Beneath Little India

by Dinesweri Puspanadan,



The Indian community has made important contributions to the development of Malaysia during the past hundred years. They have worked with sincerity and dedication. They have excelled at medicine, law, engineering and accountancy. They have participated at each stage in the building of Malaysia -- Dr Manmohan Sing, Prime Minister of India


Its a sense of achievement, pride, moment of silent high maniac, short period of mild ecstasy when the Prime Minister of India Dr Man Mohan Sing shared a very close to heart conversation with the Indian community in Malaysia during the Inauguration of LITTLE INDIA at Brickfields recently. For the tired ears which have been injected with heart stabbing and pride degrading racial slurs, India PM's words tend to be a source of an interim refuge.

What could be more fascinating for the residents there, who are mostly Indians when their congested and less popular neighbourhood turned out to be the center of attention which  bridged and strengthen the relationship between India and Malaysia.

Any Tom and Hardy, despite their mental slavery could verify the fact that Brickfields, has been standing proudly on the platform of Indian heritage; traditional food, costumes, savories, decorations, spices, and accessories which also stores memories of many family gatherings with some sentimental valued landscapes around  since our grandparents' thumb-sucking era.

Brim stacked shops beautified with authentic India decorations like Sakthi Rasam, Parampara incense and Gold Winner Sunflower oil plus grand welcoming archway seem convincing enough to crown the Brickfields street as 'Little India' which many claimed it  belittled the India.

Little India project, since the day one proposed, received mixed reactions from various groups. Unsurprisingly, 'barking agents' barked with baseless allegations, 'community welfare driven' people threaten to protest, and the biggest group;the clueless jokers, just clang on their 'favorite figures'  faithfully for a free publicity.

Looking it at a bigger context(as how some 'intellectual' people prefer), Little India might help to beef up the economy of this nation. A series of MoU and Agreement;

Agreement towards implementing Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) between Indiaand Malaysia on 1st July 2011
MOU on Cooperation in the Field of Traditional Systems of Medicine
MOU for cooperation in the filed of Tourism
MOU for Cooperation in the filed of IT & Services
Agreement between CSIR of India and UNIK of Malaysia on Research and Development Collaboration
Cultural Exchange Programme for 2010-13, 

signed between both Prime Ministers believed to improve access to each other's market. The mutual benefit that is expected to be achieved by both regimes is increase in the FDI. The visions look promising for who ever read the details of each MoU yet the yield of the project is questioned when we look at the reality of our current bastardized economy. With the hesitant of PM and his team to implement NEM, meritocracy, miserable leakage in the Budget 2011, wasting capitalism, the possibility for the people to benefit from a similar event is doubted.

Why dream to drive a Ferrari when desire to own an old kapchai seems to be difficult  to achieve? Narrowing down into the Indian community, we could hear many grouses from the grass root people. Some hawkers especially were not happy with the project earlier as they complained that the promised relocations for their shops were not prepared which actually affected their business badly.

A walk at Brickfields on one fine day wold explain to you the existing marginalization in the community. Between luxuries condominium and high class restaurants, 'poor and middle class families are trapped'. If you are frequent visitor, I bet you have bumped with kids selling pens or souvenirs. When asked about their identity, they uttered the infamous memorized sentence ' My family is poor and I am selling these things after school to support my family' but deep in our heart, we know that these kids controlled by syndicates who are taking advantage on them.

Despite the fact that the community sufferings contributed by their own attitude, with the implementation of 'Gigantic Projects'marginalization worsens which enlarges the economy and social gap between the people. As a result, urban poverty would be rampant!

You do not need a degree in Economics or Science Political to make sense of current situation and post a simple question; 'How does Little India benefit these 'Little Indians' as a whole?' We might need Little India for various reasons but with fundamental rights and necessities ignored and abandoned, dream to build a business empire is equivalent to building a sand castle in the air

Talking about exporting expertise or competing globally to folks at the street there is ridiculous when their basic rights are axed and necessity is jeopardized. Your talk about walking on the street or eating curry does not make sense to the folks who are struggling even to channel a decent income to the family for a month

In this context, what else Little India could be if not another plain rhetoric to boost the Public relation or another agenda to fish for Indians' votes for upcoming General Election. Perhaps the Little India is a 'help' to the people and the 'return help' maybe expected from the community very soon.

The fact that its too early to judge whether Little India is a successful project or a failed mission is undeniable. The yield could be only observed in the long run. However, we need to remind ourselves that unresolved issues at the grass root level could generate disastrous impacts which would contribute to the down fall of the society.

Is Little India promised wealth or planned disaster? Figures in the future shall speak for themselves...

Indonesia tsunami death toll soars

Number of dead tops 340 as questions are raised about the failure of an early tsunami warning system.

The death toll from Indonesia's tsunami has soared to at least 369 with 338 others missing, as questions mount over whether an elaborate tsunami warning system off the country's western coast had failed.

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Indonesia's president, headed on Thursday to the disaster zone, where fears were growing for hundreds still missing following Monday's tsunami.

Three-metre high waves triggered by a powerful earthquake hit the Mentawais, a small group of islands 280km to the northwest of Sumatra, on Monday.

Disaster response officials said bodies were still being found on beaches and coastal areas in the Mentawais, which took the full force of the tsunami as it washed away entire villages.

Ade Edward, a West Sumatra provincial disaster official told AFP news agency that the death toll would climb possibly by as much as 200.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency said on its website that 4,000 people had been displaced.

Al Jazeera's Wayne Hay, reporting from Sikakap on South Pagai island, said official government death toll figures are slightly lower that what local media are reporting.

Broken alarm system

As the magnitude of the disaster became clear, many began asking whether an expensive warning system - established after the massive 2004 Asian tsunami, which killed at least 168,000 people in Indonesia alone - had failed.

Tsunami survivors have said they had almost no warning that the wall of water was bearing down on them, despite a sophisticated network of alarm buoys off the Sumatran coast.

While an official tsunami warning was apparently issued just after the 7.7-magnitude quake, it either came too late or did not reach the communities in most danger.

"There are suggestions that in fact the [early warning system] has never worked properly since 2004," our correspondent said.

One survivor, Borinte, a 32-year-old farmer, said the wave slammed into his community on North Pagai island only 10 minutes after residents had felt the quake.

"About 10 minutes after the quake we heard a loud, thunderous sound. We went outside and saw the wave coming. We tried to run away to higher ground but the wave was much quicker than us," he told the AFP news agency on Wednesday.

He said he managed to stay alive by clasping to a piece of wood. His wife and three children were killed.

Dealing with disaster

The United States and several of Indonesia's neighbours have pledged help for a nation which often finds itself battling calamity, although Jakarta said it did not see a need for foreign assistance.

Barack Obama, the US president, lived in Indonesia as a boy and is due to return there on an Asian tour next month. Obama voiced his sadness over the deaths and pledged US help.

The Vatican also made appeals for international aid.

Meanwhile, Indonesian vice-president Boediono visited Munte Baru-Baru village, the hardest hit village on Pagai Island, where 88 bodies have been recovered.

Indonesia straddles a region where the meeting of continental plates causes high seismic activity. It has the world's largest number of active volcanoes and is shaken by thousands of earthquakes every year.

A 7.6-magnitude earthquake last year in Padang killed about 1,100 people, triggered by a 9.3-magnitude quake along the same fault line that caused the 2004 Asian tsunami.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

'Little India' brickfields launched

Soi Lek ada pemimpin umno kurang cerdik

Hishamuddin Rais: 23 years on S'pore, M'sia ex-ISA detainees speak out

PROTEST MEMO TO IGP ON 30TH OCTOBER 2010

Beating and abduction of K.Selvachandran by police.

The continuing descent of the Malaysian police force into lawlessness has been graphically demonstrated by the October 25th abduction and beating of K.Selvachandran by police personnel.

Selvachandran was a key witness who testified against the police in the recently concluded R.Gunasegaran inquest. On the very day the verdict was delivered in the inquest, police moved against Selvachandran. When Selva’s children asked police why their father was being dragged away, the police answered by beating Selva in front of his own children.

The trauma caused to the children is unimaginable and in gross violation of international norms on the protection of children. In a twisted perversion of conjugal love, police personnel tried to make Selva’s wife S.Saraswathy kiss him before beating him up in front of her. Selva, who did his duty as a citizen by telling the truth at the Gunasegaran inquest, is now being held at a unknown location with no access to his family or lawyers. It is believed that he is being detained without trial under the Emergency Ordinance.

The outrage done against Selva and his family is only the latest in a long series of police brutality cases going back into and beyond the Mahathir despotism.

WE FREE CITIZENS OF THIS NATION MUST MAKE A STAND AGAINST THE PREVAILING POLICE AND STATE VIOLENCE ! JOIN US FOR THE HANDING OVER OF A PROTEST MEMORANDUM TO THE IGP THIS
SATURDAY ( 30.10.2010 )10.00am
BUKIT AMAN FEDERAL POLICE HQ ( LAKE GARDEN ENTRANCE ).

