Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- S’gor PKR: The rift continues
- Papa Gomo bersara
- PSM fails in its bid to get into Pakatan
- Status quo for MT as well? Serious?
- Selangor saga shows PKR's ketuanan mentality?
- Collapsed Second Penang Bridge section built by local contractor
- Pakatan MPs to boycott parliamentary briefing in reforms protest
- Church Of England Drops Opposition To Gay Marriage Bill
- Nazri warns youth who abuse social media in a rude manner
- How DAP hurt Pakatan’s chances
- Lust: the foundation of humankind (UPDATED with Chinese translation)
- Insulting Prophet Muhammad: authorities urged to take action
- ‘Red Bean Army’ is merely a title, says creator
- Dr M: Racial polarisation more pronounced now thanks to DAP
- Dr M takes potshots at DAP and the Chinese
- Blackout 505: Jaga-jaga... ada udang disebalik batu
- Hannah Yeoh to push for new law to make Selangor legislature more independent
- Don’t drag monarchy into contentious issues, says Raja Perlis
- Of negotiations, words and symbols
- Re-imagine, not reject, Malaysia's Vernacular Schools
- Concur with these bloggers, AND ...
| Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:53 PM PDT
(FMT) - Party deputy president Azmin Ali has been asked to quit the state liaison chief post Nearly a month after sweeping to victory in Selangor, Pakatan Rakyat, especially, PKR, has still not settled its internal bickering in the state. The latest controversy involves the appointment of party secretary general Saifuddin Nasution as the Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim's political liaison officer. Party insiders claim that the Saifuddin's appointment has not gone down well with PKR deputy president Azmin Ali, who seems "uneasy" with the appointment. "Azmin also feels that the appointment is causing friction among grassroot leaders in the state. He also feels that the job should have been given to someone from Selangor instead. Saifuddin is a Kedahan," said the source. However, Kapar PKR division member Dr V Neduchellian said Azmin should step down and let Khalid lead the state PKR liaison committee. It is an open secret that Azmin and Khalid had been on a head on collision since the conclusion of the general election. The naming of the Selangor Menteri Besar was delayed because Azmin wanted the state's top post. He however relented after talking to PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim. Khalid has since been sworn in as Menteri Besar for a second consecutive term. "Looking at the current political situation, it is time for Azmin to give way to Khalid since Khalid is the MB. Saying that a Kedahan cannot hold a post in Selangor is laughable. "Azmin himself is born in Singapore but is serving as Gombak member of parliament and state assemblyman in Bukit Antarabangsa. Why can't we have Kedah born Saifudin in Selangor. Read more at: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/06/07/sgor-pkr-the-rift-continues/ |
| Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:44 PM PDT
Menulis dalam laman mikro Twitter menggunakan nama @PapaGomo, blogger berkenaan memaklumkan perjuangannya dalam dunia blogging sudah berakhir. "I'm done (saya selesai). Itu yang Gomo boleh katakan dalam perjuangan dengan nama blog Papa Gomo. Bagi peluang blogger baru gegar alam maya ini," tulisnya pada Isnin lalu. Papa Gomo merupakan blogger yang tidak asing lagi dengan hasil tulisan dan pendedahan mengaitkan Ketua Umum PKR, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim dengan pelbagai skandal. Terbaru, blogger berkenaan berhadapan dengan kes saman oleh ahli Parlimen Permatang Pauh itu yang akan didengar awal tahun depan. Saman fitnah RM100 juta itu difailkan Anwar 21 Mac lalu dengan menamakan Wan Muhammad Azri Wan Deris sebagai pemilik blog berkenaan. Ia ekoran penayangan video lucah yang didakwa sebagai pemimpin pembangkang itu. Wan Muhammad Azri bagaimanapun menafikan bahawa beliau adalah pemilik blog berkenaan. Papa Gomo yang identitinya masih menjadi teka-teki dalam laman mikro Twitternya turut menulis, beliau yakin ramai lagi blogger berbakat dapat diketengahkan untuk memeriahkan PRU14 kelak. Blog Papa Gomo juga kini tidak boleh diakses lagi. "Gomo nak fokus pada perniagaan pakaian tu. Lagipun bulan puasa dah nak tiba dan ni masanya nak cari duit lebih," tulisnya. "Gomo yakin PRU14 akan ada ramai blogger pro BN yang hebat. "Semoga perjuangan rakan rakan blogger lain akan terus hebat dan menguasai arus blogger yang ada pada PRU14. Pakatan mesti dihancurkan," tambahnya lagi dalam posting berlainan. |
| PSM fails in its bid to get into Pakatan Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:38 PM PDT
(The Star) - Parti Sosialis Malaysia's application to join opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat has been shot down by the component parties. According to PKR secretary-general Datuk Saifuddin Nasution, PAS, PKR and DAP had met before the general election to discuss PSM's application. "We discussed it before elections, the decision was negative," he told The Star Online when contacted. When asked for the reasoning behind the decision, he declined to comment. He added that "he supposed" the small party had been informed of the decision by someone from the Pakatan secretariat. However, when contacted earlier, PSM's parliamentary leader Dr Michael D Jeyakumar said no-one from the party had been updated regarding the application status. "We assume from their silence we weren't accepted, but we haven't heard anything official." PSM formally applied to join Pakatan Rakyat in September 2012. During GE13, PSM and Pakatan had many clashes over seat allocations, resulting in multi-corner fights in three state seats. PSM secretary-general S Arutchelvan told the press last month that the party would be reevaluating its ties with Pakatan after losing the supposedly 'safe' seat of Kota Damansara, and not winning Semenyih or Jelapang. PSM's only electoral victory was in Sungai Siput, with Jeyakumar retaining his position as MP. In Kota Damansara, PSM president Nasir Hashim had to face off not only an Umno candidate and three independents, but also PAS' Ridzuan Ismail despite Nasir running on a PKR ticket. In Semenyih, Arutchelvan used PSM's clenched fist logo and ran against Umno's Johan Abdul Aziz and PKR's Hamidi Hassan. In Jepalang, PSM's M Sarasvathy faced down an MIC candidate and an opponent from DAP. |
| Status quo for MT as well? Serious? Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:33 PM PDT (fz.com) - Mohsin Abdullah finds a possibility that even the 20 plus Umno Supreme Council members may keep their positions. Status quo. IT SEEMS there is a possibility even positions for the Umno Supreme Council (Majlis Tertinggi or MT) will not be contested come party polls at the end of the year. Meaning all the current 20 plus MT members get to keep their positions. Status quo. Well, that is what an Umno insider said, claiming he was told of such a "possibility" by a "seasoned campaigner" as far as Umno elections goes. Strange? Odd? Bizarre even? But to give the benefit of the doubt to Umno, the seasoned campaigner cannot say for sure that would be the case as it was "something he heard from within the party". While if that is uncertain (for now), the one thing certain is the "call" for no top two contests is getting louder by the day. And now the Umno Veterans Club apparently have not only joined in the "fray" but have gone one up with its secretary Datuk Mustapha Yaakub reportedly saying the current three vice-presidents should also not be challenged. If that happens then it would be a first in the party's history. Whether that is something to be proud of or otherwise is debatable, of course. The reasons for the no contests call are the usual – "Umno need to be united, to be strengthened to face GE14, to prevent a team split," etc. We have heard all that before. But now information chief Datuk Ahmad Maslan has added a new "dimension" to the "reasons list" by saying no top two contests would be good for the stock market. Well ... Read more at: http://fz.com/content/status-quo-mt-well-serious#ixzz2VUvt4F7J |
| Selangor saga shows PKR's ketuanan mentality? Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:22 PM PDT
