Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- The Truth About May 13: Declassify Our Own Documents
- Muslims, Christians, the Word Allah and the Bible
- The Election Commission should resign for condoning vote-buying by the BN
- Questionable Reputation of a Well-Known Specialist Hospital
- New Year Countdown Party for Damansara Utama (PJ) Residents
- Don’t bribe us with our money! Malaysians are not that stupid
| The Truth About May 13: Declassify Our Own Documents Posted: 27 Dec 2012 04:54 PM PST
So is the government interested in what really happened in May 1969: who started the violence; who were the "hidden hands" alluded to in Said Zahari's immortal poem on the incident; how many casualties were there really? Or are they more interested in their status quo and peddling the same old story that we no longer believe in? Dr. Kua Kia Soong, Suaram Adviser The call by the UMNO Youth leader for The Edge to retract their story about "May 13" is laughable when FINAS is just about to release their much trumpeted film Tanda Putera which is aimed at reinforcing UMNO's version of the incident. The director of the film has said as much, that the film is aimed at contradicting the thesis of my 2007 title that the racial violence was a veiled coup d'etat by the emergent state capitalists in UMNO against the aristocrats under the Tunku. The continued postponement of the film's release is as perplexing as the continued postponement of the appeal by the two men sentenced for the murder of the Mongolian lass, Altantuya. Is the government apprehensive about the negative reaction many Malaysians will have toward the film? Has the Special Branch already submitted their intelligence to the government, warning them that this tired old official version of May 13 would only serve to enhance anti-UMNO voting behavior? The continued postponement for the release of this film is a smack in the face of the film director who appears to have little, if any, artistic freedom in the project at all and who at the same time, seems content to be a compliant accomplice in this historical cover-up. WANT THE TRUTH? OPEN THE SPECIAL BRANCH FILES Much has been made by non-academic UMNO hacks that my 2007 title relied on declassified documents from (foreign) British sources, as if researchers are incapable of separating the facts from fiction. Malaysian historians, whether they are the official apologists or the more radical, know that the British were more inclined toward supporting UMNO and the Alliance than the communists or the opposition as part of the neo-colonialist solution at Independence. In fact, in the book I pointed out the hypocrisy of the British in justifying an arms deal for the Home Guard when the outside world was condemning the racial violence and the partiality of the Malaysian security forces. Still, these documents reveal the innermost thoughts of the British officials and their own intelligence. They are the equivalent of the Wikileaks that have been made available to us to read today. But let's talk about the elephant in the room – our own classified documents on the May 13 racial violence of 1969. If UMNO is really interested in the truth, surely the simplest solution is to declassify our own files, especially those kept by the Special Branch. I still remember the cocky boast made by my Special Branch Interrogation Officers when I was detained under the ISA in 1987, that their archives at Bukit Aman are better than any university library in the country. I can believe them. So is the government interested in what really happened in May 1969: who started the violence; who were the "hidden hands" alluded to in Said Zahari's immortal poem on the incident; how many casualties were there really? Or are they more interested in their status quo and peddling the same old story that we no longer believe in? Malaysians should give their votes only to candidates who are committed to the enactment of a Freedom of Information Act and the repeal of the Official Secrets Act. TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION Our country cannot trundle along in this way, relying on Biro Tatanegara-type methods to portray history. We can no longer allow this dark episode in our history to be used as a political threat to frighten the people every time the status quo feels challenged. In order for this issue to be laid to rest, all the relevant facts need to be made visible and the dead named and honoured through the convening of a Truth & Reconciliation Commission (TRC). As with the South African TRC, "... a truth & reconciliation commission is a necessary exercise to enable (us) to come to terms with (our) past on a morally accepted basis and to advance the cause of reconciliation." Apart from the testimonies of all the people affected by the May 13 violence and their families, the May 13 TRC needs to be given access to all the classified documents in the country, especially those in the reportedly excellent Special Branch library and those in the possession of the Cabinet. Only then will we be able to lay to rest the ghosts of May 13 and finally become a society at peace with itself…
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| Muslims, Christians, the Word Allah and the Bible Posted: 27 Dec 2012 04:46 PM PST
It is clear that it is only permissible to use the term Allah to refer to God in the Bible, it is exactly what the Quran wants us to do. What an irony. I would like to thank my Christian brothers and sisters in their effort to make Allah the universal name of God and wanting the name to be the preferred reference to God in the Bible.
Anas Zubedy Here we go again… Every now and then, this matter will see the light of day. This time around, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng brought it up in his Christmas message. I personally agree with his sentiment. We should all share the word Allah and make it the universal name for God. As far as the Quran is concerned, this verse explains the universality of Allah clearly.