S.JAYATHAS

Information Chief

Human Rights Party ( HRP)

012-6362287

MIC Chief Hopes Malaysians Businessmen Given More Project Opportunities In India

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 (Bernama) -- MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu hopes that Malaysian businessmen will be given more opportunities by the Indian government to participate in infrastructure development projects in India.

Speaking to reporters after meeting visiting Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh here today, Samy Vellu said he took the opportunity to request for greater trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.

He said in the past 10 years, Malaysian businessmen had played a significant role in infrastructure development in India, completing projects worth about US$20 billion, but the figure had dwindled of late.

"We have made a request so that we can send more contractors to participate in more tenders issued by the Indian government," the former Works Minister said.

Accompanying Samy at the meeting were Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam, MIC deputy president Datuk G. Palanivel, vice presidents Datuk S.K. Devasamy, Datuk M. Saravanan and Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk T. Murugiah.

On Wednesday, Dr Manmohan said that India, which plans to raise its investment target in infrastructure projects to US$1 trillion, welcomed greater Malaysian participation given Malaysia's strength in the sector.

Samy Vellu said that he had travelled five times to India in the past two months, and described it as a "national duty" in a bid to talk to the Indian government and preparing grounds to open up more opportunities for Malaysian businessmen to venture into India.

"I believe the discussions will bring much benefits in the future. We also hope to be able to take part in activities that will be benificial to the country," he said.

Samy said he had also requested to Dr Manmohan to consider relaxing visa rules for Malaysian businessmen travelling to India as the current two-month visa was insufficient.

Meanwhile, Dr S. Subramaniam told reporters that presently there were about 45,000 Indian nationals working legally in Malaysia, with the majority of them in the service, construction, agriculture, plantation and manufacturing industries, while there was a sizeable of them working as professionals such as in the information and technology industries.

"We are also working with the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry to see how we can facilitate more professionals in the IT industry from India to work here, and help to strenghten our IT industry," he added.

Zul Noordin claims ‘secret’ PKR, DAP pact to ensure Chinese rule

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 — Zulkifi Noordin alleged today that there was a “secret contract” between PKR and DAP that will ensure Chinese dominance should Pakatan Rakyat (PR) take over Putrajaya.

The Kulim Bandar-Baharu MP, an ex-PKR MP turned independent critic of the opposition, claimed that even PAS was not aware of the contract in an inflammatory speech in Parliament today.

“The contract promises that Chinese leaders in DAP will be given autonomy in Penang,” said Zulkifli told Parliament during the debate on Budget 2011.

The independent MP who was once closely associated with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim lashed out at DAP, calling it a “chauvinist-infected party” and accused the party of being responsible for the May 13 riots in 1969.

“[Should PR take power] Malay candidates will be put in Negeri Sembilan and Perak. And if they win (in the states), they will pick a menteri besar from DAP to head the states,” he said.

Zulkifli and other independents in Parliament, who were former PR lawmakers, have denied claims that they are Barisan Nasional (BN) supporters, but his speech today echoes the oft used Umno line when attacking PR.

The Kulim-Bandar Baharu MP, however did not provide any details to his accusations as his speech was abruptly cut short by Deputy Speaker Datuk Wan Junaidi Jaafar.

Earlier on in his speech, Zulkifli said that Malaysians needed to be re-educated on the details of the May 13 riots so that they couls be “exposed to the truth” of the DAP.

What the party is doing, is they are playing up the same pattern of inciting racial hatred against the Malays despite being warned by Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj against doing so,” said Zulkifli.

According to him, the country’s first prime minister had warned DAP back then to not “question” Article 153 of the constitution as well as Malay rights.

“And this is exactly what DAP is doing now,” said Zulkifli.

The independent MP also defended Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s recent alleged inflammatory statements during the Umno general assembly, saying that Najib was “misquoted” by opposition.

Najib has come under heavy fire from the opposition for saying that he wanted to defend Putrajaya at all costs, as PR lawmakers have even brought up the matter in Parliament earlier this week.

Kit Siang labels Budget as ‘Mahathirish’ policy

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 — Lim Kit Siang claimed today that Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s Budget 2011 was not a child of his New Economic Model (NEM) but instead “bore the marks of old, discredited Mahathirish policies”.

Addressing Parliament today, the veteran DAP lawmaker argued that it was exactly the policies of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad which had landed Malaysia in the middle-income trap it now finds itself in.

Lim (picture) contended that the Budget proposals was a throwback to the previous Mahathir Administration’s obsession with mega projects.

He said that the Najib Administration’s efforts in reforming the economy had been severely halted by three main setbacks — the release of the Auditor-General’s report on Monday, Transparency

International’s (TI) release of its Corruption Perception Index (CPI) in which Malaysia performed poorly, as well as the release of the 2010 Legatum Prosperity Index which ranked Malaysia the 43rd most prosperous out of 110 countries.

“Despite all its bombast and pyrotechnics, Najib’s 2011 budget is not a child of the New Economic Model but bears all the marks of old discredited Mahathirish policies which have landed Malaysia in the middle-income trap for more than a decade, setting the country towards a failed and bankrupt nation come 2019.

“The symbol of the 2011 Budget and the ETP is the proposed RM5 billion 100-storey Warisan Merdeka tower, and is a throwback to the era of Mahathirish obsession with mega projects.

“If Najib is seriously committed to a New Economic Model, based on economic, social and government transformation, wouldn’t it be more appropriate for Malaysia to achieve targets as being ranked among the first twenty if not first ten of the least corrupt nations in the annual Transparency International Corruption Perception Index or having at least 10 universities which are ranked among the Top 100

Universities in the world?” the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leader told Parliament.

The 2009 Auditor-General’s report, tabled in Parliament on Monday, has revealed various discrepancies on ministries and government agencies.

Among the discrepancies and wastages identified by the report includes a sharp increase in the federal government’s collective debt for the past 5 years, Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTMB)’s RM1.45 million debt,

PTPTN’s RM46 million deficit, and misuse of economic stimulus for chandeliers and home theatre systems.

“The Auditor-General’s Reports, which were completed in June/July this year, were deliberately held back when they should have been tabled on the first day of the budget meeting of Parliament on October 11, clearly to avoid the “annual horror stories” from stealing the thunder from Najib’s 2011 Budget speech on October 15 and his Umno Presidential Address on October 21,” said Lim.

The Ipoh Timur MP also said that Malaysia’s CPI drop “highlighted” the failure of the National Key Results Area (NKRA) in fighting corruption, which was targeted to increase the CPI score from the new low of 4.5 in 2009 to 4.9 by 2010.

“In actual fact, Malaysia’s CPI score in 2010 sunk to the lowest in 16 years. In his 18 months as Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak presided over the worst single-year plunge in TI CPI ranking and score, i.e. a nine-placing fall from No. 47 in 2008 to No. 56 in 2009, with the score plunging to the lowest ever of 4.5 last year. For 2010, Malaysia’s ranking is still at the worst spot of No. 56 while the CPI score fell further to 4.4

“Abdullah’s National Integrity Plan, launched in 2004 with the five-year target to improve Malaysia’s TI CPI from 37th place in 2003 to at least 30th position in 2008 and the 5.2 CPI score for Malaysia in 2003 to at least 6.5 by 2008 was an utter failure but Najib’s 18 months have seen both Malaysia’s TI CPI rank and score plumbed to new depths despite all the fanfare and hulaballoo of GTP, NKRAs and national transformation,” said the Ipoh Timur MP.

Lim said that the “third blow” to the governtment transformation programme was the today’s release of 2010 Legatum Prosperity Index ranking Malaysia 43rd out of 110 countries, behind Singapore — 17, Japan — 18, Hong Kong — 20, Taiwan — 22, South Korea — 27 though ahead of Thailand — 52, China — 58, Vietnam — 61, Philippines — 64 and Indonesia — 70.

It is understood that the Legatum Prosperity Index sub-index on “safety and security” ranked Malaysia as No. 52 out of 110, something which Lim said “warrants” serious attention on the Home Ministry’s ability to safeguard the country from crime.

Lim also echoed his other PR colleagues’ remarks attacking Prime Minister Datuk Seri najib Razak for wanting to go ahead with the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka skyscraper despite widespread public opposition.

An anti-Warisan Merdeka Facebook campaign which started as soon as Najib announced the plans for building the tower is fast gaining fans towards its cause — with nearly 200,000 Facebook fans who are against the tower’s construction.

“The Prime Minister has asked the government to give priority to the social media and to respect the views of ordinary Malaysians, especially the young generation of all races.

“The majority using the facebook are young Malaysians and the Prime Minister should seriously cancel the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka Tower project as it will not only end up as a white elephant which will be worst possible symbol for any national transformation in the country.