There have been so many twists and turns in this affair that one doesn't know what or who to believe, but rest assured that political skullduggery appears to be well and truly alive in Selangor. KTemoc Konsiders When Pakatan Rakyat supporters lamented that Parti Keadilan Rakyat Malaysia (PKR) has been the weakest link in the coalition, Nathaniel Tan, a PKR stalwart and former private secretary of Anwar Ibrahim, gallantly riposted that PKR is the only link. But in that, he was proven so wrong during the period leading to and immediately after the nomination of a menteri besar (MB) for the state of Selangor following the completion of the May 2013 state elections. If we examine the construct of Pakatan in Selangor, with its victorious election outcome, we have Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) holding 15 state seats, the Democratic Action Party (DAP) another 15 seats, and PKR only 14 seats. Yet prior to any consultation with PAS and DAP, the 'only link' was seen squabbling disgracefully among themselves over which PKR assemblyperson should fill the position of the MB, as if PKR had been the political party which won the Selangor state elections by itself. Perhaps it saw itself as what its ardent supporters have been incorrectly accusing the Barisan Nasional (BN) of, a 'minority government'. Well, it certainly was behaving like one. Regarding the PKR intra-party squabbling, one of its factions had even disparaged its own member, Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, the MB of the previous state assembly session, for poor performance, describing him as a lame duck, without even understanding what the term means. According to Wikipedia, a political lame duck is an elected official who is approaching the end of his or her tenure, especially one whose successor has already been elected. The status can be due to:
Then as if the publicly aired disparagement by PKR against Khalid Ibrahim, its best performing politician, was not bad enough, the Selangor PKR secretary wrote a lamentable letter about him to the Selangor sultan. Terence Netto in hisMalaysiakini article 'Selangor exco saga - a tale with several twists' revealed to us what transpired: Thus Pakatan MB-designate Khalid Ibrahim, days before he took the oath of office as MB on May 14, was subjected to the embarrassment of having a letter read out in his presence that was written by the Selangor PKR secretary to the sultan which not-so-subtly undermined Khalid's claims to a second term of office. Senior state civil servants, known to be proxies of Umno, were present while the letter was read out at a royal audience, causing Khalid no small chagrin. The criticisms or condemnations against Khalid Ibrahim were nothing more than a tragic intra-party attempt by that faction to prevent him from taking up the MB appointment for another term and to seize same for its most favoured son. On the other hand if those Pakatan detractors of Khalid Ibrahim fear he may turn out to be a puppet of specifically DAP, then we will shortly see that fear to be unfounded. Face-saving way out While Nathaniel Tan's 'only link' twisted itself into an unhappy, avaricious and treacherous knot of Gordian proportion, PAS and DAP with a combined 30 assemblypersons nominated Khalid Ibrahim as their preferred candidate for the MB position. Their preference was further endorsed by Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, the party president of PKR, a fortuitous endorsement for some in PKR because it eventually and unwittingly provided a face-saving way out for those against Khalid Ibrahim becoming MB. But what occurred next ripped the breath of many away as PKR Wanita chief, Zuraida Kamaruddin, unbelievably told DAP and PAS pointedly to stay out on the Selangor MB appointment because, now get this, the post belonged to PKR and it was for the party alone to decide which of its assemblypersons should be MB. It that was not of ketuanan magnitude, I don't know what would then be. In a media interview she exclaimed whether the PAS and DAP state assemblypersons were gila kuasa (power crazy), without even recognising the irony of her accusations. If I may, I would like to paraphrase one of Anwar Ibrahim's recent quotes to address Zuraida Kamaruddin for her belief that the Selangor MB post belonged to PKR, "So you think this is your father's state?" The sheer preposterousness of her proprietary claim on the MB position would have been a great joke if not for the disturbing cardinal belief by some in PKR that they possess supreme birthrights above their political allies, an indisputable ketuanan mindset. Thus, it indicated Nathaniel Tan's 'only link' has in fact been Pakatan's 'only link' to the ultimate ketuanan party, Umno, incidentally the progenitor of PKR. Zuraida Kamaruddin has not been the only PKR member who has entertained such arbitrary aggressive and arrogant claim on being the automatic primus inter pares (first among equals) in Pakatan, with a first stake claim on the choicest cut of all Pakatan's political rights in governments. For example, the greedy grab of 49 (initially 52) out of 71 seats in the last Sarawak state election was a dismal example of its sad avaricious mentality and arrogant disdain for its Pakatan allies. It was pure grade ketuanan mentality at its worst. The buah langsat certainly hasn't fallen far from the langsat tree. Thus, when social activist Haris Ibrahim, a man I very much admire and respect, initiated the ABU (Asalkan Bukan UMNO) campaign, I was not supportive of it for the reason that a George Bush-like approach of "either you're with us or against us" would have unjustly punished as collateral damage those good Barisan Nasional (BN) people, admittedly very few but nonetheless are still there in people like Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Saifuddin Abdullah, Ong Tee Keat, etc. But far worse, it would have given an unacceptable carte blanche approval to frightful Pakatan politicians like the ones we have just described. Arrogance and avarice Another political activist and renowned blogger, Raja Petra Kamurudin, has been spot on when he clarified that the ABU campaign should be about fighting the lamentable Umno culture of racist supremacy (ketuanan Melayu), arrogance, avarice, corruption, cronyism, etc, and not the political party per se. And he warned that the terrible Umno culture is not confined to only Umno the political party but has already permeated other parties. You may draw your own conclusion as to which other party outside of Barisan Nasional possesses that culture of ketuanan arrogance and avarice. Anyway, with the appointment of Khalid Ibrahim as MB settled, and Dr Wan Azizah's party presidential endorsement of him providing the face saving exit for his detractors, namely, that the 'disagreement' of him as MB was euphemistically about due process of consultation within PKR for a consensual nomination of a person for that post, the next round of the comedy or tragedy of errors began with the nomination of the state new executive committee (exco) members, which demonstrated that Khalid Ibrahim has been no puppet of DAP. When the election results show that both PAS and DAP have won 15 state seats each, while PKR could only manage 14, it was agreed that both former parties' share of the exco shall be increased from what they had in the previous state parliamentary session, namely from three to four each. But PKR would of course hold the MB position, one worth at least the equivalent of two exco members, and of course the remaining two exco positions. Story of the two lists Mind you, HRH has repudiated Khalid Samad's claim that the long-delayed finalisation of the exco list was due to HRH who allegedly wanted to examine the so-called two lists, one with the ratio of five Malays to five non-Malays as per the previous state parliamentary session, and the other with the 6:4 racial split. In an angry statement via his private secretary, Mohamad Munir Bani, HRH urged online media and bloggers not to erroneously implicate the palace in the state exco controversy. The royal revelation was that Khalid Ibrahim as the MB had provided HRH with the list on May 20, 2013 before going abroad on medical leave. The delay in the approval was because Khalid returned to Selangor only a week later and not because HRH was mulling over the so-called two lists. It was suggested HRH's ire was directed at PAS' Khalid Samad who came up with the story of the two lists. But since then, Khalid Samad has come forth to deny he had attributed the delay to HRH. Leaving aside the alleged involvement of the palace, it was painfully noticeable that Khalid Ibrahim did what would be considered ungentlemanly before he left for