They are those who have been expelled from their homes in defiance of right,- (for no cause) except that they say, "our Lord is Allah". Did not Allah check one set of people by means of another, there would surely have been pulled down monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques, in which the name of Allah is commemorated in abundant measure. Allah will certainly aid those who aid his (cause);- for verily Allah is full of Strength, Exalted in Might, (able to enforce His Will) – Quran 22:40
Then what is the real issue here? As I have written in my book Can we use Allah in the Bible?, it is about TRUST. Below is the excerpt of the conclusion of Chapter 2 from my book that can be downloaded here http://letusaddvalue.blogspot.com/2012/12/muslims-christians-word-allah-and-bible.html
"It is clear that it is only permissible to use the term Allah to refer to God in the Bible, it is exactly what the Quran wants us to do. What an irony. I would like to thank my Christian brothers and sisters in their effort to make Allah the universal name of God and wanting the name to be the preferred reference to God in the Bible. But, you must not stop there. You must also strive hard to ensure that not just the Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia Bibles use the term Allah but all the other translations in the world regardless if they are in Japanese, English, Russian or Hindi uses the same term. Malaysian Christians can lead the world of Christianity to make Allah the universal name of God with the solid support of their Muslim brothers and sisters. Anything that can bring us closer together must be supported. A shared universal name to call our God Allah seems a most appropriate place to start. Failing to do so will create mistrust because the correct term for God in Malay is Tuhan. The Muslims will question your consistency and sincerity. Because the real issue here is Trust. Not the technicality of the term Allah, Tuhan, Elohim, Elah etc. This is where we need to focus. This is what we need to pay attention to. There are three levels of trust missing. Firstly we do not trust each other. The Muslims perceive the inconsistency of Christians wanting to use the term Allah in the Malay bible and not the other translations as a plot to convert Malay Muslims to Christianity. And, the Christians perceive the Muslims rejection to the usage of the term as another strategy to block the spread of the Christian faith to Muslims in Malaysia. This feeling is deep in the Christian psyche as they find the lopsided law on conversion in Malaysia to be unfair (Check what the Quran say about this at 83:1-3 and 5:8). Secondly, we do not trust ourselves. The Muslims lack confidence of fellow Muslims and feel that just by using the term Allah, their faith towards Islam can be shaken. The Christians lack confidence that being Christ-like is enough to attract others to the faith. That when you turn the other cheek, you win. Yet the deepest rot is the lack of trust in Allah or God or Tuhan or any other name you want to call upon Him! Both Muslims and Christians fail to trust that Allah will be with those who are true and love those who trust Him. If we do so, we have nothing to fear and nothing to grieve. Failing to trust Him, we become weak, insecure and misguided."
So to solve this issue, we must focus on TRUST between Muslims and Christians. I would be very happy if Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng can be the Christian leader to get the ball rolling and strive to ensure that Allah is not only used in the Bahasa Malaysia version of the Bible, but all the other translations around the world as well. If we extend our efforts to ensure that the Bibles in all languages use the term Allah, I have a strong conviction that Muslims will be able to see good in this effort and do not see this as a ploy of converting Malay Muslims to Christianity.
The word Allah is universal and I believe it should be universally used by all Muslims and Christians alike. When Malaysian Christians take the lead to make the word Allah universal and fight for its usage internationally, Muslims will have no reason to be suspicious; they will TRUST Christians more. And I reckon this is one way how TRUST between our Muslim and Christian communities can be nurtured.
Verily Allah is my Lord and your Lord: Him therefore serve ye: this is a Way that is straight – Quran 19:36
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| The Election Commission should resign for condoning vote-buying by the BN Posted: 27 Dec 2012 01:09 PM PST
As if this allegation of abuse of power and vote-buying is not bad enough, Election Commission (EC) deputy chairman Wan Ahmad Wan Omar has been quoted by the media as saying that the alleged incident was a "perfectly acceptable and normal" exercise of "voter education" by the BN.
Zairil Khir Johari, DAP Assistant National Publicity Secretary
A recent exposé by Perak PKR has alleged that the Department of Orang Asli Development (Jabatan Kemajuan Orang Asli or Jakoa) in Tapah has been conducting mock voting sessions in order to "train" the local Orang Asli to vote for the BN.
It is further claimed that not only were the Orang Asli forced to cast their votes for the BN in full view of Jakoa officers and Chenderiang assemblyman Dr Mah Hang Soon, they were subsequently rewarded with 5kg of rice each.
As if this allegation of abuse of power and vote-buying is not bad enough, Election Commission (EC) deputy chairman Wan Ahmad Wan Omar has been quoted by the media as saying that the alleged incident was a "perfectly acceptable and normal" exercise of "voter education" by the BN.
Wan Ahmad further justified the donation of rice in exchange for votes as acceptable as he reasoned that it would only be an offence if it is "given during the campaign period".
