Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Walk For Freedom 2011: Peaceful Assembly Bill Cannot And Must Not Become Law!
- Is Umno that patriotic?
- Broken Promise: PM Has Not Lived Up To Malaysia Day 2011 Pledge
- BN lacks innovative policies, sincerity for the people
- Peaceful Assembly Act 2011
- Open apology to Dato Seri Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa Group Chief Executive Officer, Telekom Malaysia
- The case against MCA
- Populist policies undermine reform
- MCLM Press Statement on the "Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011"
- HINDRAF's statement in response to FMT news report on Karpal's call to Unite under Pakatan
- Response to Malaysia Today for Open Letter to TM Group CEO on Request to Discontinue ...
- Taxi service to airport
- Mengapa Umno dan PERKASA tidak bersuara ketika MCA terus menerus menghina Islam?
- CONCLUSION - UMNO CANNOT DEFEND MALAY RIGHTS, LAND OR ANYTHING FOR THAT MATTER!
- MyConsti PENANG Event: 'Perjuangan Mahasiswa': The UUCA and the Federal Constitution
- Domestic Defense Act (DSA) 2012
- Is MCA staunchly anti-Islam?
- Will this be a new GLC and cash cow for the Barisan government?
| Walk For Freedom 2011: Peaceful Assembly Bill Cannot And Must Not Become Law! Posted: 24 Nov 2011 08:34 PM PST By Lim Chee Wee, Malaysian Bar Council President Martin Luther King Jr once said that "the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." This Peaceful Assembly Bill ("Bill") is far more restrictive than the current law. It is not a piece of legislation which we, as lawyers, can watch enter our statute books without standing up against it. It is not a piece of legislation which we want future generations to inherit, without us walking, and spending every ounce of our energy to oppose. If this piece of legislation makes it to the statute books, future generations would inherit a nation that is far from modern and progressive. Members of the Bar are now called upon to march to object to this Bill. The walk will take place next Tuesday, 29 Nov 2011, from the entrance of the Royal Lake Club to Parliament House, to deliver the Bar's Proposed Amendments to the Peaceful Assembly Bill to YB Datuk Liew Vui Keong, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department. Members are advised to gather in their court attire at 11:30 am outside the Royal Lake Club entrance. The Prime Minister, in his eve of Malaysia Day 2011 speech, had promised that:
This Bill is not in line with international norms because of, amongst others: (1) Prohibition of street protests (defined widely as "open air assembly which begins with a meeting at a specified place and consists of walking in a mass march or rally for the purpose of objecting to or advancing a particular cause or causes"); (2) Prohibition of organisation of assemblies by persons below the age of twenty one years; (3) Prohibition of participation in peaceful assemblies of children below the age of fifteen years; (4) Unduly onerous responsibilities and restrictions on organisers and assemblies; and (5) Excessive fines for non-compliance of the Bill. Therefore this Bill is not "in accordance with the supremacy of the Constitution, rule of law and respect for basic human rights and individual rights", which the Prime Minister promised it would be. The Bill is in its second reading in the Dewan Rakyat, and in all likelihood it will be passed after the third reading. We must remain hopeful that we can make a difference, through our Walk for Freedom. We must urge the Prime Minister to amend the Bill by way of public consultation to ensure that Malaysia will have a legislation in the public interest, which truly upholds, protects and promotes our constitutional right to freedom of assembly. We feel let down by how far short this Bill falls in relation to what the Malaysian people were promised in the Prime Minister's Malaysia Day 2011 message. In short, the Prime Minister must walk his own talk. Please click on the links below to view the:
Please contact Gayathiri Paneerselvam, Officer, by telephone at 03-2050 2089 or by email at gayathiri.p@malaysianbar.org.my, should you have any queries. I call on all Members to support us in this crucial initiative. See you on Tuesday, let's walk! Lim Chee Wee President Malaysian Bar |
| Posted: 24 Nov 2011 06:42 PM PST How patriotic are those leaders who go overseas to purchase expensive handbags, multimillion-dollar rings, or makes purchases of submarines, military helicopters and whatnot, and try to get hundreds of millions in kickbacks? How patriotic is Umno Sabah for taking all the top posts of the Sabah BN Committee, for ignoring the people's endless calls for an RCI on the illegal immigrants? Daniel John Jambun Oh boy, here we go again with misguided concepts about patriotism! Datuk Yahya Hussein this week accused the opposition of being unpatriotic following criticism of the state budget by DAP's Jimmy Wong, Sri Tanjung's opposition Assemblyman. Yahya took the opportunity to blurt out such extreme comments against him as, "To the opposition like … Jimmy Wong, the budget today is meaningless … no matter how much the budget is it is incorrect… it is opposed in a way that is membabi buta (blindly)… when the opposition talks about Sabah, everything about it is bad but when they talk about other states such as Penang and Selangor, it is all good." "People like these are unpatriotic. I hope the people would be aware of the opposition's habit and objectives because they only aim to rule but do not know what to do if they achieve it. They should not be given any chance to rule the State because it would be like releasing a dog from captivity." My first impression of this outburst is that one state BN leader has lost his cool in dealing with the opposition in the august house. Yahya lost his own dignity as a senior leader by making such childish remarks. He clearly believes that the opposition leaders are a bunch of idiots who are talking blindly (like pigs?), and totally unfit to rule the state, i.e., they wouldn't know how to rule and they will behave like ungrateful dogs! Two derogatory references to dirty animals (pigs and dogs) are mentioned by Yahya which was a strong hint at equating them to poor Jimmy. But never mind that because people call each other by animal names all the time, e.g., pig, dog, monkey, snake, serpent, fox, flying fox, chicken, buffalo, and so on. But what irks me most is that the BN leaders have gone into the bad habit of calling leaders of the opposition as being unpatriotic. Those who criticize the BN government abroad are branded as smearing the name of the country, even trying to destroy the country. As I remember, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah was the first to be accused of doing this when he revealed the corruption of the BN under Umno, who as Ku Li put it, "awarded projects to themselves." It didn't matter that what he said was true; he was highly demonised as unpatriotic and anti-national. Thereafter if was Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Nurul Izzah, Raja Petra Kamarudin and others. One minister recently accused the Indians and Chinese unpatriotic