Tuesday 3 March 2015
Education is a Crime for Baha’is in Iran
Iran's largest religious minority group is being denied access to its own future when
the ayatollahs prevent Baha'is from going to school.
Mohabat News- - Iranian security agents raided a number of Baha'i homes last week and arrested 16 people. The arrests were coordinated between three cities—Tehran, Isfahan and Kerman. In Isfahan at least, they were synchronized to strike multiple homes at the same time. It's unclear who carried out the raids, but these attacks are usually the work of the Intelligence Ministry or the Revolutionary Guards.
The raids are the latest in a long-running and systematic campaign of violence against the Baha'is, Iran's largest minority religion. As a member of the Baha'i Faith, I find it unbelievable and grotesque that such persecution continues and that there are absolutely no signs of change. Iranian Baha'is are regularly arrested, tortured and denied most basic rights, including the right to study at university.
A number of violent attacks have recently been carried out against Baha'is—including the murder of Ataollah Rezvani and the savage knife attack on Ghodratollah Moodi, a Baha'i leader in the Iranian town of Birjand, along with his family. The authorities, as usual, failed to pursue the perpetrators.
Baha'is frequently face the hysterical charge of "spreading corruption on earth" and various crimes against national security. Shirin Ebadi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and human rights lawyer, has said that "religion-based discrimination is woven through many Iranian laws," and although Iran's Jewish, Christian and Sunni communities are also harassed, it's the Baha'i community that faces consistent and systematic persecution. "The Baha'is are denied all citizens' rights," she has said.
The government denies that it targets the Baha'is. But in 2013 the supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, issued a fatwa in which he branded the Baha'is "deviants" and urged Iranian Muslims to avoid all contact with them. His fatwa was one more example of a persecution that began over a century ago.
The Baha'i faith was founded by an Iranian, Baha'u'llah (whose names translates as the Glory of God), in 1863. The religion now has more than five million followers around the world—at least 300,000 in Iran.
Baha'u'llah's teachings on the equality of men and women, elimination of prejudice, non-violence, and universal education challenged the established Muslim clergy from the beginning. Tens of thousands of Baha'is were brutalized and murdered in the early years of the faith.
The last Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, later tried to modernize the country and to grant almost equal rights to all Iranians regardless of ethnicity or religion. Many Baha'is prospered during this period and contributed to Iran's progress. The famous Azadi Tower, Iran's most iconic landmark and a building seen by millions around the world during the 2009 Green Movement protests, was built by a Baha'i architect in 1971.
But the Shah faced enormous pressure from Iran's clergy. The clerics rejected much of the Shah's modernization program, blaming in part the Baha'is, and they forced the Shah to eventually turn on the Baha'is to appease their demands. Baha'i schools were closed, meetings were disrupted, and marriages were dissolved.
The Shah fell in 1979 when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini led the Islamic Revolution and took power in Iran. More than 200 Baha'is were executed in the early 1980s. Hundreds were tortured. The Baha'is were branded as spies for the "Zionists," the Americans, and the British, and clerics encouraged violence against them. Propaganda against them began appearing the media—and continues to this day. For years the Baha'is have been called "enemies of God."
"The Iranian government says that education is a crime for Baha'is. But I want to tell you that we can change that."
Khomeini's revolution also marked the start of expelling and barring the Baha'is from Iranian universities. The futures of thousands of young Baha'is were threatened as part of a policy to gradually strangle the Baha'i community to death.
In response, the Baha'is set up the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) in 1987. The BIHE began offering secret classes in peoples' homes and by correspondence—it was the only way young Baha'is could study. But in 1998, and again in 2011, the authorities raided hundreds of homes that served as BIHE classrooms and confiscated books and computers used for teaching. Thirteen Baha'is are currently in jail for teaching and learning subjects as taboo as algebra, psychology and poetry.
This Friday, February 27, Andy Grammer, Justin Baldoni, and many other talented artists will join me at Education Is Not A Crime Live 2015 in Los Angeles. The event will be the highlight of a campaign started by the Iranian-Canadian journalist and filmmaker, Maziar Bahari, himself formerly imprisoned in Iran, to raise awareness about the persecution of the Baha'is and their exclusion from higher education. Maziar's latest documentary To Light a Candle, which tells the story of Iran's Baha'is, is being screened at hundreds of locations around the world as part of this campaign.
I am thrilled to help expose the injustice taking place every day in Iran because I get to work with brave men and women working inside the country for the same cause. A young citizen journalist in the country, a Baha'i, recently interviewed three Iranian MPs on why the Baha'is are barred from university. "You Baha'is are hostile to Islam and we cannot allow the enemies of Islam into Islamic universities," one said. "You get into universities and start to try to convert others."
Iran is violating the most basic human rights of its Baha'i citizens; and, when young Baha'is aren't allowed to study or enroll in school, it's a crime.
But don't take it from me. The leading light of Education Is Not A Crime, anti-apartheid hero Archbishop Desmond Tutu, said it best when he endorsed the campaign. "The Iranian government says that education is a crime for Baha'is," he said. "But I want to tell you that we can change that—we can tell the government of Iran that banning the Baha'is or any other group from higher education is hurting Iran and the Iranian people. Our bitter experience of apartheid demonstrates that discrimination of all types hurts us all. Iran's government is denying its own people the services of thousands of Baha'i engineers, doctors and artists who could help Iran, Iranians and the world." /Dailybeast
the ayatollahs prevent Baha'is from going to school.
Mohabat News- - Iranian security agents raided a number of Baha'i homes last week and arrested 16 people. The arrests were coordinated between three cities—Tehran, Isfahan and Kerman. In Isfahan at least, they were synchronized to strike multiple homes at the same time. It's unclear who carried out the raids, but these attacks are usually the work of the Intelligence Ministry or the Revolutionary Guards.The raids are the latest in a long-running and systematic campaign of violence against the Baha'is, Iran's largest minority religion. As a member of the Baha'i Faith, I find it unbelievable and grotesque that such persecution continues and that there are absolutely no signs of change. Iranian Baha'is are regularly arrested, tortured and denied most basic rights, including the right to study at university.
