Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
| Time to set up a Ministry of Minority Affairs Posted: 03 Jan 2013 04:51 PM PST Many of these problems are deeply entrenched. Their effects are no longer confined to a small part of our body politic or emerge as isolated and unconnected events. They have infiltrated into all sectors of society and cast a shadow in the life of every Malaysian – in our everyday thought processes, in our consciousness and in our actions. The problems that are associated with the ethnic and religious divide between Malays and non-Malays and between Muslims and non-Muslims will not be resolved quickly. There is no magical remedy. Many of these problems stem from our seriously weakened social cohesion and the growing disunity that our nation has experienced during the past four decades. The intangible but potent glue of harmony, sense of community and commitment to realizing the common good that binds countries and their people together has long broken down in Malaysia. The start of a new year is a good time to spend pondering on how to recover this spirit of lost social cohesion and to focus on what can be done to rebuild it. Addressing the plight of small minorities The sense of alienation and marginalization is most palpable among Indian, Orang Asli and other small minority communities. Although some members of these groups can make their way up the socio-economic ladder with their own resources, nonetheless many of the rest are wallowing in poverty and deprivation. They will require a special helping hand if they are able to ever escape from the straitjacket of impoverishment and stagnation. As the race-oriented New Economic Policy is jettisoned in place of a new national policy paradigm based on need and not race, how do we ensure that these groups –which have badly lagged behind other communities in every single important indicator of development and wellbeing – do not lose out again in the implementation of the New Economic Model during the next decade? How do we guarantee that poor and needy members of small minority communities will be scrupulously and fairly targeted for assistance and do not disappear or are lost sight of in our national agenda of development that will be inevitably dominated by the concerns of the dominant Malay, and to some extent, the Chinese community? To undo the negative impact of decades of government neglect and discrimination against the smaller minority communities as well as to steer a new path for social cohesion and social justice that will embrace all Malaysians, it may be necessary to establish a new Ministry that can mobilize and lead future efforts in the public sector aimed at improving the life prospects of downtrodden minority Malaysians. Hindraf's blueprint Two months ago, to mark the fifth anniversary of the movement's rally in KLCC on Nov 25, 2007 – the event which precipitated a new dawn of political consciousness in Malaysia – Hindraf unveiled a blueprint proposing solutions to overcome the plight of ethnic Indian community, especially the 800,000 displaced estate workers and 350,000 stateless Indians. Towards the end of the blueprint document is a proposal to establish a Ministry of Minority Affairs that would plan and execute development efforts to address the educational, housing, resettlement and employment needs of marginalized Indians. This proposal to set up an entirely new Ministry may seem like an inappropriate one, coming at a time when the efficiency and efficacy of a bloated civil service has come under severe public scrutiny and censure. However, it is in my view worthy of serious consideration by the Barisan and Pakatan parties, whichever coalition comes to power in the coming elections. Justification for the new Ministry The justification for establishing an entirely new Ministry devoted to the smaller minorities is compelling. Numerous studies have established that relations between and within communities suffer when people lack work and endure hardship, debt, low esteem, poor skills and bad living conditions. These basic necessities of life are the foundations of a strong social fabric but are lacking for many in the smaller minority communities. Also, unlike the Malay and Chinese communities that dominate our public and private sectors, Malaysia's small minority communities lack the resources and clout to compete for the opportunities ostensibly available to all stakeholders in our economy and society. Already marginalized, when left to fend for themselves in the future, they are likely to fall further behind as the competition for scarce resources becomes more intense. How much will it cost? During the past ten Malaysia Development Plans, a total sum of over one trillion ringgit was spent. Little of this development expenditure was committed towards or trickled down to the smaller minorities (see table).
