Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- 10 reasons for Indians to drop BN
- Keep faith out of politics
- Bigots, cronies, tyrants and thugs
- Religion is something personal
- Remembering the 2007 Bersih rally
- The Peninsula is the real battleground
- Entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia
- Invasion of the mind snatchers
- Desperate measures to discredit Nurul
| 10 reasons for Indians to drop BN Posted: 11 Nov 2012 04:23 PM PST
Here are 10 reasons why the Indian community should not vote for Barisan Nasional in the next general election, according to Kota Alam Shah state rep M Manoharan. By M Manoharan, FMT Umno's 'Malay Supremacy' agenda I would be echoing the sentiments of the great majority of Indians in Malaysia when I say they are effectively second class citizens under Umno's rule. Umno and BN can be used interchangeably because Umno is not only the dominant party but the de facto ruling party as well. The much entrenched 'Ketuanan Melayu ' or Malay Supremacy is the unwritten code of Umno's rule. The ruling party has perfected this philosophy to the extent of rivalling the notorious racist agenda of apartheid South Africa. Basically, Ketuanan Melayu aims to contain the progress and prosperity of the non-Malays. The Indians have traditionally looked to the civil service for employment but in the last few decades they have seen their share of public sector jobs severely curtailed. Too many Indians have to eke out a harsh living outside the comfort of the government service and the GLCs. Many resort to low paying jobs which in turn locks them in a vicious cycle of poverty. Also, the high crime rate among Indians is a direct result of the lack of access to good, high- income jobs for Indians. NEP's lopsided implementation The NEP introduced in 1970 and which has set the direction of the nation ever since was designed to: a) restructure society so that race is no longer identified with occupation, and b) eradicate poverty irrespective of race/ ethnicity. However, none of these noble intentions ever reached the Indian community. The implementation of the NEP has bypassed the Indians. In the past, Indians were identified with the civil service, professions and the plantations. Today, they are increasingly associated with low pay jobs and hard, physical labour. Many flagship projects of the NEP offered little to the Indian community. Felda which transformed the landless and the poor among the Malays to proud land owners had little impact on the Indians. It was the same story with Felcra, Risda and the numerous other schemes designed to uplift the rural poor. Somehow, the Indian poor, a large proportion of whom were in the plantations were invisible to the formulators and the implementers of the NEP. There were no quotas assigned to the Indian community for jobs in the GLCs or the private sector. If the BN government could do it for the poor Malays, why did it overlook the poor Indians? Was not the NEP designed for all Malaysians? Why the lop-sided implementation? Today, we have an Indian community that has high endemic poverty, the highest violent crime rate and a decreasing proportion in the top professions. The pathetic state of the Tamil schools Any responsible government would look into the education needs of its entire people. But then, BN has never been a responsible government. The BN government has systematically marginalised vernacular education. Fortunately, the economic and philanthropic strength of the Chinese community has mitigated the many challenges facing Chinese schools. There are 523 Tamil schools in the country, but up to 79% or some 379 of these schools are still occupying dilapidated, termite infested, semi-permanent buildings built on private land before Merdeka. The bigger majority of these schools are in a pathetic state – undersized classrooms, leaking roofs and some even without water or electricity. Almost all face teacher shortage of some kind, some more acute than others. Promises are made from time to time by the government to improve trainee teacher intake, training temporary teachers and offering them permanent positions but the reality is the opposite. Some 40% of all Tamil school teachers are contract or temporary teachers. This potent combination of poor infrastructure and teacher shortage is a definite recipe for the high failure rate of Tamil school students. Tamil schools are a neglected lot and the BN must be held responsible by all Indian voters. Limited opportunities in the civil service and GLCs Indians and other non-Bumiputeras are severely discriminated both in the intake as well as in subsequent promotions. For instance, there is not a single Indian judge in the Federal Court. The BN government must look into an Equal Opportunity Commission & an Equal Opportunity Act to redress the gross imbalance among the races in the Government service. Citizens denied citizenship Almost 300,000 Indians who are eligible for citizenship do not have MyKads. They are children born to citizen parents whose births were not registered for one reason or another. In a nutshell, they have been denied citizenship due to a government bureaucracy that is callous to their plight. Many dreams have been shattered, jobs and careers foregone and households mired in poverty due to citizenship denied. Almost all are deserving cases because most were born in Malaysia or have lived here all their lives. Of late, the MIC has organised citizenship for about 4,000 cases but this hardly scratches the surface of the problem. It is more of a publicity stunt for the BN to dupe the Indian electorate as many of the cases publicised in the media are senior citizens in their twilight years and well past their prime. Sadly, it is a case of political gimmicking taking precedence over resolution of people's grievances. Indians have the highest unemployment rate among the major races in the country. The neglect of the Tamil schools means it ill-prepares the students for secondary school and beyond. Many Indian students lack the linguistic and numerical skills needed for today's job market. Moreover, Indians do not have access to skills training institutes like GiatMara, polytechnics, Mara Training Institutes, vocational schools and numerous other training institutes' set-up with public money at the state and national levels. Certainly, there is a lack of concerted action by the BN government to train and equip Indian youths with the necessary job skills. The typical response by BN leaders is that Indians do not apply for these opportunities. How can Indians apply for these places when it is not made known to them? As a result, the majority resort to the private sector. With low levels of education and absence of marketable skills, they are forced to work as lorry drivers, road sweepers, dishwashers, free-lance house maids, cleaners, despatch clerks, personal drivers, etc. These jobs are shunned by the other races because of the low pay, long working hours and physical risks involved. The situation has got so bad that Indians are forced to compete with foreigners for these very jobs.