A number of violent attacks have recently been carried out against Baha'is—including the murder of Ataollah Rezvani and the savage knife attack on Ghodratollah Moodi, a Baha'i leader in the Iranian town of Birjand, along with his family. The authorities, as usual, failed to pursue the perpetrators.
Baha'is frequently face the hysterical charge of "spreading corruption on earth" and various crimes against national security. Shirin Ebadi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and human rights lawyer, has said that "religion-based discrimination is woven through many Iranian laws," and although Iran's Jewish, Christian and Sunni communities are also harassed, it's the Baha'i community that faces consistent and systematic persecution. "The Baha'is are denied all citizens' rights," she has said.
The government denies that it targets the Baha'is. But in 2013 the supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, issued a fatwa in which he branded the Baha'is "deviants" and urged Iranian Muslims to avoid all contact with them. His fatwa was one more example of a persecution that began over a century ago.
The Baha'i faith was founded by an Iranian, Baha'u'llah (whose names translates as the Glory of God), in 1863. The religion now has more than five million followers around the world—at least 300,000 in Iran.
Baha'u'llah's teachings on the equality of men and women, elimination of prejudice, non-violence, and universal education challenged the established Muslim clergy from the beginning. Tens of thousands of Baha'is were brutalized and murdered in the early years of the faith.
The last Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, later tried to modernize the country and to grant almost equal rights to all Iranians regardless of ethnicity or religion. Many Baha'is prospered during this period and contributed to Iran's progress. The famous Azadi Tower, Iran's most iconic landmark and a building seen by millions around the world during the 2009 Green Movement protests, was built by a Baha'i architect in 1971.
But the Shah faced enormous pressure from Iran's clergy. The clerics rejected much of the Shah's modernization program, blaming in part the Baha'is, and they forced the Shah to eventually turn on the Baha'is to appease their demands. Baha'i schools were closed, meetings were disrupted, and marriages were dissolved.
The Shah fell in 1979 when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini led the Islamic Revolution and took power in Iran. More than 200 Baha'is were executed in the early 1980s. Hundreds were tortured. The Baha'is were branded as spies for the "Zionists," the Americans, and the British, and clerics encouraged violence against them. Propaganda against them began appearing the media—and continues to this day. For years the Baha'is have been called "enemies of God."
"The Iranian government says that education is a crime for Baha'is. But I want to tell you that we can change that."
Khomeini's revolution also marked the start of expelling and barring the Baha'is from Iranian universities. The futures of thousands of young Baha'is were threatened as part of a policy to gradually strangle the Baha'i community to death.
In response, the Baha'is set up the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) in 1987. The BIHE began offering secret classes in peoples' homes and by correspondence—it was the only way young Baha'is could study. But in 1998, and again in 2011, the authorities raided hundreds of homes that served as BIHE classrooms and confiscated books and computers used for teaching. Thirteen Baha'is are currently in jail for teaching and learning subjects as taboo as algebra, psychology and poetry.
This Friday, February 27, Andy Grammer, Justin Baldoni, and many other talented artists will join me at Education Is Not A Crime Live 2015 in Los Angeles. The event will be the highlight of a campaign started by the Iranian-Canadian journalist and filmmaker, Maziar Bahari, himself formerly imprisoned in Iran, to raise awareness about the persecution of the Baha'is and their exclusion from higher education. Maziar's latest documentary To Light a Candle, which tells the story of Iran's Baha'is, is being screened at hundreds of locations around the world as part of this campaign.
I am thrilled to help expose the injustice taking place every day in Iran because I get to work with brave men and women working inside the country for the same cause. A young citizen journalist in the country, a Baha'i, recently interviewed three Iranian MPs on why the Baha'is are barred from university. "You Baha'is are hostile to Islam and we cannot allow the enemies of Islam into Islamic universities," one said. "You get into universities and start to try to convert others."
Iran is violating the most basic human rights of its Baha'i citizens; and, when young Baha'is aren't allowed to study or enroll in school, it's a crime.
But don't take it from me. The leading light of Education Is Not A Crime, anti-apartheid hero Archbishop Desmond Tutu, said it best when he endorsed the campaign. "The Iranian government says that education is a crime for Baha'is," he said. "But I want to tell you that we can change that—we can tell the government of Iran that banning the Baha'is or any other group from higher education is hurting Iran and the Iranian people. Our bitter experience of apartheid demonstrates that discrimination of all types hurts us all. Iran's government is denying its own people the services of thousands of Baha'i engineers, doctors and artists who could help Iran, Iranians and the world." /Dailybeast
EXCLUSIVE: ISIS will carry out '9/11 in Europe within two years' and fanatics are recruiting migrants in Libya with the promise of 'white virgins', claims Gaddafi's exiled cousin and former Special Envoy
- Ahmed Gaddaf al-Dam is most senior figurehead of deposed dictator's clan
- Gaddafi's former Special Envoy gave dramatic warning of the terror threat posed by ISIS in Libya, in an interview with MailOnline
- Claims terror group will flood Europe with 500,000 migrants this year
- Gaddaf al-Dam, exiled in Cairo, wants to hold a conference for all sides - including ISIS - to decide the future of the country
- He uses alarm over ISIS in a bid to gain influence in Libyan politics and allies claim he is tipped to be the chaotic country's next leader
- Gaddaf al-Dam claims that third of population still support the Gaddafis
- Calls his dead cousin a 'saint', says Hillary Clinton should 'return to the kitchen' and that the UK leaders follow America 'like a dog'
The Gaddafi clan's most senior figurehead has warned of 'a 9/11 in Europe within two years', while claiming that ISIS forces in Libya are now recruiting migrants to their terror cause with promises of 'white virgins'.
Ahmed Gaddaf al-Dam, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's cousin and former intelligence official, has professed that 'not less than half a million' migrants will set sail from Libya to European shores this year.
Among them, he claims, are thousands of terrorists, who will soon be running amok in Europe culminating in a terror strike on the same scale as the September 11th attacks.
Mr Gaddaf al-Dam, one of several high-profile regime figures who fled to Egypt during the 2011 revolution, gave an interview to MailOnline as the North African state descends into ever-worsening chaos and bloodshed.
