Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Cybertrooper UMNO bergaduh kerana duit
- Islamik: Cara Betul Lupuskan Al-Quran
- Utusan Malaysia diberi percuma di UIAM, tapi orang tak mahu baca
- Suaris Interview: The Future of Malays Part I
- Sugumar's family rejects inquest, calls for murder investigation
- MCA to help take Pakatan to court over ‘promises’
- 75.9% Malaysian Households CANNOT afford HOUSES above RM$250,000!
- The Malaysian Indians and Hindraf
- Najib to launch BR1M distribution
- No reason for us to oppose govt: Felda settlers
- PAS Syura Council gives Nasha the boot
- Soi Lek: Johor's development will soon overtake Selangor
- Malaysia a ‘coward nation’
- Drinking poison and Nectar: The Malaysian Formula for Growth
- Pakatan won’t submit polls candidate list to MACC
- 30 days clause is ‘reasonable’, says EC
- Many shortcomings in the RCI proceeding
- Don: Islamic state is not good even for Muslims
- JAKIM sermon to unite Muslims, not spark hatred, Islamic leader says
- Forced into extinction
- Perkasa ready to meet churches over bible-burning threat
- Listen…
- ‘They keep insulting Indians’
- God and religion, two separate matters
- ‘Futile’ effort by anti-Bible group
- Please, please don’t discuss RCI testimonies
- Dear Mr. Malaysian Mufti, is your theology without anthropology and philosophy?
- 13th Malaysian General Election: Prospects And Challenges For PAS
- Petra: Blame Mahathir all you want, but look yourselves in the mirror
- PM: Non-Malays okay with fair affirmative action
- Najib: Social media a double-edged sword for Umno
- Friday sermon irks local church leaders as ‘Allah’ row rages on
- PAS: Friday sermon an attempt to spread religious hatred
- The foreign invasion
- Being out of sync with reality
- Allah stand: PAS grassroots unhappy
- Our Malaysia of the 70s
- Scriptures, neighbours, Terry Jones and Ibrahim Ali
- Even the Devil (You Know And Not The Angel That You Don’t?) Should Be Given the Benefit of ...
- Atrocities of the illegal car park operators and the negligence of Selayang Municipal Council
- MTUC Calls for Royal Commission Inquiry on Foreign Workers
- Bendera PKR dan PAS diconteng dengan lambang Salib di negeri Johor
- Who will win GE13?
- Race in politics, politics in race
- The long and the short of it
- Breaking news! Another victory for Rosli Dahlan: Court of Appeal stays AG's bid to expunge
- Overseas voting process has several defects, says DAP
- Friday sermon: ‘Enemies’ of Islam staking claim over ‘Allah’ to confuse Muslims
- Perkasa is outsourced by Umno, says Anwar
- Waytha under fire for silence over temples
| Cybertrooper UMNO bergaduh kerana duit Posted: 27 Jan 2013 01:01 PM PST
Tetapi sampai bila UMO boleh bayar mereka? Sampai bila cybertrooper ini boleh terima upah yang sikit dan tidak berbaloi? Pastinya mereka akan bergaduh kerana dunia….bergaduh kerana duit Albangi's Blog Cybertrooper UMNO adalah kumpulan IT ahli UMNO dan penyokong UMNO yang dibiayai oleh UMNO untuk berkeliaran dalam Facebook dan Blog bertujuan untuk menyerang parti lain, menimbulkan kekeliruan dan …anda boleh baca lagi di sini http://albangi.wordpress.com/2011/12/05/cybertrooper-umno-berkeliaran/ Mereka dibayar oleh UMNO. Baca di sini http://albangi.wordpress.com/2012/05/20/umno-upah-cybertrooper-dalam-facebook-dan-blog/. Sila lihat nama-nama cybertrooper UMNO di pautan itu. Mereka diajar dan dididik oleh UMNO dengan duit. Ada duit kerja jalan. Tak ada duit, boleh jalan. Kalau bagi sikit, kerja sikit. Kalau bayar tinggi, kerja tanpa henti. Tetapi sampai bila UMO boleh bayar mereka? Sampai bila cybertrooper ini boleh terima upah yang sikit dan tidak berbaloi? Pastinya mereka akan bergaduh kerana dunia….bergaduh kerana duit…..baca lagi kisah mereka bergaduh baru-baru ini http://albangi.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/cybertrooper-umno-sedang-bergaduh/dan UMNO akan kehabisan wang untuk membayar cybertrooper sebelum PRU 13. Watch videos at: http://albangi.wordpress.com/2012/07/24/cybertrooper-umno-bergaduh-kerana-duit/
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| Islamik: Cara Betul Lupuskan Al-Quran Posted: 27 Jan 2013 12:50 PM PST
CARA terbaik untuk melupuskan naskhah al-Quran lama adalah dengan membakarnya. Kurakura HATI tiba-tiba berasa sayu tatkala melihat 33 bungkusan plastik hitam yang mengandungi abu al-Quran diikat rapi sebelum dipunggah ke atas sebuah kapal oleh sekumpulan petugas Jabatan Hal Ehwal Agama Islam Terengganu (JHEAT). Seketika kemudian, jentera itu bergerak jauh ke tengah laut di perairan Kuala Terengganu dan berhenti sembilan batu nautika dari jeti Jabatan Laut Malaysia Wilayah Timur. NASKHAH al-Quran diasingkan sehelai demi sehelai sebelum diracik. Tepat pukul 10.37 pagi, Khamis lalu, plastik pertama dibuka. Seorang petugas yang bertinggung di tepi pelantar kapal membuang semua abu itu ke dalam laut. Abu itu memenuhi permukaan laut dan larut perlahan-lahan dalam air yang sejuk. Perasaan sayu sekali lagi menyelubungi diri, seolah-olah sedang menyaksikan perjalanan terakhir kitab suci itu ke tempat persemadiannya.
Ujar beliau, naskhah al-Quran lama yang dikumpul tidak boleh dibakar sesuka hati sebaliknya mesti diasing-asingkan sehelai demi sehelai. Tambahnya, proses itu penting bagi memastikan setiap lembaran yang mengandungi ayat al-Quran terbakar dan menjadi abu sebelum dilupuskan di tengah laut. Bercerita mengenai proses mengumpul al-Quran lama itu, ia ternyata menuntut ketabahan para petugasnya. Seorang petugas, Mohd. Radhwan Abu Bakar, 39, berkata, beliau bertanggungjawab mengumpul dan meleraikan al-Quran itu sebelum membakarnya. "Saat paling sedih adalah apabila melihat al-Quran yang ditemui sudah rosak seratus peratus. Ia berada dalam keadaan basah manakala tulisannya tidak kelihatan lagi. "Saya juga menjumpai senaskhah al-Quran yang pada asalnya bersaiz besar tetapi tinggal selebar tapak tangan sahaja akibat dimakan anai-anai. Ia begitu menyayat hati," tambahnya. Ujar Radhwan, detik paling sukar pula adalah semasa beliau memasukkan helaian demi helaian al-Quran itu ke dalam tong untuk dibakar. "Bayangkan bagaimana perasaan kami apabila melihat kitab suci itu dibiarkan terbakar. Tetapi itulah cara terbaik untuk menjaga kesuciannya daripada terus dibiar rosak dan dibuang di merata tempat," katanya. CEBISAN helaian al-Quran dibakar di dalam sebuah tong khas. Read more at: http://www.kurakura.my/cara-betul-lupuskan-al-quran/
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| Utusan Malaysia diberi percuma di UIAM, tapi orang tak mahu baca Posted: 27 Jan 2013 12:38 PM PST
Difahamkan akhbar pemegang rekod paling banyak kalah saman di mahkamah kerana memfitnah itu rupanya turut diedarkan di Universiti Islam Antarabangsa, UIAM dengan tajaan pihak tertentu. MiLo SuaM SEBELUM ini pernah didedahkan di MiLo SuaM bagaimana Utusan Malaysia diedarkan secara percuma di Kedah dengan tajaan pihak tertentu memandangkan jualannya sudah merudum teruk rujuk sini ~ Utusan Malaysia percuma.
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| Suaris Interview: The Future of Malays Part I Posted: 27 Jan 2013 12:28 PM PST
No matter how bountiful the land is but if its leaders are corrupt and incompetent, people uneducated and unskilled, and culture wasteful and destructive, then eventually that society will decline. M. Bakri Musa [The original in Malay appeared in suaris.wordpress.com on January 19, 2013). Introduction: Dr. M. Bakri Musa's perspective may appear alien to some readers, especially those less exposed to the Internet and the English language. It is their loss not to have ready access to his clear thinking and substantive ideas. Suaris.wordpress.com is taking this initiative in bringing to readers especially those versed only in Malay his commentaries. Born and raised in Negri Sembilan, Bakri represents the earlier generation of Bumiputras that had been given the opportunity for an education abroad. Yet he never forgets his roots as evidenced by his extensive writings and many books. Even though he resides in America, but through his books and essays we feel close to him. He recently released his latest book, Liberating the Malay Mind, published by ZI Publications. In this interview, Dr. Bakri Musa discusses a critical issue, the future of Malays in our country. We are at a critical juncture in many respects, from politics to economics, and from education specifically to social arenas generally. What is the future of our people in the decades ahead and how can we best prepare for that future? Follow the series in its entirety. Suaris: How are you doctor? Hope that you and your wife are healthy and blessed by Allah! MBM: Great! Healthy! Thank you and praise be to Allah! Suaris: Doctor, you write frequently on the general unpreparedness of our people in meeting future challenges. In what way and how unprepared are we? MBM: In my book, Towards A Competitive Malaysia, I put forth this proposition. The fate of a society hangs on four pillars: leadership, people, culture, and geography. Of the four, only one – geography – cannot be altered. Whether that society is blessed with abundant oil and its land fertile, those are the blessings of Allah. Lucky indeed are the inhabitants! However, no matter how bountiful the land is but if its leaders are corrupt and incompetent, people uneducated and unskilled, and culture wasteful and destructive, then eventually that society will decline. We have many ready examples, among them Brunei and the Arab states. On the other hand, if the geography is less forgiving, the land mountainous and covered with thick snow, climate cold such that crops could grow only for a few months a year, but if the quality of leadership and people is high, their culture progressive, that country will advance. An example is Switzerland. We are all aware of the importance of wise, efficient and trustworthy leaders not only in politics and the administration of the country (ministers and civil servants), but also in religion (muftis and ustads), society (sultans and rajas), schools (teachers and professors), and at home (parents and neighbors). The quality of our people (human capital) depends on two measures: health and education. If our citizens are unhealthy (drug addicts, afflicted with dengue or malaria), they will not be vigorous or diligent. And if our schools are rotten, then our young will not be skillful and productive. A citizen is either productive and contributor to or dependent and a drain on society. If we have more of the former, then our society will rapidly progress. Conversely, if we have more of the latter, we will quickly decline. By culture I mean the rules and institutions of that society, together with its norms and values. Consider institutions. Lacking effective and reliable agencies, considerable time and effort would be spent just to ensure that the house I am about to buy legitimately belongs to the seller. With trustworthy registry in place, I spend my time on things that really matter, like whether the house would meet my needs and the price worth it. Similarly when I deposit my money at the bank, sans effective regulatory bodies, I would not be assured that the manager would not abscond with my precious funds. As for the values of a society, if it honors its thieves, thugs and cheaters, that would serve as ready examples for the rest. Before long that society would be like the Mafia in Southern Italy. All these four elements – leadership, people, culture, and geography – interact with and in turn are being influenced by each other. Enlightened citizens will select or vote in only equally enlightened leaders; those voters will no tolerate the corrupt and incompetent. Likewise, wise leaders will formulate progressive education policies so the young will be skillful and productive. Wise leaders and citizens will together utilize and protect the environment to ensure sustainable development. Cancun, Mexico, for example, was in the 1950s a poor fishing village. The only "tourists" were American hippies seeking cheap ganja. Through wise leadership and well-trained citizens, Cancun is no longer that but an affluent and much sought tourist destination. Its previously poor fishermen now own sleek motor yachts taking rich Americans and Europeans out for sports fishing. Now examine our society with respect to those four pillars. What mark would we give ourselves for the quality of our leadership, people, culture, and environment?
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| Sugumar's family rejects inquest, calls for murder investigation Posted: 27 Jan 2013 12:25 PM PST
An inquest under section 328 of the Criminal Procedure Code is only necessary where there is serious doubt as to the cause of death. An inquest is not a substitute for a proper criminal investigation. Why call for an inquest when there is adequate evidence to bring a criminal prosecution for murder? N Surendran, Latheefa Koya We refer to the statement by Selangor police deputy chief Datuk Thaiveegan on 27 January 2013 that an inquest will be held into the death of C.Sugumar in police custody. The family of C.Sugumar absolutely rejects an inquest into Sugumar's death. Instead, the family again calls for the arrest, investigation and prosecution of all police personnel involved on murder charges under section 302 of the Penal Code. An inquest under section 328 of the Criminal Procedure Code is only necessary where there is serious doubt as to the cause of death. An inquest is not a substitute for a proper criminal investigation. Why call for an inquest when there is adequate evidence to bring a criminal prosecution for murder? In this case there are eyewitnesses who have come forward to say that Sugumar was chased down, handcuffed, smeared with turmeric and beaten to death by police personnel. This should have resulted in an immediate classification of the case under s.302 Penal Code; the calling of a mere inquest is inconsistent with the available evidence.
For too long now, the police and A-G's Chambers have been abusing the inquest process to cover-up physical abuse and murders by the enforcement agencies. This can be clearly seen in the futile Teoh Beng Hock inquest process. The announcement of an inquest is merely being done to assuage public outrage, and not to get to the truth of the matter. An inquest in cases like this is nothing more than a ploy to cover-up the case by producing biased and incomplete evidence before the coroner. Unlike in some other Commonwealth countries, the coroner in Malaysia is not empowered to conduct his own investigations and must rely on the tainted and biased police investigation. We note that despite repeated requests by Sugumar's family, the police have refused to consent to the carrying out of a second post-mortem upon Sugumar's remains. This again proves that the police have no interest in uncovering the real truth in Sugumar's case. We call upon the Home Minister and IGP to act fairly and professionally, and to immediately launch a murder investigation into Sugumar's death. The family and eyewitnesses are prepared to cooperate fully with the authorities in a murder investigation. Meanwhile, the 'Justice for Sugumar' protest demanding a second post-mortem and a murder investigation, on Tuesday 29/1/12 at Bukit Aman at 10.30am will proceed as scheduled.
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| MCA to help take Pakatan to court over ‘promises’ Posted: 27 Jan 2013 12:17 PM PST
(The Star) - MCA has pledged to bring the Selangor Government to court over unfulfilled claims made prior to winning the state in the 2008 general election. These include reducing assessment rates by 20%, free water to all consumers and a special allowance to single mothers in the state. Klang MCA Youth chief Ching Eu Boon said his team was currently registering the names of people who have yet to receive these "goodies". "We are currently focusing on registering residents who did not get any reduction in their assessment and single mothers who did not receive the promised allowances. "We hope to record at least 5,000 people (in Pandamaran) because without proof, the matter cannot be brought to court," he told a news conference after registering about 1,000 names yesterday. On Wednesday, the Shah Alam High Court dismissed the application by the state government to strike out a RM10.9mil suit filed against them by a group of single mothers. Justice Yaacob Md Sam said promises made during an election continued to exist for interpretation as a policy by those who were elected based on the promises.
