Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- GE13: Pakatan Stands to Win Seven Extra Parliamentary Seats
- Empowering the sons of toil
- Malaysia’s Ahmadis living dangerously
- ‘Graduates not competitive due to poor English’
- Recognising Malaysia's stateless Indians
- The regime must be vanquished
- sPICE issue gets hotter
- PPSMI: Taking a page from history
| GE13: Pakatan Stands to Win Seven Extra Parliamentary Seats Posted: 07 Nov 2011 10:19 PM PST I have this general impression that Umno MPs have a better knack at carrying out their duties, especially in taking care of the people in their constituencies. The same can't be said about the newbie PKR MPs. Reliable sources have said that there are quite a number of people, namely in constituencies in Penang, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur, who are not happy with the MPs they had elected. These MPs would have to rectify the situation or else the vote count will not be in their favor come election time.
Many of us – the public, politicians and pundits alike – are speculating that the General Election will be held within the first quarter of 2012. Some say in March, others say April. Meanwhile, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had advised Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to hold it off as long as possible (deadline is 2013), a signal that BN still has a lot to do in their effort to revive the party's dwindling popularity. The general perception is Pakatan would put a smackdown on BN if iNajib is to call for election any time soon. Even Mahathir has inferred this strong possibility. But whatever it is, Najib is the one who's calling the shots. However, there's weight to Mahathir's prediction. We're talking about a former premier and Umno president who never makes a habit of underestimating his political rivals, and he was bang on when he said, in 1990, that Umno would not be able to reclaim Kelantan in 20 years. Kita President Datuk Zaid Ibrahim also recognizes that there's merit to Mahathir's premonition. "Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak will get his majority in Parliament if he dissolves it at the end of the present term and if he takes the time to consolidate his position. He will win only if he cares to question those of his advisers who are gung-ho about a BN victory. The people around him will probably continue to give him a false sense of confidence but if he is more realistic and takes his time, victory will be his – even if it is a close call," said Zaid in his blog. These conclusions highlighted by Mahathir and Zaid are deductions. To get a clearer picture, the numbers in the last elections would help in putting into perspective where Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat stand in the 13th General Election. The way things turned out, there are seven parliamentary seats won by BN and an Independent (who is formerly from PKR) that can be identified as shaky, seeing as these wins were by less than 500 vote majority. These figures already show that the Opposition has a very good chance in winning the GE13.
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| Posted: 07 Nov 2011 03:40 PM PST The Orang Asli have been left out and are forced to grapple with poverty. Now, a group aims to empower them through education. "We are imprisoned in our own country by this act. We are given no chance to speak up, we are not given a chance to express ideas or make decisions on whether we agree or not on certain matters – everything told must be followed by us." Aneesa Alphonsus, Free Malaysia Today Sons of the Soil, The Original People, and The First Ones. There are such noble sounding monikers for a community which has become more like sons of toil, the forgotten people and last on the list. The Orang Asli of Malaysia constitute only 0.5% of the population and are diverse in culture, language and beliefs, a legacy borne of 18 different ethnic groups. However, their shared experience of exclusion from the policy arena and a resulting lack of opportunity to voice their concerns became the impetus for the formation of a group named Sinui Pai Nanek Sengik (New Life, One Heart). Recognising that communities were having their livelihoods destroyed by government policies that took away their traditional rights to land and other resources, the Sinui Pai Nanek Sengik (SPNS) began an educational programme to mobilise communities for political and social action. The small number of Orang Asli is one of the many factors contributing to their current problems. Orang Asli have now become like refugees and illegal immigrants in their own country. Among the core problems are land ownership, culture, identity, and the lost of rights as the Orang Asli have been left out in the field of education and development. Most of the non-Orang Asli in Malaysia refer to the Orang Asli as a barbaric and backward community. Hence there are many who say that the Orang Asli is a community that is too lazy to work hard to develop themselves and their race. They also accuse the Orang Asli of preferring to ask other parties to change their fate. Plus, there is no space for the Orang Asli to speak out about their dissatisfaction on certain aspects of the government policies towards them. The strict control and the neck-logging by the government resulted in the Orang Asli community being unaware that they actually have rights to claim and can speak out about the biased treatment they have received in every government development plan. Badly hit by logging Alison Ghani, who is an independent volunteer for Orang Asli issues, says that many villages have been badly hit by logging. She shared the story of a man she fondly refers to as Pakcik Musang of the Jakun tribe who with his family, was harassed away from the land he was residing on. Today, Pakcik Musang lives in a flimsy shack with no guarantees that he will not be chased away once again. "Never enough can be written about Orang Asli issues. It's incredibly disturbing that they are being denied convenient access to medical treatment and medicines. Take Pos Gob in Kelantan for example. The nearest town from them is Kuala Betis which at 80km away translates to a five hour journey on foot. "Distance is always a problem. Orang Asli children of Pos Gob attend school at Pos Tohoi which is 60km away from their village, a four-hour journey on foot. Because their parents cannot afford the petrol money to bring them home every week, children as young as seven who are very attached to the families and the community only return home during the school breaks. Many of them refuse to return to school after the break is over," she said.