Deadly clashes continue between Islamist militias and secular government forces led by a renegade general. Militants loyal to the Islamic State have made frightening gains in Libya in recent weeks, and are now in control of three towns including Sirte, Gaddafi's birthplace.
ISIS sent shockwaves across the world recently when they released a video of the beheading of 21 Coptic Christians with bloodcurdling brutality on the shores of the Mediterranean.
The jihadist cutthroats have since pointed their sabres towards Europe, vowing 'we will colour the Mediterranean Sea red with your blood.'
Colonel Gaddafi's 42-year-rule which ended in 2011 was characterised by tyranny. He murdered political opponents and dissidents, and replaced law with his 'Green Book' of rambling political philosophy, taught in all Libyan schools.
He saw himself as the leader of the Third World and used Libya's vast oil wealth to sponsor terror, shipping Semtex to the IRA and sending agents to bring down a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie in Scotland.
By the 1990s he had become a pariah, but was rehabilitated in 2004 under the British Labour government with the despot signing an £120million gas contract for Shell with Tony Blair. The Lockerbie bomber was allowed to return to Libya from a UK prison and Gaddafi intelligence officers were even allowed to operate in Britain.
He held out for eight months during the Libyan revolutions of 2011, but was eventually found hiding in a drain, dragged out by rebels, beaten and executed.
Now Mr Gaddaf al-Dam, Gaddafi's one-time Special Envoy, is bidding to use the alarm over the rise of ISIS as a platform to make the dictator's name a powerful force again in Libyan and international diplomacy. And he even suggests talks, which he hopes to broker, should include ISIS.
He said that he believes 'you will see not less than 500,000 migrants coming to Europe this year', adding alarmingly: 'There are many terrorists among them, between 10 and 50 in every thousand. They are going all throughout Europe. Within one year, two years, you will have another September 11.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2971979/ISIS-carry-9-11-Europe-two-years-fanatics-recruiting-migrants-Libya-promise-white-virgins-claims-Gaddafi-s-exiled-cousin-former-Special-Envoy.html
Angry housewives go to police after Rosmah’s picture on pig
A Facebook posting showing Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor superimposed with a pig's body has caused an uproar among a group of housewives in Penang.The group, made up of Umno members, women non-governmental organisations, single mothers and housewives from Bayan Baru, lodged 11 police reports against a Facebook user, identified as Peter Lee, urging swift investigations by the authorities.
Bayan Baru Umno information chief Kuraishah Syed Mohamad said it was unfortunate that people these days go to such extremes to offend leaders in the country.
"We must respect our leaders. It is not our place to simply decide who is wrong and right. It is not right to do something like this to a leader or anybody.
"The person who did this must face the music," she said outside the Bayan Baru police station.
The Facebook posting showed Rosmah's head superimposed on the body of a pig.
In a screenshot of the posting shown to the media, it was not stated when the posting, which was in Chinese, was uploaded onto the popular social media site.
Datin Ros Suryati Alang, an Umno Wanita chief who also lodged a report, said as women and mothers, she felt that the person who uploaded the photograph has gone overboard with the insult.
"We feel so angry. The pig is an animal that is 'haram' in Islam. It (the posting) upsets Muslims... it is also racist.
"We hope the Home Ministry and the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission will investigate this person immediately," she said.
Rosmah, who is Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's wife, had been the victim of several offensive Facebook postings.
Last year, after the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines MH370, a Facebook user uploaded a superimposed picture showing Rosmah dead. – March 2, 2015.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/angry-housewives-go-to-police-after-rosmahs-picture-on-pig#sthash.BHHJJZAw.dpuf
I have no intention to interfere with MIC crisis, says Zahid – Bernama
Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid today said that he and the Registrar of Societies (RoS) do not intend to interfere with the affairs of any political parties, including MIC.He said what was being conducted by the RoS and the Home Ministry was based on the Societies Act 1996 and the constitution of the party itself.
"What is being done is for the leadership and party members to adhere to their constitution which they, themselves, should respect as the constitution is theirs," he said in Putrajaya today.
He was asked to comment on the statement by various quarters in MIC that wanted him not to interfere in the party's latest action to submit an application for judicial review against RoS and its director-general Mohammad Abdullah Razin.
He said political problems should be resolved according to political ways and not through the legal process unless there was no other political solutions.
"I do not expect MIC to be deregistered. However, I thank MIC president Datuk Seri G. Palanivel for holding the central working committee (CWC) meeting and I hope this matter can be resolved," said Zahid.
He also hoped that any disputed issues that was decided by RoS in the official letter sent to Palanivel and his deputy Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam could be looked into as soon as possible.
On February 9, Zahid said the Barisan Nasional (BN) component party must hold a fresh election for all elected posts between April and July this year to avoid MIC being deregistered due to its internal crisis.
The MIC crisis arose due to differences in views after RoS declared the election of the three vice-president posts and 23 CWC posts at the party's general assembly in Malacca in November 2013 null and void.
In a letter dated December 5, 2014, RoS ordered MIC to call for a fresh election for the posts within 90 days.
The conflict within the party worsened after Palanivel, last February 14, requested the RoS to withdraw all its letters as it allegedly contravened the party constitution and Societies Act and threatened to take legal action if RoS did not comply.
Subsequently on February 23, MIC CWC member K. Ramalingam submitted an application for a judicial review against the action and statement made by RoS and its director-general. – Bernama, March 2, 2015.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/i-have-no-intention-to-interfere-with-mic-crisis-says-zahid-bernama#sthash.mdMqSpWP.dpuf
Hulu Langat MIC deputy youth chief injured in 6-bullet barrage – Bernama
Hulu Langat MIC Youth deputy chief M. Thanabalan was seriously injured after six shots were fired
at him at the Jalan Reko traffic light junction in Kajang at 12.46pm today.Kajang district police chief, ACP Ab Rashid Ab Wahab, said Thanabalan, 38, who was in a Honda Accord, had stopped at the traffic light before he was approached by two men on a white Yamaha LC motorcycle.
"One of the suspects opened fire and shot the victim on the right shoulder, right cheek and right side of the chest," he said.
Ab Rashid said the victim who initially received treatment at the Kajang Hospital was transferred to Serdang Hospital and is now in the intensive care unit, in an unconscious but stable state.
