Japan struggles to cool reactors, spent fuel at damaged plant

Tokyo (CNN) -- Japan turned helicopters, fire trucks and police water cannons on the No. 3 reactor at the quake-ravaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and the pool housing its spent fuel Thursday in its latest attempt to stave off a nuclear disaster.

Military helicopters began dumping water on the reactor Thursday morning, with police and fire trucks opening up after 7 p.m. (6 a.m. ET). Japan's Defense Ministry said the first effort lasted 40 minutes, and the Tokyo Electric Power Company said the efforts would continue throughout the night in order to keep the reactor and its adjacent spent fuel pool from overheating.

"In order to cool the spent fuel storage pool, we have carried out water drop operations and the spraying of water from the ground," TEPCO officials said at a Thursday night news conference. "This needs to continue in several ways. Therefore, we will continue to ask for cooperation of the involved people so we can carry out continuously. The helicopter water dumping operation is something we have asked (the) government to provide us help with, and also the spraying of water."

Friday's earthquake and tsunami caused damage at four of the six reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, located on the northern coast of the Japanese island of Honshu. TEPCO also was attempting to restore power to the facility, but those efforts had not been completed by nightfall Thursday, the company said. Restoring power would help get the plant's pumping systems going again, to try to get water to the pool.

Helicopters made four passes in about a 20-minute span Thursday morning, dropping 7.5 tons of seawater each time on the facility's No. 3 reactor in order to cool its overheated fuel pool. Video of the operation aired on NHK showed that only one of the loads appeared to drop directly on the building. Gusty winds dissipated much of the water carried by the other three helicopters. Experts believe that boiling steam rising from that pool, which contains at least partially exposed fuel rods, may be releasing radiation into the atmosphere.

Rebecca Johnson, founder of the London-based Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy, told CNN that Japanese engineers are "flying by the seat of their pants now." "Everything they try goes wrong. They're focusing on reactors, then spent fuel becomes damaged," Johnson said. "They've just got to get water in there, keep the water pumping."

And nuclear engineer Arnie Gundersen told CNN's "American Morning" that the effort will likely need to be sustained "for months, if not years."

"What's pushing the firemen back is the radiation that's coming from the spent fuel pool," he said. If the spent fuel rods in that pool are uncovered, "There's an awful lot of gamma rays flooding that site, forcing the workers to say further away."

Japanese Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa, in conjunction with Prime Minister Naoto Kan, said he decided early Thursday to address the crisis from the air and ground despite concerns about exposing workers to radiation.

"We could not delay the mission any further, therefore we decided to execute it," Kitazawa told reporters.

Radiation levels at the plant remained high Thursday evening, but had dropped sharply from the morning. At 4 p.m. (3 a.m. ET), the Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency reported exposures of 1.6 millisieverts per hour, down from the nearly 3.8 millisieverts per hour TEPCO reported at 9:30 a.m. A typical resident of a developed country receives about 3 millisieverts per year.

"The radiation levels of individual workers are being properly managed by limiting their time in or close to the reactors," Hidehiko Nishiyama, NISA's deputy director-general, told reporters. Out of 18 workers tested Thursday morning, 17 tested normal, and the one who received a higher dose of radiation required no medical treatment, Nishiyama said.

The increased focus on the No. 3 reactor came after a stark U.S. warning about the fuel pool in the No. 4 reactor. Gregory Jaczko, the head of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, told a congressional committee that there was "no water" in the No. 4 pool, resulting in the emission of "extremely high" levels of radiation.

But Japanese authorities disputed Jaczko's assertion, citing information gathered from a helicopter flight over the plant. A TEPCO official said Thursday that there was some water in the No. 3 spent fuel pool, "But we do not know how much water."

Nishiyama acknowledged that some data from the Daiichi plant may not be reliable as the quake knocked down power on site, rendering measurement equipment unstable. He was quick to defend how the government has handled information on the nuclear plant.