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| Malaysia’s Ahmadis living dangerously Posted: 07 Nov 2011 03:30 PM PST Targeted by both society and the state, Ahmadis in Malaysia plead for a fair voice, fearing the worst if they're denied this. Later in 1975, the Selangor Fatwa Council decreed that the Ahmadis were not Muslims, and recommended as a result, that their special Malay privileges be removed. Deceased Malaysian Ahmadis were not allowed to be buried in Muslim cemeteries, Ainul said, adding that their bodies had to be taken to a special gravesite in Cheras. Patrick Lee, Free Malaysia Today In the middle of Kampung Nakhoda, there is an unassuming three-storey building. Nothing about its humble stature makes it stand out from nearby houses, except for a council-erected signboard that clearly reads: "Qadiani Bukan Islam" (Qadianis are not Muslims). Youths mingle inside the building's compound, warily observing passers-by beyond the front gate. At FMT's approach, they smiled and opened the gate, only to quickly close it, and the front doors leading to the building's living room. Inside, the youths set up video cameras and other recording equipment. They are friendly, but slightly skittish with the visiting journalist. They relax a little when their religious leader, Maulana Ainul Yaqeen Sahib, enters. It is easy to see why. Ainul belongs to the Ahmadiyya movement, an Islamic sect coldly received by Malaysia's Sunni Islamic authorities. Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) officers in the past, he said, have raided the building – named Baitussalam – which serves as the local Ahmadiyya community's gathering place and mosque. "They (JAIS) pushed themselves through a hole in the front gate when we didn't let them come in. They didn't have a warrant," he told FMT, relating the 2009 incident. The JAIS officers barged their way into the building, and started inspecting its prayer room and taking photographs. Ainul also said that a few of these officers would later pose as curious university students. One of them, he claimed, "borrowed" a copy of the Quran, and never gave back. Given the cold shoulder According to Ainul, Ahmadis are no different from other Muslims in terms of practice and the faith. "We follow the Quran, the five pillars of Islam and the tradition of the Holy Prophet. Even our Kalimah (Islamic creed) is the same," he said. But what sets them apart from other Muslims, is the belief that their sect's founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, was Islam's Promised Messiah and the redeemer, the Imam Mahdi. (The Ahmadiyya movement began in Qadian, India, during the late 19th century, and was later called Qadianis.) It is a belief that has not only incurred the wrath of hardline Islamic authorities, but also their supporters. In May 2010, Pakistani terrorists attacked two Ahmadiyya mosques in Lahore with grenades and automatic rifles, killing 86 and injuring more than 120. Earlier in February this year, an Indonesian mob attacked an Ahmadiyya community in Cikeusik, Java. Videos released on the Internet showed the mob chanting "Allahuakbar" (God is great) as they beat and killed three Ahmadis, raining blows on them with sticks and stones even as they lay dead on the ground. While outright violence against Malaysia's 2,000-odd Ahmadis is unknown, the sect's believers nevertheless are given the cold shoulder by both the authorities and locals. According to the Ahmadis, opposition against the movement started shortly after the movement was introduced to Malaya by an Indian missionary in the 1930s.