Police were investigating the cause of the incident from various angles, including whether it was politically motivated, he added. – Bernama, March 2, 2015.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/hulu-langat-mic-deputy-youth-chief-injured-in-6-bullet-barrage-bernama#sthash.GgrvVEkT.dpuf
Harakahdaily boss ready to meet Najib in court over 1MDB commentary
Harakahdaily managing editor Dr Rosli Yaakob is prepared to meet Datuk Seri Najib Razak in court over an article linking the prime minister's stepson with the controversial 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), published in the PAS organ last month.Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia had reported last Friday that Najib had initiated legal proceedings against the portal for allegedly defaming him over the article.
"We have agreed to meet the prime minister in court," Rosli told The Malaysian Insider when contacted earlier this evening after he received Najib's letter of demand.
The decision was reached after discussions with Rosli's lawyer, Mohamed Hanipa Maidin, who is also Sepang MP, last Saturday.
"Let the court decide whether the article was slanderous or not," said Rosli, who is also a PAS central committee member.
The article in question, titled "Dana 1MDB biayai syarikat filem Riza Aziz?", had appeared in the PAS organ on February 12. It was a commentary based on The New York Times article about the wealth of businessman Low Taek Jho and his role as a property investor.
Low, who is better known as Jho Low, is said to be a close associate of Najib and was said to have had transactions with various parties, including Riza.
Riza, the son of Najib's wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor from her earlier marriage, made headlines last year after he was revealed to be a producer of the award-winning movie "The Wolf of Wall Street" and his purchase of a luxury condominium in New York worth RM110 million.
The New York Times article, titled "Well connected at home, young Malaysian has an appetite for New York", described how Low, in 2010, began making some very expensive real estate deals in the US, using shell companies.
Rosli had written that the purchase of luxury condominiums had raised important questions about where the money was coming from. Said to be an advisor to 1MDB, Low had been paid a substantial amount for his role in the state investment vehicle, the Harakahdaily report said.
The article also questioned how Riza had obtained the funds to purchase the luxury property from Low and to finance his production house Red Granite Pictures.
Quoting The New York Times article, Harakahdaily said Riza had once commented that he had funded the movie with money obtained from "sovereign wealth", believed to be a reference to 1MDB.
Najib, in the letter, had said that Rosli's article was an "irresponsible slander that was nothing more than pure lies".
Hanipa, in a press conference today, had questioned why Najib had not also sued American daily The New York Times, which wrote the original article and where Rosli had based his article on.
"In the prime minister's letter from his lawyer, there were three demands – asking for the article to be retracted, apologise and for a certain amount to be paid in damages.
"My lawyer has advised that we do not agree to the demands and will wait for the original suit letter from the prime minister," said Rosli, who was a Bank Negara deputy governor, before he left to join politics.
"After receiving the letter, we will then decide the next move including meeting the prime minister in court," Rosli added.
"For now, we do not plan to retract the article or apologise."
In the letter of demand, Najib had named Harakahdaily and Rosli as defendants. It was sent to the Harakahdaily office by Najib's lawyer and was received by Rosli on February 26 at 3pm.
"After this, it will be up to the court to decide whether the writing was defamatory or not and I had my arguments when I wrote them," he said. – March 2, 2015.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/harakahdaily-managing-editor-ready-to-meet-najib-in-court-over-1mdb-comment#sthash.Tul3YeGW.dpuf
Four deaths in custody in Penang since January
This number very high, compared with the total number of cases in Penang last year, which was seven, Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy said today.
Ramasamy said a meeting would be held soon with Penang police chief Abdul Rahim Hanafi, as the current situation was "alarming".
"The situation is disturbing. We can write to the Attorney-General's Chambers or talk to the police, but we don't see a decline in death-in-custody cases.
"We are also not sure of the reasons for the deaths, since the deaths must be accompanied by a coroner's report.
"We are not prepared just to listen to police," Ramasamy told reporters at a press conference in Komtar today.The DAP Prai assemblyperson said the taskforce met with Abdul Rahim (left) last Thursday, during the state's security meeting with the police.
He said Abdul Rahim has agreed to meet with the Taskforce on Custodial Deaths and the date, time and place of meeting would be decided soon.
State executive council member Jagdeep Singh Deo said the taskforce would also insist that the police provide the coroner's reports on the deaths.
"It is required by law that the coroner probes and issue a report on deaths in custody.
"The taskforce will also step up its awareness and education programmes with NGOs and the police to prevent more of such incidents, as well as push for action be taken on those involved in the deaths," Jagdeep, who is also Dato Keramat assemblyperson, said.
First death involved African national
Ramasamy, Jagdeep and Dr Afif Bahardin are the three state executive council members who are heading the taskforce formed by the Penang government last year to monitor rising cases of custodial deaths in the state.
The four cases this year involved African national Phil Pott, 63, who died in the Penang Hospital (GH) on Jan 18 of alleged heart complications.
Pott was detained in the Penang Prison for drug offences.
The second case involved a man, known only as Fahruz, 28, who also died in the Penang Hospital on Jan 22 from alleged lung infection.
Fahrun, too, was detained in the Penang Prison, for drug offences.
Sharam Hassan, 45, is the third custodial death case in the Penang. He died at the same hospital on on Jan 26, from alleged perforated duodenal ulcer with septic shock.
Sharam was found to have bottle marks on his body, with bruises on his back and abdomen, and is believed to have been physically abused prior to his death.
The fourth custodial death in Penang is that of K Elumalai, 43, who died in the Sungai Bakap Hospital on Feb 18.
He had been sentenced to 10 years in prison for drug-related offences. Elumalai died 20 minutes after he was sent to the hospital and the cause of his death is not known.
Ex-judge, senior lawyer want Shafee disciplined
Now, a former Court of Appeal judge and a senior lawyer have presented a motion to the Bar Council for the 69th annual general meeting of the Malaysian Bar to condemn Shafee’s behaviour.
Retired judge VC George and senior lawyer Tommy Thomas further want the Bar Council to refer the Umno-linked lawyer to its disciplinary board and take steps to prevent him from continuing to bring the legal profession into disrepute.
