Legal Framework on the Marine Environment Protection of Straits used for International Navigation: Has It Been Effective in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore?

Hazmi Rusli,R. Dremliuga,Wan I. Talaat (사) 이준국제법연구원 2016 Journal of East Asia and International Law Vol.9 No.1

There are approximately 116 straits used for international navigation around the world. Some of them are important international maritime chokepoints, namely the Dover Strait, Hormuz Strait, Straits of Malacca and Singapore and the Russian straits across the Northeast Arctic Passage. Due to the high number of navigational traffic going through these straits, vessel-source pollution is endemic in these waters. This article examines the applicable international legal framework on protection of the marine environment of straits used for international navigation such as Part XII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other related legal measures like International Maritime Organization conventions on protection of the marine environment. This article concludes by stating that the present framework is not sufficient in properly balancing two vital interests in the maritime world – protection of the marine environment vis-à-vis shipping.

The Anglo-Dutch Treaty 1824: Was the Partitioning of the Malay Archipelago Valid?

Hazmi Rusli,Roman Dremliuga,Wan Talaat 이준국제법연구원 2020 Journal of East Asia and International Law Vol.13 No.1

The Anglo-Dutch Treaty 1824 was concluded between the British and the Dutch colonial powers without consideration of its effect on the sociopolitical situation of the Malay World (Nusantara). The Anglo-Dutch Treaty 1824 alienated Malay territories according to the desires of the colonial powers. This article discusses whether the British and the Dutch were in the position to divide the Malay World without the consent of the local sovereign rulers. The Anglo-Dutch Treaty 1824 merely defined the sphere of influence, not sovereignty/ownership of the Dutch and the British in the region. This article concludes by emphasising the enormous sociopolitical effects of the Anglo-Dutch Treaty 1824 to Nusantara in relation to the maritime boundary delimitations between Malaysia, Indonesia and the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.

Potential Implications of AUKUS and the Proposed Thai Canal on Crucial Sea Lines of Communication under the US Indo-Pacific Strategy

Hazmi Rusli,Lowell B. Bautista 이준국제법연구원 2023 Journal of East Asia and International Law Vol.16 No.1

Southeast Asia is home to the Straits of Malacca and Singapore, one of the world’s most important sea lines of communication. The closure of the straits to international navigation may adversely affect the well-being of the global economy. On February 11, 2022, the Biden administration announced the new Indo-Pacific strategy, which will continue to deliver on AUKUS. For centuries, the proposed Thai Canal Project has been planned to revolutionize the shipping industry by bypassing the busy waters of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. If the canal is built under the US Indo-Pacific Strategy, the pre-eminence of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore will not last long. This article analyzes the potential increase of navigation of nuclear-powered submarines through the Straits of Malacca and Singapore and its ensuing environmental implications from a viewpoint of international law. It discusses effects of the proposed canal plan in influencing the shipping industry should this “dream waterway” be constructed.

Statistical Optimization of Biosurfactant Production from Aspergillus niger SA1 Fermentation Process and Mathematical Modeling

Al-hazmi Mansour A.,Moussa Tarek A. A.,Alhazmi Nuha M. 한국미생물·생명공학회 2023 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.33 No.9