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| Posted: 10 Nov 2012 04:23 PM PST
Religion and politics — that's a potent mix guaranteed to be explosive. Nurul Izzah's slip has been seized on by Umno because the fight in the polls is essentially over the majority Malay votes, especially in the rural constituencies which are heavily in favour of the ruling party. Of the 222 parliamentary seats, only about 45 are Chinese-majority in urban areas and there is not a single seat with an Indian majority. Wong Chun Wai, The Star IN the run-up to the general election, holding forums on political issues, even in churches, has become fairly common. While most churches would be careful about bringing politicians into a house of worship to talk politics, there are some that are prepared to organise or at least play host to such events. Last Saturday, the Oriental Hearts and Mind Study Institute (OHMSI) conducted a talk on "Islamic State: Which Version? Whose Responsibility?" with the keynote address by Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa, director of the Islamic Renaissance Front. The forum was held at a church in Subang. But the person who captured the headlines was PKR deputy president Nurul Izzah Anwar who was one of the moderators. In response to a question from the floor, she found herself caught in a controversy over whether Malays have a right to choose their religion. She was speaking to a largely urban non-Malay audience and, as seen in a video recording of the event that has now gone viral, she was greeted with loud applause. The feisty politician has since denied making any statement suggesting that there should be no compulsion on Malays to be Muslims. But she earned a royal rebuke from the Sultan of Selangor and she has quickly blamed Utusan Malaysia for allegedly distorting and twisting her reply to a member of the audience. To make things more complicated, the person who posed the question to Nurul Izzah has now expressed her disappointment over the latter's about turn on the issue. Lawyer Siti Zabedah Kasim was quoted as saying by news portal Free Malaysia Today that "I believe Nurul Izzah was just trying to impress the people. She didn't think of the consequences." For many non-Muslims, especially those living in urban areas, the issue was probably dismissed as a non-starter and seen as another political move to discredit Nurul Izzah. But for conservative Muslims in the rural areas, it would be unthinkable and unacceptable. Luckily for Nurul Izzah, the language used at the forum was English and the video that's currently going around does not have Bahasa Malaysia subtitles, thus making the damage less severe – for now. But for Nurul Izzah to deny it vehemently now would suggest that she has woken up to the grave political consequences of what she has done. If there was no impact, she would have just shrugged it off. She now wants to get out of this tricky spot. The easy part is to blame Utusan Malaysia, which is well known for its nationalist slant, but the pro-Pakatan Rakyat news portal Malaysiakini also carried the same story using the same angle on Nov 3. Nurul Izzah has also put PAS in a corner. On Friday, PAS spiritual adviser Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said that if Nurul Izzah had indeed made her controversial statement on religious freedom, "then something is not right" while PAS president Datuk Seri Hadi Awang wanted to hear from her. Their only purported concerns, or a way out, seem to be that they have doubts over the accuracy of reporting by the media. DAP strongman Ngeh Koo Ham tweeted last week in support of Nurul Izzah, quoting Article 11 of the Federal Constitution which states that every person has the right to profess and to practise his or her religion. But Ngeh, a lawyer, did not say it has to be read with other applicable laws. There are laws restricting the propagation of other religions to Muslims. Article 160 of the Federal Constitution, for example, is clear that all ethnic Malays are Muslims. A Malay is defined as someone who professes to be a Muslim, habitually speaks the Malay language and adheres to Malay customs. The fact remains that the majority of Malays want this to remain as law and as practice and convention. Nurul Izzah's slip has been seized on by Umno because the fight in the polls is essentially over the majority Malay votes, especially in the rural constituencies which are heavily in favour of the ruling party. Of the 222 parliamentary seats, only about 45 are Chinese-majority in urban areas and there is not a single seat with an Indian majority. Nurul Izzah's case will also have a deep impact in PAS where the divide between those regarded as sympathetic to Anwar and the more orthodox ulamas is concerned. Former deputy president Nasharuddin Mat Isa, for example, is solidly in the Islamist party despite his overtures to Umno. He has regularly spoken up against the DAP, a PAS ally, but remains untouched because he is said to be protected by the anti-Anwar forces in the party. The church in Subang has found itself in the spotlight for hosting the forum. Recently, another church which hosted a forum on the elections found its speakers and the media squabbling over the accuracy of some negative remarks made on Pakatan Rakyat. There's a lesson here – keep religion out of politics. But as long as there are politicians masquerading as theologians of their respective faiths, no one will take this advice kindly.