The motion was tabled by Tommy (left) and seconded by George, who is a consultant with the law firm M/s Skrine & Co.In the motion tabled for the AGM, scheduled for March 14, the two cited Shafee's actions as questionable, arguing that barristers must not permit their absolute independence and integrity to be compromised, or compromise their professional standards in order to please clients.
They cited Shafee's actions of holding press conferences condemning Anwar, who cannot respond as a convicted prisoner, as one of the reasons why action should be taken against Shafee.
Thomas and George said Shafee's actions had drawn attention to his prowess as a top rate prosecutor and had demeaned his prosecution legal team by his participation in the nationwide roadshows.
Shafeee’s granting of interviews to traditional and on-line media concerning his performance also warranted action to be taken against the government-appointed prosecutor.
Shafee's actions, they said, are in violation of Rules 5(a), 31, 32, 33 and 49 of the Legal Profession (Practice and Etiquette) Rules 1978.
Rule 5(a) states that a lawyer should not accept a case if he or she cannot be a professional, while Rule 31 states lawyers should uphold the dignity of the profession.
Shafee was fined RM5,000
Tommy and George also cited Rule 33 (feelings between clients should not influence the lawyer's conduct towards parties), and Rule 49, which states that lawyers should not ask for a matter or case to be reported.
They quoted the reaction of former attorney-general Abu Talib Othman (right), who said such action by Shafee was as if he was advertising and promoting himself to the media and called for his appointment as a prosecutor to be revoked.Tommy and George also added a quote from celebrated English judge Lord Denning, who said that a prosecutor is not above the law.
Shafee is no stranger to controversy, for he has been fined RM5,000 by the Advocates and Solicitors Board for promoting himself in two articles published by an English daily.
He tried to have the fine set-aside in an appeal to the High Court in Kuala Lumpur, but the judge dismissed his review application.
The matter is still subject to a final appeal, before the Court of Appeal.
Sirul's mum hopes Australia will protect son
Fugitive police commando Sirul Azhar
Umar's mother has urged the Australian authorities to grant her son
"full protection" from the dangers he faces at home.
"It is more (safe) in Australia than going back to Malaysia," said Piah, 74, according to Australia's public broadcaster, ABC.
Piah is in Sydney, Australia, along with her daugther Noriatin Umar, PAS information chief Mahfuz Omar, PAS treasurer Asmuni Awi and PAS foreign affairs spokesperson Dr Syed Azman.
The delegation is scheduled to meet Sirul tomorrow.
In a text message reply to Malaysiakini, Asmuni said the meeting is scheduled to take place at the immigration detention centre in Villawood, near Sydney.
"We just arrived (in Sydney) about 11.30am (8.30am Malaysian time) after a long haul flight.
"We have checked into a hotel and scheduled to meet Sirul tomorrow," Asmuni, who is serving as Mahfuz's lawyer.
The attempt to reunite Sirul with his mother and sister Noriatin was initiated by Mahfuz.
Sirul is believed to have fled to Australia in October after he won an appeal against his conviction for murdering Altantuya Shaariibuu in the Court of Appeal.
However, on Jan 31, the Federal Court overturned the decision and maintained the conviction of Sirul and Azilah Hadri and their death sentence.
Sirul is currently on the Interpol red list, which led to his detention by Australian authorities.
Australia has stated that the country is bound by law to prevent Sirul's repatriation unless Malaysia pledges that he would not be subject to the death penalty.
However, Sirul has recently communicated with Malaysiakini that he was subjected to the murder trial for merely following orders.
He is also mulling the possibilty of granting a tell-all interview with the Australian press.
"It is more (safe) in Australia than going back to Malaysia," said Piah, 74, according to Australia's public broadcaster, ABC.
Piah is in Sydney, Australia, along with her daugther Noriatin Umar, PAS information chief Mahfuz Omar, PAS treasurer Asmuni Awi and PAS foreign affairs spokesperson Dr Syed Azman.
The delegation is scheduled to meet Sirul tomorrow.
In a text message reply to Malaysiakini, Asmuni said the meeting is scheduled to take place at the immigration detention centre in Villawood, near Sydney.
"We just arrived (in Sydney) about 11.30am (8.30am Malaysian time) after a long haul flight."We have checked into a hotel and scheduled to meet Sirul tomorrow," Asmuni, who is serving as Mahfuz's lawyer.
The attempt to reunite Sirul with his mother and sister Noriatin was initiated by Mahfuz.
Sirul is believed to have fled to Australia in October after he won an appeal against his conviction for murdering Altantuya Shaariibuu in the Court of Appeal.
However, on Jan 31, the Federal Court overturned the decision and maintained the conviction of Sirul and Azilah Hadri and their death sentence.
Sirul is currently on the Interpol red list, which led to his detention by Australian authorities.
Australia has stated that the country is bound by law to prevent Sirul's repatriation unless Malaysia pledges that he would not be subject to the death penalty.
However, Sirul has recently communicated with Malaysiakini that he was subjected to the murder trial for merely following orders.
He is also mulling the possibilty of granting a tell-all interview with the Australian press.
Dad shocked at son’s excellent STPM results
Father says the Form Six student was too involved in football and had to be reminded to concentrate on his studies.
FMT
KUANTAN: K Mathavan was shocked to see his son Kabilan named one of Pahang’s excellent students in the Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM) because there were times when the second child of three had to be reminded to pay less attention to football.
“He loves football, especially if Manchester United is playing. He not only watches football, but also plays in the evenings,” he said. Kabilan, a student of SMK Ketari, Bentong, said he was quite “scared” to get the results, as he had obtained a C in geography in the second and third semesters.
“I was disappointed when I got the C grade. But I decided to meet my teachers and discuss how I could improve my grades. I did not expect to get an A in my final results,” said the student who received an Accumulative Credit Point Average (CGPA) of 4.0.
Kabilan’s sister, who is studying in Form Four, felt challenged to emulate Kabilan’s success.
“We are always competing in everything…and now he has a reason to “talk big” about his success. I have to listen about him until I get similar results,” Kaarrtini, 16, said.
A student of SMK Muadzam Shah, Rompin, Khamisah Ismail, 20, did not let her routine of helping her mother Rosidah Rasman, 43, sell nasi lemak be a deterrent to getting a 4.0 CGPA in her STPM after she got 9As in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).