for not being interested in joining the security forces. It later turned out to be a terrible blunder for which the minister had to publicly apologise. Now it is Jimmy Wong who is an unpatriotic political animal for criticizing the state budget! But I would like to confront Yahya and ask him point blank: How patriotic do you think the BN/Umno leaders are towards Sabah? I think it is the 14th year that we have been having a deficit budget. How come we never know how much of the budget allocation had been spent every year? How much of the new budget is carry-forward amounts for delayed projects? How patriotic are those leaders who go overseas to purchase expensive handbags, multimillion-dollar rings, or makes purchases of submarines, military helicopters and whatnot, and try to get hundreds of millions in kickbacks? How patriotic is Umno Sabah for taking all the top posts of the Sabah BN Committee, for ignoring the people's endless calls for an RCI on the illegal immigrants? Where was the patriotism of Umno when it set into motion a secret program to legalise illegal immigrants by giving the MyKads overnight in what is now famously called "Projek IC"? How patriotic is Umno Sabah for supporting the sabotage policy, which for years have been causing the high inflation in Sabah, hence killing the consumers in the state, while it continues to pretend not to hear all the many years of protests against it? What about the unending grabs of NCR lands against natives by big companies and with no intervention from Umno leaders? And what wonderful patriotism Umno Sabah can talk about when it ignores the call for a White Paper on the huge, huge, unconscionable Saham Amanah (SAS) scandal? And if Umno is such a great planner in reviving the economy of the state, why did Sabah become the poorest state beginning with Umno's the takeover of the state in 1994? Why has one company connected to a senior BN leader taken most of the road building projects in Sabah? And why are the people complaining about construction projects being usually overpriced by up to 100% their actual costs? Hey, I can go on a whole day with these questions…. I have said it before that the opposition leaders are not idiots who simply fire at the BN membabi buta, but we watch whatever the BN is doing with the sharp eyes of the hawk. We are the sober ones because we are not the ones drunk with power and corruption! We are fighting the abuses power by the BN because we love our state and because we want to defend the people of Sabah from the clever political manipulations to reverse the negative trends, which are slowly killing the state. As for Penang and Selangor, they have made tremendous progress in improving the governance of these states. Even the Auditor General made a glowing commentary on the transparent and effective leadership of Penang by Lim Guan Eng who, by the way, doesn't have a mansion and travels on planes by economy class on! Here it's proven that the opposition leaders and governments are very, very patriotic indeed, unlike some leaders who are behaving like robbers who bring down their own states with their misdeeds.
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| Broken Promise: PM Has Not Lived Up To Malaysia Day 2011 Pledge Posted: 24 Nov 2011 10:08 AM PST By Lim Chee Wee, President, Malaysian Bar via Malaysian Mirror The Peaceful Assembly Bill ("Bill") was tabled in Parliament for its first reading on 22 November 2011, which we believe was the same day that Members of Parliament first received copies of the Bill. It must be noted that advance notice was not given, save for speculation in the media that the Bill would be tabled on 24 November 2011. In addition, the second reading of the Bill began in Parliament today, merely two days after the first reading. There appears to be unseemly haste in introducing this far-reaching and crucial legislation, without sufficient time for Members of Parliament themselves to review the Bill fully, and without adequate public consultation. The Bill, in replacing the present legislative provision in section 27 of the Police Act 1967, introduced several controversial and objectionable provisions. For instance: (1) Prohibition of street protests (defined widely as "open air assembly which begins with a meeting at a specified place and consists of walking in a mass march or rally for the purpose of objecting to or advancing a particular cause or causes"); (2) Prohibition of organisation of assemblies by persons below the age of twenty one years; (3) Prohibition of participation in peaceful assemblies of children below the age of fifteen years; (4) Unduly onerous responsibilities and restrictions on organisers and assemblies; and (5) Excessive fines for non-compliance of the Bill. These restrictive provisions in the Bill effectively render meaningless our constitutional guarantee, by constraining assembly to very limited circumstances. This stands in stark contrast to the words of the Prime Minister in his speech on the eve of Malaysia Day 2011. That speech was widely applauded by the Malaysian Bar, and by Malaysians in general, in their honest belief that there would be real and genuine reforms. The Prime Minister had stated: I often opine that long gone is the era in which the government knows everything and claims monopoly over wisdom. . . . The Government will also review section 27 of the Police Act 1967, taking into consideration Article 10 of the Federal Constitution regarding freedom of assembly and so as to be in line with international norms on the same matter. . . . (emphasis added) Be confident that it is a strength and not a weakness for us to place our trust in the Malaysian people's intelligence to make decisions that will shape the path of their own future. . . . It is absolutely clear that the steps I just announced are none other than early initiatives of an organised and graceful political transformation. It stands as a crucial and much needed complement to the initiatives of economic transformation and public presentation which the government has outlined and implemented for over two years in the effort to pioneer a modern and progressive nation. . . . In closing, I wish to emphasise that free of any suspicion and doubt, the Malaysia that we all dream of and are in the process of creating is a Malaysia that practices [sic] a functional and inclusive democracy where public peace and prosperity is preserved in accordance with the supremacy of the Constitution, rule of law and respect for basic human rights and individual rights. The Malaysian Bar recommends that the Bill be referred to a Parliamentary Select Committee, which would engage in a public consultation process consistent with the Prime Minister's promise of "a Malaysia that practices [sic] a functional and inclusive democracy". Further, the Malaysian Bar is now wary as to the form and substance of the two proposed pieces of legislation that will replace the Internal Security Act 1960, given this disappointing experience. We urge the Prime Minister to hold steadfast – with courage and determination – to his laudable Malaysia Day pledges, and fulfil the rakyat's expectations.