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| 75.9% Malaysian Households CANNOT afford HOUSES above RM$250,000! Posted: 27 Jan 2013 12:08 PM PST
The estimates made from the HIS indicates that 75.9% Malaysians cannot afford houses above RM250,000. This is the case according to the property market report where 78-85% properties transacted is below RM250,000. https://www.facebook.com/blindspot.msia How do we ensure the price of properties is stabilized and more affordable houses is offered to the public?
Follow at: https://www.facebook.com/blindspot.msia | ||||||||
| The Malaysian Indians and Hindraf Posted: 27 Jan 2013 12:04 PM PST
Analysts say because Hindraf has lost steam, the Indians will come back into the embrace of BN. how do we arrive at the conclusion that Hindraf has lost steam? Because the government has lifted the ban on them? Sakmongkol AK47 Sometimes we have to ask ourselves - where do these so called analysts come from? Which planet? Arriving at some very preliminary and inconclusive summaries based on surveys made through telephone calls are risky. How do we authenticate the answers given? And there are so many other variables to consider - the character of the sample, sample size, the nature of the questions, the questioners. How do we know, the sample population asked is not the same one approached before and the one already existent in the data base? Political predictions is not the dig-here-fill-there kind. It's not tear-here-paste there kind. Unfortunately that seems to be the approach taken and journalists eagerly lap them up. Take the findings on Hindraf recently. Analysts say because Hindraf has lost steam, the Indians will come back into the embrace of BN. how do we arrive at the conclusion that Hindraf has lost steam? Because the government has lifted the ban on them? Therefore Hindraf must have capitulated. It was all hot chicken sheet that has cooled down? What was the extent of Indian support for Hindraf before? What was the nature of their support? Were they supportive of the physical presence of Hindraf or were they supportive of the idea that Hindraf represents? So now we can safely conclude since the grounds on which Hindraf stands are dug out, the same soil can be used to fill up elsewhere? Behind Najib's house? Palanivel's?
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| Najib to launch BR1M distribution Posted: 27 Jan 2013 11:53 AM PST
(NST) - Seven million households to get RM500 aid [MTadmin - That's HOUSEHOLDS, not individuals. Malaysia has approximately 29 million people. Assuming each household has 2 children, almost everyone is entitled to BR1M.] IPOH: FEBRUARY will be a much awaited month for more than seven million households and single Malaysians. On Saturday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak will kick-start the nationwide disbursement of RM500 to the those eligible for the 1Malaysia People's Aid (BR1M 2.0). Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah said the launch by Najib, who mooted the aid programme to help low-income households, would put in motion the disbursement of the aid nationwide to eligible households and single folk. Distribution of the aid would be carried out next month and would be completed by March. Ahmad Husni said the aid would be distributed through district officers and zone development officers. Under the BR1M 2.0 initiative, he said more than three million new applicants would also enjoy the cash aid. "The launch (of the disbursement) is confirmed, but the official venue has yet to be confirmed," he said after launching the "Populate the library" programme in Tambun near here yesterday. Ahamd Husni said so far, the Inland Revenue Board had processed six million BR1M 2.0 applications, both old and new, with 1.3 million still being processed by the board. "Last year, the government gave BR1M to 4.1 million households. On top of that figure, we have received 3.2 million new applications. "However, the government will continue to accept new applications. We have not announced the closing date yet, so those who feel they are eligible to apply for BR1M 2.0 can still do so." He said in a similar to process to last year's, the RM500 payment would be given via vouchers which can be cashed at mobile banks located at the venue of the aid disbursement. He said this year, four banks had been appointed to cash the vouchers. They are Bank Simpanan Nasional, CIMB, Maybank and Public Bank. Husni said the distribution of BR1M 2.0 would have a positive impact on economic growth and domestic consumption. "The spin-off effect will be felt throughout the country when the recipients start spending their money. Local businesses will also benefit greatly from this." Asked about the economic growth figure for the last quarter of 2012, Husni said the quarterly figure, as well as the annual figure, would be released by Bank Negara next month. He said the government was confident of recording more than five per cent growth for last year.  Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah says BR1M 2.0 will would have a positive impact on the economic growth and domestic consumption
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| No reason for us to oppose govt: Felda settlers Posted: 27 Jan 2013 11:51 AM PST
(Bernama) - "A parent's love is whole no matter how many times divided". This quote may best describe the sense of responsibility and love the Barisan Nasional (BN) government has for Felda (Federal Land Development Authority) settlers in this country. For most settlers, the establishment of Felda on July 1, 1956, which aimed to provide new settlements to help the rural poor improve their economic status, clearly demonstrated the government's commitment and responsibility to provide a better life for the people (rakyat). The result was that the lives of thousands of people under the programme were successfully transformed, they were released from the clutches of poverty which had trapped their lives for so long. Sadly, for some settlers, what was done by the government appears not to have left any traces in their hearts, instead they choose to "bite the hand that feeds them". Such an ungrateful act should not exist, as according to Mat Zahari Derahman, 55, settlers do not have valid reasons to oppose the government that has done a lot for people. Mat Zahari, who is also the head of Felda Bukit Goh near here, said since he joined Felda in 1970, various assistance programmes to enhance their standard of living were implemented by the government, of which the benefits to the settlers could not be denied. "Various initiatives such as an interest-free home expansion financing programme, second generation housing development, educational programmes for the children of the settlers, agropolitan programmes, Settlers Welfare Fund, interest-free computer loan schemes, incentive schemes for Felda entrepreneurs, replanting subsistence assistance, productivity incentive bonuses, and the latest "windfall", have benefited us all,", he said. Based on that, the existence of those who opposed the government in FELDA such as the National Association of Felda Settlers' Children (Anak), was seen as 'the enemy within', trying to ruin what was enjoyed by settlers thus far, he said. For Felda Bukit Kuantan youth, Norehan Saleh, 28, representing Felda's second generation, Felda is now heading to another quantum leap. "As Felda's second generation, we do not want to be left out, instead we are prepared to jointly implement national transformation," she said. For Jasmi Faizal Muda, 31, from Felda Kota Gelanggi, every facility provided by Felda had indirectly helped the young people, including the second generation to be successful in various fields. "I think those who oppose to what the government is doing to increase our standard of living as the children of these settlers, are just smooth talkers," he said. Felda, which has existed for almost 57 years, currently has more than 112,635 settlers, who originally were poor people, but now can earn up to RM3,000 a month. In Pahang alone, there were 43,124 settlers, of whom 40,901 are involved in oil palm cultivation and the rest rubber cultivation. According to Felda's Corporate Unit Public Relations Officer Aman Shah Alladin, by the end of 2011, a total of 34,000 settlers were given ownership of land, while the rest are awaiting land alienation. | ||||||||
| PAS Syura Council gives Nasha the boot Posted: 26 Jan 2013 10:46 PM PST
(The Malaysian Insider) - Former PAS vice-president Nasharudin Mat Isa had his PAS Syura Council membership revoked as part of disciplinary proceedings, Sinar Harian reported today. Sinar quoted the council's secretary Datuk Nik Zawawi Nik Salleh saying that Nasharudin was found to have broken several of the body' regulations. The decision was said to have been made last 13 Jan at a meeting chaired by PAS spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat. Among Nasha's infractions included non-attendance of council meetings, but Nik Zawawi declined to elaborate further. Nik Zawawi also said that a letter confirming Nasharudin's dismissal was sent out after the meeting was held. Nasha did not contact the council for any further clarification, he added.
Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/pas-syura-council-gives-nasha-the-boot/ | ||||||||
| Soi Lek: Johor's development will soon overtake Selangor Posted: 26 Jan 2013 10:44 PM PST
(The Star) - Dr Chua, however, cautioned that the positive development would come to a stop if Pakatan Rakyat's dream to make Johor its front line state came true. Johor is set to overtake Selangor in terms of development in the next five years, said MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek. He said the development in Iskandar and Pengerang were the biggest contributors to the state's development. Tourism in the state was also improving quickly, and expected to surpass that of Malacca, he said. Dr Chua said about 50% of tourists to Malaysia passed through Johor, which was a gateway to the country. There were major tourist projects in the pipeline as well as completed ones like Legoland to fast-track tourism development in the state, he added. Dr Chua, however, cautioned that the positive development would come to a stop if Pakatan Rakyat's dream to make Johor its front line state came true. "I hope the people, especially those in Johor, have realised by now how PAS-led Kelantan and Kedah have been lagging in development; from investment, new jobs to tourism. "PAS, being the dominant party in Pakatan, is not keen on economic development, but more on imposing its religious values on non-Muslims ," he said after opening the 64th MCA anniversary celebration here Sunday. Dr Chua urged the Chinese voters in particular not to fall prey to DAP's gimmicks. "The DAP boasts of sending its national figures to wrest seats in Johor. "If they were to win, they will leave the voters, and at best, will only have an assistant to represent them," Dr Chua said. He noted that Malaysia was still a developing country, and elected representatives had to always be on the ground to help the people.
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| Posted: 26 Jan 2013 10:41 PM PST
(Free Malaysia Today) - Taslima Nasreen, a controversial writer has sent out a scathing twit about Malaysia's move to ban Vishwaroopam. Controversial Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen has described Malaysia as a "coward" nation following Home Minister Hishamuddin Hussein's decision to suspend the screening of Tamil movie, Vishwaroopam. "Malaysia banned Vishwaroopam. Coward countries will ban it, coward cinemas will not show it. "This fear of Muslim fanatics is just plain stupid," said Taslima on Twitter after news of the suspension was reported by the Indian media yesterday. Taslima courted controversy in 1993 after a book that she wrote entitled Lajja criticised the implementation of the sharia law. Muslims in Bangladesh called for her death and this led to her decision to live in exile in India. Taslima is not the first to criticise Malaysia's decision. Yesterday, Malaysia's National Laureate A Samad Said questioned the rationale of the suspension by the Film Censorship Board (LPF) since it saw no harm in allowing Hindi film Race 2 from being screened. Vishwaroopam was suspended last Friday after cinemas began screening the movie. The movie has also been banned in Singapore and several other countries Read more at: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/01/27/malaysia-a-coward-nation/ | ||||||||
| Drinking poison and Nectar: The Malaysian Formula for Growth Posted: 26 Jan 2013 10:37 PM PST
Selvaraja Somiah Development without corruption is an ideal situation in Malaysian politics. Corruption and development is, at a stretch, somewhat acceptable. But corruption without development is completely unacceptable. Sadly, the Malaysian political scene has somehow have found ourselves in the second scenario and moving rapidly towards the last scenario. And it is within this such formula that incumbent Chief Minister, Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, the undisputed leader of Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) and Chairman of the ruling coalition in Sarawak's victory in the recent 10th Sarawak state elections 2011, needs to be seen. The issue whether or not Taib Mahmud is a clean politician was never the key. It was whether Taib Mahmud had delivered, and on that count he scored. Perhaps not in the most raring of percentages but but he was adequately high on a scale of one to ten. In the Malaysian context, irrespective of corruption, development scores. If a politician at the helm of affairs demonstrates his intent and will to deliver as well as takes positive steps in that direction, similar to that of the Taib Mahmud Sarawakian government, then the electorate reposes its faith in him. This more often than not overlooks the incumbency factor. Taib Mahmud was voted in as chief minister for eight terms: the last one going beyond anyone's expectations. The grapevine has it that Taib himself was not sure of winning but the people voted him in on three counts; the first being that only he can keep UMNO from coming into Sarawak, the second being that he had done for Sarawak what no other Chief Minister had and third being that development was high on the agenda. There were stories about several family members benefiting billions during his regime but those allegations waned in the face of the work he had done. A great deal still remains undone but his intention and will to work benefited the people who voted him in and this alone is enough reason for the electorate to back him and ensure his return to office which he held for eight terms. In the case of Dr Mahathir, the issue also worked in his favour was the perception that his heart beats for the Malays although he is half-Indian and that even while the party or his confidantes made money left, right and center, he had electoral support till of course he made the fatal mistake of sacking Anwar Ibrahim for corruption and sodomy charges. In Malaysia, race, religion or corruption comes into play when development takes a backseat. In situations like this, non-performing politicians have a field day in exploiting race and religion blocks to their advantage and they often succeed. Koh Tsu Koon was able to rule Penang and later managed to name chairman Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan as his successor primarily because he helped UMNO and had the support of the Feds in the center, get electoral power and in turn had a role in decision making. But what dented Koh Tsu Koon's unassailable position were his non-performance and confining his tenure solely to UMNO politics. That worked initially but later Penangites wanted results of governance where of course he failed miserably. The consequence: a total rout from which recovery seems a near impossibility as the recent 2008 election-results have demonstrated. Read more at: http://selvarajasomiah.wordpress.com/2013/01/27/drinking-poison-and-nectar-the-malaysian-formula-for-growth/
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| Pakatan won’t submit polls candidate list to MACC Posted: 26 Jan 2013 05:17 PM PST
(The Star) - Pakatan Rakyat has no plan to submit its list of election candidates to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) for vetting. PKR vice-president Tian Chua said this was because the coalition felt MACC should not be involved in the general election and its processes. Tian Chua said Pakatan leaders believed that MACC should be free from politics and should not have a say in who was eligible to be a candidate for any party. "By getting involved in the election process, MACC had compromised its integrity and this shows that the commission is siding with the Barisan Nasional government," he said after a PKR lunch and ceramah in Taman Sentosa here yesterday. Tian Chua, who is also Batu MP, said Pakatan disagreed with the move and found it pointless. It was reported that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had said that it was a standard practice by Barisan Nasional to submit names of potential election candidates to the MACC to be vetted. Najib was responding to a suggestion by the MACC's Consultation and Corruption Prevention Panel chairman Datuk Johan Jaafar that all political parties send their list of candidates for vetting by the commission. On another issue, Tian Chua said Pakatan member parties would not sabotage each other by having three-cornered fights in the coming general election, especially in Johor. He was confident that there would be no such fights for seats, including the Johor Jaya state seat. "Three-cornered fights are old news. But I cannot speak for those who might contest as independents," he said. When asked about PKR's candidate list, he said it was being finalised and the announcement was expected to be made before Chinese New Year.
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| 30 days clause is ‘reasonable’, says EC Posted: 26 Jan 2013 05:08 PM PST
The pre-condition for overseas Malaysians wanting to register as postal voters is comparative to similar clauses in Australia and Canada. (Bernama) - The new clause imposed by the Election Commission for Malaysians residing abroad to have spent at least 30 days in the country over a five year period is a reasonable condition, according to EC deputy chairman Wan Ahmad Wan Omar. The clause is a pre-condition for overseas Malaysian who wanted to register as postal voters. Wan Ahmad said the condition was simple and appropriate and had also been adopted by other Commonwealth countries such as Australia and Canada while Singapore had a minimum three months condition. "Thirty days in a period of five years, not 30 days consecutively. Voting is not just a right but a responsibility to the country. "EC also looks at it as showing love for country and still having a link with the homeland," he said. Wan Ahmad added that the condition was proposed to the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on Electoral Reforms which approved it. He said, however, that the decision to set the condition of five years and the minimum 30 days stay was set by the EC, as provided for under the Election Laws and Regulations. "As a constitutional organisation, the EC has the authority to set certain conditions and procedures," he said, dismissing claims by certain quarters that the condition was not discussed at the committee stage at Parliament. Earlier, Rasah MP Anthony Loke from the DAP had urged the EC to review the condition, contending that it was unfair and would unnecessarily impede the election process. Anthony had also claimed that the EC had delayed registration of outstation voters for almost 13 months from the date the PSC raising doubts on its preparedness and commitment to ensure a fair and clean election process. Replying to Loke, Wan Ahmad said thorough preparation was necessary because the EC needed to discuss with the Foreign Ministry on the election process for outstation voters as it would involve Malaysian embassy staff who would represent the EC. Apart from that, he said the cooperation of the Immigration Department was also necessary to check the records on the outstation voters' return to Malaysia. He added that the embassy staff too needed to be trained and assigned. The regulation to allow Malaysians abroad to vote via post was gazetted on Jan 21 this year based on certain conditions. The key condition was that they must have been in Malaysia or returned to the country for 30 days in a period of five years before the dissolution of the current parliament or state legislative assembly. This does not extend to Malaysians living abroad in southern Thailand, Singapore, Brunei and Kalimantan. They have to return to Malaysia to cast their votes. Prior to this, only fulltime overseas students, and civil servants and their spouses were allowed to vote through the post as absentee voters. Meanwhile, Wan Ahmad said since Jan 21, the EC had received 500 applications from Malaysians living abroad to become postal voters in the 13th general election. He expected the applications to increase with the simplified process of sending back the form to the EC via email. "The opportunity for Malaysians to be outstation voters is a political transformation and a paradigm shift in the democratic process," he opined.
