Terang Bulan Negaraku

Gasoline price comparison - Malaysiakini

2008-10-21T16:27:00.004+08:00

Dear Rai,

Thank you for commenting in my blog. I greatly appreciate your feedback.

Thank you also for the link to the EIA website that provides the average price of gasoline throughout a certain week.

I understand also that this website works on the average price of gasoline throughout the week (7-day average) but I would also like to highlight to you that there's also another website that I refer to for average prices but on a daily basis and is regularly updated on a daily basis.

I would like to answer why I prefer to choose the lowest available price to make comparisons with our local gas prices.

First, our local market price of gasoline is claimed to be SUBSIDIZED. It is understood that our gasoline is tax-free. Then it is also made known that the average cost per litre inclusive of refinery, transportation and etc come to about 32 sen per litre.

However, different states in America imposes different amount of taxes and that being a free market, it is open to market competition.

Next, as we know, Malaysia is an exporter while America is an importer and hence, we can assume that America is not enjoying a privileged position like Malaysia (as in other oil exporting nations).

Hence, being open market in nature, even the gas station that sells gasoline cheaply is assumed to be making a profit. And if such a gas station sells gasoline that is taxed and unsubsidized cheaper than our non-taxed and subsidized gasoline, it raises a stink, or two.

We therefore need not go through extensively to argue about the amount of taxes imposed in different states in America to attempt to derive at an answer as to which price best suits comparison to Malaysian gasoline price.

The bare fact is that, taxed and non-subsidized, Flying J gas station located in Oklahoma City sells Regular RN92 at the cheapest possible price, at USD2.13 per gallon or RM1.97 per litre.

Of course, most people may also want to compare our gas prices to other oil producing nations and still find that our prices are still much higher, correct? But if I were to use a figure from a free market like America, a pump price that is taxed and non-subsidized, don't you think it bears more weight?

I doubt if anyone but the Finance Minister and his ministry know how prices of gasoline is tabulated. It is to be a secret.

The same as in America where different state imposes different taxes, the same is with nations globally. As Aussie gomen said, 'establishing the price of petrol is no simple matter and it is not one that can be summed up in a simple one-line statements'.

Shell Singapore atempts to answer most of the questions but still, it is not conclusive. Economic, political and transportation, one can't deny that Singapore is a tiny island whereby if the gomen doesn't control the amount of vehicles on the road, it will be choked to the extent that its economy may be paralysed. Hence, taxes could no doubt be high in Singapore.

However, there is something similar to GasBuddy in Singapore. GasBuddy is America's gasoline price watch as is PW. Last updated on 16/10/08, RON92 is at $1.813 per litre.

I simply have no answer how gasoline prices are arrived at but our Finance Ministry not being transparent about it doesn't help either.

They say we must compare apple to apple but doing that, comparing oil exporting nation to another oil exporting nation, our gasoline price is the highest.

Comparing apple to orange, an oil exporting nation whereby gasoline is tax-free and subsidized against a free market oil-importing nation, I'm thrown off my chair when our gasoline prices are higher!

So please correct me if I'm wrong to say that Regular RON92 that's sold at RM1.97 litre at Flying J gas station located in Oklahoma City is TAXED and NON-SUBSIDIZED.

Strange, huh? I simply can't comprehend how Flying J gas station is able to sell Regular RON92 at a cheaper price compared any gas station in Malaysia.

I hope you would understand now why I picked and will continue to pick the lowest price of Regular RON92 available on American soil to do comparison.

Beating around the bush, again I repeat that if comparing apple for apple, comparing prices of oil exporting nations, we are shamed. Roundabout in circle, comparing apple for orange, as I had done, someone up there knows no shame!

Regular RON92 at RM1.97 per litre - Malaysiakini

2008-10-21T09:23:00.004+08:00

Look to your right.

Yes, the gadget that gives you latest updates on gasoline prices in Oklahoma City.

Flying J gas station is selling Regular RON92 at USD2.13 per gallon! That works out to be around RM1.97 per litre, pump price!

Now, have any of you seen activities of oil tankers making deliveries to local gas stations? If you see little or no activity, chances are price reduction will be on its way.

I can hear those gas station operators screaming out loud that the are gonna suffer losses. I can imagine that they have voiced out and could have possibly written to the ones-in-power about the consequences of their suffering losses.

We understand well the funny relationship between this kanasai gomen and businesses where the interests of the rakyat is always placed last.

Worst, with UMNO elections around, some of the Warlords or even UMNOputras who own gas stations could possibly sound the leaders about any drastic price reductions.

It has shown its powers to the government during the Hari Raya exodus. They, the gas station operators have shown the nation what they are capable of doing. They had and they may once again allow their gas stations to run empty!

So, with the current weak prices of crude oil, and taking the above gas stations as a benchmark, Regular RON92, subsidized and non-tax, could well be below RM1.67 per litre!

Compared the current pump price of RM2.20, that's more than 53sen to adjust!

But .... due to the funny relationship between this kanasai gomen and businesses, expect perhaps a 10 to 20 sen price adjustment!

Tracking Regular RON92, Oklahoma, USA - Malaysiakini

2008-10-20T09:21:00.003+08:00

As you can see, I've added a new gadget. The price of Regular RON92 is regularly updated.

Currently, Regular RON92 is sold at USD2.19 at Shell Gas Station, Del City, Oklahoma.

Once again,

1 US Gallon = 3.785 litres

USD2.19/3.785 = USD0.578 per litre (pump price)

Forex Rate @ RM3.50 to a USD

USD0.578 X RM3.50 = RM2.025 per litre (pump price).

Unsubsidized, free market price of Regular RON92 is at RM2.025 per litre AGAINST SUBSIDIZED Regular RON92 sold in Bolehland at RM2.20!!

Shell Station, Oklahoma USA = RM2.025 .. Unsubsidized, taxed, importer

All Station, Malaysia = RM2.20 .. Subsidized, non-taxed, exporter

Sungguh Pelik!

Up Close n Personal

2008-10-18T18:00:00.003+08:00

Hey pussy pussy .... come here pussy pussy ...

This cat is friendly! It swam before our eyes, at close range, not once but thrice!

At Zoo Negara.

Penguins Rock

2008-10-18T17:46:00.001+08:00

Discovery by chance, a visit to Zoo Negara turned most enjoyable. My son was checking his cellphone for messages and it reflected sunlight into the aquarium. The video shows the antics of these penguins housed in Zoo Negara. If you ever visit this zoo, you know what to do to get these penguins to rock!

Regular RON92 at RM2.08 per litre - Malaysiakini

2008-10-18T10:32:00.002+08:00

At this gas station, Goodies (Go Goo Goodies) located at 4501 NW 63rd, Oklahoma City, Regular RON92 is being sold at US2.25 per gallon.

1 US Gallon = 3.785 litres.

US2.25/3.785 = US0.59 per litre.

Forex rate RM3.50 to 1USD,

US0.59 X RM3.50 = RM2.08 per litre.

This is the price of Regular RN92 being sold at the above gas station and that gasoline sold in oil-importing America is taxed and non-subsidized.

The price of SUBSIDISED Regular RON92 sold in an oil-exporting nation, namely Malaysia, is RM2.20 per litre.

Free Market Price, at abovementioned gas station: RM2.08 per litre

30 sen SUBSIDY, non-taxed, sold at Malaysian gas station: RM2.20 per litre

Strange, isn't it?

Mars and Sneakers Buatan Malaysia could be Melamine-tainted - Malaysiakini

2008-10-18T09:45:00.002+08:00

Breaking News - Colombo Municipality's Chief Medical Officer Dr. Pradeep Kariyawasam said that Mars and Sneakers from Malaysia could be Melamine-contaminated!

I would await for their test results and if proven positive, many questions will again be raised as to how our Health Ministry cleared these products as safe.

Meanwhile, confirmed Melamine-contaminated biscuits are still on the shelves, as reported by NST.

'Arrest Khairy under ISA' - Malaysiakini

2008-10-18T08:15:00.004+08:00

Up till today, there are news of gangsterism in schools throughout the nation and I guess nobody would dare doubt the existence of such.

However, there's one joke about the 'chickens' who wouldn't dare join a fight even if it involves his closest of friends. Streetwise or chickenshit, these fellas will rather stand on the sideline and watch. It doesn't end there either.

It is all too common knowledge that they will immediately join in the fray to beat the hell out of the rivals when signs show clearly that they are beaten and about to be floored.

Yeah, that's right, the minute you see them going down, rush in and join the frenzy in beating the living daylight out of them! You ain't got nothing to lose but all to win and can lay claim that you were part of the gang that had annihilated the rival. And the rewards? You can also claim loyalty to your friend-in-need.

That's when the joke began when one is asked to join in a fight. It goes ... "OK mate, no worries, when I see that you're winning, I'll join you". Nothing is mentioned about 'when you're losing!

It is all too clear here that these jokers won't dare lay a finger on the stronger mightier side lest they got themselves beaten into a pulp. They won't dare offend or antagonize them.

In Malaysia, the political scene, we've just witnessed the 'Great Gang Fight'.

Badawi is out. So too will his SIL. Clearly, the odds don't favour them. That means if the goons need a punchback to exhibit themselves that they're still relevant to the current political scene, by all means, show off their punching prowess ... they may still be able to hoodwink some of them into believing that they're still relevant.

Some would call it 'shooting the dead horses'. And if these goons are worth their salt, try screaming out loud that ISA be used on Hishamuddin on his kris antics and on Najib on his inflammatory racist statement 'to soak the kris in Chinese blood'.

So, here's the sandiwara ....

'Arrest Khairy under ISA'

A MCA Youth delegate today called on the authorities to detain Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for making racist remarks.

He also wanted the security law to be invoked against suspended Umno Penang leader Ahmad Ismail who courted controversy recently by describing the Chinese in Malaysia as squatters.

Perak delegate Ting Tai Fook (right) made the call during the debates at the MCA Youth annual general meeting held at the party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

Khairy, who was one of the VIPs present at the MCA Youth meet this morning, has however left shortly after the opening before the debates commenced.

Ting took Khairy, who is also the son-in-law of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, to task over his remarks concerning the ratio of the bumiputera and non-bumiputera quota on scholarships.

He said such remarks were not only condoned by the Umno leadership but also paved the way for Ahmad to make similar offensive remarks.

At this juncture, Ting said the ISA should not be used against civilians as seen in a crackdown last month.

“If we want to use ISA, let’s use ISA against these few people first [...] I also believe Khairy, this irresponsible leader will be defeated badly in the coming Umno Youth chief elections,” he said to applause from the delegates.

The Perak MCA Youth delegate stressed that the ethnic Chinese were not second-class citizens or the servants in this country.

Ting also hit out at Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and accused him of being a liar for consistently claiming that he has the numbers to form government.

Resolution targets Khairy, Ahmad

Meanwhile, a majority of the MCA Youth delegates also echoed the dissatisfaction concerning the remarks made by Khairy and Ahmad.

Replying to Ting in the winding-up later, MCA Youth legal bureau chief Gan Ping Sieu said the wing is against the use of ISA against any civilian.

Apart from coming under heavy fire during the debates, one of the resolutions adopted at the meeting was also made in reference to Khairy and Ahmad. The resolution condemned several “narrow-minded leaders.”

“Their action will jeopardise the racial ties in this multiracial country which is formed based on different ethnicity, cultures and religions.

“Therefore, MCA Youth urges the relevant quarters to take immediate action to avoid these extremists from affecting the harmony in the country,” read the resolution.

Although the resolution did not name Khairy and Ahmad directly, it however stated that the reason for this resolution was due to the duo’s recent statements.

“Khairy made a statement in Parliament that the non-bumiputeras have taken away the bumiputeras’ privileges and their quota for the (government’s) JPA scholarship. His statement is against the cabinet decision.

“Ahmad also made a statement filled with racist elements to the extent that it caused unhappiness in the society. Therefore, serious action should be taken against these racist leaders,” read the document.

Other than this, the other resolutions which were passed included calling on the government to review the ISA and Printing Presses and Publications Act 1948 to make it relevant with the current times.

The Youth wing also expressed support for the government’s move to set up the Malaysian Commission of Anti-Corruption, as well as a special complaints commission on the reforms of the police force and judicial appointment commission.

Election results

In another development, the MCA Youth election results announced at 7pm revealed that those seen to be aligned to the new Youth chief Dr Wee Ka Siong had made a near clean sweep.

Except for the newly-elected deputy secretary-general Loh Chew June, the rest were those whose names had appeared on the cai dan (list of preferred candidates) that was widely circulated today.

As expected, Perak MCA Youth chief Dr Mah Han Soon won the No 2 post. He garnered 1,152 votes to beat his opponent Song Kee Chai, who polled 394 votes.

Wee, who was the wing’s secretary-general, won the top post uncontested on Monday.

Met by reporters later, Loh thanked the delegates for their support despite him not being on the cai dan. He said this had spurred him to work harder in order to get support from the delegates.

Those who were elected into the wing’s top posts include vice-chairpersons Yong Chen Leong, Yoo Wei How, Dr Chin Tung Leong and Yit Lee Kok. The new secretary-general is Chai Kim Seng.

Johor activist ISA-ed - Malaysiakini

2008-10-18T08:11:00.000+08:00

A 26-year-old activist has been arrested under the Internal Security Act (ISA) tonight following a report she made accusing the police of abuse of power in yesterday’s controversial eviction of a squatter colony in Johor.

Cheng Lee Whee, a self-employed programmer who is a volunteer for human rights group Suaram, lodged the police report at the Permas Jaya police station in Johor Bharu at about 3pm yesterday.

The report was made in response to the forced eviction of squatters in Kampung Baru Plentong Tengah - a predominantly Malay village akin to Kuala Lumpur’s Kampung Baru - and the arrest of 27 individuals for attempting to stop the demolition of the settlement.

Cheng was summoned by inspector Azman Mustafa to the state police headquarters in Seri Alam at around 8pm so that her statement could be taken relating to her police report.

Four of her friends accompanied her to the police station, among them were Suaram Johor Bahru coordinator Nyam Kee Han, Parti Socialis Malaysia central committee member Choo Shinn Chei and Suaram volunteer See Siew Min. The three were arrested yesterday at the forced eviction.

At around 10.45pm, after Cheng had her statement recorded by the police, she was informed by Criminal Investigation Department chief DSP Mohd Nor Rasid that she had been arrested under section 28 of the ISA for "spreading false information".

Section 28 of the ISA involves the dissemination of false reports.

According to the section, "Any person who, by word of mouth or in writing or in any newspaper, periodical, book, circular or other printed publication or by any other means spreads false reports or makes false statements likely to cause public alarm, shall be guilty of an offence."

According to lawyers, section 28 does not empower the police to detain a suspect without trial. The suspect must be brought to court within 24 hours either to be charged or be further remanded to facilitate police investigation.

‘Police chief confirmed ISA arrest’

Cheng was later escorted to the Pasir Gudang police station where she is expected to be remanded tomorrow for further investigation.

DAP state assemblymen for Skudai, Dr Boo Cheng Hau, toldMalaysiakini that he had spoken to Johor police chief Mokhtar Shariff as well as Seri Alam OCPD Supt Roslan Zainuddin by phone and both officers confirmed that Cheng had been held under ISA.

He called on the police to either charge Cheng or free her as soon as possible.

Attempts by Malaysiakini to contact Mokhtar and Roslan were unsuccessful.

Last year, the ISA was invoked in Johor against five individuals for allegedly spreading rumours through SMSes about racial clashes.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/91497

CBT at Municipal Council - Malaysiakini

2008-10-17T16:28:00.002+08:00

The Star reported that an assistant accountant with the Kuantan Municipal Council was charged with 25 counts of CBT involving RM91,623.

The accused was alleged to have dishonestly used a portion of the money collected from payments made by the public to the council.

So, ok, how does this happen? I've been wanting to blog about this but had not the time. As a matter of fact, I had approached Bentayan SA Gwee Tong Hiang to highlight that there could be some possible accounting problems happening in Majlis Perbandaran Muar (MPM). It regards cukai harta.

We are required to pay cukai harta twice a year, on a half-yearly basis. The bills are sent out normally in January and July each year and property owners are given a grace period of two months to pay up. Failing which, a notice (Borang E) will be issued and a fine of RM5.00 is imposed on late payment.

I received the green Bil Cukai Harta from MPM in July this year and purposely waited (or call it procrastination) till the last working day of August to make payment. Time-stamped 08:27AM dated 29/08/2008, I made the payment at MPM using a credit card.

At the back of the Bil Cukai Harta, it is written that 'Bil yang dicap degan Mesin Penerima Majlis sahaja diakui sah penerimaan pembayarannya'. So yes, when I made my payments, my Bil Cukai Harta was machine-stamped to indicate payment. If you are wondering why I'm beating around the bush rather than going straight to the point, please be patient as you will eventually understand why I need to do so

So, on 29/08/2008 I made my payments to MPM, right? Surprise, surprise, some 3 weeks later, I received a blue coloured 'notis supaya membayar tunggakan kadar'. That's also known as Borang E. That meant, in MPM's accounting records, I had not make payments and therefore this is a notice to me to pay up within 15 days from the date of notice. I was given until 29/09/2008 to make payment although I've already paid.

Some might want to think that this is an isolated case and could be a genuine mistake, right? Hold on your horses.

I spoke to my neighbour and showed him my bills and told him that something is definitely wrong somewhere. He then said that he received the blue notice (Borang E) too and had just make payments a day earlier. Immediately he went inside his house and searched all this bills and presto, he discovered he had made payments for the second half 2008 earlier. Double payment, correct?

He brought along both his bills and went over to MPM to make enquiries about his double payments and to get a refund. After the clerk went through his bills, checking the computer and jotting down something, he was told that it will be reflected in next year's bill.

I am sceptical that it will be reflected in next year's bill. However, I am optimistic that we are not the only ones and this could just be the tip of the iceberg.

Was it last year or the year before that the same thing happened to me. I remember vividly that I had made payment but received the blue notice later. However, due to poor housekeeping, I couldn't find the green bill that was validated.

When I went to MPM to make enquiries, I saw that I wasn't the only one. There were a few others but they had with them the green bills and hence they did not have to make a repeat payment. When I enquired, I was bluntly told that if I had made payments, then I must produce proof of payment. To which, I had no answer but to pay up.

I had paid by cash and there was no other evidence of payment except the validated green bill. It was a lost cause. I paid up.

Ever since that day, I've been mindful of dealing with MPM in regards to paying cukai harta. I would make sure that I would at least have another way to prove that payment had been made. Hence, I made use of credit cards.

So you see, if you make payment by cash, you have no other alternative to prove payment except for the validated green bill. If you had paid by cheque, credit card or through banks, there would exist somewhere a record of your payment. However, if you forgotten about it altogether that you had paid earlier and make a repeat payment for the same bill, God Bless You.

It is now October and in 3 months' time, we will be receiving a new green bill from MPM. I'm in catch-22 situation. Should I wait till January 2009 or to immediately approach MPM for an answer? I decided to wait out. That's because of 2 situations currently existing.

One, I had paid and am issued a blue Borang E. That means I have not made any repeat payment.

Two, my neighbour had paid and was issued a blue Borang E. That means he made payments twice.

Come January 2009, what will our green Bil Cukai Harta show? That's the question that require answer. I will wait out.

However, if there are more than the 2 of us, and that nobody does anything, could there be possibly a scam or perhaps a CBT taking place at MPM?

I shall continue with part 2 as to why I had decided not to follow Gwee Tong Hiang to MPM this morning to follow up on this issue. Gwee had earlier booked an appointment with the S/U to meet at 10 this morning.

I therefore once again apologise to Gwee for not being able to accompany him to keep the appointment with the S/U. However, I had SMS-ed him this morning.

Crocodile Tears - Malaysiakini

2008-10-17T15:42:00.002+08:00

Can a shameless man shed tears?

In Malaysiakini's words, he 'was in tears when he bid farewell'.

Well, guess he did ... but 'I strongly advise against wiping its cute eyes'!

I'm just as sure that someone out there is saying, 'Stop that right now, I know they're not real tears'.

Sampai Tekak Kering Tapi Lucu - Malaysiakini

2008-10-17T10:32:00.003+08:00

The people have shouted their voice hoarse but still, things ain't changing.

When the price of crude oil was steadily climbing, gas stations nationwide cheered.

Back then, when we caught sight of gas tankers coming out in fleets to make deliveries at once, we shivered while the gas station operators smiled. Such a sight always confirm any rumour of any impending price hike.

It is different today. It is the opposite. As price of crude oil tumbles, it is the gas station operators who tremble! Any rumour of any impending price reduction will be confirmed by the lack or otherwise non-existence of delivery tankers on the road!

As I had blogged and commented in various blogs, don't expect a big reduction in the price of gasoline. That's because it has always been the case of the kanasai-gomen protecting the businesses than the rakyat.

The businesses are capable of holding the kanasai-gomen by the throat. These gas station operators can repeat the scene of the Hari Raya exodus whereby they ran out of gas to sell.

It becomes a delicate matter today. Formerly, awaiting and expecting any price hikes, all of us would fill our tanks to the brim, especially the gas station operators.

Today, most of us do not fill her up to the brim. So too, the operators. The similarity stops here.

Gasoline price drops, most consumers cheer while the operators lick their wounds counting the losses incurred.

But hey, wait a minute, let's hop over to Oklahoma City to take a peek at the prices of gasoline there.

Updated (US time) 3:00pm Thursday, Regular RON92 is selling at US2.33 per Gallon. 1US Gallon = 3.785 litres or otherwise US0.61 per litre.

Unsubsidised Regular RON92 is being sold at US0.61 at 7-Eleven, Oklahoma City. At an exchange rate of RM3.50 to the Greenback, it is RM2.15 per litre.

Hey, didn't this kanasai-gomen said our fuel is subsidized at 30sen a litre? If so, how come the pump price of Regular RON92 sold at RM2.20 per litre is more expensive compared the above?

I didn't know America is subsidising fuel too!!! Either that or we are being cheated!!!

But did anyone notice that recent reports did not mention anything about fuel subsidy? Even Shahrir made no mention in the recent price adjustments! Read here.

Does it mean that we are now paying market price plus tax? How else can anybody explain that one can get cheaper REgular RON92 in Oklahoma City whereby gasoline is TAXED plus all the costs of refinery, transportation, commission?

Ain't it funny at all, that subsidised and tax-free Regular RON92 sold in Malaysia is more expensive and yet Malaysia is an oil exporter?

Poison Biscuits Buatan Malaise-ia - Malaysiakini

2008-10-17T09:46:00.003+08:00

Exactly two weeks ago, on Friday, October 3, I blogged about 'melamine cookies' found in Vietnam.

After dilly-dallying and showing no urgency in exercising his responsibility as a Health Minister to protect the rakyat, the results are out .... Khong Guan and Khian Guan biscuits Buatan Malase-ia are confirmed melamine contaminated!

Between October 3 and today, how many kids have consumed the poison biscuits? How many other products out there are actually contaminated that we are not privileged to know? I still have suspicions as to whatever that's permitted or cleared by the Health Ministry to be sold to the rakyat.

There is no transparency. I am still waiting for the truths to be told as to who is/are the one/s who's actually conducting all the tests and the procedures. In this country where all rumours are eventually found to be truths, I'm afraid I'm sticking to my opinion that it is the manufacturers who provide the Health Ministry with the test results. I have blogged on this issue too.

Anyway, let's get back to this melamine cookies Buatan Malaise-ia. All eyes were first fixed on Indonesia as the original news mentioned both Malaysia and Indonesia being the exporters. So, OK, Indonesia went ahead to test the said products and after extensive testing, including using the LC MSMS method which has a sensitivity of one part per BILLION, melamine wasn't detected. That means ZERO.

There seems something fishy about this pointing of fingers but I wouldn't dare speculate lest I got whacked with multi-million ringgit suit. I would let you decide for yourself whethere there was some plot. Read here.

However, the question I would raise is this - Why did the Health Ministry waited until Indonesia released its test results to confirm that its products were melamine-free before lifting a finger to conduct test on the melamine biscuits Buatan Malaise-ia? Why?

For the record:

Dated 16/10/08: NST reported that 'Liow said Malaysian-made Khong Guan biscuits were tested as a precautionary measure'.

Dated 17/10/08: TheStar reported '18 out of 47 products have been found with excessive levels of melamine and the manufacturer has been instructed to recall them'.

Caveat: The Star also reported that the contamination was found in ammonium carbonate. Health Ministry will now conduct tests on all factories using ammonium carbonate.

Scary thoughts: It only takes some 24 hours to get the results as shown above and that the question we need to ask is that HOW many manufacturers out there are using ammonium carbonate imported from China in the production of biscuits? Scary because the Health Minister has proven itself incompetent in handling this crisis.

This Kanasai Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai has no shame at all! If he has, he would have tendered his resignation weeks ago!

Therefore, I ain't calling for his resignation this time knowing he has no shame!

