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It’s hot and crowded in Selangor
Kamilia Ibrahim resigns from Umno after filing nomination as independent
Pakatan infighting surfaces in three seats
Multi-corner fights for almost half the seats in Penang
GE13: Chegu Bard in three-way fight in Sungai Acheh with Umno and PAS
GE13: Probe to be launched after BN Pasir Mas nomination shocker
GE13: Anwar vs Mazlan in Permatang Pauh
GE13: Jenice Lee sacked for contesting as independent
Uproar over DAP's candidates' list
PKR supreme council member quits
DAP’s non-existent ‘threat’
Najib 'cautiously optimistic' about polls prospects
New Atheism should be able to criticise Islam without being accused of Islamophobia
Sex video: ‘Thai police colonel detained’
2013 Election : PKR Places Hefty RM5mln Price Tag on Candidates to Prevent Defectors
Umno gives way to Ibrahim in Pasir Mas
DAP gets to ride the rocket for GE13
GE13: Ong Tee Keat opts out of Pandan race
Former DAP rep turns independent in Teratai

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:53 PM PDT

More than three parliamentary seats and numerous state seats witness three to six cornered fights in GE13

K Pragalath, FMT

Selangor has 21 parliamentary seats and 56 state seats. Of these there is one hot parliamentary seat – Shah Alam – and a litany of crowded parliament and state seats.

Shah Alam will see PAS' Khalid Samad defending his seat against BN's direct candidate, Zulkifli Noordin.

Khalid had defeated Umno's Abdul Aziz Shamsuddin by polling 33,356 votes against Aziz's 24,042 votes in 2008.

There are five three-cornered fights in Pandan, Gombak, Hulu Selangor Kelana Jaya and Tanjung Karang parliamentary seats.

The Pandan parliamentary seat, which was MCA's sole seat, witnessed a three-cornered fight involving MCA's Gary Lim, PKR's Rafizi Ramli and former incumbent Ong Tee Keat's aide, Allan Tan Yew Leng.

In 2008, Ong defeated Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud of PKR with a majority of 2,961 votes.

In Gombak, PKR deputy president Azmin Ali is defending his seat against Umno's Raman Ismail and another independent, Said Naza Abu Bakar.

In GE12, Azmin Ali won Gombak with a majority of 6,867 votes. He defeated Said Anuar Said Ahmad with 40,334 votes against Said Anuar's 33,467 votes. Azmin is also defending his Bukit Antarabangsa state seat against Umno's Nadzim Ibrahim.

The Tanjung Karang parliament seat also witnessed a three cornered fight involving incumbent Noh Omar of Umno, PAS' Rashdi Deraman and an independent, Herman Tino.

In Kelana Jaya, independent Toh Sin Wah made it a three-cornered battle involving MCA's Loh Seng Kok and PKR's Wong Chen.

Similarly in Hulu Selangor, there is a three-cornered fight involving MIC's P Kamalanathan, PKR's Khalid Jaafar and former Masterskill College chief executive officer, Edmund Santara who is an independent.

In Kota Raja, PAS' Siti Mariah Mahmud is defending her seat as three others are also vying for the seat. They are MIC's S Murugesan, Human Rights Party's pro-tem secretary-general P Uthayakumar and Azmi Idrus. Both Uthayakumar and Azmi are contesting as independents.

In Subang, there is a five-way battle involving PKR's R Sivarasa, MIC's A Prakash Rao, Berjasa's Mohd Ismail and two independents – Nazamuddin Ferdoos and Edros Abdullah.

Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim who represented Ijok previously is facing a one on one battle with Nasarruddin M Zin of Umno in Pelabuhan Kelang.

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:40 PM PDT

(ST) - Datuk Kamilia Ibrahim, who filed her nomination paper on Saturday to contest as an independent in the Kuala Kangsar parliamentary seat, has quit Umno.

She made the announcement on her Facebook page, reported the New Straits Times.

She also resigned as the Umno supreme council member, Wanita Umno deputy chief and Kuala Kangsar Wanita Umno division chief, according to the newspaper.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had earlier announced her sacking as Wanita Umno vice chief for contesting the Kuala Kangsar seat as an independent, said the report.

