Monday 27 October 2014
Afghan mullah jailed for 20 years for rape
KABUL: An Afghan court has sentenced a mullah to 20 years in prison after finding the religious teacher guilty of raping a 10-year-old girl.
The sentence, passed by a Kabul judge on Saturday, has been welcomed by women's support groups as a rare victory in their fight for justice for female victims of sex crimes. Rape is often treated as adultery in Afghanistan, and victims can face prison themselves.
Hassina Sarwari, who runs a shelter for women in northern Kunduz province, where the rape took place, welcomed the court's decision saying on Sunday that if the trial had not been transferred to Kabul the result would probably have been very different.
The rape took place in May in the girl's home village near the provincial capital, also called Kunduz.
Isis 'Threatens to Execute Male Teachers Who Teach Female Students'
Male teachers threatened with death for breaking Islamic State's interpretation of sharia law
Isis activists are exerting their influence in Iraq and Syria by threatening death sentences for male teachers who teach women, and harsh punishments for teachers who teach any that fall outside of the group's strict interpretation of sharia law.
People living under Islamic State rule in Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria have been banned from owning academic books, studying subjects including law and human rights, and educating children privately at home.
This week – the start of the university academic term – Islamic State ordered university departments in law, political science, fine art, archaeology, sports education, philosophy, tourism and hotel management to be closed in areas it controls.
In Mosul and Raqqa Islamic State have ordered teachers not to teach democracy, cultural education, human rights and law, to maintain what it called "the public good".
Teachers have been told they must have training in Islamic State's interpretation of sharia, and should avoid certain subjects in curricula and exams "which do not conform to sharia law", including "forged historical principles" – a reference to Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, and "un-Islamic geographic decisions" by other nation states.
Teachers who fail to separate male and female students were threatened with punishments and sweeps for illegal books and materials are common, according to an activist inside Raqqa who spoke to the Times. "I have many books of philosophy and history. [But] they are hidden," the source said, speaking under the pseudonym Abu Wart.
He told of families that had chosen to have children educated privately at home, to avoid the strict laws laid down by Islamic State, who have drawn the most chilling threats: teachers who teach female students privately risk execution.
Last week students from the University of Mosul were allowed to travel outside Islamic State-controlled areas to take final year exams in Iraqi Kurdistan in approved subjects.
Isis activists are exerting their influence in Iraq and Syria by threatening death sentences for male teachers who teach women, and harsh punishments for teachers who teach any that fall outside of the group's strict interpretation of sharia law.
People living under Islamic State rule in Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria have been banned from owning academic books, studying subjects including law and human rights, and educating children privately at home.
This week – the start of the university academic term – Islamic State ordered university departments in law, political science, fine art, archaeology, sports education, philosophy, tourism and hotel management to be closed in areas it controls.
In Mosul and Raqqa Islamic State have ordered teachers not to teach democracy, cultural education, human rights and law, to maintain what it called "the public good".
Teachers have been told they must have training in Islamic State's interpretation of sharia, and should avoid certain subjects in curricula and exams "which do not conform to sharia law", including "forged historical principles" – a reference to Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, and "un-Islamic geographic decisions" by other nation states.
Teachers who fail to separate male and female students were threatened with punishments and sweeps for illegal books and materials are common, according to an activist inside Raqqa who spoke to the Times. "I have many books of philosophy and history. [But] they are hidden," the source said, speaking under the pseudonym Abu Wart.
He told of families that had chosen to have children educated privately at home, to avoid the strict laws laid down by Islamic State, who have drawn the most chilling threats: teachers who teach female students privately risk execution.
Last week students from the University of Mosul were allowed to travel outside Islamic State-controlled areas to take final year exams in Iraqi Kurdistan in approved subjects.
Hanya 12 peratus yang tinggal
Pihaknya mendesak supaya Majlis Raja-Raja Melayu memberi perhatian yang lebih tentang kehilangan tanah rizab Melayu ini.