The Melamine-tainted Biscuits, released by Health Ministry after procrastination in conducting tests:

Khong Guan

1. Biskut Soda

2. Biskut Lemon Puff

3. Biskut Lemon Pof

4. Biskut Butter Cream

5. Biskut Baby Fish

6. Biskut Healthy Cracker

7. Biskut Cocoa Puff

8. Biskut Sandwich Oren

9. Biskut Family Crackers

10. Biskut Bentuk Binatang

11. Biskut Rokok

12. Biskut Mini Puff

Khian Guan

1. Biskut Creamy Chocolate

2. Biskut Lemon Puff

3. Biskut Square Puff

4. Biskut Cocoa Puff

5. Biskut Jagung Puff

I personally believe that the list doesn't stop here and it could be a mile long and therefore I would strongly suggest parents to take their kids and toddlers for a check-up. We've been had for this long and the best assurance that our kids and toddlers are not 'poisoned' would be to go for a check-up.

Liow Tiong Lai lied again! - Malaysiakini

2008-10-07T08:34:00.004+08:00

The Star today reports that the Health Ministry had conducted tests on the ingredients used to make the melamine tainted cheese powder to-go that's supplied to Pizza Hut Taiwan.

While tests in Taiwan showed that this said cheese packet contained melamine at 70 ppm, Malaysian tests conducted by the Health Ministry found that the creamer and cheese powder are FREE of melamine.

Under such circumstances, I am challenging Health Minsitry Liow Tion Lai to sue Pizza Hut Taiwan for alleging that the Made-In-Malaysia cheese packet is contaminated with melamine. Pizza Hut Taiwan has severely damaged the good name of Malaysia and it is only correct that the Health Ministry first demand an unreserved apology from Pizza Hut Taiwan and/or to sue Pizza Hut Taiwan for damages.

Failing which, Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai must resign for his incompetency in managing this crisis.

The Star further reports that while the cheese powder is sourced from New Zealand, nothing is mentioned as to the source of the creamer. That's the level of transparency we get.

This being the case, allow me to shed some light regards the melamine tainted cheese packet supplied to Pizza Hut Taiwan.

Pick Food and Machinery Corp is the manufacturer and supplier of the said melamine tainted cheese packet that's supplied to Pizza Hut Taiwan. While the cheese powder used to produce the cheese packet comes from New Zealand, the creamer is sourced from Malaysia, supplied by Eonlipids Sdn Bhd.

So, which is melamine contaminated? The cheese powder supplied by Fonterra Brands Pte Ltd or the creamer supplied by Eonlipids Sdn Bhd?

The bad news is that Fonterra had claimed that its cheese powder had been tested in Taiwan and was cleared. Now, Malaysian Health Ministry clears the creamer! However, allow me to quote The New Straits Times on how Liow Tiong Lai clears this cheese packet as melamine free:

Liow said tests on "cheese packets" made from creamer and cheese powder imported from New Zealand showed they were melamine-free.

It is clear that either Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai is being fed misinformations or he is simply lying through his teeth. Again I ask, who is the Health Minister protecting? The businesses or the rakyat?

The worry does not stop here. As Eonlipids Sdn Bhd is the supplier of the said creamer that's used to produce the cheese packet, Eonlipids also produces these products.

The New Straits Times quoted Liow Tiong Lai as saying, "the creamer used in making 3-in-1 instant coffee and instant cereal had been reported tainted by several websites after Pizza Hut Taiwan found melamine at 70 ppm in the cheese packets"

At this point, how safe is our creamer product? The coffee creamer, milk tea creamer, ground coffee creamer, high fat baking creamer, herbal creamer, rtd creamer, cappuccino creamer, liquid creamer, vegetarian creamer and filled milk creamer?

As at today, for the records on Made-In-Malaysia melamine products,

1. Melamine Cheese Sandwich (Taiwan) - Health Ministry clears

2. Melamine Cheese Packet (Pizza Hut Taiwan) - Health Ministry clears.

3. Melamine Cookies (Vietnam) - under investigations.

Resign now, Liow Tiong Lai, before Malaysia sees the first death due to melamine!

Update: The spins;

The Star: The creamer for the cheese packet is supplied by a Malaysian company and it is also used to make products such as three-in-one instant coffee and cereal while the cheese powder is imported from New Zealand.

NST: Liow said tests on "cheese packets" made from creamer and cheese powder imported from New Zealand showed they were melamine-free

Health Ministry Legalise Melamine In Food Products - Malaysiakini

2008-10-05T07:31:00.005+08:00

I wouldn't know if I'm alone in this fight to get the Health Ministry to come clean and transparent in its handling of the melamine crisis. Apparently, it seems that the opposition is not keen on this issue even though I had left comments at Kit's and Teresa's blogs seeking their supports to further this cause.

Ok, never mind if I'm alone to take on this lying Health Minister.

A few days ago, I blogged that Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai was lying through his teeth when he said that the European Union countries have a permissible level of 30ppm melamine in foodstuffs. He proved himself incompetent and unfit to be a Health Minister when he attempted to convince and to coax the rakyat to consume food products that are tainted with melamine as long as the content is below the 'permissible' level. Hence, I called for his resignation.

The Health Ministry has not been transparent in its handling of this crisis and there are many questions that demand answers. I have only a few questions and I asked the Health Minister to reveal all the informations, including the person or persons responsible for feeding him misinformations about permissible level of melamine in food products as well as the person or persons responsible for the testing method, the reasons why the approach was taken and its limitations, because the rakyat have the rights to challenge the government's decisions and the need for information to be transparent and readily available.

The first answer I received regards testing method was through 2 pieces of news articles published in The Star and Bernama. Speculations have it that it is the manufacturers who provide their test results to the ministry. Let's hear out the spins:

The Star: 1008 products have guarantee safety by the manufacturers.

Bernama: 1008 products found to be free of the substance (melamine)

In my opinion, based on the spins above, there could be a truth. The bare truth could be that the Health Ministry takes it as gospel truth when manufacturers provide their test results to the ministry and that the ministry will in turn just rubber stamp the test results and presto, the food products are melamine free! Isn't this a possibility? Is the Health Minister defending the manufacturers?

UPDATE: We should not have to depend on foreign health institutes alone to obtain these findings for us - The Star

I once again stress that there isn't such a thing as a permisisble level of melamine in food products. To allow melamine is akin to allowing dioxin to be added into food products, which is an illegal act. Worse, legalising melamine in food products, however low the permissible level, is to encourage manufacturers to cheat. Any manufacturer will now know how to boost the protein level in their food products and will surely explore this loophole.

10 days ago, Taiwan's Health Minister Lin Fang-yu resigned over this mishandling of the crisis when he raised the 'permissible' level of melamine from ZERO to 2.5ppm. Why so? It is clear that ZERO means melamine in food products is illegal while a 2.5ppm melamine in food products is legalising melamine in food products.

Today, our Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai has followed in the foodsteps of Taiwan's ex-Health Minister to legalise melamine in food products when he openly declared that from now on, the permissible level of melamine in food products is 2.5 ppm while for baby products, 1 ppm is allowed!

This is clearly a mishandling of the crisis and our Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai is incompetent. Is he going to legalise dioxin in food products too? Who is more important, the manufacturers or the lives of rakyat?

For putting the health and lives of the rakyat at risks, this Health Minister must resign!

Defending Businesses or Protecting Rakyat? - Malaysiakini

2008-10-04T09:50:00.003+08:00

I have been saying that there's a crisis of confidence faced by the Health Ministry.

First of all, did Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai misled the rakyat when he coaxed us to consume foodstuffs that contain melamine as long as it is within the permissible level? What permissible level? Our Health Ministry has not enlighten us what Malaysia's safety level is! Liow Tiong Lai had only mentioned that the European Union countries have it at 30 ppm which is a lie. There isn't such a thing as a safety level of melamine in foodstuffs. It is ZERO!

Now that Taiwan exposed that one of the found products containing Melamine came from Malaysia, it amuses me that our Health Ministry is super efficient in coming out to defend the manufacturer saying that it was a one-off consignment with a Malaysian company and that the ingredients were supplied by the company in Taiwan.

I hate to say it but that's not convincing enough. Food Quality and Safety Department director Noraini Mohd Othman also mentioned that over 200 types of food products worth RM469,158 had been sealed since Sept 23. Please, please, please, I'm pleading with you, let us know the list of the over 200 types of food products. We want product names! We don't want numbers and figures.

Noraini also spilled the beans to confirm suspicions as to how foodstuffs are deemed safe for consumption by declaring that '1008 products have guarantees of safety by the manufacturers'. What? Is it to mean that the department relies on test results supplied by the manufacturers as speculated? It is true! And what guarantee of safety? It is to guarantee that the food products contain melamine but below the 'permisisble' level set by the Health Ministry or it is a guarantee of safety tht the food products do not contain melamine?

Which is which? What is the safety level of melamine permitted by the Health Ministry? Is there really such a thing as a permissible level of melamine in food products? Who exactly is the Health Ministry protecting, businesses or the rakyat?

Crisis of confidence, do any of you remember the mad cow scare a few years ago? What if I were to refresh your memory that an international consumer rights group known as Foodwatch reported that bovine meat and bone meal which could be a source of bovine spongiform encephalopathy or BSE contamination was exported from Germany to Malaysia?

Consumer Association of Penang is calling on the Health Ministry to check on this report and make public its findings. Till now, no news forthcoming!

And oh, this mad cow disease made its way to Georgetown, Penang. That answers why symptoms of this madness was seen recently to the extent that when a reporter reported this mad cow, she was detained under ISA for her safety!

Update: Bernama reports that 1008 products from 36 companies were found to be free of the substance (melamine), quoting Noraini.

The Star: 1008 products have guarantee safety by the manufacturers

Bernama: 1008 products found to be free of the substance (melamine)

Understand now why I call it a crisis of confidence?

Gasoline prices - Malaysiakini

2008-10-04T08:29:00.002+08:00

There are many arguments as to how pump prices of fuel are derived. Sadly, I'm afraid nobody can give a correct formula and can only do some rough guessing.

The formula in calculating our pump prices of fuel is considered a priviledged secret and could probably be protected under OSA. Beats me, I wonder why the need for such secrecy when such a simple thing should be made transparent.

Take a look at the widget on the right. The quoted gasoline prices per gallon are ex-refinery. Therfore, we can conclude that the gasoline is engine-ready. Next, different states in the United States imposes different amount of taxes. Finally, we would need to add transportation and commissions.

Let's toy with some figures again. We shall take a similar product that's available in Malaysia and that would be RON 92 (regular).

Ex-refinery, US2.61 per gallon. Each US gallon equals 3.785 litres.

US2.61 / 3.785 = US0.689 per litre, convert to Ringgit, US0.689 X 3.40 = RM2.34 per litre

So, ok. We can somehow conclude that the ex-refinery price of Regular grade gasoline (RON92) is RM2.34 per litre.

The cheapest gasoline in the US today could possibly be found in Kansas City, at US2.85 per US Gallon. There's a website called www.GasBuddy.com and you would be able to view prices of gasoline across the US and Canada, with prices updated on a regular basis and sometimes the update can be as often as twice a day!

Picking the lowest available gasoline at US2.85 per US Gallon, pump price, we can somehow make a rough estimate that taxes, transportation and commission come to;

US2.85 - US2.61 = US0.24. This of course, is again an assumption.

Now, let's get further. Using this same price of Regular Grade gasoline (RON92), we try to convert to Ringgit per litre.

US2.85 / 3.785 X RM3.40 = RM2.56 per litre.

Aha! Maybe now we're getting somewhere. At 7-Eleven, Kansas City East, Friday 11.45am, the price of Regular grade RON92 gasoline, UNSUBSIDISED, is at RM2.56 per litre.

How about the price of subsidised Regular Grade RON92, pump price, in Malaysia? RM2.30

What's the difference between subsidised and unsubsidised Regular Grade RON92, the price difference between an oil importing nation and and oil exporting nation?

Well, a meagre 26 sen! And that, our UMNO gomen tells us that they are subsidising 33 sen per litre!

And oh, see the mess in Kuala Lumpur lately? Gas station running dry on fuel? Why so?

Kanasai!

God didn't make everyone the same - Malaysiakini

2008-10-03T17:56:00.002+08:00

Imam Abdullah Antepli:, chaplain at Duke University:

"God could have made everyone the same, but He didn't."

"If you put me in an entirely homogenous place, same religion, same race, same everything, I will die in three weeks."

"I need diversity. That's my natural habitat"

"We are to learn from our differences, not use them to divide us"

Diversity is 'fingerprint of God'. Read here.

Vietnam finds Made-In-Malaysia 'melamine' cookies - Malaysiakini

2008-10-03T12:57:00.003+08:00

Vietnam's Health Ministry announces 18 products tainted with melamine. Some of the tainted products are Made-In-Malaysia!

Of the 18, 5 cookies brands imported from Malaysia and Indonesia had high contents of melamine! See if you can nail down the Buatan Malaise-ia 'melamine' cookies!

Vietnam's list of melamine tainted products:

1. Dai Vinh Company: Khong Guan, Khina Guan Aquare Puff, Khong Guan Marie and Khian Guan Superior

2. Anco Company: Full Cream Milk Powder

3. Kim An Company: Yili Milk

For full list, read here.

Melamine Cheese Sandwich Buatan Malaysia - Malaysiakini

2008-10-03T10:55:00.002+08:00

The Made-In-Malaysia cheese sandwich imported into Taiwan by Golden Kestrel Co that's tested positive for melamine contains 29.818 ppm melamine.

What is this product labelled under Malaysian sun? I wouldn't dare speculate the brand name I heard in case I face a lawsuit and possibly be protected by Syed Botak under his ISA protection law but I have this question for all of you to digest.

Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai said that it is safe to consume melamine-tainted products as long as it is below the 'permissible' level of 30 ppm.

In such a case, if the same cheese sandwich is sold in Malaysia but packaged under a different name, does it mean that our Health Ministry won't remove them from the shelves?

Is it possible that after all the tests conducted, there could be many products tainted with melamine being sold because they passed the 'permissible' level of 30 ppm?

In view of this, we must demand that the Health Ministry release its test results public so that we can make a decision for ourselves whether to buy the melamine tainted products.

I have every reason to believe that melamine tainted products are sold openly in Malaysia but are not taken off the shelves because they PASSED the 30 ppm limit.

Health Ministry protecting who? Businesses or rakyat? I demand that this Health Minister, Liow Tiong Lai resign immediately!

Kanasai!

Taiwan finds melamine in Nestle! - Malaysiakini

2008-10-03T10:00:00.002+08:00

Taiwan's Department of Health (DOH) finds melamine in 6 Nestle products and ordered that they be removed from te shelves. The products comprised 5 products under the KLIM label and Neslac.

Although tests showed that the amount of melamine is below the raised safety level of melamine at 2.5 ppm, DOH still ordered their removal as a temporary and cautious measure. This safety level was raised from 0 to 2.5 ppm last week which resulted in the resignation of Taiwan's health minister, Lin Fang-yu while over here on Malaysian soil, our health minister Liow Tiong Lai is misleading us to believe that as long as food products contain melamine below 30 ppm, it is safe for consumption!

Taiwan's Premier Liu Chao-hsuan told Parliament that he 'hereby makes a formal request to demand China to apologise to Taiwan' and that after the concerned departments have calculated and confirmed the damages, they will seek compensation from China.

In Vietnam, its Ministry of Health is expected to release a list of melamine-contaminated products. The Health Minister, Cao Minh Quang said that his ministry had identified melamine-tainted milk products imported from Malaysia!

Yep, that's right! Another Made-In-Malaysia product tainted with melamine discovered! Taiwan and Vietnam, who's next? Will Made-In-Malaysia products come under the radar to be tested for melamine globally? What is our Health Ministry doing about it?

Meanwhile, another Dutch Mill Co's 60 tonnes of powder that's imported from China and kept at Samut Prakarn will be tested by Thailand's FDA due to possible melamine contamination. An attempt to return the milk powder to China was blocked by the FDA until test results are known. The FDA had earlier tested 20 tonnes of milk powder stored at Nakhon Pathom for melamine and the result was positive.

In Korea, its Health Minister strengthens stricter food safety and set labelling rules on all food products including those imported. Producers of harmful goods will lose their import license for a second violation and be subjected to class action lawsuits.

In America, instant coffee is being recalled. Read the list of recalled items here.

Questioning the responsibility of our Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai, when he mislead the rakyat that it is safe to consume products contaminated with melamine as long as it is within the 'permissible' level of 30 ppm, is he also implying that the government can close one eye if manufacturers add melamine to their products as long as it is within the 'permissible' 30 ppm?

Taiwan's ex-Health Minister Lin Fang-yu resigned over this issue of poor handling of a crisis and the new Health Minister, Yeh Ching-chuan is seen to be handling this crisis well.

What about this Bolehland?

Kanasai!

Comparing Integrity of Health Ministers - Malaysiakini

2008-10-02T12:42:00.003+08:00

Please read the following 2 news articles; the first pertaining to our Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai while the other regards Taiwan's Health Minister Lin Fang-yu.

The issue is regards melamine in foodstuffs. Lin Fang-yu raised the level of permissible level of melamine in foodstuffs from zero to 2.5ppm and subsequently apologised to the people of Taiwan. He took the responsibility and duly resigned.

Our Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai today lied through his teeth that the European Union countries allow a 30ppmn melamine in foodstuffs and that Malaysians should not worry about melamine contamination as long as it is within permissible level. What's the permissible level of melamine in Malaysia, when it is zero worldwide and that Taiwan's Health Minister needed to bear responsibility and to resign for raising the level from zero to 2.5ppm (against the 'suggested' 30ppm)?

If there is integrity, Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai must apologise immediately and resign!

Resign! Liow Tiong Lai - Malaysiakini

2008-10-02T11:35:00.002+08:00

I'm calling for the resignation of our Health Minister, Liow Tiong Lai, for putting Malaysians lives at risk due to melamine-contaminated food.

Melamine is something that is not supposed to be included in foodstuffs and is akin to allowing dioxin to be added into foodstuffs. Adding dioxin to foodstuffs is ILLEGAL and the same is viewed upon melamine.

Liow Tiong Lai lied through his teeth when he claimed that the European Union countries allow 30 parts per million (ppm) of melamin in all food products. According to the US, EU and WHO, the permissible level of melamine is zero, not zero detection.

Liow Tiong Lai is neglecting his duties as Health Minister in asking the public not to panic if they find smal portions of melamine in their food, as long as it is within the permission level. What permissible level? Where did Liow Tiong Lai get his fact that there's a permissible level of melamine in foodstuffs?

Is Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai suggesting that melamine should be allowed in foodstuffs?

In contrast, Taiwan Health Minister, Lin Fang-yu resigned after raising the permissible level of melamine in raw material and processed foodstuffs from zero to 2.5ppm.

I further call upon Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai to reveal all the information, including the person or persons responsible for feeding him such misinformations about permissible level of melamine in foodstuffs as well as the person or persons responsible for the testing method, the reasons why the approach was chosen and its limitations, because the rakyat have the right to challenge the government's decision and the need for information to be transparent and readily available.

Wanna bet your kidneys? Malaysiakini

2008-10-02T10:25:00.003+08:00

Taiwan has found Melamine-contaminated products that's Made-In-Malaysia!

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) - The Taipei City Health Bureau of Taipei City has decided to examine dairy products from Malaysia after the Golden Kestrel Co. informed the bureau that their cheese sandwich exported from Malaysia contained 29.818 parts per million of melamine.

I'm still checking to find out who's the local manufacturer but we can meanwhile stay away from all Cheese Crackers.

Meanwhile, on this cheesy stuffs, Taiwan's Pizza Hut has voluntarily sent its products to be tested and found melamine in its cheese-to-go. Acting accordingly, Pizza Hut Taiwan advises customers to dump those to-go packets.

And guess where do the tainted cheese powder come from? Oh no! Allegedly, from Malaysia!

It seems apparently clear that our Ministry of Health is not doing enough to protect the safety of the people. It baffles the mind to see the big names in Malaysia paying big bucks to place advertisements in newspapers that their ingredients are not sourced from China.

How about placing advertisemens guaranteeing that their products are melamine-free? Surely, such a bold claim can open their doors to lawsuits and claims.

Yet gain, what's the hell is our Health Minister doing about this crisis? Can he come clean and be transparent to enlighten the citizenry how the tests are conducted and who conduct the tests? Is it the manufacturers providing the MOH with test results or are the tests conducted by the MOH itself or through third party?

In Taiwan, the DOH came out transparent to explain how they conduct the tests. Their Health Minister publicly assuaged the public's concerns with this standard testing method while ours is apparently busy with something else like perhaps its own survival whether in MCA or at worst, the fall of UMNO.

So, still wanna bet your kidneys? Taiwan has linked Malaysia to Melamine-contaminated products and it is only right that our Health Minister replies with findings and actions.

It is too late to sweep everything under the carpet!

Kanasai!!!

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri - Malaysiakini

2008-09-30T21:03:00.001+08:00

Wishing all Muslims 'Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, maaf zahir dan batin'.

The mentally-challenged PM - Malaysiakini

2008-09-30T20:31:00.002+08:00

I'm afraid this flip-flopping Prime Minister Badawi is mentally challenged as well!!

Malaysiakini reported that "a ransom was paid for both the ships (MISC oil tankers). We delivered the money with the help of the navy. It was cash on delivery", quoting MISC chairperson Mohamad Hassan Merican.

Ok, fine. Let's not argue whether it is morally correct to give in to the demands of the hijackers. Right or wrong, what's proven is that Hospital Bahagia will get a new patient soon. How soon? Well, maybe on or before 09/10/2008.

The evidence that this mentally challenged flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister is certified to check-into this asylum? The report in details; (please pay attention to the highlighted texts in bold)

Release of tankers called 'gift from God'

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi says the release of two tankers held by pirates in the Gulf of Aden was "a gift from God to us."

Somali pirates had been holding the two MISC Berhad vessels for 40 days. The MT Bunga Melati 2 was released Monday and the MT Bunga Melati 5 was freed Sunday with their crews unharmed, the Malaysian news agency Bernama reported.

"This is a Hari Raya Aidilfitri gift from God to us, especially the families of the crew of MT Bunga Melati 2 and MT Bunga Melati 5," Badawi said.

Hari Raya Aidilfitri is the Malaysian celebration of the Muslim holiday of Eid ul-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

MISC Berhad Chairman Tan Sri Hassan Marican told Bernama the company had no plans to change the routes of its ships through the pirate-infested waters of the Gulf of Aden. He said such changes would require the vessels to take a longer time to reach their destinations.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/09/30/Release_of_tankers_called_gift_from_God/UPI-41881222776243/

Melamine: Do you have faith in our govt? - Malaysiakini

2008-09-30T09:02:00.002+08:00

As at today, what are the products that are suspected to be tainted with melamine? Instead of providing a list of suspected products, the health ministry prefers to supply us a long list of products that it clears safe for consumption

Yet again, there are doubts. On 23/09/08, I sounded a warning that there could be tainted products on our Malaysian shelves.

Across the causeway, the AVA of Singapore acted firmly and quickly to remove products. That is a very commendable act in the name of protecting the citizens from harm or even death.

Prevention is always better than cure but as if our clowning Health Minister found wanting of being in the know, he declared and boasted that "we were quicker than Singapore in banning products from China and expanding our scope".

Now, as we know, we are still not given a list of products banned in Malaysia and we still don't know how far this bimbo health minister has expanded the scope.

The problem with melamine taited products is far from over. The latest development;

1. Cadbury chocolates is off the shelves in Hong Kong.

2. In Thailand, FDA found melamine in milk powder imported from China by Dutch Mill Co while FDA's off the shelves list are;
i) M&M chocolates
ii) Lotte koala biscuits
iii) Oreo wafer sticks
iv) Dove milk chocolates
v) Snickers caramel peanut bars and nougat
vi) Mentos yoghurt candies
vii) Mao Huad coffee and oatmeal crackers

3. In Indonesia, Kraft Food Inc. and Mars Inc. suspend sales of Chinese-made Oreo, M&Ms and Snickers.

Over here, these companies are spending big bucks advertising in newspapers that their products are safe for consumption after given the all-clear green light by MOH.

Is there something wrong with our government?

Is this country called Malaysia or Malaise-ia?

Kanasai!

Victims of hate - Malaysiakini

2008-09-29T08:03:00.000+08:00

Malaisie: Victims of hate

Residents and traders have claimed that the number of Africans and other foreigners, mainly students from institutions of higher learning, was growing steadily and that their large number was intimidating.
In Sunday's incident, HELP University College business studies undergraduate Abdel Aziz was murdered.

