Jumaat, 31 Mei 2013

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That’s what we promised them (UPDATED with Chinese translation)

Posted: 30 May 2013 03:53 PM PDT

In fact, if you look at 'Point 1' of the Agreement, Sabah does not have any State religion. This would mean Islam is not the official religion of Sabah. And this would also mean, if a Muslim lives in Sabah, he or she can leave Islam and become a Christian or Atheist or whatever and there is nothing the government can do about it (unlike in West Malaysia where they can).

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

The PKR vice president is in discussions with her lawyers to haul the Sabah government to court for barring her entry into the state

(FMT, 31 May 2013) - PKR vice president, Nurul Izzah Anwar, is planning legal action against the Sabah government for barring her for entering the state.

"I'm in consultation with my lawyers on the possible action to be taken against them," said Nurul, who is also the MP for Lembah Pantai.

Nurul headed for Sabah yesterday on the invitation of PKR deputy secretary general and Penampang MP, Darrell Leiking, invitation to celebrate the Pesta Kaamatan in Penampang.

However on arrival, she was detained by the immigration officials allegedly under the instructions of the Sabah Chief Minister's Department before being forcibly deported to KL.

It is learnt that the Immigration Department also informed Nurul that the Chief Minister's department had also instructed them to not only bar her but many more personalities from Peninsula from entering Sabah henceforth.

"It's a sad situation where Sabah is actually politicising security, and vengeance should not be practiced in security," said Nurul. "Pakatan still welcomes everyone into PR governed states such as Penang and Selangor."

Leiking, meanwhile condemned the Sabah Immigration Department and those who instructed them to bar her, saying that they should be ashamed of themselves.

"I challenge the Sabah Chief Minister and state's cabinet to explain to the people of Sabah and Malaysia why this act transpired," said Leiking.

**********************************************

Today, Member of Parliament for Lembah Pantai Nurul Izzah Anwar was barred from entering Sabah. This is not the first time something like this has happened and will certainly not be the last time.

While this is most unfortunate and definitely violates one's fundamental liberties -- something I have been arguing in support of for a very long time indeed (including the fundamental liberties of apostates and gays) we need to discuss this incident against the backdrop of what the opposition Pakatan Rakyat promised the Sabah people in the run-up to the recent general election less than a month ago. 

If you can remember, Pakatan Rakyat promised Sabah and Sarawak full-autonomy plus it promised to respect the terms and spirit of the 18- and 20-Point Agreements (plus it promised them an increase of the Oil Royalty from 5% to 20%). So we need to discuss the 'deportation' of Nurul Izzah against this backdrop -- a promise made by Pakatan Rakyat.

In short, this is what the opposition promised them and what happened is merely a fulfillment of this election promise.

According to 'Point 6' of the Agreement, Sabah has the absolute right to determine who can and cannot be allowed into Sabah. And no reason needs to be given in denying anyone entry into Sabah.

Is this fair? It may not be fair but this is what we promised them and they are just doing what we promised them and what is within their rights to do. According to the Agreement, they do have a right to do this. And according to what we promised them, we will honour and respect this right.

In fact, if you look at 'Point 1' of the Agreement, Sabah does not have any State religion. This would mean Islam is not the official religion of Sabah. And this would also mean, if a Muslim lives in Sabah, he or she can leave Islam and become a Christian or Atheist or whatever and there is nothing the government can do about it (unlike in West Malaysia where they can).

Furthermore, English is the official language of the state and all communications should be in English plus the government can close down Malay, Chinese and Tamil schools and force everyone to go to just English-medium schools.

Another point, and a very important point to note, is that the Federal Constitution of Malaya is no longer valid. And you cannot amend the Federal Constitution of Malaya and turn it into the Federal Constitution of Malaysia. You need to discard the current Federal Constitution and come out with a brand new Constitution.

That is what the opposition promised Sabah (and Sarawak). Hence Islam and Bahasa Malaysia should not be the official religion and language respectively for Sabah plus Sabah can decide on who can and cannot enter that state.

Hence can we therefore protest when they merely do what we promised them they could do? So we need to be careful about making election promises just so that we can win votes. Now we need to honour those promises and not protest when they act on those promises.

Have we painted ourselves into a corner? That may appear so.

**********************************************

The 20-point Agreement between the Federation of Malaya and Sabah

Point 1: Religion 

While there was no objection to Islam being the national religion of Malaysia there should be no State religion in North Borneo, and the provisions relating to Islam in the present Constitution of Malaya should not apply to North Borneo.

Point 2: Language

a. Malay should be the national language of the Federation.

b. English should continue to be used for a period of 10 years after Malaysia Day.

c. English should be an official language of North Borneo for all purposes, State or Federal, without limitation of time.

Point 3: Constitution

Whilst accepting that the present Constitution of the Federation of Malaya should form the basis of the Constitution of Malaysia, the Constitution of Malaysia should be a completely new document drafted and agreed in the light of a free association of states and should not be a series of amendments to a Constitution drafted and agreed by different states in totally different circumstances. A new Constitution for North Borneo was of course essential.