She said, as the eldest of three siblings, she had to help her mother prepare the ingredients for the dish as soon as she reached home from school, while her mornings began at 5am when she had to help her mother at the stall near their house in Ladang Rompin, near here.
– BERNAMA
KUANTAN: K Mathavan was shocked to see his son Kabilan named one of Pahang’s excellent students in the Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM) because there were times when the second child of three had to be reminded to pay less attention to football.
“He loves football, especially if Manchester United is playing. He not only watches football, but also plays in the evenings,” he said. Kabilan, a student of SMK Ketari, Bentong, said he was quite “scared” to get the results, as he had obtained a C in geography in the second and third semesters.
“I was disappointed when I got the C grade. But I decided to meet my teachers and discuss how I could improve my grades. I did not expect to get an A in my final results,” said the student who received an Accumulative Credit Point Average (CGPA) of 4.0.
Kabilan’s sister, who is studying in Form Four, felt challenged to emulate Kabilan’s success.
“We are always competing in everything…and now he has a reason to “talk big” about his success. I have to listen about him until I get similar results,” Kaarrtini, 16, said.
A student of SMK Muadzam Shah, Rompin, Khamisah Ismail, 20, did not let her routine of helping her mother Rosidah Rasman, 43, sell nasi lemak be a deterrent to getting a 4.0 CGPA in her STPM after she got 9As in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).
She said, as the eldest of three siblings, she had to help her mother prepare the ingredients for the dish as soon as she reached home from school, while her mornings began at 5am when she had to help her mother at the stall near their house in Ladang Rompin, near here.
– BERNAMA
MH370: Australia has no plans to abandon search
The Australian government said discussions are not under way to call off the search.
FMT
CANBERRA: Australian Transport Minister Warren Truss has insisted that Australia, China and Malaysia have no plans to abandon the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 off Western Australia.
The Australian newspaper said Truss’s spokesman issued a statement today denying that the three nations were discussing calling off the search.
“Discussions are not under way to call off the search,” the spokesman said.
“Discussions are ongoing about the search.”
Reuters new agency had quoted Truss as saying the search could not go on indefinitely and discussions were already being held with China and Malaysia about whether to call the search off within weeks.
MH370 and its 239 passengers and crew vanished on March 8 last year while on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
No trace of the aircraft or those aboard has been found.
Truss’s spokesman said that with more than 40 per cent of the 60,000 square kilometre priority area searched so far, the government remained cautiously optimistic about finding the aircraft.
“If, however, the plane is not found at the completion of the search, expected around May 2015, then discussions will be had between Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia and potentially others on the next steps,” the spokesman said.
“But to be clear. We are not in discussions to call off the search.”
FMT
CANBERRA: Australian Transport Minister Warren Truss has insisted that Australia, China and Malaysia have no plans to abandon the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 off Western Australia.
The Australian newspaper said Truss’s spokesman issued a statement today denying that the three nations were discussing calling off the search.
“Discussions are not under way to call off the search,” the spokesman said.
“Discussions are ongoing about the search.”
Reuters new agency had quoted Truss as saying the search could not go on indefinitely and discussions were already being held with China and Malaysia about whether to call the search off within weeks.
MH370 and its 239 passengers and crew vanished on March 8 last year while on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
No trace of the aircraft or those aboard has been found.
Truss’s spokesman said that with more than 40 per cent of the 60,000 square kilometre priority area searched so far, the government remained cautiously optimistic about finding the aircraft.
“If, however, the plane is not found at the completion of the search, expected around May 2015, then discussions will be had between Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia and potentially others on the next steps,” the spokesman said.
“But to be clear. We are not in discussions to call off the search.”
Hudud: Umno has trapped and shackled Pas — P Ramakrishnan
MARCH 2 — No one dreamt that Pas would be easily enticed to cooperate with Umno. But Umno has its hidden agenda to break up Pakatan Rakyat in order to weaken the opposition.
It has promised to support Pas when the hudud bill is tabled on 18 March in the Kelantan state assembly. This is being taken as support for hudud — which is utterly fallacious.
What choice has Umno in this issue? Can it vote against the Pas hudud bill? It cannot! It has to prove to the Malays that it is for hudud. It would be suicidal for Umno not to vote with Pas. There are no two ways about it for Umno.
It is merely hoodwinking Pas into thinking that it is helping the Islamist party to implement hudud in Kelantan.
Umno’s strategy is meant not only to weaken Pakatan Rakyat by successfully creating dissension within the coalition, it has an ulterior motive as well. It is also to drive away non-Malay support for Pas, which was given freely on the basis of Pakatan’s agreed common platform.
But if Pas falls for the Umno trap and goes ahead with its hudud bill, those who voted for Pas in previous elections will definitely not vote for Pas come GE14. The non-Malays who supported Pas candidates now feel betrayed by Pas’ about-turn. It won’t be easy for Pas to regain their trust.
In the last election, Pas won 21 parliamentary seats. It won’t be able to retain this number in GE14. Pas’ loss will be Umno’s gain. This is the strategy that is carefully being pursued. After this, Pas can forget about spreading its wings nation-wide and increasing its support and influence.
Pas should call upon Umno to prove its sincerity by openly challenging it to table a similar bill in Terengganu. Like Umno, Pas can promise to support Umno’s hudud bill in Terengganu. After all, like Kelantan, Terengganu had also passed the syariah enactment bill, paving the way for the implementation of hudud in Terengganu.
You can rest assured that Umno will not do this. It has more sense and realises that such a move will cost Umno the support of all thinking and caring Malaysians. It will mean vacating Putrajaya and paving the way for a change of government. It will not take the risk even for hudud!
Pas should not be lulled into believing that Umno has chosen not to contest in the Chempaka by-election to promote Malay unity. The truth is that Umno would be wiped out if it chose to contest the Chempaka seat vacated by the sad demise of the much revered Pas spiritual leader, Tok Guru. It would be a humiliating defeat that would shame Umno.
Umno must explain in plain language why it did not implement the syariah laws when it was in a position to do so with its two thirds majority in parliament. In states like Pahang, Terengganu, Kedah, Johor, Malacca, Perak, Penang, Perlis, Selangor and Negri Sembilan it could have quite easily implemented syariah laws. But it did not. There was not even a feeble attempt to do so. Why? Is it because it does not believe that syariah laws are suitable for Malaysia?