“It has been estimated that the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka Tower with 3 million sq ft will add to the glut of office space in Kuala Lumpur which will be equivalent to 7.8 years of office space supply in Kuala

Lumpur based on the average annual take up of 1.72 million sq ft in 1985-2009, even without taking into account massive projects announced recently,” said Lim.

Analysts have warned that by dismissing the opposition towards the construction of the tower, Barisan Nasional (BN) risks losing major support among voters.

Second shooter in Aminulrasyid case

SHAH ALAM, Oct 28 — A second gun was fired by police the night Aminulrasyid Amzah was killed, a ballistics expert revealed to the Shah Alam Sessions Court today.

Shaari Desa from the Department of Chemistry (DOC) Petaling Jaya confirmed that the bullet casings police retrieved from the crime scene and gave him for testing were fired from two separate Heckler & Koch (HK) MP5 sub-machineguns.

In methodical fashion, the chemist-by-training said that a comparison of the casings in question to those retrieved from firing tests in his laboratory indicated that 13 shots were fired from the HK MP5 marked as “X” by the police, while three other shots were fired from a similar firearm labelled “Y”.

The HK MP5 A3 with adjustable buttstock labelled “X” is believed to belong to Corporal Jenain Subi, who has been charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder of 14-year-old Aminulrasyid.

The identity of the policeman who fired the fixed buttstock HK MP5 A2 labelled “Y” is not known.

However, deputy public prosecutor Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar told The Malaysian Insider that further evidence concerning the identity of the second gunman will be presented to the court at the next session.

Jenain, 48, a member of the Shah Alam district police patrol unit, is charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder of 14-year-old Aminulrasyid, who took a midnight joyride in a car and was allegedly mistaken for a felon on the run.

The Form Three schoolboy who would be sitting for his PMR examinations today died in the early hours of April 26 this year, believed to be between 1.10am and 2am.

He had been driving a white Proton Iswara with his best friend and neighbour, 15-year-old Muhammad Azamuddin Omar in the front passenger seat.

Their car crashed into the curb at Jalan Tarian 11/2, Section 11.

Jenain faces up to 30 years in jail and a fine if found guilty.

The trial will resume on November 9 with Shaari taking the stand once more. -The Malaysian Insider

Banting murders: Convict's dad says cops duped him

By G Vinod - Free Malaysia Today

KUALA LUMPUR: The father of one of the youths sentenced in connection with the murder of cosmetics millionairess Sosilawati Lawiya and three others claimed that the police duped him and his son.

K Sarawanan, 19, was sentenced to seven years in jail after pleading guilty to disposing of evidence pertaining to the quadruple murders.

However, his father N Kandasamy filed a report with the Dang Wangi police headquarters here this morning claiming that he was misled over his son's legal representation.

He told FMT that the lawyers who represented his son when Sarawanan was convicted on Oct 15 were not hired by him. He had engaged the services of another lawyer, AS Dhaliwal, on Oct 5.

“In fact, Dhaliwal was present with my son when he was remanded on Oct 9,” he said.

The plantation worker said he suspected something was amiss when he was asked to sign a document at the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters early this month.

“On Oct 11, I was asked by the police to sign a form. As I was illiterate and could not understand the content, a detective by the name of Sri Hari explained to me that my son will be released from custody if I signed it,” he said, adding that he subsequently inked the document.

When his son was brought to the Banting magistrate's court on Oct 15, Kandasamy said he was surprised when lawyers M Puravelan and Rosli Sulle came forward to represent Sarawanan despite Dhaliwal being present.

“I knew nothing of these lawyers,” said Kandasamy.

He claimed that Puravelan and Rosli told his son to nod to whatever was said in court and also assured him of his release.

'Son says he was promised freedom'

Following this, Kandasamy said he met his son at the Malacca prison on Oct 17 to find out what happened.

“My son said he was promised freedom if he appointed the lawyers recommended by the police,” claimed the distraught father.

Meanwhile, a source familiar with the case confirmed that Kandasamy had signed a document at the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters, effectively handing over his son's representation to Puravelan's AR Yahya & Co and Roslie's Sulle & Co.

The source, who claimed that there was “malicious intent” on the part of the police, said that Kandasamy would highlight the matter tomorrow when the Shah Alam High Court conducts a revision of the case.

Sarawanan, who worked as a mechanic, has since filed an appeal against the sentence. Also sentenced to seven years for the same offence was 26-year-old odd-job worker U Suresh.

Tsen walks with uncertain steps in politics

By FMT Staff

SANDAKAN: Is Linda Tsen a reluctant candidate in the Batu Sapi parliamentary by-election? Many seem to think so given how she's being carefully guarded by her BN and PBS colleagues.

[Also read: Galas campaign still low key after 3 days]
During her walkabouts, she's was under “heavy protection" and was able to mingle only with the constituents.

One frustrated reporter said it was "so difficult to get to talk to her... It's almost as if she's unethusiastic despite all that BN and PBS are saying”.

Can anyone blame her? It has been barely a month since her husband's sudden death on Oct 9 in an accident.

And more than wishing her well, many in the constituency who knew her husband, incumbent Edmung Chong, are conveying their condolences and sympathies to this woman who is technically still in mourning.

Until Chong's death, Tsen was his quiet supportive wife and mother to their four children – Jamie Chong Sing Yi, 23, Charlene Chong Tze Yi, 20, and Steffi Chong Han Yi, 18 and son Douglas Chong Zheng Yi, 13. A graduate from Trinity Music School in London, Tsen, 54, is also a part-time music teacher.

Chong, who was PBS treasurer-general, was a two-term MP for Batu Sapi's 25,582-strong voter population.

In 2004, he won the seat unchallenged. In 2008 he beat an independent candiate by a 3,708-vote majority.

Calculated risk

In politics, it is said, you must strike when the iron is hot and fielding Tsen was a much-thought-out strategy to earn sympathy votes for BN.

That, it appears, was the only point in her favour, said a political observer who has lived in Sabah for over 30 years.

"Also, Chong won the seat by a large margin in 2008. Putting Tsen up is a well-calculated risk for PBS. It sees a win with Tsen but with a smaller margin even though she is inexperienced," said the observer.

The “investment” took some “gentle persuasion” from party stalwarts and eventually when Tsen's candidacy was announced, PBS president Joseph Pairin Kitingan declared her the “perfect person” to continue her husband's work.

Tsen in a recent interview said: “I just want to... carry on with what my husband has started.

"Because of his sudden death, a lot of things he wanted to do, he could not finish. So as a wife, I feel that I have this desire to finish what he started.”

Reading between the lines of the interviews she has given, mostly to government news agency Bernama, one senses her uncertainty amidst the structured campaign ceramahs and pre-arranged “meet the people” sessions in the run-up to the polls on Nov 4.

"I have the heart to serve, to carry on, to continue what my late husband had done for the people... I was always behind my husband, but now, I am the one in front,” Tsen had reportedly said when asked if she had the confidence to win.

Whether she will defeat seasoned campaigners like PKR's Ansari Abdullah and Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president Yong Teck Lee, in this three-cornered fight, is anyone guess.
But past incidents, as in the case of Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (Anwar Ibrahim's wife) have shown voters to be compassionate irrespective of politics.

Change of order on ballot papers: Nurul smells a rat

By Stephanie Sta Maria - Free Malaysia Today

PETALING JAYA: Nurul Izzah Anwar thinks something is amiss when the names of PKR vice-presidential candidates were reshuffled on the ballot papers at the last minute.

The Lembah Pantai MP, who is running for a vice-presidential slot in the party elections, was informed yesterday that her name has been bumped down to number nine instead of the original number two.

The confirmed list of candidates was issued on Oct 24. However, a new list was released yesterday featuring a new order of appearance.

Of all the candidates, only Nurul's name has been moved down the list. The No 2 slot is now taken up by supreme council member and party's Sarawak chief Baru Bian.

FMT understands that the decision was made by PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail but no explanation was provided.

"There are two issues here," Nurul said in a press statement. "First is the new list which has cast doubts on the original one. Was the first list not the final one and if so, who was responsible for it?"

She pointed out that the list would have already been used by candidates in their campaigns.

"This brings us to the second issue – logistics," she said. "The changes were done two days before the first voting weekend and may present a logistical hurdle."

Between Oct 29 and 31, PKR members from 69 divisions nationwide will be casting their votes. This represents nearly a third of the total number of registered PKR divisions.

"I hope the correct ballot papers arrive in time for these divisions to carry out their democratic duty to the party," she added. "I place my faith in the central election committee (JPP) and party headquarters that this matter will be looked into with care and diligence."

Huge confusion
The deputy chief of the Lembah Pantai division, Siddik Mohamed Ibrahim, today delivered a protest letter to the JPP demanding an explanation for the amendments.

The letter was received by JPP director, Radin Shamsulkamar.