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| Many shortcomings in the RCI proceeding Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:55 PM PST
It is a wonder why these parties, why after making such loud noises about the issue of illegal immigrants all these while they have not pursued or even clamoured for participation in the RCI proceeding.
Richard Libun Adou
After attending the proceedings of the on-going Royal Commision of Inquiry (RCI) on illegal immigrants in Sabah for just two days, I have observed quite a number of shortcomings in terms of participation in the inquiry process, i.e. on the way it is conducted. It is very clear that these shortcomings are seriously hinder the original purpose of the RCI – to seek the truth for the sake of justice.
The RCI was decided to be carried out to enable a panel to hear witnesses' testimonies as well as to question and dig for deeper information from them, with lawyers (including from the Sabah Law Association or SLA) and members of political parties given the opportunities to pose their own questions. So other than members of the RCI panel, several lawyers have been given the authority to pose more questions to those making testimonies for the purpose of clarification and obtaining of more details.
What I find wanting is that the political parties such as Umno, MCA, PBS, PBRS, Upko, Star, Sapp and other parties have not sent their representatives to be among those who could pose such queries. It is a wonder why these parties, why after making such loud noises about the issue of illegal immigrants all these while they have not pursued or even clamoured for participation in the RCI proceeding. I applaud Hj Ansari Abdullah, Datuk James Ghani and the SLA representative for being active in posing very good and relevant questions.
I suspect one or two of these parties are afraid to be in the proceeding because they may be afraid that they, or some of their leaders, may be identified by witnesses as the culprits or perpetrators of the illegals problem in Sabah. I am also flabbergasted that Tan Sri Pairin had made a statement asking people not to make any comments on the RCI testimonies until the whole process if over. I find his remark to be evident of his cowardice in the issue; what he said actually had disappointed a lot of the people, especially the KDMs. Many are questioning his motive in making such a call when there is much worry among his people about this mother of all problems.
In the matter of those giving testimonies many people who can present their cases have been excluded and deprived of their opportunity to speak up. Our biggest loss is the absence of Suhakam in the list of those testifying because, as I have been made to understand, Suhakam requested to contribute in the matter even as those to pose questions were rejected for unknown reasons.
The number of individuals from the public allowed to pose questions are also limited; the opportunity should be opened to more people. It is such a loss; we can now only imagine what great revelations Suhakam could have offered the world on their own findings about the illegal immigrants issue because we know Suhakam, being the main body dealing with matters of human rights in Malaysia, have files and files of reports! Why was Suhakam rejected? Who were the parties privy to the surprising rejection? Is the RCI also practicing what we can call selective witnessing? Even the Kota Kinabalu DAP's member of parliament, was reportedly rejected like Suhakam.
I had also noticed that the Sabah Law Association (SLA) is not serious enough in its participation, because when its representative missed one Thursday afternoon session of the inquiry, no one was sent as a temporary replacement. So why is the SLA, a highly professional body, playing a disappearing act in such an important undertaking in our history?
And last but not least is the quality of the performance by some of the panellists. One or two of them are obviously there just to warm up their chairs because during the two days I was there they hadn't spoken a single word in addition to smiling and grimacing! It appears that only the chairman, Tan Sri Steve, Datuk Henry Chin and Tan Sri Herman Luping are the ones most active in probing the testifiers.
I find it shocking that the other panelists being also personalities of high calibre and experience with high positions behind them are not curious or serious enough, not able to ask a single question day in and day out? I can't believe they are ignorant or dumb, nor can I believe that they are afraid of talking too much because as retirees who can touch them? To me this is a serious failing of the panel and I believe if you can't speak, you might as well leave the chair and give it to someone who can perform. What a huge loss that Tan Sri Simon Sipaun, the capable and dynamic activist, was not included in the panel!
I feel that it is still not too late to overcome these serious shortcomings and improve the situation by amending the policy and revamping the panel to replace those who don't speak up with others who can perform better. As it is, because of these weaknesses, we are losing a tremendous lot, and the final report of the RCI may not do justice to the seriousness of the illegals problem.
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| Don: Islamic state is not good even for Muslims Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:45 PM PST
There is not much difference between Umno and PAS Malaysians Must Know The Truth Well-known sociologist Syed Farid Alatas says that one of the greatest dangers facing Malaysian society is the rise of Muslim extremism - Wahabism and Salafism - or legalistic thinking that reduces citizens to rules and regulation. He said these are the notion and role of an Islamic state currently being promoted by BN/Umno and PAS but both ways are "problematic" as there is no real debate on the issues here.  "There is not much difference between Umno and PAS, except that the former gives excuses that we can't have an Islamic state because we are a multiracial society," said Syed Farid (left), an expert in the area of the sociology of religion."The correct point I think is that we can't have an Islamic state because an Islamic state is not good even for Muslims. "When I say that, I don't mean that Islam is not good for Muslims," the head of Malay studies at the National University of Singapore was quick to add. "I mean the conception of an Islamic state which is a modernist idea is a chaotic idea". Syed Farid was speaking in a two-hour plenary lecture entitled "Contemporary Muslim Revival: The Case of Protestant Islam" at the Wawasan Open Univesity in Penang last night. Only 7% of Turks for Islamic state His lecture was in conjunction with the "Colloquium on Democracy and Social Justice" jointly organised by Penang Institute and the Islamic Renaissance Front. The Don - a Malaysian - has published extensively on the themes of Muslim revivalism, religious extremism, decolonisation of knowledge and democracy. In his lecture, Syed Farid went on to explain that the proponents of the idea of an Islamic state mostly talked about Hudud laws which centred around criminal laws.  "The kind of state they envisage is a horrible state as it is a state presided by a punitive God, and not the God of Love, as envisioned by the Sufists or the God of the early missionaries who brought Islam to Southeast Asia and the Malay world," he said."Those Muslims never talked about an Islamic state. For them what was necessary was to live in the society that allows you to live according to the rules and laws of Islam," he added. He gave the example of a large scale survey conducted in Turkey two years ago, where the religious citizens (not the secularists) were asked whether they want to live in an Islamic state. Only seven percent said "yes", noted Syed Farid, as majority of Turks did not want the state to administer Islam or decide on religious matters, they wanted the freedom to administer it themselves. Malaysia needs more debate "So being against Islamic state is not to be secular or to be against Islam, Muslims really need to understand that," said Syed Farid, who read for his PhD at the John Hopkins University.  "In this country, Muslims feel that if they are against Islamic state, they are not being true to Islam," the professor who used to teach in Universiti Malaya, added.They have to understand that the whole notion of the Islamic state is a modernist idea," he stressed. Syed Farid said the entire thinking of what constitutes a state in Islam and how the religion is brought into modern life needs to be debated and discussed but that is not being done because Islam is being politicised in Malaysia. Read more at: http://malaysiansmustknowthetruth.blogspot.com/2013/01/don-islamic-state-is-not-good-even-for.html
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| JAKIM sermon to unite Muslims, not spark hatred, Islamic leader says Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:42 PM PST
Boo Su-Lyn, The Malaysian Insider The federal Islamic authority's sermon last Friday was not meant to incite hatred against the Christians but to remind Muslims of the sanctity of Islam, a Muslim leader has said amid the ongoing "Allah" row. In the sermon, the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) had labelled non-Muslims who use the word "Allah" to describe their God as "enemies of Islam" and warned that this was an attempt to confuse Muslims into thinking all religions share the same God. "Why is it lately that we are too afraid of the non-Muslims, too apologetic, and too humble when facing the non-Muslims?" Islamic Da'wah Foundation Malaysia (Yadim) founder Datuk Dusuki Ahmad (picture) was quoted as saying today by Malay-language daily Berita Harian. "The Muslims need to believe that Islam is the highest religion, true, and accepted by Allah. Lack of confidence in JAKIM's actions as a religious authority will split apart values and create confusion in the Muslim community," he added. After the sermon, several PAS leaders accused JAKIM of stoking religious hatred, an act that they called "inappropriate and irresponsible". But Dusuki stressed that JAKIM's Friday sermon was more of a call towards goodness, than to foment religious hatred. Church leaders, however, were displeased with the sermon, saying that JAKIM was blatantly inciting suspicion and intolerance between Islam and Christianity. Last week, Perkasa chief Datuk Ibrahim Ali called on Muslims to burn the Malay-language bibles that contain the word "Allah" and other religious Arabic script. A priest lodged a police report on Tuesday in Penang over the distribution of anonymous pamphlets advertising a "festival" to burn the Malay language bibles at a field there today. The police have called up Ibrahim, who is also the Pasir Mas MP, to record his statement, following calls by the Bar Council to charge him under the Sedition Act. A Sabah church group said last Friday that the religious freedom of Christian Bumiputeras was under attack, pointing out that most adherents of the faith in Malaysia came from East Malaysia and use the Malay language. Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday, however, refused to condemn Ibrahim's bible-burning threat, and instead called on people to stop blowing up the issue. The "Allah" dispute, which first erupted after the historic 2008 general election, remains a controversial topic in the run-up to this year's polls that must be held by April. Debate resurfaced last month after DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who is also the Penang chief minister, called on Putrajaya to lift a ban on Malay-language Bibles in Borneo Malaysia. Several state rulers and Islamic religious authorities then reminded non-Muslims of state laws banning use of the word, despite conflicting with a 2009 High Court judgment that ruled "Allah" was not exclusive to Islam.
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| Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:39 PM PST
(The Economist) - LIKE much that moves in Twitter-mad Saudi Arabia these days, it started with a single message. A lady in Dammam, the hub of the oil industry on the kingdom's Gulf coast, tweeted a complaint from a local shopping mall. Agents of the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (CPVPV), she said, were causing an unpleasant scene. The government-salaried vigilantes, a bearded auxiliary police force familiarly known to Saudis as the Hayaa, had marched officiously into an educational exhibit featuring plaster models of dinosaurs, turned off the lights and ordered everyone out, frightening children and alarming their parents. It was unclear precisely why the religious police objected to the exhibit, which apparently had been innocently featured at shopping centres across the Gulf for decades. Malls are one of the few public spaces where Saudis mix socially, and so often draw the Hayaa's attentions. Gone, however, are the days when its agents can go about their business unchallenged. Within minutes of the incident, a freshly minted Arabic Twitter hashtag, #Dammam-Hayaa-Closes-Dinosaur-Show, was generating scores of theories about their motives. Perhaps, suggested one, there was a danger that citizens might start worshipping dinosaur statues instead of God. Maybe it was just a temporary measure, said another, until the Hayaa can separate male and female dinosaurs and put them in separate rooms. Surely, declared a third, one of the lady dinosaurs had been caught in public without a male guardian. A fourth announced an all-points police alert for Barney the Dinosaur, while another suggested it was too early to judge until it was clear what the dinosaurs were wearing. Not a few tweets cast the incident in political terms. "Why close the show?" asked one. "It's not as if we don't see dinosaurs in newspapers and on TV and in the government every day." "They should go after the dinosaurs who sit on chairs," suggested another, seconded by a tweep who advised that dinosaurs in gilt-trimmed cloaks, the garment of choice for senior sheikhs, would make a better target. Read more at: http://www.economist.com/blogs/pomegranate/2013/01/saudi-arabia?fsrc=scn/tw/te/tr/forcedintoextinction
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| Perkasa ready to meet churches over bible-burning threat Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:38 PM PST
Boo Su-Lyn, The Malaysian Insider Malay rights group Perkasa has suggested a roundtable discussion with local church leaders to explain its president's recent threat to torch Malay-language Bibles. The Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) had called the threat "vile", stressing that all religious scriptures are sacred books. "Perkasa is willing to accept any church's invitation to get an explanation," Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hassan Syed Ali was quoted as saying today by Mingguan Malaysia, the weekend edition of Malay-language daily Utusan Malaysia. "Perkasa is always working on building up the muhibah (goodwill) spirit between races and religions in this country. Perkasa only strongly opposes anyone who tries to challenge the sanctity of Islam and the faith of its followers," he added. Last week, Perkasa chief Datuk Ibrahim Ali called on Muslims to burn Malay-language bibles that contain the word "Allah" and other religious Arabic script. A priest lodged a police report on Tuesday in Penang over the distribution of anonymous pamphlets advertising a "festival" to burn the Malay language bibles at a field there today. The Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) upset church leaders with its last Friday's sermon that warned Muslims nationwide of "enemies of Islam" that would try to confuse them into believing that all religions are the same. Muslim and Christian leaders here have been at loggerheads over use of the Arabic word "Allah", with the former claiming that it refers exclusively to the Islamic God. A church was firebombed after the High Court ruled in 2009 that Muslims did not have an exclusive right to the word "Allah". Debate resurfaced last month after DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who is also the Penang chief minister, called on Putrajaya to lift a ban on Malay-language Bibles in Borneo Malaysia. A Sabah church group said last Friday that the religious freedom of Christian Bumiputeras was under attack, pointing out that most adherents of the faith in Malaysia came from East Malaysia and use the Malay language. A Buddhist group urged today the National Unity and Integration Department, which is under the purview of the Prime Minister's Department, to resolve the drawn-out dispute over the usage of "Allah".