The person responsible for the present turmoil in this country is none other than Dr Tun Mahthir Mohamad. He was the one who goaded, challenged and provoked Pas to implement hudud even promising to amend the Federal Constitution to enable the implementation of hudud.
Pas, to their credit, took up the challenge and passed the syariah enactment in Kelantan. But Mahathir did not keep his word to amend the Federal Constitution to enable Pas to go ahead with hudud. He chickened out.
It is very clear that Umno has no intention to implement hudud in Malaysia. Of course, they will deny this and yell their heads off that they are for it.
If that is the case, Umno should prove its sincerity and table a similar bill in Terengganu. That is the only way to convince the Malays there was no double talk when Umno proclaimed its support for Pas!
* P Ramakrishan, the long-serving former president of Aliran, has been granted a respite and now happily serves as an Aliran executive committee member.
- See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/what-you-think/article/hudud-umno-has-trapped-and-shackled-pas-p-ramakrishnan#sthash.fJ3avSBC.dpuf
It has promised to support Pas when the hudud bill is tabled on 18 March in the Kelantan state assembly. This is being taken as support for hudud — which is utterly fallacious.
What choice has Umno in this issue? Can it vote against the Pas hudud bill? It cannot! It has to prove to the Malays that it is for hudud. It would be suicidal for Umno not to vote with Pas. There are no two ways about it for Umno.
It is merely hoodwinking Pas into thinking that it is helping the Islamist party to implement hudud in Kelantan.
Umno’s strategy is meant not only to weaken Pakatan Rakyat by successfully creating dissension within the coalition, it has an ulterior motive as well. It is also to drive away non-Malay support for Pas, which was given freely on the basis of Pakatan’s agreed common platform.
But if Pas falls for the Umno trap and goes ahead with its hudud bill, those who voted for Pas in previous elections will definitely not vote for Pas come GE14. The non-Malays who supported Pas candidates now feel betrayed by Pas’ about-turn. It won’t be easy for Pas to regain their trust.
In the last election, Pas won 21 parliamentary seats. It won’t be able to retain this number in GE14. Pas’ loss will be Umno’s gain. This is the strategy that is carefully being pursued. After this, Pas can forget about spreading its wings nation-wide and increasing its support and influence.
Pas should call upon Umno to prove its sincerity by openly challenging it to table a similar bill in Terengganu. Like Umno, Pas can promise to support Umno’s hudud bill in Terengganu. After all, like Kelantan, Terengganu had also passed the syariah enactment bill, paving the way for the implementation of hudud in Terengganu.
You can rest assured that Umno will not do this. It has more sense and realises that such a move will cost Umno the support of all thinking and caring Malaysians. It will mean vacating Putrajaya and paving the way for a change of government. It will not take the risk even for hudud!
Pas should not be lulled into believing that Umno has chosen not to contest in the Chempaka by-election to promote Malay unity. The truth is that Umno would be wiped out if it chose to contest the Chempaka seat vacated by the sad demise of the much revered Pas spiritual leader, Tok Guru. It would be a humiliating defeat that would shame Umno.
Umno must explain in plain language why it did not implement the syariah laws when it was in a position to do so with its two thirds majority in parliament. In states like Pahang, Terengganu, Kedah, Johor, Malacca, Perak, Penang, Perlis, Selangor and Negri Sembilan it could have quite easily implemented syariah laws. But it did not. There was not even a feeble attempt to do so. Why? Is it because it does not believe that syariah laws are suitable for Malaysia?
The person responsible for the present turmoil in this country is none other than Dr Tun Mahthir Mohamad. He was the one who goaded, challenged and provoked Pas to implement hudud even promising to amend the Federal Constitution to enable the implementation of hudud.
Pas, to their credit, took up the challenge and passed the syariah enactment in Kelantan. But Mahathir did not keep his word to amend the Federal Constitution to enable Pas to go ahead with hudud. He chickened out.
It is very clear that Umno has no intention to implement hudud in Malaysia. Of course, they will deny this and yell their heads off that they are for it.
If that is the case, Umno should prove its sincerity and table a similar bill in Terengganu. That is the only way to convince the Malays there was no double talk when Umno proclaimed its support for Pas!
* P Ramakrishan, the long-serving former president of Aliran, has been granted a respite and now happily serves as an Aliran executive committee member.
- See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/what-you-think/article/hudud-umno-has-trapped-and-shackled-pas-p-ramakrishnan#sthash.fJ3avSBC.dpuf
Law Speak - The royal pardon
The Sun Dailyby Gurdial Singh Nijar
RECENT
events have propelled into the public domain the topic of the pardon for
a criminal conviction. Several questions have emerged: Who exercises
this power? How is it exercised? Who can ask for a pardon? When can it
be sought? Does an application imply guilt? Can the decision to grant or
reject be challenged? What is the effect of a pardon?
This article seeks to look at the applicable law and, where known, the practice in relation to pardons.
Who is given the power?
The
power to grant a pardon is given explicitly by the Federal Constitution
to the King – for offences committed in the Federal Territory; and to
the ruler or governor of a state if the offence is committed in a state.
It
is an exercise of executive power – as contrasted with the judicial
functions of the courts or legislative functions of Parliament. Although
executive power is vested under our constitution in the King, he is
required to act on advice – either of the Cabinet or any other
designated body.
The
constitution has also established a Pardons Board for each of the
states as well as one for all the Federal Territories. It comprises the
attorney-general (or his representative), the Federal Territories
minister and three other members to be appointed by the King. The King
presides over the board. The board must consider the written opinion of
the attorney-general before giving its decision.
The
appointment of a cabinet minister seems to be at odds with the spirit
of a constitutional provision which states that Parliament may make a
law requiring the King to act after consultation with, or on the
recommendation of, any person or body of persons other than the Cabinet –
although no law has been enacted. The spirit of this provision implies
that the Cabinet (which must necessarily include any cabinet member)
must not be in any advisory body.
Courts often look not only at the letter of the law but, as well, its spirit to determine its reach.