Ms Kamilia sprang a surprise when she filed her nomination paper for the Kuala Kangsar parliament seat. She is up against Barisan Nasional's Datuk Wan Mohammad Khair-il Anuar Wan Ahmad and Parti Islam SeMalaysia's Khalil Idham Lim Abdullah.

Pakatan infighting surfaces in three seats

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:36 PM PDT

(TMI) - Pakatan Rakyat (PR) parties' failure to compromise fully on seat negotiations will see PAS and PKR spoil each other's fight against Barisan Nasional (BN) in Labuan, Sungai Acheh and Kota Damansara.

The Labuan federal seat has BN candidate Rosman Isli going up against PKR's Ibrahim Menudin and PAS runner Hadnan Mohamad.

"There is no compromise, we are fighting each other. We cannot withdraw since we already filed our nomination papers, and if we withdraw, we will lose our deposit," Ibrahim was quoted as saying by The Star on its website today.

A similar situation also occurred in the Penang state seat, where PKR's Badrul Hisham Shaharin submitted his papers along with PAS's Mohd Yusni Mat Piah to contest the seat against incumbent BN lawmaker Mahmud Zakaria.

Kota Damansara, which earlier saw PKR wrangling with PSM over which party's logo would be used, will see the crescent moon of PAS on the same ballot with PKR's seeing eye logo and BN's scales.

There, incumbent state assemblyman Dr Nasir Hashim defend his seat against PAS's Ridzuan Ismail, BN's Halimaton Saadiah, and three independent contestants.

Malaysia practises a "winner-takes-all" voting system in which seats are won by the candidate with the most votes and not necessarily the majority.

Such a system is considered advantageous to the ruling party as votes for candidates other than the runner-up are essentially votes for the winner.

Multi-corner fights for almost half the seats in Penang

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:30 PM PDT

Opalyn Mok, TMI

A total 16 state seats and five parliamentary seats in the state will see three to six corner fights between Barisan Nasional (BN), Pakatan Rakyat (PR) components, Parti Cinta Malaysia (PCM), Malaysian People's Welfare Party (KITA) and independent candidates this May 5.

For the first time in history, the state saw the most number of independent candidates with a total 20 of them contesting for parliament and state seats here.

The state seat with the most number of candidates is the Machang Bubuk seat, within the Bukit Mertajam parliamentary constituency, which will see a six corner fight between BN, PKR, KITA and three independent candidates.

The candidates are Lee Khai Loon (PKR), Tan Lok Heah (BN), M. Vikneswaran (KITA), Wan Balkis Wan Abdullah (independent), former PKR incumbent Tan Hock Leong (independent) and former BN coordinator Ooi Suan Hoe (independent).

Former agriculture and rural development deputy minister and Umno veteran Datuk Seri Mohd Shariff Omar carried through with his intention to contest as a PR-friendly independent at Tasek Gelugor parliament seat to go up against BN's Shabudin Yahaya and Datuk Abdul Rahman Maidin (PAS).

Mohd Shariff, who had been sacked from Umno for contesting as an independent, is also contesting for the Sungai Dua state seat against Muhamad Yusoff Mohd Noor (BN) and Zahadi Ahmad (PAS).

Over in Batu Uban, three independent candidates turned it into a five-corner fight for the suburban constituency in Bayan Baru.

Goh Kheng Sneah (BN), T. Jayabalan (PKR), Mohd Noor Sirajajudeen Mohd Abdul Kader (independent), A. Rajendra (independent) and N. Baratharajan (independent) will be fighting for votes out of the more than 28,000 registered voters here.

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:26 PM PDT

(The Star) - Pakatan allies PAS and PKR will do battle for the Sungai Acheh state seat in a three-way fight which include Barisan incumbent assemblyman Datuk Mahmud Zakaria, from Umno.

PKR maverick politician Badrul Hisham, popularly known as Chegu Bard, Penang PAS Youth chairman Mohd Yusni Mat Piah and Mahmud all submitted their papers at the nomination centre this morning.