"We are very upset," Siddik told reporters outside the party headquarters. "First she was told that she didn't have enough nominations to qualify. And now this."

"We have already told our supporters to vote for number two. Many of them are illiterate and this change will cause a huge confusion. All we can do within the next two days is send out as many e-mails and text messages as possible to inform our supporters of this new development."

According to Siddik, an explanation would only be provided when Safuddin returned from Galas.

However, the information chief-designate for Lembah Pantai, Fahmi Fadzil, dismissed concerns that this would negatively affect Nurul's chances of winning.

"Nurul has accepted the changes and we will work around it," he said. "Our only worry is whether all candidates will still be given a level playing field. But we're fairly certain that logistical matters arising from this decision can be surmounted."

MCA boss: Dimwits in Umno should retire

 

KUALA LUMPUR: MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek has one piece of advice for Umno leaders who are not the brightest of bulbs – retire.

The Barisan Nasional leader made the stinging remark when asked to comment on Titiwangsa Umno division chief Johari Abdul Ghani's speech that Umno did not need Indian or Chinese votes.

A video of the speech had appeared on YouTube, but Chua told reporters in Gua Musang that it was unlikely to have an impact on Chinese voters come the Nov 4 Galas by-election.
The MCA president also stressed that such views did not reflect the Umno leadership's stand as illustrated by its president, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's 1Malaysia concept.

“The prime minister promotes policies for every ethnic group,” he said, adding that MCA would propose to Umno not to field members with such chauvinistic views as election candidates.
“This (video clip) tells us that there are some Umno grassroots leaders who are not politically savvy. They are not very smart.

“They should not come out (in public). We will pursue this. They should not represent BN and should retire and go home,” he said.

Dangers of Islamic state in Mandarin

In his speech, Johari had said that Umno could retain the Titiwangsa parliamentary seat if it could rope in 70% of Malay votes in the consituency.

If this is achieved, he added, there was no need for Chinese or Indian votes.
“If we want to win in Titiwangsa, we want Malays (to vote for us). Don't bow down to the Chinese and Indians just because we want to win,” he said.

In another development, Chua said MCA was distributing a Mandarin translation of PAS' constitution in Galas to educate Chinese voters on the perils of an Islamic state.

He said the PAS constitution did not respect Malaysia as a racially and religiously diverse nation.
“I don't think the Chinese are aware of this. They think an Islamic state means they cannot eat this or that. They are simplifying things,” he added.

MCLM’s Social Contract

This was our Agreement, our Contract, THE Social Contract, a Magna Carta of sorts. And that is why we defend this Social Contract in the form of The People’s Voice and The People’s Declaration with passion and zeal.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin
 
Tomorrow I will be on the road to make my way to London to attend the inaugural meeting of the Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) on Saturday. I will also be attending an anti-ISA demonstration at Piccadilly that same afternoon.

I will repeat what I said in my earlier articles. The first and primary objective of the MCLM is to promote and propagate The People’s Voice and The People’s Declaration (YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THEM BELOW). This is of course not the only objective of the MCLM, as what I have already explained in great detail in my earlier articles (which you can read here).

1. The Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM)
2. Why the mad scramble
3. When you don’t trust your own people

Now, “why this fixation with The People’s Voice and The People’s Declaration?” you may ask. Simple, because this was what was agreed prior to the 2008 general election. Six political parties, three of them within Pakatan Rakyat, signed a Contact with those of us from the civil society movement at the Blog House in Kuala Lumpur (see the photographs below).

We entered into an Agreement and signed a Social Contract with six political parties contesting the last general election. (In fact, we invited ALL the more than 20 political parties to attend the signing ceremony but only six turned up). And we want this Agreement or Social Contract honoured and respected.

This was our Agreement, our Contract, THE Social Contract, a Magna Carta of sorts. And that is why we defend this Social Contract in the form of The People’s Voice and The People’s Declaration with passion and zeal. Call us fanatics, if you wish, because that is what we are when it comes to the Social Contract or Magna Carta that we signed with these six political parties.

Then, of course, it was not the MCLM. Then, it was a grouping called Barisan Rakyat. And note that Barisan Rakyat existed before Pakatan Rakyat was created. But now people think that Barisan Rakyat and Pakatan Rakyat are one and the same. Some even think that Barisan Rakyat is a ‘merger’ of Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat.

So, to make it clear that we are not a political party or a wing of Pakatan Rakyat or a merger of Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat, we decided to call ourselves the Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement, which was actually ‘soft-launched’ six years ago back in 2004 as the Malaysian Civil Liberties Society but never got past the Registrar of Societies.

THE PICTURE GALLERY OF BARISAN RAKYAT SIGNING A SOCIAL CONTRACT WITH SIX POLITICAL PARTIES AT THE BLOG HOUSE PRIOR TO THE 2008 GENERAL ELECTION AND THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN THAT FOLLOWED IT

The Barisan Rakyat poster that flooded the country in March 2008

Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud, the representative from PAS

Ronnie Liu Tian Khiew, the representative from DAP

Badrul Hisham Shaharin a.k.a. ‘Chegu Bard’, the representative from PKR

Wee Choo Keong, the representative from MDP

A group photograph of the signatories to The People’s Voice and The People’s Declaration

The Barisan Rakyat campaign team and shots of the election campaign (below)




DOWNLOAD THE PEOPLE’S VOICE AND THE PEOPLE’S DECLARATION HERE

http://mt.m2day.org/The_Peoples_Voice.pdf

http://mt.m2day.org/The_Peoples_Declaration.pdf

http://mt.m2day.org/Deklarasi_Rakyat.pdf

http://mt.m2day.org/Declaration_Chinese.pdf

Anal Retentive dUMNO speech

Written by dUMNO

Yang Berhormat, Yang kurang Berhormat, dan Yang Tidak Dihormat, Datuk-Datuk, Nenek-Nenek, Tuan-Tuan, Puan-Puan dan para hadirin seklian. For the benefit of the NON's, I will conduct this important speech in England, just to prove that I can speaking it, terrer-terrer, like sebiji Orang Puteh. Let it be known that I will now "change my mode".

Ahem. The reason we are all gathered here today, is to announce the objectives of dUMNO. For far too long, the NON's have been a pain in our side. For far too long, these sons and daughters of Prostitutes and Beggars have made us look bad, by working hard. So, even though we love collecting the NON's Tax Dollars, we shall not be ashamed to take even more from them, as soon as our Gambling Unit is stabilized. We pretend not to gamble and drink, but in reality, we all love doing what Tunku does. except we cannot openly do it in Malaysia. So, we fly to Paris to have Mongolian lunches as threesomes. And have a nice Night BBQ in Shah Alam when we come back. And we even saved RM500,000 in the process.

You NON's are pathetic. When we say that you need to shaddup, you just shaddup !! You bloody Porn Stars don't try to argue with our Ketuanan by insisting that you will discuss it in private, and behind closed-doors, and what-not. You are a NON. And a NON means that you will submit to a NON NON. We are NON NON's. You understand? dUMNO members are NON NON's, and when NON NON's speak, the NON's should shaddup !! You NON's are so biadap until your Prostitute Mother and Beggar Father's never teach you izzit? I change my mode again. My Manglish is far too revealing.... sorry.

The NON NON's have a saying, "Sesiapa yang dijilat dubur, mesti tahu basuh Pantat". This is very Philosophical !! This is very deep. This is anal-retentive deep. This is true NON NON's mentality. So you see, there is simply no penetration, and a NON NON's non-washing of the anus for two days, but yet, the NON NON Doctors can still find hidden Sperms and Saliva on various parts of the body. They didn't specify what sperms were found. What we didn't tell you is that it was actually chilli-sauce which was found. Looks like me, smells like me, but it was not me. Fortunately Anwar nor his brainy daughter and sexy wife, did not know how to use that line of defense !! I mean, they could have simply called the KKK guy to set up a Royal Commission to vouch for him, and it would have been OK. BTW, The Royal Commission does not mean it is from the King. It simply means that you pay a Royal Ransom, in the form of Commission, and everything will be OK. Malaysia Boleh. Boleh apa? Tidak penting lah. Kasi lu pening-pening sahaja cukuplah. Oops, my NON NON language is showing again. No choice, Because the NON NON has Ketuanan. And this Ketuanan is as mythical as 1Malaysia, but you NON's are far too stupid to question the NON NON.