Point 6: Immigration

Control over immigration into any part of Malaysia from outside should rest with the Central Government but entry into North Borneo should also require the approval of the State Government. The Federal Government should not be able to veto the entry of persons into North Borneo for State Government purposes except on strictly security grounds. North Borneo should have unfettered control over the movements of persons other than those in Federal Government employ from other parts of Malaysia into North Borneo.

 

                                    **********************************************

這就是我們答應他們的

 

事實上,如果你去讀協議的第一點,你會發現沙巴根本就沒有任何官方宗教,這也表示回教根本就不是沙巴州的州屬宗教。這進而也表示,如果一個住在那兒的回教徒想要離教去信奉基督教或成爲無宗教主義者的話,政府是拿他沒辦法的(不像在西馬政府可以對他做出相對的懲罰)。

 

公正黨副主席正和她的律師商討就沙巴政府禁止她入境沙巴一事起訴該州政府。

(FMT, 2013年5月31日) - 公正黨副主席努魯伊莎打算採取法律行動對付沙巴政府。沙巴政府早前禁止她入境該地。

(下文省略)

**********************************************

Lembah Pantai國會議員努魯伊莎于今天早前被禁止入境沙巴州。這已不是第一次發生類似事件了,而這次也決不會成爲最後一次。

當然這是件很令人遺憾且很侵犯人權的事----我之前不止一次爭論此事的正確性(包括離教和同性自主等基本人權)----但我們還是要把這件事情和一個月前大選時反對黨對沙巴人民做出的承諾一併討論。

如果你還記得的話, 民聯曾答應要給予沙砂兩州完全的自主權以示他們對20點協議的尊重(他們也答應要把石油稅增加至20%)。所以我們必須把努魯被'驅逐'一事和民聯作出的承諾連在一起討論。

簡短一點來講,以上所發生的正是民聯所答應的,而沙巴政府只是執行他們在大選時被承諾的諾言而已。

根據協議的第六點,沙巴擁有決對的權利來定奪某個人可不可以入境。他們可以拒絕任何人入境而不需給出任何理由。

這公平嗎?這可能很不公平,但這是我們之前承諾他們的,他們只是執行我們答應給他們的權利而已。根據協議所提,他們確實擁有這個權力,而根據我們所答應他們的,我們必須尊重他們的使用權。

事實上,如果你去讀協議的第一點,你會發現沙巴根本就沒有任何官方宗教,這也表示回教根本就不是沙巴州的州屬宗教。這進而也表示,如果一個住在那兒的回教徒想要離教去信奉基督教或成爲無宗教主義者的話,政府是拿他沒辦法的(不像在西馬政府可以對他做出相對的懲罰)。

不止如此,協議裏還提到英文是該州的官方語言,(州)政府還有權利迫令關閉馬來文,華文和淡米爾文學校和把所有人都送進英文學校。

還有一個很重要的重點,那就是馬來亞聯邦憲法是無效的,而你也不能把馬來亞聯邦憲改成馬來西亞聯邦憲法。你必須把現在的聯邦憲法給摒棄掉然後編寫一個全新的憲法。

這就是民聯答應沙巴(和砂勞越)的東西。所以說伊斯蘭教和馬來文不能成爲沙巴州的官方宗教和語言,還有就是沙巴政府決定讓不讓某個人進入沙巴州。

儅他們只是執行我們承諾他們的權力時,我們有立場反對他們嗎?所以說我們必須很小心地來給出選舉諾言,即使我們的目的只是要贏得選票。現在儅他們執行他們的使用權時,我們只能尊重我們的諾言而不是去反對他們。

我們是否已把我們自己逼進了死胡同裏了呢?我恐怕答案是'是的'。

**********************************************

馬來亞聯邦和沙巴州的20點協議

第一點:宗教

在回教是馬來西亞國家官方宗教的同時,北婆儸洲是沒有州屬宗教的。而在馬來亞憲法内任何有關回教的條約在北婆儸洲是使無效的。

第二點:語言

a. 馬來文是聯邦的官方語言。

b. 在馬來西亞日後的十年裏,英文還是應該繼續被使用。

c. 在任何用途上,無論是有關州屬或是聯邦,英語將無限期地成爲北婆儸洲的官方語言。

第三點:憲法

雖然(雙方)都接受目前馬來亞聯邦憲法為馬來西亞憲法的根基,馬來西亞憲法應該是一個全新並且所有州屬都同意接受的起草,而不是一系列不同州屬在不同情況下修改的憲法的。(給予)北婆羅洲的一個新憲法是必不可少的。

第六點:移民

在馬來西亞任何地方,控制外來移民是國家政府的責任,但(要)入境北婆儸洲則必須先得到州政府的同意。聯邦政府無法否決任何人因州政府理由而入境北婆儸洲,除了治安安全課題以外。除了馬來西亞聯邦政府從馬來西亞其他地方把人雇用進來北婆儸洲以外,北婆儸洲將不受約束地全權控制人口的移動。

 

Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net

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It was Marina's birthday today....

Posted: 31 May 2013 12:37 AM PDT

.....so I took her for lunch at the highest pub in England

 

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Azmin's ambition thwarted

Posted: 30 May 2013 02:14 PM PDT

 

But now that Azmin's ambitions of being MB have been thwarted, what next?

Tashny Sukumaran, The Star

Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim has chosen his exco list - an all-female cast from PKR, three DAP men and four representatives from PAS. Unsurprisingly, PKR deputy president and Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyman Azmin Ali was not on the list.