"I was chosen by the Pakatan Rakyat presidential council to contest here and it is the mandate of Pakatan,'' said Badrul Hisham.

GE13: Probe to be launched after BN Pasir Mas nomination shocker

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 06:04 PM PDT

(The Star) - Kelantan Barisan Nasional will launch a probe over the failure of its Pasir Mas parliamentary candidate, who did not submit his nomination papers on April 20.

State Barisan chairman Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed has expressed shocked and claim that the party will launch a special investigation to look into the matter.

"We will convene a special meeting to discuss with all our political bureaus on why the candidate did not submit his nomination papers and on our next strategy for the seat," he told reporters after filing nomination papers for Barisan candidate at Jeli Land and District office, here yesterday.

It was reported that Barisan candidate for Pasir Mas Che Johan Che Pa, the Pasir Mas Umno division deputy chief, did not submit his nomination papers paving way for a straight fight between Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali and Nik Aziz's son, Nik Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz.

Mustapa, affectionately known as Tok Pa, will see a straight fight with PAS candidates for both the Jeli and Ayer Lanas state seat.

He will be challenged by PAS' Mohd Apendi Mohamed in Jeli and Abdullah Ya'kub.

Mustapa, who is tipped to become the next Kelantan Mentri Besar if Barisan managed to take over the state, reiterated Barisan's target of winning 23 parliamentary seats and eight parliamentary seats.

"I believe we have a better chance with our new batch of candidates who are a mix young and old ulama, technocrats, retired civil servants and activist," he said.

When asked if he would likely become the next Mentri Besar, he said, "all 45 candidates who are fielded to contest in state seats have a chance to become the next MB," he said.

GE13: Anwar vs Mazlan in Permatang Pauh

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:57 PM PDT

(The Star) - It will be a three-cornered fight for the Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat.

The candidates are Barisan Nasional Dr Mazlan Ismail, PKR advisor Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and independent Shansut Tabrej, 63, who is an ex-serviceman.

In Seberang Jaya, Dr Abdullah Zawali Samsudin, 45, an independent, will take on Barisan Mohammad Nasir Abdullah and Dr Affifudin Bahardin of PKR.

In Penanti, it is a straight fight between Dr Norlela Arifin of PKR and Barisan Ibrahim Ahmad.

It will also be a straight fight in Permatang Pasir between state PAS commissioner Datuk Mohd Salleh Man and Barisan Annuar Faisal Yahaya.

GE13: Jenice Lee sacked for contesting as independent

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:54 PM PDT

(The Star) - Incumbent Teratai assemblyman Jenice Lee has been sacked by DAP. This was announced by DAP disciplinary board chairman Tan Kok Wai in Cheras.

Tan said that the party had no choice but to sack her for contesting as an independent candidate in the general election (GE13).

"She has 14 days to appeal to the disciplinary board regarding their decision,'' he said

The visibly upset Lee questioned the party's decision to sack her at a press conference, after returning officer Abdul Hamid Hussein announced that nominations were closed at 10.02am at the Nomination Centre at Dewan MPAJ in Pandan Indah.

She said the DAP disciplinary committee (DC) which was appointed by the central executive committee (CEC) had no rights to exercise such action as the committee was under investigation by the Registrar of Society.

"The DC has no power to sack me for the moment,'' she said.

She also questioned the party's decision to field newcomer Tiew Way Keng as the candidate for Teratai.

She said her decision to contest as an independent candidate was spurred by support from residents and Pandan DAP branches.

Lee said she was standing as an independent candidate to secure a win for DAP.

"I am loyal to DAP and if I win the Teratai seat, it is a win for the party.

"It is up to the party to accept me as a DAP member," she said.

Uproar over DAP's candidates' list

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:46 PM PDT

(NST) - First, it was the voices of dissent in the Perak Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) camp over the choice of several candidates for the 13th General Election and now, the state DAP has joined the fray.

Yesterday, supporters of former first-term Jalong assemblyman Leong Mee Meng turned the heat on state DAP chairman Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham and his cousin, Nga Kor Ming, who is state party secretary, for axing Leong from the candidates' list.

