1.Mokhzani calls on motor sports community to work harder
2.COMMENT: A gem of a read for every Malaysian
3.A gem of a read for every Malaysian
4. Malaysian PM defends arrest of activists: report
5.Malaysia's Anwar condemns use of security law
7.15/12: What now, Pak Lah?
8.Johan Jaaffar: When politicians get creative... and write poetry
9.Proxy and Proximity
10.Malaysian PM defends arrest of activists: report
Sunday, December 16, 2007
azmi khalid talking environmental.
Malaysia Ready To Share Experience In Forest Conservation - Azmi
By Mohd Nasir Yusoff
NUSA DUA (Bali), Dec 12 (Bernama) -- Malaysia is prepared to share its experience in tropical forest conservation with the countries taking part in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (UNCCC) here.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid said despite its development strides, Malaysia managed to conserve 60 per cent of its virgin jungles which played an important role in reducing the release of carbon dioxide (Co2) and green house gasses.
"Malaysia is among a handful of countries which have managed to conserve their tropical forests. If we are to include areas planted with oil palm and cocoa, our land mass which is capable of absorbing carbon dioxide accounts for 70 per cent of the country," he told Bernama on the sidelines of the conference which is being attended by nearly 190 countries.
Azmi heads a delegation of 40 senior officers at the 12-day conference.
bernama.
Note: A friend was mentioning about 60K lost in 18 drivers. I have no idea.
By Mohd Nasir Yusoff
NUSA DUA (Bali), Dec 12 (Bernama) -- Malaysia is prepared to share its experience in tropical forest conservation with the countries taking part in the United Nations Climate Change Conference (UNCCC) here.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Azmi Khalid said despite its development strides, Malaysia managed to conserve 60 per cent of its virgin jungles which played an important role in reducing the release of carbon dioxide (Co2) and green house gasses.
"Malaysia is among a handful of countries which have managed to conserve their tropical forests. If we are to include areas planted with oil palm and cocoa, our land mass which is capable of absorbing carbon dioxide accounts for 70 per cent of the country," he told Bernama on the sidelines of the conference which is being attended by nearly 190 countries.
Azmi heads a delegation of 40 senior officers at the 12-day conference.
bernama.
Note: A friend was mentioning about 60K lost in 18 drivers. I have no idea.
a house, a room.
Greg Constantine for the International Herald Tribune
About 20 ethnic Kachin from Myanmar, many of them illegal, share this apartment in Kuala Lumpur.
Migrants in Malaysia
A Growing Source of Fear for Migrants in Malaysia
By SETH MYDANS
Published: December 10, 2007
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — When his turn comes to stand watch, Kang Long posts himself at a window, peering into the dark streets outside the tiny apartment where his fellow migrant workers sleep 10 to a room.
“We always fear, especially at night,” he said. “Maybe there will be a raid. Where will we run? I worry for my wife and children. I’ve been thinking of moving to the jungle.”
Mr. Kang Long, 43, is an ethnic Chin refugee from Myanmar, one of as many as three million foreign workers whose labor on farms, factories and construction sites and in service industries supports the economy of this bustling Southeast Asian nation. About half are estimated to be here illegally.
Like foreign workers elsewhere, they are resented by many local people and demonized by politicians. Here in Malaysia they have become the targets of an expanding campaign of harassment, arrest, whippings, imprisonment and deportation.
In 2005, the government transformed a volunteer self-defense corps, created in the 1960s to guard against Communists, into a strike force deputized to hunt down illegal immigrants.
This force, called Rela, now numbers nearly half a million mostly untrained volunteers — more than the total number of Malaysia’s military and police in this nation of 27 million. Its leaders are armed and have the right to enter a home or search a person on the street without a warrant. By an official count, its uniformed volunteers carry out 30 to 40 raids a night.
As it takes over more police and prison duties, Rela is drawing the condemnation of local and foreign human rights groups. They accuse the volunteers, some as young as 16, of violence, extortion, theft and illegal detention.
“They break into migrant lodgings in the middle of the night without warrants, brutalize inhabitants, extort money and confiscate cellphones, clothing, jewelry and household goods, before handcuffing migrants and transporting them to detention camps for illegal immigrants,” Human Rights Watch said in a report in May.
They often fail to honor legitimate documentation and sometimes destroy documents in order to justify their actions, the group said.
In an interview, Rela’s director-general, Zaidon Asmuni, dismissed the concerns of human rights groups, saying the nation’s security was at stake, and demanded an aggressive defense. “We have no more Communists at the moment, but we are now facing illegal immigrants,” he said. “As you know, in Malaysia illegal immigrants are enemy No. 2.” Enemy No. 1, he says, is drugs.
Illegal immigrants, if caught, are brought before a judge for a trial. If convicted, they face up to five years in jail and a whipping, then deportation.
Some of the migrants, like Mr. Kang Long from Myanmar, are refugees registered with the United Nations, but Malaysia has not signed the United Nations refugee convention. So those migrants are also caught up in the sweeps.
According to the accounts of a dozen migrants, things can get even worse once they are deported. After serving time in a detention center, they say, many are taken to a no man’s land near the border with Thailand where human traffickers await their arrival.
If they can pay about $450, the migrants say, the traffickers will smuggle them back to Kuala Lumpur. If they cannot pay, they may be sold as laborers to fishing boats or forced into the sex trade.
Irene Fernández, a Malaysian who heads a local migrants’ rights group called Tenaganita, said victims sometimes called from the border begging for money to pay the traffickers. “It’s a conflict for us because we cannot support any form of trafficking,” she said. “At the same time, protection of life is equally important.”
The best she can honorably do, she said, is to notify the immigrant communities in Kuala Lumpur, where people often barely have enough money to feed themselves, and hope they can find the means to save their friends.
