In Kuala Lumpur

AS MALAYSIANS grapple with the latest of the five major landslides that have hit Bukit Antarabangsa in the last 15 years, and the 64 lives it has needlessly claimed, one question lingers: Why do people still want to live there?

It is this sizeable crowd which has crammed Bukit Antarabangsa to breaking point and fuelled a supply of houses from developers, prompting some people to call it the Beverly Hills of Malaysia.

Not all Malaysians aspire to live there, of course - I know locals who won't move in even if you paid them to. Then there are those who moved to the area long ago, before any of these accidents happened - they would not have known better.

But at the same time, there are many people here who have only recently either considered buying a house there, or knows someone who did.

The reason on the surface is clear. Bukit Antarabangsa boasts fresh air, lush greenery and good views. Situated a mere 10km east of Kuala Lumpur's city centre, it is far enough from the hustle and bustle without being too removed.

But the question is: Why buy when you know about its poor track record, with major landslides taking place every three to five years?

The answer may lie in an interview someone did with us at the scene of the landslide last Saturday. An insurance agent and father of three, he told my colleague that he had only moved in recently with his family and isn't planning to move out. 

"Not every place here is prone to landslide. I think mine is on solid ground," he said.

The bottomline is, some people seem convinced that it wouldn't happen to them.

They're not necessarily foolhardy either, a Malaysian friend tells me. She had recently visited the house of a friend in the area and says, on the outside, everything seemed okay. The house was neither hanging precariously off a cliff nor in a neighbourhood that was sardine-packed with other homes.

"When you're on the ground, it does seem like a safe place," she said. (Her friend was, coincidentally, one of the residents affected this time when the landslide cut off the only access road to her home.)

The other point is that while 64 deaths is a large number, three-quarters of that figure was down to one major disaster - the collapse of Highland Towers in 1993, which killed 48 people. 

In the other major incident, eight people from the family of a prominent banker were killed in 2002 - but that was just one bungalow. Those who believe in Bukit Antarabangsa would no doubt have put it down to bad luck.

So far, the affected residents have pointed fingers at developers (who should not have built here), and authorities (who should not have given developers permission to build here). And the latest news is that residents are suing the government for compensation, saying that it failed to act in time to avert the latest tragedy.

They have every right to do so and every right to demand a fair, prompt response. 

But now would also be a good time to reflect. There is no supply without demand. If consumers steer clear of future developments there, it would hit developers where it hurts most - at their pockets.

Then hopefully the death toll stops at 64, for good.