They held a protest outside the state DAP headquarters here, demanding an explanation from the party's four-member selection committee on why Leong was dropped.

Similar protests were also held in Sungai Siput and Kuala Kangsar to pressure the party leadership to "re-instate" Leong.

At the protest, Sungai Siput DAP division vice-chairman Seok Loy, 49, said the people could not understand why Leong was removed when she had served the constituency well.

"We reject the new candidate as we have never seen him before," he said, adding that the candidate, Loh Sze Yee, was not named by the division.

Loh was unveiled as a candidate by Ngeh on Thursday evening.

Besides Leong, candidates who were not aligned with the state leadership had either been dropped or moved to parliamentary seats.

DAP life member Tan Ju Kong, 75, said he was disappointed with the party leadership for not re-nominating Leong.

The visibly upset Tan tore up his membership card in front of reporters.

Tan, who blamed Ngeh and Nga for the issue, said Leong had served her constituents well.

"I will not vote for DAP this time around as I cannot accept a helicopter candidate."

When contacted, Leong said she was a victim of factionalism within the party.

The protest came hot on the heels of similar protests nationwide against the DAP leadership over its choice of candidates.

Political analyst Dr P. Sivamurugan said this was an "unfamiliar" trend in the DAP's ranks as they were known to toe the line in the past.

"This is happening because the members think they are in better shape compared with 2008. It is a case of overconfidence.

"Back in 2008, not many people wanted to become a candidate because the confidence level was very low.

"It will certainly affect the unity within Pakatan Rakyat.

"In fact, in some areas, we may even see a Barisan Nasional candidate facing two candidates from DAP and PKR."

PKR supreme council member quits

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:42 PM PDT

A Sabah PKR youth leader, upset with the way the party treats its young members, claims that PKR central had not kept its promise.

(FMT) - On the back of scathing accusations hurled at PKR's national leaders by Sabah's Ansari Abdullah, over its lack of respect for Sabah divisions' decisions, another of the party's officials here has quit his post.

A member of PKR's National Supreme Council Jeffrey Jomion quit the party saying that it had failed to keep its promise of fielding 30% new faces in the 13th general election.

Jomion, who was a former Sabah Youth chief, said he was unhappy with the way the party was administered.

He was particularly upset with the way PKR treated its youth members.

"I have worked hard for the party but, as the PKR candidate list showed, only one person from the PKR youth chapter has been nominated.

"The party always spoke about fielding 30% of new faces for GE13 but this hasn't happened," he said.

Jomion has since joined the Sabah chapter of the State Reform Party (STAR).

He announced his resignation yesterday after STAR announced its manifesto and candidates for the May 5 polls.

Tomorrow is nomination day and STAR is expected to field at least 48 candidates for its state and 15 parliamentary seats.

PKR meanwhile is set to contest in 43 state and 19 parliament seats.

PKR betrayed Sabah

Earlier today Ansari, also a PKR national Supreme Council member accused PKR national leaders of betraying its Sabah members.

Aiming his words at PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim he said: "If I am the president of the party, I will not give the symbol to a non-member.

"You have betrayed the PKR members for giving the party's symbol to somebody who is not a member."

READ MORE HERE

DAP’s non-existent ‘threat’

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:40 PM PDT

(The Star) - THERE is no doubt that the letter from the Registrar of Societies (ROS) has sparked some emotion that the DAP had deliberately sought to get public sympathy for the party.

What DAP leaders usually do is only tell half-truths.

Now, let us provide you the complete facts and the entire truth:

First, the ROS had never threatened to deregister the party. It was DAP's own doing when it announced a "spread sheet error" in tabulating the Dec 15 party election results that prompted it to change the order of the votes and announce a slightly different line-up from that reported at the party convention. DAP had appointed Zairil Khir Johari to the CEC, three weeks after the convention.

Second, the DAP had opportunities to immediately call for an extraordinary general meeting to seek ratification of the results by the delegates or call for a new vote.

However, they decided not to do that but maintain the amended results as correct and acceptable.

Third, the complaint was made by their party members and not by any political opponent or anyone related to their opponents.

Under ROS regulations, only party members can file a complaint and it is the duty for ROS to investigate after complaints have been filed.