By Teoh El Sen and Aizat Sharif

African undergraduate Abdel Aziz Hassan Abdraman, 22, will never again see his eight-month-old daughter and 19-year-old wife because he was the “victim of a hate crime” that claimed his life.
Abdel Aziz had planned to return home to Chad for Aidilfitri this week and his friends said he was overjoyed at going back to be with his family.
Sunday’s mob attack on 10 African undergraduates in Wangsa Maju caused his death and injured the rest, the victims claimed yesterday.
They said they had been harassed and mocked by the same youths for four consecutive days before the attack.
They further claimed that some youths had even gone up to their Tar Villa apartment and demanded money and cigarettes.
Police confirmed that the victims had been regularly ridiculed by the youths who expressed their displeasure at the increasing presence of Africans in the neighbourhood.
In one incident, a student was also kicked at an Internet café.
Residents and traders have claimed that the number of Africans and other foreigners, mainly students from institutions of higher learning, was growing steadily and that their large number was intimidating.
In Sunday’s incident, HELP University College business studies undergraduate Abdel Aziz was murdered. He sustained stab wounds to the right abdomen and died in the ambulance on the way to Kuala Lumpur Hospital.
Several other students, also from Chad, were injured when they were attacked by some 20 youths wielding metal rods, sticks and knives near the Wangsa Maju LRT station.
Sentul district police chief Assistant Commissioner Zakaria Pagan told Malay Mail that initial investigations revealed that the attack stemmed from the uneasiness of the residents over the behaviour of the Africans.
“We believe the youths who attacked the Africans wanted to teach them a lesson to behave themselves in public.”
Police have detained three men, in their 20s, from Wangsa Maju to assist in investigations. They will be under remand until Saturday.
Police are also examining closed-circuit television camera (CCTV) images near the LRT station to ascertain the events leading to the attack.
Malay Mail learnt the drama unfolded when three undergraduates were on the way to board the LRT to perform terawih prayers at a nearby mosque at 8.30pm.
They were confronted by some 20 youths who were believed to have hurled abuse at them and demanded money.
When the trio ignored them and walked away, the youths, carrying switch blades, pursued them and struck one of them on the head.
The students took refuge at the LRT station and sought assistance from their African friends living nearby.
Seven of their friends, including Abdel Aziz, went to their aid and together they went back to where the trio was attacked.
Abdel Aziz’s cousin, Abdraman Moussa Mohamat, 23, said: “We asked the youths who were seated at the stalls why they had attacked our friends but they came for us suddenly without saying a word.
“We ran for our lives when they began swinging metal rods, sticks and knives at us. In the fracas, Abdel Aziz was stabbed from the back.”
The mob fled after Abdel Aziz collapsed by the roadside some 15 metres from the stalls.
Lamine Moustapha Ahmat, 22, a Rima College student, said he carried the victim while his friends tried in vain to stop a taxi. Many taxis waiting to pick up LRT commuters refused to budge. A passerby then called for an ambulance.
Note: Abdel Aziz first enrolled with the International Islamic University of Malaysia before switching to HELP University College.
His father, who runs a palm oil import-export business, was informed about the tragedy on Sunday night and his brother will arrive today to claim the remains.

Dimanche 28 Septembre 2008 - 17:06

Lu 57 fois

http://www.dabio.net/Malaisie-Victims-of-hate_a2804.html

Anwar preferred as PM: poll Malaysiakini

2008-09-27T19:14:00.000+08:00

According to a Bloomberg report, a majority of Indians and Chinese supported Mr Anwar (above) while Malays favoured Mr Najib. -- PHOTO: AFP

KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIAN opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim would make a better prime minister than Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's deputy, Mr Najib Razak, said the Malaysian Insider, citing a poll by Merdeka Centre.

Results of the poll, based on 1,002 people of voting age from the country's three main ethnic communities, showed that 39.3 per cent supported Mr Anwar and 33.8 per cent favoured Mr Najib.

The online newspaper said, according to a Bloomberg report, that a majority of Indians and Chinese supported Mr Anwar while Malays favoured Mr Najib. The poll was conducted from Sept 11 - 22.

Mr Abdullah has delayed a leadership election at the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), and said he will decide in the next two weeks whether to contest the position of party chief.

http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/SE%2BAsia/Story/STIStory_283244.html

Let racial harmony prevail - Malaysiakini

2008-09-27T15:06:00.001+08:00

Let racial harmony prevail even without Race Relations Act

THIS letter published in an online portal caught my attention this week. Let me share the writer’s views with you all as I find it interesting and worth a discussion here.

“It puzzles me to see the government’s efforts to improve race relations through the enactment of new legislation. While the goals of the proposed law are noble, we must not forget that creating a harmonious multi-ethnic multi-religious society begins with equality.

“Recognising that all Malaysians are created equal, that all our forefathers had toiled and bled for our nation and therefore enjoying equitable rights in Malaysia is fundamental to achieving the stated goal.

“Secondly, value-based education as espoused by former president of India, APJ Abdul Kalam who visited Malaysia recently, beginning at homes and continued in schools, reinforcing that all of us are Malaysians with different cultural backgrounds but equitable rights in this country, is essential.

“We also need political will to ensure that race-based politics, ethno-discriminative laws and practices are abolished. For example, I have primary-school going cousins who are made to feel the differences between Muslims and non-Muslims from a young age.

“Even the school time table is adjusted for Muslims and non-Muslims and I have difficulty answering to their numerous ‘Why is that so?’ questions. I particularly remember a Standard 6 cousin of mine who was ecstatic when she found out that she and her best friend, a Malay girl, had both signed up for a school camping trip.

“However, upon arriving at the pick-up point, the teacher announced that non-Muslims were not allowed to participate in the trip. How can we promote race relations when children are denied the opportunity to mix, even at such a tender age?

“For the record, there is no such thing as non-Muslims. There are however Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Taoists and others. We need to educate our young children, not insulate them from learning about other religions, cultural beliefs and practices. Remember, ignorance breeds danger.

“Until all Malaysians feel they have equal rights in this country and are taught to respect one another, to learn about each others cultural background and religion, enacting legislation to promote race relations would be futile.

“Politicians making grand announcements such as ‘Malaysians respect each other’ or ‘We are all equal’ will merely be spouting rhetoric, until all of us Malaysians actually feel that way. Sadly, that is not the case today.”

Isn’t it ironic that after 51 years of independence (45 years for Sarawak and Sabah) we now find it necessary to legislate laws in order to inculcate racial harmony among Malaysians?

Sad as it may be — it is true that race relations in our country is something that we can no longer be proud of, at least in Semenanjung Malaysia.

Call me a biased Sarawakian if you will, but isn’t it true that racial issues (or even religious issues) have never been a major problem in Sarawak. The last time I heard of murmurs of the racial kind was the drinking of ‘Ribena’ — depicted as the blood of a certain community. But understandably, that was during the heat of an election campaign many many years ago and after that, it was no longer heard nor made an issue.

Those who disagree with me, please relate a recent incident in Sarawak where a racial issue had gotten so ugly that warranted government intervention. Honestly, I can’t think of any.

I can agree totally with the two points brought up by the letter writer — one, that creating a harmonious multi-ethnic multi-religious society begins with equality and two, value-based education beginning at homes and continued in schools, reinforcing that all of us are Malaysians with different cultural backgrounds but equitable rights in this country, is essential.

Let us look at years gone by. During my school days in Kuching, there was no such thing as racial segregation of any kind. The writer’s narration that his primary-school going cousins are being made to feel the differences between Muslims and non-Muslims at such a young age is something unheard of during my time.

Indeed, having the Race Relations Act may not solve the fundamental issues at hand. It all boils down to our education system. A good education system must nurture in its students a desire to live in peace with people of different races and religion, and to contribute to national unity.

Back then, we were allowed to ‘roam’ freely, so to speak. There was freedom to choose between taking Mandarin or Malay (then known as Bahasa Kebangsaan) classes. And as ours was a Catholic school, even Malay students were given the option to choose Scriptures as a subject for a public examination. No one complained because it was clear that other than for academic purposes, there was no motive to convert anyone into any religion.

Above all, I think everything was okay because no rowdy, racist politicians of the kind you find today existed during that time. Yes, I blame racial tension in the country today solely on politicians — the kind who have no right to be in politics in the first place.

And I am truly concerned that some of these people are now involved as legislators in the process to enact the Race Relations Act. These politicians are the last people on earth who should be involved in the drafting of the proposed Act, as they should take 100 per cent blame for the current poor race relations in Malaysia. I believe readers are aware of the kind I’m referring to here. Honestly, I shudder at the thought of their involvement in the proposed legislation.

My solution to the strengthening of racial ties among Malaysians is actually very simple, yet a monumental task too.

It is incumbent upon all of us, young or old, to play our part in maintaining and improving racial harmony in our neighbourhoods, schools, universities, work places and in the public sphere. Seriously, there is no way we can depend on the Race Relations Act or any legislation to ensure racial ties among Malaysians are strengthened.

Yes, it is really up to us to let racial harmony prevail. No law can force us to do that.

(Comments can reach the writer at paulsir99@hotmail.com)

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=41860

Illegals gain citizenship; Sahabans lose theirs - Malaysiakini

2008-09-27T14:56:00.001+08:00

Illegals gain citizenship; Sabahans lose theirs'

Kota Kinabalu: The United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (Upko) on Friday demanded that the National Registration Department (NRD) undo its mistake of turning a Sabahan Bumiputra into a Permanent Resident.

Its Deputy President Datuk Seri Wilfred Mojilip Bumburing said what had happened to 78-year-old Yong Lee Hua @ Piang Lin, a Sino-Kadazan, was simply outrageous and warrants Upko seriously reviewing its position in the Barisan Nasional if found to be not just an isolated case.

"How can this happen to a Malaysian citizen who was born here and holding a Native Certificate to prove her citizenship," he said.

He said that if the NRD had committed a genuine mistake, it should have reverted Yong's new status back to a Malaysian citizen right away.

"If the department had purposely committed the atrocious act, they must undo its gross mistake," he said, adding it is sending a bad signal across the nation, particularly to genuine citizens.

"Illegal immigrants can easily acquire MyKads that subsequently enable them to purchase Native Title (NT) lands.

"What is happening with the NRD? This is totally unacceptable. And if this is the tip of the iceberg, I'm afraid we cannot guarantee protection to the genuine citizens," he said.

He said if the Barisan Nasional (BN) Government is not willing to look into this matter as well as into how illegal immigrants could mysteriously acquire Malaysian Identity Cards, Upko will take up the matter and fight for the people.

"If the NRD or government has no satisfactory answer, I strongly urge Upko to seriously review its position in the BN because an identification document is a very important matter as it shows their sense of belonging."

Bumburing said if the NRD is unable to handle Yong's case, Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar must intervene.

Yong's life had been turned upside down as a result of the NRD oversight and incompetence.

Her nightmare began when she lost her IC at a Supermarket at Penampang Baru on Feb. 12.

On the same day, she lodged a police report and subsequently on Feb 26, applied for a replacement IC at the NRD office in Donggongon.

After several months, she went and collected her replacement IC at the NRD office and was given a red IC.

She asked the officer why it was red and the lady officer said for senior citizens who lost their IC, the department normally replaced them with red ICs.

She didn't find anything amiss with the officer's explanation until she reached home when her children said red ICs were issued to people with Permanent Resident status.

With the help of her children, they brought the matter up with the NRD together with supporting documents such as her Native Certificate that was issued by the Native Court on Sept 24, 1963, bank books and passport.

The NRD officer admitted there could have been an error but instead of rectifying it, Yong was asked to "apply for Malaysian citizenship" which she duly complied by submitting an application form to the office on July 2, last year.

Her problem did not end there because soon after, her bank accounts at Amanah Saham Nasional and Alliance Bank were frozen making her unable to withdraw money for her daily expenses.

Fluent in Kadazan and Chinese, the mother of seven sons and one daughter can no longer travel outside the country as she could not renew her expired passport.

Strangely, she was allowed to cast her vote at Peak Nam Thong Kindergarten during the recent Mar 8 general elections using her driving licence as identity document since her record in the polling list was still intact.

But her identification records at the Immigration Department, however, had completely "disappeared".

Everywhere Yong goes now, she only uses her driving licence as proof of identity because she is too embarrassed with her predicament.

She now feared that her "new status" would have serious repercussion on her sons and daughter.

Resource Development and Information Technology Assistant Minister, Donald Peter Mojuntin who helped highlight Yong's case, said if it could happen to her, the children's citizenship could also be withdrawn.

"There has never been a case like this before when genuine Malaysians had their citizenship cancelled. If this can happen to her, it can happen to anybody (Malaysians)," he said.

As Upko Bureau Chief for Citizenship and Security, the Moyog Assemblyman said he would be pursuing the matter with Sabah NRD Director and also with the Home Minister.

He said that for the NRD to admit their mistake and then asking Yong to reapply for citizenship is simply illogical.

Race and prejudice in Malaysia - Malaysiakini

2008-09-26T20:36:00.002+08:00

So, it is not as one assumes it would be, huh? Things are definitely not right in Malaysia.

Race and prejudice in Malaysia

The TehTarik sessions are the brainchild of a group of young Malaysians at Cambridge University who desired a non-partisan platform to foster open discussion on burning issues. Sessions are open to all as long as they have a shared passion for Malaysia. The following is based on the discussion that took place over a hot cup of self-made teh tarik.

The all-too-familiar tourism advertising gimmicks portray Malaysia as a multi-cultural and pluralistic society, an emerging democracy where people of all cultures, races, and religions live and prosper together; a society where cultural differences are honoured and enduring ideals of humanity can thrive. However, how far do these perceptions differ from the reality of the Malaysian social fabric?

In Malaysia, the third question succeeding name and gender is almost always regarding race. We are identified by our race and the fact is, for better or for worse, the concept has been institutionalised. Though possibly relevant historically, the current generation must ask whether these institutionalised concepts are still appropriate.

At the time of independence when races served different economic functions, leaders would have envisioned the country moving away from such divisive concepts. But looking back 51 years on, it seems that divisions have persisted and we have still not moved forward.

Notwithstanding the methodological limitations of opinion polls, the results of the Merdeka Centre poll on race relations reveal a lack of understanding, poor interaction and strong stereotypes across races.

A mere 36% of Chinese respondents as compared to 89% of Malay respondents said they understand Malay culture. Interestingly, 84% of Chinese respondents thought that Hari Raya Puasa is a Malay New Year celebration.

With regards to stereotypes, 60% of Chinese and Malay respondents agreed that Malays are lazy. 60% of Chinese and Malay respondents agreed that Indians cannot be trusted as compared to 20% of Indian respondents. A majority of Chinese and Malay respondents agreed that the Chinese are greedy.

The conceptions of racial groupings have often been controversial for scientific as well as social and political reasons. While the general consensus favours a biological basis for such divisions, it is possible for a Chinese to be genetically further apart from a fellow Chinese than a Malay.

Furthermore, the definitions of race have been fluid. For example, whilst Arabs may be considered Malays in Malaysia, they would be Arabic in origin.

Take the path of most resistance

Race concepts have been reinforced throughout the colonial era and used as powerful organising tools for western governments. In Rwanda, divisions between the Tutsis and Hutus were non-existent until the arrival of the Belgians, who started classifying them according to the size of their anatomies.

Unlike ethnically Malay countries such as the Philippines and Indonesia where races are not rigidly defined within the confines of religion, the definition of Malay is uniquely enshrined in the Malaysian constitution as a Muslim who speaks Malay and practices Malay customs.

Nevertheless, the term bumiputera has never been formally defined in any official documents. The late Tunku Abdul Rahman in his answer to the parliamentary debate of November 1965 stated that the term had no legal meaning except to denote the natives of Malaya and the Borneo states, Chinese and Indians who have been born locally for several generations, and natives less able to compete with others.

He was eventually pressured to accept the definition which excluded all Chinese and Indians, a concept used politically. Subsequently, the Malays and bumiputeras possess special rights under the constitution. However, the constitution is equivocal as to whether the rights are permanent or remedial and transitional. It is also silent on the time frame. These are contentious issues at the core of race relations in Malaysia.

Studies suggest a cultural basis for race where segregation stems from perception and evolves through differences that are humanly defined.

When the Americans first arrived in Japan, they perceived the Japanese as lazy. Probably there was no economic reason to be hard working in a then slow-paced and isolated Japan. Today, the stereotypes pertaining to Japan are anything but lazy. Similarly, any form of racial stereotypes should not be accepted by Malaysians as a given but as a man-made construct or misconstruct.

Perhaps the way forward for racial integration is the path of most resistance. Perhaps everyone should be compelled to learn the all the languages of other races in schools to facilitate greater understanding amongst races. This is not impossible if we look at countries such as Switzerland where citizens are fluent in three official languages.

Also, education curricula should be revised to provide an impartial perspective of subjects such as history. The original objectives of the New Economic Policy (NEP) to help the needy regardless of race should be strongly advocated and not manipulated to the whims and fancies of certain parties.

We’re suspicious of one another

The problem of racial strife is that of perception. Remedies suggested have always involved major political changes which are beyond the reach of any one individual. However, we need not be too ambitious and underestimate our roles in the civil society. The fact is not so much that there exists interracial animosity but that we are suspicious of one another.

This is partly because we did not have the opportunities to develop friendships with people of other races at the personal level. Many are brought up from a mono-racial background and attend vernacular schools. Instead of defining ourselves against other races, we should endeavour to place ourselves through the lenses of the other races and empathise with their situation. The quid pro quo approach would be the first step to racial integration.

For the non-Malay, would you be willing to sacrifice your special rights if you were Malay? For the Malay, would you give up vernacular schools if you were non-Malay?

It is argued that one cannot discuss racial issues without touching on the ill-fated May 13 incident. Although politicians have taken the stance of ignoring the big elephant in the room, perhaps the only way we can solve the problem of interracial distrust and suspicion is by digging out and examining old skeletons. The question is, are we willing to be objective or do we continue to have a chip on our shoulder?

JOSHUA CHU and MOHAMMAD A HAMID anchored this session. Chu is an alumnus of St John’s College. Mohammad is an engineer by training, currently taking one year off from work to pursue masters degree after 10 years in the industry. Interests include voluntary work with young people and writing.

WILLIAM TAN edited this article. He is currently reading chemical engineering. An arts and music enthusiast who plays the piano during his leisure, Tan also takes interest in and discusses passionately about economical, political and social issues pertaining to Malaysia.

Ghana: Don't go to Malaysia - Malaysiakini

2008-09-26T20:23:00.003+08:00

Malaysia: Not A Country To Go

In the wake of recent serial killings and severe discrimination of the Africans by mainly the Malaysians I wish to advice my fellow Africans who were made to believe that Malaysia is a “humble” destination for foreigners to consider Malaysia as “not a place to go”. Malaysia appeared to be a country of mixed races namely, the Malays, Indians, and the Chinese. One would expect that there should be high degree of racial tolerance. One would also expect that Africans or foreigners in general should be tolerated under normal circumstances. We once heard of our own Kofi Anan urging other countries to emulate Malaysia due to her racial harmony. I wish to tell him and all Africans that “she” cannot be our role model. We should not forget that a country that is racially harmonious must tolerate people from all walks of life. Malaysia is not such a place, this is due to the fact that (1) Africans are regarded as social misfits (2) we are not protected by the law and (3) we don’t have job security.

SOCIAL MISFITS

The African had been and continues to be a “nuisance” in the eyes and minds of the citizens of Malaysia, not excluding the police personnel. Do not be astonished if you realize that the moment they see any black color from Africa he or she is perceived to be a criminal. Their conclusion is that all blacks are criminals. This perception was long ago infused in their minds by the media. The media always portray the negative and the deplorable states as well as the conflict zones of Africa. The youth always refer to us as “Negros”. These very bad remarks ended in the painful death of many Africans in Malaysia. In the recent periods two Nigerians were poisoned in a restaurant, a Yemeni guy lost 3 fingers as he was trying to block a knife that was aimed at his chest, 2 Egyptians were asked by some locals to give whatever they have, when they refused, a fight broke out and all the locals at that area came to fight the Egyptians without knowing the reason!!! Another Egyptian was robbed of RM4000 and beaten up. In Melati Utama, bikers usually rampage the net cafes from time to time with knifes and baseball sticks frightening the people in it and taking whatever they have. These are just very few of the cases.

Let me give you a recent case in Wangsa Maju that has led to the untimely death of an African student from Chad. African undergraduate, HELP University College, Abdel Aziz Hassan Abdraman, 22, (his picture shown above) was brutally murdered just because of his color.

On Saturday, there was a mob attack by some 20 youths wielding metal rods, sticks and knives on 10 African undergraduates in Wangsa Maju which landed in his death and injured the rest, they were unjustly harassed and mocked by the youths for four consecutive days before the attack. The youths even went up to their Tar Villa apartment and demanded money and cigarettes. According to the students and as reported by the Malaysian Newspaper ”Malay Mail” the drama unfolded when three undergraduates were on the way to board the LRT to perform “terawih” prayers (long prayers by the Muslims after they have broken their fasting) at a nearby mosque at 8.30pm.

They were confronted by some 20 youths who were believed to have hurled abuse at them (they called them Negros) and demanded money.

When the trio ignored them and walked away, the youths, carrying switch blades, pursued them and struck one of them on the head.

The students took refuge at the LRT (Train Station) and sought assistance from their African friends living nearby.

Seven of their friends, including Abdel Aziz, went to their aid and together they went back to where the trio was attacked.

Abdel Aziz’s cousin, Abdraman Moussa Mohamat, 23, said: “We asked the youths who were seated at the stalls why they had attacked our friends but they came for us suddenly without saying a word.

“We ran for our lives when they began swinging metal rods, sticks and knives at us. In the fracas, Abdel Aziz was stabbed from the back.”

POLICE CONFIRMATION

The police confirmed that the victims had been regularly ridiculed by the youths who expressed their displeasure at the increasing presence of Africans in the neighbourhood.

BUT WHAT WAS THE REACTION OF THE POLICE?

Sentul district police Chief Assistant Commissioner Zakaria Pagan told Malay Mail that initial investigations revealed that the attack stemmed from the uneasiness of the residents over the behavior (increasing umber of students) of the Africans.

Therefore:

“We believe the youths who attacked the Africans wanted to teach them a lesson to behave themselves in public.”

What a shit?

WHAT ABOUT THE TAXI DRIVERS?

All the taxi drivers categorically refused to pick up the boy when he was injured. Within 15 minutes all the taxis DROVE AWAY without even stopping. It was not a surprise since they always don’t want to pick up blacks. You may be at a taxi station waiting hours while there are taxis available but will refuse to go just because you are a black man.

It is clear in all material respect that Africans are treated like animals and must not live together with “them” in the society. Discrimination we acknowledge is everywhere but not to this extent. I could remember the very first time I arrived in Malaysia, right at the airport people distanced themselves far away from me as I approach them. I could not ask anyone for direction. It was a foreigner who rescued me. In the classroom, Malaysians sit far away from us unless they have no choice. Lecturers themselves who were suppose to be agents of change follow the same suit when marking our papers. We work very hard to achieve excellent results and they try very hard to making sure that we land in futility. They do not want us to outcompete the local students. We thank God, despite all odds we do emerge as the best of all in all.

INSECURITY

The security system in Malaysia is well designed and perfectly carved to protect the Malays. We foreigners have no security. Anytime we have a dispute it always goes against us. Any case reported to the police is discarded if the Malaysian is found to be guilty. “We believe the youths who attacked the Africans wanted to teach them a lesson to behave themselves in public.” You teach us a lesson by killing us? The police records will prove that about 99% of the reported cases were initiated by the Malays. Many were arrested for a crime they did not commit. The only misbehavior as they claim is that we blacks talk loudly thus disturbing them. Therefore, as the number of students increases they feel uneasy.

I urge all prospective students who wish to study here to reconsider their decisions. Malaysia is not a suitable atmosphere for education due to intense discrimination and insecurity. It has the entire physical infrastructure needed to facilitate learning but the student’s mind is constantly occupied by security concerns. Almost every month, if not a week, a student must die like an animal without any concern by the government of Malaysia. The worse of it all is that the African embassies in all these cases voiced not. We did not know before we stepped in. Now you know make a wise decision. Our lives worth nothing in the face of their security personnel. Some of us may not see our families and loved ones in the years to come if still in Malaysia. Some dropped their studies prematurely and went away just to feel secured.

JOB INSECURITY

For those who came here in the name of job and went back home within some days will bear us witness. It is very difficult to secure a job. Once you are through you could be dismissed anytime unnoticed. They don’t just trust foreign workers. Jobs that they consider as demanding, dirty, risky, and dangerous to their lives were those given to foreigners. Examples are working in the petrol shell, shopping malls etc. Just this month, the government came out with a decision to have a zero percent of foreign workers in these areas. Hence, the companies in the mentioned areas were told to terminate the contracts of all foreign workers since the Malaysians are now ready to work. On top of that, all foreign companies in Malaysia are now required to employ only locals with narrow space for the foreigner.

In fact students here face difficulties to getting companies for their industrial training. Not because of our academic inability. We have the potential. We usually turned back to our nations if affordable for the training. Master and PhD students in most cases have no choice than to teach in the primary and Junior high schools. The lucky ones may get senior high schools which otherwise they will not have accepted if at home. Exceptional cases may lead some of them to university level.