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| ‘Graduates not competitive due to poor English’ Posted: 06 Nov 2011 05:21 AM PST "This generation will have to face international standard and competition in terms of job market, as part of globalisation," said Tourres. She cited Pakistan as an example, where she gives lectures. "In Pakistan, although the people speak different dialects, next to the Urdu language, their English is better than our graduates," she pointed out. BERNAMA The quality of Malaysian undergraduates in having a good command of English still remains an issue says a Universiti Malaya academic. Marie Aimee Tourres, a senior research fellow at the Department of Development Studies, Universiti Malaya, said it was crucial for graduates to have a good command of English to ensure they would be able to compete effectively, in the global job market. Nevertheless, "in terms of education spending, Malaysia is comparable to some countries in the region based on the percentage spent over its gross domestic product (GDP) growth," she told Bernama in an interview, Kuala Lumpur. She said Malaysia was actually spending more vis-a-vis other countries. In Budget 2012, RM13.6 billion was allocated to the social sector, including education and training, health, welfare, housing and community development. Tourres said there was also a lot of focus given for training and re-training for graduates, which was important to continuously upgrade skilled and knowledge workers in the country. However, the quality of undergraduates remains an issue in Malaysia, since the students find it difficult to grasp the English language. "Language is definitely an issue," she said, citing a recent publication by the World Bank entitled , 'The Road to Academic Excellence', which was a study on what contributes to a world-class research university. The study compared University Malaya (UM) and National University of Singapore (NUS) in a chapter entitled 'The National University of Singapore and the University of Malaya: Common Roots and Different Paths'. In the report, it was stated that as NUS kept pace with the demands of a growing economy that sought to become competitive internationally, with English continuing as the language of instruction and research, UM began to focus inward as proficiency in English declined in favour of the national language. The publication, which is based on a study conducted by two scholars, Philip Altbach and Jamil Salmi, also stated that because UM taught courses predominantly in the national language, it had much more limited internationalisation of programme, academic staff and student body. Can grads compete internationally? "This generation will have to face international standard and competition in terms of job market, as part of globalisation," said Tourres. She cited Pakistan as an example, where she gives lectures. "In Pakistan, although the people speak different dialects, next to the Urdu language, their English is better than our graduates," she pointed out. It made them more marketable in the competitive global environment, she noted. "The immediate result of their English capacity is that you can find many Pakistanis who work for international organisations such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund," noted Tourres. She believed that even if Malaysia gave more focus in English, the national language and culture could still prosper, provided that teaching was made interesting. "More English in school will not deter Malay, Indian and Chinese culture per se. We should not mix the issue of a command of good language and the preservation of national heritage," she said. As for the distribution of the book voucher worth RM200 to all Malaysian students in public and private local institutions of higher learning, matriculation as well as Form 6 students nationwide, she believed that it should be monitored to ensure that it served the purpose. This assistance is expected to benefit 1.3 million students with an allocation of RM260 million. "That is a lot of money. Probably, it could have been done based on meritocracy to ensure that it is properly utilised," said Tourres, pointing out that there were risks of students re-selling the voucher, especially when the new targeted generation lacked the reading habit and preferred to go online to search for their study materials.
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| Recognising Malaysia's stateless Indians Posted: 04 Nov 2011 08:21 PM PDT Indians arrived in Malaysia a century ago but many of their descendants still lack formal status. (Al Jazeera) - Ethnic Indians comprise nearly eight per cent of the Malaysian population, yet an inability to obtain their proper documents has rendered generations stateless. Official government estimates say 40,000 ethnic Indians, the descendants of Indians who arrived in Malaysia to work on plantations a century ago, do not have birth certificates or identity cards. Activists say that number is much higher. Lacking basic documentation, many ethnic Indians do not have formal education and are unable to seek legal employment or cast a ballot. The government recently launched a drive to register ethnic Indians, but for many, even proving the nation as their birthplace presents a difficult hurdle. Al Jazeera's Florence Looi reports from Kuala Lumpur.