Terrorized by Rela, many of the migrants have left their apartments in the city and built shacks of leaves and branches in the surrounding jungle. But Rela pursues them there as well, the migrants say.
“Some jungle sites are periodically cleared by local authorities, the inhabitants are displaced, valuables taken away, and at times shelters are burned to the ground,” the medical aid group Doctors Without Borders said in a recent report.
Despite the criticisms, Rela — an acronym for the Malay words for People’s Volunteer Corps — has been expanding in numbers and in law enforcement powers. As of November, it had screened 156,070 people this year and had detained 30,332 for not having travel documents, according to the home affairs minister, Radzi Sheikh Ahmad.
In the interview, Mr. Zaidon, the Rela director general, said his organization was expanding so fast that it was impossible to train most of the volunteers or to carry out background checks before deputizing them to make arrests.
“We cannot train half a million just like that,” he said. “It’s an ongoing process. It will take time, 5 or 10 years.”
If Rela members were overly scrupulous about human rights, he said, they could not do their job. “To stop a person by the roadside, that is also against human rights,” he said. “But if you talk about human rights, you cannot talk about security.”
The volunteers cast a wide net as they stop and search people who look like Asian foreigners. Most migrant workers come from Indonesia, while others come from Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Vietnam as well as from Myanmar, formerly Burma.
In October, the Indonesian government protested when Rela detained an Indonesian student and the wife of an Indonesian diplomat. In both cases, Indonesia said, the victims produced documents that the volunteers ignored.
Most of Rela’s targets, though, are people like Ndawng Lu, 59, an ethnic Kachin refugee from Myanmar who shares an apartment with 20 other people.
Her neighbors fled and she remained alone when Rela made a daytime raid earlier this year, she said. “They shouted at me, ‘Where’s the money?’” she said. “I got down on my knees and begged them. ‘I don’t have any money.’ But they wanted money. They pulled stuff from under the bed. They looked here, they looked there. They opened all our bags.”
Her documents were in order, she said, and the search party left her with the mess.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/10/world/asia/10malaysia.html.
By SETH MYDANS
Published: December 10, 2007
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — When his turn comes to stand watch, Kang Long posts himself at a window, peering into the dark streets outside the tiny apartment where his fellow migrant workers sleep 10 to a room.
“We always fear, especially at night,” he said. “Maybe there will be a raid. Where will we run? I worry for my wife and children. I’ve been thinking of moving to the jungle.”
Mr. Kang Long, 43, is an ethnic Chin refugee from Myanmar, one of as many as three million foreign workers whose labor on farms, factories and construction sites and in service industries supports the economy of this bustling Southeast Asian nation. About half are estimated to be here illegally.
Like foreign workers elsewhere, they are resented by many local people and demonized by politicians. Here in Malaysia they have become the targets of an expanding campaign of harassment, arrest, whippings, imprisonment and deportation.
In 2005, the government transformed a volunteer self-defense corps, created in the 1960s to guard against Communists, into a strike force deputized to hunt down illegal immigrants.
This force, called Rela, now numbers nearly half a million mostly untrained volunteers — more than the total number of Malaysia’s military and police in this nation of 27 million. Its leaders are armed and have the right to enter a home or search a person on the street without a warrant. By an official count, its uniformed volunteers carry out 30 to 40 raids a night.
As it takes over more police and prison duties, Rela is drawing the condemnation of local and foreign human rights groups. They accuse the volunteers, some as young as 16, of violence, extortion, theft and illegal detention.
“They break into migrant lodgings in the middle of the night without warrants, brutalize inhabitants, extort money and confiscate cellphones, clothing, jewelry and household goods, before handcuffing migrants and transporting them to detention camps for illegal immigrants,” Human Rights Watch said in a report in May.
They often fail to honor legitimate documentation and sometimes destroy documents in order to justify their actions, the group said.
In an interview, Rela’s director-general, Zaidon Asmuni, dismissed the concerns of human rights groups, saying the nation’s security was at stake, and demanded an aggressive defense. “We have no more Communists at the moment, but we are now facing illegal immigrants,” he said. “As you know, in Malaysia illegal immigrants are enemy No. 2.” Enemy No. 1, he says, is drugs.
Illegal immigrants, if caught, are brought before a judge for a trial. If convicted, they face up to five years in jail and a whipping, then deportation.
Some of the migrants, like Mr. Kang Long from Myanmar, are refugees registered with the United Nations, but Malaysia has not signed the United Nations refugee convention. So those migrants are also caught up in the sweeps.
According to the accounts of a dozen migrants, things can get even worse once they are deported. After serving time in a detention center, they say, many are taken to a no man’s land near the border with Thailand where human traffickers await their arrival.
If they can pay about $450, the migrants say, the traffickers will smuggle them back to Kuala Lumpur. If they cannot pay, they may be sold as laborers to fishing boats or forced into the sex trade.
Irene Fernández, a Malaysian who heads a local migrants’ rights group called Tenaganita, said victims sometimes called from the border begging for money to pay the traffickers. “It’s a conflict for us because we cannot support any form of trafficking,” she said. “At the same time, protection of life is equally important.”
The best she can honorably do, she said, is to notify the immigrant communities in Kuala Lumpur, where people often barely have enough money to feed themselves, and hope they can find the means to save their friends.
Terrorized by Rela, many of the migrants have left their apartments in the city and built shacks of leaves and branches in the surrounding jungle. But Rela pursues them there as well, the migrants say.
“Some jungle sites are periodically cleared by local authorities, the inhabitants are displaced, valuables taken away, and at times shelters are burned to the ground,” the medical aid group Doctors Without Borders said in a recent report.