In a nutshell, let us not again risk our lives to travel all the way from Africa to Malaysia for education or in search of jobs. Let us stay where our dignity is respected, where our minds find rest, and where our blood will not be shed just because of our color. LET’S LOVE OUR HOME COUNTRY AND WORK TOWARDS MAKING IT A BETTER DESTINATION AS IT HAS ALWAYS BEEEN. STAY IN AFRICA… FOREIGN AFRICAN STUDENTS AND SCHOLARS SHOULD GO BACK TO AFRICA AFTER STUDIES TO SHARE THEIR TALENT.

African in Malaysia qarsumi@yahoo.com

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/diaspora/artikel.php?ID=150654

Lose MyKad, lose citizenship! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-26T09:44:00.001+08:00

She lost MyKad, now citizenship gone too

PENAMPANG: At 78, Yong Lee Hua alias Piang Lin's life as a Malaysian has been put on hold.

She is no longer recognised as a Malaysian citizen after losing her MyKad to a pickpocket last year.

The National Registration Department replaced her lost MyKad with a red identity card -- that for permanent residents -- though she was born and raised in Sabah,

Yong is now unable to withdraw money from her bank or Amanah Saham Nasional accounts, transfer land to her children or renew her passport to travel -- something she has been wanting to do since her husband of 60 years died a few months ago.

"I was born in Kampung Mahandoi (about 5km from here), grew up, got married and bore eight children here. The eldest is 58 years old and the youngest is 32. But suddenly, I am stateless," she said at her home in Kampung Nosoob.
Yong, of Sino-Kadazan parentage, had appealed to the National Registration Department for a MyKad but was told to apply for citizenship.

She obliged, although not quite understanding why she had to when she was already a citizen.

Yong sought the help of Moyog assemblyman Donald Mojuntin, to solve her predicament and "reclaim" her citizenship.

Mojuntin heads the United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation party's citizenship and security bureau. He said he would seek an appointment with the NRD director to help resolve the matter.

He will also ask Upko president Tan Sri Bernard Dompok to bring up the matter with the Home Ministry.

He questioned the department's rigid stance and their failure to find out why someone with an identity card and a passport could be stripped of citizenship and made a permanent resident.

A Mission to revitalise MCA - Malaysiakini

2008-09-26T09:01:00.003+08:00

UMNO's Best Friend

UMNO wants someone who will do anything to please them, get MCA.

UMNO wants someone who will do their biddings, get MCA.

UMNO wants someone who'll make a total fool of himself because he's so glad to see the master, get MCA.

UMNO wants someone who eats whatever they put in front of him and never says his mother made it better, get MCA.

UMNO wants someone who's always eager to go out any time they ask and anywhere they want to go, get MCA.

UMNO wants someone who'll be content just to snuggle up to keep them warm in bed, and who they can kick out of bed if he slobbers and snores, get MCA.

UMNO wants someone who never criticizes anything they do, doesn't care how good or bad they look, acts as though every word they say is worth hearing, never complains, and loves them unconditionally all the time, get MCA.

On the other hand, MCA's Best Friend

UMNO never comes when they call him, totally ignores them when he walks in the room, messes up the place, walks all over them and expects a gratitude for friending them.

So, it's time to rethink. It's a mission to revitalise MCA.

And to quote, Q & A between Eileen Ng and Ong Tee Keat,

Q: You are well-known for disdaining the cai tan (menu) culture, while outgoing president Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting had tried to stamp it out. Yet, the cai tan culture is still alive in the party.

A: I hate it. The cai tan culture is an insult to the delegates' intelligence. Normally, it is just a list of endorsed numbers representing certain candidates without any information on the candidates' background, vision or experience. It is like asking delegates to vote blindly.

However, I have no problems with initiatives aimed at either introducing or recommending candidates, but it must come with basic information so that delegates know who they are voting for.

And ah! What did the joke about God creating the dog sez?

On the first day of creation, God created the dog.

On the second day, God created man to serve the dog.

On the third day, God created all the animals of the Earth to serve as potential food for the dog.

On the fourth day, God created honest toil so that man could labour for the good of the dog.

On the fifth day, God created the tennis ball so that the dog might or might not retrieve it.

On the sixth day, God created veterinary science to keep the dog healthy and the man broke.

On the seventh day, God tried to rest, but He had to walk the dog.

Moral of the story? Dogs will always be dogs!

A super-duper Brilliant Idea! Gaji Buta - Malaysiakini

2008-09-25T18:48:00.002+08:00

To what extent will this Kanasai Gomen go to prove its idiocy and its inability to govern the nation? RM3 million a month in Gaji Buta hiring housewives and students to supplement the existing enforcement officers to monitor the prices of goods?

Now, the law states that all sellers must display the prices of goods, failing which, actions can be taken. Correct? Isn't it simpler and more effective to impose on the sellers to display a price list of controlled items in a visible signboard displaying a complain number for the consumers to call to complain?

It is already mentioned in this news article that the Meru wet market has a booth for consumers to lodge complain. Not enough? Or is something missing? Is it because consumers do not know the ceiling prices of price controlled items? If so, even a kid can tell you that you simply need to get the sellers to comply to display a list together with the telephone numbers to call. Better still, like the Meru wet market, have a booth!

So, RM3 million in gaji buta, huh? These so-called undercover agents only need to report IF they uncover (or discover) irregularities. Any guarantee they will be working? Who monitors them?

By the way, the list of price controlled items only totals 17 items! For goodness sake, you asked the rakyat to change lifestyle and you waste good money?

Damn it! Force the hypermarkets and wet markets and every goddamned market to display a list of the 17 items with their ceiling prices. This also educate the consumers who will immediately realise IF and WHEN they are cheated!

Kanasai! This is what a Kanasai Gomen looks like ....

Enforcer housewives on the prowl

By EDWARD RAJENDRA

KLANG: Their worst nightmare is about to be unleashed on errant traders at wet markets and hypermarkets -- housewives and university students working undercover for the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry.

Overcharging is more likely to appear on the “radar” of housewives and university students who usually work on a shoestring budget.

As such, for the Ramadan period, the ministry has enlisted 2,000 housewives and university students nationwide on an annual contract with a montly allowance of RM1,500.

Ministry director-general (Enforce-ment) Mohd Roslan Mahayudin said housewives and students were ideal as the ministry’s eyes and ears to identify traders looking to make quick profits during the festive season.

The “undercover agents” who responded to an advertisement in a local newspaper were chosen after extensive interviews in March, he said.

Housewives and students are more conscious of prices because most of them visit markets or hypermarkets at least twice a week.

From now until Oct 8, they will take note of prices while doing their marketing and report if there are any irregularities, he said, adding that under the price control scheme 17 items have a ceiling price.

“For example, a kilo of red chillies is priced at RM10 and if they sell it for more, we will issue a maximum fine of RM7,500 per offence,” he said.

Earlier, Roslan conducted a check on prices of fresh produce and sundry items at the Meru wet market here together with an enforcement team of 30.

He was satisfied that traders had complied with the price ruling and commented that some even sold their items below the ceiling price.

“We also have a booth at the Meru wet market for consumers to lodge complaints if they feel items are priced unfairly.

“Our aim is to protect consumers. We also urge consumers to compare prices with hypermarkets before buying,” he said.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/9/25/nation/2110386&sec=nation

Murugiah tells Syed Botak Hamid to shut up - Malaysiakini

2008-09-25T18:44:00.003+08:00

Ah ha .... we have another one here who dares tell Syed Botak Hamid to shut up!

Murugiah to Syed Hamid: It IS my business

By CHRISTINA TAN

KLANG: Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department T. Murugiah has hit back at Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar for asking him not to “interfere” in his ministry.

Murugiah said he was surprised to hear such comments from a senior minister because he was merely doing his duty -- attending to complaints and solving problems.

“His statement asking me not to interfere in other people’s affairs is asking me and 270 staff in the Public Complaints Bureau to close shop.

“The bureau has received an average of 180 complaints about each ministry from January to August, and how can I do my job if I can’t ‘interfere’ in another ministry?” he said.

“The Public Complaints Bureau is above all ministries when it comes to handling complaints,” he said after visiting SJK (T) Batu Ampat in Jalan Kota Raja here on Thursday.

Syed Hamid was reported as saying that it was inappropriate for Murugiah to interfere in the affairs of another ministry.

He also said that Murugiah’s action in speaking on behalf of Seputeh MP Teresa Kok on complaints she was not served proper meals while in detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA) was akin to being a “spokesman for the Opposition.”

Murugiah added that Syed Hamid should talk to him directly instead of making comments publicly.

“I’m trying to do something good for the general public, treating everyone fairly regardless whether the complaints are from the Government, the Opposition or members of the public.

“As a junior minister, I will always accept with a open heart if he (Syed Hamid) would like to guide me or show me the best way to do my job,” he said.

This is the second time Syed Hamid has hit out at his Barisan Nasional colleagues for “interfering” with his ministry.

Earlier this month, he slammed Barisan leaders for criticising his decisionto detain three civilians -- including Kok -- under the ISA

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/9/25/nation/20080925163018&sec=nation

The Kanasai Gomen We Have - Malaysiakini

2008-09-25T16:20:00.004+08:00

The first thing that comes to the mind of many when Najib cancelled his trip to New York to make his maiden speech at the United Nations assembly was that something had happened. But what? That's where the minds begin to play tricks. Speculations rule the day.

Accordingly, his office issued a statement that it is due to the current global economic situation which requires his attention to ensure the country's economy stays strong. How strong is strong? How weak is weak? What's the current health of our economy.

It was reported that RM125 Billion had taken flight out of the country. What? Wow! Don't pray pray ah, I tell you. That's what Phua Chu Kang would say.

We are equally concerned about this flight of funds. We had witnessed how such situation could wreak havoc on an economy ten years ago that was dubbed 'The Asian Financial Crisis'. But the current phenomenon is only limited to Malaysia and it is doubtful that it will spread to regional countries.

Concerned, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development World Investment Report 2008 said that FDI outflow in Malaysia surpassed inflow by RM8.99 Billion in 2007.

FDI outflow? This is almost never unheard of until recently. A scary scene, Malaysia is the odd one out within the 10-member Asean trading bloc! Economist Dr Lim Teck Ghee told Malaysiakini that 'this could perhaps be a sign of a prolonge lack of confidence in the government and its economic policies'.

Hear that? A sign of lack of confidence. So while Anwar Ibrahim and Pakatan Rakyat is trying to get this flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister to convene an emergency Parliament session so that the vote of no-confidence could be tabled, foreigners are already casting their votes!

The latest news, Transparency International today called on this UMNO government to free all ISA detainees or risk further foreign investments. Whatever happened to Justice Bao that was promoted to the rakyat back in 2004? MCA sold this flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister to the electorate and the people at large that Badawi, dubbed Mr Clean, as Justice Bao.

A lot of people were taken in in the 2004 General Elections, including the famous blogger now turned MP, Jeff Ooi who voted for BN. Yes, how easily the rakyat were duped into believing such a corny idea.

Immediately after Badawi was announced and appointed as a DPM, he came to my hometown, Muar. It couldn't have been an official visit as he visited his buddy at his private home. Some leeches who are friends of his buddy took advantage of the situation and managed to get some close up shots of them together.

The picture made its way to a Chinese Daily. Yes, framed up, hanging on the wall, it makes a statement of whoever is in the picture pictured with this flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister. That also made me recall how another businessman whom I went to Indonesia with during the height of the Asian Financial Crisis ten years ago. He had in his folder a picture of him with the then President Suharto. A picture is a statement, more powerful than the status of a Datuk!

Shortly after, this buddy of his met with an accident along the Plus highway and was warded at Pantai Hospital. Yep, Badawi took time off to pay him a personal visit. This ain't any secret to the people in this sleepy hollow.

People began to speculate how this buddy of his will reap benefits out of the 'strange relationship between politics and business'. Oh pardon me, in Malaysia, there's no such word as 'strange' when it comes to politics and business. If Jeff Ooi were to be reading this part, I'm sure he'd recall that these were the similar comments I left in his blog.

Anyway, somewhere along the way, calls were made to remove chicken from the list of controlled items. That was in March 2008. Three months later in June, Badawi's administration removed chicken from the list of controlled items. The RM6.00 per kg ceiling was abolished!

I wasn't blogging then but on the same news article, it gives us a perfect view of the mentality that our Ministers are made of. We have had enough laughters from Syed Botak's infamous ISA jokes but that one was from Shahrir!

"Since the country produces more chicken than it needs, it would no longer be SUBSIDISED"!

"The poultry industry has always operated on a commercial basis and that the ceiling price regime was unfairly imposed on producers in the ABSENCE OF SUBSIDIES from the Government".

The above statements, one was uttered by Shahrir while another was by Kwei Yew Tong, FLFAM's broiler unit chairman. I'm sure any one of you can pick out who said what.

Anyway, this sparks the spiralling cost of living as chicken is considered the cheapest meat that is consumed across the races. This was one of the factors that led to inflation so much so that we've hit record high of 8.5%, a first in 27 years. Meanwhile, The Star carries a news flash that Leong Hup sales will surpass the RM1 Billion mark in FY2009.

The rakyat suffers. Who gains? As in the case of the so-called fuel subsidy, read again what I posted earlier and you would again realise that a weak Ringgit benefits the government in terms of OIL profits while the rakyat is forced to fork out more to travel from point A to point B. I'm not just talking about vehicle owners but those who take public transportations too. Many things could've been avoided to lessen the burden of the rakyat but this strange kanasai government which practises rent is the reason why the rakyat are made to suffer.

Gajah same gajah lawan, pelanduk mati di tengah-tengah. That about sums up what's happening to this country that has gone to the dogs today.

Day after day, we are kept on our toes to know what's going on and to know what's happening and how this nation is moving ahead. The picture is cloudy, very very cloudy indeed. As a matter of fact, now that Anwar Ibrahim has dismisses 'deadline' for taking over as the government of the day, it is Najib's turn to keep us in suspense as he ain't answering any questions. His only commitments are that 'political questions will only be answered tomorrow' after the UMNO's supreme council emergency meeting tomorrow.

To the rakyat, they are already burdened with this spiralling high cost of living and they work hard to make ends meet. Some even wonder if they can afford to put a decent meal on the table to feed mouths.

As Hari Raya approaches, I see a lack of pelita brightening up the night. To some Muslims, this could be the bleakest Hari Raya celebrations they ever celebrated. And while they try to put up the best, UMNO neglects them.

What exactly does the future hold for everybody? Will Anwar Ibrahim and Pakatan Rakyat work harder and faster to butt-out this UMNO government and bring back the spark of life to the people?

To the Muslims, I wish you 'Selamat Berpuasa'.

7 words and an acronym to describe BN - Malaysiakini

2008-09-25T14:03:00.003+08:00

What 7 words can one think of to describe this BN government? Hmm....

Kleptomaniac

Abase

Narrowband

Abash

Sadist

Absurd

Idiot

Hah! There you are. That also makes the acronym KANASAI!

That's our BN government ... KANASAI!

Jokessssss of the Day - Malaysiakini

2008-09-25T13:06:00.003+08:00

When was the last time that one gets an overdose of jokes reading the news? I can't recall a better day when jokes were abundant, all in a day's reading! Here you go, the jokes of today. Roll, roll, roll .... we start with ....

"He (Saiful) is in good condition" - Zamri Idrus, Saiful's lawyer.

Yes, this is the Saiful who claimed that his sorry arse was sodomised by the elderly man with an backache, Anwar Ibrahim. A doctor had earlier examined him and found his sorry arse in good condition.

If that doesn't top the chart, upon public outcry that what would have the Malaysian government done if Singapore's AVA had not made public its findings and to ban the tainted products containing Melamine, our Health Minister chips in .....

"We were quicker than Singapore in banning products from China and expanding our scope" - Health Minister Liow Liow Tiong Tiong Lai.

Instead of displaying the list of products that you declare 'safe', how about giving us a list that you have declared 'not safe'? I wouldn't want to go to a hypermarket carrying a long list to check if the product I'm buying is in the list. I would prefer a short list that will quickly highlight the tainted products that are 'not safe'. But well, this is Malaysian way of doings things.

Then come the battle between Muhyiddin and KJ as to who is funnier ......

"We want UMNO to continue to be respect not only by the Malays, but by all the rakyat" - Muhyiddin.

"I will be a leader for all Malaysians" - the famous SIL, Khairy Jamaluddin.

Even among the Malays, is UMNO respected? If not, don't-lah assume the rakyat! And this KJ will be a leader for all Malaysians? Hello, were we born yesterday, huh?

Finally, the best joke among them all ... the OSCAR winner today ....

"What is important is we did not ask for the women. He supplied them to us. If people sedekah (donate), don't you want to accept the sedekah?" - Zul Hassan.

Wow! What can I say? I had earlier blogged about arrogance before assuming power and now I'm hearing news! In the event that these buggers are proven to be guilty of corruption, will they rephrase "what is important is we did not ask for the money. He supplied them to us. If people sedekah, don't you want to accept the sedekah?"

That's not all, try to digest this piece of news. IF you are a trader and your supplier supplies you with goods costing RM11, at what price would you sell? The controlled price is RM11.50!

A ministry official told traders that they have NO CONTROL over suppliers but they have CONTROL over the traders! That means, if the suppliers were to sell to the traders at prices close to or beyond controlled prices, the ministry can't lift a finger to charge the suppliers but will not hesitate to take actions against the traders.

Oops, head I win, tail you lose .... and it is this example that gives rise to suspicion why the Health Ministry isn't releasing a list of tainted products unsafe for consumption rather than providing us a very very long list of products that are safe to consume.

Will I buy any of those dairy products? If in Singapore, yes, I would. Right here in Malaysia? I'm afraid there's a crisis, a confidence crisis, and I ain't betting my luck on it!

ID-Ten-T problem that plague Malaysians - Malaysiakini

2008-09-24T19:09:00.006+08:00

"The recent fall in world oil prices plus the weakening Ringgit gave the government a window of opportunity to lower pump prices (of fuel)".

So sez flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister Badawi. How is it justified? How are pump prices derived? Well, that's a protected secret within the Finance Ministry and to hold it could mean being charged under OSA.

Are we being taken for a ride? Have the UMNO government been treating us as fools who can't calculate? Is there something called a fuel subsidy today as claimed by Shahrir, the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister? In due time, readers, you will see how this minister is lying through his teeth!

How does currency fluctuations affect the pump prices of fuel? Is Shahrir trying to hide from the fact that a money flight away from the country has deep impact on the nation, especially in the current issue of fuel. RM125Billion flying away from Malaysia is not a small thing that we can close one eye to.

The Ringgit had strengthened to about RM3.15 to the greenback recently only to weaken again to the current level of about RM3.42. Let's play with some maths. But before that, let us also remember that crude oil had retreated to about US90.55 lately.

As the price of crude fluctuates daily, we shall use an average price. Ok, fine, simple calculation. Average of 90 and 120 makes 105, and that's about the current trade price of crude oil at this moment.

So, we shall have 2 sets of calculations. One at RM3.15 while the other at RM3.42. And we shall contra the claimed subsidy of 33 sen against the cost of refining, transportation, commission etc, at 32 sen. Fair huh?

@RM3.15
US105 X RM3.15 / 159 = RM2.08

@RM3.42
US105 X RM3.42 / 159 = RM2.26

Clearly, due to the difference in exchange rate, there's a difference about 18sen!

Next, have we forgotten that we are a nett oil exporter? That means, we are profiting from oil. Let's do some simple maths how we earn from fluctuations in exchange rates once more. At the end of the day, what matters is that, as seller, the cash comes back home. That means, the end results of the transaction would be Ringgit.

Again, we use RM3.15 and RM3.42. Let's assume crude oil remains stagnant and is fixed at US100 after our great UMNO government manages to peg both the Ringgit and control the price of crude oil! (hahahaha)

At US100 per barrel, the end result of cash flowing back to this land called Malaysia, taking into account the fluctuation of currencies, and using the two figures above, it is clear that a weak Ringgit favours the seller, which is, Malaysia.

So, on the one hand, a weak Ringgit favours the country but does it work the same way for the consumers who happen to be the rakyat, the boss?

Not enough evidence that we're being taken for a ride? Let's look at pump prices in United States.

Current pump price for different grades are;

Ron 98 : USD 3.32 / gal
Ron 95 : USD 3.21 / gal
Ron 92 : USD 3.02 / gal

Now, don't let the figures deceive you. That's what the UMNO government wants you to. First, we must remember that oil is tax-free in Malaysia while in the United States, the average taxation per gallon of fuel is USD0.494. Average because different state in America imposes different tax rate.

So, let's adjust the pump price of fuel deducting the tax.

Ron 98 : USD 2.826
Ron 95 : USD 2.716
Ron 92 : USD 2.526

America practises free trade and therefore I deem this the best comparison to our local pump prices of fuel. So next step, 1 US gallon equals 3.785 litres. What fuel grades available locally is Ron 97 and Ron 92 and therefore we drop Ron 95. However, bear in mind that Ron98 is higher grade than Ron 97. We shall use the current exchange rate of RM3.42 to a greenback.

Therefore, pump price of the said fuel in a free market, the United States of America are;

Ron98: USD2.826 / 3.785 = USD0.7466 per litre or RM2.55 per litre

Ron92: USD2.526 / 3.785 = USD0.667 per litre or RM2.28 per litre

Ah ha! clearer now? Let's compare these prices from a free market to our Malaysian market that is claimed to be subsidised:

Ron98: USA (RM2.55) vs Malaysia (RM2.45)

Ron92: USA (RM2.28) vs Malaysia (RM2.30)

Does anyone of you see something? Is there something wrong?

Kanasai! As it is, it looks like after a subsidy of 33 sen, our Ron92 is more expensive than in America!

And maybe, just maybe, if the funds did not take flight from Malaysia to a tune of RM125Billion and that the Ringgit didn't weaken, supposing that it stays at about RM2.20 .... well??

The UMNO government always tells us that this is an ID-Ten-T problem and the people swallow everything A to Z. Hey people, wake up!

ID-Ten-T is simply ID10T if you replace the TEN with numerals!

Kanasai! This ain't subsidy! This is cheat!

10 sen? Kannimbeh, sial! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-24T18:30:00.002+08:00

Is that it? Only 10 sen reduction in fuel price? At the time of blogging, crude oil is at US107.91 per barrel having fallen to recent lows of about US90.00 per barrel.

And what reasons did this flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister give? "The recent fall in world oil prices plus the weakening Ringgit gave the government a window of opportunity to lower pump prices".

Hey, you BN genius economists were the ones who said that fuel price hikes will not affect the economy nor will it affect inflation. Yeah, buah pelir engkau! Look at the inflation spike in relation to the fuel hike in June:

May: 3.2%

June: 7.7%

July: 8.3% (revised downwards from 8.5% by Department of Statistics)

August: 8.5%

Kannimbeh, sial!

I've blogged earlier about the price expectations of pump prices and I'm angry that this price reduction is meagre. I expected something like a 30 to 40 sen reduction. Don't you BN arses try to bluff about subsidy again. I simply don't believe a subsidy exist today, at current pump prices!

The faster BN falls the merrier!

Kannimbeh, sial!!!

We Are All Pendatangs (3) - Malaysiakini

2008-09-24T11:33:00.001+08:00

Humans have been journeying for thousands of years, arriving in new lands in migratory waves. “All humans are ultimately Africans because our last common ancestor lived in Africa about 200,000 years ago,” said Dr Jiao.

In that sense, regardless of ethnicity, we are all descendants of migrants.

Common roots

ZIYING'S BRUSH

In the remote past, Tanshishan was home to the ancestors of the Malays and Polynesians.

THE late 19th and early 20th centuries were a peak immigration period for old Malaya when the forefathers of most Malaysians of Chinese descent came to the country seeking refuge from dire circumstances in their native land.

The Indians and other minorities too, have their own poignant stories. All these immigrants suffered unspeakable hardships and made immeasurable contributions to their adopted land.

For a long time, it was posited that the early ancestors of the Malays migrated south from what is now China’s Yunnan province. That there might yet be an additional source, also in China, of the peoples of archipelagic South-East Asia is perhaps less well-known, but is now widely accepted by anthropologists who consider coastal south-eastern China the original homeland of the Austronesians, a grouping which, of course, includes the Malays.

Songxia: The ancestors of the Austronesians may have left long ago, but some coastal Fujianese still rely on the sea for their livelihood

Upon migration to Taiwan, these littoral people who were intrepid sea-farers dispersed throughout Oceania (Samoa, Hawaii, etc) as well as South-East Asia, eventually reaching the Malay Peninsula 2,500 years ago (Lost Maritime Cultures, Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu). Evidently the progenies of these peripatetic Austronesians became an integral part of modern Malaysia’s majority population.

Just an hour and a half from my grandfather’s village in Fujian and barely 20 minutes from the provincial capital Fuzhou is an archaeologically significant 5,000-year-old Austronesian site named Tanshishan, reportedly the most scrutinised in the region.

I first heard of it from Dr Tianlong Jiao of Honolulu’s Bishop Museum, whose research on Austronesians brings him frequently to Fujian which, he says, is one of the most important places for studying their origins.