Following his thinly-veiled attacks on Khalid and comments on Selangor not needing a "lame duck" MB, Azmin would never have been considered for a position close to what is PKR's seat of power - Selangor.

But now that Azmin's ambitions of being MB have been thwarted, what next? The Gombak MP has never been subtle about his grabs for power - from spats with PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and her daughter Nurul Izzah Anwar, to sly comments about Opposition leader and party adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's "nepotism".

The 48-year-old Azmin even has a separate Twitter account for his office - @AzminAliOffice is the Twitter handle for "Pejabat Timbalan Presiden Parti Keadilan Rakyat" (Office of the PKR Deputy President). Even Wan Azizah, who reluctantly leads the party, doesn't indulge in such demonstrations of "power".

The new exco list is also devoid of Azmin's supporters, and word on the ground is that Azmin is rapidly losing them following his recent complaints and contrivances regarding the position of Selangor MB.

"Before, maybe some of the new exco members would support him," said a source close to the MB.

"But after Azmin showed his true colours in the MB appointment fiasco - to the extent of calling another leader a lame duck - I doubt any true reformist would want to be aligned with him anymore. He's a lost leader," he said.

A PKR party insider said that now the real concern was that of party elections.

Azmin has already begun his campaigning, claiming nepotism was at work within Selangor's political ranks and that PKR "does not belong to a family".

This is a far cry from the Azmin of yesteryear, who would even risk jail for his boss.

His loyalty took him to the extent of being convicted for lying in court during Anwar's trial. He was later acquitted.

Azmin has been close to Anwar since the age of 23, serving as his special officer in 1987 when the Permatang Pauh MP was Education Minister.

When Anwar was convicted of sodomy and corruption, Azmin was one of PKR's founding members.

But now the gloves are off.

The party insider is confident that Azmin's days are numbered, despite having Anwar's ear and commanding healthy respect from other PKR members like women's wing leader Zuraida Kamarudin.

Azmin is a strong politician, and the obvious horse to back for his experience and ruthlessness.

"Everyone knows Wan Azizah is a reluctant politician, and that Nurul Izzah fought very hard during the party elections in 2010. If there's any nepotism, it's between Anwar and his ex-staff when he was in government, like Penang's Mansor Othman (Nibong Tebal MP, Anwar's officer when he was deputy prime minister).

"His time is coming to an end. There's a limit to everything, and he's pushing it by condemning the family."

 

Anwar has thrown his support firmly behind Khalid because supporting his man Azmin would anger the public. A source has said Anwar bowed to Khalid's wishes regarding the state exco line-up, even angering members of his own party who he had promised would be rewarded for their loyalty.

But the former Umno politician trusted the wrong man, and now has to lie in the bed he made with Azmin.

 

ROS: Many DAP members did not get notice on national congress

Posted: 30 May 2013 02:10 PM PDT

(Bernama) - Investigations by the Registrar of Societies (ROS) found that many DAP members who were eligible to attend its national congress on Dec 15 last year did not receive notice on it, said ROS director-general Datuk Abdul Rahman Othman.

He said this was found after investigations were made on complaints by DAP members on not being given the notice.

"DAP members who did not receive the notice were denied the right to vote and choose the leaders they wanted at the congress," Abdul Rahman said in a statement here yesterday.

He said that the ROS would continue investigations on other issues raised by complainants, and go through all documents submitted before arriving at a decision on the validity of the congress based on the Societies Act 1966.

The election of DAP's Central Executive Committee at the congress became an issue after complaints were lodged by various members that the party did not give notice on it to 753 delegates who were valid voters.

 

Reverse takeover of Scope will not benefit Matang shareholders, says firm

Posted: 30 May 2013 02:04 PM PDT

(The Star) - Holding company Lau Chek Min Sdn Bhd, which is the second largest shareholder of Matang Holdings Bhd, is against the reverse takeover of Scope Industries Bhd by Matang.

Chairman Lau Liang Fook, whose company owned 1.1% or 1.472,500 million shares in Matang, said it was against the exercise as the shareholders would be at the losing end.

"This is because there are four main issues that need to be addressed by the Matang board of directors (BOD).

"One is that if the reverse takeover is approved, RM200mil cash should be returned to the shareholders but BOD failed to explain to us if this will take place," he told The Star before the start of an extra-ordinary general meeting at the Grand Paragon Hotel here.

The EGM is held to decide on the reverse takeover of Scope Industries Bhd by Matang Holdings.

Lau added that another issue was that Matang was valued below market price at RM48mil while their own valuation found that the company is valued at RM200mil.

"Matang shareholders are on the losing side because they do not get their value of investment in Matang.

"We also have a problem with a term which states that Matang shareholders cannot dispose of their shares in the next four years if the takeover is approved whereas this ruling is not imposed on Scope shareholders," he said.

He added that even though Matang would emerge as the major stakeholder after the takeover, only three Matang directors would be appointed on the new board whereas Scope, the minority shareholder, can appoint five directors.

About 500 shareholders are attending the EGM under tight security.

They were greeted upon arrival by a banner which reads "MCA please protect 19,982 minority shareholders. Our voices must be heard."