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| Why can’t Rosli have his say in court? Posted: 03 Jan 2013 04:22 PM PST My readers will remember that in 2007 just one day before Hari Raya AidilFitri, Lawyer Rosli was brutalised by the MACC before being dragged into court on a trumped up charge by the MACC under instructions of A-G Gani Patail. Even then, Lawyer Rosli had informed Judge SM Komathy that this was a conspiracy to smear his name and humiliate him (see the NST report of that time) and swore that he would fight the charge to show his innocence. He then launched this RM50 million law suit for criminal conspiracy, wrongful arrest, assault and defamation against the most powerful UMNO-owned newspaper, Utusan Malaysia, the MACC, the Government and various MACC officers whom he called the 'rogues in government". That is the case that is coming to trial only now, after considerable lapse of time. Why? Because the A-G and the MACC want to punish him. In retaliation, the MACC dragged the criminal case against Lawyer Rosli for over 5 years. Over that period, Dato Ramli Yusuff was acquitted by the various courts. Despite that, the MACC pursued the case against Laywer Rosli. When he was acquitted, A-G Gani Patail directed that an appeal should be made. Then on August 2, 2012, Lawyer Rosli filed an explosive affidavit disclosing how the MACC Director of Prosecution, Dato Razak Musa tried to coax himi to drop his RM50 million lawsuit. Lawyer Rosli's affidavit also exhibited a Statutory Declaration by Tan Sri Robert Phang who exposed that the MACC Chief Commissioner, Dato Seri Abu Kassim, had admitted that there was no case against Rosli but A-G Gani Patail would not allow the case to be dropped. So, just when his RM50 million trial is about to start, the A-GC commences filing all kinds of applications to block a fair trial. Gani Patail wants the trial to be conducted the way he wants it, and not the way it should be. They want to dictate how Lawyer Rosli can present his evidence. They want the trial to be on their turf and according to their rules. Basically, they want it all their way no matter what. And as you know, that means it would not be a level playing field. It is like a boxing match where one boxer is asked to wear a heavily padded gloves with mouthpiece or face protector but the other boxer is allowed to put on a knuckle duster and wears a full padded suit like an American football player. Is that a fair fight? Of course not! Thus, the NST report below came as no surprise to me when technicalities, by calling Lawyer Rosli's witness testimonies as "hearsay and irrelevant evidence", are being used to prevent his side of the story from being told in open court. Some of my legal eagle friends are perplexed that the Judge could rule that the Rosli's evidence in his witness statement was not pleaded in his statement of claim. They tell me that the court document called a "pleading" which is a Statement of Claim is supposed to just state the brief facts of the claim and not the evidence or the law. The evidence will be presented when the witness like Rosli comes to court and tells his story by way of witness testimony. And yet, Rosli is prevented from doing this. What is wrong, Judge? Preventing Rosli from telling his story by ruling that it is irrelevant even before he has the chance of saying it reminds me of the late Judge Augustine Paul who kept ruling "Irrelevant" against Counsel Christopher Fernando during Anwar Ibrahim's trial. In the end, the Good Lord rendered Augustine Paul irrelevant by burying him six feet underground. If I didn't know Lawyer Rosli better, I would have told him not to be wasting his time fighting for lost causes. He is better off joining the ranks of the UMNO cronies. He can then sit comfortably and reap the fruits of being an UMNOputra lawyer. Even the non-Malay Tan Sri lawyer who prepared the false PI Bala's second SD knows how to play ball. But not this resolute Lawyer Rosli. Many think that either he is too idealistic or he is just a plain fool by hoping to vindicate his name through the courts. Many have said that after Lawyer Rosli was acquitted in 2011 and the A-G made a last minute withdrawal of the criminal appeal against him, Lawyer Rosli should have just walked away quietly and continue with his life peacefully. But he persisted. So the predictable thing would happen now. They will tire Lawyer Rosli down, make him incur astronomical legal costs, drag the case, make technical objections to delay the case as they are doing now, and after all that, they will still not allow Lawyer Rosli to take the witness stand and tell his side of the story. And Malaysians will never know what Lawyer Rosli is going to say in court. That is pretty obvious to us. I tried to call Rosli after reading the NST news, but he did not answer. I called him again countless times even as I am writing this piece, but my calls kept going to his voice mail. I can understand that Lawyer Rosli may be feeling very down. He must be tired by the hurdles and obstacles that are placed before him to frustrate his attempt to vindicate himself and seek accountability from those who have wronged him. I feel sorry for him. But I know Rosli well enough to know that when he wakes up tomorrow, he will say Lawan Tetap Lawan!
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