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| Posted: 03 Nov 2011 05:18 PM PDT In an interview with FMT, P Uthayakumar states that the Umno regime which has been in power for too long should be ousted. Asked why Pakatan leaders are giving Hindraf and HRP the cold shoulder, he replied: "We cannot be controlled unlike the Indian mandores in DAP and PKR. Similar to the Indian parties in or linked to BN, they can be controlled by Umno. But we speak our minds without fear or favour. We take a principled position. The bottom line is we want equality and equal opportunities for the Indians." RK Anand, Free Malaysia Today The tinted glass door, which conceals the operations within from the outside world, slides open and a beaming P Uthayakumar emerges to welcome FMT into his lair. Nestled in a shop-lot in Bangsar Utama here, this is the nerve centre of both Hindraf and its political offspring, the Human Rights Party (HRP). Outside, sits an antiquated Volvo, which the 50-year-old lawyer purchased in 1993. "It's my first car," he said, conceding that the road he has chosen is anything but profitable. Inside, the former Internal Security Act detainee has created a replica of his cell at the Kamunting Detention Centre, which includes a figurine of himself. Sporting a blown-up image of Uthayakumar with long beard and unkempt hair, the figurine, clutching a food tray, is dressed in the same tattered clothes which he wore during his detention. The enclosure is littered with the books he had read during his incarceration and other items, including the toothbrush and toothpaste he used. "You see, there is no brand," he said, picking up the plain white toothpaste tube. "I believe it comes from China and when you use it for a long period, your teeth actually fall off," he added, laughing. The walls of the cell are plastered with photographs depicting Hindraf's struggle throughout the years. In his private chambers, a computer screen wired to the CCTV, allows Uthayakumar to keep a vigilant eye on the front door just in case the police come knocking. Racist, extremist, threat or hero? Mention the Hindraf leader's name and it is bound to draw mixed reactions. To some, he is a threat, racist and extremist. The harsher critics believe he has lost his marbles or is nothing more than an Indian clone of Perkasa's Ibrahim Ali. But to some, he is a hero who has suffered for the betterment of the Indian community in Malaysia. In his defence, Uthayakumar said Hindraf and HRP voice the truth; and the truth knows not political correctness. As a result of this, the feathers of those on both sides of the political divide are ruffled. "Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat want the Indian votes but not their problems," he added. Bouquets and brickbats aside, the irrefutable fact is that Hindraf forced the government to take notice of the Indian community's plight and caused a vote swing in the last general election. Within a few hours on that epochal November morning four years ago, Hindraf managed to do something which MIC was unable to do for decades. Even the once-critical MIC leaders acknowledged this. There are also those who claim that Uthayakumar has transformed into a BN operative based on his scathing criticisms against the opposition. 'Ultimate struggle is to end Umno's rule' But the Hindraf leader makes it crystal clear that his beef with Umno is greater and therefore the movement is willing to extend a conditional olive branch to Pakatan in order to vanquish a common foe. "Our ultimate political struggle is to end Umno's rule in Putrajaya. It is one of the last few remaining regimes in the world which has ruled this nation for 54 years. We want an end to Umno's rule and there are no two ways about it," he stressed. Underscoring the importance of dismantling governments that remain in power for a protracted period, he said: "The problem of the Indian poor is due to Umno's rule. So we feel that at any cost, the rule must end. When there is a change of regime… like in India, BJP came in and after that, when Congress returned to power, it became a better government." However, Uthayakumar said this does not mean Hindraf will give Pakatan a blank cheque. "We want to be the internal check and balance vis-à-vis Indian issues but they (Pakatan) don't like this idea. We have seen their dismal performance in the states they control with regard to this issue. "The argument is that 'we only control the states'. Fair enough, but licences, land for schools and Yayasan Selangor scholarships are within the respective state's jurisdiction. "The other excuse is that they have only been in power for three years. But my question is simple, do you need 50 years to make changes? To give land to all Tamil schools in Selangor does not need years, just a few minutes to sign the required paperwork is sufficient," he added.