And the Japanese government came under fire Thursday with the release of a WikiLeaks cable attributed to the U.S. State Department. The document noted that a Japanese legislator, Taro Kono, had accused Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of "covering up nuclear accidents, and obscuring the true costs and problems associated with the nuclear industry."

A Japanese government spokesman, Noriyuki Shikata, warded off fears of an imminent meltdown, telling CNN Thursday, "We have not seen a major breach of containment" at any of the plant's troubled nuclear reactors.

A meltdown occurs when nuclear fuel rods cannot be cooled and the nuclear core melts. In the worst-case scenario, the fuel can spill out of the damaged containment unit and spread radioactivity through the air and water.

That, public health officials say, can cause both immediate and long-term health problems, including radiation poisoning and cancer.

Tests in Fukushima city, 80 kilometers (50 miles) away, found radiation measuring 12.5 microsieverts per hour -- well above the average reading of 0.04, but still well below that considered harmful to humans.

Small, and for now, harmless amounts of iodine -- a potential byproduct of a nuclear meltdown -- were found in the city's water.

Citing Fukushima Prefecture officials, Kyodo News reported Thursday that about 10,000 people were screened for radiation exposure the previous day at evacuation centers and medical offices.

About 200,000 people living within a 20-kilometer (12-mile) radius of the plant have been evacuated; those living 20 to 30 kilometers from the site have been told to remain inside. Authorities also have banned flights over the area.

Koichi Shiga described the town of Minamisoma,25 kilometers from the plant and site of the Hotel Iseya that he owns, as ghostly quiet with most all shops closed and empty streets. Electricity and water were still flowing, though evacuation efforts have been hampered by a paucity of gasoline.

"People have not evacuated, they are staying at home," Shiga told CNN. "There was a ration of 10 liters of gas, and I saw a long line of people."

Several countries, including the United States, have called for a broader range, urging their citizens in Japan to evacuate or at least stay indoors if they live within 80 kilometers of the Fukushima Daiichi plant.

One positive development is that winds have been blowing from the northwest, helping push emitted radiation off to sea. Still, at least 20 people have fallen ill due to possible radiation contamination, in addition to 19 injured and two missing at the plant, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported.

DPM: Interlok walkout due to misunderstanding

(Malaysiakini) Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin today insisted that the ethnic Indian members of the evaluation committee on the Interlok novel are still in the committee, saying that yesterday's turn of events was a "misunderstanding".

"There was a misunderstanding yesterday... I was informed by (MIC president) G Palanivel that he is now speaking (to the three members)... Palanivel has given his assurance that he will make sure that they will stay in the committee," he told reporters at the Parliament lobby today.

Denying that he had rejected the 100 amendments to the novel suggested by the committee, Muhyiddin claimed that he had in fact called for a review of the amendments as he believed that they were "minute" issues which ran away from the "isu pokok (main concern)".

"The issues brought up were not pertinent and not sensitive. (The committee members) are just bringing it up because they had the opportunity. For example the word 'Tuhan' should be spelled with a capital T and several other non-important things.

"So I advised them to look at the proposals again. We don't want to reject them but...(these) are very minute things," he said.

Muhyiddin: It's a good novel

He added that the ministry has no intention to remove the book from the Form Five syllabus, as it is a "good novel".

"For us, there is no problem. The novel is already in use. It's a good novel, many people read it without any problems, but there seem to be issues brought up by the Indian community.

“It's not the entire book, so we address these specific issues," he said.

Yesterday the three ethnic Indian committee members quit the panel citing disillusionment after a large portion of their 100 proposed amendments by the panel were rejected.

This include misspelled words, wrongly translated Tamil-language idioms and mistakenly-described Indian customs.

Muhyiddin said that he advised the committee not to be sidetracked by "minute" issues so that "we can put a full-stop" to the long-drawn out matter.

"It is better if we can take a bit more time and be more specific to make sure that everyone is satisfied. Things will crop up in the discussion process but I hope it can be solved soon," he said.