Groups of shareholders we heard talking in loud angry tones while others did not mingle outside but walked straight into the hall to wait for the meeting to start.

 

Shareholders stop reverse takeover of Scope Industries

Posted: 30 May 2013 02:01 PM PDT

(The Star) - The reverse takeover of Scope Industries Bhd by Matang Holdings Bhd has been called off after shareholders voted against the proposal.

The proposal was tabled and passed by a majority of the shareholders who attended an extraordinary general meeting here on Friday.

One of the shareholders, former MCA vice-president Datuk Donald Lim Siang Chai (picture), said:

"Their main concern is that no valuation is being done on Matang and the four years ruling which prevents them from disposing their shares.

"Anything can happen in the next four years and we don't want to take any risks," he said.

He added there could be a possible tender offer for Matang. "This depends on the results of a meeting which will be held by the Matang directors soon," he said.

 

Stop being a ‘BN apologist’, Paul Low told

Posted: 30 May 2013 01:52 PM PDT

(TMI) - Minister Datuk Paul Low was today ticked off for being an "apologist" for the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) and told to provide solutions that ensure greater government transparency for the country's future.

Days after being named to the Cabinet, the new minister in charge of integrity and corruption continues to draw flak for his defence of the BN government, the latest over the country's poor scores and low ranking in the 2013 Revenue Governance Index (RGI) published earlier this month by the New York-based Revenue Watch Institute (RWI), a non-profit organisation which monitors policies in resource-rich countries in addressing poverty, corruption and violent conflict. 

"We call upon Datuk Paul Low not to become an apologist for the BN administration. 

"He should study the RGI report in detail, review all criticisms and propose all necessary transparency reforms needed for the Petronas Development Act to make Malaysia a shining example of good governance in the world," said the DAP's Damansara Utama assemblyman Yeo Bee Yin, in a statement.

Low had reportedly said that Malaysia's weak result was because the disclosures of overseas agreements makes up a "big item" in the index, pointing out state oil firm Petronas must respect the host government's requests for non-disclosure while carrying out its operation abroad.

Yeo, the DAP's social media strategist, lashed out at Low, noting the latter's excuse was contrary to the RGI report that evaluates a country's quality of governance in resources based on four areas and that Malaysia had scored zero in several checklists, highlighting that most were related to the disclosure of operations and business activities within Malaysia. 

Yeo reminded the minister that Petronas was not the only state oil company with operations overseas, listing as an example Brazil's Petrobras which, she said, has operations in 24 countries, nearly similar to Petronas' operations in 22 nations.

She pointed too that Brazil was like Malaysia, an emerging market in the world economy but the Latin American country had managed to rank 5th globally.

"We do not expect Datuk Paul Low to be responsible for the past mistakes done by the BN government. 

"We do expect him to give solutions for greater transparency for the future," the Selangor state lawmaker said.

READ MORE HERE

 

Election Commission: Indelible ink reports can’t change GE13

Posted: 30 May 2013 10:51 AM PDT

https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Wan-Ahmad-Wan-Omar-spr.jpg 

(The Star) - The Election Commission (EC) said police reports on the indelible ink would not be enough to dispute the results of the 13th general election, as the ink was only an additional element to the electoral process.

EC deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar was responding to Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's police report on the indelible ink, made over three weeks after polling day on May 5.

"He continues to harp on the indelible ink issue because Pakatan Rakyat is running out of ideas.

"Pakatan's allegation that over 45,000 Bangladeshis were phantom voters has become a laughing stock because it does not make sense at all," Wan Ahmad said as reported by news portal, The Mole.

He also described the allegation as "grasping at straws", adding that there had not been a single report to justify the claims.

"Anwar made a police report and ordered his supporters to do the same simply because they wanted to ensure their petition would be supported by a strong cause.

"The EC admits that there were cases in some areas that our workers had some problem with the ink. But as we said so many times, indelible ink was used as an added element to prevent multiple voting," he said.

Wan Ahmad also said there was no way for voters to cast their ballot twice as their name would be checked and crossed by EC staff and political party agents.

The EC has also reportedly set up a special task force to investigate the different quality of the indelible ink.

"When we tested the sample, the quality was good. But things were different during polling day. So we will investigate this matter," Wan Ahmad said.

At a rally last week, Opposition speakers had demanded re-election in constituencies where they claimed cheating had occurred on polling day, calling for EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof and his team to resign.

In response, Wan Ahmad said they had done their duty in accordance with the law, and even if they were willing to step down, the new faces would be subject to the same laws.

 

Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net

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Soon, Reformasi will fade

Posted: 30 May 2013 02:46 PM PDT

Hafiz Noor Shams, TMI

The wisdom of our age has it that young adults are more likely than not to vote against Barisan Nasional. A survey carried out by the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research backs this up. In a report it published on May 3, the poll agency found out that Malaysians in their twenties and thirties preferred Pakatan Rakyat to BN by a significant margin. In contrast, support for BN was the strongest among those aged 50 or older. In a country where the median age is younger than 30 years old, that offers some hints about the political future of the country.

While that is so, nothing guarantees that wisdom will last for too long.