abroad, in unilaterally announcing via just a cowardly tweet the revised composition of the Selangor exco, which saw the agreed four exco positions for DAP reduced to three. Couldn't he have phoned DAP to advise his reason for the amendments, but then, we have been familiar with the lamentable PKR habit, of making unilateral decisions or policies on Pakatan (not PKR) issues, with their allies only learning of them via the media. Thus it left Tony Pua, DAP Selangor deputy chief, bewildered on what was obviously an overturning of a Pakatan agreement on the exco composition. And of course Khalid Ibrahim was conveniently not around to answer why there was been a change to DAP's disadvantage. But from HRH's revelation via his private secretary that Khalid Ibrahim had submitted the exco nominations to the palace prior to his departure for overseas, it would suggest that his tweeted message had already reflected the list submitted to HRH, lending doubts as to whether there was even a second list with the 5:5 racial ratio. Be that as it was, even if HRH required a 6:4 makeup in the state exco, that would have been easily fulfilled with the four PAS members and two from PKR, which would still allow DAP to staff the exco with four of its assemblypersons. Why then has DAP's exco members being reduced to three? That has been because Khalid Ibrahim wanted Elizabeth (Eli) Wong in the exco as well. Eli Wong is very well regarded within her party or at least within Khalid Ibrahim's faction. She has been undeniably a commendable and very hard working exco member in the previous state parliamentary session and is obviously a favourite of the MB because she has been totally loyal to him, not unlike Faekah Husin. But alas, Eli Wong is not a Malay in our very race-conscious world, and unless the Selangor exco could be expanded to eleven places to accommodate her, she could only be admitted at the expense of a non-Malay position, which obviously has to come from the DAP's allocation of four. I just wonder how Xavier Jeyakumar who has been dropped from the exco list must have felt in not being allocated that non-Malay position naughtily plucked from DAP's allocation. It was left to DAP (minus one exco seat) to place the sole Indian in the Selangor exco. Khalid Ibrahim has been known for his famous 1981 'dawn raid' on Guthrie Plantations in the London Stock Exchange, and he has certainly put his skill in raiding one of DAP's exco positions without the victim even knowing about it until Khalid's tweet came on the air, and I suspect that could have been why Khalid flew off abroad after tweeting the announcement to avoid explaining in person to DAP he has chucked out of the window the agreement DAP would be entitled to a fair share of four exco positions for its strength in the Selangor state assembly. Lion's share Just to remind ourselves, HRH's royal requirement for the 6:4 ratio would still have been met with DAP having four exco position. DAP lost its fourth exco position because Khalid Ibrahim or PKR wanted Eli Wong to also be in the exco. This means that PKR as the smallest Pakatan component now has the lion's share of the cabinet positions in holding the post of MB (worth the equivalent of at least two exco) and three excos, or an undeserved total of the equivalent of five exco positions. Now, what was it that I said about the ketuanan mentality of PKR? Ironically in February 2009 when Eli Wong was being challenged by the most trying moments of her political career, and when strong support from her own party would have consoled and assured her she was a victim rather than a scoundrel, Khalid Ibrahim did not intially show that crucial support and prevaricated, stating: " … Wong was a victim but her willingness to resign from all posts is a selfless decision on her part to protect PKR because she is well aware that BN will continue to exploit the issue to damage the party", obviously keen to see her go. Then, in a further example of distancing himself from Eli's predicament, he stated in a Malaysiakini report that his government would seek the views of HRH Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah on how it should deal with the controversy surrounding executive councillor Elizabeth Wong. What controversy? Eli Wong was a victim of an unscrupulous criminal voyeur. And Khalid Ibrahim as the MB, the political head of the state, wanted to run to HRH for a political-party decision? Susan Loone, now a Malaysiakini journalist and once one of Malaysia's top socio-political bloggers, wrote in her blog 'I weep over Eli Wong's resignation' in which she stated: This blog mourns for Elizabeth Wong, the Bukit Lanjan state assembly woman who has been pressured to resign... I know it was the party she represented - PKR - who asked her to resign. And that to me, may be a strategic but a most disheartening thing to do. It gives credence to gutter politics, to sleaze and evil politicking, within and without the party. Khalid Ibrahim might have been a good leader for Selangor in terms of business and financial governance, but as a politician he lacked and I suspect still lacks political courage. In the sorry saga of Eli Wong, and it's sorry on Khalid's part (or lack of), Khalid acquired a wee bit of notoriety for running away from sensitive issues or hard decisions, which might also have been the case in the recent exco controversy. In a perverted sense it shows he is not a puppet of the DAP. Disease of 3-Cs Another example was in 2008, when the issue of the Selangor deputy MB position was being aired to his immense discomfort because Teresa Kok was proposed for the role, Teresa Kok was jokingly described, among DAP people, as suffering from the disease of 3-Cs, being Chinese, Christian and Chabor (Chinese for woman), which made her candidature as deputy MB a challenge for Khalid Ibrahim, especially at a time when Hasan Ali was the Selangor PAS state leader. He showed the same lamentable lack of willingness to make a stand. However, when further queried, Muhammad Munir denied reports that HRH wanted 'a deputy from a particular race' (meaning 'Malay'), but instead, in a Malaysiakini report, stated differently that the sultan was the religious head for Islam and Malay culture, and thus the MB has the task of assisting in these duties, which in his absence would also have to handled by his deputy. Thus we observed that what he uttered in the first instance had nothing to do with HRH but was of his own interpretation. Mind you, he hasn't been the only one who misused (and still misuses) HRH's name in order to get what he/she personally wants or is personally inclined towards. Then, Malaysiakini reported in 'Expert: No legal need for Malay deputy MB' that Dr Abdul Aziz Bari, a constitutional expert who had then lectured law at Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia, dismissed Munir's claims that the deputy MB should ideally be a Malay to assist the MB in Islamic and cultural duties. Abdul Aziz Bari said: "The Sultan of Selangor does not need the menteri besar or the deputy menteri besar in matters pertaining to religion and Malay custom." According to Dr Aziz Bari, the sultan, as the head of Islamic matters and the Malay adat, was (still is) in fact the person in charge of such matters in the state, and not the MB or his deputy. He said: "Matters cited by the palace are entirely within the sultan's jurisdiction. As the sultan may act on his own discretion on these matters, the constitution provides that a council may be appointed to assist him. This is what is commonly known as religious councils or majlis agama, which looks after the religious department or the jabatan agama. In the other four states and federal territories, the Agong will have the same establishment." So subsequently when Khalid Ibrahim was asked whether the appointment of a deputy MB (of Teresa Kok) had been postponed or scrapped altogether, he side-stepped the issue by stating the need to explain the matter (what?) properly to the people (who?), and that he would do this after the executive councillors had been sworn-in (why?) Anyway, had he ever done that in the last five years? Read more at: http://ktemoc.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/selangor-saga-shows-pkrs-ketuanan.html |
| Collapsed Second Penang Bridge section built by local contractor Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:20 PM PDT