Despite the criticisms, Rela — an acronym for the Malay words for People’s Volunteer Corps — has been expanding in numbers and in law enforcement powers. As of November, it had screened 156,070 people this year and had detained 30,332 for not having travel documents, according to the home affairs minister, Radzi Sheikh Ahmad.
In the interview, Mr. Zaidon, the Rela director general, said his organization was expanding so fast that it was impossible to train most of the volunteers or to carry out background checks before deputizing them to make arrests.
“We cannot train half a million just like that,” he said. “It’s an ongoing process. It will take time, 5 or 10 years.”
If Rela members were overly scrupulous about human rights, he said, they could not do their job. “To stop a person by the roadside, that is also against human rights,” he said. “But if you talk about human rights, you cannot talk about security.”
The volunteers cast a wide net as they stop and search people who look like Asian foreigners. Most migrant workers come from Indonesia, while others come from Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Vietnam as well as from Myanmar, formerly Burma.
In October, the Indonesian government protested when Rela detained an Indonesian student and the wife of an Indonesian diplomat. In both cases, Indonesia said, the victims produced documents that the volunteers ignored.
Most of Rela’s targets, though, are people like Ndawng Lu, 59, an ethnic Kachin refugee from Myanmar who shares an apartment with 20 other people.
Her neighbors fled and she remained alone when Rela made a daytime raid earlier this year, she said. “They shouted at me, ‘Where’s the money?’” she said. “I got down on my knees and begged them. ‘I don’t have any money.’ But they wanted money. They pulled stuff from under the bed. They looked here, they looked there. They opened all our bags.”
Her documents were in order, she said, and the search party left her with the mess.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/10/world/asia/10malaysia.html.
ANWAR is such a darling.
Malaysia's Anwar condemns use of security law
By Clarence Fernandez
Fri Dec 14, 5:54 AM ET
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Five ethnic Indians held under a Malaysian law that allows detention without trial should be charged in court immediately to avoid the risk of rights abuse, Malaysian opposition figure Anwar Ibrahim said on Friday.
Authorities have said the activists, members of a group that staged a massive anti-government protest last month, were detained on Thursday for up to two years on the grounds that their actions had threatened national security.
The group, the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) alarmed the government by bringing more than 10,000 ethnic Indians onto the streets of the capital to complain of racial discrimination.
Anwar, a former deputy prime minister who was once himself locked up under the colonial-era law originally designed to fight communists, said the legislation was easy to abuse.
"We are, as a principle, against the Internal Security Act and the use of the Act against anyone," he told reporters.
"We have evidence, we have experience of the abuse of the Act against political personalities and civil society leaders throughout the years after independence."
Anwar was himself beaten by the then police chief during his own detention under the Act in 1998, for leading anti-government protests demanding political reform in the wake of being sacked by former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak said the government had been very patient with the Hindraf group, and acted only after having given it a sufficient chance to conform to the law.
"The public wanted the government to take a stern action much earlier but we were very patient and tolerant," state news agency Bernama quoted Najib as saying. "When the ISA was invoked, it should not have come as a surprise to anyone."
MASS PROTESTS
Thursday's arrests aimed to curb the political space for debates on economic policy, corruption and other social challenges, Amnesty International said in a statement.
"We assert that the ISA is the biggest symbol of torture and injustice in Malaysia and we hereby call on the executive to abolish the Act," the rights group added.
The Bar Council, which says its represents all of Malaysia's 12,000 lawyers, urged the government to free the five men or charge them in court.
"The Bar Council once again reiterates its call to the government for immediate repeal of the Act," it added.
The Hindraf rally was one of two mass protests last month. A separate crowd of around 10,000 people had earlier turned out on the streets of the capital to demand electoral reforms, amid expectations of a snap poll by March 2008.
But the Indian rally, though largely peaceful, aroused deep concerns within the government, and also among many ordinary Malaysians, because of the country's history of tense and sometimes explosively violent race relations.
In 2001, five people were killed and 37 wounded in riots between majority ethnic Malays and Indians that began after an Indian kicked over a chair at a Malay wedding. In 1969, hundreds were killed in rioting between Malays and ethnic Chinese.
Anwar said he believed more arrests could follow, because Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi appeared to have decided to take a hard line against the protesters.
"I am extremely -- not only disappointed, but appalled -- by the manner in which Prime Minister Abdullah is acting right now," he said.
"He has just succumbed to pressures of extremist hue. From the rhetoric of the government, the prime minister and the leaders, I wouldn't be surprised if more arrests were made."
(Reporting by Clarence Fernandez; Editing by Alex Richardson)
By Clarence Fernandez
Fri Dec 14, 5:54 AM ET
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Five ethnic Indians held under a Malaysian law that allows detention without trial should be charged in court immediately to avoid the risk of rights abuse, Malaysian opposition figure Anwar Ibrahim said on Friday.
Authorities have said the activists, members of a group that staged a massive anti-government protest last month, were detained on Thursday for up to two years on the grounds that their actions had threatened national security.
The group, the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) alarmed the government by bringing more than 10,000 ethnic Indians onto the streets of the capital to complain of racial discrimination.
Anwar, a former deputy prime minister who was once himself locked up under the colonial-era law originally designed to fight communists, said the legislation was easy to abuse.
"We are, as a principle, against the Internal Security Act and the use of the Act against anyone," he told reporters.
"We have evidence, we have experience of the abuse of the Act against political personalities and civil society leaders throughout the years after independence."
Anwar was himself beaten by the then police chief during his own detention under the Act in 1998, for leading anti-government protests demanding political reform in the wake of being sacked by former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak said the government had been very patient with the Hindraf group, and acted only after having given it a sufficient chance to conform to the law.
"The public wanted the government to take a stern action much earlier but we were very patient and tolerant," state news agency Bernama quoted Najib as saying. "When the ISA was invoked, it should not have come as a surprise to anyone."