LIM CHEE WEE is President of Malaysian Bar |
| BN lacks innovative policies, sincerity for the people Posted: 24 Nov 2011 01:05 AM PST By Jackson Ng, Retired Journalist WITH the next and 13th General Election touted to be around the corner, the Barisan Nasional, especially Umno and MCA, is getting desperate. This is shown by the way Umno and MCA are dishing out goodies and financial aid to the people which they had actually condemned the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) state governments for doing so after the 2008 political tsunami. It also shows BN's lack of innovative policies to help ease the financial burden of the people. BN is only good at copying the PR. That too is carried out without sincerity and sustainability. Also, what the BN could not do or deliver in 54 years, the PR did in its maiden rule in its states. The following are three significant examples: The BN slammed the PR state governments' innovative people-friendly policies and described the initiatives as just populist political gimmicks. However, the "gimmicks" in Penang and Selangor have remained sustainable. Compare what the PR state governments have introduced and implemented with the BN and MCA's one-time financial aid to the people. The BN and MCA's recent announcement of cash aid to the people are clearly insincere, made just to "buy" votes for the coming general election. Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, in his Budget 2012 presentation, announced a RM100 aid to all public school children. He also announced a one-time payment of RM500 assistance to households with an income of RM3,000 and below. This was followed by MCA's announcement that it would allocate some RM30 million to distribute RM100 to help its members and RM200 for a new-born. This is only a one-time payment as it is unsustainable and a massive drain on the party funds. Also, funds raised for the 1MCA Medical Foundation are now being described as just another mode of income tax collection and a twisted gimmick. If not for the people's support for the PR in 2008 followed by the political pressures from the PR's style of governance, the BN and MCA would not have made the above people-friendly efforts. In fact, the people should wisely accept and take the goodies from BN and MCA but continue to support the PR in the next general election. Without the pressures from the PR, the BN and MCA will not bother to even consider any such massive financial aid to the people. Should the PR secure federal power in the next general election, there is every indication that the people are set to benefit more with the PR's access to federal funds. This is just simple logic based on what the PR state governments had been able to do or deliver since securing the mandate to rule in 2008. |
| Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:56 AM PST Additionally, it shall be up to any police officer on the scene to determine if the assembly is peaceful or otherwise. Immediate arrests without the need of an arrest warrant is granted. By TAKDENAMA NEWS REPORT. MMXI. Breaking News. Malaysia. The Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz tabled the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 in the Malaysian Parliament on Tuesday this week. This is one of the new laws to be enacted to replace the Internal Security Act (ISA), the other new law being the Domestic Defense Act. When questioned of this new legislation, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said that this new law is one of the many concerted efforts initiated by the current government to undertake the transformation of the existing legal framework, in relation to the constitutional rights of citizens to assemble. It seeks to permit Malaysian citizens to organize and participate in assemblies peacefully and without arms. However he stressed that these assemblies are subjected to restrictions deemed necessary and in the interest of public order and security. When asked to further elaborate on the restrictions that shall be imposed, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz stated for a fact that all assemblies are restricted to areas deemed "non-prohibitive" and that the assemblies cannot be extended to being street protests. Public places and all federal governmental office areas are deemed prohibited areas and that the people participating in the assembly are off limits to a 50 meter radius of It is not known to the Auditor-General but a firm order has been placed with an Israeli government-linked company for the supply of one million units of portable laser rangefinders at USD100,000 per unit. Unconfirmed sources from within Radio Shack of the US of A has indicated that they shall be supplying these items to the Israeli company who in turn shall sell them to the an unnamed individual in the PM's Department who in turn will supply to the GOM. In another totally unrelated news, a Chinese electronic toy maker has received a firm order from Radio Shack to manufacture one million units of portable laser rangefinders. The Bill also stipulates that the organizer of an assembly must guarantee the assembly is in compliance with the laws and does not commit any act or make any statement that could promote ill-feeling, discontent or hostility amongst the public nor disturb the public tranquility, while a participant should adhere to the orders given by the police or organizer to conduct the assembly orderly. Additionally, it shall be up to any police officer on the Clause 8 of the Bill also sets out the responsibilities of the police, where a police officer may take any measures deemed necessary to ensure orderly conduct of the assembly, in accordance with the Act or any other written law. In another unrelated news, the same Chinese toy maker has been ordered to manufacture another one million units of tasers. Under Clause 14, an officer in charge of a police district is required to respond to a notification of assembly within 12 days, upon receipt of the notification, which he also needs to respond to organizers, any restrictions and conditions to be imposed. Clause 15 sets out the conditions and restrictions that may be imposed by the officer in charge of the police district such as date, time and duration, and place of assembly, manner of the assembly and conduct of participants during the assembly. The Bill, when passed, will empower a police officer to arrest, without warrant, any organizer or participant who refuses or fails to comply with any restriction and condition