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| Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:36 PM PST SV Often we hear We hear the voices of hatred When race and religion And in their ignorance To them I say … listen Listen and you will hear Those who speak the language of hate Listen … Thank you Sharifah Zohra Thank you Sharifah Zohra Thank you Sharifah Zohra Thank you Bawani Thank you to the students in the hall Thank you to the organisers Thank you to the ones who recorded and shared this event Thank you to the beautiful Malaysians To those who ask I say
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| Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:32 PM PST
Ponggal rice is 'bountiful" and different from raw rice. PM Najib gave away handouts of raw rice as if "we are beggars" and Indian political parties to blame. Toffee Rozario, FMT Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak insulted the Indians in Klang. G Kathirvelu, an Indian I encountered in the Jalan Mohet, in the vicinity of where Najib was attending a Ponggal event on Jan 12 said: "This is an insult to the Indian community, he (Najib) came to give us a handout of rice, that is what we in the community do to beggars. "And if this was paid for by the shopkeepers and the MIC (then) there is a lot to answer for, we are no beggars. "Ponggal rice and raw rice are two different things, the Indians gave him Ponggal rice not raw rice." Kathirvelu, who is from Sungei Pelek, told me this was the common way Barisan treated Indians. Kathirvelu's father, who used to work in Tumbok estate, was a member of the MIC and during those days they used to promise to pay the Indian estate workers RM5 each if the Alliance won. And the poor workers, Kathirvelu said, would oblige. A few elections later he said, "the voters were split on this amount and as a result Cikgu Jaabar the independent won the seat. "Later to unseat Cikgu Jaabar in Sungei Pelek they paid the Indians RM10 each on the insistence of the MIC. Umno won on Indian votes then. "Even now they do the same and our people (the Indians) continue behaving like beggars, a culture brought about by the MIC. "It is a shame how they treat us and we allow ourselves to be treated too," said Kathirvelu. Blame the Indian NGOs He was so annoyed that he continued: "These people ( the Indians) who took the rice had no pride in themselves. They have the beggar mentality, they have not changed from my father's time. "Najib came to insult the Indians. The Indian political parties are responsible the ones who promote this beggar culture, undermining the integrity of the Indians. "They are advising an "vengayam" (onion) like Najib to treat us as beggars and telling Umno that this is when we will respond, this has to stop."
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| God and religion, two separate matters Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:28 PM PST
The raging 'Allah" issue has left this writer wondering if Jakim and National Fatwah Council clerics who can both "see and read" are "blind". Vidal Yudin Weil, FMT When I was young, my teacher told me that if I want to study facts I should take up archaeology, but if I want to find out what truth is all about I should choose philosophy. I ended up somewhere in the middle and discovered that between scientific evidence and logic, there are matters that require a 3rd element called faith - to believe and accept in the absence of facts and figures. And religion is one such matter. Let me give an example: Many people will ref use to switch-off the life supporting machine attached to a loved one who is in a comatose even though their religion tells them that there is a better place on the other side. Because nobody dead has ever come back to tell the situation, no one still living is willing to believe in the notion of a good life after death. It requires a lot of conviction, anguish, tears, and faith to believe in something non-existent to the naked eye. Fact is, you must first embrace in order to reject later. Twenty-five years ago the archbishop of Canterbury wrote in a book that the reason he wanted his children to learn about Christianity when they were young was because he wanted them to know exactly why they are rejecting the faith when they grew up in the future! This statement of his was, of course, very convincing in logic. But at the same time the message within was also causing a lot of alarming confusion and distress when read between the lines. Why? Because, it came from a man who was at the pinnacle of the 2nd largest Christian denomination in the world af ter Roman Catholicism. Anglicans were asking why the top shepherd of the Church of England is subliminally telling the flock to abandon Christianity. They fail to understand that he was actually telling them that they are infected with the mental malady identified as 'blind faith'. God and religion are two Many people today, like those who had lived in the last two millennia, do not know or understand the difference between God and religion! Seeking a God and embracing a religion are two separate matters. According to an Indian sage, God has no religion. Let me give another example: In the 3rd Surah of Al-i-Imran or The Family of Imran of the Quran at verse 19, it was written "The Religion before Allah is Islam [submission to His Will]". Notice that the phrase does not read "the religion of Allah is Islam"? Coming back to the Christians: It is written in the Bible that when the Prophet Moses asked God f or His Name, God replied in Exodus 3:14 "I AM THAT I AM" (King James Version). I can think of two possible explanations for such answer: 1) Maybe God does not have a name at that material time; or 2) God does have a name but it is none of Moses' business to know! To paint a satirical picture of the latter possibility, let me just share a hilarious incident that happened in Sabah more than 10 years ago. A Chinese tycoon (now fallen) with an Arabic-sounding name was featured on the front page of a local daily sinking a knif e into a roasted pig. The following day Majlis Ugama Islam Sabah (MUIS) asked him for an explanation as to why as a Muslim, he was seen cutting up a pig which in Islam is forbidden (haram)? He denied that he was a Muslim to which MUIS asked him about his name. Anyway, on the last day of the parody, the local paper carried his retort: "My name is my business"! The joke was on MUIS. Are Malaysia clerics 'blind"? Like all the other states in Malaysia, the Islamic authorities are conf used. In their minds an Arabic-sounding name must necessarily mean that the person is Muslim. Tareq Aziz, the f ormer Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq, was never a Muslim and neither is US President Barack Hussein Obama! Back to the Christians. . God said to the Prophet Isaiah in Chapter 42 verse 8 (World English Bible): "I am Yahweh, that is My name". Now that God's name was finally revealed, why do Christians in Malaysia still insist on addressing God as "Allah" when He has already said that His Name is "Yahweh"? The Jewish people have always addressed God as "Yahweh". The New Straits Times on 31st December 2012 reported that JAKIM reiterated that the word "Allah" is a holy word that belongs only to Muslims and Islam. It said the word cannot be used by non-Muslims and other religions. The JAKIM director-general said that the decision was reached in a National Fatwa Committee meeting in 2008. He also stated that it is mandatory for all Muslims to protect the word from insult or abuse. He said statements were made by certain quarters to create racial and religious disharmony just for the sake of gaining political mileage and that all quarters are to return to the rule of law. Firstly, I want to know how these clerics arrive at their distorted analysis. Did they really study and appreciate the theology of their own religion? It was written clearly in the 2nd Surah of Baqara or the Heifer of the Quran at verse 143: "For Allah is to all people Most surely full of Kindness, Most Merciful"! So, why is JAKIM claiming copyright on something that belongs to all mankind? I have heard of blind clerics who cannot see, but to have clerics who can both see and read and yet who do not understand scripture in plain and simple language, now this is my 1st time. Is there something wrong with their intelligence?
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| ‘Futile’ effort by anti-Bible group Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:25 PM PST
Nobody participated in the controversial Malay Bible-burning event schedued this morning in Penang. Leven Woon, FMT Penang police chief Abdul Rahim Hanafi today described the contentious Bible-burning event as "futile" after the venue remained empty hours after it was scheduled to start. The controversial event was scheduled for 9.30am at Dewan Ahmad Badawi, Butterworth, but nobody showed up until 11am. Police were seen patrolling the place since early this morning. Speaking at a press conference here, Abdul Rahim said: "It was a futile attempt by the organisers. "I am thankful that the event did not happen. I thank the people, especially the Malay Muslims, for not participating in the event. "As CPO responsible for the security here, I urge everyone not to bring up religious and cultural issues that can undermine the harmony in the country." Earlier this week, pamphlets were allegedly distributed by a little-known group called Pasukan Bertindak Anti-Bible Bahasa Melayu (Anti-Bible Action Force) urging Muslims to join in the Malay Bible-burning festival fixed for today. The pamphlets were distributed in the wake of a call to Muslims by Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali during a convention here to burn the Malay and Jawi versions of the Bibles containing the term "Allah" and other Islamic Arabic terms. Ibrahim's call was in response to allegations that Bibles were being distributed to students in a school in Jelutong. The call, police reports and subsequent "invitation" by the Anti-Bible Action Force sparked another round of heated debate and police reports with many accusing Ibrahim of inciting hatred. Others blamed Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for stoking an "old" issue by insisting that it is the right of Christians to use the term "Allah" in the Malay version of the Bible. Before the start of the no-show event, Abdul Rahim had warned the public not to participate while Lim had pledged to ensure that the event did not take place.
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| Please, please don’t discuss RCI testimonies Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:22 PM PST
'Negative discussions' and comments will discourage witnesses who are yet to give evidence from coming forward, claims Upko. Queville To, FMT A frazzled United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (Upko) has urged the public to refrain from gossiping and making comments about the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) hearing on illegal immigrants until it is completed. The plea comes as the Sabah Barisan Nasional coalition partners come under increasing scrutiny by their supporters over their collusion with Umno to form what many now believe to be an "illegal" government. The Sabah BN component party along with counterparts Parti Bersatu Sabah, Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah and the Liberal Democratic Party are all struggling to explain their presence in the coalition in the light of damning evidence that they all benefited from a government-sponsored citizenship-for-votes scheme implemented in the 1990s. Upko's plea is the umpteenth overt call from the state government to stifle public debate and reports of the ongoing inquiry. Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman has also called in newspaper editors and warned them against "sensationalised" reporting of the proceedings. Local and national English and Bahasa Malaysia language newspapers have largely obliged. Upko's deputy secretary-general Lucas Umbol has justified the call, saying that "negative comments" could discourage the witnesses who are yet to give their evidence from coming forward. He was responding to the scepticism expressed by some quarters on the integrity and independence of the RCI to investigate the extraordinary increase in the population of Sabah by the BN administration. "Witnesses who have testified so far have been giving their evidence and statements with ease without fear or favour. "Therefore all quarters should withhold their comments as their comments could intimidate incoming witnesses and prevent them from giving evidence without fear. "No one should make any conclusion at this point in time because there are still many more witnesses to come and members of the RCI need to be given ample space and time to complete their investigation," said Lucas, a member of the party's Tenom division. He said comments and opinions should only be given after the RCI had completed its public inquiry and the report was written and made public. Damning evidence Witnesses giving testimony at the RCI, many of whom were senior federal civil servants, have startled the country with their disclosures that the federal government had a hand in the massive population explosion of the state, especially in the 1990s, which was mainly done to ensure Umno and the BN would take and keep control of the state. Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who was in power at the time, has since declared that "there was nothing wrong" in giving tens of thousands of immigrants in Sabah citizenship as long as it was done legally. However, witnesses have revealed that in many instances the operation to grant citizenship and voting rights to immigrants and operating out of Kuala Lumpur did not seem to follow legal procedure and was done in a furtive way.
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| Dear Mr. Malaysian Mufti, is your theology without anthropology and philosophy? Posted: 26 Jan 2013 03:08 PM PST
In Islam, the word "Allah" is generic and one can choose to use 99 other names ... but the use of it by this "denomination of Malaysian Christians" for that one denotative-connotative word they are familiar with is their right; as they have understood what god means, historically and culturally. A REPUBLIC OF VIRTUE Dr Azly Rahman I am interested in discussing this opinion below, as reported by the Malaysia' new agency Bernama, recently: ********************************** "Muslims will become INFIDELS if they let others use 'Allah' " Perak mufti Harussani Zakaria today reminded Muslims in the country that they will become infidels if they allow non-Muslims to use the word 'Allah'. He explained that if the Muslims allowed the word Allah to be used by non-Muslims, it meant that they condoned the acts of the non-Muslims to associate Allah with lesser beings. "Thus, this consent also makes us (Muslims) to be infidels. We must be united in defending our faith," he told reporters after the official opening of the Damara Care and Herbs Sdn Bhd office in Ipoh today. "We cannot accept and compromise with those who associate Allah with lesser beings," he said. He called on the parties concerned to stop suggesting the use of the word 'Allah' in the Malay version of the Bible because this would challenge the patience of Muslims in the country. Two weeks ago, Johor Islamic Affairs Council adviser Nooh Gadut said those who allow the abuse of the word 'Allah' can be considered as apostates and should repent immediately. - Bernama ********************************** I suppose Mr. Mufti has not studied anthropology nor philosophy of religion enough to know that names/concepts of "god" evolve with the development of philology and linguistic sociology, and that the even in Christianity too these names used to denote "god" varies from culture to culture depending fundamentally on the countless "denominatons" of Christianity and variants of Catholicism framed cross-culturally, globally. I suppose if the learned Mr. Mufti had ventured beyond the study of Islamic theology, history, philology, and even the evolution of ecumenical studies specifically on the topic of the history of the idea of "god", he would not have made that statement too generalizing to be accepted by those who could think critically, but too appealing and dangerous to be agreed upon by those who understands religion as "rites and rituals" only. In Islam, the word "Allah" is generic and one can choose to use 99 other names ... but the use of it by this "denomination of Malaysian Christians" for that one denotative-connotative word they are familair with is their right; as they have understood what god means, historically and culturally. What then is this continued controversy about? I hope these kinds of "pre-fatwas" are not tied to the demands of political idiocy. I suggest we move on Mr. Mufti. Humbly I submit this: We ought to have other muftis start reading anthropology, philosophy, or even transcultural history of religion in order to frame our religious dialogues kaleidoscopically. And in leisurely calling Muslims who agree to the Christian use of "Allah" as "infidels", what are you saying about those world's Christians in the Middle East that have used that term meaningfully? The essential question remains: do Malaysians need opinions like yours as decrees -- any longer -- to move foward peacefully inter-religiously? Already we have a history of religious violence as a consequence of political idiocy: cowhead being dragged on the streets unashamedly, head of pigs thrown into suraus in a game of political conspiracy, a church being burned in the capital city, and now fascist-religious groups calling for the Christian Bible to be burned in an act of even desperate lunacy. We can do better than these as a nation, Mr. Mufti.The greatest enemy, to me say is not ignorance but the illusion of knowledge. In this case, I would say the greatest enemy is sel-imposed hegemony -- due to the lack of the will to study philosophy. ********************************** OUR USUAL REMINDER, FOLKS:
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| 13th Malaysian General Election: Prospects And Challenges For PAS Posted: 25 Jan 2013 07:12 PM PST
The controversy over the use of "Allah" by non-Muslims in Malaysia is one of the many tough issues that PAS has to deal with as a member of the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition which seeks to capture power in the coming general election. Can PAS walk the tightrope between political idealism and pragmatism should the opposition run the country? By Farish A Noor, Eurasia Review THE RECENT controversy over the use of "Allah" by Christians in Malaysia has raised questions about its impact on the political strategy of the Islamic party, PAS, in the run-up to the 13th general election expected anytime between now and 28 April this year. The extensive media coverage of the 'Allah' issue in Malaysia was sparked by a speech given by the Democratic Action Party (DAP) leader and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng during the Christmas celebrations last December. His defence of the use of 'Allah' by non-Muslims to denote 'God' met with a strong reaction from several quarters who insisted that the word Allah should be reserved for Muslims only. DAP's ally PAS initially supported Lim's position but then shifted its stance when its council of religious scholars declared that the word should be restricted to Muslims only. History of PAS' electoral performance This has highlighted, yet again, the deep fissures within the opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition and within PAS itself, between the conservative Ulama' and the so-called 'progressives' who are sometimes also called the 'Erdogan faction' of the party. Coming so soon before the upcoming general election, the debate raises the question of how PAS will perform and whether the Islamists will be able to come to power. To answer this question one would have to look at PAS' electoral performance since it was formed in 1951 and the rise and fall of its appeal over the past six decades. Since the elections of 1955, PAS' performance at the polls has been varied: In that year it won one Legislative Assembly seat; in the 1959 parliamentary elections after independence it won 13 seats; in 1964 nine seats; and in 1969 12 seats. After a brief period as member of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition in the 1974 elections, PAS ran on its own again, obtaining five seats in 1978 and 1982 and one in 1986. It won seven seats in 1990 and 1995; then secured 27 seats in 1999; seven in 2004 and 23 seats in 2008. It can be seen that PAS was strongest in the elections of 1969, 1990, 1995, 1999 and 2008 when it was part of a wider coalition. In 1990 and 1995, it joined the Semangat '46 party as the United Ummah Front and in 2008, it was allied to the PKR and DAP in the Barisan Alternatif (Alternative Front). Conversely PAS fared miserably in the elections of 1986 (one seat) and 2004 (seven seats) when it ran alone and when its political platform was seen as radical and potentially confrontational. Inevitability of coalition politics? Two conclusions can be drawn from the observation of PAS' electoral performance to date: Firstly, PAS cannot possibly come to power at the Federal level unless it is part of a coalition. Even during the party's brief stint in power during the 1970s, it was part of the ruling BN. Given Malaysia's ethnic landscape in which Malays and other Bumiputra ethnic groups make up around 60% of the population, PAS – like other Malaysian parties that have national aspirations – would have to seek multi-party allies as part of a wider alliance. Also, the nature of the Malaysian electorate, with disparate interests identified along ethnic, linguistic and religious lines, makes it virtually impossible for any party to gain power on its own without the support of other ethnic or religious-based parties as allies. This is true for PAS as it is for all the other parties: Even UMNO, which remains the biggest party in the country, is dependent on its coalition allies in the BN. Secondly, the nature of Malaysia's inter-ethnic bargaining process means that any party with national aspirations will have to cater to the needs and concerns of the Malaysian electorate as a whole, and not antagonise any of the ethnic and religious minorities in the country. As seen in the general elections of the mid-80s, PAS' worst performance was when the party was seen as being too radical and influenced by the rhetoric and tactics of radical Islamist parties worldwide in the wake of the Iranian revolution. In 2004 PAS performed poorly after its leaders openly came out in support of the Taliban and justified calls for 'jihad' against the West. This suggested that the Malaysian electorate, including the majority Malay-Muslim voters, are not inclined to support any political party that takes a radical approach to politics and articulates a revolutionary course to power. In this respect the Malaysian electorate remains a force of moderation that tempers the rhetoric and ambitions of all the parties in the country. Dilemma of coalition politics PAS seems set for now on the course of coalition politics and is unlikely to leave the Pakatan Rakyat coalition at this stage. However, the demands and concerns of the conservative section of the party will have to be addressed while the party's leadership pursues the goal of coming to power as part of a multi-ethnic and multi-religious coalition. Just how the needs and demands of the conservatives in PAS will be assuaged if PAS comes to power remains an open question. Thorny issues ranging from the enforcement of Islamic rules to moral policing remain for the Pakatan coalition to deal with. Here lies PAS' dilemma: it cannot come to power at the Federal level unless it remains part of a coalition, but it can never achieve its goal of creating an Islamic state as long as it remains in a coalition. The handling of the 'Allah issue' therefore gives some indication of what sort of coalition politics we can expect from PAS should it come to power as part of a wider coalition. PAS is likely to remain in the current Pakatan coalition as this provides a vehicle to gain power. But remaining in such a coalition will also place a strain on the competing demands and aspirations of both conservatives and progressives in the party. This is an internal conflict that is not likely to be resolved even if it were to assume control of the Federal government, for there are bound to be demands from its ranks to further pursue the party's original Islamist agenda that has been set since the 1950s. Such demands, however, cannot be placated without incurring the corresponding loss of support from PAS' coalition allies. Therefore compromise will have to remain the operational mode of PAS' day-to-day politics, while the party leadership walks the tightrope between pragmatism and political idealism. Farish A. Noor is Associate Professor with the Contemporary Islam Programme at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University.