(TMI) - The section of the Second Penang Bridge that collapsed yesterday evening was the Batu Maung Interchange, a separate package from the main bridge, undertaken by local contractor Cergas Murni Sdn Bhd. The company, which is registered with the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) as a Class G7 contractor, was awarded the interchange project in 2010 and it took over site possession on May 19, 2010. The Batu Maung Interchange is Package 3A of the Second Penang Bridge project. The RM152 million interchange project involves the construction of four directional ramps to form the Batu Maung Interchange to connect the existing Bayan Lepas Expressway to the Second Penang Bridge and marine main bridge. It was a section of one of the ramps (Ramp Two) that collapsed yesterday. It is feared to four people could have been killed in the rubble while three people were injured. The interchange was originally expected to be completed in December last year but it was delayed and the latest completion date was slotted for next month. Cergas Murni, which began operations as a Class B registered contractor in 1991 and is now a Class A contractor, has several large projects under its belt — the East Coast Highway Phase Two Package 9A (RM202 million), Package 9B (RM86 million), Package Three (RM224 million) and the Bukit Kuang Bridge under the Eastern Corridor Economic Region project (RM190 million). The company has also received ISO 9001:2000, ISO 14001:2004 and OSHAS 18001:2007 certification since 2005. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/collapsed-second-penang-bridge-section-built-by-local-contractor/ |
| Pakatan MPs to boycott parliamentary briefing in reforms protest Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:17 PM PDT
(TMI) - Pakatan Rakyat (PR) MPs are expected to boycott next Tuesday's parliamentary briefing as a symbolic gesture to show the pact's seriousness in its push for electoral reforms. The DAP's Anthony Loke (picture) confirmed the decision, which was made earlier this week by the PR leadership council, saying the move comes on the back of the string of rallies held nationwide to protest against Barisan Nasional's (BN) alleged use of fraud to win the just-concluded Election 2013. He noted that the pact was also planning another mammoth protest in Padang Merbok here next Saturday and attending the briefing would appear to contradict the purpose of the rally. "The PR leadership council felt that we need to exert as much pressure as we can to get the government to respond to our demands for electoral reform. "So at the moment, we feel we should not be attending the briefing... on the one hand we are planning a major rally, so on the other hand we should not be attending the briefing," he said when contacted. Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/pakatan-mps-to-boycott-parliamentary-briefing-in-reforms-protest/ |
| Church Of England Drops Opposition To Gay Marriage Bill Posted: 06 Jun 2013 12:14 PM PDT
(Huff Post) - Bishops in the Church of England, who had strenuously opposed a bid to allow same-sex marriage, signaled that they won't try to derail the bill after an overwhelming vote of support in the House of Lords. Church of England spokesman Steve Jenkins said that in the same way the church will eventually allow women bishops, England will eventually allow same-sex marriage. "It doesn't mean the Church of England is happy, but that's where our government is going," Jenkins said. "Now it's about safeguarding people's right to hold religious beliefs." The Right Rev. Tim Stevens, the Bishop of Leicester who leads the bishops in the House of Lords, issued a statement on Wednesday (June 5), one day after the parliament's upper house voted 390-148 against an amendment to kill the gay marriage bill. |
| Nazri warns youth who abuse social media in a rude manner Posted: 05 Jun 2013 07:53 PM PDT
"Being rude and saying vile things are possible because the youth can hide behind the walls of cyberspace and are not saying it face to face. If in a face-to-face situation they would not be brave enough to utter those words." Azril Annuar, fz.com Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz raised a red flag over social media websites, like Facebook, being the root cause for rude or uncouth behaviour by youth. After visiting the National Culture and Arts Department today, Nazri said such websites allow people to interact anonymously while online but he warned that the government will not hesitate to take action on anyone found to have "gone overboard" or broken any law in cyber space. "Being rude and saying vile things are possible because the youth can hide behind the walls of cyberspace and are not saying it face to face. If in a face-to-face situation they would not be brave enough to utter those words. "But in this matter, I want to remind everyone that our government has laws and we will enforce those laws if we find anyone breaking the laws that fall under the MCMC or the Sedition Act. "If we need to preserve our culture by taking legal action against these rude and uncouth youths, we will," he said, adding that he cannot allow such rude actions or words to "contaminate" the Malaysian culture where such behaviour is alien to local customs. "Cultural change will happen as time goes by. What was once respected and honoured 20-years ago might not be in practice anymore. This will affect national culture. However, not all old practices and customs are out of date and should be abandoned just because it's old. "Some, are still current and this is where parents need to play a role in educating their children," said Nazri. He also admitted that "cultural assimilation" between all the ethnicities in the country will be a challenge and also have an impact on national culture. "However, such cultural assimilation is all right because all cultures is a result of evolution. "So, 100 years from now the result of the cultural integration in Malaysia might result in a new culture that is accepted by all. These are the origins of cultures and customs," said Nazri. |
| How DAP hurt Pakatan’s chances Posted: 05 Jun 2013 07:43 PM PDT
This is the last article in a three-part series analysing the reasons for the opposition bloc's failure to capture Putrajaya. Free Malaysia Today ANALYSIS: Pakatan Rakyat would have won more rural seats in the recent general election if DAP had played ball on issues that are dear to the Malays. Its intransigence with regard to the hudud and "Allah" issues practically ensured that rural voters would vote Umno against the Malay candidates fielded by PAS and PKR. The two predominantly Malay parties suffered heavy defeats in rural and semi-rural areas, especially in Johor, Malacca, Negeri Sembilan and Pahang. Indeed, their overall performance in Malay-majority areas last May 5 was worse than their 2008 showing if one were to take Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu out of the reckoning. Initial analyses of the results by PAS offices in the affected constituencies indicated that rural Malays were generally influenced by the Umno propaganda about DAP calling the shots in Pakatan even in matters of Malay and Muslim interest. In a statement that was particularly devastating to Pakatan's hope of increasing its Malay support, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng declared in his 2012 Christmas Day message that his party was against giving Muslims the exclusive right to use "Allah" as the name of God. Subsequently, PAS leaders Abdul Hadi Awang and Nik Abdul Aziz Mat announced that their party would not oppose the use of "Allah" by non-Muslims although they cautioned against its misuse. This turned out to be a virtual signal for Umno to begin a relentless campaign through the mainstream media to portray PAS as a tool of the predominantly Chinese party. To their credit, Hadi and other PAS leaders tried to back their stand by quoting verses from the Quran. But the damage had been done and there was no way that Pakatan could match Umno's media reach among rural folk. Lim's statement gave the impression—even among Pakatan activists and supporters—that DAP was not bothered about voting support from the Malays and did not care about a possible Muslim backlash. It is not difficult to see why. DAP's candidates were contesting in Chinese-majority constituencies. Malay votes did not matter to the party. Lim claims to be chief minister to every race in Penang, but that claim sounds hollow in the light of PAS' failure to make inroads in Malay-majority areas in the state. In fact, Seberang Jaya, which is also within Permatang Pauh, was the only Malay seat that Pakatan added over its 2008 victories. DAP chairman Karpal Singh must also take some blame with his insistence that PAS should declare that it would not introduce the hudud provisions of Islamic law if Pakatan were to take over Putrajaya. He harped on this even during the official election campaign period. One could question Karpal's political wisdom in his treatment of the hudud issue in light of its recent loss of traction among non-Muslim Pakatan supporters. Putting aside Kedah, where the PAS-controlled government failed to establish a good track record, PAS candidates received solid support from Chinese voters, including in those rural constituencies where the community was in the majority. If hudud really was an issue for the Chinese, they would have rejected all PAS candidates.