A few months later, on a routine trip to my ancestral village, I visited the pre-historic location with Dr Jiao. A brand new museum comprising three separate buildings housing half a dozen galleries, as well as shops, restaurants and educational and multimedia facilities now sits on the 30,000sqm Tanshishan (Pond Rock Hill) site.

The busts of two proto-Austronesians - a male and a female modelled on excavated skulls - greet the visitor in the main building’s foyer. The female is strong-featured and full-lipped, appearing remarkably Polynesian (at least to my eyes), while the male looked much like the natives of Sabah and Sarawak.

The foyer leads to a gallery showcasing stone tools, cooking vessels and containers of thin ceramic.

“Some of these are as fine as 2.5mm,” said museum director Lin Gongwu, adding that they share similarities with artefacts found in Taiwan, which implies a pattern of cultural exchange and migration.

In the gallery on daily life, reconstructions of the early inhabitants show individuals perhaps 1.5m tall. As expected of littoral peoples, fish and shellfish were their dietary mainstay, supplemented by rice.

After our museum visit, Lin invited us to a lunch of local fare at a home-style eating place. Fresh seafood was the main feature, with steamed crabs, oyster omelette, fish, clams, shellfish and finally, a pot of soup with sweet, tender mussels easily 7cm or 8cm long. Looking at the spread before us, it occurred to me that we were eating the very same food that the Austronesians might have consumed four to five millennia ago, and probably at the very same spot.

When we arrived at Tanshishan, Lin and his team were in a flurry of last-minute preparations for the museum’s opening on June 14 and not all the exhibits were ready. The facility is completed now and I am told it is impressive.

Dr Jiao tells me there are a number of other locations in coastal Fujian where researchers are conducting studies on vanished nautical cultures. What is clear is that over the centuries and for whatever reasons, these populations left their homeland and eventually found new abodes across the seas, including in present-day Malaysia.

In that sense, regardless of ethnicity, we are all descendants of migrants.

Ziying can be reached at ziyingster@gmail.com

http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/9/24/lifefocus/2078202&sec=lifefocus

Dr Chandra Muzaffar! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-24T09:49:00.005+08:00

We are enlightened by T. Murugiah, a Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department that the daily allocation for food per detainee in a lock-up is a mere RM4.50 for;

Breakfast: RM0.60

Lunch: RM2.00

Dinner: RM1.90

Let us be frank about this. How much is a piece of roti canai today? What about a packet of nasi lemak? Or even the economy fried noodles? And oh, bread huh? How much is a loaf of bread today? Half a loaf?

Wow! Even if you give your school-going kids RM2.00 to buy food during recess, some of them will tell you that it's not enough!

As this Deputy Minister said, "a normal human being living in the city spends at least RM10 on meals a day", that's beyond a shadow of doubt.

Ok, now that I've highlighted in bold T Murugiah's words - human being - let's hear Chandra Muzaffar said;

Quoting The Star:

International Movement for a Just World (JUST) chair man Dr Chandra Muzaffar, said he was given normal food just like what he would have had at home during his 52-day detention.

Fool me thrice .... Malaysiakini

2008-09-23T17:54:00.002+08:00

Fool me once, shame on you.

Fool me twice, shame on me.

Fool me thrice ...

There isn't a third liner known. But this is a reminder to Anwar Ibrahim and Pakatan Rakyat that as the clock ticks away, time is running short for them to prove their credibility.

916. Postponed.

923. Postponed.

1001. This number itself is a bad sign. I hope Anwar and Pakatan Rakyat won't come out with 1001 excuses for not being able to meet this date.

The Honorable Quest to Save MCA - Malaysiakini

2008-09-23T10:39:00.002+08:00

The Honorable Quest to Save MCA - - = = - -

Warning .... Satire!

Be Wary of these Products - Malaysiakini

2008-09-23T08:37:00.009+08:00

Be Wary of these products that are taken off the shelves in Singapore. In addition to thepictured products, they are;

1. M&M

2. Snickers peanut bars

3. Dove chocolate bars

4. Oreo wafer sticks

5. Magnum mini classics ice cream

6. Monmilk milk

7. Walls Mini Poppers ice cream

Prevention is better than cure .......

Tainted Milk Products in Malaysia? - Malaysiakini

2008-09-23T08:14:00.003+08:00

2 days ago, I received a SMS which read:

Pls help to sms to others - FYI the following items hv been recalled due 2 China's milk scandal. M&M's, Snickers, Mento's yoghurt bottle, Dove choc, Oreo wafer sticks, Monmilk, Dutchlady sterilised milk, Wall's all natural mango, mini poppers ice cream, Magnum ice cream, Moosandwich ice cream, mini Cornetto n Youcan ice cream. Stores hv been asked by AVA Spore to remove them. If u hv any of these items @ home don't eat them.

My first thought was that it was a prank or at worse, just another rumour to strike fear into the hearts of consumers. Although this SMS came from my brother, I paid no heed. However, as I was catching some rest watching Charlie's Angels over Channel 5 (Singapore), I chanced a peek into a teaser about the upcoming news during a commercial. It was regards this SMS.

But I had to leave my couch to join my regular beer kakis. Hence I missed the news. But take a look at the news ... from Singapore ... And after reading it, compared to what's being done in Malaysia by our useless Health Minister! I sure am going to sacrifice some of my time today to visit some stores to find out if the items mentioned below that are banned by AVA in Singapore are on Malaysian shelves!

Be warned! And also remember to spit on our useless Health Minister if nothing is done to protect the health of the rakyat!

http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_281536.html

Wariness on China food

Many check labels amid concern over reach of contaminated milk

By Tessa Wong
		A shopper checking out dairy products at Sheng Siong's Tanglin Halt outlet to see if it was made in China. -- ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

AS RETAILERS pull Chinese dairy products from their shelves amid a widening contamination scandal, local shoppers are scrupulously checking labels and steering clear of China-made food and drinks.

Twenty-five of 30 shoppers polled at stores across the island said they were avoiding anything edible from China, including canned food and even toothpaste.

The wariness comes after the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) announced that a Yili yogurt ice bar, White Rabbit milk candy and Dutch Lady strawberry milk were tainted with melamine. They are among a growing list of China-made products found to contain the toxic chemical, which is normally found in plastics.

The discovery has shocked consumers here into vigilance. Nearly all who spoke to The Straits Times said they were paying more attention to food labels when they shop.

'I didn't use to be really aware of the origin of products, as long as the price was good and it wasn't past the expiry date. Now, I check the labels on all the food I buy,' said Mr Soumya Banerjee, 29, an information technology analyst.

Retailers have been purging food and drinks from China since the AVA last Friday stopped the sale and import of all milk and dairy products from China.

On Sunday, it called on stores to recall confectioneries and anything else that might include Chinese dairy products as an ingredient.

Most stores have been conducting triage on their stocks since last Friday, first pulling China-made milk and dairy products, then confectioneries off the shelves, and finally tracking down suppliers to determine if food made elsewhere included Chinese dairy products.

It is believed that the process of nailing down the origin of ingredients could take days.

Supermarket chains FairPrice, Cold Storage, Giant and Shop N Save, along with convenience stores Cheers and 7-Eleven, have each yanked dozens of products from their shelves.

The list includes M&Ms, Snickers peanut bars, Dove chocolate bars, Oreo wafer sticks, Magnum mini classics ice cream, Monmilk milk and Walls Mini Poppers ice cream.

The recalls come as consumers worry about the reach of the contaminated milk. 'It's very disturbing. Even though we buy products that are made in Singapore or Australia, how do we know that the ingredients that go in them are really not from China?' asked Ms Tricia Li, 27, a marketing executive.

Meanwhile, the recall has the potential to hit retailers hard, experts said.

Some retailers are offering customers refunds even as they negotiate with suppliers for their own rebates when they return recalled products.

Retail expert Lau Chuen Wei said smaller retailers could find the going tough. 'They traditionally do not have that much choice in products, so they may feel (the pinch) a bit more,' she said.

A manager at Sheng Siong's Tanglin Halt outlet estimated that the store had lost $1,000 in sales in the past week. They started recalling products early last week when news first broke about the scandal in China.

Supermarkets could end up losing big if suppliers refused to give refunds, said Ms Lau.

twong@sph.com.sg

Additional reporting by Jessica Lim and Diana Othm

Corruption Evidence: Charge Badawi! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-23T07:59:00.002+08:00

In 1999, Anwar Ibrahim was charged and found guilty for abuse of power as a DPM cum Finance Minister to 'direct the police to obtain retractions from two people who accused him of sex crimes'. We need not go back in time to revisit this political conspiracy to oust Anwar. But let's move forward.

The question is: Can Raymond Tan's words be used as evidence in a court of law to charge Badawi for abuse of executive power as a PM cum Finance Minister? Raymond Tan has gone public with his 'testimony'!

'I stopped PM from ordering Yong's arrest'

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/90153

The war of attrition continues over the sudden withdrawal of Sabah Progressive Party (Sapp) from Barisan Nasional last week as a “shocking revelation” came to light.

Its disgruntled ex-deputy president Raymond Tan (left) claimed on Saturday that he had been instrumental in preventing the arrest of party president Yong Teck Lee in June in relation to allegations of corruption.

An English-language daily in Sabah quoted Tan as saying that Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had wanted Yong arrested by the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA). This was after Yong spearheaded a no-confidence vote against Abdullah’s leadership.

In defending himself against claims of ingratitude by failing to support the Sapp pullout, Tan revealed that he had intervened on Yong’s behalf in June.

He said he had pleaded with Abdullah not to arrest Yong as it would be a bad move, and had even gone on television with a plea to allow the latter to speak up.

Tan, who has since quit the party, claimed he had always been protective of Yong and that this has not changed in spite of their differences of opinion over the Sapp pullout.

In an immediate response, Sapp newly-appointed information chief Chong Pit Fah described this as a “a shocking revelation [...] that he can influence the prime minister to stop ACA action”.

“This is an admission by a BN deputy chief minister that the prime minister can interfere with ACA work,” Chong said in a statement issued yesterday.

He also wanted to know if the same influence could be used on other persons such as serving ministers, or similarly abused.

Chong explained that the Sapp boss had volunteered in June to give a statement to the ACA but that the agency had not contacted him.

Yong could not be reached for comment as he is abroad.

Sabah CM: Tan to stay in cabinet

Tan met with Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman this morning to discuss his position in the state cabinet since he is no longer in BN. He is required to resign his posts, but was reportedly reluctant to do so.

After the meeting, Musa announced that Tan would remain as his deputy for now.

A final decision on the matter will be made after Musa has met with top BN leaders.

Sapp, meanwhile, has cast doubt over the actual number of its Tanjung Papat division members who were said to have resigned on Saturday, in support of Tan. The figure was put at 2,000 members.

Tan is the elected representative for the Tanjung Papat state seat.

Assistant secretary-general Foo Fook Ming said the central committee has yet to receive resignation letters from the members and leaders concerned.

He said only Youth chief and Elopura state assemblyperson Au Kam Wah and supreme council member Jimmy Wong have submitted their resignation letters to date.

Foo also pointed out that there are only 1,791 registered members in the Tanjung Papat division.

“So, I wonder where the extra members have come from - are they phantom members?’ he asked rhetorically.

The ISA Song - Malaysiakini

2008-09-20T10:37:00.000+08:00

The ISA Song

Sung to the tune of Down Under by Men at Work…

Traveling in a fried-out combie
On a hippie trail, head full of zombie
I met a strange botak, he made me nervous
He detained me under ISA
And he said,

Do you know a land called UMNO?
Where bloggers harassed and UMNO plunder?
Cant you hear, cant you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover.

Buying bread from a man in Chow Kit
He was five foot four and stomach bulging
I said, do you speak-a my language?
He just smiled and gave me a vegemite sandwich
And he said,

I live in a land called UMNO
Where ISA means Ikut Suka Aku
Cant you hear, cant you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover.

Lying in a cell in Kamunting
With a slack jaw, and not much to say
I said to the man, why do you detain me?
Because I come from the land of plenty?
And he said,

Oh! do you come from a land called Malaysia? (oh yeah oh yeah)
Where bloggers harassed and UMNO plunder?
Cant you hear, cant you hear the thunder?
You better run, you better take cover.

Syabas! Teresa is out.

2008-09-19T15:14:00.003+08:00

What another Friday this has been. The opposite of last Friday.

Isn't this a pleasant surprise?

Anwar seeks emergency House session - Malaysiakini

2008-09-18T08:36:00.014+08:00

Opposition Leader leader Anwar Ibrahim today said he has sent a letter to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi asking him to convene an emergency session of the Parliament for an emergency motion to debate on the premier's government.

"I have made a formal request to call for an emergency session in Parliament to debate a motion of no confidence against the leadership of Barisan Nasional not later than Sept 23."

Speaking at a press conference, the Pakatan Rakyat supremo said that the opposition alliance wanted to debate on a motion of no confidence against Abdullah.

He wanted the Parliament to be recalled not later than next Tuesday.

Anwar said that the letter was jointly signed by him as PKR leader, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and DAP parliament leader Lim Kit Siang.

[More to follow]

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89965

Tuesday, 23 September 2008 - Malaysiakini

2008-09-18T08:36:00.010+08:00

Anwar announces that Pakatan Rakyat has submitted a request for Parliament to convene an emergency meeting on Tuesday, 23 September 2008. The agenda is a non-confidence vote on the Prime Minister and the Barisan Nasional.

To a question from the floor if Pakatan Rakyat has the number to form the government, Anwar replied that the Prime Minister can find out for himself on the said date - Tuesday, 23 September 2008.

Malaysiakini - Anak Bangsa Malaysia

2008-09-18T08:36:00.007+08:00

The genuine first step towards Malaysian Unity .... a merger of the current PKR, PAS and DAP into a single Pakatan Rakyat! I'll be frank to say that anything short of it will only be a superficial alliance in the shadow of Barisan Nasional that will end in the demise of the nation.

"We cannot depend forever upon communal parties playing a leading part in Malaysian politics because their influence will not unite the different races but constantly remind them of their racial separateness".

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

These are the words I wrote on 15/09/08 in my post 'Let's remember history'. I am truly glad and greatly appreciate that DAP vice chairman, Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahin is suggesting the same.

A few opportunities to unite Malaysians of all races have been wasted. Sepuluh tahun sebelum Merdeka, with its People's Constitution was the first followed by the late Onn Jaafar in his forming of Independence of Malaya Party (IMP) on 26 August 1951. And .... if we recall the words of the late Tun Dr Ismail, he mentioned something about 'a lost opportunity' . Are we provided the window of opportunity today? Is anak Bangsa Malaysia in its infancy today or already in existence? Whatever the answer, let's always remember the words of Bapa Kemerdekaan, Tunku Abdul Rahman, whose words I quoted above.

If Pakatan Rakyat will not initiate an attempt to forge a single party, then I'm afraid it will be plain rhetorics without substance towards the creation of a anak Bangsa Malaysia. Over to you, Anwar Ibrahim and allied parties of Pakatan Rakyat.

Remember .... the dark blue canton in our Jalur Gemilang represents Malaysian Unity!

Greater unity if race-based parties abolished, says Abdul Aziz

KOTA KINABALU: There will be greater understanding and better decision making if all race-based parties are abolished in Malaysia, said DAP vice-chairman Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim.

In fact, it is believed to be the answer to a more united Malaysian nation, said Abdul Aziz who stressed that the new era for the country can only be achieved if one accepts social justice and equality for everyone.

He highlighted this subject yesterday and it eventually became one of the issues discussed during a public forum entitled ‘Malaysia: Towards A New Era’ organised by Sabah Democratic Action Party (DAP) at Kian Kok School hall here.

Almost a thousand people thronged the hall to listen to the five-hour forum panelled by DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang, Parti Keadilan Rakyat vice president Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan and Sabah Progressive Party president Datuk Seri Panglima Yong Teck Lee.

Also in attendance were Assistant Finance Minister and Luyang assemblywoman Melanie Chia, Sepanggar MP Datuk Eric Majimbun, Deputy Speaker Frankie Chong, PKR Sabah chief Ansari Abdullah and his deputy, Christina Liew as well as former Parti Bersatu Sabah supreme council member Dr Chong Eng Leong.

“In fact, Umno could still maintain their acronym but it should be United ‘Malaysian’ National Organisation… it should be open to everyone. The party should struggle and fight for the rights of all communities,” said Abdul Aziz, stressing that there should also be equal distribution of development in the effort to curb issues concerning the hardcore poor in the country.

Abdul Aziz stressed that the New Economic Policy, which he had opposed from day one, had been applied inconsistently, and as a result, there is still high poverty in pockets of Sabah and Sarawak.

“Preparations for a better Malaysia begins now. It will remain a dream if we do not do anything. I joined DAP long ago because it was so much easier to be standing out of the system. “Our country can be the best in the world due to strong national integration. I am not saying that we are a great country, but we can be if all these various practices of injustice and racism can be removed. If we can restore integrity of the Police Force, Judiciary and civil servants, I believe there is a great future,” he said.

Stressing that a foundation has to be built towards fairness, justice and human rights, irrespective of race and religion, Abdul Aziz also pointed out that the time has come for a change.

Yong, who echoed Abdul Aziz’s words, reiterated on the windows of opportunity, stressing that since Sabah and Sarawak formed Malaysia, along with Malaya on Sept 16, 1963, this is the only chance for East Malaysia in general, and Sabah in particular, to snap the political autonomy, the 20 per cent oil royalty, redress imbalanced economic development in both states, relive Borneonisation, get Labuan island back and important posts for Sabahans in government departments and agencies, and address the longstanding issue of illegal immigrants.

“Although we (Sabah) have one of the largest representatives in the parliament, it is sad that we do not have MPs who are willing to use this window of opportunity to bring changes for Sabah. Instead of discussing it today on Malaysia Day, the MPs are holidaying in Taiwan,” said Yong.

He said it was not easy to grab political power from the ruling Barisan Nasional on Sept 16, or famously quoted as 916, but that through patience, it would eventually materialise if everyone remains optimistic.

“So I agree that race-based parties should be abolished gradually in Malaysia. We have to understand and respect one another, fully, deeply and truly, especially as we all come from different races, because if we do not, it will defeat the whole purpose of moving towards change,” he said.

Jeffrey, during his session, shared with the public the history that led to the formation of Malaysia, giving facts on the initial purpose and how equal rights should be shared among the three main components – Sabah, Sarawak and Malaya.

“Sabah had actually gained its independence on August 31, 1963, which marked the end of colonisation in Borneo and also witnessed the nationhood and birth of an independent nation … that means we were already a country then.

“We were approached by Tunku Abdul Rahman one day to form Malaysia, along with Sarawak and Singapore. There should be no doubt that we are equal partners … in fact, we did not join Malaysia; we formed Malaysia as equal partners.

“However, instead of being one of the three components of the country, we are today one of the 13 states in Malaysia. How do you expect us to gain wealth and curb poverty? The former prime minister (Tun Dr Mahathir Mohammad) once told me that we should not teach people what they do not know … this was a way to ensure that the people can be controlled.

In addition, Jeffrey also questioned the government on the fact that Sabah remains as the second poorest state in the country despite the millions and billions of ringgit of allocations from the federal government.

“We have been played by for the last 45 years, so I believe there is nothing wrong to turn the court. We must all show that we want a change of government, and it is not for personal gain, but to salvage whatever we have left,” he said.

In summarising the contents, Lim who described the forum as a gathering of Pakatan Rakyat ‘Plus’, disclosed that what used to be impossible, unachievable and impossible has today changed to possible, achievable and could happen anytime.

“The Pakatan Rakyat has changed the mindset and mental attitude. Many have come to realise that they yearn for a change. With a large number of MPs from the opposition, the BN government has now in fact needed our support to make any amendments,” he said.

According to him, the biggest blow for BN had to be the resignation of de facto Law Minister (Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department), Datuk Zaid Ibrahim.

Unfortunately, Lim said Zaid’s resignation would bring the end of the re-reforming exercise of both the judiciary and police force.

“He (Zaid) was given the task to handle the re-reform of both sectors. His resignation means that it will never happen. Before the general election we asked the people

whether the change of government was possible, and about 95 per cent did not think so.

“But today, if we ask the same question, some 70 to 80 per cent of the people will agree with us,” he said.

Lim also described East Malaysia as the “king-makers” of BN, and urged that the opportunity be used wisely.

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=41555

IFEX: Govt uses ISA to silence critics - Malaysiakini

2008-09-18T08:36:00.004+08:00

GOVERNMENT USES SECURITY ACT TO SILENCE CRITICS

A prominent blogger, a journalist and an opposition politician were arrested under Malaysia's draconian Internal Security Act (ISA) last week, in what some IFEX members and activists are calling the start of a wider crackdown ahead of an anticipated opposition push to gain control of parliament.

Malaysia's leading blogger, Raja Petra Kamaruddin, a staunch government critic on his website "Malaysia Today", was the first to be taken into custody on 12 September, report the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA) and other IFEX members.

Tan Hoon Cheng, a journalist for "Sin Chew Daily", a Chinese-language newspaper that had recently covered a controversial outburst from a ruling party member who called the ethnic Chinese community "squatters", and Teresa Kok, a lawmaker from the Chinese-based DAP and deputy chief minister in Selangor, were also arrested under the ISA, says SEAPA.

In a recent news story, Tan had cited an official in the Prime Minister's political party who described ethnic Chinese Malaysians as "power-hungry immigrants", reports the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

According to local news reports, Tan was released the following day but the others are still being held.

A blogger and human rights lawyer, Haris Ibrahim, was also reportedly arrested after posting news about the arrests on his website, The People's Parliament, reports the Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) in Malaysia.

CIJ fears that more arrests are on the way. The measures "bear a disturbing resemblance to the period in the lead-up to the Operasi Lalang in 1987," says CIJ, when dozens of activists, artists, academics and politicians were detained. "Both incidents are similar in that it relates to the ongoing political crisis within UMNO (Malaysia's ruling party), but manifested as alleged racial tension by the government."

Just a week earlier, three Malaysian newspapers - the "Sin Chew Daily", "The Sun" and "Suara Keadilan" - were threatened with suspension, reports SEAPA. The "IFEX Communiqué" recently published a story about how access to Raja Petra's website was blocked for a week on government orders.

The ISA allows for a person to be arrested without charge and to be held for 60 days without offering grounds for their detention. The Malaysian government has repeatedly used the law to silence government critics and political opponents.

IFEX members RSF, SEAPA and others are calling for the overturning of the ISA.

Sizeable opposition demonstrations have been staged in major cities since 13 September in protest against the use of the ISA. On 15 September, more than 10,000 people gathered in a Kuala Lumpur sports stadium to demand the ISA's repeal and Raja Petra's release, reports Reporters Without Borders (RSF). RSF says the Minister of Legal Affairs, Zaid Ibrahim, resigned in protest against the use of the act.

The ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition was humiliated in the March elections and is now threatened by the opposition's plans, says http://www.Malaysiakini.com , the country's leading online news source.

The news site added that Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is believed to have launched the crackdown to bolster his position within UMNO. He is facing increasing calls from party leaders to step down earlier than 2010, the year he said he would hand over power to his deputy.

Visit these links:
- SEAPA: http://tinyurl.com/3mw5mt
- CIJ: http://www.cijmalaysia.org/
- RSF, including video appeal by Raja Petra's wife:http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=28558
- CPJ: http://tinyurl.com/49vdow
- Human Rights Watch: http://tinyurl.com/6jewrf
- International Federation of Journalists: http://tinyurl.com/5n3l8l

(17 September 2008)

http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/97065/

The importance of history - Malaysiakini

2008-09-18T08:36:00.003+08:00

"Make no mistake about it. But for the grace of God and Malaysia, the fate of these Malaysians who I refer to would have been very different today. That’s why it’s so important for them to know the historical origin of Malaysia,”

It’s Sept 16
By Puvaneswary Devindran

THE reminder ‘Lest We Forget’ kept popping up during my recent interview with Datuk Amar James Wong Kim Min.

While he also had this printed as the title of his introduction in the books he had authored, these three little but powerful words could very well sum up everything needed to be said about the significance of Sept 16 to all Sarawakians.

“People don’t seem to understand or seem not to pay enough attention. Malaysia came into existence on Sept 16. Not Aug 31 which has no meaning to us Sarawakians,” he said in a fatherly tone which gave added piquancy to the aroma of thick coffee lingering in his office.

True to the testaments of other journalists who had covered this ‘grand old man of Sarawak politics’ before, Wong, even at 86, commands a conversation very well with his quick wits and blunt statements.

“He always has a knack for words with a bagful of useful phrases, idioms and proverbs,” a fellow journalist noted.

Wong’s interview on the subject of Sept 16 seemed long overdue, especially in these couple of years following talks about how important it was and how it should be celebrated.

Never mind that the date had been politicised somewhat, it is still an important day in Malaysia’s history and thesundaypost and its sister paper See Hua Daily News felt Wong’s opinion mattered.