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| Petra: Blame Mahathir all you want, but look yourselves in the mirror Posted: 25 Jan 2013 05:41 PM PST
(Harakah) - Prominent blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin (pic) has chided Malaysians for being more quick in pointing fingers when things go wrong in the country, and urged them to see how they contributed to the current mess by voting in Barisan Nasional without fail. "You want to blame (former prime minister) Dr Mahathir (Mohamad) for your stupidity. You do not want to admit that it is you who are stupid. So you blame BTN. You blame UMNO. You blame the mainstream media. You blame PAS. You blame the Islamic State. You blame Hudud. You blame the fact that Dr Mahathir has Indian blood in him. You blame the fact there was no Internet. You blame your parents who did not know any better.
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| PM: Non-Malays okay with fair affirmative action Posted: 25 Jan 2013 04:27 PM PST
Boo Su-Lyn, The Malaysian Insider Non-Malays do not oppose pro-Bumiputera affirmative action as long as it is fair and transparent, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said yesterday. The prime minister also said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland yesterday that the government was moving towards an affirmative action policy on the basis of needs instead of race. "By and large, the non-Malays in Malaysia, non-Bumiputeras in Malaysia don't actually oppose affirmative action," said Najib at an interview with CNN anchor Fareed Zakaria at the WEF yesterday. "But what they want to be seen, is the way you implement the policy (that) should be done in a more transparent and fairer way. And what they deserve as Malaysians, the non-Bumiputeras, they should also get what they deserve," he said at the forum that saw the participation of some 3,000 international leaders from government, business, civil society and media. Najib pointed out that entry to universities was now based on merit. "That has increased the percentage of Chinese Malaysians into universities. But interestingly, the Malaysian Indians have fared badly. So they want a quota system. "Because (in) the previous system, they got 7 per cent, but now, it's down to 3 per cent. But that goes to show that it's based on merit," said Najib, who is also the Barisan Nasional chairman. Asked about government contracts, Najib said: "But even government contracts, quite a bit of it is based on open bidding. Some of it, of course, there's some preference for Bumiputera." As the 13th general election draws near, Najib said last week that the best way to protect Malay and Bumiputera interest was to expand the economic pie and ensure equal distribution of wealth by merit. He stressed that non-Malays could accept merit-based wealth distribution and called for an end to the rent-seeking culture.
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| Najib: Social media a double-edged sword for Umno Posted: 25 Jan 2013 04:18 PM PST
Boo Su-Lyn, The Malaysian Insider Social media is both a boon and a bane for Umno as it caused Barisan Nasional (BN) to lose its customary two-thirds parliamentary majority in Election 2008, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said yesterday. The prime minister told CNN anchor Fareed Zakaria at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland yesterday that voters were getting more educated and critical. "I see the advent of ICT, social media as both something good, but also our bane. Could be our Achilles heel as well," said Najib in the interview with Fareed. "We need to realise that people are not going to give their vote to you based on how much you've done in the past," he added. Najib and his delegation are at the annual international forum that saw the participation of some 3,000 leaders from all around the world, including heads of state, as well as business, civil society, spiritual and media leaders. "Nobody can deny the fact that Umno and Barisan Nasional, we're the people who fought for independence. We're the people who developed the country. "But people today are saying that's in the past," the prime minister said. BN lost two-thirds parliamentary majority in the historic 2008 general elections that saw four states - Perak, Penang, Kedah and Selangor - falling to the loose coalition of PAS, PKR and DAP, that later formed Pakatan Rakyat (PR). Najib stressed that voters at the coming 13th general election were more concerned with what the government could do for them in future. "That's important for us to realise, that the level of expectation has increased by leaps and bounds," said Najib, who is also the BN chairman. There are currently about 13.6 million Facebook users in Malaysia out of a 28.3 million-strong population, which is a 48 per cent penetration of the population, according to monitoring website socialbakers.com. A total of 29 per cent of Facebook users in Malaysia are aged between 25 and 34 years.
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| Friday sermon irks local church leaders as ‘Allah’ row rages on Posted: 25 Jan 2013 04:12 PM PST
Clara Chooi, The Malaysian Insider Local clergymen are unhappy that federal Islamic authorities appear to be bent on "waging a war" between the country's Muslims and Christians over the protracted dispute on non-Muslims' usage of "Allah" to refer to their God. When contacted for their response to yesterday's Friday sermon by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim), church leaders sighed in disappointment that the religious authority was so blatantly inciting suspicion and intolerance between the two most dominant religions here. But they refrained from condemning Jakim, noting that the authority reserved the right to preach to all Islamic followers like how church leaders could preach to parisioners, adding that it was time to lay the matter to rest. "The emphasis is unfortunate, because all religious places should be teaching people to live in peace and harmony with others, instead of cultivating a culture of suspicion," said Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) general secretary Rev Dr Hermen Shastri (picture). Treading carefully, the leader said that religions should always foster togetherness and acceptance, and should prevent from creating a society of fanatics. "But that is all I can say at this point," he added. Catholic priest Rev Fr Simon Labrooy was more forward with hs words, asking if the individual or individuals who penned the sermon in Jakim had unity or division in his mind. He said it was not the Malaysian Muslims who were "waging a war" on the Christians, but suggested that it was the person who wrote the sermon who should be investigated for his intention. "Never that the Muslims are to blame for doing this. But who has the right to write this? He should be hauled up because it shows that in his mind, he is already inciting religious tension. "Next, we have already provided a lot of facts o why and how 'Allah' has been used by Christians... why do you want to commit yourself to a blatant lie like this? "How could you judge the Arab-speaking world, particularly the Christians who use 'Allah' there?" he said. When asked if Subang Jaya parisioners in his flock have been affected by the ongoing polemic or feel animosity towards Muslims, Labrooy said Christians are aware that the ordinary Muslim is not the one responsible for the dispute. "They (Muslims) too do not want tension or trouble... this is just the work of a few bad apples," he said. Our Lady of Lourdes Church parish priest Rev Fr Michael Chua said the latest Friday sermon would warrant another discussion among CFM members on whether they should issue another response to the issue. "This is not the first time... there have been many other occasions and we cannot be responding to every single thing. "Let us stick to our last stand on this issue... for the sake of not prolonging this," he said, referring to CFM's remarks on the threat by Perkasa chief Datuk Ibrahim Ali to burn Malay language Bibles.
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| PAS: Friday sermon an attempt to spread religious hatred Posted: 25 Jan 2013 04:05 PM PST
Md Izwan, The Malaysian Insider Several PAS leaders have blasted Malaysia's Islamic authorities for allegedly stoking religious hatred during yesterday's Friday prayers for Muslim by calling labeling those who insist on using "Allah" to describe their God as "enemies of Islam". According to the few leaders contacted by The Malaysian Insider, the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim), which had prepared the sermon, had failed to portray Islam as a religion od peace and understanding, and had instead shown intolerance. "Jakim's move was an attempt to incite the sentiment of hatred towards the Christians. "This attitude is inappropriate and irresponsible," Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad said. In Jakim's Friday sermon yesterday, the religious authority had warned Muslims nationwide of attempts by "enemies of Islam" to confuse them into believing that all religions are the same. Muslims here were also told that being too open-minded and allowing Islamic rights to be abused by other religions was a "dangerous" act. "It is very clear that today, enemies of Islam are seeking to divert and undermine the Muslim community's faith. "They are united among themselves and are attempting, with their many tricks and ways, to stake their claim on the usage of 'Allah' in their scriptures," the sermon said. Jakim insisted that "Allah", a word that millions of Arab Christians and those in non-Arabic-speaking lands use to describe their God, belongs to Muslims and is an exclusive right to those who profess Islam as it is clearly to prevent Muslims from becoming confused, doubtful and mistaken over the true identity of the Muslim God. Citing an unnamed academic research, Jakim said that the word "Allah" was never found in the Bible as God, to these users of the holy book, exists in the Trinity concept as "God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. The general term for the Holy Trinity, said the religious department, is "The Lord". As such, Jakim insisted that the National Fatwa Council's 2008 decision on the matter was accurate in stating that "Allah" cannot be used by those of other religions and cannot be likened to the Gods of others. The authority also warned that painful punishment would await disbelievers in the afterlife, noting that these "symptoms" if Islam's collapse would only destroy the glory and prestige of Muslims here. But Khalid said Jakim had not furnished proof to back its claims and was merely pointing fingers to drive a deeper wedge between the country's Muslims and Christians. "But why speak ill of the Christians, not all of them are bad. In fact, Islam is no advocate of this prejudiced behaviour to those of other faiths," he added. Instead, the lawmaker accused Jakim of being the reason why some Muslims are confused over their religious beliefs, arguing that the authority had failed to strengthen the faith of Muslims here. He said if Jakim believed that the faith of Muslim here has weakened, it should have used the sermon to differentiate between Islamic and Christian teachings, instead of condemning followers of the latter faith. PAS vice-president Salahuddin Ayub agreed with his party colleague's views, adding that JAKIM had become Barisan Nasional's (BN) tool to flare hatred at a time when religions tension was already at a high. "I'd like to ask, what is Jakim's role and responsibility when preaching to Muslims? "Jakim has become BN's tool... in fact, they had also twisted he statement made by the PAS Syura Council earlier this month," he added.
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| Posted: 25 Jan 2013 03:48 PM PST
Is the government taking in large number of foreign workers to fulfill a specific purpose? Otherwise why the increasing influx? Selena Tay, FMT Now it has been revealed that under the tenure of former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, citizenship has been given out to foreigners who landed on Sabahan shores. This is a matter of grave concern but the current news is that many foreigners who invaded the Peninsular after the 2008 general election have been given fast-tracked citizenship. In fact one of the greatest invasion has and is currently taking place in Kuala Lumpur is the invasion by Bangladeshis who have now overwhelmed the city in these locations: 1. Jalan Hang Lekir 2. Jalan Hang Lekiu 3. Jalan Hang Kasturi 4. Lebuh Pudu, areas surrounding Pudu Sentral and Menara Maybank 5. Chinatown, Jalan Petaling and Jalan Sultan 6. Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, Jalan Tun HS Lee and Jalan Tun Tan Siew Sin 7. Jalan Yap Ah Loy 8. Jalan Tun Perak and Lebuh Ampang 9. Areas surrounding Central Market (Pasar Seni) and Kota Raya Daily these Bangladeshis can be seen in these areas, milling around in groups of six to eight, carrying their large bags, many of them just arrived. On the weekends, it is much worse. Thousands of them are on the streets, crowding into the remittance houses and the business premises owned by their fellow countrymen. Is there a specific purpose? The situation already resembles Dhaka during the weekdays and on weekends you will be forgiven for thinking you are in Bangladesh if you happen to walk on the streets mentioned above. Other areas in KL where there are lots of foreigners are: 1. Jalan Raja Laut, Jalan Chow Kit and the Lorong Haji Taib areas populated by Indonesians; 2. Selayang Wholesale Market populated by Myanmarese; and 3. Sentul populated by Bangladeshis and Indians from India. Recently this situation has gotten worse as the federal government has lifted the ban on the import of Bangladeshi workers although ban or no ban, the situation has always been worse, no difference at all. Is the government taking in foreign workers to fulfill a specific purpose? Otherwise why the increasing influx? It must be stated that foreign workers are here only for working purposes. Can those who gave instructions for them to be given fast-tracked citizenship and the ones who follow those instructions be categorised as "working against the interests of the nation"? Simply allowing citizenship to be given to every Tom, Dick and Harry reveals the extreme stupidity of those who engage in such a traitorous act as these unskilled workers can pose a genuine threat to the lives of Malaysian citizens because during their time-off, these foreign workers can easily indulge in crime. A few bad apples is all that it takes to cause a Malaysian's life miserable. Admittedly there are many good foreign workers but the price to pay in the increasing crime rate caused by those who are jobless is just too high a price. As the BN federal government is the only government who has been governing Malaysia, it is the BN federal government then who will be blamed as the ones who initiated this problem because the National Registration Department (NRD) is under their purview.