The generational divergence Malaysia is witnessing now has a lot to do with the political turmoil of the late 1990s. The sacking of Anwar Ibrahim as the deputy prime minister and the subsequent events that followed made a lasting impression on the minds of these young Malaysians who then were still in school, in university or new to the labour market. Whether it was about Anwar or about a larger sense of justice — that something was extremely wrong — they were moved by the event.

These Malaysians are also the largest age cohorts that Malaysia has ever seen yet. It is not merely a coincident that BN comes under intense political pressure exactly when these generations are maturing and exercising their political muscles.

Each generation has an episode which defines their political belief and partly, their worldview. Those above 50 years old now remember the old Umno and hold dearly onto those nostalgias. Future young Malaysians, those in their teenage years and even younger, will no doubt have their very own episode.

Unlike the others however, these new young Malaysians have their book wide opened and its pages unwritten yet. There has not been any big wake-me-up moment for them so far.

One thing is certain though. Time has the power to make society forget the past. The old old generation will disappear into the background, hopefully bringing with them the ghost of May 13, among others. The old new generation — the young adults of today — will have their political views at the new bedrock of Malaysian society. The new new generations will challenge the prevailing views, as youth always do all around the world.

These new young Malaysians will not remember the events of 1998 because they will never experience it. It is much like how young adults today do not remember the events of 1988 when the old Umno was disbanded and the judiciary came under assault by the Mahathir administration. It is the exact reason why many young Malaysians today are not swayed by May 13 and scaremongering opportunists who fuel their sad career on racist politics.

READ MORE HERE

 

GST: Opposition playing it up to the hilt

Posted: 30 May 2013 01:42 PM PDT

The opposition is merely scoring political points in their tooth and nail bashing of the goods and services tax (GST). 

By Habhajan Singh, FMT

This is a real taxing issue. We are talking about the goods and services tax (GST).

On the government side, there is some level of paralysis. It seems to lack clarity and the gumption to take this tax plan to the rakyat.

It has been sitting on the drawing board for years, almost on the verge of festering. Members of the federal opposition, on the other hand, have been having a field day with the GST, playing up the issue to the hilt. It was a hot potato during the just concluded 13th General Election (GE13).

The opposition lawmakers seem ever on the lookout for opportunities to pounce on the political leaders from the other side of the Parliament divide.

The latest incident came less than a fortnight after the nation went to the polls on May 5.

The spark came from a mere citing of an example by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Idris Jala.

Speaking at a post-election forum on May 17, Idris was driving home the point on revenue collection. GST is basically a consumption tax that would generate revenue for the national coffers.

In doing so, he cited, for discussion purposes, the current Singapore GST rate of 7%.

Not that the government is about to slap a 7% GST rate for our long-delayed GST plan. At that rate, the government's revenue would be somewhere in the range of RM27 billion, he estimated.

Jala's "latest revelation" was supposed to have let the cat out of the bag, according to DAP political education director and Kluang MP Liew Chin Tong.

"Pakatan Rakyat (PR) had repeatedly warned that Barisan Nasional's (BN) return to government in the GE13 would mean a higher tax burden for the man on the street, especially through the introduction of the GST, seen as BN's method to balance the subsidy heavy budget," he wrote in a statement dated May 18, the very day after Jala's session.

The previous administration had been dithering on GST simply because they feared its impact as they move into the polls. As it was, BN was preparing for a tough battle. So, they would have argued, why add to their woes by implementing an unpopular GST plan before the polls.

During GE13, many of us would have received text messages and emails opposing the GST. When I received a Whatsapp message on GST from a former banker, I decided to check his views on GST.

"Are you suggesting that Malaysia does not implement the GST? As you know, we are about the few nations in the world which have yet to do it," I shot back an enquiry.

READ MORE HERE

 

Restricted residence for politicians

Posted: 30 May 2013 01:38 PM PDT

The swift action to bar Nurul Izzah from Sabah shows Musa Aman has kept his promise and taken the first steps to put Sabah on the right footing. 

(FMT) - KOTA KINABALU: Kudos to Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman as he's finally got his priorities right. Politicians, particularly women opposition MPs, are a dangerous lot and all should be barred from entering the state.

Nurul Izzah Anwar, that hulking, terrifyingly homicidal MP for Lembah Pantai, is the first one to feel his righteous rage and rightly so. The audacity of the woman. What was she thinking? That she could just waltz into Sabah to celebrate Kaamatan with the locals in the spirit of 1Malaysia? Where did she get such ideas?

We completely agree with Musa here insofar as his thoughts about politicians go. Now if he could only take that extra step and apply the same thinking to himself and his colleagues in his Umno-led Barisan Nasional government too, paradise would be at hand.

But let's not begrudge him his first kill. First things first; start with the opposition MPs and then move on to the millions of Malaysians, those troublemakers, who voted for them.

And while he's at it, he should suspend the landing rights of AirAsia and any airline that has abused the privilege of being allowed to fly to Sabah by permitting any of the over 51% of opposition voters and sympathisers to travel on their aircraft.

That will teach them to mess with us.

Later perhaps Musa could follow up by welcoming as true Malaysians those who entered Sabah illegally … whoops, done that already. Perhaps the land set aside at the waterfront for an over-a-billion ringgit convention centre could be used instead for a squatter colony to house them.

Nurul, the daughter of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, could never have known when she was stopped by Immigration Department officials at the arrival gate of the Kota Kinabalu low-cost terminal and deported that she was opening up a whole new vista for Sabah.