KUALA LUMPUR: Presiden Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa), Datuk Ibrahim Ali menyatakan bahawa isu tanah rizab Melayu yang semakin pupus harus dipandang serius oleh semua pihak.
Menurutnya lagi, ia juga harus dijadikan agenda nasional agar pihak berkuasa boleh merancang pelan tindakan bagi mengatasi masalah sebelum menjadi semakin teruk.
“Baru-baru ini media telah mendedahkan bahawa tanah rizab Melayu hanya tinggal 12 peratus sahaja,” katanya pada majlis Wacana dan Forum Isu Tanah Rizab Melayu: Tragedi Bangsa dan Langkah Pembetulan Segera di Dewan Utama Pusat Institut Pemikiran dan Tamadun Islam Antarabangsa (Istac) di ibu negara.
Tambah Ibrahim lagi, pihaknya juga mendesak supaya Majlis Raja-Raja Melayu memberi perhatian yang lebih tentang kehilangan tanah rizab Melayu ini.
“Kita mendesak supaya Majlis Raja-Raja Melayu memberi perhatian yang lebih tentang kehilangan tanah rizab Melayu ini dan tindakan segera dapat diambil,” katanya.
Bukan itu sahaja, bagi mengelakkan supaya masalah itu menjadi semakin berleluasa, Perkasa turut mencadangkan satu jawatankuasa khas berhubung tanah rizab Melayu ditubuhkan.
“Kita juga meminta supaya pihak kerajaan menghentikan pemberian tanah anugerah kepada mana-mana pihak.
“Tanah kerajaan yang masih belum dibangunkan hendaklah dijadikan tanah rizab Melayu bagi menggantikan tanah rizab yang telah hilang sebelum ini,” katanya lagi.
Menurutnya lagi, ia juga harus dijadikan agenda nasional agar pihak berkuasa boleh merancang pelan tindakan bagi mengatasi masalah sebelum menjadi semakin teruk.
“Baru-baru ini media telah mendedahkan bahawa tanah rizab Melayu hanya tinggal 12 peratus sahaja,” katanya pada majlis Wacana dan Forum Isu Tanah Rizab Melayu: Tragedi Bangsa dan Langkah Pembetulan Segera di Dewan Utama Pusat Institut Pemikiran dan Tamadun Islam Antarabangsa (Istac) di ibu negara.
Tambah Ibrahim lagi, pihaknya juga mendesak supaya Majlis Raja-Raja Melayu memberi perhatian yang lebih tentang kehilangan tanah rizab Melayu ini.
“Kita mendesak supaya Majlis Raja-Raja Melayu memberi perhatian yang lebih tentang kehilangan tanah rizab Melayu ini dan tindakan segera dapat diambil,” katanya.
Bukan itu sahaja, bagi mengelakkan supaya masalah itu menjadi semakin berleluasa, Perkasa turut mencadangkan satu jawatankuasa khas berhubung tanah rizab Melayu ditubuhkan.
“Kita juga meminta supaya pihak kerajaan menghentikan pemberian tanah anugerah kepada mana-mana pihak.
“Tanah kerajaan yang masih belum dibangunkan hendaklah dijadikan tanah rizab Melayu bagi menggantikan tanah rizab yang telah hilang sebelum ini,” katanya lagi.
When Malaysians flee to get justice
In the same week that Malaysia won a non-permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council, a Malaysian shockingly fled Malaysia to seek asylum and protection from what he called oppression from authorities and gangsters.
Activist Ali Abd Jalil is the second Malaysian in as many weeks who ran away, citing oppressive laws and lacking faith in the system to protect his rights.
Posting in his Facebook page, Ali said "Now I am in Sweden, looking for asylum… the Malaysian government and sultan treated me like rubbish.
"I have been threatened by gangsters and racist Malay groups in Malaysia. Malaysia is not safe for me, police and gangsters are following me all the time."
Ali faces three sedition charges for allegedly insulting the Johor royalty and the Sultan of Selangor in his Facebook postings.