Tell me. Does any of you NON's understand what 1Malaysia means? If you are too stupid to understand, then you will never understand the NON NON's. Go back behind your filthy desk, and pay us more taxes, you dolts !!! And just for asking, we will raise your Petrol Money again next week. Wait, Make it tonight !!! Then we will make money even sooner. You NON's just sit by the longkang and eat your KariPap, and "Don't talk shit !! Don't talk shit !! Don't talk shit !! " I must say it as enthusiastically as the funny fat guy on Al Jazeera. We, the NON NON's have given up so much, so that you can have your bloody Citizenship. What we never ever told you, is that dUMNO has given up the MOST !!! More than any real Malay in Malaysia. We have given up working !! All we do, is play Golf, play Girls, play Boys, and if some idiot with a stupid name of LGE tries to claim that we Hamsup that "Chun Underaged Girl", we just ISA the bloody NON. I told you a billion times already, the NON's must just shaddup, and take it lying down, like a good obedient Mongolian. Otherwise, we call you names !! Step on Cow Heads, and we burn your churches, and cause magical pig heads to simply fly-here fly-there !!

We BOMB YOU !!! What? You think only the Taliban can say laidet ah? dUMNO oso can. Except, that we don't need to nowadays. Your friends just suddenly decide to jump out of the 14th floor, with some silly NON writing in his hand. Never mind that no one can verify this. Even the most famous Tun Dr. Pornthip says that he died, and then 80% of him jumped out of the 14th floor. Tun Dr Pornthip is drunk !! How can 80% of anybody jump out of anywhere !!!

Oh ya, from today onwards, the NON NON's also want to ban uncle P Ramlee. He is definitely a kafir !! Why? Because the pundek has highlighted the hamsup sarong Party Malaysia girls !!! All his women dressing are far too sexy for us. I mean, when we look at chickens, also we get sexcited !!! We feel like molesting the Chickens !! So, we ban naked KFC also !!! Even Wet Markets must now sell Chicken fully dressed, so that we do not want to screw the Chicken. I hear that Thai Chicken is better than dUMNO Chicken. Ya lor, all those RM20 chicken screwing their Mat Armpit fellas are also a disgrace. SingKapor Ah Moi's demand S$12,000 per night ah !!! Really wan !! You go google SingKapor Social Escort, and see for yourself !! They even have photos like Superstar Catalogues ah !! OK.. Proof that Chickens must be completely dressed in Wet Dream Markets. You bloody NON's are the cause for our Hamsupness !! See !! My underwear is wet again just for discussing Wet Dream Chickens!! For that, you will pay !! You will pay 95% of all collected Malaysian Taxes !!

Finally, the NON's must obey the NON NON's. The stupid Malays must also obey the NON NON's. SHIT !! Even the bloody Orang Asli must obey the NON NON's. The Orang Asli are bloody Pendatangs !! Nobody gives a shit that they came 60,000 years ago !! They are LIARS !!! The world did NOT exist 60,000 years ago !! The world only existed in 1411, when ParameSonOfaSamsengFromSumateraWhoRanAwayFastFast came to Muar, I mean Malacca. Never mind that no evidence exists whatsoever for ParameSonOfaSamsengFromSumateraWhoRanAwayFastFast, except for the William Hang's daughter who married the King, and her 5 cousins protected him from the guys whom his Gangsters robbed in the Straits of Sumatera.

We, the NON NON's have made it very very very clear. Shaddup, or the 400,000 of you NON refugees who ran away last year will be forced to come back and pay us taxes for the rest of your lives. And the rest of you NON's must not question our Ketuanan, because it is definitely written in a non-written document, and therefore, no one has ever been able to find, because no one wrote it, and yet no-one is able to question this imaginary piece of non-paper. Confused? Simple. You NON's just Shaddup, and let our NON NON Ketuanan do the talking.

And oh, ya, we would like you to vote, No. We INSIST THAT you vote for dUMNO in the GE13th, so that we, the NON NON's can screw the NON's and the Malays, even more for the next 50 years.

Sekian Terima Kesian...

Daulat dUMNO yang Maha Mulia...

Time to walk your talk, people. Selvach needs us now. Will you be there for him?

Update : Someone asked for a map to Bukit Aman. Here are the links to two. Hope they help.
http://www.dromoz.com/directory/place/?id=1226&p=Bukit+Aman
http://www.dromoz.com/directory/place/?id=7577&p=Bukit+Aman
____________________________________________________

There were 4 deaths in custody in 2009 where the details of the deceased and the fact of the death in custody became publicly known.

Kugan, who died in the Taipan police station in January.
Gnanapragasam, who died in the Sri Damansara police station in June.

Teoh Beng Hock.
And Gunasegaran.

Gunasegaran’s stood out from the others in one very important detail.
Four individuals detained together with Gunasegaran witnessed events leading up to Guna’s death.
Unlike the other three cases, in Guna’s case, there were eye witness accounts that, it would turn out, materially contradicted the official account proffered by the police auhorities.

As efforts were made in late July and early August last year to put together a team to try and get at the truth surrounding Guna’s death, it became obvious early on that these eye witnesses would need to be ‘protected’, lest they be ‘got to’, to change their ‘story’.

That task fell on the shoulders of one person who chooses to remain unknown. I shall call him X.
Sure, enough, on the night of the very day that Visva successfully got an order of the High Court in August last year, based on the sworn testimony of 3 of those 4 eyewitnesses, for a second post mortem and an inquest into Guna’s death, Selvach, one of the three, got word that the police wanted him in for questioning in relation to a police report said to have been lodged against him in relation to a family quarrel.

Selvach alerted X of this and the next day, a solicitor was arranged to accompany Selvach to the Wangsa Maju police station to offer his statement in relation to that alleged report.
Nothing came of this.

We assured Selvach that if at any time he was harassed or intimidated by the police, he should contact X and every effort would be made to give him protection.

Now, since that episode, Selvach never called X to ask for any help in relation to any intimidation, arrest or harassment by the police.

You will also note that in Visva’s submissions that I referred to in my ‘New brooms…’ post, Visva had said, of Selvach :

Saksi ini memberi keterangan bahawa pada 16.7.2009 beliau juga ditahan bersama simati dan 4 yang lain. Saksi ini telah dilepaskan pihak polis kerana ujian urin beliau negative pada petang hari tersebut.
 
Selvach was released on the same day of the arrest, 16th July, 2009, because his urine sample tested negative for any drugs.

Now if he had gotten into any trouble with the law, or if he had had another run-in with the police, I’m certain he would have been in touch with X for help.

There was no such call to X prior to Selvach’s arrest last Monday night, after the coroner had delivered her verdict earlier in the day.

To the best of our knowledge, then, Selvach had no further ‘problem’ with the law.
So why was Selvach beaten and arrested that night, and why is he being held?
Selvach could have refused to have anything to do with the inquest proceedings, to spare himself any trouble with the police.

He did not.
He stepped forward and told the truth.
Is that why he is being held now?
Because he dared to  speak up?

_______________________________________
Please come and Join us to seek justice for Selvach

PROTEST MEMO TO IGP ON 30TH OCTOBER 2010

( Beating and abduction of Selvach by police)

The continuing descent of the Malaysian police force into lawlessness has been graphically demonstrated by the October 25th abduction and beating of Selvach by police personnel. Selvach was a key witness who testified against the police in the recently concluded R.Gunasegaran inquest. On the very day the verdict was delivered in the inquest, police moved against Selvach. When Selvach’s children asked police why their father was being dragged away, the police answered by beating Selvach in front of his own children.  

 

The trauma caused to the children is unimaginable and in gross violation of international norms on the protection of children. In a twisted perversion of conjugal love, police personnel tried to make Selvach’s wife S.Saraswathy kiss him before beating him up in front of her. Selvach, who did his duty as a citizen by telling the truth at the Gunasegaran inquest, is now being held at an unknown location with no access to his family or lawyers. It is believed that he is being detained without trial under the Emergency Ordinance. The outrage done against Selvach and his family is only the latest in a long series of police brutality cases going back into and beyond the Mahathir despotism.

WE FREE CITIZENS OF THIS NATION MUST MAKE A STAND AGAINST THE PREVAILING POLICE AND STATE VIOLENCE ! JOIN US FOR THE HANDING OVER OF A PROTEST MEMORANDUM TO THE IGP.
The details as below:

Date: 30 October 2010
Time: 10am
Place: BUKIT AMAN FEDERAL POLICE HQ ( LAKE GARDEN ENTRANCE ).

Konsprasi II: Rektum Saiful ‘Kosong’, Kata Pakar Bedah

Dari Tv Selangor

Pakar bedah Am Dr Razali Ibrahim yang memeriksa Mohd Saiful Bukhary Azlan untuk mengenal pasti kesan-kesan diliwat memberitahu mahkamah, beliau mendapati rektum pengadu itu “kosong.”

“Rektum kelihatan kosong, jadi saya mencatatkan sebagai kosong,” kata pegawai perubatan dari Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL) ini ketika disoal balas oleh peguam pasukan Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Sankara Nair.

Razali juga memberitahu, pemeriksaan dubur dijalankan pada 28 Jun 2008 bukan pemeriksaan klinikal yang pertama dikendalikan ke atas Saiful.