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| Bigots, cronies, tyrants and thugs Posted: 10 Nov 2012 02:17 PM PST
Religious bigots and feudalists, Umno and its business cronies, Malay supremacist and their secret spies and Trojan horses are all coming together. Religious bigots and feudalists, Umno and its business cronies, Malay supremacist and their secret spies and Trojan horses are all coming together. Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz, FMT Umno is marshalling all the reactionary forces in this country to put down the majority. Religious bigots represented by the likes of Hasan Alis, Zulkifli Nordins and the racial bigots represented by the Ibrahim Alis. Their running dogs are now resorting to (i) attacks on the person, and (ii) patronising comments. A specter is indeed haunting our country — the specter of Malaysians reclaiming lost rights. All the powers of the corrupt government have entered into an unholy alliance to exorcise this specter. Religious bigots and feudalists, Umno and its business cronies, Malay supremacist and their secret spies and Trojan horses are all coming together. The specter that is coming back is the specter of Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his ilk. It's bulldozing over us. Post-independence, this country was tugging along on the road of democracy and was doing fine. It was a slow process as Malaysians underwent a period of growing pains. Frankly, we have just begun to learn the dynamics of democracy. Suffrage means people acquire rights to self-determination. Participatory democracy meant, they can define their being and determine their future instead of having their lives run by dictates and central command of a society structured on feudalism – a paramount master and his cabal at the top, enslaving the rest. Malays are beginning to free themselves from being defined and determined by their feudal masters. Power corrupts We are moving away from a central command society to a modern one embracing democracy. We could have matured into a better society faster save for the route being suddenly and rudely interrupted by the emergence of Mahathir.
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| Religion is something personal Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:43 PM PST
It has taken a rookie politician to put across get the message that no one has the right to play God. Jeswan Kaur, FMT Doubt is part of all religion. All the religious thinkers were doubters. – Issac Bashevis Singer, author and Nobel Prize laureate The antipathy being shown to Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar for her candid and forthright view that everyone is deserving of religious freedom, including the Malays, reveals the feared truth that religion is a personal choice and coercion simply does not work. The truth is Nurul Izzah has done the Malays especially a favour through her remark that religious freedom should be accorded to everyone. It is a different matter that her comments made in a forum entitled "Islamic state? Which vision? Whose responsibility" on Nov 3 came down with a 'Richter Scale'-like backlash. The statements coming from the Prime Minister's Department were typical. Minister Jamil Khir Baharom said Nurul Izzah's remark was "misleading" and "dangerous". His deputy, Mashitah Ibrahim, went further, calling for the young politician's prosecution on the charge of insulting Islam. How could any thinking person conclude that she was insulting Islam when the gist of her remark was her quotation of the Quranic verse that prohibits believers from compelling people to accept Islam? Mashitah even hinted that Nurul Izzah was encouraging apostasy, a claim which the PKR vice-president begged to differ. A pertinent question It appears that there are many in this country that are unwilling to tolerate such ingenuous view of a 'green' politician and that too one who is the daughter of Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim. Granted that it was anomalous for Nurul Izzah to so bravely touch on a topic so sensitive in this country, Islam; sadly, unlike her, the minds of her fellow colleagues, especially in the Barisan Nasional camp, have yet to 'attain' maturity. Thinking