Fourth, the ROS only acted based on their standard operating procedure by asking DAP to submit its report on the matter. However, DAP didn't provide a detailed report over how the "Spread sheet error" occurred as well as answer another complaint relating to 700 members not being given proper notice of the party convention.

Fifth, ROS had set April 18 for an inquiry in Penang and asked those involved to give their statements to their officer during the inquiry.

However, DAP asked for a postponement as the date was near the election date.

Following the request, the ROS agreed to it by giving a 30-day extension. The latest date for the DAP to reply is May 17.

The Registrar has given the DAP 30 days to answer his queries about the election results and the matter of 700 or so members not being given proper notice of the party convention.

Six, the ROS' letter was just stating the obvious – that while investigations are being carried out, ROS could not recognise the new CEC.

That means the DAP is still in business as the ROS had not declared the elections null and void or the central committee (CEC) null and void. Any decision about the legality of the elections would only come after the party had replied.

Not only that, in the letter the ROS said nothing about a powerless CEC, nor did it even imply that the CEC could no longer function.

The Registrar's letter was just a reminder that the party must provide explanations to the satisfaction of the Registrar, failing which the ROS was empowered to deregister the party.

Such reminders are common and not out of the ordinary.

It is a reminder to treat the matter seriously, if not, there would be consequences under the law. Many societies have similarly received such reminders in the past.

Seven, even if the status of the new CEC is not recognised by the ROS pending the required reply from DAP, the party still can carry out its functions as the previous committee can assume their duties until the decision on the new committee is made. This principle is similar to the caretaker function in any association and government.

Eight, there is no issue about DAP not being able to use its rocket symbol as the party is still a valid political party and its symbol is still registered with Election Commission.

There is no issue about whether party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng can issue candidacy letters to the EC as he also served as secretary-general under the previous CEC.

However, all these facts have been conveniently spun by DAP to give perception that the ROS had intentionally wanted to deregister the party (when in fact the ROS had not come to that stage).

Worse still, in order to condition the mind of the people at large, they deliberately used words such as "despicable", "BN sabotage", "worse than repressive Singapore", "how can we trust their word" (referring to the Election Commission) as well as questioning the timing of the letter.

They also put up a drama by projecting them as being victims by showing anger "emotion" by Lim Guan Eng's, Lim Kit Siang's crying and now they have no choice but to use PAS or PKR symbols when in fact there is no issue about using the rocket symbol.

What the DAP actually want is to force the ROS to recognise their new office bearers from day one even when the results are in doubt. They had deliberately not given details on how they could come to the conclusion that the technical glitch came about as they only submitted a report on minutes of the meeting and the list of the new office bearers with the amended results. The DAP's decision to use the PAS or PKR banners is a political decision by its top leadership for the May 5 general election.

In fact, the decision to use the PAS symbol could also be viewed as a tactical reason as this could condition non-Muslim voters to view PAS favourably as well as dispel lingering notions among Muslims of the DAP as anti-Islamic unbelievers.

Najib 'cautiously optimistic' about polls prospects

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:38 PM PDT

Anita Gabriel, ST

As Malaysia's long-ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition faces its toughest battle at the ballot booth on May 5, Prime Minister Najib Razak said he was "cautiously optimistic" of being returned to power.

In an interview with The Straits Times, Datuk Seri Najib said: "I am cautiously optimistic of a good result in the General Election and our ability to form a strong and stable government."

Mr Najib's BN, in power now for 55 years, is fighting a strong opposition that is running on the theme of change. His remark stands in stark contrast to the opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat's (PR's) confidence of scoring big in the country's 13th General Election.

In an e-mailed response to questions, Mr Najib said: "Malaysia needs a government with experience and a track record that shows it can deliver on its pledges and handle unexpected challenges."

In the 2008 election, the BN lost its customary two-thirds majority in Parliament, its worst performance since 1969. The opposition also won five of Malaysia's 13 states, one of which reverted to BN following defections.

That precarious political position prompted Mr Najib to embark on a series of reforms after he took over from his predecessor Abdullah Badawi, in April 2009.