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| Being out of sync with reality Posted: 25 Jan 2013 03:45 PM PST
The country's peace and stability is at stake but BN remains engrossed with its pet project BR1M and ways and means to stay in power. Jeswan Kaur, FMT Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin says ruling party Barisan Nasional has successfully preserved the country's harmony and peace and provided comfort for the people. And for this reason, BN can be relied upon to live up to its promises, hence the need for it to win the next general election. For one, the deputy premier and education minister is out of sync with reality. And he has also taken to day dreaming. To begin with, no credit can be given to BN for maintaining peace and harmony back home. As for comfort, the rakyat can vouch for the poorly planned infrastructures and the pigeon-holed PPR flats. It is no secret that BN desperately wants to win the coming 13th GE. For that reason alone the federal government has resorted to money politics under the pretext of allocations for schools or mosques or markets. To make claims of BN being instrumental in restoring harmony in the country is one big lie. Had the nation's peace and harmony been BN's priority, both prime minister Najib Tun Razak and Muhyiddin would have taken insurgents like Ibrahim Ali, founder of the Malay rights group Perkasa to task for threatening peace and stability in the country. Similarly, both the PM and DPM would not have wasted time in reprimanding the Suara Wanita 1Malaysia chief Sharifah Zohra Jabeen and Wanita Umno member Norhayati Saidin, for their racist remarks. While Ibrahim, the MP for Pasir Mas has urged Muslims to burn the Malay Bibles which contain the word "Allah" under the guise that he is protecting the sanctity of Islam, Sharifah was at her worst behaviour when she attended a forum at Universiti Utara Malaysia last month, turning unruly and racist towards a student seeking answers to her question on 'free education in Malaysia". But neither Ibrahim nor Sharifah bore the brunt of their actions. Likewise, Norhayati who insulted the Indian community for "not knowing what a toilet was until BN came into power" was also not dealt with severely by BN chief Najib Tun Razak. Trouble brew long ago The fact that the pro-Umno racist politicians are never rebuked by the "powers that be" is proof that the likes of Ibrahim, Sharifah and Norhayati have BN/Umno's blessings in all that they too. As for the rakyat, they should stop hoping for a miracle in the form of a redeemed BN. Muyhiddin meanwhile should cease making a fool of himself for being utterly ignorant about the country's status quo where peace and harmony go. To trust BN with the country's administration is a blunder the rakyat cannot afford to make, not when BN has revealed its true colours by not speaking up for the non-Malay residents of this country. If truth be told, Malaysia's harmony and peace were in "trouble" a long time ago and BN never bothered learning the bitter lessons from the May 13, 1969 racial riots. Four decades later, the inter-faith issues in this country still rile up the rakyat. Why?
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| Allah stand: PAS grassroots unhappy Posted: 25 Jan 2013 03:42 PM PST
Anwar Ibrahim's stand on the matter, says a PAS man, shows how much regard the former has for the Islamic party's religious credentials. Hawkeye, FMT BUKIT MERTAJAM: PAS grassroots are getting disillusioned with Pakatan Rakyat over the opposition bloc's inability to resolve the issue of allowing non-Muslims to use the word Allah, claims former Penang PAS Youth head Mohamed Hafiz Nordin. Alleging that he has come to represent the voice of the PAS grassroots here, Hafiz said many members are not coming out openly to express their anxieties out of respect for the party leadership. Nonetheless, they are expressing their grievances through him, Hafiz told a press conference. "PAS members including me are a discipline lot. I would never exit from PAS as my struggle is Islam. It is only that I am the outspoken kind and would not relent in speaking my mind. I am willing to represent the feelings of those who are unhappy in PAS," he added. He said the insistence from Pakatan leader Anwar Ibrahim that non-Muslims are allowed to use the word in Malay-language bibles runs contrary to the PAS Syura Council's stance on the matter. "It shows how much regard Anwar has for PAS' religious credentials. We are disappointed with his decision," he added. Secondly, DAP's lack of sensitivity towards PAS is another thing which has undermined the ties down the line in Pakatan, Hafiz said. He said there is no harm for Anwar to seek for the Pakatan leadership council to review their earlier stance that non-Muslims can use the word. It is also good for DAP to allow PAS to explain things, especially on how the council arrived at the decision to extol that it is best that non-Muslims refrained from using the word Allah. Hafiz said the grassroots members foremost loyalty is towards PAS, and not Pakatan, as their membership is based on Islam's struggle.
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| Posted: 25 Jan 2013 11:24 AM PST
There was a certain kind of magic, innocence, and sincerity to foster a Malaysian identity, back then. It didn't matter what race you were one could love to one's heart's content folks like these: P Ramlee, AR Tompel, Aziz Sattar, Saloma, Siput Sarawak, Ayappan, Lim Goh Poh, Andre Goh, Kartina Dahari, Orchid Abdullah, soccer players like V Arumugam the 'Spider Man', Soh Chin Aun 'The Towkay', Shaharuddin Abdullah the cool guy, Mokhtar Dahari 'Super Mokh', Santokh Singh, and many other great names that helped make Malaysian Malaysia proud. A REPUBLIC OF VIRTUE Dr Azly Rahman With the state of racial and religious things entire in our beloved Malaysia today - rumours of a festival of Bible-burning, continuing humiliation of the Malaysian Indians especially, the death of critical sensibility in our public universities, the devastating revelations of the 'Sabah IC-gate' plot, the issue of 'stateless Indians' and the criminalisation of children not able to be schooled because they were born 'stateless' and a host of other issues Malaysian-ly unbecoming. I have decided to travel down the path of nostalgia. I am quite sure many of you reading this column would agree that the late sixties and early seventies presented a good frame of reference of what it means to be Malaysian and what 'national identity' could be about. Names upon names came back to me as I conjure fond memories. There was a certain kind of magic, innocence, and sincerity to foster a Malaysian identity, back then. It didn't matter what race you were one could love to one's heart's content folks like these: P Ramlee, AR Tompel, Aziz Sattar, Saloma, Siput Sarawak, Ayappan, Lim Goh Poh, Andre Goh, Kartina Dahari, Orchid Abdullah, soccer players like V Arumugam the 'Spider Man', Soh Chin Aun 'The Towkay', Shaharuddin Abdullah the cool guy, Mokhtar Dahari 'Super Mokh', Santokh Singh, and many other great names that helped make Malaysian Malaysia proud. One could laugh at the comedian-ventriloquist Jamali Shadat's jokes, remember names such a V Sambanthan, Khir Johari, the great statesman Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman, Tan Siew Sin, Temenggung Jugah (the man with a really cool haircut I so wanted one... ), Aishah Ghani, and of course the reluctant but down-to-earth and benevolent multiculturalist-statesman Tunku Abdul Rahman with his famous uncontrollable blurting of Malay curse words and his philosophy of "oil and water can never mix". A simple, yet profound life was back then...
Those were the days before today... when hell is breaking loose. What happened to the ethos of that genre, I wonder. Growing up in the early 70s, different words to describe reality, practices, and possibilities were dancing happily around me. Perhaps those street names tune us to calmness... Jalan/Lorong Aman, Sentosa, Bahagia, Rahmat, Syukur, Ne'mat, and Merdeka... All these shaped the child's mind, such as that of mine growing up with a fascination of names, as if living is about being taught names and being able to "read the self and the word" in order to be liberated. There were also words related to spirituality; words such as 'sembah-Hyang', marhaban, berzanji, kenduri, berkhatan, and bersugi gigi... There were also cool words related to Malay magic such as jampi serapah, tangkal, kemenyan, dukun, pawang, and of course the "mambang laut-mambang darat-mambang udara" trinity/trio"...
Back in the day of the smooth-sailing seventies people were happy wearing what ought to be simple fashion and accessories... kebaya, baju kurong (not a straitjacket mind you), baju Melayu Telok Blangah, terompah, selipar chapal, selipar Jepun... manik koran, and all kinds of Malay, Chinese, and Indian 'bling bling' to adorn oneself with cultural niceties. Growing up in the kampong, I was not attuned to hearing totally foreign words, imported from elsewhere to denote and connote the self, spirituality, and salvation, and "saving the soul of others"; words such as solat, dakwah, ushrah, tarbiyyah jihad, muzakarah, jubah, serban, hijab, purdah, burqah, niqab, Arqam, tabligh, Ayatollah, muktamaar, buah tamar, or even Daulah Islamiyah... Not that I knew or had even heard of... until the beginning of the eighties when these words like Karl Marx would say, became technologies of the "body, mind, and spirit" that changed the social relations of production and the ideological landscape of the country and the consciousness of a segment of Malay people... And I never heard anyone wanting to burn the Bible nor shout "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) when scoring goals in a friendly kampong football match. And the beauty of living back in the day was how the self was constructed out of the early introduction to pluralism/multiculturalism such that in me, every time the Chinese spirit of Bruce Lee possesses me, I could just go out and beat up my best friend Fook Shiang for example. We could then walk to town and overdose on the Indian food tosei and capati. Along the way we would stop by breezy Lido beach to grab a bite of the Javanesse soul food tauhu (tofu) sumbat. Next, we could stop by at our teacher's house and listen to his stories of Malay spiritual powers and magic called 'Ilmu Budi Suci' where the energy within possibly called the 'chi' can be harnessed so that one could kick like Bruce Lee without even touching your enemy! Then, back in the day, we could go home after that to watch Joe Bugner got punched out into outer space by the 'Black Superman' named Muhammad Ali. I could still remember the words of the announcer ... "Annnddd in thissss corneerrr... weighing 220 pounds... from Louisville Kentucky... the undisputed world champion... Moooo hammaaaad... Aaaa Liiii... Aaaa Liiiii... Aaaa Liiii..." to the sounds of the audience gone berserk. I could go on and one with this nostalgic; a trip down memory lane of the seventies especially, just by recalling words and words that were synonymous with a world that was about to enter globalisation but was dealing with a strange brew of modernisation and uneven development - a Malaysia before Mahathirism. That was true multiculturalism without any strand of today's idiocy. That was our Malaysia with a lot of sense and sensibility.
DR AZLY RAHMAN, who was born in Singapore and grew up in Johor Bahru, holds a Columbia University (New York) doctorate in International Education Development and Master's degrees in the fields of Education, International Affairs, Peace Studies and Communication. He has taught more than 40 courses in six different departments and has written more than 300 analyses on Malaysia. His teaching experience spans Malaysia and the United States, over a wide range of subjects from elementary to graduate education. He currently resides in the United States.
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| Scriptures, neighbours, Terry Jones and Ibrahim Ali Posted: 25 Jan 2013 11:18 AM PST
On the second shelf were all the scriptures we owned: including the Bible and the Quran. And copies of various Hindu works. These were given pride of place and handled with great care. write2rest Some years ago I read Max Rodenbeck's Cairo: The City Victorious. Cairo gave me good insights about how people cope politically, socially and economically in a crowded city. Read more at: http://write2rest.blogspot.com/2013/01/scriptures-neighbours-terry-jones-and.html | ||||||||
| Even the Devil (You Know And Not The Angel That You Don’t?) Should Be Given the Benefit of ... Posted: 25 Jan 2013 11:11 AM PST
Back in the Henry VIII days, the punishment for high treason was "hanged, drawn and quartered". Convicts were fastened to a wooden panel, and drawn by horse to the place of execution, where they were hanged (almost to the point of death), disembowelled and quartered (chopped into four pieces). Nicole Tan Lee Koon The following article by Kim Quek is basically a "Project M or Project IC for dummies" : http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/sabah-rci-what-next-kim-quek/. I would like to add my two sens' worth of thought on it. You see, it is a well-known secret that Dr M started this clandestine project in the 1990's to capture Sabah for UMNO. After much pressure from the Opposition, a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on Integrity headed by Bernard Dompok was set up in February 2007. Three months later, Dompok quit as chairman of the committee over disagreements on the function and scope of the committee, in particular, over the refusal of the National Registration Department to appear before the committee. The findings of the PSC were never made public. In May 2008, Lim Kit Siang tabled a motion to set up a Royal Commission to investigate the problems relating to illegal immigrants in Sabah. The motion however was rejected by the Deputy Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, Ronald Kiandee. Subsequently, Pak Lah announced the setting up of a high powered cabinet committee chaired by the then Deputy PM Najib Tun Razak. However, it was pointed out by a senior Sabahan politician Chong Eng Leong similar committees were set up in 2000 and 2006 without any results. Merely lip service to pacify Sabahans. There were several government crackdown operations to deport illegal immigrants since the 1990s. The last crackdown was in August 2008. These operations served to deport immigrants without proper documentations but it does not serve to address the issue of Project IC. Najib not only did not produce any results from the so-called high powered cabinet committee, he became an expert in giving out citizenships to illegal immigrants himself as it was stated whilst Dr M had given citizenships to foreigners in Sabah to stay in power, Najib is now doing the same in the whole country! (http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/01/24/you-help-me-i-give-you-ic/) The whole exercise, according to Raja Petra, was like a Hollywood movie script. It seems that UMNO used funds from Libya to cut a deal with Abu Sayyaf to overthrow PBS in Sabah. Dr M finally admitted that he gave out citizenships during his tenure and claimed that it was legal. Dr M conveniently disregarded the Reid Commission by saying that what he did was as legal as what Tunku Abdul Rahman did by giving out citizenships to Chinese and Indians! Remember the unsuccessful coup d'etat by the Al Ma'unah? Mohamed Amin and his group were charged for "waging war against the King" or treason, and became the first people convicted of such an offence in Malaysia. I opine that what Dr M, Megat Junid, Aziz Shamsuddin and Najib did (if found to be true) was even more serious than Al Ma'unah and if found to be true, they should be charged with high treason! Interestingly, Al Ma'unah was charged for treason which is a British legacy under the Malaysian common law. Back in the Henry VIII days, the punishment for high treason was "hanged, drawn and quartered". Convicts were fastened to a wooden panel, and drawn by horse to the place of execution, where they were hanged (almost to the point of death), disembowelled and quartered (chopped into four pieces). Their body parts were then displayed in prominent places across the country, such as London Bridge. I know one anti-Dr M guy who used to jokingly say that he wants to see Dr M hanged between the Petronas twin towers in his inebriated state. It may be proper during the Middle Ages but not at this time and age. As I subscribe to Sir Thomas More's contention that even the devil (that we know and not the angel that we don't?) must be given the benefit of the law. In conclusion, I hope that perpetrators of such blatant and treasonous acts of giving out citizenships to illegal immigrants in order to continue their hegemony be brought to justice with the due process of law.
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| Atrocities of the illegal car park operators and the negligence of Selayang Municipal Council Posted: 25 Jan 2013 11:02 AM PST
It is to be noted here with due emphasis that Selayang Municipal has been notified about this exasperating behavior via multiple phone calls and reports but it seems they are shutting one eye to the obvious as to this matter. During the lodge of report every year, Selayang Municipal comes with the same excuse that they will deal with this matter every single year but till this day, nothing appears to have changed. Justina Illegal car parking is widely reported on the Net and in newspapers. Adding to this queue, the Batu Caves Temple during Thaipusam is a perfect example demonstrating the atrocities and aggressive behaviors of illegal car park operators. Its obvious to all who park their cars outside Batu Caves Temple during Thaipusam that the car park rate is at rocket prices. The illegal car attendants charge rates ranging from RM5 to RM10 for a car to be parked the whole day. This is made even worse when they charge for cars parked just nearby the road and claim that they will be taking good care of the car but the hidden truth is the moment the car park space is full, they abscond with the money. Upon confrontation with them, they appear to demonstrate their aggressive behaviors towards car owners and insult them with humiliating vulgar words. Some even have the courage of telling the car owners that if they wish to park here, they can park at their free will and nobody is forcing them to do so. It is to be noted here with due emphasis that Selayang Municipal has been notified about this exasperating behavior via multiple phone calls and reports but it seems they are shutting one eye to the obvious as to this matter. During the lodge of report every year, Selayang Municipal comes with the same excuse that they will deal with this matter every single year but till this day, nothing appears to have changed. Hope this year will be different as the Thaipusam festival is one of the main attractions of Malaysia and matters such as this tends to disturb the occasion and contaminate the reputation of Malaysia for tourists.