imposed. Clause 21 also empowers a police officer to issue an order to disperse, if the assembly did not comply with the laws stated above. Clause 23 will allow a police officer to make any form of recording of an assembly while Clause 24 allows any media representative to have reasonable access to a place of assembly and use any equipment to report on the assembly. Meanwhile, in consequence to the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011, the Police Act 1967 (Act 344) will also be amended. The Bill will seek to delete sections 27, 27A, 27B and 27C of the Act 344, which does away with the requirement for a license to convene or collect assembly or meeting or to form a procession in any public place. This new law, if passed basically means that no police permits are now required but the organizers of an assembly will be required to notify the PDRM two weeks before the event and that the assembly can only be held in areas that are approved by them. Furthermore, if the assembly is deemed disorderly or racial or anti-government or within prohibited areas, the organizers can and will be held fully responsible and be arrested. Similarly, any When asked of the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department whether he will set up a counter within his office in Putrajaya akin to the one set up by the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said that he is seriously considering it, "Paper are not cheap anymore … especially in triplicate…" |
| Open apology to Dato Seri Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa Group Chief Executive Officer, Telekom Malaysia Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:51 AM PST Now that the real owner, Selangor Networking Consortium (SNC) is revealed, I am redirecting my open letter to them. Hopefully this will awaken their conscience and they will do the right thing by dismantling the tower which I believe is now fully functional. By Bobby Chiah Dear Dato Seri, Immediately after the May 1st. extended holidays (the three days when the tower was erected) a member of our Joint Management Body (JMB) went to Majlis Perbandaran Selayang (MPS) to seek answers. He was told that not only the tower belongs to Telekom Malaysia but TM also bypassed them by directly approaching Putrajaya for approval. And that is the reason why they cannot stop the installation. They portrayed themselves as the innocent and hapless party when in reality nothing is further from the truth. They were caught lying later when they admitted in their letter to YB William Leong that they in fact were the ones who issued the approval letter. But none of us ever suspected that MPS would go to the extent of making an innocent party the scapegoat. And that is why until clarification from TM, all of us were under the impression that the tower belongs to TM. Now that the real owner, Selangor Networking Consortium (SNC) is revealed, I am redirecting my open letter to them. Hopefully this will awaken their conscience and they will do the right thing by dismantling the tower which I believe is now fully functional. If I have to, I will post our predicament internationally to seek support from those whom I quoted in my letter. Whether it is a coincidence or not, after the tower became functional recently, both my grand-daughters and myself have fallen ill with the same symptoms which are lingering fever, bodyache, headache, nausea and bouts of vormiting. Medications do not help. Is it a coincidence or is it because my granddaughters are too young and I am too old that our immune systems cannot withstand the malevolent effects of the EMFs from the tower? I don't know. But if it is what I fear it is then God help us all. |
| Posted: 23 Nov 2011 01:52 PM PST By Joyselling Ton via The Malaysian Insider Not a day goes by without Dr Chua Soi Lek and his gang trying to get Malaysian Chinese to support them — and they do not do so by showing themselves to be a superior product than the competition, namely, the DAP, but by scare-mongering. These are the favourite tools and tactics devised by the MCA's war room, which is helmed by MCA politicians and The Star journalists like Wong Chun Wai, and assisted by funds from Huaren. 1) The hudud scare. MCA hopes that by constantly harping on PAS and hudud law, the Malaysian Chinese voters will desert DAP and Pakatan Rakyat, and give their support to MCA and Barisan Nasional. But these self-serving politicians from MCA and their propaganda machine, The Star, do not want to acknowledge one fact that cannot be challenged: Malaysia was declared an Islamic state by Umno and it was under Umno that religious intolerance has become noticeable here. And while this was happening, MCA politician collaborated with their Umno partners. A case in point is the legislation in Selangor that allowed Jais officials to raid the Damansara Utama Methodist Church. The enactment was passed in the Selangor assembly under the then Barisan Nasional government. So it is really disingenuous for MCA now to talk about DAP selling out to PAS, or stoke talk about hudud. And another point to ponder: Given Umno's track record of trying to outdo PAS, isn't it likely that the extremists of Umno will introduce some form of hudud sooner than later? And then, like the political eunuchs they are and proven to be, the MCA will be silent. 2) Let MCA be the check and balance. According to the party officials in Penang, the people there should give MCA a chance to keep the Pakatan Rakyat government there honest. This plea is interesting on two counts: it acknowledges that the voters of Penang are likely to return Lim Guan Eng and comrades to power and, by extension, this would mean that the DAP/PR government have done a good job. So why should the voters give MCA a few seats? They have performed poorly in the assembly and were completely cowed by Umno Penang when the state was under the control of BN. 3) Notice how silent Dr Chua Soi Lek and MCA have been on the National Feedlot scandal. Do they dare to condemn Shahrizat Jalil or Khairy Jamaluddin for his ridiculous defence of the mismanagement and abuse? Do they even dare to challenge Utusan Malaysia when it makes scurrilous allegations against non-Malays? The MCA is a party of politicians interested in their own welfare. It is helmed by a president who still harbours hopes of being a minister despite moral failings. It is a party that has presided over the biggest financial scandal in history: The PKFZ. This is a scandal that could cost the taxpayers RM12 billion! And they ask us to be afraid of PAS and hudud. Heck, they have been castrating us all these years even without hudud. If I have one wish, it is for the likes of MCA and Gerakan to be annihilated at the comings polls. Because they have collaborated with a party that has damaged our beloved Malaysia. |