MASS PROTESTS
Thursday's arrests aimed to curb the political space for debates on economic policy, corruption and other social challenges, Amnesty International said in a statement.
"We assert that the ISA is the biggest symbol of torture and injustice in Malaysia and we hereby call on the executive to abolish the Act," the rights group added.
The Bar Council, which says its represents all of Malaysia's 12,000 lawyers, urged the government to free the five men or charge them in court.
"The Bar Council once again reiterates its call to the government for immediate repeal of the Act," it added.
The Hindraf rally was one of two mass protests last month. A separate crowd of around 10,000 people had earlier turned out on the streets of the capital to demand electoral reforms, amid expectations of a snap poll by March 2008.
But the Indian rally, though largely peaceful, aroused deep concerns within the government, and also among many ordinary Malaysians, because of the country's history of tense and sometimes explosively violent race relations.
In 2001, five people were killed and 37 wounded in riots between majority ethnic Malays and Indians that began after an Indian kicked over a chair at a Malay wedding. In 1969, hundreds were killed in rioting between Malays and ethnic Chinese.
Anwar said he believed more arrests could follow, because Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi appeared to have decided to take a hard line against the protesters.
"I am extremely -- not only disappointed, but appalled -- by the manner in which Prime Minister Abdullah is acting right now," he said.
"He has just succumbed to pressures of extremist hue. From the rhetoric of the government, the prime minister and the leaders, I wouldn't be surprised if more arrests were made."
(Reporting by Clarence Fernandez; Editing by Alex Richardson)
Faces of demonstrators
everybody demonstrates once awhile. we demonstrate anger, sadness or feelings. I choose 2 photos here. Look at the faces.
which one was real.?
which one was merely acting.?
arent we all actors on the big stage?
which one was real.?
which one was merely acting.?
arent we all actors on the big stage?
Monday, December 10, 2007
Anwar melambai.
Anwar seringkali tahu dimana lensa kamera. Anwar cepat dan cekap.
Malaysia's opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (C) waves during a banned opposition rally demanding changes to the electoral system, outside the National Palace in Kuala Lumpur November 10, 2007.
Anwar Explains Why He Is In India
By P. Vijian
NEW DELHI, Dec 7 (Bernama) -- Former deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said he had been invited to attend some conferences on democracy in India and that he had only raised genuine grievances faced by minority groups in Malaysia during his current lectures.
"These conferences were planned five months ago, I gave my commitment and I attended," he told Bernama when asked what made him come to India at this time.
"The lectures were about the state of democracy and I gave my honest answers."
When asked about demands from certain ethnic Indians in Malaysia, he claimed that the Malaysian government's response had been unwise.
Anwar arrived in New Delhi yesterday to present a special lecture entitled "India and Worldwide Movement for Democracy: What India Can Learn From Others and What It Has To Give".
Last Saturday he attended the Islamic Peace Conference in Mumbai.
Earlier, Hindraf leader P.Wayatha Moorthy met Bharatiya Janata Party leader L.K. Advani here but failed to meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The Malaysian lawyer also delivered a lecture on human rights at a law symposium.
Malaysia's opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (C) waves during a banned opposition rally demanding changes to the electoral system, outside the National Palace in Kuala Lumpur November 10, 2007.
Anwar Explains Why He Is In India
By P. Vijian
NEW DELHI, Dec 7 (Bernama) -- Former deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said he had been invited to attend some conferences on democracy in India and that he had only raised genuine grievances faced by minority groups in Malaysia during his current lectures.
"These conferences were planned five months ago, I gave my commitment and I attended," he told Bernama when asked what made him come to India at this time.
"The lectures were about the state of democracy and I gave my honest answers."
When asked about demands from certain ethnic Indians in Malaysia, he claimed that the Malaysian government's response had been unwise.
Anwar arrived in New Delhi yesterday to present a special lecture entitled "India and Worldwide Movement for Democracy: What India Can Learn From Others and What It Has To Give".
Last Saturday he attended the Islamic Peace Conference in Mumbai.
Earlier, Hindraf leader P.Wayatha Moorthy met Bharatiya Janata Party leader L.K. Advani here but failed to meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The Malaysian lawyer also delivered a lecture on human rights at a law symposium.
Curious crowd:
A large number of people gathering around a black Naza Ria at Sunway City in Ipoh at about 5pm on Sunday. Mohamad and his family members were believed to be in the vehicle.
The star online.
The star online.
Prime Minister Abdullah defended the arrests.
"They ignored the law and still wanted to protest ... of course police have to take action. This (protest) is not our culture," Abdullah was quoted as saying by national news agency Bernama.
Few photos here for memories, not as evidence in court.
This can easily be the best photo. Thanks to whoever is the photographer. Some of us; the photographer, journalist, man or woman prefer not to be known or well known. But some are crazy for news or exposure.
Few photos here for memories, not as evidence in court.
This can easily be the best photo. Thanks to whoever is the photographer. Some of us; the photographer, journalist, man or woman prefer not to be known or well known. But some are crazy for news or exposure.
I dont like Monday!
Malaysia: Police Detain 21 People For Illegal Rallies
KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: Malaysian police detained 21 opposition members, lawyers and activists Sunday (9 Dec), including nine people who joined a banned human rights march, officials said, in a widening crackdown following a series of anti-government protests.
Twelve members of an opposition coalition were among those rounded up in nationwide raids for taking part in a banned rally on Nov. 10 demanding electoral reforms, coalition spokesman Syed Azman Syed Ahmad told The Associated Press. The coalition plans to hold a second demonstration on Tuesday (11 Dec) outside Parliament.