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| Lust: the foundation of humankind (UPDATED with Chinese translation) Posted: 05 Jun 2013 06:55 PM PDT
Then the English made one huge mistake, as did the Christian missionaries. They built schools and started educating the Malays. Then the Malays began to speak English better than an Englishman and sometimes with a Winston Churchill accent as well. Then the educated Malays began to be taught one very important word, lust. The Malays were told if they did not possess lust then they would be viewed as lazy and backward. They needed to have lust to prove that they are progressive and successful. NO HOLDS BARRED Raja Petra Kamarudin Lust is very important. Without lust we would all not exist. Lust is what drives us. Lust is both constructive and destructive. Lust builds plus it destroys. And lust is not only the foundation of humankind it is also the foundation of the Abrahamic faiths. Without lust we would not have 'Religions of the Book'. There are some who believe that God created Adam from dust or earth after first turning it into clay. Then God allowed this lifeless statue to set as the angels in Paradise all gathered around curiously watching God at work. God then blew a soul into this statue and it came to life. God then instructed all the Angels to kowtow to Adam, who is going to be the Vicegerent on earth. All the Angels complied except Iblis. Iblis saw how God had made Adam, who is merely from earth, while Iblis is made from fire. So how could a more superior being created from fire kowtow to an inferior being made from dirt? Basically Iblis suffered from the lust of power and pride. Adam was a weak creation and hence did not possess much power. Adam had emotions, feelings, needs, and whatnot and hence was weak. Iblis was not weakened by all these human 'failings'. Emotions, feelings, needs, and so on, are weaknesses, which Iblis did not possess. Furthermore, earth is weaker than fire. Hence no way would a more superior creation kowtow to a weaker creation. Iblis's defiance incurred the wrath of God. God then punished Iblis by evicting him from Paradise and by condemning him to an eternity in hell. Iblis then requested that God hold back sentencing until the end of time. Iblis told God he would in the meantime like to prove to God that Adam is weak and therefore Iblis was justified in not kowtowing to Adam. God agreed with this proposal and challenged Iblis to prove it. Iblis has carte blanche to try to mislead Adam and prove that Adam is weak and can be misled. Of course, Iblis will eventually be sent to hell at the end of time. In the meantime Iblis can try to mislead Adam and try to bring him (Adam) to hell with him (Iblis). Soon Adam became lonely and craved for a companion. God then created Adam's companion, Eve, from Adam's rib bone. Adam took one look at the sexy Eve and went "Woh!….Man!" and that was how Adam's companion got the name woman (this part the holy books somehow did not record). But thus far Iblis had not succeeded in misleading Adam and to get him condemned to hell. So Iblis tried to work on Eve instead and to use Eve to mislead Adam. We of course know the story about the forbidden fruit and how God angrily threw Adam and Eve out of Paradise for disobeying the instruction regarding the forbidden fruit and how Adam and Eve ended up on earth and soon bred like rabbits and today there are seven billion of us running around doing bad things to each other. That is the story of the creation of humankind, as some 'people of the Book' believe happened. And since coming to earth, or rather since banishment to earth, humankind has been plagued with the disease of lust -- lust for power, lust for wealth, lust for domination, lust for a good life, lust for recognition, lust for victory, lust for success, lust for sex, and much more. So this is what drives us, lust. This is what makes us succeed, lust. This is what makes us fail, lust. This is what makes us dominate others, lust. This is what triggers wars, lust. This is why we kill, lust. This is why we seek power, lust. This is why we persecute, lust. This is why we discriminate, lust. In short, all our strengths, weaknesses, successes and failures can be attributed to just one thing, lust. We never act unless guided by lust. Of course, we will never admit this. We will hide behind all sorts of excuses to justify our actions. We will give all sorts of labels to our actions to present them with a noble image. Ultimately, however, it all boils down to just one word, lust. Businessmen are driven by the lust for success and wealth. Politicians are driven by the lust for power and domination. Religionists are driven by the lust for power and domination. Everyone is driven by one lust or another and will act driven by this lust and will not call it lust but will call it something else that sounds nobler. Ultimately, call it what you want, it is still lust. Any society that does not succumb to lust would be viewed as a backward society. The Malays used to be like this once upon a time. They were once very happy tilling the land or harvesting the sea. That is why the early Malays were perceived as lazy people. They had no ambition. They did not mind being oppressed or dominated. Anyone could lord over the Malays. Malays were always colonised by one power or another. You could even tell the Malays to convert from Hinduism and Buddhism to Islam and the entire community would become Muslims although they did not really know what 'true' Islam is and many became Muslims steeped in Hindu and Buddhist beliefs, customs and traditions. The Siamese came and the Malays called then tuan (lord). The Hindus came and the Malays called them tuan. The Indonesians from Riau, Aceh, Java and whatnot came and the Malays called them tuan. The Portuguese came and the Malays called them tuan. The Dutch came and the Malays called them tuan. The English came and the Malays called them tuan. The Japanese came and the Malays called them tuan. The English came again and the Malays called them tuan. Then the English made one huge mistake, as did the Christian missionaries. They built schools and started educating the Malays. Then the Malays began to speak English better than an Englishman and sometimes with a Winston Churchill accent as well. Then the educated Malays began to be taught one very important word, lust. The Malays were told if they did not possess lust then they would be viewed as lazy and backward. They needed to have lust to prove that they are progressive and successful. And the Malays who would believe anything you told them began to believe this. And soon the Malays lusted after power and wealth. And the Malays were no longer satisfied with just tilling the land and harvesting the sea. They now wanted power and wealth. Then the British introduced the English system of government and the English system of how to choose this government. The British also taught the Malays how to cheat to gain power so that the minority could lord over the majority. Soon the Malays began to learn that those with the largest and most number of guns would win the argument. The Malays soon realised that power comes from the barrel of the gun and about how effective British gunboat diplomacy can be when the minority wishes to lord over the majority. So you need military power to attain political power and in turn attain economic power. The Malays were convinced through this British education that domination is crucial and that political power plus economic power can only be achieved through domination. The British taught the Malays that they needed to