He said that the "main issue (the use of the word 'pariah') appears to have been solved but that would take some time (to iron out)."

However, he said, he matter cannot be resolved if "certain parties" continue to "stir up the issue" with no intentions to offer a solution.

"Those who say that the Indian community have lost faith in (the evaluative committee) is doing so with ill-intentions," he said. 

Christians say will not collect Malay Bibles

KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 — The Christian community said today it is appalled by what it says is the Najib administration’s desecration of 5,100 holy books shipped in from Indonesia and has flat out refused to collect the Port Klang shipment.

The Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM), which represents over 90 per cent of churches in the country, insisted that Putrajaya immediately drop the conditions imposed for the release of two shipments of Malay Bibles totalling 35,000 copies seized from Port Klang and Kuching port.

Last night, the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) was told its shipment of 5,100 Alkitab — as the Malay Bibles are called — have been stamped with the Home Ministry’s official seal, as per the conditions imposed for the release issued two days ago, without its prior permission.

The first requires the importers to directly stamp on the cover of each of the 35,000 copies the following words: “Peringatan: ‘Al Kitab Berita Baik’ ini untuk kegunaan penganut agama Kristian sahaja. Dengan perintah Menteri Dalam Negeri.” [In English: “Reminder: This ‘Al Kitab Berita Baik’ is for the use of Christians only. By order of the Home Minister.”]

The cover of the Alkitab would be stamped with the department’s official seal and dated as well.

The second condition requires the importers to stamp a serial number on each copy as if to demarcate copies from the released shipment and to enable the book to be traced back to the port of import.

“This means that the Bahasa Malaysia Bible is now treated as a restricted item, and the Word of God has been made subject to the control of man. This is wholly offensive to Christians,” CFM said in a strongly-worded statement today signed by its chairman Bishop Ng Moon Hing.

The umbrella body refuted government claims it had reached a compromise, saying it had never agreed that its holy books should be endorsed to say “it is only for Christians”.

“Any person who respects the Holy Scriptures of any religion would be appalled by this action. We will never accede to any desecration of the Bible since the Word of God to us is sacred,” it said.

Pointing to a 1982 order issued under the Internal Security Act (ISA), the CFM said nowhere in law was it stated that any form of words had to be endorsed on any copy of the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia.

“Given that copies may already have been endorsed, we will NOT take delivery of those endorsed copies,” it added.

The CFM said it also wholly rejects the federal government’s argument that the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia is “prejudicial to the national interest and security of Malaysia”.

It condemned the government’s treatment of its holy books as “subversive publication”.

The CFM said Christian Malaysians have always acted in good faith and with great patience to reach a peaceful end to religious dispute that would not compromise their beliefs.

“But that good faith has not been reciprocated by the government,” it said.

It further accused Putrajaya of having moved the “goal posts” over the years “through a systematic imposition of unreasonable conditions and restrictions”.

“As Christians we wonder how our Holy Scriptures can become a national security threat where countless number of us find it helpful in bringing hope and healing to broken lives and homes which we can testify to,” it said.

The CFM called on all Malaysians to rally together and reject all attempts to control the freedom of religion in the country.

It also advised all Christians to remain calm and pray for a dignified and respectful resolution to the ongoing Alkitab row and noted that Sunday will mark the second year the holy books have been detained at Port Klang.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein defended today his ministry’s stamping of the 5,100 Malay-language bibles in Port Klang with its official seal, saying it was standard protocol and not done to “deface” the Alkitab.

The minister also said his men had no choice but to adhere to these procedures as the BSM had wanted the Bibles to be released quickly.

“We stamped the Bible based on amalan (practice) before... during Abdullah Badawi and even Tun Dr Mahathir’s time,” Hishammuddin told reporters today, referring to the two immediate past prime ministers.

Hishammuddin appeared to suggest that the Christian community’s uproar over what they considered a violation of their holy book to be manufactured.