out of the box or daring to make a paradigm shift has never been BN's interest nor strength, hence its 'condemn and ridicule' approach in dealing with anything its nemesis, the Pakatan Rakyat pact does or says. Nurul Izzah has posed a very pertinent question, one that forces everyone to ruminate and ask questions in order to penetrate to the essence of any religion. Most people who have even a rough understanding of Islam will agree that asking questions is not a sin in that religion. The outstanding problem in this country, however, is that one is given the impression that anything bearing upon the country's official religion and Malay rights and privileges is not to be questioned. Still, in light of all this, Nurul Izzah dared to state what she believed to be true. She certainly was not trying to ingratiate herself with anyone by speaking her mind. As it stands, the country's constitution says if you are a Malay then you are automatically a Muslim. It is given that the Malays will not go against the constitution, not when it comes to religion. But then what happens if a Malay individual wanst to denounce his religion? These are serious questions that need genuine answers, not rebuke and punishment. Why is there the fear of addressing of even acknowledging the fact that there are some Malays who are unhappy with their religion?
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| Remembering the 2007 Bersih rally Posted: 09 Nov 2012 01:37 PM PST
Five years after the historic first Bersih rally on Nov 10, 2007, EC's shenanigans and electoral fraud still continue to haunt us. Selena Tay, FMT Five years ago, exactly on a Saturday on Nov 10, scenes of the first Bersih rally took to the streets in Kuala Lumpur. The most famous scene was the one featuring the FRU (Federal Reserve Unit) truck firing the water cannon beneath the STAR-LRT line to Sri Petaling. The crowd then was estimated to be around 30,000 to 40,000. Who at that time would have thought that there would be two more Bersih rallies to follow? Be that as it may, that historic day on Nov 10 woke up some Malaysian voters just in time for the general election held on March 8, 2008 where for the first time in history BN lost their two-thirds majority and five states in the Peninsular although one of the states gained by the opposition, Perak, was subsequently recaptured by BN. Still, from Nov 10 five years ago till to-date, things have hardly changed but instead have become worst as the electoral roll is now much dirtier despite the Parliamentary Select Committee being set up. The BN government has also requested for an allocation of RM400 million to run the 13th general election whereas in the previous general election the allocation was RM203 million. Opposition Leader and Permatang Pauh MP, Anwar Ibrahim has questioned the high allocation and also highlighted the issue of phantom voters in the ongoing Parliament sitting. According to Anwar, those voters without application date (to be a voter) came up to 4,700 detected cases while 367 voters were granted approval to be inserted into the electoral roll even before they were born! Anwar gave the example of a phantom voter with an identity card number of 7908 from Parit Buntar, Perak who was born on Aug 23, 1979 but applied to be a voter on Jan 15, 1950. "This is a great record of a real phantom voter," said Anwar in Parliament. He also said there were 282 voters who were given voting rights on their date of birth for example one Nur Khalida of Serdang who was born on Oct 26, 1982 and the application to be a voter was made on the same day itself. There is also the case of one Mohd Najib of Temerloh, Pahang who was born on Aug 18, 1979 and given his voting right on May 16, 1991, just three months short of his 12th birthday. Approvals for voting rights given to secondary school students came up to 1,049 detected cases while approvals for those between age 17 to 20 totalled 12,000 detected cases and those between age 20 but less than 21 years of age came up to 186,000 detected cases. Anwar also gave the example of a teenage voter named Rusiati of Kinabatangan in Sabah who was born on Feb 19, 1978 and became a voter on Nov 27, 1992 at the age of 14. EC's shenanigans PAS MP, Dr. Mohd Hayati Othman for Pendang, Kedah complained that the Election Commission (EC) was slow to act when it comes to rectifying errors and only took action after being threatened with police reports. He brought up the case of Zakaria Daud, a male voter transformed into a female named Rafzah Muhammad Nasib although the identity card number ended with 5589 (odd number for males). The address on this voter's MyKad is in Pendang, Kedah but he/she has been transferred to Kelana Jaya in Selangor. The PAS MP voiced his anger that not only has the voter been transformed but also transfered without his/her knowledge.