The surprised look on her face when she was given her marching orders at the terminal gave her away. Apparently she didn't know she was on a secret list of people who are to be given the VIP-quick-turnaround treatment by the state government.

Yes, yes, the state authorities were on their toes all right as the flight carrying this subversive extremist landed. Like a crack team of commandos, they turned her around and sent her back to where she came from on the next available aircraft.

Talk about prompt, efficient government service – here's an example for all you naysayers.

Lead the way, Musa

No, she wasn't frog-marched to the aircraft – a method of carrying a resisting person in which each limb is held by one person and the victim is carried horizontally and face downwards – which would have been quite a sight, but rather left calmly still wearing her most dangerous weapon – her smile.

READ MORE HERE

 

A policeman’s work is never done

Posted: 30 May 2013 10:42 AM PDT

http://delcapo.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/malaysia_police_brutality.jpg 

IT'S certainly not a good time to be a policeman. Even before the new Home Minister and the new Inspector-General of Police can get comfortable with their new chairs, the police are becoming the news – for all the wrong reasons. 

Dorairaj Nadason, The Star

Two deaths in custody and three robberies involving relatives of VIPs, even the Inspector-General of Police himself, show that the police have their work cut out for them to gain the people's trust.

IT'S certainly not a good time to be a policeman. Even before the new Home Minister and the new Inspector-General of Police can get comfortable with their new chairs, the police are becoming the news – for all the wrong reasons.

There have been two deaths in custody – both involving Indians. Given the history of the community and the police, that's really bad news.

First, N. Dharmendran was murdered – and even the police accept the fact that he was battered to death in the lock-up.

How does that happen?

Isn't a police lock-up a safe place to be? How much do we know of the Standard Operating Procedures of the police?

Most of us have only been to police stations to report snatch thefts or robberies, we would never know what the cops do with suspects kept in lock-ups.

Is it common for suspects to be beaten up? Do all and sundry help in the beating up? Or is the task delegated to one police officer? Or are they not supposed to beat up the suspects?

The conditions that led to Dharmendran's death – there have been claims that his ears and legs were stapled – have raised many questions. He may have been a suspect in a shooting case and I have little sympathy for criminals, but wasn't he still a suspect and not a convicted criminal?

After his death, four policemen were transferred to desk duties. Not suspended indefinitely, or arrested and remanded – just transferred to desk duties. Is that kid gloves or what?

And now comes news of another death in the lock-up. He may have been a drug dependent but Jamesh Ramesh was as much a human being as you and I. He was found dead in a lock-up in Penang, hours after being arrested.

I was in Penang, my hometown, when the news broke. And there was quite a buzz there about the number of people dying in lock-ups. It's now seven this year alone.

Given the fact that a lawsuit by the family of another dead detainee, S. Kugan, against the former Selangor CPO is also coming to its climax, these current deaths certainly have jangled the nerves.

The Selangor CPO in that lawsuit is now the IGP.

Days after he took office as IGP, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar's relative was robbed. Armed men rushed into her house, tied up the children and walked off with some RM30,000 in loot.

According to reports, the home of a relative of Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was also robbed. Not very comforting news, is it?

Now, another minister's daughter has fallen victim to snatch thieves, losing RM8,000 to thieves while out shopping.

It's not all bad news, though. These high-profile thefts may yet push the police to act tough, and to get the bad guys before they can even act.

The police are planning a crime prevention department, one that will get down to the ground and get cracking. Not investigating crimes, but preventing them, according to Khalid.

The details are sketchy at best, but the IGP has promised to get it to work as soon as possible, with a top-notch officer in charge.

Like so many others, he says crime in the country is more perception than fact. The statistics, he says, show that street crime is on the decline. There have been fewer cases each year.

Perception or deception, people see what they see.

The mushrooming of gated communities speaks for itself. People fear that crime is on the rise.

The Star ran a poll on policing just after the new IGP clocked in and one of the main things that Malaysians wanted to see were cops on the beat. And to have cops on bikes patrolling the streets as a warning to snatch thieves. To be able to see policemen more often than mat rempit. We have many of these bike squads now but, sadly, I have yet to see one in action.

In London, you probably would not be able to go on a 10-minute walk without seeing a policeman on his beat, or just standing there with his truncheon around the corner. And the sirens ring almost incessantly.

In Paris, all you need to do is walk on one of those cobbled streets, and you will likely have a cop with a shrill whistle on your tail, telling you to get off the road and onto the pavement.

The policemen, or security personnel, are almost everywhere. That's not to say crime does not happen in these countries. It does.

But having the policemen – or security personnel – around at all times can help deter crimes.

And what better way to prevent crime than to deter it?

Over to you, Tan Sri Khalid.

> The writer, who can be contacted at raj@the star.com.my lives in a crime-prone area, where motorcycle thefts and snatch thefts occur frequently, even just across the road from the local police pondok. 

 

Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net

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6,564 dilarang keluar negara

Posted: 30 May 2013 10:53 AM PDT

Jabatan Imigresen menyenaraihitamkan 6,564 warga negara Malaysia kerana melakukan pelbagai kesalahan di luar negara, sekali gus menyebabkan mereka dilarang untuk keluar antara tiga hingga lima tahun seperti diperuntukkan Akta Pasport 1966. 