His ambitious economic reform agenda cuts across 12 sectors and involves 150 massive projects promising total investments of US$444 billion (S$549 billion) and creating about 3.3 million new jobs between 2010 and 2020.

Indeed, economic reform is an overarching theme on both sides of the political divide in the election.

In courting the roughly 13.3 million voters, both the BN and PR have pledged to improve Malaysians' economic well-being and strengthen the economy.

About a quarter of the voters will be casting their votes for state and federal government seats for the first time.

The opposition PR, which released its manifesto before the BN, has accused the BN of copying its mission statement, a charge which Mr Najib scoffs at: "The opposition manifesto borrows heavily from pre-existing government policies. So any plagiarism is theirs.

"Ours is a costed, targeted set of tangible policies," he said. "The opposition's is a fantasy wish list of gimmicks and giveaways that the country can't afford."

New Atheism should be able to criticise Islam without being accused of Islamophobia

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 05:25 PM PDT

Author Sam Harris, whose work is central to the Islamophobia allegations.

The atheist community is right to pursue rational, civilised debate, and should be able to do so without being tarred as bigots.

Andrew Zak Williams, New Statesman

For a community that is often portrayed as aggressive and pugitive, New Atheism has recently been on the backfoot, defending itself from claims dreamt up by those who should – and, surely, in many cases do – know better.

This time round, the scientific and intellectual elite of Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins and the late Christopher Hitchens have found themselves accused of Islamophobia. The whole sorry saga was conveniently summarised in last Friday's Independent. In short, recent pieces at salon.com and on Al Jazeera's website have argued, in the words of columnist Murtaza Hussain, that the likes of these prominent atheists are giving a veneer of scientific respectability to today's Islamophobic bigotry.

Sam Harris is accused of advocating pre-emptive nuclear strikes on Muslims and the profiling of those who merely look like Muslims. Richard Dawkins has come under attack from calling Islam "the greatest force for evil today" and the late Christopher Hitchens has been described as having a bloodlust towards Muslims.

But, sadly, nuance and allegations of bigotry make strange bedfellows. Take Sam Harris. His 2003 book End of Faith catalogues the Qur'an's long list of orders to murder and exhortations to avenge. He imagines a radical Islamist state acquiring long range nuclear weaponry, thus able to vent its rage against the west. Add in the possibility that it's headed by an avowedly suicidal regime and nuclear deterrence becomes a worthless currency. Harris anticipates the possibility that in that situation the US may find itself having to press the button first. But it's a scenario he hardly welcomes.

Surely, rational discourse should be permitted to tiptoe cautiously along the hallowed corridors of the house of Islam without the guards frogmarching it out, bellowing allegations of racism and bigotry. Cannot we not agree that the real issue is whether the critiques of Islam proffered by today's prominent atheists are correct? For instance, does Islam fall short when it comes to women's rights? Does it trample free speech while enforcing its own precepts, by the sword if necessary? By all means, apologists may disagree with the likes of Harris and biologist Jerry Coyne. But what signal is sent by a refusal to permit the issues to be even debated?

One can dream up allegations about any religion that are so obscene that no beliver should be expected to respond. But take the suggestion that Islam has some way to go before it promotes gay rights beyond the level of a misnomer. Or that its holy book, taken literally, demands an embrace of violence and reprisals that wouldn't be tolerated by any humanist ethos.

These allegations, on their face, are wholly consistent with observation. What's more, its tenets and precepts have real consequences and repercussions for all of us. What is it that leads apologists and liberal writers to nevertheless consider that Islam shouldn't have to answer these charges, and that those who bring them are merely dressing their bigotry in a cloak of intellectualism? Biologist Jerry Coyne puts it this way:

"Critics of the New Atheists are free to take issue with their tone, but to dismiss them without addressing the substance of their arguments constitutes an implicit admission that they just might have a point." You can see his point. Plenty of Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses and Anglicans surely feel aggrieved when their god is put under the microscope and found to be the product of unintelligent design. They challenge both what is said and, increasingly these days, the way it's said. But they hardly consider that their faith is immune from suitable criticism. For Islam to claim special treatment is to imply that it's unable to withstand such analysis.