In this study, we sought to investigate the production and optimization of biosurfactants by soil fungi isolated from petroleum oil-contaminated soil in Saudi Arabia. Forty-four fungal isolates were isolated from ten petroleum oil-contaminated soil samples. All isolates were identified using the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, and biosurfactant screening showed that thirty-nine of the isolates were positive. Aspergillus niger SA1 was the highest biosurfactant producer, demonstrating surface tension, drop collapsing, oil displacement, and an emulsification index (E24) of 35.8 mN/m, 0.55 cm, 6.7 cm, and 70%, respectively. This isolate was therefore selected for biosurfactant optimization using the Fit Group model. The biosurfactant yield was increased 1.22 times higher than in the nonoptimized medium (8.02 g/l) under conditions of pH 6, temperature 35°C, waste frying oil (5.5 g), agitation rate of 200 rpm, and an incubation period of 7 days. Model significance and fitness analysis had an RMSE score of 0.852 and a p-value of 0.0016. The biosurfactant activities were surface tension (35.8 mN/m), drop collapsing (0.7 cm), oil displacement (4.5 cm), and E24 (65.0%). The time course of biosurfactant production was a growth-associated phase. The main outputs of the mathematical model for biomass yield were Yx/s (1.18), and μmax (0.0306) for biosurfactant yield was Yp/s (1.87) and Yp/x (2.51); for waste frying oil consumption the So was 55 g/l, and Ke was 2.56. To verify the model’s accuracy, percentage errors between biomass and biosurfactant yields were determined by experimental work and calculated using model equations. The average error of biomass yield was 2.68%, and the average error percentage of biosurfactant yield was 3.39%.

Securing Malaysia’s Borders from Covid-19: Legal Considerations to the Influx of Rohingya Migrants

Rusli Hazmi,Dremliuga Roman,Suhaili Wan,Farisha Nur Alia 이준국제법연구원 2021 Journal of East Asia and International Law Vol.14 No.1

On March 18, 2020, Malaysian Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin declared the nationwide enforcement of the Movement Control Order to curb the spread of COVID-19. In September 2020, Malaysia entered the third wave of the outbreak. Active cases rose from 60 to more than 13,000. The government’s Ops Benteng stops illegal migrants, who are at high risk of bringing COVID-19 into Malaysia. This includes illegal Rohingya migrants, who enter Malaysia to flee persecution in their home country, Myanmar. There are approximately 150,000 Rohingya migrants in Malaysia and more are expected. This article examines the main reason behind the influx of Rohingya illegal migrants and discusses whether the Malaysian government should tighten its borders to safeguard against COVID-19. The government must prioritise its own citizens over the Rohingyas; the responsibility of managing this humanitarian disaster should be shared with other nations, particularly those party to the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees 1951.

Synthesis and characterization of novel Cu2O/PVDF nanocomposites for flexible ferroelectric organic electronic memory devices

Farag S. Al-Hazmi,Dago M. de Leeuw,A.A. Al-Ghamdi,F.S. Shokr 한국물리학회 2017 Current Applied Physics Vol.17 No.9

Copper oxide nanoparticles loaded Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) nanocomposites, at concentrations from 1 to 9 wt%, were developed by casting technique. The effect of the Cu2O nanoparticles on the structure, thermal, mechanical and dielectric properties of the PVDF were inspected. The scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) revealed the well dispersion of the Cu2O nanoparticles into the PVDF matrix up to 5 wt%. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns and the infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) measurements implied that the inclusion of the Cu2O nanoparticles into the PVDF matrix leads to a transform of the non-polar semi-crystalline a-phase of the neat PVDF to highly crystallized polar b-phase. Moreover, an increase of the thermal stability and crystallinity of the PVDF after the incorporation of the Cu2O nanoparticles was achieved. The Cu2O/PVDF nanocomposites exhibited excellent cyclic mechanical property compared to the neat PVDF. The introduction of 5 wt% Cu2O nanoparticles into the PVDF composites resulted in remarkable increase of the dielectric constant by 13 times while the dielectric loss was very low. A device based on Al/5 wt% Cu2O doped PVDF/Pt structure is developed. This device shows ferroelectric hysteresis with butterfly like shape and exhibited remanent polarization of 11.2 mC/cm2 with coercive field of 49 MV/m. These superior properties enable the developed Cu2O/PVDF nanocomposite films to be a potential candidate in the field of ferroelectric organic electronic memory devices.