reduce the Monarchy to a mere Constitutional Monarchy but the Monarchy must not be abolished and Malaya turned into a Republic like India, Indonesia and whatnot (or else the majority will rule). The Malays must retain the Monarchy and turn it into a symbol of Malay dominance or else the Malays would lose this dominance. Then the Monarchy must be made the Commander of the military so that military power would always remain in the hands of the Malays. Then, with this military power, the Malays would have a grip on political power, which in turn would guarantee the Malays economic power as well. The Malays were 'spoiled' by the British. The Malays used to be very happy tilling the land and harvesting the sea with a colonial master lording over them. Then the Malays were sent to school to receive an English education where they were taught they needed to be more like the English. The Malays soon refused to till the land and harvest the sea. They now wanted to wear white long-sleeve shirts and ties and sit behind a desk signing documents. Then the Malays realised that they no longer needed tuans. They could become the tuans instead. Why work for a master when you can become the master? Why help the white colonial masters get rich when you can take these riches for yourself? Today, we have a different breed of Malays. We have a breed of Malays that has been taught lust and who now allow lust to drive them. I suppose this is what Iblis wanted. It is the game-plan of Iblis to spread the doctrine of lust and make humankind lust after power and wealth. That is the downside of educating the Malays. And once educated you cannot un-educate them again. Lust is a very powerful driving force. It makes us do bad things and makes us think that bad is actually good. But that is what the Malays have become. And you have no choice but to live with this situation. It is no longer possible to send the Malays back to the land and the sea. The Malays have tasted what it is like to become the master of the land. And the Malays want to be seen as the master of the land. The Malays want to be acknowledged and recognised as the master of the land. And if you try to tell the Malays otherwise you will be confronted with very hostile Malays who would regard you as a robber who is attempting to rob him of his right as the master. Sigh…why the hell did the English and Christian missionaries go and build those schools and then educate the Malays in those schools? If not the Malays would be very happy being colonised by anyone under the sun as long as they could till the land and harvest the sea. ********************************************* 欲望：人類的根底 然後英國人就像基督傳教士般犯了一個嚴重的錯誤；他們開始建造學校和對馬來人供書教學。然後馬來人開始講起比英國人還要好的英文，他們甚至還帶温斯顿·丘吉尔的口音。然後那些受教育的馬來人開始學會了一個很重要的詞，那就是欲望。他們被告知如果他們是不帶有欲望的話那他們就會被認爲是落後和懶惰的。他們必須擁有欲望來證明他們是上進和成功的。 欲望是很重要的，沒了它我們根本就不會出現。欲望是推動我們的動力，它可以建造但同時也可以毀壞。欲望不止是人類生存的根基，它還是亞伯拉罕諸教的起源根基呢。沒有了欲望我們會看不到這些'經書的宗教'。 有人相信上帝是以泥土創造阿當的。當時上帝在天堂把粘土拉成沒有生命的人像，而祂的天使們很好奇地圍繞著祂觀看。上帝然後往這人像吹了口氣，那個人像就有了生命活了起來。 上帝要所有天使向阿當跪拜，因爲阿當即將成爲地球之主。所有天使都遵從這個命令，除了伊布力斯 Iblis以外。阿當是由泥土所捏造的，而伊布力斯則是從火焰中創造出來的。一個從從火焰中創造出來的優越物怎麽可以向由泥土捏制的劣質物叩頭呢？ 基本上這就是伊布力斯對威力和面子的欲望的表現。阿當是個軟弱的創造品，所以他的威力並不強大。阿當有情緒，感情，需求等等，所以他是軟弱的。伊布力斯因不具有這些人類的'弱點'所以他沒有人類般這麽軟弱。再者，泥土比火焰弱得多。所以說，身為一個優越者他是不會向劣者叩頭的。 伊布力斯的舉動把上帝給激怒了，上帝遂把他逐出天堂要他永世都貶入地獄。伊布力斯向上帝要求，求祂延刑至世界末日才執刑。他告訴上帝在這期間他會證明阿當是軟弱的，然後借此來證明他不向阿當跪拜是沒錯的。 上帝同意了伊布力斯的請求，祂也挑戰伊布力斯來證明自己是對的。伊布力斯從此有了張'空白支票'，可以隨時誤導阿當來證明阿當是軟弱的。當然，到了世界末日伊布力斯還是得下地獄的，但從現在到那個時候他可以誤導阿當以便阿當可以和他一起下地獄。 過了不久，阿當就開始感到很寂寞而想要有個伴，上帝這時就取阿當的肋骨創造了夏娃。而在這個時候伊布力斯還沒有成功地誤導阿當，所以他開始把目標轉移至夏娃身上。過後關於那個禁果的故事你們都知道了，上帝把阿當和夏娃逐出了天堂，而他們來到了地球就開始像兔子般不停地生育，所以我們看到了今天全球有70億人口每天都對自己和他人做出不好的事情。 這就是人類起源的故事，很多'經書的跟從者'都相信這個故事。自從被放逐到地球以後，人類一直都患上了欲望的疾病----對權力的欲望，對財富的欲望，對控制權的欲望，對生活素質的欲望，對名聲的欲望，對勝利的欲望，對成功的欲望，對性愛的欲望等等。 欲望就是我們的動力，欲望就是令我們成功的因數，欲望就是令我們失敗的因數，欲望就是令我們控制他人的因數，欲望就是令我們殺人的因數，欲望就是令我們尋求權利的因數，欲望就是令我們迫害他人的因數，欲望就是令我們歧視他人的因數。總歸一句，我們優點，弱點，成功與失敗背後最大的因數就是欲望，如果沒有欲望來促使我們根本就不會做出什麽行動。 我們當然是永遠都不會承認這一點的，我們會用一切一切的理由來合理化我們的舉動。我們會用很多的標簽來高尚化我們的舉動。但到最後，我們舉動的背後還是欲望這個詞。 商人的動力來自對成功和財富的欲望。政客的動力來自對權力和控制慾的欲望。宗教份子的動力來自對權力和控制慾的欲望。所有人的動力來自欲望，他們會被這些欲望所推使而採取行動。然而，他們都不會把這稱爲欲望，他們會為他們的行動灌上一個更高尚的名義。但到最後，你可以給它一百個名稱，它都會還是欲望。 那些沒有屈服于欲望的社會都會被稱爲是落後的社會。馬來人曾經是這樣過日子的，他們都很開心地種田捕魚。這就是爲什麽以前的馬來人都被認爲是很懶惰的，他們都沒有志向。他們不怕被他人壓迫或控制，任何人都可以統理馬來人；馬來人一直以來都是被其他權力給殖民的。 你可以告訴馬來人他們必須從興都教或佛教轉成皈依回教，而他們整個社群都會照你的話去做，雖然他們都不懂'真正'的回教到底是什麽。很多人在皈依回教后仍然保持著興都教或佛教的信念，文化和傳統。 暹羅人到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。興都人到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。亞齊和爪哇的印尼人到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。葡萄牙人到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。荷蘭人到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。英國人到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。日本人到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。英國人再次到來時馬來人稱他們為主人。 然後英國人就像基督傳教士般犯了一個嚴重的錯誤；他們開始建造學校和對馬來人供書教學。然後馬來人開始講起比英國人還要好的英文，他們甚至還帶温斯顿·丘吉尔的口音。然後那些受教育的馬來人開始學會了一個很重要的詞，那就是欲望。他們被告知如果他們是不帶有欲望的話那他們就會被認爲是落後和懶惰的。他們必須擁有欲望來證明他們是上進和成功的。 那些你講什麽他們就信什麽的馬來人開始相信了這一點，他們很快地就開始對權力和財富有了欲望。他們不再對種田捕魚感到滿足了，他們想要擁有權力和財富。 然後英國人就開始介紹他們的政府系統和如何選擇政府。英國人也開始教會馬來人如何騙權和如何以少數人管制多數人。馬來人很快地就學習到了那些擁有最多和最大火力槍械的人永遠會在爭辯中勝出。 馬來人開始知道權力是從槍管裏出來了，他們也開始明瞭儅少數人想要管制多數人時英國人的戰船外交政策是很有效的。所以你要先取得軍事權才能取得政治權和經濟權。馬來人被英式教育説服而認爲管治權是很重要的，只有通過完全的管治那他們才能取得政治權和經濟權。 英國人教馬來人說他們必須把君主的權力削弱成憲法制君權但他們不可徹底地摒棄君主制，不然馬來亞會像印度，印尼等變成一個共和國（當時就是多數人掌權了）。馬來人必須保留他們的君主和把他轉換成馬來人管治權的標誌，不然馬來人就會失去這個管治權。 然後馬來君主必須成爲軍隊的統領以便馬來人能永遠地掌握軍權。有了軍權，馬來人就能取得政治權，進而經濟權就會落入他們的口袋了。 馬來人是被英國人'寵壞'了。他們以前會很開心地種田捕魚而不會去管殖民他們的外來勢力。但後來他們都被送去了學校而被教導他們需要變得更'英國人'。 很快地，他們不再滿足于種田捕魚了，他們想要穿西裝打領帶，坐在辦公室簽文件。然後他們就意識到他們不再需要主人了。爲什麽儅你有能力成爲主人時你還要為其他主人效命？爲什麽你要幫那些白主人賺錢而你自己可以把這些財富佔為己有呢？ 今天，我們看到的是另一種類的馬來人，我們看到的是被教會擁有欲望和被欲望驅使的馬來人。我想這就是伊布力斯所要的東西吧；這是他的最終使命：散播欲望主意使人類去追逐權力和財富。 這就是教育馬來人的缺點，而一旦你教育了他們你不能再'反教育'他們。欲望是個很給力的推動力，它會促使我們做壞事和令我們把那些壞事想成是好事。但這就是現在的馬來人了，你除了接受現實以外你別無選擇。你不可能再把馬來人都送囘農田大海了。 馬來人已經嘗到了儅主人的滋味，而他們也要被看成是這片土地的主人。他們要被承認為使這片土地的主人。如果你嘗試要告訴他們不同的東西的話，那些很懷敵意的馬來人就會把你看成是來騎劫他們儅主人權利的匪徒而對你進行圍剿。 嗐。。。爲什麽那些英國人和基督傳教士要來這兒建立學校和教育馬來人呢？要不是他們的話，馬來人應該還會很開心地在耕田捕魚和屈服于其他殖民者呢。
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| Insulting Prophet Muhammad: authorities urged to take action Posted: 05 Jun 2013 04:21 PM PDT
(Malaysian Digest) - Police and the Malaysian Commission of Multimedia and Communication (MCMC) are being urged to take stern action towards an individual who had insulted the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) through Facebook recently. Umno Puchong secretary, Mohamad Yusof Mohamad Yasin was quoted by Malay daily Sinar Harian, as saying that the statement made was dangerous and will incur dissatisfaction amongst Muslims in the country.
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| ‘Red Bean Army’ is merely a title, says creator Posted: 05 Jun 2013 04:16 PM PDT
(The Star) - The "Red Bean Army" is merely a title and not an organisation with an agenda, said one of the page creators Li Shuang. According to China Press yesterday, Li said it was merely a platform for the Netizens to discuss political issues, stressing that they had never issued any comments to provoke racial hatred. Li claimed he and one of the administrators of Zheng Yi Zhi Sheng (a Facebook fanpage), Ye Jin Qiang, only knew 40 to 50 people out of over 200 "Red Bean Army" members as reported by a Malay daily. He said the "Red Bean Army" was not a registered organisation while Facebook was a social network where anyone could claim they were part of the "Red Bean Army". Li and Ye stressed that the irresponsible statements issued by some of the Netizens had nothing to do with the "Red Bean Army" and called on the police to take action against those who issued the provocative statements. It was reported that Malaysian technopreneur Pua Khein Seng (picture) denied that he was behind the funding of the "Red Bean Army", an alleged cyber trooper group linked to the DAP in attacking the Government via the social media. Pua is the founder of Phison Electronics Corp which introduced the world's first single-chip USB flash drive or pen drive, In his recent statement, Pua said he would not hesitate to take legal action against the newspaper after the authorities completed their probe. "This is a fabricated, baseless and malicious allegation. Honestly, I do not know how I should respond since it is an unfounded accusation. "I urge the authorities who are investigating the matter to contact me so that the truth can be revealed. I will give my full cooperation," said Pua, whose statement was read out by Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng during a press conference at his office recently.