The arrests are part of a growing crackdown on disgruntled Malaysians who have held a slew of anti-government protests and demonstrations, jolting the administration of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi ahead of elections expected soon.
The Nov. 10 rally _ which drew some 30,000 people _ was followed by an equally large street protest by minority ethnic Indians on Nov. 25 to complain of racial discrimination and economic deprivation from government policies.
Earlier Sunday (25 Nov), eight people, including four lawyers, were detained for taking part in a march for human rights by about 40 people in downtown Kuala Lumpur, defying a ban on assembly and an order to disperse, local police chief Che Hamzah Che Ismail said.
Bar Council President Ambiga Sreenevasan told reporters another lawyer was detained later after he tried to stop police from tearing down banners marking International Human Rights Day.
"I am in a state of utter disbelief at the heavy-handedness of the police ... these tactics are bullying tactics," Sreenevasan said. "This is a sad day for human rights in Malaysia."
Prime Minister Abdullah defended the arrests.
"They ignored the law and still wanted to protest ... of course police have to take action. This (protest) is not our culture," Abdullah was quoted as saying by national news agency Bernama.
Among those arrested for the Nov. 10 rally were Tian Chua, a senior official of the opposition People's Justice Party, and 10 members of the opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party. The two parties are the main groups in the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections, known by its Malay acronym Bersih, which organized the rally.
Despite the arrests, Bersih will go ahead with its second demonstration on Tuesday outside Parliament to hand over a memorandum to the speaker to demand free and fair elections, Syed Azman said.
He said the 12 are likely to be formally charged in court on Monday (10 Dec). Also Monday, ethnic Indian leader P. Uthayakumar, who organized the Nov. 25 rally, will appear in court where prosecutors will seek permission to charge him with sedition.
The government has also charged 31 Indians with attempted murder after a policeman was injured during the rally.
Sunday's arrests came amid complaints by Uthayakumar that the charges were racially motivated because police did not arrest anyone from the Nov. 10 rally, which was mostly participated by Malays.
Syed Azman said by arresting Bersih activists, the government "is trying to balance it out so that it won't look racially biased."
"The heat is on the government because of the (Indian) issue. The government is under tremendous pressure because the whole world is watching now, so they are trying to divert attention," he said. (By EILEEN NG/ AP)
MySinchew 2007.12.10
Ethnic Indian leader lodges police complaint against Malaysia's PM, other officials
By VIJAY JOSHI,Associated Press Writer AP - Sunday, December 9KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - An ethnic Indian leader filed a police report Saturday against Malaysia's prime minister, the attorney general and police chief for claiming his protest group has possible terrorist links.
"These allegations? I just laugh at them," P. Uthayakumar told reporters after lodging the criminal report against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and the others at a police station in a Kuala Lumpur neighborhood. Also included in the complaint are Law Minister Nazri Aziz and the state-controlled media.
Abdullah, Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail and Inspector General of Police Musa Hassan have claimed in public statements that Uthayakumar's Hindu Rights Action Force, or Hindraf, is being investigated for possible ties to terrorism, including the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam of Sri Lanka. The LTTE has been branded a terror group by the United States and European Union.
"We have got zero links with terrorism. We have got zero links with LTTE. We do not support violence. We are a nonviolent group," said Uthayakumar, a human rights lawyer, outside the police station. A dozen supporters gathered around him holding portraits of India's independence leader and icon of nonviolence, Mohandas K. Gandhi.
"I have never met anyone from LTTE in my life," he said.
The government has stepped up its crackdown on Hindraf since it organized a rally by Malaysia's ethnic Indians on Nov. 25 to protest the community's economic plight and alleged racial discrimination by the Malay majority government.
At least 20,000 people participated in the unprecedented protest, which has triggered fears of ethnic unrest in this multiracial country.
On Friday, the government revoked the license of Hindraf Enterprise, a company set up by the group to receive donations. The state Companies Commission of Malaysia said Hindraf Enterprises was conducting unlawful business "prejudicial to national security and public order."
Indians form 8 percent of Malaysia's 27 million people and are at the bottom of the social and economic scale. Malays make up about 60 percent and control the government. Ethnic Chinese are 25 percent and dominate business.
Hindraf is demanding equality and fair treatment for Indians, saying an affirmative action program that gives preferential treatment to Muslim Malays is tantamount to racial discrimination.
"They have gone overboard when they say we have links with terrorism. They are trying to divert the issue" of Indian grievances, Uthayakumar said.
He said he feared the government would use the allegation to arrest him under the Internal Security Act, which allows indefinite detention without trial.
In the police complaint Uthayakumar accused Abdullah and the four other parties of making "false, malicious seditious, criminally defamatory, racially inciting and inflammatory statements."
Such a complaint is usually followed by a police investigation. Criminal charges are then filed by the police against the accused if necessary.
Uthayakumar said he does not expect the police to take his complaint seriously. But he said he did it as a symbolic gesture, and challenged the government to produce evidence within 24 hours to show he has terrorist links.
Uthayakumar has also threatened to sue the government leaders for defamation to seek 10 million (US$ 2.9 million; ?1.98 million) ringgit in damages.
6 dead, 4,000 evacuated after flash floods hit Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Heavy rains caused flash floods throughout Malaysia leaving six people dead and leading to the evacuation of more than 4,000 others, police said Sunday.
Four people, including a 3-year-old boy, drowned in northeast Kelantan state, and 1,671 others were placed in temporary shelters, said police official Mohamad Rizal.
In southern Johor state, police recovered the body of a 13-year-old boy early Sunday who was swept away while bathing in a river. More than 1,160 people were in relief centers in the state.
A 15-year-old boy died after falling into a river while fishing in neighboring Pahang state, said police spokesman Rahimi Rais. A total of 1,495 people in Pahang were evacuated.