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| The Peninsula is the real battleground Posted: 09 Nov 2012 11:03 AM PST
Umno/BN's legitimacy to command the support of East Malaysian, including Sabah Umno, hinges on BN winning the majority of Peninsula parliamentarians. Dr Wong Chin Huat The real battleground for the ruling and opposition coalitions in this coming general election may not be Sabah and Sarawak, but Peninsular Malaysia. The ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) parliamentarians concede the possibility of losing six and seven parliamentary seats respectively. That would mean only losing 13 out of a total of 57 seats in the entire East Malaysia. And if the opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) counts on these 13 seats to constitute a simple majority of 112 seats in the Federal Parliament, the opposition coalition would need to win 99 out of 165 seats or about 60% in the Peninsula. That would be an uphill task for the four-year-old opposition coalition, which won only 80 seats in the Peninsula and has kept only 73 seats after a series of defections. Going by this line of calculation, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim — who heads Pakatan — can bid farewell to his Putrajaya dream, unless he can orchestrate an exodus of BN key leaders like how he recently enticed a Muslim and a Christian parliamentarian to join his camp. Alternatively, the current leaders of Sabah PR need to win more than six parliamentary seats in the coming election. This may not be easy given the likelihood that PR would have to face multi-corners, with local Sabah opposition parties led by popular leaders like Jeffery Kitinggan and Yong Teck Li playing the third force. As a matter of fact, the failure of the opposition to work out a straight fight against BN may offset the benefit it may reap from infighting within Sabah BN. In other words, the growing under-currents against the scandal-tainted Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman may be a missed opportunity for Anwar's dream.
The analysis so far has however missed out a key point: Umno/BN's legitimacy to command the support of East Malaysian, including Sabah Umno, hinges on BN winning the majority of Peninsula parliamentarians. In the 2008 elections, BN in fact lost the simple majority in popular votes by a small margin. It led PR with a 85:80 margin only because of the first-past-the-post electoral system. The moment PR wins 83 seats — the simple majority in the Peninsula — the entire game would change. The price for Umno to command the support of East Malaysian MPs would immediately soar. Loyalty will then require much better offers than what the politicians get now. And Umno may simply cannot afford to beat the PR offer. To begin with, the non-Muslims in East Malaysia have a general distrust for Umno. Non-Muslim BN parties contest as many as 29 seats there. To make the matter worse, not only Umno Sabah and PBB of Sarawak have a number of non-Muslim parliamentarians, even some Muslim politicians are not happy with the Peninsular-dominance embodied in Umno. Main battleground This means the real battleground to keep Sabah and Sarawak is in the Peninsula or West Malaysia. Contrary to a common view, the battleground will not be in the Malay voters even though they make up the majority in 114 federal constituencies in West Malaysia, based on the electoral roll gazetted in June 2011. The balance will instead be decided by the Chinese voters, who have shown the most uniformly voting pattern of all ethnic groups so far. Government intelligence now puts the base line of Chinese support for the BN at 20%, whereas in the past the floor was 30%. Now, if the Chinese support for PR across the board is indeed 80%, then for PR to win the 83 constituencies with the highest proportion of Chinese voters — with Jempol (26.72%) being the 83rd — it needs only 39.06% of support from the non-Chinese: Malay, Indian and others. In reality, the minimum of non-Chinese support that PR needs in constituencies with a substantial Chinese minority is much lower. In 2008, PAS and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) from PR won 15 seats with less than 26.27% Chinese voters in the more than 55% of popular votes. This means PR should be able to retain these Malay-majority constituencies based on Malay votes, even when there is a general swing of 5% towards the BN. And it needs only 68 more seats to pass the magical threshold of 83. By the same calculation, PR will need to win the 68 constituencies with the highest percentage of Chinese voters, which ends with Sembrong (33.30%). And the minimum non-Chinese support it needs will be as low as only 35%. This explains why MCA is working so hard now to highlight on the fear of Islamisation and ethnic riot. A few percent more Chinese voters staying at home or going away would be enough to save the BN. In 1999, MCA women campaigners contributed greatly to the BN's victory amidst the Reformasi wave by reminding other home makers to stock up food supply because elections were around the corner. Now, a group of Chinese homemakers calling themselves Mama Bersih is going to every yellow and green rally to advocate for political awakening. Their motivation? They want their children to grow up in a safe and free country. It is a different kind of fear that defines the future of Malaysia. This is how much this country has changed in 13 years, whether or not the politicians have. Dr Wong Chin Huat is a political scientist and former lecturer of Monash University (Malaysia campus).