“They wanted it to be released quickly... if they want to find fault they can find fault... you can even say the Bibles are smelly after being kept for so long, if you want to find fault (with everything),” the minister claimed.

He said his officials had no intention to deface the Bibles, stressing that the Christian community should engage his ministry directly if it had issues or complaints over the measures taken.

However, he also voiced frustration over the inability to bridge the now-widening chasm with the community over the issue.

Hisham: Stamps on bible standard practice

KUALA LUMPUR: Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein today said that the decision to stamp the Malay-language bible, Al-Kitab, was not done to deface it and was a standard practice.

Speaking to reporters at the Parliament lobby, he said that the stamp on the bibles was not a new condition imposed for their release.

The stamp denotes “For Christians Only”. The other condition is that the book must be marked with serial numbers.

“Even during Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s time, these bibles were released with a chop on them.”

Asked why it was stamped without the importer’s permission, Hishammuddin said that the bibles were stamped as “they (importers) wanted it to be immediately released”.

He said that the matter could not resolved because certain parties were finding flaws in the government.

“They find fault with everything we do… (you can also) raise the issue of smell (bau)… that the bibles have been kept for a long while and that they smell.

“Come forward and let’s talk about it. (The serial number) is not a big issue to me,” he said.

‘Matter will never end’

Hishammuddin said that the matter would never end and raised doubts if some quarters indeed wanted the issue to be resolved.

“Once if it is resolved, then it won’t be an issue. There won’t be issues to divide us, to make people angry with us (the government), no issue to sell paper, magazines or (on) Internet.”

He also said that the ministry has been engaging people regarding the issue, but could not find a common ground as it “could not engage parties who do not wish to be engaged”.

“It’s like hitting your head against a wall… the wall does not budge, but my head is swollen.”

The Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) raised a red flag yesterday when the ministry had stamped serial numbers and the words “this Al-Kitab Berita Baik is only for Christians only” on the 5,100 bibles held in Port Klang.

According to an earlier agreement in 2005, the ministry had agreed to allow the import of the bibles provided that Christians themselves include a sign of the cross and the words “Penerbitan Kristian” (Christian publication) on the covers.

BSM claims that the stamps had defaced the holy book.

Meanwhile, Home Ministry secretary-general, Mahmood Adam, said it was standard practice to stamp serial numbers even on the Quran so the issue of the serial number is a “small matter”.

Christian Federation rejects seized bibles

The joy over the release turned to grief and mourning when it emerged they had been stamped with serial numbers and government seals.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Christians today rejected the return of some of the 35,000 bibles seized in a dispute over the use of the word “Allah” by non-Muslims, saying they had been “desecrated.”

The government had said the using “Allah” as a translation for “God” in the Malay-language Bibles could cause confusion and encourage conversion, which is illegal for the country’s majority Muslim Malays.

On Tuesday it announced it would release the holy books, which were seized by custom officials at two major ports over the last two years.

But Christian Federation of Malaysia chairman Bishop Ng Moon Hing said the joy over the release turned to “grief and mourning” when it emerged they had been stamped with serial numbers and government seals.

“Each copy has to be stamped with a serial number, the official seal of the relevant department…and the words ‘by order of the Minister of Home Affairs,’” he said in a statement.

Ng said that some of the bibles, all of which use the word “Allah”, had already been stamped without the agreement of the community, which was tantamount to “desecration of the bible.”

“This means that the (Malay-language) bible is now treated as a restricted item, and the Word of God has been made subject to the control of man,” Ng added.

“This is wholly offensive to Christians. Any person who respects the Holy Scriptures of any religion would be appalled by this action.”

Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein defended the policy, saying that bibles had been stamped under previous administrations.

“There was no intention to deface the bible… we will not entertain this kind of talk,” he told reporters in Parliament today.

The “Allah” row is one of a string of religious disputes that have erupted in recent years, straining relations between majority Malays and minorities who fear the country is being “Islamised”.