Northern Terengganu state was also affected by heavy rainfall, but flood waters receded and all evacuees returned home, police said.
The Meteorological Department said heavy downpours had eased but warned moderate rainfall would continue over the next two days in flood-prone states, a statement on its Web site said.
Malaysia increased flood mitigation efforts after suffering one of its worst periods of monsoon flooding last year. The government estimated losses of 1.2 billion ringgit (US$343 million; ?233 million) to repair roads and schools, and in aid to flood victims.
AP - Monday, December 10
KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: Malaysian police detained 21 opposition members, lawyers and activists Sunday (9 Dec), including nine people who joined a banned human rights march, officials said, in a widening crackdown following a series of anti-government protests.
Twelve members of an opposition coalition were among those rounded up in nationwide raids for taking part in a banned rally on Nov. 10 demanding electoral reforms, coalition spokesman Syed Azman Syed Ahmad told The Associated Press. The coalition plans to hold a second demonstration on Tuesday (11 Dec) outside Parliament.
The arrests are part of a growing crackdown on disgruntled Malaysians who have held a slew of anti-government protests and demonstrations, jolting the administration of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi ahead of elections expected soon.
The Nov. 10 rally _ which drew some 30,000 people _ was followed by an equally large street protest by minority ethnic Indians on Nov. 25 to complain of racial discrimination and economic deprivation from government policies.
Earlier Sunday (25 Nov), eight people, including four lawyers, were detained for taking part in a march for human rights by about 40 people in downtown Kuala Lumpur, defying a ban on assembly and an order to disperse, local police chief Che Hamzah Che Ismail said.
Bar Council President Ambiga Sreenevasan told reporters another lawyer was detained later after he tried to stop police from tearing down banners marking International Human Rights Day.
"I am in a state of utter disbelief at the heavy-handedness of the police ... these tactics are bullying tactics," Sreenevasan said. "This is a sad day for human rights in Malaysia."
Prime Minister Abdullah defended the arrests.
"They ignored the law and still wanted to protest ... of course police have to take action. This (protest) is not our culture," Abdullah was quoted as saying by national news agency Bernama.
Among those arrested for the Nov. 10 rally were Tian Chua, a senior official of the opposition People's Justice Party, and 10 members of the opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party. The two parties are the main groups in the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections, known by its Malay acronym Bersih, which organized the rally.
Despite the arrests, Bersih will go ahead with its second demonstration on Tuesday outside Parliament to hand over a memorandum to the speaker to demand free and fair elections, Syed Azman said.
He said the 12 are likely to be formally charged in court on Monday (10 Dec). Also Monday, ethnic Indian leader P. Uthayakumar, who organized the Nov. 25 rally, will appear in court where prosecutors will seek permission to charge him with sedition.
The government has also charged 31 Indians with attempted murder after a policeman was injured during the rally.
Sunday's arrests came amid complaints by Uthayakumar that the charges were racially motivated because police did not arrest anyone from the Nov. 10 rally, which was mostly participated by Malays.
Syed Azman said by arresting Bersih activists, the government "is trying to balance it out so that it won't look racially biased."
"The heat is on the government because of the (Indian) issue. The government is under tremendous pressure because the whole world is watching now, so they are trying to divert attention," he said. (By EILEEN NG/ AP)
MySinchew 2007.12.10
Ethnic Indian leader lodges police complaint against Malaysia's PM, other officials
By VIJAY JOSHI,Associated Press Writer AP - Sunday, December 9KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - An ethnic Indian leader filed a police report Saturday against Malaysia's prime minister, the attorney general and police chief for claiming his protest group has possible terrorist links.
"These allegations? I just laugh at them," P. Uthayakumar told reporters after lodging the criminal report against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and the others at a police station in a Kuala Lumpur neighborhood. Also included in the complaint are Law Minister Nazri Aziz and the state-controlled media.
Abdullah, Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail and Inspector General of Police Musa Hassan have claimed in public statements that Uthayakumar's Hindu Rights Action Force, or Hindraf, is being investigated for possible ties to terrorism, including the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam of Sri Lanka. The LTTE has been branded a terror group by the United States and European Union.
"We have got zero links with terrorism. We have got zero links with LTTE. We do not support violence. We are a nonviolent group," said Uthayakumar, a human rights lawyer, outside the police station. A dozen supporters gathered around him holding portraits of India's independence leader and icon of nonviolence, Mohandas K. Gandhi.
"I have never met anyone from LTTE in my life," he said.
The government has stepped up its crackdown on Hindraf since it organized a rally by Malaysia's ethnic Indians on Nov. 25 to protest the community's economic plight and alleged racial discrimination by the Malay majority government.
At least 20,000 people participated in the unprecedented protest, which has triggered fears of ethnic unrest in this multiracial country.
On Friday, the government revoked the license of Hindraf Enterprise, a company set up by the group to receive donations. The state Companies Commission of Malaysia said Hindraf Enterprises was conducting unlawful business "prejudicial to national security and public order."
Indians form 8 percent of Malaysia's 27 million people and are at the bottom of the social and economic scale. Malays make up about 60 percent and control the government. Ethnic Chinese are 25 percent and dominate business.
Hindraf is demanding equality and fair treatment for Indians, saying an affirmative action program that gives preferential treatment to Muslim Malays is tantamount to racial discrimination.
"They have gone overboard when they say we have links with terrorism. They are trying to divert the issue" of Indian grievances, Uthayakumar said.
He said he feared the government would use the allegation to arrest him under the Internal Security Act, which allows indefinite detention without trial.
In the police complaint Uthayakumar accused Abdullah and the four other parties of making "false, malicious seditious, criminally defamatory, racially inciting and inflammatory statements."