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| Posted: 03 Nov 2011 05:04 PM PDT Opponents of what is being touted as 'DAP's Putrajaya' are also looking at the possibility of legal action, while BN demands answers from the Penang CM. The state BN has claimed that is set to be the biggest land scandal in Penang and the sum involved could even reach RM500 million. Based on a population of 700,000 on the island, BN claimed that each islander would end up paying RM697 for the project. Athai Shankar, Free Malaysia Today The opposition against the RM300 million subterranean Penang International Convention and Exhibition Center (sPICE) mega project is getting hotter. Opponents of sPICE, including local community groups, are now exhausting all avenues, even legal recourse. Bandar Bayan Baru Residents' Association secretary Chan Kim Beng said his association was contemplating lodging a series of police reports and initiating court action to stop the project. Describing Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng's pet project as a "waste of money", he said his association was discussing with other community organisations in the neighbourhood to explore all avenues to halt the project. "If other organisations agree with police reports and court action, we would go ahead," he told FMT after a joint press conference by residents and Barisan Nasional here. Today was the first time some 20 local residents had joined forces with the state opposition BN to demand the Pakatan Rakyat state government to drop the project. BN state working committee chairman Dr Teng Hock Nan indicated that the opposition coalition would back the local residents' court initiatives to halt the project, touted as DAP's Putrajaya. "We are listening to the people's grouses against the project. Some suggested legal action. BN would give support in all ways to safeguard the people's interests and rights," he told reporters. Among those present were state PPP chief and BN information chief Loga Bala Mohan, state Umno deputy chief Musa Sheikh Fadzir and state BN youth chief Oh Tong Keong. 'Biggest land scandal' Under the sPICE pipeline, the 24-acre public recreational and sports centre PISA in Relau would be dismantled and refurbished into an exclusive recreational, an international convention centre, an aquatic centre and a posh hotel. The state BN has claimed that is set to be the biggest land scandal in Penang and the sum involved could even reach RM500 million. Based on a population of 700,000 on the island, BN claimed that each islander would end up paying RM697 for the project. Under the project agreement, a 1,500 housing units leeway would be given to sPICE developer Eco-Meridian Sdn Bhd (EMSB), a subsidiary of SP Setia Bhd, to build any project, anywhere, on the island. Critics said the developer could sell each unit for more than RM1 million. EMSB/Setia is also being allowed to build and sell 450 affordable house units priced at RM72,500 and above on a free land and pocket all the proceeds from the sales. The current multi-storey car park complex sitting on a 3.1 acre would be renovated into an international class hotel. Local council (MPPP) would lease out the PISA land to EMSB/Setia for 30 years only for RM100 per square feet when the market price was RM300 psq feet, thus saving some RM27 million for the developer. MPPP is also handing out RM50 million to the developer to carry out the project. The quit, assessment and development charges for the project have all been waived.
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| PPSMI: Taking a page from history Posted: 03 Nov 2011 01:49 PM PDT Our education system should be looking at broadening the choices to cope with mother tongue instruction for our indigenous people; special education to cope with slow learners, autistic and disabled children. I remember when my wife had to write the answers for a child with muscular problems who was sitting for his O-levels at the British Council. Another sightless friend of ours told us about how computer programs were being developed to enable people in her situation to follow lectures online. By Kua Kia Soong via The Malaysian Insider In the raging controversy over the continuance of the PPSMI option, there seems to be at least two main arguments put forward for not allowing it, namely, (i) it is too troublesome to have two options in the same school, and (ii) English is not the mother tongue of Malaysians. I believe that choice and flexibility must be a fundamental principle in education policy and that we should take a historical perspective of the development of our present situation. Mother tongue as a right and a facility First, we should be thankful that the right to mother tongue education and the fact that every child learns best in the mother tongue is a principle that has been established in Unesco and is now widely accepted in our country. Mother tongue education in Malay, Chinese and Tamil in our country has seen a staggered progress. Chinese-language schools have existed in this country for more than 200 years. The first Chinese school was set up in 1819! Tamil schools have also had a long history and they developed mainly through community support during the colonial period. Thus, at independence there were already 1,350 Chinese primary schools and 78 Chinese secondary schools, while Tamil primary schools numbered more than 800 in 1957. Under colonial rule, Malay vernacular schools were built but they were certainly insufficient. During the colonial era, Lim Lian Geok, the "Soul of the Malaysian Chinese", never failed to encourage the Malay community to