Malaysia’s Christians, who make up nine percent of the population and many from indigenous groups in Borneo who speak the national language Malay, say they have used the word without incident for centuries.

- AFP

Interlok panellists missing wood for trees

Muhyiddin says while the big issue is close to being resolved, the Indian reps on the Interlok panel are fixated with the smaller ones.

KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has downplayed the walkout staged by three Indian members on the independent panel, tasked with amending the controversial Interlok novel.

Speaking to reporters in Parliament, Muhyiddin, who is also the education minister, said MIC president G Palanivel was taking care of the matter.

“I was informed by Palanivel… and he has informed them that they must remain (on the panel). He will handle the three,” said the deputy prime minister.

It was reported that the three panellists were upset that Muhyiddin had rejected all the 100 amendments suggested.

However, Muhyiddin explained that the suggested amendments were “minute” and did not concern the main issue, which was the offensive terms.

“For example, they want the letter ‘T’ referring to ‘Tuhan’ to be changed to upper case. If (the amendments) have nothing to do with the main issue, then why bring it up?” he said.

No reason to revoke the ‘good’ novel
Muhyddin said that the main issue, which revolved around the word “pariah”, was close to being resolved but there were still certain details which needed to be ironed out.

“The main issue appears to have been solved, the pariah issue… but that will take some time,” he said, adding that there was no need to revoke the book.

“That question (revoking the book) does not arise; we need to just correct the contentious issues. To us there is no problem, the novel is a good novel,” he said.

Asked how long the panel would take to deliberate on the changes, Muhyddin said that it could take some time due to the sensitivity of the matter.

“We want to put a full stop to this (controversy),” he stressed.

Muhyddin also dismissed the opposition’s claim that the Interlok issue had caused the Indian community to lose faith in him.

Referring to DAP MP Charles Santiago, the deputy prime minister said: “He is not resolving the matter, he is merely stirring it up.”

When contacted, one of the three Indian panellist Uthaya Sankar SB said he heard media reports that Muhyiddin wanted to meet all three Indian panellists.

“However we haven’t received any invitations yet,” he said.

Remove Interlok, remove Muhyiddin

In a collective stand, Pakatan MPs call for the revocation of the controversial book and for Najib to replace his deputy in the deliberation process.

KUALA LUMPUR: Pakatan Rakyat MPs today made a collective stand, calling for the immediate withdrawal of the Interlok novel.

They also wanted Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to be removed from the deliberation process based on the three Indian representatives quitting the independent panel, tasked with amending the book.

“Muhyiddin should be taken out and (Prime Minister) Najib (Tun Razak) should replace him,” DAP MP Charles Santiago told reporters in Parliament.

PKR MP Johari Abdul urged the government to take heed of the people’s voice. “If the people say it is sensitive, accept it lah.”

Johari also took a swipe at the government’s decision to edit the book after a firestorm of protest, especially from the Indian community.

The book, penned by national laureate Abdullah Hussain, courted controversy when it was introduced as a component for the Malay literature subject for Form Five students this year.

“This is the work of a national laureate, how are you going to edit the gist of the work (without violating the author’s right)?” asked the PKR MP.

DAP’s Teluk Intan MP M Manogaran said the matter must be resolved quickly as the students would sit for their SPM examination in November.

He urged the government to apologise and immediately retract the book from the syllabus.

The press conference was also attended by MP Dzulkefly Ahmad (PAS-Kuala Selangor), M Kulasegaran (DAP-Ipoh Barat) and R Sivarasa (PKR-Subang).

The three panellists had walked out complaining that 100 suggested amendments were shot down, but Muhyiddin, who is also education minister, said this was because it concerned “minute” details.

Government will ignore lawyers’ protest, says Nazri

The Malaysian Insider
by Shannon Teoh 

KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 — Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz responded to the Malaysian Bar Council’s court boycott threat by saying the government will simply ignore it.