In
summary, the King decides whether or not to grant a pardon. He must
seek the advice of the Pardons Board. Further, it is questionable
whether a cabinet minister should be in the board.
Must the King act in accordance with the advice?
Does the King act in his own discretion; or must he follow the advice given by the Pardons Board?
Pre-1994
court decisions declared that it was the King's personal discretion to
decide on the grant or refusal of a pardon. A 1974 Supreme Court
decision declared: "Clearly the Yang di-Pertuan Agong himself exercised
the power."
However,
in 1994, the constitution was amended, following upon an intense
contest between the rulers and the executive under Prime Minister Tun Dr
Mahathir Mohamad. The power of the King to act on his own was
dramatically curtailed – except in a very limited number of prescribed
situations.
A
new provision was added: whenever the King exercises his functions
under the constitution or any federal law where he is required to act
"in accordance with advice, on advice, or after considering advice",
then he must accept and act in accordance with such advice: Article
40(1A).
This
implies that after the amendment, the advice of the Pardons Board must
be accepted and acted upon. However the relevant Article 42 – which
deals with pardons – was not amended to reflect this change. And court
decisions since the amendment seem to reflect the same position as
before the amendment. As late as 2002, a full five-judge panel of the
Federal Court approved the pre-amendment principle (cited above); as did
a recent 2011 High Court case.
So
although the legal position – on a straight reading of the
constitutional provisions – is that the King does not act in his
personal discretion, case law supports the proposition that the King has
the personal discretion to decide whether or not to grant the pardon.
Further, he is not bound to act on the "advice" given by the Pardons
Board.
The process
There
are no rules governing the process. It is not stated who should be the
applicant. Nor is the form of the petition prescribed. Also, there is
neither a time limit for submitting the petition; nor for the King to
decide. The considerations that the King must take into account are also
not stated.
This
is left to be inferred from matters relevant to the grant of "mercy".
The Supreme Court merely states that each case is to be decided on its
own merits. The King can take into consideration matters which courts,
bound by the law of evidence, cannot take into account; and he can
consider public policy.
Admission of guilt?
The
person convicted of a crime is appealing to the King to grant him a
reprieve from the sentence. Generally and quite logically this would
connote an admission of guilt.
Most
cases where a pardon is sought fall in this category. Mokhtar Hashim's
death sentence was commuted. A 14-year-old boy sentenced to death was
instead sent to a school for delinquent juveniles. The jail sentence of
Harun Idris, one-time mentri besar of Selangor, was reduced.
What
if the petition for pardon is made on the basis that there has been a
miscarriage of justice and that the convict is innocent? Can a pardon be
given where guilt is not admitted?
There
is nothing in law to say that a pardon cannot be made on this basis; or
that a pardon cannot be given taking this "innocence" into account. Of
course, it may be a lot harder to get a pardon on this basis. But there
is no legal constraint.
The
King must act "with the greatest conscience and care and without fear
of influence from any quarter" – as the higher courts have repeatedly
affirmed. So he can decide on the basis of the grounds of innocence set
out in a petition. The King is not obliged to give any reasons for his
decision; nor are reasons normally provided when the pardon is granted.
This suggests that there is no limit to the situations when a pardon can be granted on the basis of mercy.
Further,
as the courts have repeatedly declared, the King does not sit as a
court. He is entitled to take into consideration matters which courts
cannot take into account. He can decide on his view of public policy.
So
legally speaking, it is open for the petition to be considered on the
grounds it refers to, including assertions of innocence and miscarriage
of justice.
In these circumstances a particular petition presented on these grounds does not necessarily imply an admission of guilt.
Can it be challenged?
Whatever
decision the King makes cannot be challenged in a court of law. The
courts have consistently ruled that the discretion exercised is not
justiciable. Nor can anything indirectly related to it be challenged –
such as a delay in coming to a decision.
What is the effect?
A
Harvard Law Review article, after a review of copious case law,
concludes that the pardon removes all legal punishment for the offence;
and if the conviction involves certain disqualifications the pardon
removes such disqualifications. These accord with the provisions of our
Federal Constitution which state that a member of parliament who has
received a free pardon is not disqualified from being such a member.
Additionally, the King is also authorised to remove the disqualification
of a convicted member of parliament.
Gurdial is Professor at the Law Faculty, University of Malaya. Comments: letters@thesundaily.com
Malaysia Must Achieve Developed Nation Status With Own Formula Not Become A Follower - Muhyiddin
SERDANG,
March 2 (Bernama) -- Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin
wants Malaysia to achieve developed nation status through its own
'mould' and not become a "follower" of a model adopted by nations that
are already developed.To become a developed nation, Malaysia need graduates who are well equipped with knowledge, skills and noble values so as to achieve the target of having people who would be able to scale new horizons to face the present and future challenges.
Muhyiddin who is also the Education Minister said being brave enough to venture into new fields will produce graduates who can contribute new innovative ideas that will be needed to propel the country's aspiration of becoming a developed nation.
"We not only need to produce highly knowledgeable human capital, but also useful and good citizens who can contribute something beneficial to society and the country," he said after meeting Student Representative Council (MPP) at University Putra Malaysia (UPM) Serdang, here Monday.
The meeting was attended by about 1,500 representatives from public and private universities, Institut Pendidikan Guru, Polytechnic and Community Colleges throughout the country.
Muhyiddin said after 58 years of Independence, the socio economy of the country has changed dramatically and to keep up with the rapid changes, Malaysia need to produce highly knowledgeable human capital
"We have already invested heavily on the development of human capital through the education system right from schools to higher learning institutions.
"Recognizing the need to develop the country's education sector in line with global development of education, the ministry is committed to implement international cooperation network in research, training for pre-and in-service trainers, benchmarking programme and mobility of students.
"We cannot depend foreign expertise through experts and expatriates who are in the country to assist in the growth of the country's economy," he said.
He said Malaysia would continue to play an important role in leading the commercialization development, particularly in lifelong learning, entrepreneurship education as well as research and innovation, as a collaborative effort to become a developed nation.
During the meeting, Muhyiddin also handed a RM325 million mock cheque for 1Malaysia Book Vouchers, allocated for 1.3 million students at higher learning institutions throughout the country.
-- BERNAMA
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