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| Entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia Posted: 09 Nov 2012 10:53 AM PST
Careful with the green shoots. Starting your own business may not end you up a datuk The reality is that most new businesses employ existing technologies and create no new technologies at all. Although so much entrepreneurship literature focuses on high-tech start-ups, these types of firms are only a very small percentage of new firm start-ups. Are Asian policymakers fooled by the hype that entrepreneur development creates economic growth? Murray Hunter, Asia Sentinel Throughout Southeast Asia, attempts by governments to promote the creation of entrepreneurs have almost unquestionably been regarded as a policy instrument for promoting economic growth. But reality doesn't support the image. Creating new entrepreneurs may actually be dampening economic growth, a far sight from the creative economies many governments aspire to develop. Read more at: http://www.asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4962&Itemid=224
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| Invasion of the mind snatchers Posted: 08 Nov 2012 02:42 PM PST
Umno needs to control the Muslim mind and if Umno loses that control, it has lost everything. So, if Malays are not allowed freedom of worship, then one should ask, "why not?" Are Malays not Malaysians too? If Malays are not allowed to exercise their full rights under the constitution, then they are just as victimised as the Chinese and Indians whom the Ketuanan Melayu call "pendatang". Mariam Mokhtar, FMT The greatest fear of Umno politicians is for the Malay mind to break free of the shackles Umno has placed there, and for the Malay to start thinking independently. A son who is given free rein with the family car, might not return until he has run out of money or petrol, or both. A daughter given the go-ahead to go out partying, might not be seen for days. A house where the maid has unlimited time-off, might look messy. The same "runaway" factor holds true for the Malay intellect. Umno is aware that the Malay mind is receptive to new ideas and concepts, and if unfettered, could be uncontrollable. When a tiny seed is planted in the Malay mind and with the right conditions, is nurtured into a vigorous, healthy plant, then that person is capable of greatness and not mediocrity. With the Malay mind freed, all of Malaysia would benefit, and Umno become irrelevant. That is what Umno politicians fear most. Malays do not need Umno but Umno cannot exist without the Malays. The reality is that for the past 55 years, Umno has used the 4 "Rs" – race, royalty, religion and the rural divide – to control the Malay mind and manipulate the other races into doing its (Umno's) bidding. How many Malays have dared question the ethics of the New Economic Policy (NEP)? With benefits in housing, education and investment, Umno would not expect many Malays to complain. Both rich and poor Malays are entitled to the same benefits but would the average Malay moan about this disparity? Does it bother him that other Bumiputeras are not entitled to the same privileges? He also turns a blind eye when programmes to aid non-Malay Malaysians are neglected. Would anyone dare question the morality, finances and lifestyle of the VVIPs? Human rights activist Irene Fernandez, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, and former Perak menteri besar Nizar Jamaluddin, have faced trumped-up charges for sedition. Engineer Chan Hon Keong was jailed for one year and fined RM50,000. Quantity surveyor Ahmad Abd Jalil was made the latest example of the intolerance of criticism of VVIPs. When the people in the rural areas are deprived of knowledge and basic amenities, it is easy for the government to manipulate them. Pliable, desperate communities fall for the usual inducements like money, gifts and free meals. Force is used without hesitation when the people resist, such as the violent tactics used against the indigenous peoples of Sarawak who have been evicted from their lands. Last week, opposition MP Nurul Izzah Anwar entered a political minefield when she said that Malays should not be compelled to adopt a particular religion. She was quoting from the Quran, the verse in Surah al-Baqarah. Umno rebuked her for encouraging Muslims to be apostates. Despite what Article 11 of the Malaysian Constitution says, that every Malaysian has the right to practise his religion, Umno claims otherwise. Nurul was right So, if Malays are not allowed freedom of worship, then one should ask, "why not?" Are Malays not Malaysians too? If Malays are not allowed to exercise their full rights under the constitution, then they are just as victimised as the Chinese and Indians whom the Ketuanan Melayu call "pendatang". Some people claim that Nurul should not have allowed herself to be made an easy target by Umno and the Umno media. Even former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad accused her of being influenced by the west. As expected, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has made no comment, as is his wont whenever controversial topics arise. He, like other Umno Muslims, does not care one jot for the religion, he is just desperate to control the rakyat. A few Malaysians are so cowed by Umno that they have warned non-Muslims not to participate in the discussion, or even post feedback, because "these issues of religion should not concern us". Nurul was right to bring this issue up. Malaysia belongs to the rakyat, not Umno. All of you – both Malay and non-Malay, both Muslim and non-Muslim – have a say in this issue. If you refrain from making your feelings clear and if you do not make your opinions heard, Umno will get stronger.