The lawyers are mulling the boycott to protest against Chief Justice Tun Zaki Azmi’s key performance indicators (KPIs).  “They are free to do what they want to do but they will be held responsible for their own actions,” the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department said of a proposed boycott of court proceedings by the Bar Council.

“Their resolution has no significance outside their meetings. They are free to protest and we are free to ignore them,” the de facto law minister added.

The Malaysian Insider reported today that the Bar Council has been given the mandate by lawyers to consider a boycott of the courts or to organise a march to protest against the KPIs that it says has resulted in judges insisting on their appearance in different courts because of pressure to clear cases from the KPIs.

In its annual general meeting last weekend, the Bar passed a no-confidence resolution against Zaki and gave council members the power to decide on “appropriate steps to protest.”

Criminal lawyers and police investigating officers approached by The Malaysian Insider have also confirmed that KPIs are wreaking havoc on the criminal justice system.

This is because police investigating officers are required to appear as prosecution witnesses, but their involvement in different cases at the same time is compounded by the insistence of various judges for them to turn up in different courts at the same time.

Lawyers were “crying out” as they were not being given enough time to interview witnesses, prepare written submissions or draft appeals due to the current “compacted” nature of court proceedings, he said.

However, Nazri said today that the Bar was wrong to generalise and should instead file official complaints on specific judges with the chief justice.

At last weekend’s Bar AGM, newly-elected Bar Council president Lim Chee Wee told reporters that despite talks with Zaki, judges and judicial officers still “misbehaved” in order to meet the KPI requirements, which in turn affected the administration of justice.

Lim had said the courts sometimes brought forward hearing dates without counsel’s consent, rushed to close cases and failed to give enough time for lawyers to prepare a defence in criminal trials involving serious offences.

Datuk GP Now Firmly In MIC Driver's Seat

KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 (Bernama) -- Datuk G. Palanivel, who marks his first 100 days as MIC president on Thursday, has been on overdrive mode to make his leadership more people-centric, with emphasis on retraining and empowering the Indian community.

He is also in a race to put the community as quickly as possible to become the "masters of their own destiny".

By getting them to be more aware of what they need to do, it is hoped that by then the party will run like a well-oiled maintenance-free engine, all systems tweaked to work in harmonious tandem and with minimum supervision.

But while that destination is still a long, long way away, party stalwarts are confident that Palanivel will continue to be firmly in the driver's seat, an imagery that sits well with his new nickname, "Datuk GP".

Already, Datuk GP has created a record of sorts on the route he has already completed in the short space of time since he entered in what observers say is his race against time.

Why the need to race against time?

He recently told a meeting of Indian NGOs that "the dependency group among some quarters of the Indian community is growing and is a worrying trend".

"We must now quickly create opportunities for them so that they can become resilient and independent. They must be helped to stand on their own feet. They should not be a liability for themselves and to the society".

"But we will get there", said a party member, citing the success of the newly-opened MIC Service Centre at the MIC Headquarters.

Replicated after the service centre at his former Deputy Minister's post in the former Cabinet which successfully handled thousands of cases, the MIC Service Centre has few parallels in terms of organisational structure, scope of operation, transparency and unity of purpose.

Situated on the ground floor, the centre is laid out in neat rows where party volunteers with laptops meet ordinary people with problems. These problems range from matters related to Socso, EPF, Dewan Bandaraya services, housing needs, birth and citizenship certificates, education counseling, micro financing, and the full range of social services.

In each case, individual data is captured, problems identified and followed through until final closure.

But that's not all. In one section of the hall are officers from Dewan Bandaraya, and other government departments who provide immediate advice, and solutions. And they are there every Sunday, which is their normal rest day for them.

Similar centres are in operation in Seremban, Ipoh and Penang.

Because he has put the systems in place, it runs well, save the occasional and usual start-up hiccups. Party leaders, including those from Wanita MIC and Youth, who come to volunteer, are the backbone of the service centres, giving up their weekend with their families.

Datuk GP has also taken over Yayasan Strategic Sosial and is in the process of revamping it and will organise an outreach programme to service the clients.