We are used to seeing Muslim spokespersons choosing the aftermath of a terrorist attack carried out in the Prophet's name to practise mealy-mouthed equivocation at the price of heartfelt sympathy. Then again, many moderate Muslims are at the front of the queue deploring much that is done in the name of their faith.

We are under no compunction to pretend that the terrorist doesn't exist any more than to deny the abundance of moderate Muslims. But the atheist community will not be bullied by lazy allegations of bigotry leveled against those who point that a religion that harbours such extremes has some explaining to do. Nor, thankfully, is Sam Harris. Within the last few days he has defended himself, explaining that religions that pose the greatest threat deserve to be analysed more carefully than others.

Of course, part of the difficulty here is a definitional one. Islam isn't a race, so to accuse its detractors of racism should appeal to no-one bar those in need of an cheap jibe. Indeed, today's New Atheism is no less critical of white Muslim converts than their Middle Eastern brethren.

And to resort to the tag "Islamophobia" is justified only if you adapt a bizarre definition of the word that is satisfied merely if the religion is held up to scrutiny, rather than its people being held up to prejudice.

But perhaps there's another word for what today's New Atheists have been saying. Maybe they're just plain wrong.

Maybe.

But until civilised debate is permitted, perhaps we'll never know.

Sex video: ‘Thai police colonel detained’

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 01:48 PM PDT

A PKR leader claims that a top Thai police officer and his wife, who were witnesses, have been detained by the Malaysian police.

Athi Shankar, FMT

PKR has claimed that a Thai police colonel and his wife have been detained by the Malaysian police.

The colonel, according to PKR supreme council member Badrul Hisham Shaharin, was part of a team probing the allegation that the sex videos which implicated Anwar Ibrahim were made in Thailand.

Speaking at a ceramah here last night, Badrul told the crowd that PKR was tipped off by a reliable source that the video was made in Thailand using a clone.

Following the tip-off, he said a check found that the Thai police had investigated the matter. It was supposedly produced in Hatyai.

He claimed that the Thai police aborted the probe following a directive from Malaysia.

Upon receiving the information, he said Pakatan Rakyat executive secretary Shabrimi Sidek went to Hatyai to collect the evidence and bring back the witnesses to Malaysia.

However, Badrul said Shabrimi and the witnesses – the Thai police colonel, his wife and another unknown Thai man – were stopped at the Bukit Kayu Hitam border checkpoint by Malaysian police.

They were taken first to a nearby police station, then kept under custody in the Kedah police contingent headquarters in Alor Star.

Badrul said lawyers could not have access to the detainees.

However, he said Shabrimi managed to contact PKR's executive secretary Raden Shamsul Kamar at 6pm yesterday via his mobile phone to inform about his alleged arrest.

Badrul then played the audio recording of the telephone conversation.

The media and the crowd were disappointed when PKR only aired the audio recording of a telephone conversation between Shabrimi and Raden.

Prior to this, it was reported that a Thai national, who was supposedly the clone used in the sex videos, would make an appearance at the ceramah.

At the same ceramah, PKR Sungai Petani MP Johari Abdul showed a video allegedly showing Thai police forensic evidence apparently trying to prove that Anwar was not the actor.

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 12:26 PM PDT

(ntv7) - PKR has put a hefty 5 million ringgit price tag on its electoral candidates to prevent them from jumping ship after the general election.

The party which was plagued by defection in the past is getting its candidates to sign a pledge before polling day.

This was revealed by PKR deputy secretary general Steven Choong today when announcing PKR candidates for Johor.

Based on the agreement letter issued by PKR its elected representatives, who opt to be independents, are also liable to pay the five million ringgit compensation.

On the PKR candidates in Johor the party will be contesting in 12 parliamentary seats and 12 state seats.

Among them is entertainer Dayangku Intan Tengku Abdul Hamid who will be challenging Datuk Azalina Othman for the Pengerang parliamentary seat.

Dayangku Intan is the second singer contesting in the 13th general election under the opposition banner.