He has been accused of posting seditious remarks on a Facebook page called "Kapitalis Bangsat" that allegedly belittled the Johor sultanate.
Another Malaysian, Alvin Tan, who is facing criminal charges under the Sedition Act as well as the Film Censorship Act for controversial online uploads, including a photo deemed insulting to Islam on Facebook, is seeking asylum in the United States.
Ordinarily, these two are facing criminal charges and that should be the end of that. But there has been a rise of vitriol and venom against those who allegedly cause offence to be taken by certain groups.
To say that the police have been quick to stem such toxicity in the bud as they are in looking for Ali and Alvin would be too naive.
Which is why, rightly or wrongly, these two men have left the coop because they believe they won't get justice in Malaysia.
This is a major embarrassment for the Najib government, which has been at pains to paint the country as a moderate nation, and that its election to the UNSC is due to its moderation and peace-loving values.
And no amount of speeches at the UN or in international events can wipe away this blemish – that two Malaysians do not believe they will get justice in Malaysia.
Perhaps we think we are, and perhaps we do that abroad but in Malaysia, what we can term moderation in the broadest of sense that does not appear to exist.
Malaysia has seen the rise of a few groups which use hate speech to run down and threaten people, to the extent that Muslims who touch dogs are deemed apostates and anything Western is seen as a conspiracy against the Malays and Islam.
What more for the likes of Ali and the case against him.
Not only is he facing a trial, he is facing groups that have threatened his life. And nothing much has been done about it. Hence, the decision to run away.
No one should condone Ali's alleged offence. But no one should also condone those who want to harm him for what he has done.
Malaysia is in the UNSC to promote peace and moderation. It must also be seen to do that in the country. If not, we are just a country that speaks from both sides of the mouth.
No one is going to listen, let alone respect Malaysia if we allow this hypocrisy to continue. – October 26, 2014.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/when-malaysians-flee-to-get-justice#sthash.OEBb10iJ.dpuf
BAM Confirms Shuttler Failed Doping Test
PETALING JAYA, Oct 26 (Bernama) -- After keeping silent for some time, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) Sunday confirmed that one of its shuttlers failed a doping test recently.
BAM deputy president Datuk Norza Zakaria, however, said BAM could not reveal the name of the shuttler until the outcome of the test on Sample B was known early next month.
"BWF (Badminton World Federation) has confirmed that one of our players failed a a doping test, that's all at the moment", he told reporters after a BAM executive committee meeting in Subang here.
He also confirmed that the banned substance taken by the shuttler was dexamethasone, a pain killer.
Local newspapers and international news agencies had reported that a Malaysian shuttler had failed a random doping test at the Badminton World Championship in Copenhagen last August.
Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar had confirmed the matter but also did not want to reveal the name of the shuttler until the test on Sample B was completed.
BAM deputy president Datuk Norza Zakaria, however, said BAM could not reveal the name of the shuttler until the outcome of the test on Sample B was known early next month.
"BWF (Badminton World Federation) has confirmed that one of our players failed a a doping test, that's all at the moment", he told reporters after a BAM executive committee meeting in Subang here.
He also confirmed that the banned substance taken by the shuttler was dexamethasone, a pain killer.
Local newspapers and international news agencies had reported that a Malaysian shuttler had failed a random doping test at the Badminton World Championship in Copenhagen last August.
Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar had confirmed the matter but also did not want to reveal the name of the shuttler until the test on Sample B was completed.
After beer and dogs, critics go after Halloween
After coming under strong criticism from several Islamic groups, banners and billboards promoting a Halloween night event at an international school were reportedly taken down by the Seremban municipal council.
Sinar Harian reported
yesterday that the council had earlier approved the putting up of the
banners "without realising" the meaning of Halloween and the controversy
it could spark, and has now decided to take down all the promotional
materials.The four-hour Halloween celebration was slated to be held at an international school in Bandar Sri Sendayan on Oct 31, and had invited the general public to join the event.