Disoal bertubi-tubi oleh Sankara, beliau yang kini berkhidmat dengan Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (HUKM) mengaku, bukan mudah untuk menjalankan pemeriksaan “proctoscopy” ke atas Saiful meskipun dengan menggunakan bahan pelincir.

Penggunaan sebarang instrumen secara tiba-tiba di dubur boleh menyebabkan kecederaan ke atas bahagian-bahagian yang sensitif, kata Razali.

Pada akhir Jun 2008, Saiful mengunjungi Hospital Pusrawi, pusat perubatan swasta, untuk pemeriksaan ekoran sakit di bahagian dubur sebelum dirujuk kepada HKL.

Laporan perubatan dari Pusrawi, yang bocor tahun lalu, mendedahkan bahawa Saiful tidak buang air besar selepas dia diliwat.

Semalam, Razali tegas dengan pendiriannya untuk tidak merujuk nota klinikal bagi menyegarkan ingatannya.

Walaupun diasak berulang kali oleh Karpal, Razali mendesak bahawa beliau tidak merujuk nota yang diambil semasa pemeriksaan perubatan ke atas Saiful selama tiga jam pada malam 28 Jun 2008.

Mahkamah Tinggi kemudian menolak permohonan lisan Karpal, yang mewakili Anwar, untuk mendapatkan nota mengenai sejarah dan pemeriksaan perubatan ke atas Saiful.

Hakim Datuk Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah dalam penghakimannya berkata pasukan pembelaan tidak berhak mendapatkan nota-nota tersebut kerana ia tidak dirujuk oleh Razali dalam pemeriksaan utama oleh pihak pembelaan.

Anwar didakwa meliwat Mohd Saiful Bukhari, 25, di Unit 11-5-1, Kondominium Desa Damansara, No. 99 Jalan Setiakasih, Bukit Damansara, di sini, antara pukul 3.01 petang dan 4.30 petang, 26 Jun 2008.-TheMalaysianInsider

Budget 2011 : Challenge UMNO, MCA, MIC, Gerakan, Sabah, Sarawak Ministers to follow Nazri’s example

By Lim Kit Siang,

2011 Budget not a child of New Economic Model but bears all the marks of old discredited Mahathirish policies (Part 4 of 5)

Najib had himself told Umno that Umno must reform or it will be reformed – that he would execute the New Economic Model or he will be executed!

Najib has found that he biggest enemies of his four critical signature pillars to effect a national transformation come from within – whether 1Malaysia People First Performance Now concept, Government Transformation Programme, New Economic Model and to use the Tenth Malaysia Plan and the annual budgets to operationalise the GTP and ETP.

I commend the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz for his courage and conviction in declaring that he is Malaysian first and Malay next, although more than six months after I had thrown the challenge in Parliament to all Ministers whether they have the 1Malaysia DNA and are prepared to declare that they are Malaysians first and their race second, which is the declared objective of Najib’s 1Malaysia concept.

I share his disappointment when he said in a recent interview that he was puzzled and regretted why his Cabinet colleagues did not speak out as he did, even the Ministers from MCA.
Let me quote Nazri said in his interview with the Red Tomato publication:

“They are people who are just like me in the cabinet, but they are afraid. Even the MCA ministers, none of them has repeated what I’ve said that they are first Malaysians then Chinese – none of them. To me, it is not right to say that if we had said so, then we’d fall into the ‘trap’ of Kit Siang.

“What ‘trap’? The Indian Ministers didn’t come out to say that, other Malay Ministers did not, Kadazan and Iban Ministers also didn’t say so. I am a Malay, yet I’m taking the risk to come out to say. Why others can’t? Let me tell you, they all agree with me….”

Let all the Ministers, whether Umno, MCA, Gerakan, MIC, Sabah and Sarawak BN component parties explain and declare during the winding-up of the budget debate what is it they are afraid of and why they dare not declare that they are Malaysians first and race second as propounded by the 1Malaysia concept?

Next : Hishammuddin should answer to serious allegations in Mat Zain’s open letter

[Speech (part 4) in Parliament on the 2011 Budget on Wednesday, 27th October 2010]

Zaid lancar 9 perkara Perkukuhkan Keadilan

Keadilan perlu diacuankan untuk menjadi sebuah kekuatan politik yang tulen, sebagai sebuah kekuatan yang boleh dijadikan sandaran rakyat dan rakan-rakan dalam pakatan dalam usaha membentuk masa depan yang lebih baik.

Pemilihan ini adalah penentu masa depan parti dan negara. Kita perlu terlebih dahulu memperbaiki diri kita sebelum kita boleh memikirkan soal memperbaiki negara. Kita perlu meletakkan diri sebagai pemimpin dalam Pakatan Rakyat, menjadi pentas yang kukuh bagi orang ramai dan mengemudi Pakatan bagi memenangi PRU-13 nanti.

Kewujudan kita harus menguntungkan rakan-rakan dalam Pakatan Rakyat dan bukannya hambatan. Kita perlu memperjuangkan keadilan untuk Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, namun pada masa yang sama juga terdapat banyak ketidakadilan yang menimpa rakyat negara ini yang memerlukan perhatian kita.

Rakyat rata-rata mendesak mahukan keadilan ekonomi dan keadilan sosial dan hak supaya diberi layanan dengan hormat dan bermaruah mengikut kedaulatan undang-undang. Kita tidak patut menurunkan darjat parti ini menjadi sebuah parti yang memperjuangkan hanya satu isu. Hal ini tidak adil bagi mereka yang ingin kita wakili. Kita bukan sahaja sebuah parti “Reformasi”, sebagai nama bagi sebuah gelombang di hujung 1990an, tetapi juga sebuah parti yang menuntut refromasi tulen dan sanggup untuk mereformasi diri.

Saya menitik beratkan masa depan proses perubahan. Pemilihan kali ini bukan soal jawatan, kedudukan atau permainan kuasa. Ia bukan soal siapakah yang bakal memegang tampuk kuasa selepas ini. Ia adalah soal apakah yang hendak dan boleh dilakukan selepas ini.
Pemilihan 2010 merupakan julung kalinya untuk negara dan juga untuk parti kita. Setiap anggota mempunyai satu undi, dan setiap undi diambil kira. Untuk julung kalinya dalam sejarah, parti boleh memilih para pemimpin kerana prinsip yang dipegang dan diperjuangkannya dan bukan kerana kesetiaan membabi-buta. Parti bukan membuat keputusan mengenai seseorang calon hanya kerana sumbangan dan komitmen calon berkenaan.

Saya percaya anggota-anggota parti kita sudah cukup matang untuk menilai sendiri para pemimpin mereka yang sedia ada. Saya serahkan kepada kebijaksanaan anggota-anggota parti untuk memutuskan tentang cadangan dan wawasan yang saya ketengahkan kerana saya yakin bahawa inilah cara yang dapat membawa perubahan sebenar kepada Kerajaan kita.

Saya bersyukur dan sangat berterima kasih kerana keyakinan dan sokongan yang ditunjukkan oleh anggota-anggota dan cabang-cabang parti menerusi pencalonan yang mereka berikan kepada saya. Lagipun, apa yang saya pertahankan dan suarakan adalah untuk mereka.

Saya bertanding jawatan ini bukan untuk berseronok-seronok, bermegah-megah dan membangga diri. Saya bertanding jawatan ini kerana jawatan ini banyak cabarannya. Saya bertanding kerana banyak kerja berat yang masih perlu dilaksanakan.

Dalam pada calon-calon lain tidak habis-habis bercakap tentang kemampuan mereka untuk melindungi Anwar, saya pula percaya bahawa beliau telah membariskan pasukan peguam yang terbaik untuk membelanya. Saya juga prihatin tentang beliau dan keluarganya, tetapi perjuangan dan kepentingan rakyatlah yang paling mustahak. Dan saya tahu anggota-anggota parti dapat membezakannya.


Kita tidak boleh lari daripada hakikat bahawa masa depan Malaysia adalah saling berkait dengan masa depan parti kita. Kita mesti terus bergerak pada landasan yang betul. Rakyat telah memilih untuk memberikan kepercayaan kepada kita. Jadi, dengan penuh takzim dan rendah hati saya meminta agar anda memberikan keyakinan dan kepercayaan untuk kita sama-sama berusaha mendapatkan kembali cita-cita dan idaman parti kita pada saat yang bersejarah ini.