call for development of Malay mother tongue education, including to secondary level. That was why Utusan Melayu would ask Lim Lian Geok to write a column in its newspaper during Hari Raya Aidilfitri. The English-language schools were of course the preferred system by the colonial power and they enrolled the elite and the middle class, although theoretically they were open to all. Certainly there were also children from poorer classes in the English-medium government schools I studied at in the Fifties and Sixties. As a result of this history, English language can now be considered the mother tongue of these middle-class Malaysians where English is the "family language" with which children communicate with their parents. We should appreciate that colonial societies like ours (including India, Jamaica, Nigeria, Kenya and other British colonies) have this peculiarity and that we acknowledge and respect this reality and move on… Right up to the 1961 Education Act, the school leaving certificate for the Chinese-language secondary schools was a government-administered examination. Our education system managed well and you did not hear any grumbles about how "troublesome" it was to have that provision. We had inherited that system from our specific history and it served the purpose of providing mother tongue education for students in these schools. The Education Act 1961 did away with the Chinese-language secondary schools and they were then forced to become "independent" which meant they had to be supported by the community. After that, the government only provided teachers and some financial support for Chinese-language primary schools. Is it "troublesome" to ask for the reinstatement of the Chinese-language secondary schools into the national system? Ever since 1975, the Chinese community has administered the Unified Examination Certificate of the 60 independent Chinese secondary schools which have a total enrolment of some 60,000 students. Tuition fees are a burden for the many parents who choose this educational route for their children and the Chinese community has been subsidising these schools since 1961. It is like paying double taxation! The National Language Policy The former "Government English Schools" had to convert to teaching in Bahasa Malaysia when the national language policy was implemented after 1969. Any protests were muted in the aftermath of "May 13" and under the assertive Malay-centric ideology of the new ruling class. And so this system of BM as the medium of instruction has been implemented with no leeway for dissent for at least three decades. Then nine years ago, Dr Mahathir decided to implement the PPSMI, or the teaching of maths and science in English. PPSMI has provided the precedent for this breach in the national language policy. The justification was that it was the only way to master the international language, English. If we bear in mind all the arguments used by the Mahathir administration to justify PPSMI, we really cannot fault the parents' organisation PAGE for asking for the CHOICE of having PPSMI for their children using the same arguments. Sorry, the government cannot have its cake and eat it! Is having a choice of PPSMI "troublesome"? Some opponents of PAGE's demand have said that having two media for teaching maths and science in the same school is too "troublesome" and unreasonable to impose on the Government. I beg to differ. Education is about having a choice. I remember when my eldest brother was in secondary school during the Sixties and he was very focused about choosing Arts subjects even though he was in the top class made up of mainly Science students. He stood his ground against the school administration. My parents did not even come into the picture. Then my second brother refused to do additional maths even though he was in the top Science class because he was focused on doing medicine later on. Again, he was adamant about his choice and the school administration had to give in. I made the same choice as my brother and did not choose additional maths even though the school administration wanted uniformity. The principle we were fighting for was choice and flexibility. At the time, we simply could not see why it should be "troublesome" to have that choice. If it is troublesome to have the choice of maths and science in English, what about the choice of having "pupils' own language" in Chinese or Tamil or Kadazan or Bidayuh, etc? Although I do not agree with the pedagogical wisdom of this, some students of independent Chinese secondary schools even have the choice of doing the SPM (in Malay) during their fifth year, the UEC (in Chinese) and A-levels (in English) in their final year! It is not considered "troublesome" for these schools. It is not as if Malaysians are asking for something so difficult to implement. Our national education system has had a long history of English-language teaching and we have just had nine fresh years of PPSMI so teachers and resources are not a problem. Our education system should be looking at broadening the choices to cope with mother tongue instruction for our indigenous people; special education to cope with slow learners, autistic and disabled children. I remember when my wife had to write the answers for a child with muscular problems who was sitting for his O-levels at the British Council. Another sightless friend of ours told us about how computer programs were being developed to enable people in her situation to follow lectures online. "Troublesome" seems to be the hardest word in the education vocabulary…
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