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| Dr M: Racial polarisation more pronounced now thanks to DAP Posted: 05 Jun 2013 04:08 PM PDT
Sean Augustin, fz.com Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad believes racial polarisation has become "more pronounced now than ever before" and has blamed the DAP for causing the schism. The former prime minister said the results of the May 5 general election proved this as the DAP had allegedly played on racial sentiments by depicting the MCA as lackeys of Umno, thus leading the Chinese away from the Barisan Nasional (BN). Mahathir went on to cite the large Chinese attendance at rallies organised by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and PKR, with Chinese youths decked in black shirts and masks, making up a majority of the demonstrators as well as the lack of respect by Chinese youth for the national flag by displaying it upside down as proof of the "role of Chinese racism" in the election. He noted in such rallies, PAS members were "noticeably absent" and had in fact dissociated themselves from the agitation to overthrow the government through street demos ala Arab Spring. The protests, Mahathir concluded, seemed to be "mainly a Chinese affair". He said that was an "indisputable fact" that the DAP had succeeded in destroying the collaboration or sharing between the different races as exemplified by the BN. In slamming Pakatan Rakyat, Mahathir said it was not a true coalition but simply an election pact between the parties opposed to BN, which clearly benefited the chauvinist Chinese in DAP. "If today the schism between the races is deeper it is because the DAP rejects the Malay/Chinese/Indian 'kongsi'. "The DAP wants the Chinese who already dominate the economy, to dominate Malaysia's politics as well," he wrote in his blog this morning. DAP, he added, was clearly racist and rejected inter-racial sharing of power and wealth as advocated by the BN and as a result racial polarisation has become more pronounced. "It will become more so in the future," he claimed. The majority of Chinese votes that swung towards the opposition led to BN chief Datuk Seri Najib Razak calling it a 'Chinese Tsunami', despite the ruling coalition securing a fresh mandate to govern the nation. The prime minister has since called for a national reconciliation against a backdrop of provocative statements and news reports. |
| Dr M takes potshots at DAP and the Chinese Posted: 05 Jun 2013 04:04 PM PDT
Former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has trained his guns at the DAP calling it a racist party championing the rights of the Chinese (FMT) - Former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today took potshots at the DAP, labeling it as a racist party which did not want to share power and wealth of the nation with other races. "If today the schism between the races is deeper it is because the DAP reject the Malay/Chinese/Indian "kongsi" (sharing). The DAP wants the Chinese who already dominate the economy, to dominate Malaysia's politics as well. "It is clearly racist and reject inter-racial sharing of power and wealth as advocated by the BN. Racial polarization has become more pronounced as a result. It will become more so in the future," said Mahathir who was Prime Minister for 22 years before retiring in 1999. In his latest blog posting today, he said although DAP claims to be multiracial, it is in fact a Chinese party with mainly Chinese members and leadership. "Hatred of the Malays was whipped up through the slogan "Malaysian Malaysia", implying that Malaysia is for the Malays only while other races were discriminated against and alleged to be second class citizens. "Advocating meritocracy, the extremists Chinese in the DAP charged the BN Government of discriminating in favour of the Malays even though they were inferior and less qualified for places in the universities, awards of scholarships, contracts, licences and positions in the government. "Whenever Government policies such as the NEP were defended, the defenders whether in the Government or NGO's are labelled racist. The Malay parties in the election pact in Pakatan Rakyat were tolerated because they were useful for election purposes," he said. He said more proof of Chinese racism in the just concluded 13th general election is evident at demonstrations organized by the opposition accusing the Barisan Nasional of fraud and cheating in the polls.
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| Blackout 505: Jaga-jaga... ada udang disebalik batu Posted: 05 Jun 2013 03:56 PM PDT
(Agenda Daily) - Ramai yang bersuara, "Sudah kalah...kalahlah" tapi Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim dan kumpulannya nampak payah terima hakikat tersebut. Sejak hari pertama BN diumumkan menang PRU13, Anwar tak habis-habis meracau. Perhimpunan demi perhimpunan diadakan kononnya untuk membantah keputusan PRU13. Yang terbaru 15 Jun ini yang mahu diadakan di tengah-tengah Kuala Lumpur. Hakikatnya benarkan perhimpunan tersebut sekadar bantahan biasa, atau seperti kata pepatah 'ada udang disebalik batu'. Ramai yang percaya 'Blackout 505' mempunyai matlamat yang lebih jauh daripada hanya untuk mencela SPR yang mereka dakwa bertanggungjawab menyebabkan berlakunya penyelewengan dalam pilihan raya. Bernama melaporkan beberapa pemimpin politik dan pakar strategi percaya perhimpunan yang diadakan di pelbagai tempat itu juga merupakan suatu usaha untuk membentuk minda anak muda Malaysia yang akan mencapai usia 21 tahun dan layak menjadi pemilih pada tahun-tahun akan datang. Harapan mereka ialah untuk menarik golongan muda supaya memberi sokongan kepada pakatan pembangkang 'untuk memperbetulkan' keadaan tidak seimbang dan sistem pilihan raya yang tidak adil di negara ini, seperti yang mereka dakwa, memandangkan kebanyakan yang menghadiri perhimpunan itu terdiri daripada para belia. "Ini merujuk kepada kemunculan kira-kira tiga juta pemilih baharu dalam masa lima tahun akan datang. Apabila mereka dapat membentuk pendapat golongan muda ini, mereka (golongan muda) akan mendaftar sebagai pemilih dan menyokong parti terbabit pada pilihan raya akan datang," kata anggota jawatankuasa pusat MCA Datuk Ti Lian Ker. Satu lagi perhimpunan bagi menyuarakan perasaan tidak puas hati tentang tuduhan berlakunya penyelewengan dalam PRU13 dirancang diadakan pada 15 Jun di ibu negara sebagai lanjutan kepada perhimpunan Black 505, yang mula diadakan tiga hari selepas PRU13 pada 5 Mei. Ti berkata parti pembangkang, terutama DAP, berjaya meyakinkan ramai pengundi Cina supaya menolak MCA dan BN pada PRU baru-baru ini dan mereka akan terus berbuat demikian hingga PRU akan datang. "Mereka (pembangkang) memang handal dalam perkara ini. Mereka tahu siapa yang patut dijadikan sasaran, bagaimana untuk mencari sasaran dan bagaimana untuk mengekalkan sokongan yang diterima. Bukan setakat menganjurkan perhimpunan untuk menarik orang ramai supaya menyokong mereka. Ia merupakan strategi yang menggunakan serampang dua mata dan banyak mata," katanya. Beliau berkata sebelum berlangsungnya PRU, strategi utama DAP ialah memastikan rakyat Malaysia, khususnya masyarakat Cina dan golongan muda, percaya bahawa pakatan pembangkang mampu membawa perubahan dalam kerajaan dan inilah puncanya kebanyakan pemilih daripada kaum Cina memberi undi mereka kepada calon pembangkang daripada DAP, PAS atau PKR. Apabila pakatan pembangkang gagal menawan Putrajaya, katanya, mereka menukar strategi dengan memberi tumpuan terhadap tuduhan kononnya keputusan PRU13 adalah tidak adil berikutan sistem pilihan raya yang diguna pakai sekarang dan membuat heboh bahawa mereka memperoleh lebih banyak undi popular. Ti berkata parti pembangkang juga mendesak rakyat negara ini supaya menuntut agar sistem pilihan raya sedia ada diubah dengan mencadangkan ia menggunakan sistem 'satu undi seorang'. Katanya pakatan pembangkang juga memanfaatkan media sosial untuk menangguk sokongan. "Mereka menggunakan akaun Facebook, Instagram dan Twitter masing-masing untuk menyebar mesej tersebut. Sasaran mereka sekarang ialah Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-14," katanya. Seorang pakar strategi politik yang enggan dikenali berkata "banyak keputusan mengundi dibuat dengan menurut perasaan" apabila fikiran mereka telah dibentuk kepada siapa mereka patut memberi undi. Menurutnya, pemikiran seseorang akan terbentuk apabila orang berkenaan terlalu taksub dan melihat banyak maklumat melalui gambar, video YouTube dan komen dalam Facebook, Twitter atau mesej yang dihantar melalui WhatsApp. "Pemikiran mereka sentiasa dibentuk hingga emosi mereka menjadi begitu cenderung kepada sentimen parti politik. Apa yang diperlukan hanyalah alat seperti visual, audio dan perasaan. "Inilah yang berlaku pada perhimpunan Black 505. Strategi mereka ialah menyiarkan gambar (visual) perhimpunan, komen (perasaan) dan ucapan (audio) kerana mereka amat sedar bahawa pihak yang menggunakan kaedah itu secara bijak dan habis-habisan akan mendapat lebih banyak manfaat, walaupun majoriti rakyat tidak menyukai mereka," kata pakar strategi itu. Penganalisis politik Dr Sivamurugan Pandian dari Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) pula berkata pakatan pembangkang yang terdiri daripada DAP-PKR-PAS menggunakan strategi yang menampilkan tentang perlunya rakyat menuntut hak masing-masing. "Masalahnya ialah apabila seseorang itu memberi gambaran bahawa segala yang ada, salah belaka. Mereka boleh bentuk minda orang, terutama golongan muda, yang kononnya mereka perlu bangun untuk menuntut keadilan dan menentang perkara yang tidak betul," katanya. Beliau berkata strategi itu berjaya kerana kadar celik politik dalam kalangan penduduk masih rendah.