Halloween is a festival traditionally observed in the West on Oct 31.
However several Islamic groups including Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) had reportedly protested, saying such a programme should never be organised because it is against Islamic culture.
The groups accused the holding of the event in a school as an attempt to spread "Western teachings" to children.
'What's the organisers' motives?' read the Sinar's front page headline.
According to the Malay daily, Isma also took issue with the organisers promoting the event in Bahasa Malaysia.
Last week conservative Islamists were up in arms over an event to help Muslims overcome the fear of dogs.
Earlier this month, they took issue with Carlsberg's billboards promoting its Oktoberfest celebration in Subang, Selangor.
Pro-government quarters even lashed out at non-Muslim Pakatan MPs for showing solidarity with the event by attending its opening.
Ali: I left because they wanted to kill me
Despite being arrested four times and
slapped with multiple charges of sedition, social activist Ali Abd Jalil
had always appeared unfazed and positive about his predicament.
So it came as a surprise to many when Ali finally fled to Sweden, but the activist said it was more than escaping the Sedition Act. He feared for his life.
"The police, gangsters, Perkasa, Malay right-wing groups, Umno groups are all looking for me, some of them have threatened to kill me and to beat me.
"Some even say that I am a traitor and I am not supposed to be treated like a person.
"Most
of the Malay groups (such as) Perkasa are saying that I am rubbish and
the police are not protecting me," Ali, who is now in Gävle, a city 170
kilometres north west of Stockholm.
Speaking to Malaysiakini via instant messenger, Ali said it was this sense of helplessness that finally pushed him to leave.
"Some people asked why I have to run away, actually it is not my decision.
"I have discussed with my friends, my colleagues and among my other activists. If I stay in Malaysia, I can't do anything," he said.
Ali, who was released on bail on Sept 29, said it took him three weeks after his 22-day detention to decide about leaving the country.
'I will always be Malaysian'
He then went about researching on the best country where he could seek asylum, even consulting blogger Alvin Tan who had also fled to the US after being charged under the Sedition Act for a Facebook posting deemed insulting to Muslims.
"I asked him what should I do, how can I cross the border and everything... He suggested for me to go to the US, but it's difficult because if I want to go to the US, I will need a visa," he said.
Ali, who left the country through Thailand, finally settled for Sweden after learning that it was among the friendliest countries in the world for asylum seekers.
In
fact, he said, he has already been granted a permit to work in Sweden
pending his asylum application after an interview with the authorities
there.
The 29-year-old student said he left the country with a heavy heart with family in mind as they will face "problems" because of him.
"Sometimes I am a bit worried about my family in Malaysia but I have no choice," he said.
The activist, who has yet to complete his studies in corporate management at a local university, said he longs for home but with three sedition charges hanging over his head, his life in Malaysia was untenable.
Nonetheless, whether he is granted asylum or not, Ali insists that he will not give up his Malaysian citizenship.
"I am still a Malaysian and I am so proud to be a Malaysian because Malaysia is my home and my parents, family, brothers and sisters are still in Malaysia," he said.
'I will return when Umno goes'
The day he returns home, he said, would be the day the ruling coalition falls from power.
"Hopefully the current Umno will collapse and when the government in Malaysia changes, I wish I can go back.
"The problem is now under the Umno government, if I go back, they will definitely arrest (me) and put me in jail like before.
"The police and judiciary are controlled by the government. So, maybe I will settle down here for a couple of years," he said.
Amnesty
International has adopted Ali as a "prisoner of conscious" during his
detention and its Sweden chapter in Stockholm had facilitated his bid to
seek for asylum.
Ali was on Sept 8 charged at the Selayang Sessions Court under Section 4(1)(c) of the Act for allegedly making a Facebook posting that is deemed insulting the Selangor sultan.
Upon posting bail of RM5,000 on the same day, Ali was immediately re-arrested and taken to the Shah Alam Sessions Court, where he faced two more counts under the same section of the Act.