Such a response by the EC is shocking and incredulous to say the least. How can the EC, which is a public institution entrusted to regulate elections in an unbiased manner, so boldly attempt to whitewash such an unethical act, and on top of that one that was alleged to have been conducted in collusion with a publicly-funded government department?
Furthermore, is the EC actually saying that vote-buying is acceptable as long as it is not done during an election campaign? How does that make any sense at all? Can we therefore say that it is acceptable for a student to cheat as long as he is not doing it during an exam?
Clearly, the EC and the BN have no respect whatsoever for the democratic rights of Malaysian citizens. But while it is expected for the BN to attempt such Machiavellian chicanery, it is completely unacceptable for the very institution that is tasked to protect our electoral system to condone vote-buying and political corruption in the guise of "voter education".
These irresponsible remarks, coupled with earlier allegations surrounding the chairman and deputy chairman's membership of a certain political party, have severely compromised the integrity of the EC. There is now no way out but for the entire EC to resign in order to preserve what little credibility is left of the institution.
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| Questionable Reputation of a Well-Known Specialist Hospital Posted: 27 Dec 2012 01:05 PM PST
We had put the life of our father in the hands of these experts and trusted with our life that they will save my father because of their specialisation. With this kind of ability and no sympathy shown to our late father, I am now doubtful of the integrity and reputation of this hospital. Yet, this specialist hospital have the cheek to promote itself as a medical tourism hospital. Chew Leong Hong, Taipei, Taiwan My father passed away suddenly on December 17, 2012. He was a stocky and strong 78 years old man but passed away suddenly after being hospitalised for 15 days. I am not writing to pour out the sorrow of my father's demise, rather I would like you to judge for yourself the reputation of a well-known and expensive specialist hospital in *******, which is amongst the best private hospitals in Malaysia. My father was treated for oesophagus cancer and undergone chemotherapy and radiation therapy on the advice of the oncologist (cancer specialist). Upon completion of those therapies, the oncologist suggested a computer tomography scan a month after the treatment to verify whether the cancer has spread. The results of the scan showed the treatment was successful, the cancer remained localised which means it did not spread and my father went on with his normal life. However, a month or so after that, he started feeling dizzy and the oncologist said he has low blood count. He recommended blood transfusion but my father continued to have low blood count and required blood transfusion every two weeks. Prior to the chemotherapy and radiation, we were not told of the risks which we now realised will result in the low production of red blood cells. As the low blood count did not improve, the oncologist recommended my father to a haematologist (blood specialist) and he ordered a bone marrow biopsy. The haematologist could not find anything wrong with the bone marrow. He then ordered an endoscopy of the colon and intestine to rule out any internal bleeding. Again, the results showed there was no bleeding in the colon and intestine. These tests were conducted between September and November 2012 and the specialists could not find the root cause of my father's low blood count. They kept recommending blood transfusion as the solution. After his death, we googled and found that having too many blood transfusion, as in the case of my father, results in iron overload that will damage the liver and spleen. These specialists did not warn us about those dangers but continue to put my father on blood transfusion. My father eventually died of liver and spleen failure. Four days before my father passed away, this haematologist threatened not to continue treating my father if he is not allowed to perform a bone marrow analysis. We are not in favour of a second bone marrow biopsy since the first biopsy did not indicate anything wrong with the bone marrow. We eventually gave in as we felt he might make good his treat (he is the only blood specialist in this hospital). But we are suspicious that this haematologist seems to have a secret agenda. We confronted this haematologist who incidentally carried an honorific Dato' title, after my father's funeral, not only he did not show any sympathy, he was so arrogant and talked down to my mother, sister and me and defended himself by saying that the bone marrow analysis he performed four days before my father passed away indicated metastasis tumour, and cancer has spread to the liver and spleen. I am not sure if this is coincidental or a stroke of luck for this haematologist as he is now absolved of any blame. As for the oncologist, he was a tad better than the haematologist but these two specialists provided us ill informed advice or rather the lack of it when treating my father. And their service do not come cheap yet their best solution for a low blood count problem was blood transfusion. We had put the life of our father in the hands of these experts and trusted with our life that they will save my father because of their specialisation. With this kind of ability and no sympathy shown to our late father, I am now doubtful of the integrity and reputation of this hospital. Yet, this specialist hospital have the cheek to promote itself as a medical tourism hospital. The lesson to be learned from this sad episode is not to trust the specialists entirely, must demand for an explanation if a certain treatment is recommended and its associated risks and demand for answers if the patient is not responding to treatment. Most important of all, take control of the patient's destiny and never rely totally on the specialists. We have lived to regret it and it is a pain we will carry for life for we have lost a loved one to people whom we thought we could trust to cure him. How naive all of us have been.