Such a complaint is usually followed by a police investigation. Criminal charges are then filed by the police against the accused if necessary.
Uthayakumar said he does not expect the police to take his complaint seriously. But he said he did it as a symbolic gesture, and challenged the government to produce evidence within 24 hours to show he has terrorist links.
Uthayakumar has also threatened to sue the government leaders for defamation to seek 10 million (US$ 2.9 million; ?1.98 million) ringgit in damages.
6 dead, 4,000 evacuated after flash floods hit Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Heavy rains caused flash floods throughout Malaysia leaving six people dead and leading to the evacuation of more than 4,000 others, police said Sunday.
Four people, including a 3-year-old boy, drowned in northeast Kelantan state, and 1,671 others were placed in temporary shelters, said police official Mohamad Rizal.
In southern Johor state, police recovered the body of a 13-year-old boy early Sunday who was swept away while bathing in a river. More than 1,160 people were in relief centers in the state.
A 15-year-old boy died after falling into a river while fishing in neighboring Pahang state, said police spokesman Rahimi Rais. A total of 1,495 people in Pahang were evacuated.
Northern Terengganu state was also affected by heavy rainfall, but flood waters receded and all evacuees returned home, police said.
The Meteorological Department said heavy downpours had eased but warned moderate rainfall would continue over the next two days in flood-prone states, a statement on its Web site said.
Malaysia increased flood mitigation efforts after suffering one of its worst periods of monsoon flooding last year. The government estimated losses of 1.2 billion ringgit (US$343 million; ?233 million) to repair roads and schools, and in aid to flood victims.
AP - Monday, December 10
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Locating Hindraf in the spider web.
Hindraf 'has links with Tigers'
The New Straits Times - Dec 07 4:15 PMSHAH ALAM: Hindu Rights Action Force leaders may face criminal charges over their links with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam of Sri Lanka. Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail said police had started their investigation following a report lodged by a member of the public.
Connecting a country or a group with terrorism has been done before;
Al muamunah,
tigers,
and of course the famous Osama ben Laden.
It is simple and effective. Drastic action can then be legalised with jails, deaths and bombs. Even UN cant do anything about it. Whats more with little guys from Ijok, Telipok, Santubong, Sungai Mati, Batang Berjuntai, Pekan Nenasi, Kuala Sawah, and Ketereh.
The New Straits Times - Dec 07 4:15 PMSHAH ALAM: Hindu Rights Action Force leaders may face criminal charges over their links with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam of Sri Lanka. Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail said police had started their investigation following a report lodged by a member of the public.
Connecting a country or a group with terrorism has been done before;
Al muamunah,
tigers,
and of course the famous Osama ben Laden.
It is simple and effective. Drastic action can then be legalised with jails, deaths and bombs. Even UN cant do anything about it. Whats more with little guys from Ijok, Telipok, Santubong, Sungai Mati, Batang Berjuntai, Pekan Nenasi, Kuala Sawah, and Ketereh.
Saturday, December 08, 2007
kelangsungan kepimpinan
"You appear at the wrong time"
Itulah yang berlaku kepada Chin Peng, Bustamam, Pak Sako, Dato Sagor dan berpuluh yang lain. Mereka hadir pada waktu yang salah. Keadaan ketika itu tidak mengizinkan kehadiran mereka.
Tamadun manusia bergerak dengan senario begitu. Kemenjadian kepimpinan tidak mampu beradu tenaga dengan ancaman. Ada orang yang harus pergi. Bila ada orang pergi, ia menjadi tauladan kepada yang lain. Helai-helai sejarah menyediakan rujukan penting tentang kelangsungan kepimpinan.
Secara umum, sesebuah negara atau tamadun tidak rugi dengan kehilangan beberapa orang. Ramai yang tetap bersedia tampil dan membantu. Negara tetap dapat bergolek kedepan. Bila saya sebut begini, bukan bermaksud saya rela melihat taktik memangkas setiap ancaman dengan gelojoh dan brutal.
Tetapi sejarah juga sering menunjukan kejatuhan sesuatu era. Era Moghul, Chinese, dan Pharaoh Dynasty memaparkan dengan jelas saat akhir kejatuhan sesuatu dinasti. Di situ ada pengajaran tertentu bagi menentukan tahap kepimpinan negara kita.
Pun begitu, wajar juga kita lihat kepada Akhbar. Beliau muncul atas timbunan ratusan ribu mayat untuk menerima title "the great".
Dunia kekal sebagai pentas.
Selamat Maju Jaya.
(for Ron)
Friday, December 07, 2007
Hindraf dengan kerumitannya
Dato berjaya menyelami Hindraf dengan meneliti siapa orang India yang datang ke Tanah Melayu. Dato melebarkan penelitian hingga ke Ceylon atau Sri Lanka, walaupun berlainan negara, tetapi orang di sini melonggokan kaum dari benua sana sebagai hanya orang "India".
Orang India tidak dinafikan hidup dalam kejayaan dan kesengsaraan. Yang ada di negara ini adalah replika kepada apa yang ada di negara India. Yang kaya di satu hujung, manakala yang melarat disatu hujung yang lain. Di negara India, yang miskin itulah yang paling ramai, kita difahamkan.
Orang Melayu pun begitu, dengan spektrum kesejahteraan yang extreme iaitu Miskin dan Kaya.
Orang Cina di benua China pun begitu. Kekayaan dan kejayaan sentiasa berpusat di bandar. Luar bandar kekal sebagai lubuk kemiskinan. Tidak pulak dinafikan wujudnya "poverty pockets" di bandar-bandar, yang menjadi perangkap bahaya.
Tindakan keras terhadap hindraf, boleh dilihat sebagai usaha membanteras budaya demonstrasi jalanan yang sering mudah menjadi riot.