Sembilan Perkara Bagaimana Hendak Menggiatkan Semula Parti dan Negara

1. Kita perlu mencergaskan semula akar umbi kita. Ini kerana kejayaan sesebuah parti politik perlu diukur melalui aktiviti-aktiviti di peringkat akar umbi. Cabang-cabang kita terdiri daripada individu-individu yang bersemangat tinggi dan komited tetapi sedihnya tidak mempunyai tenaga dan dinamik yang cukup kerana ketiadaan pembiayaan. Saya mampu mencari penyelesaian bagi membolehkan jentera politik yang lebih cekap dan berkesan untuk memberikan sokongan kepada para pemimpin ini dan kerja-kerja murni mereka. Adalah penting agar cabang-cabang menjadi lebih bertenaga dan membabitkan diri dalam proses parti. Adalah penting bagi aktiviti parti mencerminkan keinginan yang tinggi dan dorongan pemimpin-pemimpin cabang. Saya akan galakkan pengambilan anggota-anggota baru sambil menitikberatkan pertambahan anggota yang bermutu dan komited, bukan hanya bilangan yang banyak tanpa mutu. Kita mesti buang mereka yang nama mereka yang masih di daftar keahlian sedangkan hati mereka telah sama-sekali meninggalkan parti. Kita akan secara aktif menggariskan perjuangan parti untuk mengekalkan tumpuan dan bukan cuma banyak memperkatakan isu-isu lama.
   
   
   
2. Kita mesti memperkasa penyokong setia parti kita menerusi pendemokrasian selanjutnya, tidak kira jawatan dan kedudukan mereka. Kita perlu keluar dari politik feudal, kita perlu memberikan kebebasan kepada cabang-cabang parti daripada kongkongan pusat dan memperkasa jawatankuasa-jawatankuasa peringkat cabang dan negeri. Merekalah yang paling hampir dengan isu-isu berkaitan dan yang paling maklum dan mempunyai keupayaan untuk menanganinya. Kita tidak lagi boleh beranggapan bahawa kepimpinan pusat tahu tentang segala-galanya. Saya akan bekerjasama dengan anggota-anggota parti di setiap peringkat untuk membangunkan dasar-dasar yang adil dan yang mampu bertahan untuk pengurusan yang lebih baik.
   
   
   
3. Kita perlu memperluaskan keanggotaan kita kepada mereka yang berupaya dan sanggup menyumbang, tanpa diskriminasi. Parti perlu lebih inklusif. Ramai bekas anggota yang telah dipinggirkan, atau yang hampa, atau yang hilang minat, perlu dialu-alukan kembali ke pangkuan parti. Kita perlu mengenal pasti anggota-anggota yang mempunyai kemampuan, memberikan mereka peluang memegang jawatan dan peranan lebih besar. Kerana kewibawaan kita adalah tergantung kepada kewibawaan pemimpin-pemimpin yang kita pilih. Mereka perlu dipilih menggunakan piawaian paling ketat. Mereka perlu mencerminkan masyarakat yang mereka wakili. Warga Sabah umpamanya sepatutnya dibenarkan memilih ketua-ketua mereka sendiri. Begitu juga halnya dengan warga Sarawak.
   
   
   
4. Kita perlu berusaha menjadi pari pelbagai kaum dan agama yang diperlukan negara ini. Inilah yang akan menjadi kekuatan kita. Kita perlu menyatukan anggota-anggota daripada setiap kaum dan agama dalam negara ini. Inilah yang akan jauh membezakan kita dengan barisan parti pemerintah yang gagal untuk menyatukan bangsa Malaysia setelah 53 tahun berkuasa. Kita perlu merebut peluang ini, perlu membuktikan bahawa kita mampu untuk menyatukan rakyat di seluruh negara. Saya akan bekerja tanpa henti untuk memadamkan prasangka dan curiga kekelompokan, perkauman dan keagamaan.
   
   
5. Kita perlu mengenepikan dasar pecah dan perintah yang dipakai selama ini oleh barisan parti pemerintah yang sedang berkuasa. Dasar ini memudaratkan dan memundurkan. Sebagai sebuah parti politik progresif, Keadilan mampu melangkah melampaui sempadan kaum, agama, dan kebudayaan dalam konteks Perlembagaan yang sedia ada. Kepelbagaian inilah kekuatan kita. Saya akan mengedepankan model untuk sebuah parti politik yang lebih telus dan demokratik. Kita tidak boleh menghabiskan tenaga kita bermain politik dalam kubu kelompok — Malaysia Timur lawan Malaysia Barat, reformis lawan Islamis, Anwaris dan Sosialis lawan setiap yang lain.
   
   
   
6. Kita perlu konsisten dalam percakapan dan perbuatan. Pemimpin-pemimpin PKR dan Pakatan Rakyat harus sentiasa meletakkan kepentingan negara di atas kepentingan-kepentingan lain. Perlu ada kesepakatan tentang apa yang kita perjuangkan sebagai sebuah kumpulan. Sebagai penyelaras Pakatan Rakyat, saya mampu melaksanakan agenda ini dengan baik.
   
   
   
7. Pendirian kita dalam soal-soal hak dan kebebasan rakyat wajib jelas. Kita perlu memperjuangkan nasib semua warga Malaysia. Saya percaya parti ini harus mempertahankan Perlembagaan Persekutuan dan memperjuangkan keadilan untuk setiap kaum tanpa takut dituduh mengabaikan kaum kita sendiri.
   
   
   
8. Saya akan memastikan aset kita paling berharga, iaitu Selangor, akan terus kuat dan bebas dari sengketa dalaman. Saya akan memastikan Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim mendapat semua sokongan yang diperlukannya untuk menjamin kejayaan dalam pilhanraya dan memacu kegiatan pembangunan agar rakyat mengekalkan PKR dan Pakatan Rakyat di Selangor.
   
   
   
9. Kita wajib, sebagai pembangkang, memenuhi peranan utama kita menegur dan mengimbangi pemerintah yang ada. Peranan utama kita ialah untuk memastikan kerajaan yang ada ini menjalankan tugas secara yang dapat dipertanggungjawabkan. Kita hanya dapat menjalankan peranan ini jika kita dapat meyakinkan rakyat bahawa kita memiliki barisan pemimpin yang berkemampuan dalam parti. Untuk mencapai perkara tersebut, saya akan memilih hanya mereka yang terbaik untuk membantu kita dan Ahli-ahli Parlimen kita — mereka yang terdiri dari orang awam, para cendekiawan, teknokrat dan mereka yang ahli dalam bidang masing-masing. Saya akan membentuk saluran rasmi untuk berhubungan dengan orang ramai dan untuk mentadbir secara perundingan dengan orang ramai.
   

Najib: Everybody's Melayu except Chinese, Hindus

(Malaysiakini) Najib Razak dangled a carrot at the Umno general assembly.

Quoting Usman Awang, the prime minister recited the national laureate's poem on who are Malay - the original Melayu are the Javanese, Bugis, Banjar, Minangkabau, Acehnese, Jakun and Sakai.

Arabs and Pakistanis “semua Melayu” too. The mamak and Malbari have been absorbed to become Melayu, and even 'mualaf' (converts) have Malay status, he continued.

As if the list is not exhaustive enough, Najib expanded its scope to co-opt the Kadazan, Bajau, Indian Muslim, Siamese, Melanau, Bidayuh and tens of other tribes into Malay stock.

Therefore, why should the 'Malay first' Muhyiddin Yassin bow to DAP's insistence that everyone must be Malaysian First if today almost all - with only the notable absence of Chinese and Hindus - are already Malay-ised?

He really ought to have responded to Lim Kit Siang's game of 'Chinese Last' by kicking the ball back and challenging Lim to ask Anwar Ibrahim whether the latter is 'Malaysian First or Muslim First'.

What Najib was implying is that Malays have traditionally been willing to draw into their fold individuals born of any ethnicity as long as he's Muslim - religious conversion being enticement for attaining 1Malaysian Firstness.

PAS supporters, heartened by Lim Guan Eng's heady love affair with Islam, must have had the same thought when they prayed for him to convert.

Facing illegal assembly charges

Najib told the Umno delegates in no uncertain terms that Malaysian citizenship is not fundamentally equal in nature and this inequality fitted to the reality of national interest and purpose.

Hindraf clearly saw the two classes of citizenship from the very beginning. Back then, it was Umno that demonised the movement for pointing out an inconvenient truth. Today it is DAP demonising Hindraf and for the same reason. Whereas before the last general election Barisan felt their iron grip threatened by Hindraf, currently DAP wants to neutralise Hindraf's truth-speaking which threatens its pursuit of power built on the fallacy of Firstness.

Umno's resort to the police state is blatant and on record.

On Tuesday, M Murugan (right) was in court facing charges of illegal assembly, damaging public property and (most paradoxically) intimidating the police. He was apprehended at the Hindraf rally. The legal prosecution of Indians who turned out in full force on Nov 25, 2007 has been a long-running saga and Murugan personally made some 30 court appearances. The rest - about 65 persons - had earlier pleaded guilty and settled their fines.

For Indians, who as low-wage earners have difficulty obtaining leave from employers, making their way to the Jalan Duta court complex in KL (another batch in the Shah Alam court) is arduous and taxing. A few have lost their jobs due to this disruption by the authorities to their ordinary lives.

Murugan typifies the Tamil working class that gets about on a motorbike and deriving a variable income each month.