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| Desperate measures to discredit Nurul Posted: 08 Nov 2012 11:17 AM PST
There is a reason why BN-Umno politicians are attacking Nurul Izzah. They know that she is the future. Whoever wins or loses in this general election, there is no denying that we are on the verge of changing Malaysia for the better. We are no longer fighting hubris, our politicians are. And none more so than those desperate politicians from Umno-led Barisan Nasional. CT Ali, Free Malaysia Today I am not interested in talking to the converted. Certainly not to those of you who passionately believe that Dr Mahathir Mohamad did not abuse the office of prime minister to make his children insanely rich. Nor do I intend to engage those among you that have consigned body and soul to the cause of Pakatan Rakyat unconditionally – for even in Pakatan today there are those whose conduct and beliefs bring into question their ability to be open, accountable and responsible should they be given the responsibility of government. For those of you that vehemently insist that Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism, or any other religion is the only salvation of the human race, I bid you to leave us and not trouble us with your self-righteous indignations. I intend to speak to those among you that have clarity of purpose to listen, hear, understand and debate this vexed issue of "compulsion" – especially in relation to religion – vis-à-vis to what Nurul Izzah Anwar did or did not say in her recent comments at a public forum. In truth, it is really as much an issue of compulsion as it is of politics. More of politics. I am not going to refer to any quotes from the Quran, the Bible, the Torah, the Tripitakas, the Bhagavad Gita or any other holy books for I am not that scholarly a person. I have no emotional revulsion against any religion for we must all realise the good all religions have also done. Today we live in wondrous time. On Tuesday night, I read Obama's tweet: "This happened because of you. Thank you," proclaiming himself winner over Mitt Romney. A few minutes later I receive an e-mail from my cousin MK in Kuala Pilah updating me about his lunch with AJ, earlier at the new Chinese restaurant at the Lake Club in KL. I am sharing what happened on Tuesday night because what happened in the US and the news from Kuala Pilah reached me instantly at the click of my mouse. Now if you know this, then you will also know that what Nurul said or did not say in the name of religious freedom also reached me the same night. Desperate politicians Now we know that others have waded into this issue – each for his or her own personal gain and I do not intend to give them further gain by quoting what they have said. Suffice to remind you of what Andy Warhol said: "In the future, everyone will be world famous for 15 minutes." So let them look for their 15 minutes of fame elsewhere. What I want to try and do here is this: gaze into the abyss, into a Malaysia without Umno. It is as worrying to me as it is exhilarating. It fills me with apprehension at a future without Ketuanan Melayu and that "Bumiputera" safety net in business at work or play for us Malays and yet invigorating for my senses as I face a future that will demand much of the Malays – as much as it would demand of anyone else that calls Malaysia their home. Whoever wins or loses in this general election, there is no denying that we are on the verge of changing Malaysia for the better. We are no longer fighting hubris, our politicians are. And none more so than those desperate politicians from Umno-led Barisan Nasional. And how desperate are they? Let me tell you how desperate. They troll the ranks of Pakatan looking for who will be their nemesis. They seek here, there and everywhere for who in Pakatan could become the rallying point for that final surge needed to knock BN into that "lintang pukang, helter skelter" mode triggering Umno's free- fall towards oblivion. Who will rally the rakyat into stampeding towards the opposition ranks? Who? We know Anwar Ibrahim is a constant. Everything you would expect a leader to have endured physically and mentally, Anwar has endured. He has been to hell and is now back with us. But Anwar, Lim Kit Siang, Abdul Hadi Awang are yesterday's people. Still relevant but age is a punishing master and sometimes politics asks for more than what the aged will give. So who will venture against Umno? Only one name emerges. One solitary name: Nurul Izzah. Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/11/09/desperate-measures-to-discredit-nurul/
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