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| MTUC Calls for Royal Commission Inquiry on Foreign Workers Posted: 25 Jan 2013 10:56 AM PST
Quite frankly, if they cannot afford to pay a minimum wage that is just at the poverty line they have no business to be in business. Andrew Lo, Secretary MTUC Sarawak Division CHUA SOI LECK & Small Businesses - Don't cut your noses to spite your faces. The latest woeful attempts by certain business groups to squeeze more out of their workers, especially foreign workers just show the true colours of Malaysian employers. To resort to threat of demonstration show how low they can stoop to. The Minimum Wage policy was finally introduced precisely because of the exploitation of workers especially by these small businesses who contrary to popular thinking, actually make much more than you and me. There are 600 thousand businesses in Malaysia. If it is not lucrative, why are there so many wanting to be in business? I am shocked that the President of MCA has openly threatened to support demonstrations to get their way. His statement only goes to show that he is only serving the interest of MCA leaders who own such businesses. This is what he is reported to have said; "If it fails to do so by then and if many small and medium sized enterprises, including those run by MCA leaders, want to have a demonstration against the ministry, we will support them." MCA, said Dr Chua, had proposed to the ministry almost a month ago that foreign workers pay for their own levy, transport and housing costs following the implementation of minimum wage. Transport and accommodation allowances for foreign workers, he said, could be deducted from their minimum wage. MCA should do so after the employment agents who charge exorbitant fees and make billions out of the whole foreign workers racket, instead of asking the poor foreign workers, who bear subsistence expenses to pay for the levy transportation and housing cost. It beggars believe that these employers, who are the most vocal opponents of the minimum wage can proudly claim that they are still paying RM500 wages to even local employees. The Minimum Wage Order gave them the chance to apply for deferment but they refuse to produce audited accounts to back up their claims that they will go bankrupt saying that it is a trade secret. Quite frankly, if they cannot afford to pay a minimum wage that is just at the poverty line they have no business to be in business. Please understand that one of the main objectives of the MW is to reduce our reliance-addiction on foreign workers. By demanding that they bear food and levy will only serve to encourage these unscrupulous employers to continue to employ more foreign workers at huge social, security and cost to the country. We believe that it's at least 2 to 3 millions of them. It will open up to the possibility that soon unscrupulous party may issue I/C to them. MTUC has been calling for a Royal Commission Inquiry on the whole racket of recruiting and employing foreign workers. Please also think carefully as all these attempts to squeeze them will come back and bite the employers as one day foreign workers may not even want to come to this country. So don't cut your nose to spite your faces.
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| Bendera PKR dan PAS diconteng dengan lambang Salib di negeri Johor Posted: 25 Jan 2013 10:51 AM PST
(Harakah) - Tidak cukup dengan berbagai-bagai jenis keganasan dan vandalisma yang dilakukan oleh samseng-samseng yang diupah RM30 oleh UMNO terhadap apa saja yang menjadi milik PKR/Pakatan Rakyat.. kini bendera pula menjadi mangsa.
Kejadian dilaporkan telah berlaku di sebuah negeri yang dikatakan sebagai Kubu kuat terakhir bagi UMNO di Selatan Semenanjung.
Satu perbuatan jahat yang sungguh mencelakan dilaporkan berlaku di Johor malam tadi apabila bendera PAS dan PKR dicalitkan (print) dengan lambang salib. Kejadian itu berlaku di Batu Pahat Johor.
Saksikan juga bagaimana di negeri ini anak-anak Melayu yang masih bersekolah diajar untuk menjadi kurang ajar dengan menunjukkan isyarat lucah kepada beberapa pemimpin dari Pakatan Rakyat di ( SINI ) | ||||||||
| Posted: 24 Jan 2013 07:51 PM PST
P Gunasegaram, Malaysiakini Numbers, they say, never lie although statistics can be made to. Where they are most useful, however, is when they can be analysed to give a scale of the magnitude of the task ahead for someone who wants to achieve something. The opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition, comprising of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), PAS, DAP and allies in Sabah and Sarawak, has made plain its target of taking over the government in the next 13th general election, and is publicly confident of doing so. P GUNASEGARAM is publisher and editor of business news portal KiniBiz which is to be set up next month in a joint venture with Malaysiakini. He has worked as a journalist and analyst in Malaysia for over 30 years.
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| Race in politics, politics in race Posted: 24 Jan 2013 07:47 PM PST  KTemoc Konsiders I have just read P Gunasegaram's article Who will win GE13? in Malaysiakini. He has very methodically, and I believe quite logically, laid down his points which argue that it will be a tough struggle for Pakatan to secure a majority of federal seats in Peninsula to claim rule after the election. But he said it's tough though not impossible, using the March 2008 results as indicative of Pakatan achieving the 'impossible'.
But he cautioned that it will likely be a very close call, where in such a situation, every single vote will count, more than ever before in Malaya/Malaysia's 55 years' history as an independent nation. Malaysian politics is the story of politics of race or, if you like, race in politics. Unfortunately we can't escape racial discussions in politics because in truth we haven't yet possess adequate thrust (or trust) and thus the required escape velocity to overcome its powerful gravitational pull, which compels us into more mundane Earthly understanding of its issues.
One insight Gunasegaram shared with us in his article has been that the Chinese vote bank is more or less already owned by Pakatan, and thus any further increase in Chinese support will likely not be as dramatically significant as it had been in 2008. Whatever moderate gains Pakatan will further obtain from the Chinese in GE-13 will probably be in some MCA-held seats in Johor.
Also, rumours have it that Hishamuddin Hussein will be changing his seat for another as 40% of the registered voters in his current constituency of Sembrong are Chinese, so that could well be a pending Pakatan seat. Of course there may be gains in additional Chinese-majority seats in Sabah and Sarawak, but I'll leave this sector to better informed people to enlighten me. One glaring omission in Gunasegaram's article has been the Indian factor in Peninsula. Remember how Uthayakuamar and his supporters and sympathizers kept telling us it was the Hindraf-galvanized Indian mass that enabled Pakatan to achieve its 2008 election wins, ... ... and how he would withdraw that Hindraf-ized Indian support for Pakatan if the coalition doesn't listen to and accept his HRP's several demands, one of which had been the right to contest in 7 parliamentary seats and 16 state seats without Pakatan's participation, based on a Free Malaysia Today's report on 14 September 2011 titled HRP demands 23 seats from Pakatan.
The seven parliamentary seats he wanted were: (1) Padang Serai (Kedah) currently held by Gobalakrishnan, formerly PKR, (2) Batu Kawan (Penang) currently held by Dr Ramasamy (DAP) (3) Ipoh Barat (Perak) currently held by Kulasegaran (DAP) (4) Kota Raja (Selangor) currently held by Siti Mariah Mahmud (PAS) (5) Teluk Kemang (Negri Sembilan) currently held by Kamarul Baharin Abbas (PKR) (6) Cameron Highlands (Pahang) currently held by Devamany Krishnasamy (MIC), and (7) Tebrau (Johor) currently held by Teng Book Soon (MCA). Now, hasn't Uthayakumar just been the brightest spark in the class in asking Pakatan to meekly surrender 5 of their federal seats for his HRP to contest in GE-13, with 3 of the 5 seats held by his fellow Indians? Surely this calls for a re-reading of my post Malaysian Racism & The 3 Baskets of Crabs at my other blog BolehTalk, wakakaka.
The 16 state seats he wanted were Bukit Selambau and Lunas (Kedah), Prai and Bagan Dalam (Penang), Buntong and Hutan Melintang (Perak), Port Dickson and Jeram Padang (Negri Sembilan), Tanah Rata and Ketari (Pahang), Puteri Wangsa and Tiram (Johor) and Sri Andalas, Ijok, Seri Setia and Bukit Melawati (Selangor). You can work it out how many of those seats are currently held by Pakatan. Help you with a couple: Khalid Ibrahim holds Ijok, wakakaka, and Dr Ramasamy holds Prai, wakakaka again.
What do you reckon Pakatan would have told him? Maybe something like this: You claimed to have gifted mandores In 2008 with a Hindraf blank cheque Now you want us to be like whores To give in and lie down on our back Perhaps mandores we may well be Though if you expect us to give in To demands so big-headedly crazy Tambi, we'd be committing a big sin Wakakaka, and I am not sure whether Uthayakumar is still insisting on these 23 seats. But anyway, back on track, I wish Gunasegaram had analysed the Indian factor in his article. On one hand people like Uthaykumar claimed that it had been Indian support that enabled Pakatan to win such a big victory in 2008, and should that be true, then given recent analyses that about 80% of Indians have returned to the BN fold, what does that spell for Pakatan other than big trouble.
On the other, which I am inclined towards, yes the Indians did contribute to the Pakatan victory in 2008 but they weren't the most impactful force behind the tsunami sweeping our political landscape. In arguing against the theory of Hindraf being the principal winning factor, I drew comparison to an earlier tsunami in 1969 when Hindraf was not even in existence (and Anwar Ibrahim was a youngish 20 something) yet which saw BN's predecessor, Perikatan (Alliance) lost humongously.
I stated that the Pakatan victory in 2008, as the victory for the loose informal pact of Gerakan-DAP-PPP (including even informal associate PAS) in 1969, happened because many voters had had enough of BN and respectively Perikatan, and were prepared to change, and not because of any particular NGO. It calls into question the theory of Hindraf being the primary earth-shaking force in March 2008.
Assuming my belief is correct, and if the majority of Indian voters will be supporting BN in GE-13 as they traditionally have (yes, the Indians have been BN's 'fixed deposit'), there may be some adverse effect for Pakatan but certainly not to the extent Mr Gloom & Doom has been threatening the Pakatan 'mandores', wakakaka.
We also need to remember that Hindraf had not been an exclusive Uthayakumar's one-man effort but which saw front line participation by DAP members, one of whom, M Manoharan, is an ADUN who won Kota Alam Shah seat while he was behind ISA lockup as a Hindraf leader. So not all Hindraf supporters would necessarily boycott Pakatan. It's also significant to note that Manoharan won in a Chinese majority seat, defeating the BN Chinese candidate by a resounding majority of more than 7500 votes in a constituency of only 26000 voters. Thus it's likely the DAP brand rather than Hindraf label that had enabled Manoharan to become an ADUN in Selangor.
So I personally believe the Indians supporting BN, while certainly not favourable to Pakatan, will not have that drastic effect as threatened by a crab (in a basket, wakakaka). Leaving aside the Sabah and Sarawak factors, and let's not deny they will be very BIG factors, the fight in GE-13 which will produce big earth shaking results in Peninsula will be for the hearts of the Heartland. This is certainly the belief of RPK as enunciated in his post Why is Dr Mahathir such an idiot?, a title which belies the political shrewdness of the former PM.
RPK wrote (extracts only): The only thing that can save Umno would be the Malay votes -- that determine roughly two-thirds of the seats in West Malaysia. And that is why what they are doing/saying is not to win the hearts and mind of the Chinese and Indian voters. It is too late to win the hearts and minds of the Chinese and Indian voters. They need to win the hearts and minds of the Malay voters. And to do that they need to do and say what they are currently doing and saying. While this may upset the Chinese and Indians, who are not going to vote for Umno anyway, it pacifies the Malays. And it is the Malays they want to pacify, not the Chinese and Indians, who have made it very clear they are not going to vote Barisan Nasional or Umno come hell or high water.