| Populist policies undermine reform Posted: 23 Nov 2011 01:47 PM PST By Dr Kua Kia Soong, Director, Suaram WATCHING recent events and statements by Malaysian politicians, the urgent need for reform in our country risks being undermined by populism on both sides of the political divide as they jostle for votes in an impending general election. From the Barisan Nasional, we have seen the free handouts of RM100 to students in the school system without any form of means testing. We have also recently witnessed the extreme form of populism – "mobocracy", whereby mob rule can dictate that a perfectly legal and peaceful event such as Seksualiti Merdeka be banned by the police.Pakatan Rakyat has also indulged in populism since it came into power, which makes us wonder about the substance of reformasi. First, the Selangor government gave away free water without any form of means testing or "demand management" which is crucial to water conservation. Now, to the suggestion that we should look into making the civil service lean and mean, PR says that while this makes economic sense, it is politically foolhardy. One wonders if the promised rescission of the New Economic Policy will later be similarly jettisoned because of "political consideration". During the fifties and sixties, Malaysian schools had some form of means testing to ensure that deserving students (i.e. those from lower-income families) could have access to fee waivers, free textbooks and even free meals. Such a progressive policy was a prudent use of valuable resources and did not create resentment among better-off students. In contrast, the handout of RM100 to students regardless of income is not only an imprudent use of taxpayers' money, it is likely to be ridiculed as meaningless by students from rich families. Likewise, the populist granting of free water by the Selangor government to all and sundry. Why should those who squander water washing their cars every day be entitled to free water? How do the orang asli feel about such wastage when they were displaced from their ancestral land for the Selangor Dam supposedly because they had been told the dam was vital for the needs of the Klang Valley? Is such a populist measure congruent with the call for demand management which is crucial to water conservation everywhere in the world? It makes nonsense of the call for rainwater harvesting when we can have access to free treated water. Every organisational transformation – especially in loss-making government agencies – needs a full audit and swift remedial action to follow. That is what the BN government's recent razzmatazz about "transformation this and transformation that" ought to be about. Nowhere is this more obvious than in our heavily bloated civil service. For example, our power plants have failed to run at full capacity, about which I have repeatedly called for thorough audits. The crisis in our energy industry is certainly not just due to the current gas shortage. The same can be said for the decades-old mismanagement and inefficiencies in KTM. In my title last year, "Questioning Arms Spending in Malaysia", I not only called for a drastic reduction of our defence budget but also the conversion of arms production to socially useful production and the promotion of a culture of peace. The billions of ringgit saved could be used to create thousands of jobs. Likewise, any shake-up of our civil service need not necessarily lead to unemployment, but to leaner and more efficient organisations, jobs retraining and the creation of more alternative sectors. Many highly profitable industries such as our highways and public utilities could be nationalised and operated by civil servants. Since the end of the jungle war, the police field force can be redeployed for community policing and not to break up peaceful assemblies. To better serve the local community, social services such as the provision of public housing, education and transport needs to be professionally and productively managed, decentralised and handled by elected local authorities. We should apply our minds to retraining and redeploying our human resources. Remember World War II when we were forced to develop our domestic industries and grow our own food as a result of restrictions on foreign imports. Then again, when the war came to an end, every country had to convert its war production machinery to civilian production. This was no easy transition but every country managed to achieve this transformation. Failure to demonstrate such flexibility and implement necessary reforms will see us going down the slippery slope that countries such as Greece and Italy find themselves in today. We can say goodbye to reformasi if the national agenda for change is usurped by populist desperadoes. Dr Kua Kia Soong is a director of human rights organisation Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram). |
| MCLM Press Statement on the "Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011" Posted: 23 Nov 2011 07:41 AM PST By Haris Ibrahim, MCLM At a time when more Malaysians are pressing for democratic rights, the new Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 tabled in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday proves beyond doubt that Najib is a congenital liar. Most convincingly, this new Bill bulldozes to the ground whatever empty promises Najib made on Sept 15 when he announced that he wanted to give Malaysians more freedom via a progressive package of social and political reforms including a review of Section 27 of the Police Act and the abolition of the Internal Security Act (ISA) and the Restricted Residence Act. MCLM opposes this proposed law which we deem as a repressive tool to restrict civil freedom because it accords the police even more power to arrest individuals. While the new Bill does away with the need for a permit to gather in public, alongside is a raft of new restrictions including barring protesters from taking to the street - a form of assembly in motion, or procession which is already legally recognised in section 27 of the Police Act 1967. The Bill is a public comedy of contradictions. On one hand, the Bill requires people to provide 30 days' advance notice