He posted bail of RM8,000 for the two charges on Sept 23, only to be re-arrested 10 minutes later and taken to Johor Bahru for investigations, also under the Sedition Act for another Facebook posting allegedly insulting the Johor sultan.
Ali was remanded by the Johor police until Sept 27, but upon release, was re-arrested under a different section of the same Act in a bid to extend his remand.
He was finally released on bail on Sept 29.
Tomorrow: 'In Sweden, the monarch can be criticised'
So it came as a surprise to many when Ali finally fled to Sweden, but the activist said it was more than escaping the Sedition Act. He feared for his life.
"The police, gangsters, Perkasa, Malay right-wing groups, Umno groups are all looking for me, some of them have threatened to kill me and to beat me.
"Some even say that I am a traitor and I am not supposed to be treated like a person.
"Most
of the Malay groups (such as) Perkasa are saying that I am rubbish and
the police are not protecting me," Ali, who is now in Gävle, a city 170
kilometres north west of Stockholm.Speaking to Malaysiakini via instant messenger, Ali said it was this sense of helplessness that finally pushed him to leave.
"Some people asked why I have to run away, actually it is not my decision.
"I have discussed with my friends, my colleagues and among my other activists. If I stay in Malaysia, I can't do anything," he said.
Ali, who was released on bail on Sept 29, said it took him three weeks after his 22-day detention to decide about leaving the country.
'I will always be Malaysian'
He then went about researching on the best country where he could seek asylum, even consulting blogger Alvin Tan who had also fled to the US after being charged under the Sedition Act for a Facebook posting deemed insulting to Muslims.
"I asked him what should I do, how can I cross the border and everything... He suggested for me to go to the US, but it's difficult because if I want to go to the US, I will need a visa," he said.
Ali, who left the country through Thailand, finally settled for Sweden after learning that it was among the friendliest countries in the world for asylum seekers.
In
fact, he said, he has already been granted a permit to work in Sweden
pending his asylum application after an interview with the authorities
there.The 29-year-old student said he left the country with a heavy heart with family in mind as they will face "problems" because of him.
"Sometimes I am a bit worried about my family in Malaysia but I have no choice," he said.
The activist, who has yet to complete his studies in corporate management at a local university, said he longs for home but with three sedition charges hanging over his head, his life in Malaysia was untenable.
Nonetheless, whether he is granted asylum or not, Ali insists that he will not give up his Malaysian citizenship.
"I am still a Malaysian and I am so proud to be a Malaysian because Malaysia is my home and my parents, family, brothers and sisters are still in Malaysia," he said.
'I will return when Umno goes'
The day he returns home, he said, would be the day the ruling coalition falls from power.
"Hopefully the current Umno will collapse and when the government in Malaysia changes, I wish I can go back.
"The problem is now under the Umno government, if I go back, they will definitely arrest (me) and put me in jail like before.
"The police and judiciary are controlled by the government. So, maybe I will settle down here for a couple of years," he said.
Amnesty
International has adopted Ali as a "prisoner of conscious" during his
detention and its Sweden chapter in Stockholm had facilitated his bid to
seek for asylum.Ali was on Sept 8 charged at the Selayang Sessions Court under Section 4(1)(c) of the Act for allegedly making a Facebook posting that is deemed insulting the Selangor sultan.
Upon posting bail of RM5,000 on the same day, Ali was immediately re-arrested and taken to the Shah Alam Sessions Court, where he faced two more counts under the same section of the Act.
He posted bail of RM8,000 for the two charges on Sept 23, only to be re-arrested 10 minutes later and taken to Johor Bahru for investigations, also under the Sedition Act for another Facebook posting allegedly insulting the Johor sultan.
Ali was remanded by the Johor police until Sept 27, but upon release, was re-arrested under a different section of the same Act in a bid to extend his remand.
He was finally released on bail on Sept 29.
Tomorrow: 'In Sweden, the monarch can be criticised'
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