Beberapa siri demonstrasi sudah berlaku dalam negara kita. Ketika Rice santai bermain piano didalam, diluar ada perarakan besar dengan Khairy sebagai jaguh. BERSIH turun mencorak KL dengan warna kuning, menyembahkan sesuatu kepada orang Istana dan Anwar sempat melambai kepada kamera. Hindraf menanti hadirnya orang British untuk mempamirkan gelora masyarakat mereka.
Dalam demonstrasi sebegini, wajar dilihat hasrat demonstrasi dalam dua perspektif;
Pertama - yang ketara.
Kedua - yang terselindung.
Kemudian ada yang akan bertanya, apakah hak orang yang berarak? Akan ada pula yang bertanya, adakah Hindraf mewakili hasrat orang India di Malaysia?
Apapun wajar kita akur kepada hakikat bahawa kita rakyat Malaysia, yang berjumlah lebih dari 20 juta ini, berkongsi hak keatas sebuah negara kecil, yang lembab, panas, sering hujan dan sering banjir.
Setiap suara adalah bermakna dan kita juga harus faham bahawa "api bangsa dan agama", adalah api yang mudah merebak dan memusnah. Api itu sering disalahguna.
(for scribe)
Orang India tidak dinafikan hidup dalam kejayaan dan kesengsaraan. Yang ada di negara ini adalah replika kepada apa yang ada di negara India. Yang kaya di satu hujung, manakala yang melarat disatu hujung yang lain. Di negara India, yang miskin itulah yang paling ramai, kita difahamkan.
Orang Melayu pun begitu, dengan spektrum kesejahteraan yang extreme iaitu Miskin dan Kaya.
Orang Cina di benua China pun begitu. Kekayaan dan kejayaan sentiasa berpusat di bandar. Luar bandar kekal sebagai lubuk kemiskinan. Tidak pulak dinafikan wujudnya "poverty pockets" di bandar-bandar, yang menjadi perangkap bahaya.
Tindakan keras terhadap hindraf, boleh dilihat sebagai usaha membanteras budaya demonstrasi jalanan yang sering mudah menjadi riot.
Beberapa siri demonstrasi sudah berlaku dalam negara kita. Ketika Rice santai bermain piano didalam, diluar ada perarakan besar dengan Khairy sebagai jaguh. BERSIH turun mencorak KL dengan warna kuning, menyembahkan sesuatu kepada orang Istana dan Anwar sempat melambai kepada kamera. Hindraf menanti hadirnya orang British untuk mempamirkan gelora masyarakat mereka.
Dalam demonstrasi sebegini, wajar dilihat hasrat demonstrasi dalam dua perspektif;
Pertama - yang ketara.
Kedua - yang terselindung.
Kemudian ada yang akan bertanya, apakah hak orang yang berarak? Akan ada pula yang bertanya, adakah Hindraf mewakili hasrat orang India di Malaysia?
Apapun wajar kita akur kepada hakikat bahawa kita rakyat Malaysia, yang berjumlah lebih dari 20 juta ini, berkongsi hak keatas sebuah negara kecil, yang lembab, panas, sering hujan dan sering banjir.
Setiap suara adalah bermakna dan kita juga harus faham bahawa "api bangsa dan agama", adalah api yang mudah merebak dan memusnah. Api itu sering disalahguna.
(for scribe)
tabir kuning, biru dan hijau.
Rakyat umum dan kepimpinan negara sering terpisah. Walau seribu kali berjumpa dan bersalaman, rakyat umum dan kepimpinan berjalan dalam lorong yang berbeza.
Lorong yang berbeza itu boleh bercantum dimana-mana simpang. Komitmen dan tanggungjawab akan membawa pemimpin dan rakyat di lantai papan yang sama, duduk dan memahami apa yang dirasai oleh rakyat.
Senyum ketawa, jenaka, sentuh bahu dan tangan, makan, ole-ole, duit raya, kain pelikat, kain batik dan lain-lain lagi hanyalah sesuatu yang superficial. Semua itu sekadar tabir nipis kemesraan yang senang direntap.
Memahami rakyat adalah menginsafi rentak, dan rumitnya rakyat umum mengharungi hidup seharian. Saya sangat khuatir kemampuan pemimpin menginsafi kehidupan rakyat jelata. Berjuta kali salaman dan jamu makan bukan petanda konkrit keluhuran itu.
Memang hidup kita sering bertabir. Adalah menjadi harapan ramai, supaya wajah dan keluhuran pemimpin masih kekal bersih dan baik bila tabir kuning, biru atau hijau direntap.
(for Ron)
driving force of synergy drive
Bila ada ketua dan pekerja dalam mana-mana setup, sama ada bisnes atau sektor awam, ruang sentiasa diberikan kepada pekerja supaya kreativiti dan komitmen dapat dicernakan sebaik mungkin. Setup itu akan kekal relevan dan berdaya saing.
Apa pun sistem yang digunakan, konsep "planning" dan "monitoring" tidak boleh diabaikan bagi merealisasikan matlamat.
Saya yakin Musa dengan kepercayaan tinggi dari PM, dapat melaksanakan tanggungjawab dengan baik. Pasukan beliau juga terdiri dari mereka-mereka yang berkaliber.
Saya sangat berharap, dalam tindak tanduk mereka, tidak ada usaha ketara untuk memadam aspirasi, nostalgia masyarakat, komitmen, rancangan menyeluruh yang disediakan oleh Tun. Jika itu ada, mereka masih mengekalkan sifat kanak-kanak yang selalu disebut sebagai "bad loser".
Saya percaya synergy drive yang diurus dengan baik akan mengukuhkan ekonomi dan meluaskan potensi Malaysia dalam ekonomi global. Selamat Maju dan Jaya.
(for scribe)