The other is Wan Aishah Wan Ariffin who will be contesting against former Negeri Sembilan MB Tan Sri Isa Samad for the Jempol parliamentary seat on a PAS ticket.

2013 Election : PKR Places Hefty RM5mln Price Tag on Candidates to Prevent Defectors

Umno gives way to Ibrahim in Pasir Mas

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 11:55 AM PDT

(FMT) - The Perkasa chief will be facing PAS' Nik Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz, who is the son of PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz.

Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali will be defending his Pasir Mas parliamentary seat after filing his nomination papers this morning. He will be standing as an Independent.

His chances were made easier when the BN/Umno candidate who was picked to contest in this seat decided not to contest.

Pasir Mas Umno division deputy chief Che Johan Che Pa was present at the nomination centre but he did not file his papers.

Ibrahim will be facing PAS' Nik Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz, who is the son of PAS spiritual leader Nik Aziz. This is the first time Nik Abduh is contesting in an election.

DAP gets to ride the rocket for GE13

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 11:27 AM PDT

(TMI) - The DAP can use its iconic rocket symbol for the May 5 general election after getting last-minute confirmation late last night, party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said today.

He said the DAP headquarters in Kuala Lumpur received a letter by hand from the Registrar of Societies (RoS) at 10 last night, stating that it had no objections to the DAP using the logo, and that the Election Commission (EC) had informed all returning officers to accept nominations from the DAP.

"All DAP candidates can now use the rocket symbol," Lim said after filing his nomination papers for the Bagan federal seat here.

He said there had been no objections from the returning officer to the nomination forms using the party's authorisation letter, signed by him and accepted by the RoS.

GE13: Ong Tee Keat opts out of Pandan race

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 11:23 AM PDT

(fz.com) - Instead, in a surprise announcement, Ong's former private secretary Allan Tan said that he will take up the mantle and contest as an independent for the seat.

Tan, 35, said he was contesting under the spirit of Ong.

"I have received his blessing and will continue Ong' programmes that have served the people, " he said at the nomination centre.

Ong, the former MCA president, had been hotly tipped to stand as an independent after he was dropped from the Barisan Nasional candidate list.

But he surprised supporters this morning when he turned up near the nomination centre in Pandan and announced that he would not be contesting after all

Amid cries of dismay from the crowd, Ong expressed his gratitude to his supporters although many had considered him as a winnable candidate.

Former DAP rep turns independent in Teratai

Posted: 19 Apr 2013 11:21 AM PDT

(FMT) - The incumbent DAP state representative for Teratai, Jenice Lee Hing Ya has announced that she would be contesting as an independent.

Jenice questions DAP's rationale in fielding MBPJ councillor Tiew Way Keng who does not have a track record of working for the people in Teratai.

The incumbent DAP state representative for Teratai, Jenice Lee Hing Ya has announced that she would be contesting as an independent.

DAP dropped Lee in favour of Tiew Way Keng who is a lawyer by training and had served as Petaling Jaya City councillor.

Lee in a statement on her social networking page, Facebook questioned the rationale in fielding Tiew who had not worked in Teratai.

"Democracy means the interest of the people must be prioritised. We contest on the request of the people. Even though the people support the party, the party should field the best person for the people.

"Until now no (DAP) leaders have been able to answer on my question on this candidate who does not have a track record in Teratai. I hereby announce that I am contesting as an Independent candidate for Teratai today," said Lee.

Teratai is one of two state seats under Pandan parliamentary constituency. In 2008, Lee defeated Lum Weng Keong of Gerakan with a majority of 8,085 votes. Lee polled 15,563 votes to Lum's 7,478 votes.

Lee's decision to contest would make it a three cornered fight for Teratai. Gerakan is fielding newcomer, Liew Pok Boon for the seat.

Papagomo drops out of race

Meanwhile in another development, blogger Papagomo had announced that he was pulling out of the race to contest in Permatang Pauh to enable Umno's candidate Mazlan Ismail a better chance of victory against incumbent Anwar Ibrahim.

"I have decided to support and be part of the BN machinery candidate Mazlan in defeating Anwar.

Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net

Sabtu, 20 April 2013

Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

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