoption of environmentally friendly financing in the count...

Biotechnology policies and regulations must be revised and updated to reflect the most recent advances in plant-breeding technology. New Plant Breeding Techniques (NPBT) such as gene editing have been applied to address the myriad of challenges in plant breeding, while the use of NPBT as emerging biotechnological tools raises legal and ethical conc...

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have increasingly dominated commodity crop production in the world in the endeavour to address issues related to food security. However, this technology is not without problems, and can give rise to bioethical issues for consumers, particularly Muslims. The Islamic perspective on GMOs is complex and goes beyond...

Today the world community in general and the Malaysian community in particular are faced with a rising issue in terms of gender disorder ie transgender. These groups come up with the issues of gender, sexual orientation, psychology, cognitive and behavior that cause various reactions from society, and even involve religious matters, especially Isla...

This paper examines the influences of Malaysia's Federation Land Development Authority (FELDA) scheme in fostering inclusive rural development. Based on the model of holistic inclusive development, the paper investigates the performance of FELDA from four perspectives: social development, industrialisation, modernisation and basic needs. The main f...

Malaysia's Strategic Trade Act 2010 (STA 2010) was drafted to address export controls and associated trade controls such as transit, transhipment and brokering in the fulfilment of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC), Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Reso...

The field of bioethics aims to ensure that modern scientific and technological advancements have been primarily developed for the benefits of humankind. This field is deeply rooted in the traditions of Western moral philosophy and socio-political theory. With respect to the view that the practice of bioethics in certain community should incorporate...

This paper examines the concept of “diversity” as mentioned in the Qur’an and how commonalities in diverse religions may be used as a model for civilizational dialogue towards achieving harmony. This study reveals that religious and cultural diversity are laws of nature which cannot be changed while the concept of “identity” is a contested issue in...

Theory-based evaluation (TBE) is an effectiveness assessment technique that critically analyses the theory underlying an intervention. Whilst its use has been widely reported in the area of social programmes, it is less applied in the field of energy and climate change policy evaluations. This paper reports a recent study that has evaluated the eff...

Ex-post evaluations of energy policies in Malaysia between 1970 and 2010 were conducted. The developments of energy policies in Malaysia were traced from the early 1970s with the introduction of the country's first energy-related policy all the way to 2010 with the country's first endeavour towards a biobased energy system. Analyses revealed that m...

This paper provides a critical review of the palm biodiesel landscape in Malaysia. The palm industry is a key source of revenue for the country, where in 2009 the industry was responsible for generating 8% of the gross national income per capita. The interest in palm-based biodiesel can be traced back to the early 1980s however it was only in 2006...

Malaysia is often described as a prime example of societies that are severely divided along ethnic lines. The country is also among the few pluralistic societies that have achieved some measure of success in managing ethnic conflict and enjoying relative political stability. Efforts toward integrating the diverse groups in the interest of national...

Transgenderism is perceived as natural and therefore divinely ordained, according to Islamic tradition in Malayasia, though it is a complex phenomenon that needs explanations considering biological, environmental, and social factors. A group of scholars from the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia critically analyzed the acceptance level o...