for assemblies, except for those in designated areas as defined by the home minister but on the other hand, it prohibits "street protest" - a move inconsistent with section 10(e) (viii) of the Bill itself. Just last year, the government withdrew its reservations to Articles 1, 13 and 15 of the CRC on 6 June 2010, thus allowing children "the freedom to have their say, and the right to form associations and assemble peacefully". With this new Bill, children under 15 are not allowed to take part in assemblies, except in cultural or religious events such as funeral corteges or events approved by the home minister. Those under 21 years of age are not allowed to organise assemblies. Why bother with tabling another Bill to amend the Police Act, which will take away the need to obtain a police permit prior to organising an assembly and then impose MORE restrictions with this new Bill? The new Bill goes against the genuine spirit of human rights as specified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Federal Constitution and the promise of the Prime Minister to institute democratic reform. MCLM is appalled that in a tweet, Najib said: "We (are) transforming our laws to protect constitutional rights of our citizens to assemble while protecting public order (and) security of Malaysia." Instead of protecting our constitutional rights, he is robbing us of those very rights under a hypocritical mask called transformation of laws! MCLM views with grave concern that all the pre-conditions, prior approvals not forgetting the restrictive legal provisions and greater empowerment of the police will severely discourage and dissuade the freedom of peaceful assembly, which is a basic human right. MCLM calls upon every right-minded MP to oppose this bill when it is debated in Parliament tomorrow for the second reading and for civil society to rise and reclaim their rights by publicly opposing this unconstitutional Bill which must NOT be passed at all. If this Bill is passed, it will prove beyond doubt that the current BN government will NEVER keep whatever shallow and empty promises made in a feeble whitewashing tactic to gain brownie points. Haris Ibrahim |
| HINDRAF's statement in response to FMT news report on Karpal's call to Unite under Pakatan Posted: 22 Nov 2011 04:35 PM PST If we take a strong position with Pakatan now, driven by a commitment that we are making the right choice for the Indian working class then the see-saw is easily tipped back. However, given our experience, it behoves us to ensure that we are not just entering into a partnership of convenience but into a partnership based on mutually agreed upon principles so that any partnership we enter into will be robust and sustainable. By P.Waytha Moorthy We welcome DAP Chairman Mr Karpal Singh's invitation to us to join the Pakatan Rakyat coalition in a joint effort to unseat UMNO/BN in the forthcoming 13th GE. It is time that we recognise that we have had problems in the last 3 years, and also that it is now time to put aside those quarrels and to work out a strategy and synergy that is absolutely necessary and truly possible to unseat UMNO/BN. Hindraf can in no way oust the ruling party on its own, and recent trends show that Pakatan is in the same boat. Both in 1990 with Semangat 46 and 1999 with Barisan Alternatif when there was disarray within UMNO the opposition coalition could not galvanize enough support amongst the polity to unseat UMNO. Only when Hindraf moved the critical working class Indian votes in GE12 in 2008 away from BN/UMNO was a there a definite change to that pattern. Only synergy will do the job. As it stands today there seems to be a shift of 20-50% of the Indian votes away from Pakatan compared to that GE in March 2008. We say this has happened because of the ambivalence we have shown towards Pakatan in these intervening years. And our ambivalence deriving from our differences with Pakatan, was our way to indicate to the Pakatan coalition that Pakatan ignores us at their peril. The result of the ambivalence and the loss of the Hindraf momentum was the recent spate of visible by-election losses for Pakatan. We hope the point is abundantly made and it is time to move on. If we take a strong position with Pakatan now, driven by a commitment that we are making the right choice for the Indian working class then the see-saw is easily tipped back. However, given our experience, it behoves us to ensure that we are not just entering into a partnership of convenience but into a partnership based on mutually agreed upon principles so that any partnership we enter into will be robust and sustainable. To realize our mutual objectives, we call upon Mr Karpal Singh now to initiate discussion between the leaders of Pakatan and Hindraf/HRP to take this discussion to the next stage. If Pakatan truly wants to oust UMNO/BN from the seat of power, then Pakatan has to see the opportunity in this. In this context, we would like to add that the move to form the larger Pakatan coalition should encompass all the parties opposed to UMNO/BN across the spectrum in the Peninsula, Sarawak and Sabah, not just the few in the Peninsula. Even our nemesis, the UMNO led BN has 13 other parties spanning the whole country. Let wisdom prevail.
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| Response to Malaysia Today for Open Letter to TM Group CEO on Request to Discontinue ... Posted: 22 Nov 2011 04:32 PM PST We refer to the article published by the Malaysia Today on 21 November 2011 on the request by Mr. Bobby Chiah of Kipark Selayang Condominum for TM to discontinue the construction of new telecommunication tower built opposite the condominium. Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) wishes to clarify that its network team has immediately conducted a site visit this morning to the said location to ascertain the ownership of the tower mentioned. The visit confirmed that the tower in fact does not belong to TM and a signage erected within the vicinity of the tower, which is being built inside a water tank premise, indicated that it belongs to another telecommunications provider. There is also an existing tower which again belongs to another telecommunications provider. TM wishes also to inform that we do not plan to construct any new tower in the area in the near future, except for maintaining the existing exchanges to cater to our current TM customers. Please be assured that TM takes the safety and welfare of our customers very seriously and is committed to adhere to the policies and guidelines set by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT); namely 'Garis Panduan Pembinaan Menara Telekomunikasi, Struktur Sistem Pemancar Di Kawasan Pihak Berkuasa Tempatan-2002' on the construction of any new towers. Our TM representatives also managed to speak to Kipark Selayang Condominum's Residents Chairman to explain the situation. We are also replying directly to Mr. Chiah in response to the letter published here. We hope the explanation above clarifies the matter and sincerely hope your concerns will be addressed by the appropriate parties. On a separate note, we seek Malaysia Today's cooperation in extending future concerns regarding TM submitted by your readers to us directly for us investigate and respond appropriately. |