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| Hannah Yeoh to push for new law to make Selangor legislature more independent Posted: 05 Jun 2013 03:04 PM PDT
(TMI) - The DAP's Hannah Yeoh will seek to make the Selangor state assembly more independent from the state government by pushing for a new law, Sin Chew Daily reported today. Yeoh, 34, who was recently named the new Selangor Speaker, said one of her main tasks after coming into office would be to get the Selangor Legislative Assembly Service Commission Enactment (Selesa) 2009 passed. After she was named to the post on May 30, her predecessor Datuk Teng Chang Khim said that the previous state assembly had failed to pass the enactment owing to "some obstacles". Teng reportedly said the Selangor administration's executive committee (exco) had been an obstacle to the passing of the law, with The Star quoting him as saying: "Now that I'm in the exco, I will get rid of these obstacles." In an exclusive interview with Sin Chew, Yeoh explained that the new enactment will be instrumental in implementing the separation of powers in the Selangor government and further enhance the state assembly's role and effectiveness. Selesa will improve the separation of powers between the three arms of the Selangor government — the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. The proposed law would see the setting up of a new Legislative Assembly Service Commission which would manage the state assembly — including its jurisdiction, finances and staff — independently of the state government's executive arm. The commission will then be headed by the Speaker and will include the Selangor mentri besar, the state opposition leader as well as between five and six state lawmakers. Yeoh told Sin Chew that she will also continue carrying out three of Teng's previous initiatives, namely the live airing of the Selangor state assembly proceedings, improving the state assemblymen's welfare and the Selangor Select Committee on Competency, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat). Selcat had conducted public inquiries on a few matters, including the alleged sand mining theft in the state as well as two independent companies that had been awarded a RM180 million loan by the Selangor Agricultural Development Corporation. According to Sin Chew, Yeoh said she will be fair to state assemblymen from political rival Barisan Nasional (BN) and give them sufficient time to speak during debates.
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| Don’t drag monarchy into contentious issues, says Raja Perlis Posted: 05 Jun 2013 03:01 PM PDT
(The Star) - The royal institution should not be dragged into provocative issues that may stir up emotions to benefit certain quarters, said the Raja of Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail. During a speech at a seminar here, he said the royal institution was aware of current issues that were deemed sensitive and might pose a challenge to the country's sovereignty. He stressed that peace and harmony must prevail and sanctity of the Federal Constitution be maintained. "Do not drag this institution with uncontrollable emotions just to please a few and having to tarnish the sanctity of the Constitution," he said in his address at the Royal Institution Seminar (SIRaj) here yesterday. It was organised by the Universiti Malaysia Perlis and the Malaysian Royal Institution Research Centre. Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin said education was a good medicine for tackling the problem of a handful of Malaysians who did not respect the royal institution. "A wider exposure on the role of the constitutional monarchy should be taught early in school to ensure that the royal institution is respected," he added. He noted that under the Constitution, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the Malay Rulers were empowered to appoint the Prime Minister and mentris besar and could give advice and provide guidance to federal and state leaders. He added that loyalty to the King and country was also listed as the second principle in the Rukun Negara. Raja Muda of Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah said the royal institution played an important role as a social glue to unite all Malaysians regardless of race or religion. In his keynote address titled "Constitution and Islam: The Role of the Royal Institution", he said the nation's political landscape had been facing changes since the 12th general election. "It has been said that a political tsunami has happened and the country is said to be heading further towards a two-party political scenario," he added. This scenario, he said, had the potential to bring a positive impact while the democratic process would flourish if it was carried out in an orderly and wise manner, with proper respect accorded to the Constitution and the law. "However, it seems that the methods towards this scenario have ignited a wave of discord. "Citizens seem to be increasingly detached from each other, so much so that the bastion of unity seems to have been shattered. "More worryingly, this rift has been allowed to happen on the basis that it is about one's religion and race," he said. Raja Nazrin said the Perak sultanate was closely monitoring and studying the current situation in the country.
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| Of negotiations, words and symbols Posted: 05 Jun 2013 02:52 PM PDT
If we reduced any democracy to its bare bone, indeed, it only consists of two parties, the majority and minority. The majority, due to its numerical superiority — and thus, presumed to be a better choice to administer the state — is supposed to govern the state. And govern the state they should do. Not rule over the minority. Art Harun, TMI In "Negotiating in a Multiethnic Society", Umberto Eco posits: "The fundamental principle that governs — or ought to govern — human affairs, if we wish to avoid misunderstandings, conflicts or pointless utopias, is negotiation. The model of negotiation is an oriental bazaar: the seller asks for ten, you offer three, he says nine, you four, he goes down to eight, you go up to five, and finally you both agree on six. You feel you have won because you went up only three and he came down four, but the seller is equally satisfied because he knows the item is worth five. But, in the end, if you are interested in those goods and he is interested in selling them, you are both pleased." Eco further said that in matters requiring interpretations, parties must be recognisant of facts in relation to the relevant matters. In his words: "…..I have always said the opposite, that our interpretations continually beat their heads against the hard core of facts, and the facts (even though often difficult to interpret) are there, solid and aggressive, to challenge untenable interpretations. "We negotiate because, if everyone stuck to his own interpretations of the facts, we would go on ad infinitum. We negotiate to bring our diverging interpretation to a point of convergence, if only a partial one, that enables us to deal with a Fact — a thing that is there and is difficult to get rid of." (emphasis is mine). Malaysia is what it is now because of the complete lack of this very element, an element which, to Eco, is or ought to be "a fundamental principle that governs human affairs." And I must state that politicians, leaders, supporters, followers, minions and their cats from both side of the divide have unfortunately developed an inexplicable comatose reaction to this very concept. It is as if Malaysia — and by extension, our whole political and societal landscape as well as their penumbrous region — centres only around us and is all about us, us and nobody else but us. Either you are with us or you are with them. And if you are with us, you are right. Otherwise, you are wrong. In "Democracy in America", Tocqueville pondered: "A majority taken collectively is only an individual, whose opinions, and frequently whose interests, are opposed to those of another individual, who is styled a minority. If it be admitted that a man possessing absolute power may misuse that power wronging his adversaries, why should not a majority be liable to the same reproach?" If we reduced any democracy to its bare bone, indeed, it only consists of two parties, the majority and minority. The majority, due to its numerical superiority — and thus, presumed to be a better choice to administer the state — is supposed to govern the state. And govern the state they should do. Not rule over the minority. It is then an incontrovertible FACT that in such state of political landscape, there are primarily TWO interests, namely, the majority and minority interests. These interests my at certain points be similar or even identical with each other, such as the need to enjoy universal human rights and such. But in matters where they do diverge, a democracy does not entail the majority riding rough shod over the minority. Rather, a successful and meaningful democracy is measured by the ability, willingness and capacity of the majority to make a fair and just administrative and governing decision in the best interest of the state as a whole. This requires negotiation. The lack of negotiation, when caused by the ruling party, would turn any so-called democracy into a state of "benevolent authoritarian." For this, we do not need to look far. Just remember the Mahathir era. On the other hand, a refusal to negotiate, when caused by the opposition who chooses to be the opposite all the time, would turn a democracy into a donkey, the ever abused and misused poor creature with no possibility of progress or even redemption. The lack of negotiation is compounded by the selective usages of certain words as symbols.
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| Re-imagine, not reject, Malaysia's Vernacular Schools Posted: 05 Jun 2013 02:31 PM PDT
Azly Rahman Imagine a scenario in Malaysian classrooms where primary school children learn the meaning of the word 'peace' and muhibbah in many different languages: Bahasa Malaysia, Bahasa Jawa, Siamese, Bugis, Bawean, Bangladeshi, Hokkien, Cantonese, Hakka, Tamil, Urdu, Tagalog, Hebrew, Arabic, Senoi, Jakun, Iban, and Kadazan-dusun. Imagine the children, in weekly language word-study circles, explaining to each other the meaning of the word in their own language.
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| Concur with these bloggers, AND ... Posted: 05 Jun 2013 02:25 PM PDT
Another Brick in the Wall Just not in the mood to talk of politics. Let us talk of something else. The ruthlessness of these cybertroopers that see no issue as taboo has attracted quite the attention. Perhaps, the fact they are mostly Chinese or their published name or nicname on the Facebook sounds Chinese maybe the reason too. Bloggers: Self-regulation better than Internet lawsWe concur with our fellow bloggers - Dato Ahirudin Attan aka Rocky Bru, Helen Ang and YL Choong. No comment on the non player University lecturer. She is just being theoretical. Yes, let the law takes it's course. The individuals must exercise self control. And, it is near impossible and costly to monitor and control.
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