Does Bankruptcy Matter in Non-Banking Financial Sector Companies?: Evidence from Indonesia

DWIARTI, Rina,HAZMI, Shadrina,SANTOSA, Awan,RAHMAN, Zainur Korea Distribution Science Association 2021 The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Busine Vol.8 No.3

Bankruptcy is indicated by the inability of the company to meet its maturity obligations. The Covid-19 pandemic has had a terrible impact on the economy and businesses. The aim of this study to determine the effect of the ratios of activity, growth, leverage, and profitability in predicting bankruptcy projected by earnings per share (EPS). The sample of this research was non-banking financial sector companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in 2015-2019 and the purposive sampling technique was used. The data analysis method used was the logistic regression method to test the hypotheses. Company growth shows the company's ability to manage sales and generate high company profits, as such, the probability of the company experiencing bankruptcy will be lower. The results of this study showed that the debt to assets ratio (DAR), debt to equity ratio (DER), and return on assets (ROA) can predict bankruptcy. Meanwhile, this research found that the total assets turnover (TATO) ratio, sales growth, and net profit margin (NPM) cannot be used to predict bankruptcy.

Dynamic Response of Dependency Ratio on Government Expenditures in Indonesia

Teuku ZULKARNAIN,Yusri HAZMI,Muhammad NASIR,Faisal FAISAL,Dasmi HUSIN 한국유통과학회 2022 The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Busine Vol.9 No.2

The aim of this study is to see how government spending on education, health, and social security affects ratios in Indonesia. The third sector has a critical role to play in reducing the dependency ratio. It also aims to lower unemployment and poverty rates. This study uses the GMM panel data model. This model can determine the dynamic response of the ratio that comes from a number of variables. This study uses data from 33 provinces from 2010 to 2018. The results show that government spending in the education and health sectors has a positive effect on the dependency ratio, both in the short and long term. Social security has a significant effect on the dependency ratio in the long term, but not in the short term. Government spending in the education sector and health sector and social security sector have a positive and significant effect on disease and illness. The study’s findings show a high level of poverty with a large standard deviation. The high ratio value is due to the large number of restrictions placed on a number of regions. Each province has made a significant contribution to overcoming these challenges, particularly in terms of the comparative ratio.

Malaysian Efforts in Combating IUU Fishing: A Legal and Policy Review

Farahdilah Ghazali,Wan Izatul Talaat,Ashraf Rahman,Hazmi Rusli 이준국제법연구원 2019 Journal of East Asia and International Law Vol.12 No.2

The Effects of a 7000-Step Goal and Weekly Group Walking Program for Overweight and Obese Elderly People in Sarawak, Malaysia: A Quasi-experimental Study

Saad Mohd Fakhree,Cheah Whye Lian,Hazmi Helmy 대한예방의학회 2021 Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health Vol.54 No.3

Objectives: Physical inactivity is the fourth leading global risk factor for mortality, followed by obesity. The combination of these risk factors is associated with non-communicable diseases, impaired physical function, and declining mental function. The World Health Organization recommends physical activity to reduce the mortality rate. Thus, this study examined the effects on anthropometric measurements of a 12-week walking program for elderly people in Samarahan, Sarawak, Malaysia with a 7000-step goal and weekly group walking activities. Methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted involving 109 elderly people with a body mass index (BMI) ≥25.0 kg/m2. BMI, body composition, and average daily steps were measured at baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 26.0, and repeated-measures analysis of variance with the paired t-test for post-hoc analysis was conducted. Results: In total, 48 participants in the intervention group and 61 participants in the control group completed the study. A significant interaction was found between time and group. The post-hoc analysis showed a significant difference between pre-intervention and post-intervention (within the intervention group). The post-intervention analysis revealed an increase in the mean number of daily steps by 3571.59, with decreases in body weight (-2.20 kg), BMI (-0.94 kg/m2), body fat percentage (-3.52%), visceral fat percentage (-1.29%) and waist circumference (-2.91 cm). Skeletal muscle percentage also showed a significant increase (1.67%). Conclusions: A 12-week walking program combining a 7000-step goals with weekly group walking activities had a significant effect on the anthropometric measurements of previously inactive and overweight/obese elderly people.