| Posted: 22 Nov 2011 04:25 PM PST By Fendyoasis I am writing in response to the MAS-AIR ASIA deal article. This has hot nothing to do with the deal but I just want to talk about the taxis in the airport and the little Napolean sucking us dry. I don't own a car and I use the taxis all the time. Now, have you ever wondered at the ludicrousness of the charge of taking taxis to the airport? Do you know that taxis that drive passengers to the airport will charge the passenger an extra RM12 (if I am not mistaken) as compensation for them not to take any passengers from the airport back to town? They can't take any passengers from the airport or they will get a fine. Why is this? To protect the cronies of the taxi companies that run the airport so they will always have passengers from the airport. A taxi driver said to me that Nazri holds these companies. I don't know I am just quoting him, so don't saman me please. Now isn't this a waste of our money? Why must we waste extra RM12 bucks just so that the business of airport taxis be profitable? Why can't we not pay the RM12 bucks and the taxi driver that drives us to the airport can pick up passengers from the airport and charge them by the taxi meter? No need to pay any extra charges at all. The taxi driver is happy, I am happy because I have to pay less. And in the end the economy is thriving at an efficient manner at the least cost for me and the taxi driver can maximize profit. Right? This is what is happening on how Malaysia is being run. We don't need to think of the complications of the MAS and Air Asia deal. Just see the charges of taxi service to the airport and we can see the little Napoleans at work. On a side note, kinda like charging tax for imported cars to force us to buy Proton cars. And they always ask us to reduce the cost of living. Why don't they just abolish the AP so that we can just buy cheap cars? Then we don't need to be burdened with an 11-year car loan. Proton can die after that. We really have stupid people running Malaysia now. |
| Mengapa Umno dan PERKASA tidak bersuara ketika MCA terus menerus menghina Islam? Posted: 22 Nov 2011 04:11 PM PST "Lawak Jenaka yang teruk dan tidak sepadan! MCA menganjurkan forum yang bertemakan "Hudud dan Implikasi ke atas bukan Islam di Malaysia" pada 4 Dis. Dan pada semua orang, Presiden MCA, Chua Soi Lek yang dicemari skandal akan menyampaikan ucaptama serta ucapan penutup. Yang pertama, adakah Chua seorang Muslim? Adakah dia sudah memeluk Islam? Adakah dia benar-benar memahami Hudud? Apa yang membuatkan beliau berhak keatas Hudud? Apakah perkataan "zina" di dalam kamus? Sudah tentu dia akan bersungguh-sungguh untuk menentang dan menghina Hudud kerana, jika dia telah memeluk Islam, dia telah dilempar batu hingga mati kerana menipu isteri dan keluarganya.
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| CONCLUSION - UMNO CANNOT DEFEND MALAY RIGHTS, LAND OR ANYTHING FOR THAT MATTER! Posted: 22 Nov 2011 03:10 PM PST Can you believe it? Today, The Star reported that San Miguel got the green light from the relevant ministries. In short, the UMNO-led government approved the sale of Esso Malaysia to San Miguel a beer giant [http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/11/22/business/9950548&sec=business]. 560 pieces of strategic pieces of land throughout Malaysia (no-brainer right because these pieces of land are specially chosen for the traffic volume) to a foreign company whose directors are now under investigation in the Philippines for insider trading. As one of the member of the Senate committee stressed, we have enough evidence to indict that San Miguel Director [http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/business/11/15/11/osme%C3%B1-says-has-proof-insider-trading-philex-deals]. So what's this UMNO-led government doing? Diddly shit, nothing in short. On the excuse that any interference in the approval process would send wrong signals to the international press and the foreign investment community, the UMNO-led BN abdicated from its responsibilities. For this reason alone, if this government cannot protect the Malays, Muslims, and Malaysians in general, then it is not fit to govern. The funny thing about all this is how treacherous UMNO and the old guards Mahathir, the sons Mirzan and Muhkriz have all berkomplot to get the beer company into Malaysia. Unbelievable as if it's not enough Mahathir as the advisor of Petronas told Petronas not to bid against San Miguel leaving the light-weights to go against a conspiracy which would go down in Malay history as the greatest betrayal of Malay rights – Tunku Abdul Rahman fought for our independence, our ability to discern what's good for our nation. Mahathir and Najib have decided to betray that trust passed down by Tunku. Mahathir obviously has a thick A-file on Najib so Najib is nothing but a puppet. So we have to ask ourselves what next for Malaysia? In Egypt and Libya they kicked people like Mahathir out for good and threw them behind bars for stealing from the people. In the Phillipinnes, they are putting Arroyo to jail. It's high time we get going on putting Mahathir and his whole family behind bars and maybe even more than that. Our opportunity is fast approaching. Make sure you vote this election. As long as UMNO is there, Mahathir and his cronies Daim, and his idotic children are stealing the riches of the nation. Can you imagine I was sitting there at Sharil (of Sapura fame)'s daughter wedding in Shangri-La and I told myself looking at all these crooks and arseholes and I told myself this is it – It's really too much and this last act of betrayal on Malay rights and our land is the last straw. Anything but UMNO (ABU). Remember, if we do not take this important action, who will?