He has put in place other measures, systems and people so that the party can somewhat run on auto pilot in several other areas as well. He encourages this auto pilot perception because this is a tried and tested way to create and nurture self-reliance.

One can only fault him for being still somewhat media-shy, despite his media background some years back, thus explaining his reticence to being over exposed on the electronic and print media.

Party insiders, who are aware of Datuk GP's working style, say the president believes in sharing and delegating responsibilities to senior party leaders as well as to grassroots workers so that they are able to exercise leadership qualities.

He believes that party power and responsibilities must be vested in the leadership team, not in the party president alone.

While he shuns publicity for himself ("my record speaks for myself", he has been known to say many times), his grip and influence on the party is strong. He holds monthly meetings with state party chairmen, holds regular brainstorming sessions with party members and non-members, sets KPIs, meets young professionals and NGO leaders, and continues to engage with members and leaders of Malaysian Indians of different language and religious denominations.

Valuable data and views gathered from these meetings are collated, categorised and analysed for the purpose of working out a long-term blueprint for the party.

To assist him in this task, he has surrounded himself with young academics and technocrats as well as consistent, persistent, well-trained and well-prepared party cadres ready to do the president's bidding at a moment's notice.

It was a coup-de-grace of sorts when he brought back to the fold people like S. Murugesan as party secretary-general and reinstating Barat Maniam, a party veteran from the Petaling Jaya Selatan division.

Among the visible markers of his 100 days in the MIC hot seat are the solid MIC votes he managed to deliver during the recent by-elections. While the inclusive policies of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak were key, the quiet confidence with which Datuk GP operated and managed to get his message across were crucial in the way he had convinced and influenced Indian voters to back Barisan Nasional.

His Community Builders Programme, which has focused on pre-school or early childhood education for many years now, has got a new shot in the arm with help from the Implementation and Co-ordination Unit (ICU) in the Prime Minister's Department. The programme is committed to providing facilities for children who would otherwise have been deprived of early education opportunities.

The Teach Malaysia programme, an initiative to upgrade performance of school going children in primary and secondary schools, and which is now in its final gestation period, will see more details to be announced soon.

At a recent session with some journalists from the Tamil language media, Datuk GP said he would like to see the party eventually become an organ to undertake studies and formulate policies, rather than rely heavily on being just a delivery channel. He also wants the party to be weaned away from its culture of aid-seeking to aid-giving.

He said: "There are some segments of the Indian community who have made it on their own, without help from the government. We want them to share their success stories with others to motivate them. We are now looking for these kinds of people who have risen from rags to riches and who are now willing to transfer their knowledge and share their experience to leave behind a legacy of self-reliance."

However fast he wants to fulfill his plans for the party and Indian community, he still faces a gargantuan task.

On the positive side, he possesses the energy and temperament to stay the course to help establish an inclusive, united, self-reliant Indian community within a united Malaysia.

What are his plans for the MIC? He says: "MIC's long-term plans are to redefine all its objectives to stay relevant to its members, to Barisan Nasional and the nation".

With Datuk GP now at the helm, MIC appears to be on the right track. Whether it can regain its past glory remains to be seen. This will depend on how he stays firmly in his driver's seat to drive the party forward.

Japan activists had warned of risks

Activists in Japan had warned about the risks posed by the country’s nuclear power plants – and they are now calling for more information on the ground and a larger evacuation zone.