Ketua Pengarah Imigresen, Datuk Alias Ahmad, berkata mereka didapati melakukan pelbagai kesalahan seperti melanggar peraturan imigresen negara dikunjungi, berkait dengan kegiatan jenayah dan tindakan mencemar imej negara. 

Pasport dibatal 

"Mereka yang dikenal pasti itu, apabila kembali ke negara ini, maka tindakan diambil termasuk membatalkan pasport mereka, menyebabkan mereka tidak boleh keluar dari Malaysia. 

"Tiada undang-undang yang boleh halang rakyat Malaysia pulang ke negara ini tetapi kerajaan boleh halang mereka daripada keluar apabila melakukan kesalahan di luar negara," katanya ketika hubungi BH, semalam. 

Akhbar BH baru-baru ini melaporkan imigresen sedang mengesan rakyat Malaysia di luar negara termasuk pelajar yang didapati melakukan perbuatan yang melanggar undang-undang serta mencemar imej negara. 

Burukkan nama negara 

Tindakan tegas itu diambil berikutan keghairahan segelintir rakyat Malaysia yang dikesan melakukan perbuatan memburukkan nama negara termasuk melakukan demonstrasi serta mempamerkan bendera Malaysia secara terbalik di luar negara. 

Dalam pada itu, Alias meminta mana-mana rakyat Malaysia di luar negara supaya pulang ke tanah air dan menggunakan saluran yang betul bagi menyatakan rasa tidak puas hati mereka terhadap sistem sedia ada, bukan berbuat demikian di luar negara. 

Mengenai rakyat asing di negara ini, Alias berkata, pasport mereka juga boleh dibatalkan dan diusir keluar jika menyalahi undang-undang negara seperti diperuntukkan mengikut Seksyen 8 Akta Imigresen 1959/1963.

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The problem with '1Malaysia': A musical-historical perspective

Posted: 30 May 2013 04:50 PM PDT

Definition:

'majmuk': terdiri daripada beberapa bahagian yang bersatu; terdiri atau terbentuk daripada beberapa bahagian dan sebagainya tetapi merupakan kesatuan

'pluralism': composed of many parts that are united; inclusive or formed from many parts but of a unified whole

(translated from Kamus Dewan Online)

Music, history and pluralism in the Malay Peninsula

In my studies of Malay music history, I have observed that it is impossible to define a specific 'Malay' musical tradition. This is not due to an 'absence' of culture or a precedent of 'stealing' or 'borrowing' of other musical cultures as some falsely believe. Malay musical tradition is undefinable because it is so immensely diverse and varied. In short, Malay musical tradition is a majmuk tradition.

Like our pluralistic society, Malay music culture is a sum composed of many intertwining parts. Some of the styles of music include the inang, joget, zapin, asli, dondang sayang, and even the Javanese keroncong. Of course, local university syllabi on traditional music would include all of these styles under a general 'umbrella' of Malay traditional music, but I strongly reject this gross simplification.

This is because throughout history and across education systems, there is a myth of subsuming unity in culture or ethnicity. The truth is, all our cultures are complex and interwoven through complex processes of change throughout space and time. The Malaysian Archipelago or Nusantara is a beautiful example of pluralistic exchange across and within diverse cultures.

Prior to the colonisation of European Empires, Melaka was a centre of cultural interaction between Chinese, Indian, Arabic and Southeast Asian peoples. Aside from precious spices, technologies such as musical instruments were traded while languages and religious ideas were shared. Skilled traders spoke in many tongues; while Malay was a dominant lingua franca across the Indian Ocean.

In short, our rich cultural history indicates that it is impossible to pin down one specific or pure Malaysian 'tradition'. Our cultural history is rich and pluralistic and the character of the Malay Peninsula should be understood as such.

So, what is my problem with '1Malaysia'?

This is a concept that completely ignores our rich and diverse history in the region while undermining the unique balance of differences that we share in contemporary Malaysian society. The '1 Malaysia' slogan is merely a corporate branding exercise that desperately tried to fit all Malaysians into an artifical 'box' of national identity.

I don't even need to talk about non-Malays to discuss cultural diversity in our country.

Let us focus on the 'ethnic' group that I come from: 'The Malays'. In my study of Malay culture and history, I have found our understanding of Malay ethnicity to be very misguided.

First, the Malay community is a post-colonial construct. Prior to colonial rule, the Malays identified themselves in relation to the numerous Sultanates (eg. Perak, Johor, Pahang). You were either an 'orang Johor' or 'orang Perak'; not an 'orang Melayu'. There wasn't any concept of 'bangsa' or 'race' the way we experience it today. You would have been asked what kampung or community you came from rather than your 'race' or 'nationality'.

Second, people considered 'Malay' today can trace their ancestry to many ethnic groups across the Malay Archipelago, eg. Bugis, Minangkabau, Java, Aceh, Orang Laut and some can even be traced to Arab communities like the Hadramaut. One shining example is Parameswara, the founder of the glorious Malay sultanate of Melaka who came from the kingdom of Palembang in Sumatra.