“It is the day Malaysia was formed. If they want to celebrate on Aug 31, that’s up to them. In my heart, I know it’s Sept 16,” he said.

Obviously, respect for this date (Sept 16) runs deep in the heart of this paramount leader who played a pioneering role in Malaysia’s formation and in placing the nation in the eyes of world.

A telegram to Wong during a timber cruise in Baram in 1961 officially snowballed him into the quest to form Malaysia.

The telegram carried an invitation from the late Donald Stephens (later Tun Fuad Stephens) to come to Jesselton — now Kota Kinabalu — to meet and discuss Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra al-Haj’s offer to form a federation.

Before this, the idea of forming Malaysia was introduced to the Tunku, who, on May 27, 1961, at a luncheon press conference in Singapore, made the surprise offer of forming a federation, comprising the four territories — Malaya, Singapore, Sarawak and Sabah.

Wong apparently was no stranger to the idea, having been consulted before on the possibility of forming such a federation but nothing appeared concrete till then.

Accepting the invitation from Donald Stephens led to his appoinment as a delegate to the ‘Malaysia Solidarity Consultative Committee’ (MSCC), which frequently met to explore ideas of forming the Federation of Malaysia. At that point, Wong was only a Council Negeri member from Limbang.

Flipping through the pages of one of his books, Wong, who also happens to be the sole surviving member of the Sarawak delegation to the MSCC, pointed out that the best solution was to have a strong federation with special privileges and autonomy reserved for Sarawak and Sabah.

“It was impossible to even think Sarawak could make it on its own at that time,” he said.

As he put it, it was really a Hobson’s choice.

For one, Sarawakians did not have the expertise, experience and maturity to run their country if it were to become independent.

Sarawak was also short of financial resources, raking in RM75 million a year at that time.

“We had only little oil in Miri and we had not gone into gas discovery. Not to mention timber was not on yet. In fact, I arranged the first shipment of timber in the 1960s. We were still a broke country then,” he said matter-of-factly.

Moreover, Sarawak was facing threats from the Clandestine Communist Organisation (CCO) and its next door neighbour, Indonesia.

The concept of Malaysia was even more encouraging as the state had confidence in Singapore, Malaya and Sabah since they all had the same legislative system and government and were English-speaking, Wong said.

He shuddered at the thought of the threat posed by the CCO in the mid-50’s, especially one incident when a policeman was killed in Serian.

He too was not spared the terror when the CCO delivered two live bullets to his home as a ‘writing on the wall’ for being supportive of Malaysia’s formation.

However, his greatest fear was the possibility of a racial war breaking out among the 24 different ethnic races in Sarawak. With the people being very ‘clannish’ at that time, he feared the CCO would resort to instigating such a war and cause a bloodbath.

“What worried me then was if one of the CCO cadres were to dress like an Iban and go and kill a Malay for instance, then Sarawak could end up like the Congo,” he noted.

Wong also commended the formation of local councils in 1947 which were able to inculcate the teamwork culture in the people.

“We could not have defended ourselves. We did not have an army, our police force was very small. We could not have survived,” he said.

Meanwhile, once the MSCC had decided to federate, the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) was formed to discuss and draft the terms and conditions of the Constitution of Malaysia.

Here, Wong pointed out that in the case of Sarawak, special clauses were put in to guarantee that among others, land, civil service, local government and immigration would come under the state autonomy of Sarawak.

“I came up with my books because there were some complaints by one of the federal ministers on our immigration laws. He asked why must West Malaysians enter Sarawak with a passport.

“But he forgets that immigration is one of the autonomy given to Sarawak. You see, when Malaysia was formed, everyone had their rights. The states in West Malaysia have their own sultans and state governments, so we have our own too,” he explained.

On the oil royalty for Sarawak, Wong said: “It was discussed before (in the 1970s) that we wanted 15 per cent royalty but only got five per cent.”

He said Sabah also had five per cent oil royalty although according to recent newspapers reports, its former Chief Minister Datuk Harris Mohd Salleh had demanded more — 25 per cent to be exact.

Wong pointed out that Sarawak too should be getting up to 15 to 25 per cent in royalties.

The state government, he said, should stick to the London Agreement (Malaysian Agreement) signed in London.

Wong believed it was important for all Sarawakians to know their place in Malaysia, particularly their rights.

“Sabah gave away their rights on immigration when they gave away Labuan. When you go to Labuan, you can get into Sabah easily.”

He said it was unfortunate Malaysians in Sarawak in their 40s and even 50s, seemed ignorant or did not have the opportunity to know how Malaysia came about because at the time of the formation of Malaysia, those within this age group were still too young to understand the change that had taken place.

“Make no mistake about it. But for the grace of God and Malaysia, the fate of these Malaysians who I refer to would have been very different today. That’s why it’s so important for them to know the historical origin of Malaysia,” he said, reading from an excerpt of his book.

Looking at the current scenario, Wong said Sarawak had indeed progressed well but the most treasured essence of all was Sarawak had peace.

He reminded that other countries were not as fortunate as Malaysia — even the weather here is so kind and so Malaysians are indeed very lucky.

Wong pooh-poohed the Permatang Pauh by-election incident, which saw Umno chief for Bukit Bendera, Datuk Ahmad Ismail, labelling Chinese as immigrants.

He said this was not the government’s policy but rather an individual issue.

Although not denying the possibility of ‘some’ politicians resorting to racial issues to gain political mileage, he agreed it was not proper to blame the whole community just because of one individual.

“But I have no regrets — because if we do not have Malaysia, God help us.

“So there are advantages and disadvantages in being part of the federation,” he said.

Still, Wong feels disappointed and sad that the federal government has failed to recognise Sept 16.

To him, one of the biggest misconceptions some Malaysians might have is Sarawak joined Malaysia when truth be told, it helped form Malaysia.

Asked if Sarawak had ever requested for Sept 16 to be recognised, he said: “Look, you will always have as much right as you are prepared to fight for. On Aug 31, see how we celebrated it? But officially, it should be on Sept 16. You can’t get away from this. It’s not (from) me — it’s in our proclamation of Malaysia.”

Wong then referred to the state’s proclamation read by Sarawak’s first Chief Minister Dato Stephen Kalong Ningkan on Sept 16: “Now, therefore I, Stephen Kalong Ningkan, the Chief Minister of Sarawak, do hereby proclaim that Sarawak has this day attained independence as a state of Malaysia.”

He also said the Tunku, in announcing the proclamation of Malaysia, declared: “Now, in the name of God the Compassionate, the Merciful, I, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj Ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, Prime Minister of Malaysia, with the concurrence and approval of His Majesty, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of the Federation of Malaya, His Excellency the Yang di-Pertuan Negara of Singapore, His Excellency the Yang di-Pertuan Negara of Sabah and His Excellency the Governor of Sarawak, do hereby declare and proclaim on behalf of the peoples of Malaysia that as from Sixteenth Day of September in the year one thousand nine hundred and sixty-three, corresponding to the twenty-eight day of Rabi’ul Akhir in the year of the Hijrah one thousand three hundred and eighty-three, that Malaysia comprising the states of Pahang, Terengganu, Kedah, Johore, Negri Sembilan, Kelantan, Selangor, Perak, Perlis, Penang, Malacca, Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak shall by the Grace of God, the Lord of the Universe, forever be an independent and sovereign democratic State founded upon liberty and justice ever seeking to defend and uphold peace and harmony among its peoples and to perpetuate peace among nations.”

Wong said after all that had been said and done, without Malaysia today, Sarawak would have been in one ‘hell of a mess — our lives would have been very different’.

But being in a big family, he stressed, required Sarawakians to be prepared to stand for their rights for they have as much rights as the others ‘lest we forget Malaysia is a federation of equal partners’.

Looking back, Wong said as a Sarawakian, he had made his contributions in making Sarawak a happy place to live in through what happened 45 years ago on Sept 16.

So come Tuesday, the Malaysian Flag will fly outside his office.

As for us, this Tuesday may just be the day to re-discover when the federation of Malaysia was actually formed and where we stand as Malaysians, lest we forget or worse, never know at all.

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=41403

Ahhh ... we have a brand new toilet! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-17T11:27:00.002+08:00

Unload your stuffs here ... our brand new toilet!

Lega sungguh, buang air, air besar air kecil, ke dalam .... tong najis baharu!

Mr Botok, Mr Buttocks, Mr Buttcheeks - Malaysiakini

2008-09-17T09:24:00.007+08:00

Mr Botok, Mr Buttocks, Mr Buttcheeks. Call him what you want, if it will make any difference at all. Of course, most would've referred him to the Malay mytical child spirit invoked by a bomoh from a dead foetus using black magic in the like of Mona Fandy. Ooh, eerily ... we are talking spooky tales about a toyol!

Eerily ... eerily ... kisah benar should've explored this mytical phenomenon of how a damsel in distress was being ambushed and set upon by 10 defenders of the people, herded and whisked into the safety of the peacekeepers. A clearly effective pre-emptive strike to ensure her safety, to keep her out of harm's way!

This damsel will be protected for another 26 days while exorcism is carried out, and exorcism exercises are never simple, nor pretty, as testified by her visiting parents.

"She looked pale and weak," her parents observed.

Eerily ... eerily ... something is wrong with this exorcism exercise. This damsel is fed food unfit for human!

Something is wrong. Something is terribly wrong. Is she being exorcised or is someone, something out there trying to possess her?

She refused to be consumed. She fights back. Her personal assistant, Mandy Ooi, is proud that her boss is turning the table on them.

"She's trying to brainwash them (her interogators)," laughed off Ooi.

The toyol that did her in, who invoked?

As clear as day, we know. As clear as mud, they don't seem to know they're killing themselves.

Folkslore relates that keeping a toyol has its price. The keeper must feed it with blood, yes blood, every day.

But ah .... though seemingly cunning, this toyol is dumb. Marbles, sand and strands of garlic hanging on the door post managed to deceive it. This toyol is caught with his pants down ... oh no! no underwear too! Sceptic? Watch the evidence in video here.

Update 11:58am: toyol's yellow polka dotted pink panty found!

Imperative, it now comes down upon us to save this damsel in distress.

FREE TERESA KOK!

Sign the Petition now!

Quote of the day - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T13:52:00.002+08:00

"I've waited all my life for UMNO to change its way but it refuses to change but becomes worse. In such a case, if UMNO topples and we have a new government, it is better. I can accept the new government (referring to Pakatan Rakyat)"

-by an anonymous elderly man in his 70s at a restaurant while having my lunch earlier.

Joke of the day: Badawi farts - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T13:30:00.003+08:00

ISA is good but its enforcement should be rational and fair - Flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister of Malaysia, Abdullah Badawi.

'ISA is good, enforcement should be fair'

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/9/16/nation/20080916110352&sec=nation

PUTRAJAYA: The Internal Security Act (ISA) is good but its enforcement should be rational and fair, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Abdullah said that PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s statement that he will topple the government is just a “mirage”.

“I am not pressured,” said Abdullah on Tuesday.

Speaking on De Facto Law Minister Senator Datuk Zaid Ibrahim’s resignation, which he rejected on Monday, Abdullah said, “The Government is strong and will not be weakened by Zaid’s resignation.”

Is PM getting ready to run? - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T11:41:00.003+08:00

Asked if he would meet Anwar, Badawi was non-committal and said, "We shall see if there's time".

Flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister further said that "The BN is still in power, and we will continue to do our job and not be distracted by such claims".

Well, question time, Mr PM, if you are still doing your job.

1. Bila harga minyak nak turun? Kan janji nak buat review dua kali sebulan? Hari ni kan dah 16 September, yakni Hari Malaysia?

2. Apakah Perdana Menteri ini takut sangat ke nak berjumpa dengan Anwar? Tak usah takut, jumpa saja. Asalkan ada kebaikan untuk rakyat, untuk negara, apa salah?

3. Minta YAB Perdana Menteri ini jangan sekali-kali nak cabut lari. Lepas berjumpa dengan Anwar nanti, tahulah kesemua rakyat jelata siapakah benar, siapakah temberang.

Seterusnya untuk pembaca blog saya ..... dari Malaysiakini ...

PM: Sept 16 a 'political lie'

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89787

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi scoffed at the opposition caolition’s claims that it has the numbers to topple the Barisan Nasional government.

He described Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim’s assertion at a massive rally last night that he had enough government defectors to take power as a “political lie”.

Anwar told the 20,000-strong crowd at the Kelana Jaya stadium that he had sent a letter to the prime minister requesting for a meeting to discuss a smooth power transistion.

When asked whether he would meet the opposition leader, Abdullah was non-committal. “We shall see if there’s time,” he said.

The prime minister dismissed Anwar’s claims as preposterous, arguing that “if Anwar has the numbers, he would have let the whole world know”.

No details on who and how many

Anwar told a rapturous crowd close to midnight yesterday that the Pakatan Rakyat has “the numbers but we want to meet with Abdullah, show him the evidence and work out a handover because we want a peaceful transition".

The opposition leader however did not provide more information on how many MPs Pakatan has in the bag and the number of government defectors.

Anwar will need at least 31 defectors from BN and perhaps over 40 for a stable Pakatan government.

"I believe that the government will fall in the next few weeks," he told journalists after the rally.

But Abdullah stressed that his government continues to be stable and strong.

“I have known Anwar for a long time and he will say certain things to attract people to his ceramah, and they choose to believe him,” he told journalists this morning after a function.

“The BN government is still in power, and we will continue to do our job and not be distracted by such claims.”

Chun Wai asks 'Sept 16 - What's Next?' - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T11:27:00.002+08:00

Chun Wai asks 'Sept 16 - What's Next?' and I commented in his blog something that looked like and sounded like ...

Datuk,

BNBBC were on the run to avoid 916. Anwar said he wants to meet Badawi to effect a peaceful transition of power. What's Next could be Badawi on the run to avoid meeting Anwar!

Run, Badawi run!

hahahahahahaha

correct, correct, correct .... I think.

All these miseries could've been avoided! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T09:49:00.002+08:00

Global price of crude oil has been on the retreat and if our cheating flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister had done something positively to bring down the price of fuel earlier, all these miseries could've been avoided. In the first place, it was this same 'on-the-run' Prime Minister who inflicted in us a damage so severe by raising the price of petrol by a whopping 41% without even giving due considerations to the spinoff effects that will burden the rakyat! Yet, they dare call themselves the caring government!!!

53pc rise in bus fares shocks commuters

The fare hike for the same route is shown in these two tickets, from RM1.30 last Friday to RM2 yesterday.

JOHOR BARU: Bus commuters here were shocked as they had to dig deeper into their pockets when they boarded stage buses here yesterday.

Many were not aware of the announcement by the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board which allowed bus operators to raise the fares of express and stage buses by 30 per cent, beginning yesterday until Oct 15, in conjunction with the festive season.

A call to the CVLB's toll-free number 1800-88-9600 earlier had suggested that the 30 per cent increase was only for express buses, not stage buses.

Johor CVLB chief Sulaiman Sairan could not be reached for comment, but a spokes- man confirmed that stage buses were also included in the fare increase.

S. Chandran, 49, of Taman Pulai, was among those who were caught unawares. The office cleaner said he was perplexed when the bus driver asked for RM2 when he boarded the bus from his house in Bandar Baru Uda.
"I was holding RM1.30 in my hand, which is my usual bus fare to the city. The bus ride to work only takes 15 minutes. Why does it have to cost so much?" he asked, adding that the 53 per cent increase was too abrupt.

Lau Yut Lye, 27, a beautician, was another bus commuter who was not aware of the fare increase.

"Has the price of petrol gone up again? I usually wait for Triton buses because the fare is the cheapest among the stage buses like Causeway Link and Transit Link.

"But now it looks like it isn't the cheapest bus anymore as Causeway Link charges only RM1.80 for the same route. I had earlier got down from a Causeway Link bus because the driver had demanded RM1.80 from the city to Skudai Kiri."

Ashfar Ibrahim, 31, of Ayer Hitam, said his bus fare of RM7.40 had been increased to RM9.60.

"This is outrageous. Stretch-ing the ringgit will be even harder for the blue-collar worker," said Ashfar, a shop assistant.

Handal Indah Sdn Bhd, which operates the Causeway Link buses, said the company had increased the prices after receiving a circular from CVLB, which allowed bus operators to increase the fare of express and stage buses between Sept 15 and Oct 15.

Its managing director, Lim Han Weng, assured the public that the fares would revert to normal after Oct 15.

The normal bus fare starts from 75 sen in the first stage, which is about 1km.

For Causeway Link, the farthest route is Ayer Hitam which would cost passengers RM9.60 per trip.

As for Triton, the bus fare also starts from 75 sen and the company's farthest route is Kulai, which would cost RM4.50.

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Tuesday/National/2351183/Article/index_html

This is called CHEAT, not subsidy! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T09:00:00.004+08:00

Anwar promised that he will reduce the pump price of petrol by 70 sen immediately upon assuming power. That works out to RM1.85 per litre.

The current price of crude oil is at US94.15 per barrel. Using the simple calculation, it is estimated that the current pump price of petrol is RM2.01 per liter.

Today is Malaysia Day. The cheating UMNO government promised earlier that it will review the price of fuel twice a month. If that is so, shouldn't the price be immediately reduced? And hey, the rakyat could've been more forgiving and sympathise with this flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister if he had at least given a small gift to the rakyat on this Malaysia Day. But no, he chose to backtrack on his promises once again!

This is called CHEAT, not subsidy!

There is now even more reason for the rakyat to support Anwar and Pakatan Rakyat to oust this lying flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister and his racist UMNO government.

Badawi's craps - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T08:17:00.004+08:00

Flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister Badawi said that in this holy month of Ramadan, Muslims must remember their religious obligations and not be carried away by talks on change of government to the extent of spreading false information. I wonder if this is what Islam Hadhari is all about - cakap tak serupa bikin!

Quoting him further;

"Our people are quick to be confused and shocked or to panic over a change in government. Leave all this aside and focus on matters that are beneficial instead of indulging in empty talk.

"Spreading lies will only create distraction, that after breaking your fast and performing the tarawih, you forget about taddarus (reciting the Quran) because you talk politics instead.

"We should use Ramadan to do more good to get blessings from Allah, and not be preoccupied with something that will not happen,"

Abdullah urged Muslims to show love, compassion and generosity to the less fortunate regardless of race, and be thrifty and avoid wastage in preparing for the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration.

http://malaysia.news.yahoo.com/bnm/20080915/tts-abdullah-government-bm-with-pix-993ba14.html

What's all these? Badawi's craps? What do the detentions under ISA of Raja Botak Petra, Teresa Kok and Tan Hoon Cheng mean in this holy month of Ramadan?

A clear case of goof-up, Tan Hoon Cheng was said to be detained for her safety. If we talk about lies, in regards to Teresa's detention, then Khir Toyo is answerable as the truths are readily available. This is a frame-up. Raja Botak Petra's case? It's simply he holds too many truths and UMNO is simply shitting in their pants.

Well, Anwar wants to meet Badawi. Run, Badawi run!

A spin-off from Si lembik's Kisah Nujum Pak Belalang

Tukang Soal : 'Dua ekor anak itik yang baru menetas, yang manakah Badawi dan yang manakah PR..??'

Ahli Nujum Negara : 'Ini senang saja, kita letakkan kedua anak itik ke dalam bekas berisi air, yang mengejar itulah PR dan yang lari sampai terberak itulah Badawi..'

hahahahahahahahaha

Oh No! PM's turn to run? - Malaysiakini

2008-09-16T08:06:00.002+08:00

Malaysiakini reports that Anwar claims that he has the number to form the new government but would prefer to meet the flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister so that there will be a peaceful transition of power.

Will Badawi be on the run to avoid meeting Anwar?

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89776

Demanding apology from Utusan? - Malaysiakini

2008-09-15T19:41:00.002+08:00

Allow me to delve into history once again. On 5 July 1964, Sin Chew Jit Poh reported Lee Kuan Yew as saying (translated) ;

"We must live together in peace. The 43% of the Malays and origins [sic] of Malaya, 40% Chinese, 10% Indians, and 7% others must live together in harmony. If they want to suppress each other then there will be dispute among them and this will lead to the destruction of Malaysia. I appeal to the people that they must be patient and understanding towards one another".

2 days earlier, on 3 July 1964, Utusan Melayu reported Lee's remarks as a stern warning instead to the Malays that "43% of Malays in Malaysia could not drive away 60% Chinese and other races".

On 5 July 1964, Utusan Melayu again reported that "it is clear that according to Mr Lee those who are able to drive away others from Malaysia are the Chinese and other non-Malays and those who can be driven away are the Malays because their numbers are small".

So, who's reporting the truth? I shall reserve judgment but Utusan Melayu has never been short of controversy in its reporting.

Let's hear what Malaysiakini has for today:

ISA detainee demands apology from Utusan

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89764

Opposition politician Teresa Kok, who has been arrested under the draconian Internal Security Act, has today demanded an apology from Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia for allegedly accusing her of instigating the azan controversy.

Kok, who through her lawyer Sankara Nair (right), also asked for RM30 million in damages for “the injury caused to her reputation”.

The letter of demand, which was faxed to Utusan at 4.40pm today, gave the Malay language daily 24 hours to issue an apology or Kok would slap a law suit against the newspaper.

Utusan had sparked the azan controversy with its article last Wednesday titled, ‘Azan, jawi, JAIS, UiTM dan ba-alif-ba-ya’.

The opinion column, written by award-winning senior editor Zaini Hassan, lambasted an unnamed woman politician of going to a mosque and demanded that it lowered the volume of its loudspeakers during prayers.

According to Zaini, who won the 2006 Kajai award from the Malaysian Press Institute for an article on the ecological destruction of the Bukit Cherakah agricultural park in Shah Alam, described the ‘bespectacled politician’ of being racist and a chauvinist.

Kok (right) has described the article as “grossly negligent, reckless, irresponsible, deliberate and malicious”.

The letter also said that Zaini’s article was “pre-mediated and calculated to tarnish, malign, defame and seriously injure the good name and character” of Kok.

Masjid Kinrara, the mosque which is embroiled in the azan controversy,had denied that Kok had been to the mosque.

Kok, 43, who is also Selangor senior exco member and Kinrara state representative, was arrested under the ISA, which allows for detention without trial, on Friday ostensibly for her role in the controversy.

House speaker told to call emergency meeting

In related development, parliament speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia has been urged to call an emergency parliamentary meeting to discuss the detention of one of its MPs.

“Parliament must take immediate action to protect the rights of MPs from arbitrary, unlawful and undemocratic attacks against MPs and the institution of Parliament,” said DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang in the letter.

In a letter handed over to Pandikar’s office today, Lim has also proposed three other measures to be taken by the Parliament over the arrest of Kok, a three-term MP.

Convene an urgent meeting of the parliamentary privileges committee to protect the dignity and privileges of MPs and Parliament from arbitrary, unlawful and undemocratic attacks.

Possible actions against (former Selangor menteri besar) Mohd Khir Toyo, who first wrote about the issue in his blog, and Utusan Malaysia for “imperiling the parliamentary role” of Kok.

An emergency motion as the first item of business when Parliament reconvenes on Oct 13, 2008 and discuss the motion before the start of the debate on the Budget 2009.

The five-page letter was handed over to Pandikar’s office this morning but the speaker was not present at the time. Apart from Lim, DAP MPs Tan Kok Wai, Fong Kui Lun, Fong Po Kuan, Tony Pua and Lim Lip Eng were also present.

In the letter, Lim also blasted the way Kok was arrested by the police outside of her condominium almost at midnight on Friday, saying that she was treated like a “common criminal”.

He questioned the high-handed manner Kok was nabbed and asked whether she had been deemed the “Malaysian version of Osama bin Laden” who posed a national security threat.

Related reports
Kok not involved in azan petition, says mosque
Petition not about 'azan' but religious 'ceramah'
Faulty PA system the cause of 'silent' azan

Let's remember history - Malaysiakini

2008-09-15T19:03:00.005+08:00

First of all, I'm glad that people warm up to the idea of 'Hartal' although I did not touch on this issue in my earlier post Racism Institutionalised on 2/9/08. Yes, it is historical fact that 'sepuluh tahun sebelum merdeka', we had a group of heroes who were championing Malaysian Unity in its People's Constitution. Bangsa Malaysia is not a new term.

In my earlier post titled 'Trivia', it was Tunku Abdul Rahman who said;

"We believed before that wherever there were Malays, UMNO would get their support. We got it in better times, but now we know differently".

Sadly, even as these words were said way back on 27 September 1963, UMNO never learn. Do we have anything to learn from Singapore who was kicked out of The Federation of Malaysia on 9 August 1965? Singapore, without natural resources that we have, have progressed so much that it is an envy to us.

This wasn't the only quotable quote from Tunku. About half a year later, on 6 March 1964, Tunku said;

These are the true gems if one wants to collect. However, non of these that could've built the nation into a progressive society ever take place. In its stead, divisive policies and communal politics remains the order of the day.