Tunku Fariz Bangsar
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| MyConsti PENANG Event: 'Perjuangan Mahasiswa': The UUCA and the Federal Constitution Posted: 21 Nov 2011 06:08 PM PST 2.00pm on 27 November 2011 Dewan Bandar, Padang Kota Lama /Town Hall, Esplanade. George Town, Penang
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| Domestic Defense Act (DSA) 2012 Posted: 21 Nov 2011 12:43 AM PST When asked about the differences between the ISA and the DDA the Home Minister said that the initials are different for starters and that Malaysians should no longer be wary of the ISA (because it will cease to exist). By TAKDENAMA NEWS REPORT. MMXI. Breaking News. Malaysia. The Malaysian Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, today stated for a fact that the new law to replace the Internal Security Act 1960 will still provide for detention without trial. He said detention without trial was also being practised in some countries in the fight against terrorism, such as the Patriot Act in the United States and Anti-Terrorism Act in the United Kingdom and Australia. On Sept 15, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in his Malaysia Day special address announced that the ISA would be repealed and two new suitable laws formulated to preserve peace, harmony, stability and prosperity in the country. One of the new laws shall be named the Domestic Defense Act (DDA) that will provide for security measures under the existing law to protect the government from internal attacks. When asked about the differences between the ISA and the DDA the Home Minister said that the initials are different for starters and that Malaysians should no longer be wary of the ISA (because it will cease to exist). "The DDA will provide for a detention period (without trial) to be determined by me or my cousin whereas the ISA had a fixed maximum detention period of two years only." This means that the new law will empower the government to detain an individual indefinitely without having to go through the mundane process of reapplying for such detention to be extended every two years. The Home Minister said that this is done to save costs as every reapplication takes time, effort and money, as the documents have to be completed in triplicate. The Home Minister also said that the new law would also incorporate notice to families of the detainees and the process of making appeals. "The Government of Malaysia will inform the family members of those who are detained (without trial) the period of detention and where the detainee will be incarcerated (Kamunting)." As for making appeals, the GOM will charge each appeal a minimum RM100,000 (in cash only) for processing the appeal documents (which must be in triplicate). The Home Minister said that a special counter will be set up in his office in Putrajaya to process these appeal applications but warned that no receipts will be issued. "We are cutting costs on paper." When asked whether the existing ISA detainees be released once the old law has been repealed the Home Minister replied, "Yes. We will release all existing ISA detainees immediately once ISA has been repealed by Parliament. However we shall be re-detaining these people under the DDA." |
| Posted: 21 Nov 2011 12:32 AM PST Of course Chua is going all out to oppose and insult Hudud because, if he had embraced Islam, he would have been stoned to death for cheating on his wife and family. WHAT a sick joke and a mismatch! The MCA is organising a forum themed "Hudud and Its Implications on Non-Muslims in Malaysia" on Dec 4. And of all the people, the adulterer and MCA president Chua Soi Lek, will deliver the keynote address as well as the closing remarks. In the first place, is Chua a Muslim? Has he converted? Does he really understand Hudud? What makes him an authority of Hudud? Is the word "zina" in his dictionary? Of course he is going all out to oppose and insult Hudud because, if he had embraced Islam, he would have been stoned to death for cheating on his wife and family. Chua and non-Muslims have no standing to oppose the practice of Muslims and Islam. The Muslims also have no right to oppose the practice of other religions. It is only the rampant exploitation of race and religion by skewered politicians, especially those from Barisan Nasional (BN), Malaysians are kept emotionally at their edge. That is exactly what the BN wants. Instil fear on everyone to serve its long adopted divide-and-rule political strategy. With all the degrading and insulting remarks coming from MCA, Chua and his cronies, where are the defenders of Islam? Where are the likes of Perkasa and Umno? Are these two self- proclaimed champion pretenders of "Malaysia is an Islamic state" endorsing MCA's stand? If so, then the Muslims in Umno do not really believe in Islam and Hudud. As Umno cannot come out to insult Islam and Hudud, it is thus allowing MCA to do it. To allow a tainted-politician like Chua to even touch on Islam and Hudud is an insult to the Malays. He has no standing and integrity to question the sacred religion and its laws. What is he going to say and how is he going to respond if the Malays start telling Christians and Buddhists how they should practice their religion? Isn't the issue as simple as that? For those who continue to espouse that Hudud will affect us, you can continue to argue the issue this way and Malaysians will never reach a consensus. Expressing fear is not a fact. The expressed fear is due to skewered implementation of the law, so don't blame the law. Blame the enforcement and the idiots exploiting and abusing their power. Blame the government that you elected for allowing all this to happen. Malaysia is a multi-racial nation and unity hinges on religious and race tolerance. In the first place, religion and race should never have been politicised. Politics should just be based on social and economic development for the country. It is the bad intentions of politicians who craze for power who are responsible for the country's current shameful state of affairs – injustice, corruption and erosion of the democratic rights of Malaysians. With Umno allowing MCA and the pornstar to belittle the sacred values of Hudud as an Islamic criminal law, thereby insulting Islam, am I wrong to say MCA is staunchly anti-Islam? If so, what is Umno and Perkasa doing about it? Have their tongues been severed?
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| Will this be a new GLC and cash cow for the Barisan government? Posted: 20 Nov 2011 02:54 PM PST Government rushing to set up National Healthcare Financing AuthorityThe Barisan Nasional government is working round the clock to set up the National Healthcare Financing Authority, and this body is likely to start operations in the first half of 2012. This move will spell bad news for all of us Malaysians because it will now be mandatory for all of us who are getting an income to pay premiums to the NHFA if we want medical treatment in private and government hospitals and also at private clinics. Despite paying the premiums, we will have to fork out more money because the premiums only cover very basic treatment. The question is what will happen to people who do not have an income or no longer have an income? Where will they get their medical treatment? There are more questions: Is there a possibility that this body be turned into a government-linked company? Another question is: Could this new company be led by a Barisan crony? If this is so, then we are likely to be doomed because the possibility of money being abused is great judging from the way other GLCs are run. We have seen too many cases of the top management receiving salaries and perks that take up a huge percentage of the operations cost. With all of us paying premiums each month, the NHFA stands to get millions of ringgit and this is a lot of money at the Barisan government's disposal. There is a possibility of this new GLC being their latest cash cow. To discuss this issue and the consequences of having the NHFA at the public forum called "Reforming the Malaysian Healthcare System: Is there a need?" on Nov 27 at YMCA, Jalan Macalister in Penang from 1pm to 6pm.
Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa Member of Parliament – Parit Buntar
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