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| New Year Countdown Party for Damansara Utama (PJ) Residents Posted: 27 Dec 2012 05:55 AM PST  All DU residents are welcome. There will be performances, music & fireworks. Jointly organized by the Adun/State Assemblyman (Dr. Cheah Wing Yin), DUST (Damansara Utama Service Team) & MBPJ. Please like our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/pages/DUST/317161921722690 |
| Don’t bribe us with our money! Malaysians are not that stupid Posted: 27 Dec 2012 05:53 AM PST
The Prime Minister seems to be playing Santa Claus. He is very generously dishing out goodies from seemingly bottomless coffers, convinced that Malaysians are a greedy, unthinking lot who can be bought easily. P Ramakrishnan, Aliran executive committee member Little does he realise that the Malaysians of today are a very perceptive and discerning lot who can see through his election ploy. They know that the money that is being doled out does not come from Barisan Nasional coffers. If that was the case, then Malaysians can be grateful to the BN. But when he uses the people's money to bribe them and expects them to be grateful to the BN, it is insulting their intelligence. The new-found concern and compassion for Malaysians is very telling. It is nothing but a bait to fish for votes that will keep the BN in power. Malaysians will not fall for this ruse. Housing has been a great problem for Penangites for the last thirty over years. The soaring prices have put houses beyond the reach of average Penangites. Thousands of Penangites have moved to the mainland to buy houses. An equal number of Penangites have bought houses in Kulim and Sungai Petani simply because they could not afford houses on the island. The narrow streets and poor public transport had created horrendous congestion and pollution for Penangites, making their lives a nightmare. But this problem did not suddenly confront Penangites with the change in government on 8 March 2008. It has always been there. Hardly anything substantive has been done by the BN to redress these problems. This neglect continued despite Penang producing a Prime Minister in the past. Penang has been marginalised for many decades. That is a fact. The housing problem confronting Penangites has been there all along. Najib should have known this. He was the Deputy Prime Minister for more than five years after which he became Prime Minister, a position he has been holding for more than three years. In other words, he was in the forefront of the nation's leadership for almost nine years. How has he been blind to this grave situation all this while? He must have known this; yet he did nothing to alleviate the misery of the poor in Penang. He did nothing to solve this problem even when he became the Finance Minister. It is not a question of finance for not building the much-needed houses in Penang. The BN seems to be never short of cash! It only means that the BN did not care for Penang in spite of the continued support that the BN received from Penang every time there was an election. We were just taken for granted! During his visit to Penang on 8 December 2012, Najib said that "the opposition had failed to deliver on promises of affordable housing made when campaigning during the last election". He further alleged, "They had promised that they would resolve the housing issue within two weeks of coming to power". I don't seem to remember such a promise being made. If it was true that the opposition promised to solve the housing issue within two weeks of coming to power, then they must be stupid. Can houses be built that fast? The opposition has been in power for more than four years. With limited resources and burdened with carried forward debts, can this be solved within this period? Let's take a look at Najib's promise. He promised to build 20,000 houses for Penang. He stated that under the 1Malaysia People's Housing Scheme, "the first PRIMA project will involve some 2,000 units in Kampung Kastam, Bukit Glugor". The ground-breaking for the project is expected to be next year and the project is slated for completion 36 months later. In other words, with all the resources and expertise at hand, it would take the federal government three years just to build 2,000 houses. Yet he expects the opposition to build houses in "two weeks"! What kind of houses is the BN going to build? According to him, "if the current unit costs RM500,000, we will sell it around RM300,000 only". In would mean a 40 per cent discount. But the RM200,000 discount has to be absorbed by the government. It would cost RM400,000,000. For the 20,000 units promised, the government will have to fork out four billion ringgit! What would be the monthly instalment for these houses? Who can afford to pay such instalments? Now, even if the houses are to be bought at RM300,000, who will be buying these houses? Can the homeless poor and the low-income earners afford to buy these houses? Where is the BN's concern for the poor? All their talk about caring for the poor and taking care of their welfare is now exposed as empty talk. There is no housing solution for the poor! Why is the BN unable to start building immediately? According to him, federal-owned land and that belonging to agencies like the Penang Regional Development Authority, JKP Sdn Bhd and Syarikat Perumahan Nasional Bhd are available for this project. This land has been available for many years; so why was no attempt made previously to build houses to ease the housing problem. Why wait until next year? This is where the BN comes across as hypocritical. He is making a conditional promise expecting support to be returned to power in order to build the houses. He is coercing Penangites to vote for BN. He did not say that these houses would be built irrespective of the outcome of the election results. He did not say that the BN will build these houses even if it lost the elections. Will Najib dare to declare that he will build the promised houses even if Penangites voted for the opposition? Prove your sincerity by making such a declaration. Malaysians are not that stupid. They will not be bribed with their own money! (P Ramakrishnan is the immediate past president of Aliran) |
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