We may have lost a great number of years to forge a single identity, a Malaysian Unity, a Bangsa Malaysia but it is never too late to begin anew. As Anwar Ibrahim leads Pakatan Rakyat to form the next government, it is my sincere wish that we will bury the ghost of the past and work as one to achieve our aspirations of a Bangsa Malaysia.

Hence, it is also my sincere hope that there will be just one party, Pakatan Rakyat, rather than to have an alliance of parties under an umbrella to represent the different segments of society.

As I sign off, I shall repeat these words ...

Trivia - Malaysiakini

2008-09-15T17:12:00.001+08:00

Quotable quote:

“We believed before that wherever there were Malays, UMNO would get their support. We got it in better times, but now we know differently”

Trivia - Who said that?
Hint - Mentioned on the night of 27 September 1963

History repeats itself! Then it was the beginning of the end of SUMNO. Now?

Teresa to spend another 28 days in detention - Malaysiakini

2008-09-15T16:09:00.002+08:00

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89727

Parents of Seputeh parliamentarian Teresa Kok have been given access to visit their detained daughter at federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman today.

Seventy-four-year-old Kok Kim Tong and his wife entered Bukit Aman at about 2pm to visit Teresa, who was arrested under the Internal Security Act on Friday night.

Teresa's niece also accompanied them into the police headquarters. They had brought some food, including mooncakes, books and a bible for the detained politician.

Some Selangor government documents were also passed through the parents for Teresa to sign in her capacity as a state exco official.

Several party leaders, including secretary general Lim Guan Eng, party veteran Lim Kit Siang, Fong Kui Lun, Tony Pua and Teresa's personal assistant Mandy Ooi are waiting outside Bukit Aman.

Earlier today, Teresa's parents filed a writ of habeas corpus against the government against her detention.

Another 28-days in custody?

After the visit, Kim Tong said that his daughter was detained due to her involvement in the azan issue.

"She also said that her charge sheet indicated that her involvement in opposing the use of Jawi for road signs in Kuala Lumpur was also a reason for her arrest," he told reporters.

He added that according to his daughter, she would be held in custody for another 28 days, based on "something which she had signed".

Kok senior also said that his daughter complained over the food which she was given.

"She said the food was not fit for consumption and that she was suffering from diarrhoea," he added.

Apart from that, Kok said his daughter had mentioned that she was being treated well under custody.

[More to follow]

My 18 hours under 'Police protection' - Malaysiakini

2008-09-15T13:49:00.002+08:00

My 18 hours under the ISA - Tan Hoon Cheng

first person On Sept 12 about 8.30pm, I was at home in Bukit Mertajam in Penang. While enjoying my 'yew char koay' (fried dough stick), I was worrying about the show-cause letter issued to Sin Chew Daily, and anxious about the days ahead for my newspaper.

Suddenly, a group of plainclothes police officers appeared at my front gate. The person who started to identify the group and the purpose of this visit was a woman officer. She was also the only one in uniform.

Speaking from the other side of the gate, she told me that I had to follow them to the police station. I replied that unless they had a warrant of arrest, I would not open the gate. At the same time, I rang my company’s legal adviser and my superior, seeking their advice.

Later, the female officer told me that they are arresting me under Internal Security Act, therefore a warrant is not required. On hearing that, I was immediately prepared for the worst.

I had to act calm, comforting my parents and reassuring them that my colleagues would be waiting for me at the police station to render assistance. When I was taken away, my parents reacted strongly, asking the police to accord me proper treatment.

I was taken to the Seberang Perai Tengah police district office where I was placed in a chilly room while waiting for the police to begin their paperwork. I was accompanied by a female officer who seemed to be trembling as a result of the low room temperature as well.

To break the silence, I initiated a conversation. She told me, "You seem to be very calm."

I told her: "I am arrested under the ISA. Even though I'm scared, I have to face this reality. But I'm worried about my parents, friends and relatives, they must be very worried about me."

To be frank, I was very cool-headed. I believed that there must be a lot of people out there supporting me, giving me the strength that I need, so I must stay strong to be with these people who are supporting me.

The police recorded all my personal belongings, which were later taken from me. After that, I was considered ready to be sent to the Police Contingent Headquarters in Penang.

When I was taken out of the police station, I realised that a lot of my colleagues in the media, together with representatives from different parties and groups were already waiting outside to show support. Seeing this, I was deeply touched, I could no longer hold back my tears.

When the police car arrived at the station entrance, my superior and northern region manager Puah Eu Peng tried to stop the car with his body to slow it down. He knocked on the window to make sure that I was in the car and gestured to show me his support.

I instantly wiped away my tears. I realised that a lot of people (were) with me (and that) I must be with them as well.

After taking my thumb-print, I was given dinner and spent my night in remand. I did not know then that my colleagues in the profession and people from different groups and parties were there to show their support, right outside that station.

I requested the female officer to keep the lights on. She told me not to worry, she would not switch off the lights. The police also informed me that I would meet my parents the next day at eight.

I spent a very long time, thinking of everything that I would have to tell my parents. I had lost touch with the outside world (and) this would be my only opportunity, I must cherish it, to clearly explain everything to my parents.

After clearing my mind and organising my thoughts, I tried to sleep on the wooden bed with the company of the mosquitoes and the noise of dripping water. I had no idea what tomorrow held for me, but I knew I had to be in perfect condition to handle everything.

I have never suffered from insomnia and this very night, I finally experienced it. Deep down in my heart, I know that those who care about me would also be experiencing the same. My heart wrenched thinking of that.

‘Continue being brave’

At 6am, when I was about to wash up, the female officer passed me clothing brought by my parents. I was surprised; everything was new, the toiletries, T-shirts, shorts and underwear.

I later discovered that the 'parents' that the police officer was referring to were a bunch of my colleagues. While waiting outside the police contingent headquarters, they prepared all these for me.

They were uncertain when I would be released, but they told themselves that they must get these items ready in the briefest time possible.

I met my parents and bade them goodbye. The police informed me that they would take me to the police headquarters in Bukit Aman, Kuala Lumpur. My heart sank, I told myself this was the beginning of it, I must brace myself for everything.

After a few turns of event, I was eventually taken to the Perak police headquarters in Ipoh. After a brief interrogation session, I was taken back to the Penang headquarters.

It was here, where I was interrogated further. I told myself to keep my mind clear, to tell them the truth, and respond appropriately.

After the interrogation session, I was taken to see another higher-ranking officer who told me: "We can both go home now!"

Both of us turned to the clock on the wall, the time was 2.25pm. During my 18 hours under the ISA, I had gone through a lot.

After being released, I received a lot of messages, telephone calls and bouquets. My colleagues in the press, representatives of political parties, society leaders, schoolmates, classmates, friends and relatives have visited me at home - not forgetting the readers and the public who called up or visited Sin Chew Daily's office in Penang and the head office in Petaling Jaya.

Calls, messages, good wishes and visits from readers and friends. For all of these, I have to express my deepest gratitude.

During those 18 hours filled with a lot of uncertainties, I felt that some unknown strength supported me throughout. I knew it must be from you all, those whom I know and (those whom I) have not met!

I realise that our journey is still filled with challenges and obstacles, so we have to continue the same righteous spirit and courage that we have all shown this time. Our society needs this spirit, to build a better tomorrow.

I have finally been freed, but I hope (Seputeh MP) Teresa Kok and (blogger) Raja Petra Kamarudin and all ISA detainees will be released as soon as possible.

If the authorities think that they have broken the law, they should taken to court for a transparent and fair trial.

This article, edited for language, is reproduced with permission fromSin Chew Daily.

Wanna do something for Raja Botak Petra?

2008-09-15T13:45:00.000+08:00

http://zorro-zorro-unmasked.blogspot.com/2008/09/new-malaysia-gathers-on-15-sept.html

Joke of the day - Malaysiakini

2008-09-15T13:32:00.003+08:00

A lapdog of UMNO tells its master: 'Consult us first before using ISA'.

hahahahahahahahahaha

Anyway, referring to Malaysiakini's Could this be BN's last own goal?, I would like to add a last liner to Ong Kian Ming's piece.

The game is into injury time and the score clearly doesn't favour UMNO.

Could this be BN's last own goal?

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89711

The possibility of a political crackdown as Sept 16 draws near was always likely as were discussions that some kind of emergency might be declared. But the manner in which the latest crackdown was implemented has only accentuated Barisan Nasional's weaknesses and highlighted Pakatan Rakyat's growing momentum.

BN has a remarkable ability to score own goals. Just like Wes Brown's own goal ultimately cost Manchester United the match against Liverpool, this latest own goal could very well be the final straw that tips the scales of BN, allowing Pakatan to take over.

It is hard to imagine that the latest ISA arrests would have helped BN politically. Take, for example, Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar's assertion that the police were acting on their own orders and not his. At best, people might think he was shirking responsibility over an unpopular action. At worst, it leaves the impression that BN leaders are not in control of the instruments of power in this country.

A weak and internally-divided Umno would only encourage BN parliamentarians, especially those from East Malaysia, to seriously contemplate jumping off a sinking ship, even those who had not seriously considered doing so before.

If the BN had wanted to give a strong warning to its MPs thinking of crossing over, they would have done better by taking a page out of the Dr Mahathir Mohamad playbook. Not to be taken as a sign of endorsement on our part, Mahathir's 'Operasi Lalang' in 1987 was a 'shock and awe' tactic that was designed to intimidate politicians and civil activists from all sides and stripes. And it worked.

In contrast, these three ISA arrests reek of desperation, of weakness, of a political establishment afraid of Anwar Ibrahim and his opposition Pakatan coalition. If anything, it had the opposite effect of Ops Lalang.

Initial reports that up to 15 people were supposed to have been hauled in under the ISA did not materialise. Subsequent rumblings that further arrests were quelled by the protests of a few government leaders only confirms the growing rifts within the Umno leadership and also within the BN component parties. No less than six ministers have come out publicly against the ISA.

A fracturing Umno and BN stand in contrast to a Pakatan that is united in its battle against the BN.

The choice of ISA arrests was also politically damaging to the BN. By arresting journalist Tan Hoon Cheng and not Umno chieftain Ahmad Ismail, the BN hardly endeared itself to the non-Malays. The subsequent arrest of Selangor senior exco Teresa Kok (and not ex-mentri besar Dr Mohd Khir Toyo) only fueled the impression – rightly or wrongly - that the BN was trying to instigate a Chinese backlash against the government and in doing so, inflame Malay sentiment.

In addition, the fact that a woman opposition MP was nabbed - another first under the Abdullah administration - would only result in mobilising the anti-BN sentiment among women, especially non-Malay women, who have traditionally taken less of an overt interest in political activity and political mobilisation compared to their male counterparts.

Kok cuts a much more sympathetic figure compared to someone like Lim Kit Siang. She does not have the same public image of being an 'extremist' among the Malay community (Utusan Malaysia notwithstanding) and public sympathy for her (and anger against the BN) has been heightened by the confirmation of the false 'azan' allegations. The mosques have already said it's not her fault.

The longer Kok stays under arrest, the greater her political 'standing' when she is finally released. The longer she stays under arrest, the more the BN will be portrayed as a political bully.

Lapdogs of Umno

That controversial blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin was arrested under the ISA would not have surprised many. Ironically, access to his website was unblocked at around the same time that he was arrested. RPK is hugely popular and is read by a wide swathe of Malaysians, not just non-Malays.

His arrest would only serve to incite some of the Malay ground against the BN and ensure that there would be some cross community protest against these arrests. (It also conveniently gives Anwar an excuse that he is fighting the ISA for all Malaysians as opposed to fighting for the release of members of only one community)

Parties which have been put under the most pressure by the ISA arrests are Gerakan and MCA. Already under pressure after the Ahmad Ismail remarks, Gerakan and MCA run the risk of being seen as politically irrelevant among the non-Malay community if they do not consider the previously unthinkable.

Sidelined and ignored by an increasingly fractious Umno, leaders from these two parties are finding that no matter how much they shout or protest, their voices are not being heard within the halls of power in the BN. And worst still, everything they do is seen by their constituency as too little, too late.

If snap polls were announced today, Gerakan and MCA would be lucky to obtain even 20 percent of the non-Malay vote. While grassroots members in both parties - more so within Gerakan - are agitating to leave the BN, its leaders are still not willing to contemplate this action. The effect of which is the perception that they are the lapdogs of Umno.

The BN has gained little from the ISA arrests. It has shown itself to be divided internally. It has put aside any hope to regaining the non-Malay vote, to the detriment of MCA and Gerakan, whose leaders appear powerless to stop this. It has failed to regain any significant Malay support, perhaps because the Chinese backlash did not materialise (although people were dismayed, they stayed calm).

Finally, this episode has given Anwar and Pakatan more ammunition to form the next federal government, perhaps not on Sept 16, but in the not too distant future. Could this be BN's last own goal? #The game is into injury time and the score clearly doesn't favour UMNO.#

ONG KIAN MING is a PhD candidate in political science at Duke University and Yun Yang is a writer and new media analyst. You can listen to their podcast here.

Just Fancy That! - Malaysiakini

2008-09-15T11:00:00.004+08:00

Molester and victim nabbed.

KUALA TERENGGANU, MALAYSIA: An illegal immigrant who molested an 18-year-old student at the City Council bus terminal here was caught by bystanders minutes after his victim screamed for help.

In the 6.50pm incident on Saturday, the Mamak in his 30s was handed to a policeman on patrol in the area. After performing a 'sumpah' that he will be good and and swear never to molest again, he was set free.

The victim, from Chukai, Kemaman, lodged a report at the police station here at 8.25pm on the same day. Immediately after lodging her report, she was remanded and detained under ISA for her safety.

A police spokesman said that she will be detained indefinitely under ISA to prevent her from being molested in future.

WARNING ... Warning ... warning ......This is a satire.....

Malaysiakini: Education Politicized, Nation Capsized.

2008-09-15T10:41:00.002+08:00

It is sad indeed that our school children are pawns in the political games of UMNO. Flip-flopping, after 6 years teaching Maths and Science in English, reverting back to Bahasa Melayu, what can be achieved except to further fall behind in global competition?

To quote: In Malaysia, a survey of 4,000 human resource managers and directors have found that the lack of command in English (55.8%) is the main cause employers are against hiring fresh graduates.

Read on these 2 articles;

Continue Teaching Science and Mathematics in English

by M. Bakri Musa

In May 2003, five months after the government started the teaching of science and mathematics in English in our schools, the Ministry of Education produced a “study” with the incredulous findings of significant improvement in our students’ achievements! All in five months!

Now five years later, research from the Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) showed the very opposite results. What gives?

Both studies were prominently and uncritically reported in our mainstream media. That first study was presumably swallowed whole by our policymakers to justify continuing their policy. Rest assured that this second one too would be used for a similar purpose, as an excuse to jettison that same policy.

Despite many attempts I was unable to get a copy of that first study. Nor have I seen it published in any journal, or find any paper credited to its author, raising questions on the credibility of the “study” and competence of its “researcher.”

To the credit of its authors, this later paper is freely available on the Internet, all 153 pages of it. Its lead author is an emeritus professor, a title reserved for retired accomplished scholars, with a dean and deputy dean as his coauthors. Despite its impressive authorship, this study is deeply flawed in its design and conclusions. It does however, expose many weaknesses in the implementation of the policy, in particular the lack of teachers fluent in English.

Embarrassingly Flawed Study

The most glaring deficiency of this second study is its lack of any control group. This is basic in any research design. As the English language policy applies to all schools, you obviously cannot find a control group among current students. You can however find historical control groups by using the test scores of earlier comparable pupils who had been taught and tested in Malay.

With some ingenuity we could still have concurrent control groups, for example, Malaysian pupils attending English schools like Alice School and International School. Another would be adults fluent in English, or even the teachers. If those adults and students in English schools did equally poorly, then clearly the test is not reliable.

When I look at the test questions, it is not only the teachers who are deficient in English, so too are the test makers! Some of the questions are convoluted and would challenge even those fluent in English.

The second flaw is that there is minimal statistical analysis of the data. The pupils were tested and the results simply collated in pages and pages of raw data presented in dull, repetitive and uninformative tables. The authors must be graphically-challenged; they seem to have not heard of pie charts or bar diagrams.

There is also no attempt in delineating the roles of the many variables the researchers have included, like teachers’ English fluency, parents’ educational levels, and pupils’ geographic background (urban versus rural). To do that the data would have to be subjected to more sophisticated statistical analyses, beyond the simple analysis of variance used by the authors. Thus we do not know whether those students’ test scores could be correlated with their parents’ educational levels (a well-acknowledged factor) or teachers’ fluency in English.

There are numerous conclusions based on just simplistic summations of the data, with such statements as X percent of Malay students finding the study of science “easy” compared to Y percent of Chinese or Indians feeling likewise, or R percent of Malay students scoring high versus S percent of their Chinese counterparts. It seems that Malaysian academics, like their politicians, cannot escape the race trap.

These studies were conducted in January, February and July. Even the dumbest students knew that those were not the examination months. They knew those tests “don’t count;” thus skewing the results. The only way to make them take the test seriously would be to incorporate it into their regular examinations.

Besides, in January and February those students had just returned from their long end-of-year holidays during which considerable attrition of knowledge occurred. The difference between the racial groups may have nothing to do with academics but on such extraneous matters as how fast they settle down to their studies.

Of the 27 references cited, there is surprisingly no article from refereed journals. Most (14) are government-sponsored surveys, press releases, and newspaper articles, unusual for a scholarly paper. There are a few books cited, with the most recent published in 2002. There is considerable lag time between what is written in books versus the current state of knowledge. For that you would need journals and attend symposia.

Consequently the researchers’ review on bilingual education is dated. Contrary to their conclusion, it is now accepted that exposing children at a young age to bilingual education confers significant linguistic, cognitive and other advantages. The authors’ recommendation that pupils be taught only in their mother tongue and learn a second language later at a much older age is not supported by modern research.

Studies using functional MRIs (imaging studies) of the brain show that children who are bilingual at an earlier age use their brain more efficiently as compared to those who acquire those skills as adults. For example, when asked to translate between the two languages, “native” bilingual speakers use only one part of their brain while those who are bilingual as an adult use two.
Other cognitive advantages to “native” bilingual speakers include the ability to grasp abstract concepts faster, precisely the intellectual skill helpful in learning mathematics and higher-level science. The higher scores for non-Malays may well be the consequence of their earlier and more extensive exposure to bilingualism than Malays.

Revealing Findings

The study nonetheless reveals many useful findings. I fear however, that these nuggets of information would be lost by those who care only for the study’s unjustified conclusion to discontinue the present policy and revert to teaching science and mathematics in Malay. That would be a retrogressive step.

This study is only a snapshot; it does not enlighten us as to trend. It could be that the results would continue to improve. It is thus presumptuous for the authors to make a sweeping policy recommendation based only a limited snapshot study, and a poorly-designed one at that.

UPSI in its previous incarnation as Sultan Idris Teachers’ College was a hotbed of Malay nationalism. This study is less an academic research and more political polemic camouflaged as a pseudo-scientific study to justify its authors’ nationalist bias. Their data and methodology just do not support their conclusion.

The study found that fewer than 15 percent of the teachers were fluent in English, and that most teach using a combination of both languages. That is putting it politely. In reality they use bastardized or “pidgin” English. If those teachers lack English language skills, how could they teach any subject in that language? The fault here is not with the policy, rather its implementation. We should first train the teachers.

In its naivety the government spent over RM3 billion to equip these teachers with computers, LCDs and “teaching modules” to help them in the classroom. Many of those computers are now conveniently “stolen,” plugged with viruses, or simply left to gather dust as those teachers lack the skills to use them effectively.

The only beneficiaries of that program were UMNO operatives who secured those lucrative contracts. Had the government spent those precious funds to hire new teachers fluent in English, our students would have been better served, and the policy more effectively implemented.

This study missed a splendid opportunity to find out what those students, parents and teachers felt about the policy. It was as if those researchers and their field workers (undergraduates in education and thus our future teachers) were interested only in administering those tests, collecting their data, and then getting back to campus.

Surely those parents and teachers had something to say on the policy. What do the teachers feel about the billions spent on computers? Are they eager to learn and teach in English or do they harbor nationalist sentiments and resent the policy? Those surveys would have helped considerably towards implementing the policy better.

A Better Way

I support the teaching of science and mathematics in English. I go further and would have half the subjects in our national schools be taught in English, including Islamic Studies. The objective should be to produce thoroughly or “native” bilingual graduates, able to read, write and even dream in Malay and English. That is the only way to make our graduates competitive.

I put forth my ideas on achieving this in my earlier (2003) book, An Education System Worthy of Malaysia. I would start small, restricting the program to our residential schools where the students are smarter, teachers better, and facilities superior. Work out the kinks there first, only then expand the program.

I would also convert some teachers’ colleges into exclusively English-medium institutions to train future teachers of English, science, and mathematics.

In rural areas where the level of English in the schools and community is low, I would bring back the old English-medium schools, but modifying it significantly with pupils taught exclusively in English for the first four years (“total immersion”). Malay would be introduced only in Year V, and only as one subject.

Since Malay would not be taught in the first few years and only a limited subject later on, admission to such schools would be restricted only to those with already near-native fluency in Malay or whose habitual language is Malay. Further, such schools would be set up only where the background level of Malay in the community is high, essentially only in the kampongs.

If we were to do otherwise, as having such schools in the cities where the level of English in the community is high and Malay low, those graduates would not be fluent in our national language, as during colonial days. It would not be in the national interest to repeat that mistake. Besides, the problem of our students’ deficiency in English is most acute in rural areas. Thus it makes sense to establish English-medium schools there.

There are many challenges to the policy of teaching science and mathematics in English. One thing is certain. We will never resolve them if we listen to ambitious politicians playing to the gallery or rely on less-than-rigorous “researches.”

http://blog.limkitsiang.com/2008/09/15/continue-teaching-science-and-mathematics-in-english-2/#comment-134756

Education, employment and the economy
Comment by David C.E. Tneh

THE number of Malaysian graduates unemployed hovers around the 50,000 figure. Assuming that the figures are correct, (and they rarely are), then Malaysia does not have a serious unemployment issue. But considering that the number adds up to 350,000 (graduates and non-graduates) based on 2004 statistics; perhaps we need to question why such a situation arises.

Another interesting fact is that, there are two million foreign workers in Malaysia. Granted that not everyone (including yours truly) wants to work in the construction site, pumping fuel, heaving 15kg oil palm bunches into the lorry, cleaning toilets or even cooking authentic Malaysian fare at hawker centres, the fact remains that there are job opportunities in Malaysia for the unemployed, graduates and non-graduates alike. Perhaps it’s the minimum wage, low skill requirements, and job designation that one considers demeaning (or below) one’s stature.

Interestingly enough, in developed countries like Japan and South Korea; one would find its own citizens taking up all kinds of jobs. This "phenomenon" dates back to the Japanese economic (electronic) boom of the 1950’s. Times have changed and the 21st century global employment scene cannot guarantee one employment based on minimum qualifications and hard skills alone. Multi-national employees cannot emphasise enough the importance of good oral and communication skills like English. And with China poised to overtake America as the world’s largest trading nation in the next decade, the ability to master English and Mandarin would greatly facilitate global business ventures undertaken between the West and the East.

In Malaysia, a survey of 4,000 human resource managers and directors have found that the lack of command in English (55.8%) is the main cause employers are against hiring fresh graduates. This is followed by poor character, attitude, and personality (37.4%), unrealistic expectations of salary (33%), mismatch of skills learnt and job description (30.2%), and graduates being choosy about the type of jobs (27.7%). On a similar note, in a study conducted on 115 employers by the National Economic Action Council on unemployment, all employers viewed communication skills, being presentable and having good general knowledge as the top three criteria most desirable in fresh graduates. Interestingly, academic qualifications was ranked 8th out of the 12 criteria listed. In comparison, the Malaysian Employers Federation found that graduates who have good attitude, experience, and excellent communication skills as most desirable traits in prospective employees.

Employment research in Malaysia has found that an average private sector employee usually spends three years with a company before leaving. In America, the average duration is four years, 8.5 years in Canada, Denmark and Britain, 10.5 years in Sweden and Germany, 11.5 years in Italy and France, and almost 12.5 years in Portugal. It is a well known fact that Japanese workers usually stay on an average of 15-20 years in a company for pension benefits and are loyal and dedicated employees. While it is not wrong to move on for better wages and opportunities, how frequent an employee switches jobs would raise a red flag with any prospective employer.

In Malaysia, there is an unhealthy trend among secondary school leavers to enroll in certain popular (or common) courses like IT, Business, Accounting, Engineering, Law, and Medicine. No doubt these courses are considered "critical" to a developing nation like Malaysia, the economy of the future is a diversified economy of ideas, a creative economy that will transcend the conventional 20th Century business-commerce paradigm.