Third, for current-day Malays; aren't we all individuals with different cultural lifestyles and political beliefs? Let us not even talk about the supposed 'urban-rural' divide. In the cities, there are Malays who are devout and there are some who are moderately religious. There are Malays who support Umno and some who support DAP. Some believe in a neoliberal free market economy and some believe in an Islamic-welfare state. Some like tempoyak and some like 'chicken chop'. Some absolutely love durian but some absolutely, hands-down, hate durian. Historically, I can say the same about music taste; some preferred keroncong over joget, while some loved both equally.

If we all ate nasi lemak three times a day, 365-days a year, we would be absolutely bored of nasi lemak. So, as Malaysians, we are blessed with a plethora of choices such as roti canai, chicken chop, char koay teow – and for our health, the occasional ulam!

So, that is my problem with '1Malaysia'. It is so far from the truth and so far from right. We, as a pluralistic or majmuk society, must embrace the differences and diversity of views and cultures that we have. This is something that is deeply embedded in the rich cultural history of this amazing peninsula. Malay musical 'tradition' is in fact, a direct reflection of this pluralism.

As a Malaysian youth, I hope to see a political future of not one but 'Many Malaysias' converging in a harmonious symphony of flavours and voices. In order to see that, we need to overhaul our deeply flawed electoral process to ensure a healthy democracy and a fair political system that doesn't reward a minority '1Malaysia government'. I know that most of us youth are sick and tired of the same old song. 

Read more here http://aliran.com/14128.html

 

Yes, let us demystify the majority popular votes

Posted: 30 May 2013 04:34 PM PDT

Here are some interesting figures.

Political parties, votes, vote distribution

party

votes

No of seats

Voters/seat

UMNO

3,241,286

88

36,831

PAS

1.633,389

21

77,780

PKR

2,254,328

30

75,144

DAP

1,736,267

38

45,691

Source: SPR

We have been told that UMNO has 3.2 million members. So how come it got only 3.2 million votes? Assuming all its members voted for their glorious party, then UMNO's votes came from its own members. It can't speak on behalf of the Malaysian people. It can't even speak on behalf of the 7.8 million Malays who voted on the 5th May 2013 election.

So where did the Perkasa guy get his figures when he declared that the UMNO government should be thankful to the Malays for voting in UMNO and keeping it in power. 4.6 million Malays chose not to vote for UMNO. Unless 4.6million is smaller than 3.2million.
We don't want to erase UMNO. UMNO can remain as it is- irrelevant and attracting the crass, crude and myopic leaders and adherents. The rest of the Malay race want to move forward. They only want to do so without UMNO.  

BN vs PR and vote distribution

party

votes

%votes

seats

%seats

BN

5,237,699

47.38

133

59.91

PR

5,623,984

50.87

89

40.09

Source SPR

BN has more than 7 million members. It got only 5.24 million votes. 2 million BN members did not vote for BN. BN can't even speak for the Malaysian people.

It is clear PR got more popular votes but that success is negated by gerrymandering and the uneven distribution of voters per seat. PR has to contest in bigger populated areas which could accommodate more parliamentary and state seats. UMNO and BN represent seats which have less voice than the seats represented by PR. 1 seat contested by PR is equivalent to 2 seats won by BN.

But let us take on the Perkasa man on his declaration of Malay support to UMNO. UMNO got 3.2 million votes. While its candidates were all Malays, its voters were not. How many non-Malay voters voted for UMNO candidates on that 5th of May? Let's assume only 15%. That means 85% of the 3.2 million or 2.75 million voters who crossed X on the ballot papers were Malays. So, the non-Malays who voted for UMNO candidates amounted to nothing and instead were branded ingrates. So next time, don't vote for UMNO.

How many Malay voters came out to vote? 7.8million. what does this mean? It means 5 million Malays did not vote UMNO on the 5th of May.

Read more here:  http://sakmongkol.blogspot.de/2013/05/yes-let-us-demystify-majority-popular.html

 

Perkasa Shall Become a Political Party Representing Malays if BN Becomes Multi-Racial

Posted: 30 May 2013 10:59 AM PDT

 
Bad or good, the polemic on whether BN should be a one single party for all races draws lot of interests and this is good feedback for the nation.

Perkasa on the other hand, being a Malay NGO that was born when Umno was at its lowest ebb in 2009 has come out with its opinion.

Perkasa may become a political party and represent the Malays in their struggle if Umno is to be disbanded to allow Barisan Nasional (BN) to become a multi-racial party.

Joining in the polemic of whether BN should be become a party for all as suggested by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who added that the subject needed deeper research, Perkasa called on Umno leaders not to 'be jumpy and get caught by certain quarters who are looking for life buoy to survive.'

Perkasa president who is till on leave Ibrahim Ali said the issue was not relevant at present because Umno who represented the Malays had yet to succeed in positioning the community on par with other races in the country.

"This is especially so if compared with the Chinese in terms of economy and education.

"The gap in the distribution of national economic cake is far and wide and Umno has not completed its serious thrust in uplifting the economic status of the Malays of whom the majority is the pribumis.

"If BN is to be a multi-racial party as suggested, the voice of the Malays and bumiputra will be swallowed by the earth.

"In fact, even now the Malays cannot talk about Malay rights as stipulated in the Constitution because they will be termed racist," he added.

 

 

Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net
 

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