Until recently S Letchumanan was another and among the last Hindraf Nov 25 protesters with a case pending. Then two days ago, he was brought to the dock with his hands handcuffed. Yesterday, Letchumanan was fined RM800 after having spent a total of five days under police detention, both on the day of the rally itself and this week when he was served his warrant of arrest.

Murugan's hearing will resume on Nov 22. His tenacity in refusing to simply be done with it by pleading guilty is nothing short of astounding.

A police witness testified in the court that Murugan had approached the FRU water cannon truck in the vicinity of KLCC and grabbed hold of the vehicle's horizontal bar, whilst yelling “Tangkap, tangkap, tangkap”. The policeman also said the accused's shirt was soaked through. Readers may remember the photographs of Indians drenched by the chemically-laced water.

Murugan tells me that he is determined to see his trial to its end because there must be a public airing for the acute problems confronting Indians. (On the Indian poor, see also my CPI articles 'Honey, I shrunk the Indians' and 'The Hundraf of Umno's making'.)

Hindu-Muslim axis of conflict

If Malaysians of other races and Indian elites/professionals had only deigned to acknowledge that this marginalised minority is indeed mired in a severe crisis and need help, Hindraf would have had no need to marshall the tens of thousands to the street.

Even now, if Malaysian First-ers are extending a hand to Indians to help resolve their myriad and unique-to-Indian problems, Hindraf would be quite willing to take a back seat and let a multi-racial representation stand up for this beleaguered minority. But who among the sanctimonious So-proud-to-be-Malaysian speaks for the voiceless Tamil Hindus?

Hindraf is for Hindu rights because the genesis of makkal sakthi was sparked by religious oppression, and the involvement of its chairman P Waythamoorty (left) in the body-snatching tussle of Everest mountaineer M Moorthy.

The spate of temple demolitions was another catalyst for the Hindraf activism. I wrote in Kee Thuan Chye's 'March 8' book that Hindu temples have held a central place in the hearts of the Indian community - “Worship was the balm that gave solace to their hard lives, and the authorities' insensitive handling of the demolitions only rubbed salt into the wound”.

I cite the above passage because P Uthayakumar informs me that he read it in Kamunting and it struck him how so many people are unable to see this point.

I've been writing consistently for years on the religious contestation involving M Revathi, Anthony Rayappan, R Subashini, S Banggarma and others. Islam is in total control. Yet DAP chooses to strengthen the already strong instead of siding with the underdogs - the ones being kicked. Worse, DAP followers throw sticks and stones.

On the other hand, the Chinese-dominated party and its leaders pander to the Islamists.

Najib plainly stated he considers Indian Muslim as Malay, and by extension entitled to 1Malaysian1st perks. I've met many voluntary Indian converts. You can read about the involuntary Indian converts in the Human Rights Party website.

Nonetheless, despite everything, the majority of poor Tamils wish to remain Hindus.

I'd attended the Penang leg of the Hindraf roadshow in 2007. Seated beside me was an Indian man who confided that he cried when he saw how his gods were callously destroyed during the destruction of a temple.

“The community has been cheated enough,” declared Waythamoorthy when I met him up in Singapore over the weekend of Oct 17. He fully appreciates how Murugan is holding fast to the spirit of makkal sakthi and not caving in to pressure.

Murugan tried to stop the water cannon truck because there is no political will to halt what is happening to the Indians.

R Seetha's (right) suicide last year and her silent cry appears to have failed to sear the conscience of those who persist in viciously mocking Hindraf and the grassroots work of its activists.

Murugan is educated only up to Form 3 and does not possess the ability to articulate his community's woes so that the wider audience will pay heed. He only hopes that his day in court will allow the oppressed Indians to be heard by the world because Malaysians have deliberately cultivated a selective deafness.

Though underfoot, he's defiant, unlike sad Seetha who slipped away quietly into the night. There is no other way open to the Murugans of Malaysia but perhaps going to prison for a just cause.

This Is Real History

For those who read about it, you will recall that in 2005, the Malaysian government was excited about accidentally finding an ancient civilization in Johor.  This was reported in the various newspapers. There was talk about excavating the huge site to rediscover this civilization.  and then silence. After that, no news at all about this discovery. A number of times I have discussed with friends that there was definitely a cover up because the authorities did not like what was discovered, something that is contradicting what the government is trying to claim. So many years passed and now I received this material revealing what I suspected to be true. Good to know who are the real Pendatang and you have to start learning the correct history.A small piece of history for our future generation. Why Kota Gelanggi (lost city) touted as earliest civilization in Malay Peninsula news were banned as they were Buddhist. The Johor find of 2005 which was quietly dropped was none other than Kota Gelanggi lost city reflecting Srivijaya and its Buddhist splendour.  But they deliberately disregarded it because that would have sidelined Malacca Empire and Islam which was smaller and came some 500 years later.  I met Dr Lee Kam Hing, a former History prof at MU in Singapore recently at a seminar. Dr Lee, who is now Star research director, told me he was trying his best to highlight Kota Gelanggi, but that the government  killed it off.  This is clearly another case to cover up the real history of Malaya and fool the younger generations into believing that our history only began from Malacca 1400.  Not only that, they try to show Parameswara as Malay and Muslim, but actually he was Hindu. If one were to condemn these UMNO scumbags on how they distort history, it will never end. The condemnations will go more than cover 10 PhD thesis. Once again our government wiped out any references to a famous Melaka prince as being Hindu and belonging to the powerful Hindu empire Sri Vijaya. So all of a sudden our museums, school text-books etc. all refer to Parameswara as a Malay prince. What race ruled or did not rule is besides the point.  What is important is not butchering history to create your own truths.  You cannot change your race even if you convert. Parameswara could have been responsible for Umno's proud heritage of ' Ketuanan Melayu '. If this is what it is based on, there is no 'Ketuanan Melayu'. The lineage of Melaka Sultans are Indians, not Malays.  It is no secret that Parameswara was an Indian and a Hindu prince. It is clear from records that Parameswara never converted to Islam.  He was an Indian Hindu who fled Palembang in Sumatra to eventually found Melaka circa 1400 AD. It was Sri Maharaja who converted himself and the court of Melaka to Islam, and as a result took on the name of Sultan Muhammad Shah sometime after 1435... The most famous of Indian Hindu Kings were Raja Chola and his son Rajendra Chola who invaded Southern Thailand, Kedah, Perak, Johor and Sumatra about 1000 AD. This is Raja-Raja Chola , the Indian/Hindu kings and not Raja Chulan a Malay king. But what is really sad is that our children are taught as though Malaysian history suddenly began in 1400 with an Islamic Melaka. We are led to believe that the Indians and Chinese first arrived on the shores of Malaysia in about 1850 as desperate indentured laborers, farmers and miners.  Nothing could be further from the truth. The cultural influences of India in particular, and China, in South East Asia span over 2,000 years, starting with the arrival from India of the Brahmanical prince/scholar, Aji Saka in Java in AD78, through to Vietnam, Cambodia (Indo China), Thailand, Burma, Indonesia, Bali, Borneo, Brunei and beyond. The findings at Bujang Valley speak of an ancient Indian/Hindu presence in Kedah. There were Chinese settlements in Pahang and Kelantan around the 13th-14th century and in 12th century in Singapore . The early Brunei Sultanate had a Chinese Queen.  One need not ponder at length the implications of Angkor Wat and Borobudur or that 40%-50% of Bahasa Malaysia comprises Sanskrit/Tamil words.  To illustrate, some of these word are:

bumi = boomi                           

singgasana = singgasanam        

putra  = putran                          

perdana = pirathamar        

raja = rajah                                

menteri = manthiri        

desa = thesa                             

kapal =  kappal        

syakti = sakthi                          

samudra = samuthiram        

kolam = kulam                          

sepatu = sappattu        

bahaya = abahya        

jaya = jeya        

maha = maha        

aneka = aneha        

nadi = naadi       

kedai = kadai        

mahligai = maaligai        

mantra = manthrum        

tandas = sandas         (This list can go on)

An extremely important archeological find that pointed to one of the greatest empires in history, The Raja Chola empire that ruled from the Maldives through India, Sri Lanka and right down to South East Asia found deep in the jungles of Johor a few years ago and made headlines in the mainstream newspapers in 2005, suddenly disappeared from the news. The time has arrived for us to record our history as the facts tell us and not as we would like to wish it. The truth will never hurt anyone. Lies, always will.

 Regards,    

LEE Ong Kim (Dr)        

Associate Professor and Head   Policy and Leadership Studies        

National Institute of Education        

 NIE2-03-54, 1 Nanyang Walk, Singapore 637616        

Tel:  (6... GMT+8h | Fax: (65) 6896-9151 |        

Email:ongkim.lee@nie.edu.sg        

Web:www.nie.edu.sg

UMNO denies IC to poor Indian orphan