Malaysian universities are seen to be producing graduate manpower and not nurturing talent and building intellectual capital. Such an issue is also exacerbated by the fact that many Malaysian public institutions of higher learning fail to hire the best minds and are in fact losing its best talents to many developed countries in the region. Due to its outmoded and ever-changing education policies, the displacement of English, poor research culture, the inherent lack of meritocracy and race-based policies; many talented Malaysian academicians and graduates have chosen to work and contribute to the economy of countries like Singapore, China, South Korea, India, the Gulf states, the US and the EU.

The recent conferment of Apex university status to Universiti Sains Malaysia is commendable but this further highlights the shortsightedness of the government’s efforts to fully concentrate on the science and technology spheres while marginalising again the arts, humanities, and social sciences that would have struck a better balance in the creation of a developed nation that is not only economically vibrant but socially progressive as well.

What Malaysia needs is a concerted effort to push for a more holistic and flexible education system that stresses both the creative arts and the research sciences, a more vibrant research culture and implementation of English as the second national language and the realisation of the co-relation and interdependence between education, employment, and the economy cannot be disregarded. It is only by maintaining the highest standards of education that its benefits will impact and influence a country’s employment level, its economy and the moral and social wellbeing of its people.

Tneh is a research fellow at the National University of Singapore.
http://www.thesundaily.com/article.cfm?id=25659

Set Raja Petra free – this true defender of Islam and the rights of many

2008-09-15T08:37:00.001+08:00

Set Raja Petra free – this true defender of Islam and the rights of many

Posted using ShareThis

RPK IN DANGER!

2008-09-15T08:33:00.000+08:00

RPK in danger! Pakatan Rakyat must move now!

September 15, 2008

Got a call from lil hummingbird.

“We must meet. RPK is in danger.”

We met.

“You look like shit!”, he said.

“I feel like that as well”, I replied.

“You remember when RPK was in remand at Sungai Buloh the last time and he refused to eat or drink and the prison authorities got so worried that they begged his wife to get him out?

“Well, RPK is on hunger strike again. No food and no water. The authorities know that his kidneys will not be able to take this for long too long. They are going to let this carry on in the hope that complications set in and that he will suffer organ malfunction.

“That’s why even though there are news reports that Teresa’s family will be allowed to see her, probably tomorrow, there is no word that RPK’s family will be allowed the same. Lawyers have already written asking that they be permitted to meet with RPK but no word yet.

“They’re going to wait until his condition is critical before they get him medical attention. By then it will be too late. RPK would already be dead.

“That’s what they are banking on. They’ll say he brought it on himself.

“You people can hold all the vigils you want. That’s not going to get him out.

“Pakatan have to move now. Anwar has to stop this nonsense of waiting for enough Malay MPs to crossover before he seeks the audience with the Agong to intimate that Pak Lah has lost the confidence of the majority of MPs in Parliament. Didn’t the rakyat reject race-based politics at the last general elections and at Permatang Pauh? Go form the federal government now.

“Anwar has the numbers already, so he should not delay any longer.

“RPK has been without food or water since Friday. He’s not going to last long.

“We must get him out now. Otherwise the authorities will be returning him to us in a coffin!

And we can only get RPK out now if Pakatan takes over immediately”.

http://harismibrahim.wordpress.com/2008/09/15/rpk-in-danger-pakatan-rakyat-must-move-now/

Police reports lodged against Teresa Kok - Malaysiakini

2008-09-14T18:50:00.001+08:00

PPIM, Pewaris Lodge Police Reports Against Teresa Kok

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 14 (Bernama) -- The Muslim Consumers Association of Malaysia (PPIM) and the Islamic NGOs, Heritage Associations, Malay Cultural Organisations and Related Bodies Cooperation Network (Pewaris) Sunday lodged police reports against Selangor state executive councillor Teresa Kok over her alleged act to prohibit the "azan" call to prayer at mosques and surau in Kota Damansara, Sri Serdang and Puchong Jaya.

The reports were made by Pewaris advisor Rahimuddin Md Harun and PPIM Complaints Officer Mohd Nor Imran Yusuf at the Sentul district police headquarters at 11 am.

Rahimuddin told reporters later the police reports were lodged because Kok's statements could allegedly hurt the feelings of the Muslim community.

"We have made the reports so that the police can carry out the investigations on her because it is feared that the statements can spark racial animosity in Malaysia," he said.

PPIM secretary-general Datuk Dr Ma'amor Osman said in a statement that PPIM supported the government's detention of Kok, Malaysia Today blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin and Sin Chew Daily reporter Tan Hoon Cheng under the Internal Security Act (ISA) on Friday. Tan was released Saturday.

"The detentions are proof that the government does not remain silent in matters involving racial sensitivities and the Federal Constitution.

"Matters such as these should be viewed seriously because, if ignored, they could incite hatred in the people, especially the Malays, because their special position has often been disputed by certain quarters," he said.

-- BERNAMA

From Insanity to Idiocy to Sanity - Malaysiakini

2008-09-14T15:15:00.002+08:00

Insanity - ISA arrests of Raja Botak Petra, Tan Hooi Cheng and Teresa Kok

Idiocy - Syed Botak Hamid said Tan Hooi Cheng was detained for her safety

Sanity - Zaid Ibrahim threatens to quit if the government continues invoking ISA

Infamy achieved, Google presently returns 34 results for 'Malaysia criticized for 'ridiculous' arrests.

Law minister threatens to quit over ISA

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89683

De facto law minister Zaid Ibrahim has threatened to resign if the government continues invoking the Internal Security Act, which he described as 'unjust'.

The outspoken BN politician also called for the immediate release of opposition DAP MP Teresa Kok and and controversial blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin who were detained under the ISA.

"We have a government that commits to laws and reforms, we can't be using the old-style politics or resorting to create fear. We have laws and they can be charged in court.

"I am trying to meet with the Prime Minister (Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) this week to convey to him my position. If (he considers) my position is untenable, I will leave," he toldMalaysiakini in a telephone interview from Kota Baru, Kelantan today.

He held a press conference in Kota Baru earlier, where he also spoke on the same matter.

[Full report to follow]

Meanwhile Shabery Chik said that it would be better for the police to explain the detentions rather than some politicians giving reasons.

Info minister: Cops must explain reporter's arrest

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/89684

The police must explain the rationale behind the detention of
Sin Chew Daily journalist Tan Hoon Cheng under the Internal Security Act (ISA), said Information Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek.

According to Bernama, he said it would be better if the police explained the detention of Tan, instead of politicians giving their reasons.

He told this to reporters after attending a lantern carnival in Kuala Lumpur last night. Also present was his deputy, Tan Lian Hoe.

Shabery was responding to Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar’s statement that Tan's detention was part of the police's swift action to ensure her safety after she received threatening calls.

Syed Hamid said police intelligence found the journalist's life to be under threat after she reported about suspended Bukit Bendera Umno chief Ahmad Ismail's alleged racist remarks made during campaigning for the Permatang Pauh by-election last month.

Tan was released from the Penang police headquarters at about 2.30pm yesterday.

Shabery, who expressed gratefulness over the release of Tan, said the action clearly reflected that ISA detention was not a long-term punishment and was only to deter people from making statements that could jeopardise national security.

Tan’s report pertaining to the derogatory remarks made by Ahmad against the Chinese community, sparked off a national uproar culminating in the Umno leader being slapped with a three-year suspension.

Apart from Tan, the police also detained controversial blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin and DAP MP Teresa Kok under the ISA.

The arrests had received widespread condemnation from various quarters.

Opposition-led rule in Malaysia looking likely - Malaysiakini

2008-09-14T12:43:00.003+08:00

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: Less than a year ago, Malaysians would have sniggered at any suggestion that former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, crushed by a sodomy charge in 1998, could make a political comeback.

Today, nobody laughs when Anwar claims he will become prime minister. He appears to be firmly on track to attract enough defectors from the ruling coalition ranks to secure a parliamentary majority and form Malaysia's first opposition-led government since independence in 1957.

Most analysts believe Anwar can pull it off, if not by his self-imposed deadline of Tuesday, then sometime next month.

It would mark another remarkable turnaround for a man once considered a star of Asian politics, only to be toppled 10 years ago and imprisoned on a conviction of having sex with a man, a crime in Malaysia. The conviction was overturned in 2004 but he now faces another sodomy charge. Anwar has strongly denied both cases, claiming they were intended to kill his political rise.

The ruling coalition has been weakened by dissent against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, and Anwar is capitalizing on that disarray. Abdullah lost much of his clout after presiding over the government's worst ever election results in March, plunging one of Southeast Asia's most stable countries into political turmoil.

Abdullah faced renewed public anger on Friday after his government arrested an opposition lawmaker, a journalist and an anti-government blogger under a law that allows indefinite detention without trial. Tan Hoon Cheng, a reporter for the Chinese-language newspaper Sin Chew, was released Saturday after being questioned by police. Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar said the arrests were necessary to prevent racial conflict, but Anwar said they were meant to "engineer an atmosphere of fear and instability."

Anwar needs 30 defections for his People's Alliance to form the next government.

"His chances have increased by 100 percent," said James Chin, a political science professor at the Monash University in Malaysia's largest city, Kuala Lumpur. "Getting 30 to me is not a problem. I don't doubt they will jump if the conditions and benefits are the right amount."

Still, there are serious doubts as to whether Anwar can hold together his three-party coalition of leftists, Islamists and liberal freethinkers, or fulfill his sweeping promises including dismantling a controversial affirmative action program that favors the ethnic Malay majority in jobs, education, housing, business and a host of other areas.

Many Malays see the program as their birthright. Most ethnic Chinese and Indians see it as state-engineered discrimination.

The Malay-dominated National Front has ruled Malaysia — often hailed as a moderate Islamic nation — continuously for more than 50 years. The coalition has maintained its legitimacy by claiming it alone can share out the nation's resources in a way that satisfies all ethnic groups.

That myth was shattered in the March 8 general election when Anwar stitched together his unlikely coalition on a platform of equality for all races. Together they won 82 seats in the 222-member Parliament, up from 19, as well as control of five of Malaysia's 13 states.

If 61-year-old Anwar forms the next government, it would amount to a political earthquake.

He says he will restructure the affirmative action program to focus on the needy, regardless of race; free the judiciary and the media from government interference; and guarantee religious freedom and civil liberties.

"It is not very difficult to be a better government, to control corruption, to be more just. That is quite easy. The more challenging task is to change the course of the economy," he said in a recent interview.

A major shift promised by Anwar would be a change in the way the government awards public contracts. At present the contracts can only go to Malay-owned companies, but even there the decisions are made arbitrarily.

This has been an obstacle to a free trade agreement with the U.S., which wants the contract process to be transparent and open to foreigners.

But Anwar has set his sights very high, and some foresee not reform but instability. The political outlook has rattled investor confidence, weakening Malaysia's currency and stock markets.

Still, his promises strike a chord not just with Chinese and Indians but with Malays who feel the benefits of affirmative action have gone only to a well-connected elite.

The system was devised soon after Malaysia suffered spasms of racial violence in 1969 and was intended to keep the peace by making all ethnic groups dependent on government patronage.

But analyst Chin said Anwar would temper any resentment among his fellow Malays by giving them dominance in government.

"There may be isolated protests but it won't turn into a full-scale uprising by Malays," he said. "Anwar knows the game well."

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/09/14/asia/AS-Malaysian-on-the-Rise.php

Barisan Nasional in crisis

2008-09-14T12:41:00.001+08:00

Barisan Nasional in crisis

AS the magic date of September 16 approaches, the rumour mill is churning overtime with all kinds of wild speculations of defections and party hopping among politicians in Sarawak and Sabah.

The landslide victory of the PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim at the Permatang Pauh by-election on August 26 has given credence to his claim that he is now on the way to Putrajaya with the help of massive defections from the Barisan Nasional to his Pakatan Rakyat on September16, or two days from now.

There is something hugely ironic in this turn of event. For decades now, there have been persistent calls from various quarters in Sabah and Sarawak for the federal government to give some sort of official recognition to this date, which for us was the day when our East Malaysian states achieved independence from British colonial rule.

Political leaders from the other side of the South China Sea have always expressed sympathy, but the calls were largely ignored, much to the frustration of Sarawakians and Sabahans. Many will simply regard this slight as just yet another symbolic disregard of the feelings of East Malaysians so typical of Kuala Lumpur.

This year though, the number 916 has struck headlines in the national media for weeks on end, thanks to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s preposterous claim about massive defections from the BN. Most people, including his allies in the Pakatan Rakyat, take this proclamation with a giant grain of salt.

We all know a little about our politicians, more or less. We even know about their occasional expressions of unhappiness about the regional divide in socio-economic development when we get to corner them on the quiet. But I just do not see too many of our Sarawak politicians jumping ship to change a whole government at the federal level. There are simply too many variables in the exercise, and too many uncertainties in the future for such a drastic political manoeuvre to bear fruition.

But politics is the art of the possible. If you know the art well, and if all favourable conditions are present, then indeed anything is possible. A few decades ago, who would have thought that an African American can become a serious contender in the US presidential race? History does have a convoluted torturous and unexpected way of working itself out.

We ordinary citizens can do little in this historical drama unfolding before our eyes every day. Whether Anwar’s plan for a regime change at the federal level will materialise, or prove to be just another strategic move to destabilise the Barisan Nasional, time will tell. One thing is certain though. It is obvious to impartial observers that the Barisan Nasional coalition at the federal level has now arrived at a critical point, a crisis of identity and credibility that threatens its survival in the future.

Formally launched in 1974 by the then Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak, it was meant as a response to the problem of ethnic tension that exploded on May 13, 1969. The intention was to make the ruling coalition as inclusive as possible, and so many former opposition parties were recruited into its rank.

The idea then was to reduce the acrimonious race based politics in the open, and national problems can then be discussed and solved behind the closed door of the BN conference room. As the late Tun Razak was never tired of saying, when politics was reduced, the country could then concentrate on socio-economic development.

This concept worked very well for a while, and Malaysia has taken off in all aspects of national development since the 1970s. Today, Malaysia is the 29th largest economy and the 17th largest trading nation in the world, while incidents of poverty have been slashed dramatically over the last 35 years.

But in the world of political reality, any solution to every political problem will create its own legion of problems.

Tun Razak had envisaged the two prongs of the NEP as a way of distributing wealth among the races, thereby ensuring national unity. He thought that by restructuring society and eradicating poverty on the basis of an expanding economic cake, every race will come out a winner.

Over the last few decades though, the balance of power within the BN coalition has shifted radically towards Umno supreme control, not only of the ruling coalition, but of the entire nation as well. The component parties of BN, especially those in Peninsular Malaysia, see their leverage for negotiation with BN being whittled away, while their constituents grow increasingly restless.

This problem is compounded by Umno having to go through very acrimonious party election every decade or so. One crucial way for Umno leaders to consolidate their leadership positions within the party, or to win the votes from Umno delegates in the process of climbing up in party hierarchy, is to make radical statement about the primacy of the Malay race.

More often than not, these highly provocative statements and gestures have aroused profound disquiet among Malaysians of other ethnic persuasions. Their confidence in the other component parties representing them has been eroded by leaps and bounds.

Finally, this feeling of alienation exploded, and on March 8, 2008, with the congruence of all necessary factors, the voters of all ethnic communities in Peninsular Malaysia decided to teach the BN a lesson. The BN’s two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat disappeared overnight, and five state governments fell to the opposition coalition, the Pakatan Rakyat.

After the general election, the BN ruling coalition was in tatters. Though Umno could still stand on its own feet, MIC seemed to have evaporated following the defeat of their president Datuk Seri Samy Vellu. Gerakan was wiped out in its home base of Penang, and could only hold on to two parliamentary seats. MCA might have retained many ministerial positions in the federal cabinet, but their number of seats were so reduced that they now resemble a mosquito party.

These component parties of BN can now hardly boast of representing the various non-Malay ethnic communities in the country. The traditional legitimacy of BN as an all inclusive alliance containing representatives of all ethnic communities engaged in negotiation is now in jeopardy.

Within the rank and file of MCA and Gerakan, there has been no end of cries for the parties to leave BN. The BN concept has failed because of racial posturing over the years, whittling away voters’ confidence in these component parties, and driving them to vote for the opposition instead.

Even within Umno, there were voices calling for a party reform, and a real attempt at reinventing and reengineering the party. The times have changed, and political parties must change to meet the challenges of new realities.

Unfortunately, Umno, MCA, and Gerakan are all consumed with the urgent prospect of party elections within the next few months. These party elections have always been brutal, acrimonious and divisive affairs. The in-fighting would be worse this year, following the election debacle in the March 8 general election.

Within these once very powerful ruling parties, there are numerous warlords, regional factions, and entrenched interest groups, all horse-trading and jostling for position to fill the post-election vacuum. Party reform would be the last agenda on their mind!

For days on end now since the Permatang Pauh by-election, the media is saturated with the controversy surrounding the racist remarks by the Umno Bukit Bendera chief Ahmad Ismail. He allegedly said that the Chinese are immigrants and therefore cannot enjoy equality in Malaysia.

What this Umno local leader fails to realise is that his statement is the sort that alienates Malaysians of all races. Certainly, the masses of Malay voters who supported PKR and PAS in Peninsular Malaysia would find this nationalist outburst insensitive and therefore offensive. It just goes to show how Malaysian politics has changed in the past decades after the time of Tun Razak. People are no longer that obsessed with ethic ideology. They care about bread-and-butter issues and their democratic rights. Harping on matters of race will simply attract revulsion.

Whether Anwar will bring about a regime change in KL in two days’ time is not all that important in the long run. Whether the Barisan Nasional can ride out its current crisis of identity and credibility is a far more significant matter.

After all, there will be many other elections in the years and decades to come.

http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=41409

What is the meaning of Ramadan? Malaysiakini

2008-09-14T09:41:00.005+08:00

I'm an atheist. However, each year when it comes to the month of Ramadan, it is often referred to as a Holy month for the Muslims. I have watched how political opponents refrain from attacking each other. This has been a healthy practice.

However, remembering September 13 this year, I'm all too confused about the meaning of Ramadan. I've Googled the web and found many entries to explain the meaning of Ramadan but non explains what's happening in Malaysia in the holy month of Ramadan.

What surprises me is that one of the search results brought me to the Whitehouse. It defines Ramadan as 'Ramadan is a special month of the year for over one billion muslims throughout the world. It is a time for inner reflection, devotion to God, and self control'.

I understand that our flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister had introduced Islam Hadhari to the world. As I'm an atheist, I didn't care to understand what Islam Hadhari is. But the recent developments in this country; the ISA arrests of Raja Botak Petra, Tan Hoon Cheng and Teresa Kok that I assume is to provoke the people to take to the street, they are all against the meaning of Ramadan.

When Islam Hadhari was introduced, what was the objectives? On 31-5-2005, flip-flopping lame duck Prime Minister Badawi gave a speech at the Victoria University in New Zealand titled 'Islam Hadhari and Good Governance'.

Reproduced in parts, excerpts:

4. EXTREMISM AND RADICALISM HAVE INDEED BECOME THE SCOURGE IN MANY PARTS OF THE WORLD TODAY. I CAN CONFIDENTLY SAY THAT WE IN MALAYSIA HAVE SUCCEEDED IN CONTAINING EXTREMISM AND RADICALISM. NEVERTHELESS, WE DO WISH TO FURTHER BUILD UPON THE INTER-RACIAL TOLERANCE WE ALREADY OBSERVE AND THE INTER-FAITH COEXISTENCE WE ALREADY PRACTISE IN MALAYSIA. BASED ON OUR OWN EXPERIENCE IN SOCIAL ENGINEERING AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, I STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT THE ELIMINATION OF POVERTY AND THE PROVISION OF GOOD GOVERNANCE ARE KEY IN THE FIGHT AGAINST EXTREMISM AND RADICALISM.

5. IN MALAYSIA, WE HAVE INTRODUCED ISLAM HADHARI AS THE APPROACH FOR INSTITUTING A NATIONAL ORDER, IN A MUSLIM COUNTRY SUCH AS OURS, THAT IS FAIR AND JUST TO ALL IRRESPECTIVE OF RACE OR RELIGION. WE HAVE TRANSLATED ISLAM HADHARI INTO THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE AS CIVILIZATIONAL ISLAM. ISLAM HADHARI IS NOT THE CODE WORD FOR ANY SECRET MISSION. IT IS AN OPEN AGENDA SETTING OUT THE APPROACH WE WISH TO TAKE IN PROVIDING WHAT IS BEST FOR MALAYSIA AS A MULTI-RELIGIOUS AND MULTI-RACIAL SOCIETY WHERE THE MAJORITY OF THE POPULATION IS MUSLIM.

6. WE VIEW ISLAM HADHARI AS THE WAY TO GOOD GOVERNANCE, THAT IS TO SAY THE WAY IN WHICH THE GOVERNMENT HOPES TO ADMINISTER TO THE WELLBEING OF THE COUNTRY AND THE WELFARE OF ITS MULTI-RELIGIOUS AND MULTI-RACIAL POPULATION. THE TEACHINGS OF ISLAM ARE UNDOUBTEDLY THE FOUNDATION AND INSPIRATION FOR OUR ACTIONS BUT THE BENEFITS ARE INTENDED FOR EQUITABLE SHARING BY ALL MALAYSIANS, MUSLIMS AS WELL AS NON-MUSLIMS ALIKE.

13. MALAYSIA HAS ADOPTED ISLAM HADHARI AS THE LONG TERM NATIONAL APPROACH FOR PROVIDING SOCIO-ECONOMIC JUSTICE AND FAIRNESS TO ITS CITIZENS. I WOULD LIKE YOU TO KNOW THAT THIS APPROACH HAS ALSO BEEN INSPIRED BY OUR FIRM BELIEF THAT GOOD GOVERNANCE, HEALTHY DEMOCRATIC PRACTICES, EMPOWERMENT OF THE CITIZENRY THROUGH EDUCATION AND EQUITABLE SHARING OF THE BENEFITS OF ECONOMIC GROWTH WILL REMOVE ANY ATTRACTIVENESS TOWARDS RADICALISM AND BLUNT ANY TENDENCIES TOWARDS EXTREMISM.

14. WE IN MALAYSIA WOULD LIKE TO SHOW BY EXAMPLE THAT A MUSLIM COUNTRY CAN BE MODERN, DEMOCRATIC, TOLERANT AND ECONOMICALLY COMPETITIVE. ISLAM CERTAINLY DOES NOT ENJOIN US TO TURN OUR BACKS AGAINST THE REST OF THE WORLD. IN FACT, ISLAM TEACHES US TO FIND SUCCESS NOT ONLY IN THE HEREAFTER BUT ALSO IN THIS WORLD.

15. WE ARE CONFIDENT THAT ISLAM HADHARI CAN HELP BRING MUSLIMS INTO THE MODERN WORLD AND INTEGRATE THEM IN THE MODERN ECONOMY. ISLAM HADHARI PROMOTES TOLERANCE AND UNDERSTANDING, MODERATION AND PEACE, CERTAINLY ENLIGHTENMENT.

By going through and reviewing what our lame duck Prime Minister said above, and compared to the current situation in Malaysia, is this another flip-flop or is it the true hidden manifestation of what Islam Hadhari is? Please note #13 above.

I am of the opinion and I strongly hold the believe that Islam is a beautiful religion and is a peaceful religion. As reproduced below, cut-and-paste from here,it teaches Muslims to repeat the line "I am fasting" twice when abused or when someone attempts to draw you to a fight.

If I were a Muslim, I would surely repeat these two lines yesterday, today and tomorrow. The ISA arrests is nothing but a scheme to bring out the anger in us to take to the street. So far, we have proven to be smarter than they thought we were. We have moved on and progressed over time since 1969 and 1987.

Ramadan is also the month of mercy. Muslims are called to show mercy, compassion, generosity, and care for all Gods creatures, including themselves, other human beings, animals and the environment as the vicegerents of God on earth. By partaking in Ramadan, and experiencing it together creates a social space that is shared by many Muslims across the globe. This creates a unique sense of solidarity among Muslims around the world. By sharing the feast with friends and relatives during Eid ul Fitr, and by giving charity (fitra) and alms to the poor and needy (zakat), Muslims take part in healing social wounds, knitting closer ties with others, redistributing wealth, connecting with those who are in need. This aspect of Ramadan contributes to creating a just and compassionate society based on sharing and giving rather than focusing on consumerism.

The following Hadith captures this aspect of fasting: "Allah (SWT) (the name for The Almighty God, used by Muslims) said that: All services of the son of Adam are for him except fasting. It is for Me, and I will reward him for it. Fasting is a shield. On the day you fast, do not use obscenity, nor yell at others, nor act ignorantly towards them. However, if anyone abuses you verbally or attempts to draw you to fight with him, say 'I am fasting' two times. The Prophet (pbuh) then states: I swore by the One (Allah) in Whose Hand is the soul of Muhammad, the breath of the faster is sweeter to Allah on the Day of Judgment than the scent of musk. The faster experiences enjoyment twice: he is pleased when he breaks his fast, and he is pleased when he meets his Maker" (Muslim).

http://www.tentofabraham.org/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=18

Finally, I dedicate this poem to all the Muslims worldwide.