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| Posted: 24 Jan 2013 06:34 PM PST
But what will happen, say, in 2057, 100 years after Merdeka, when the children and grandchildren of those three million pendatang -- who by then may number five million and hold Malaysian identity cards because they were born in Malaysia -- all want to vote as overseas voters although they had left the country a long time ago and never once went back to Malaysia? NO HOLDS BARRED Raja Petra Kamarudin There are those who oppose the Islamic criminal law of Hudud. When we ask them as to why they oppose Hudud they will reply that it is because under the Hudud law they cut off the hands of thieves. Hence Hudud is a very barbaric law. Rather than cut off the hands of thieves they should instead be killed with a bullet in the head like what they do to highway robbers and other thieves in China, corrupt officials and female robbers included. Well, I suppose a bullet in the head is less barbaric than having to live with only one hand. Let's say for argument's sake I argue: so what if they cut off the hands of thieves? Why are you so worried about that if you are not a thief? Aren't you the ones who are complaining about the extremely high crime rate in Malaysia? Aren't you the ones alleging that the police are not doing their job? Maybe we need a law such as Hudud to solve the serious crime problem that appears to be spinning out of control. Only thieves should be worried about and oppose Hudud. If you are so opposed to Hudud then that can only mean one thing -- you are a thief. If you are not a thief then why are you so opposed to Hudud? And it appears like more non-Malays than Malays oppose Hudud. This can only mean that there are more non-Malay thieves than Malay thieves. I suppose this statement makes as much sense as the statement that if you do not support Pakatan Rakyat then you must be a Barisan Nasional supporter (if you do not support Hudud then you must be a thief). There can be no other logical reason for you to not support Pakatan Rakyat just like there can be no other logical reason for you to not support Hudud. Can you see that when we apply your same logic to another situation your logic no longer sounds logical? And that is the problem with many of you. Your logic is not universal. It can be used only to support your prejudiced view but when applied to another argument it sounds real silly. The Sedition Act and the Internal Security Act are draconian laws. Why are they draconian laws? Well, because these laws are used against the opposition, to stifle dissent, and to deny Malaysians their freedom of speech. Hence the Sedition Act and the Internal Security Act must be abolished. And if Pakatan Rakyat ever takes over the federal government this is one of the first things they must do -- abolish the Sedition Act and the Internal Security Act. However, before they abolish these laws, they must first be used against those on the 'other side'. Once those from the 'other side' have been dealt with only then should these laws be abolished. In fact, if Pakatan Rakyat takes over, we should implement Hudud and use that law to cut off the hands of those crooks from the ruling party. Once all their hands have been cut off we can then abolish the Hudud law. What are we fighting for? We are fighting for justice. And how do we get justice? We get justice by abolishing bad laws and by reforming the system. Should we do all that now? No, we do that only after we have taken revenge on our enemies. Is revenge justice? Yes, but only if taken against the other side, not if taken against our own people. It is not fair that Malaysians who have left the country for longer than five years and have not returned to the country for at least 30 days over those five years are not allowed to vote as an overseas voter. Even if those Malaysians left the country 30 or 40 years ago and never once went back to Malaysia they should still be allowed to vote (as long as they still have an identity card, of course, because you need this to vote). What happens if one million of the three million foreigners who now possess Malaysian identity cards go home to their original countries? Can they be allowed to vote as overseas voters? Your entitlement to vote depends on you possessing a Malaysian identity card. Hence if you have a Malaysian identity card then you are entitled to vote. And what happens if these people had left Malaysia more than ten years ago and never once came back to Malaysia? Should they still be allowed to vote? You may argue that they should not be allowed to vote because although they possess Malaysian identity cards they were not born in Malaysia. Ah, but then their children were. Their children possess Malaysian identity cards that show they were born in Malaysia although they left Malaysia ten years ago and now live in another country. So why can't they be allowed to vote? Back in 1957, when Malaya first gained independence, the Chinese and Indians came from China and India and were given Malaysian citizenship. Subsequently, the children of those 'pendatang' were born in the country. Hence the descendants of these pre-1957 immigrants are Malaysian born and should not be called 'pendatang'. Agreed, it is wrong to call the present generation Malaysians of Chinese and Indian descent 'pendatang'. Their parents or grandparents may have been pendatang back in 1957. But the present crop of Malaysian-born Chinese and Indians are not pendatang and should not be treated as pendatang or called 'pendatang'. But what will happen, say, in 2057, 100 years after Merdeka, when the children and grandchildren of those three million pendatang -- who by then may number five million and hold Malaysian identity cards because they were born in Malaysia -- all want to vote as overseas voters although they had left the country a long time ago and never once went back to Malaysia? Sometimes we need to look short term, such as over the next two months leading to the coming general election. Sometimes we need to look long term, say 30 years down the road. And sometimes we need to balance between short-term and long-term goals. When the government came out with its education policy it looked short term and not long term. And now, many years down the road, we are paying for this short-sighted and short-term strategy. But the damage has been done. It is not going to be that easy to rectify things. It may take a whole generation to correct our mistakes of the past -- and even then only if we are prepared to bite the bullet and are prepared to suffer the high casualty rate. Are we prepared to allow the Malays to become casualties in the interest of a better education system based on meritocracy? Neither Najib Tun Razak nor Anwar Ibrahim would dare say 'yes' to this question. Things are going to get worse before they become better. The cure may be as painful as the disease. But I am sure neither Barisan Nasional nor Pakatan Rakyat would be prepared to take the risk of a political fallout out if they try to change the education system and see Malays fall by the wayside because they are just not good enough. It is like promising no taxation and promising to give all the oil money back to the states. How would we finance the country? No doubt that type of promise is going to help win votes. But what do you do after you win the votes? To make money we need to plant oil palm trees. To plant oil palm trees we need to burn down the forests. When we burn down the forests we create an ecological problem. So we don't burn down the forests to prevent an ecological problem. But since we don't burn down the forests we can't plant oil palm trees. And because we can't plant oil palm trees we can't make money. Life is full of vicious cycles. And Malaysia can win the gold medal in vicious cycles if that happened to be an event in the Olympic games. ***************************************** Use of Sedition Act is wrong Yin Shao Loong, The Malaysian Insider Bar Council president Lim Chee Wee stated that the Sedition Act should be used on Ibrahim Ali because the latter had advocated the burning of bibles. Even though Lim acknowledged that the Bar holds that the law should be repealed, it should nonetheless be used against Ibrahim if the government is charging opposition leaders such as Karpal Singh under it. Burning any book as a political act is vulgar, uncultured and should be condemned. Invoking the use of a draconian law to punish book burning, or incitement to burn books, is a capitulation to authoritarianism. By taking this stance, Lim and the Bar he leads have undermined any claim to principled opposition to the Sedition Act. Their rationale is akin to those who proposed maintaining the Internal Security Act (ISA) so it could be used one last time against the puppet master of Operation Lallang. Even if Lim's intent was to underline how the present government selectively enforces the law, his argument was poorly chosen because it was based on the logic that two wrongs would make a right. The Sedition Act has been a convenient and objectionable tool of authoritarian power in Malaysia due to its broad applicability against anything that could be construed as raising ill-will or hostility within society or against the authorities. Anyone can claim they had feelings of ill-will or hostility raised by someone's statement or action, proceed to file a police report, and have someone investigated for sedition. Of course, the odds of successful prosecution would improve if the accused happened to be someone not favoured by the government. Historically, sedition was associated with absolutist monarchies. Undemocratic governments criminalise sedition because they fear dissent will destabilise authority based on force, heredity or property. The rule of the few over the many requires some form of institutionalised discrimination, fear and suppression of criticism. Democracies incorporate criticism into their system of government and allow the many to use their votes to initiate peaceful, orderly changes in government. As long as I have known it, the Bar Council has stood for the principled movement towards full-fledged constitutional democracy in Malaysia. Supporting the use of the Sedition Act is a backward step contrary to human rights. Lim has already noted that any book-burning act or incitement to such act can be prosecuted under those sections of the Penal Code that deal with abetment and trespass. Additionally, sections 298 and 298A of the Penal Code deal with acts designed to cause hurt on religious grounds, section 504 covers intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of the peace, and section 505 refers to statements promoting public mischief. It is reasonable to file a police report, or call for laws to be employed, where the actions in question are criminal, excluding those legitimate forms of dissent criminalised by the Sedition Act, ISA, Printing Presses and Publications Act, and so forth. One group of citizens is opposing the barbaric act of book burning by inviting people to join in reading holy books — any books, in fact — under the trees at KLCC park on Sunday. Others have filed a police report against Ibrahim, citing many of the Penal Code sections referred to above, but without recourse to the Sedition Act or any of its repressive bedfellows. These are civilised means of opposing an uncivilised act. If we want to move Malaysia out of the shadow of authoritarianism we cannot condone the very methods of authoritarianism. This means that race-baiting, repressive laws and impunity must be abandoned in favour of principled debate, peaceful protest, accountability and reform. | ||||||||
| Breaking news! Another victory for Rosli Dahlan: Court of Appeal stays AG's bid to expunge Posted: 24 Jan 2013 04:45 PM PST
Din Merican The tenacity of lawyer Rosli Dahlan in pursuing his persecutors whom he called the "rogues in government" has to be admired. On 3rd January, all the mainstream media gleefully reported that the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) had succeeded to expunge six parts of Rosli's Witness Statement. The mainstream media would give wide coverage whenever the AGC scores a victory against Rosli but would be almost silent when they get walloped by Rosli. Only last week, we saw The Star newspaper defeated and humbled by Rosli. Yet, The Star made no mention of it until they had to publish the Public Apology that the court ordered against them. That is the state of disinformation, misinformation and lies in our country perpetrated by the mainstream media. They are no longer newspapers reporting news but are just instruments of propaganda. On 28 November 2012, the AGC had asked the Court to prevent Rosli from testifying in open court and also toexpunge certain parts of his witness statement relating to theCopgate Affair and other matters. On 3rd January,MalaysiaKini reported that Justice Hue Siew Kheng had ruled in favour of the AGC that the allegations made in Rosli's statement were "riddled with hearsay" and were not relevant. The parts that the AGC wanted expunged described how AGGani Patail, former IGP Musa Hassan and the MACC had conspired to fix up Rosli. It narrated IGP Musa Hassan's connection with the underworld Along loan shark syndicate; why AG Gani Patail was upset with Rosli for foiling his plans not to charge MAS's former Chairman Tan Sri Tajudin Ramli for defrauding the national airlines; also of the MACC's attempt to extort Rosli to drop his RM50miliion law suit against them. In 2011, RPK's Malaysia Today revealed that AG Gani Patailhad a "special relationship" with Tajudin's proxy, ShahidanShafie, a former police inspector who was charged for corruption in the 1990s. Tabung Haji's documents showed that AG Gani Patail and family had enjoyed the Zamrud Hajj package that costs more than RM 260,000/- bringing into question if the trip was paid by Shahidan since they all shared rooms like one big happy family. Expunging these parts of Rosli's witness statements would have meant that none of these would be revealed in court. It means that Rosli would have to go to trial without thesematerial evidence being allowed to be tendered in Court.That's why the AGC was intent on blotting out theseevidence. But despite that setback, Rosli persevered and soldiered on alone. However, the irony in the AGC's application was that they had reproduced the whole expunged questions and answers. Similarly, all the expunged parts have also been reproduced in the written judgment of Justice Hue. This is a comedy of errors! While on one part, they wanted to hide these stories from the public, on the other hand, they have reproduced all these in a public document! Where is the logic?
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| Overseas voting process has several defects, says DAP Posted: 24 Jan 2013 04:21 PM PST
Syed Jaymal Zahiid, The Malaysian Insider DAP leaders today said there are defects in the overseas voting process and this could see Malaysians abroad denied the right to fair elections and possible vote manipulation. Four key issues were listed, among them being the Election Commission's (EC) delay in allowing those living overseas to vote, a problem that left many Malaysians abroad with little time to register as voters. "It took them so long to implement it and many Malaysians who are trying to vote now can't do so because they are not registered," DAP Socialist Youth chief Anthony Loke (picture) told reporters here, saying that the EC had also done nothing to encourage those abroad to register while the overseas voting process was being deliberated. Loke noted that a parliamentary select committee on polls reform in its preliminary findings had asked the EC to allow overseas voting more than a year ago. The polls regulator, however, only announced the decision to carry it out early this month. With Election 2013 expected to be held in March, those who register now cannot exercise their right to vote in this election. Then there is the new rule that requires overseas voters to be in Malaysia for a minimum of 30 days anywhere between April 2008 to the time Parliament is dissolved. The problem was raised last July by the My Overseas Vote (MOV) movement which said Malaysians abroad would not be able to vote if the EC does not amend the rules on voter registration and postal voting. "As long as EC does not amend the regulations, it is impossible for 95 per cent of Malaysians abroad to register as voters," MOV co-ordinator Andrew Yong had told The Malaysian Insider, saying that "there are now one million Malaysians working overseas with the majority being private sector employees." "What this does is it filters out a lot of applicants. It's just not possible. Those abroad often only come back for a few weeks at the most. Why are they adding new restrictions; that could be a hassle," Loke charged.
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| Friday sermon: ‘Enemies’ of Islam staking claim over ‘Allah’ to confuse Muslims Posted: 24 Jan 2013 04:01 PM PST
JAKIM cited "scientific" research to back its assertion that Christians have no legitimate claim to the word "Allah". Clara Chooi, The Malaysian Insider Federal religious authorities warned Muslims nationwide today of attempts by "enemies of Islam" to confuse them into believing that all religions are the same, prolonging the debate over the usage of "Allah" by Christians even as it drives a deeper wedge between the country's two most dominant religions. In today's Friday sermon prepared by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) here, Muslims were told that being too open-minded and allowing Islamic rights to be abused by other religions was a "dangerous" act. "It is very clear that, today, enemies of Islam are seeking to divert and undermine the Muslim community's faith. "They are united among themselves and are attempting, with their many tricks and ways, to stake their claim on the usage of 'Allah' in their scriptures," the sermon said. JAKIM insisted that "Allah", a word that millions of Arab Christians and those in non-Arabic-speaking lands use to describe their God, belongs to Muslims and is an exclusive right to those who profess Islam as it is clearly to prevent Muslims from becoming confused over the true identity of their God. Citing unnamed academic research, JAKIM said that the word "Allah" was never found in the Bible as God ― to Christians ― exists as the Trinity of "God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit." The general term for the Holy Trinity, said the religious department, is "The Lord" which is the English translation of biblical text. As such, JAKIM insisted that the National Fatwa Council's 2008 decision on the matter was accurate in stating that "Allah" cannot be used by those of other religions and cannot be likened to the gods of others. "We would like to say that as Muslims who believes in Allah and his messenger, then it becomes our responsibility to preserve the sanctity and defend the word 'Allah' in the best way possible, and should there be elements of insult and abuse, it should be stopped in accordance with provisions in the Federal Constitution. "Muslims must be firm in protecting the sanctity and the identity of their religion," JAKIM said in the sermon. The authority also warned that painful punishment would await disbelievers in the afterlife, noting that these "symptoms" of Islam's collapse would only destroy the glory and prestige of Muslims here. The "Allah" dispute, which first erupted after the watershed Election 2008, remains a hot-button topic in the run-up to this year's polls. Debate resurfaced last month after DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who is also the Penang chief minister, called on Putrajaya in his Christmas message to lift a ban on Malay-language bibles in Borneo Malaysia.
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| Perkasa is outsourced by Umno, says Anwar Posted: 24 Jan 2013 03:56 PM PST
Zurairi AR, The Malaysian Insider Perkasa can get away with racial slurs and religious insults because it is backed by Umno, Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim alleged today. Malay rights group Perkasa and its president Datuk Ibrahim Ali have been playing up racial and religious issues as Election 2013 looms, without any rebuke from the government or the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional (BN). "(Perkasa) is an organisation outsourced by Umno to fend racist and religious bigotry at the behest of Umno," Anwar (picture) claimed here. During Perkasa's convention in Penang last weekend, Ibrahim had urged Muslims to unite and burn all Malay-language bibles that contain the word "Allah" and other religious words in Arabic script. "We have not yet found a tough response by the Umno leadership nor the prime minister, nor the home minister," said Anwar. "This is, to me, disturbing ... you may have differences between PKR and Umno, Pakatan Rakyat and BN, but you have to draw the line." Anwar said that parties on both sides of the political divide can continue their political battles, but should never resort to defending racial and religious bigotry. On Wednesday, Anwar had called for Muslims nationwide to condemn Perkasa's threat to burn all Malay-language bibles. The opposition leader, a Muslim, said those who profess Islam and claim to protect "Allah" and the Quran should also defend their faith and morals by preventing the spread of racial insults, which were discouraged by the religion. Yesterday, Perkasa insisted that its president's words were actually a "wake-up call" to prevent possible violence against distributors of bibles containing the word "Allah" and other religious words in Arabic script. The group's secretary-general, Syed Hassan Syed Ali, said Perkasa was merely protecting Islam and its position, as enshrined in the Federal Constitution, and this included rejecting those who insult the religion and who try to spread their own faiths to Muslims. Ibrahim's remarks had immediately sparked furore among Christians and politicians across the political divide and invited calls on the government to cite him for sedition. The "Allah" dispute, which first erupted after the watershed Election 2008, remains a hot-button topic in the run-up to this year's polls. Debate resurfaced last month after DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who is also the Penang chief minister, called on Putrajaya in his Christmas message to lift a ban on Malay-language bibles in Borneo Malaysia. Hot on the heels of the DAP leader's remarks, several state Rulers and Islamic religious authorities reminded non-Muslims of state laws banning use of the word despite conflicting with a 2009 High Court judgment that ruled "Allah" was not exclusive to Islam.
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| Waytha under fire for silence over temples Posted: 24 Jan 2013 03:47 PM PST
A MIC Youth leader has also questioned Hindraf's plans to 'take down another Indian' via contesting in MIC allocated seats. B Nantha Kumar, FMT Hindraf pioneer P Waythamoorthy has come under fire for his deafening silence over the Selangor government's handling of two temple issues in the state recently. Accusing Waythamoorthy of "pretending to be in the dark" over the issue, Selangor MIC Youth chief M Shanker Raj Ayanger said the Hindraf man's silence showed that he was an opportunist. "While the Malaysian Indian community is upset that the Selangor government through the Sepang Municipal Council barged into a house and broke a shrine there recently, Waythamoorthy has kept mum on the matter. "Would he have done the same if the Selangor government was run by the Barisan Nasional? "It is surprising to note that Hindraf, which claimed to safeguard Indian rights, has remained silent on the two temple issues involving the Pakatan Rakyat government" he said. He was referring to the recent case where the enforcement officers from the Sepang Municipal Council demolished a private shrine built within the compound of a house. As soon as the issue subsided, the Kajang Municipal Council issued summons and fines to the Sri Mahamariamman Temple in Kajang, for excessive noise during prayer sessions. The council has since rescinded the summons and compounds. "It looks like Waythamoorthy has deliberately overlooked these two incidents. "There were also reports that seven temples have been demolished in Selangor after Pakatan's rule began in 2008 but Hindraf has disregarded the issue. "It seems quite clear Hindraf only makes noise if it is the BN. "But if Pakatan does anything, it is silent. When you fight for the community, you must be fair and just. You must fight even if the opponent is your friend. "You are fighting for the people. But now it looks like Hindraf is only there to criticise the BN and nothing else," he told FMT.
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