Aileen Mioko Smith of Green Action Japan - Photo credit: greenpeace.org

This interview from Democracy Now a couple of days ago:

SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: We go right now to Aileen Mioko Smith. She’s the director of Kyoto-based Green Action. She’s on the board of Greenpeace International. She’s joining us from San Francisco right now, one of Japan’s leading voices challenging nuclear power.
Welcome to Democracy Now!
AILEEN MIOKO SMITH: Thank you very much.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Can you tell us what you understand is happening right now in Japan in terms of the evacuation?
AILEEN MIOKO SMITH: Yes. By the way, I’m not a board member of Greenpeace International. I’m working with Green Action in Kyoto, Japan.
Right now, the evacuation is underway, and we’re very concerned about the people around the plants. I think that what we’re suffering very much right now in Japan is that the government only said a evacuation area within 10 kilometers, or six miles, was necessary. So, there’s nothing on the books about any evacuation to be undertaken beyond that limit. And I think that we are right now suffering from the fact that nothing was on the books to evacuate people beyond that area. I agree with Arnie Gundersen, what he just said, that evacuations should be a larger area right now. Thirty kilometers is not enough. That’s 18 miles. It’s not sufficient. It should be going on beyond that right now, so that people can be prepared for wider areas of radiation contamination.
We’re very concerned with the complete lack of environmental monitoring around the region where people are evacuated and where people need to be evacuating even further. And that was a concern of Japanese citizens way back. This plant, from the very start, even before it was built, citizens said that the land was not proper for building a nuclear power plant. There was opposition. There were lawsuits. And of all—in all the areas, 54 nuclear power plants in Japan, every area, citizens have fought siting, because of seismic concerns. So this is very much a man-made problem. People may think it’s a combination of man-made and human—natural disaster, but no plant should have been here in the first place.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Japan’s policy right now is to build eight more nuclear plants. What do you understand is happening with that right now?
AILEEN MIOKO SMITH: Well, right now, just the day before this accident happened, people were—citizens who had been opposing a plant site for 30 years down in Yamaguchi Prefecture, southwest of Osaka, were actually virtually in hand-to-hand combat with people who—with the utility who was coming in and trying to start a landfill in order to build a plant. Of the eight sites, they’re still supposed to be under construction and be built, but obviously that situation would change as of this week.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: And the information coming right now from the Japanese government, very little information, what do you understand they’re saying or they’re not saying?
AILEEN MIOKO SMITH: Well, I think that there are three things. One is that they themselves don’t really know what’s going on. But the other is, I think that they are trying to protect the public. I think it’s very important not to panic people, so the tone, which is very calm, is good and should remain that way. But they should be informing the public exactly all the things that they know and exactly all the things—admit to all the things that they don’t know. And I don’t think that they’re informing the public. I feel like—we really feel that the government is patronizing of the citizens. You can’t protect the people from reality. The reality is that the situation is very serious, and emissions could become much greater.
And I think that the public really needs to be warned that, carefully, and that evacuations should be leading the situation, not like the situation is really bad and then you delay and delay but then you evacuate a little bit. Actually, what you should be doing is initially start the evacuation and be quite proactive about it, and evacuate ahead of the problem versus evacuating as a result of things that have happened. And that’s not happening right now. So I think that they have to be very quick right now in initiating calm evacuation of a larger area.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: I want to turn back to Arnie Gundersen for a moment now, joining us from Burlington, Vermont. What is the significance of the removal of 750 workers from the nuclear plant? How will this affect the effort to prevent a meltdown?
ARNIE GUNDERSEN: It’s got to make the efforts worse. You know, these 750 people that are being evacuated were doing critical work. They weren’t sweeping floors and washing windows; they were doing critical work. So, when the staff, basically, is cut—90 percent of the staff is told, “You have to leave the site”—that’s an indication that a lot of critical work isn’t getting done. I really think it’s also—it’s an indication that management at the site has thrown in the towel and is going to let this thing run its course without any more human intervention. What that means is that—I’m particularly concerned about another aftershock, especially if an aftershock—on the weak Unit 2 containment, which already apparently has failed, and an aftershock would make it worse. The other thing that especially concerns me is that a large group of personnel were fighting the fire in the fuel pool on Unit 4, and again, you can’t have 60 people on a six-unit site and expect that anything gets done.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: There was the disaster at Three Mile Island, the Chernobyl disaster. This is a disasters of a different sort. There’s been three explosions. Are we in unchartered territory right now?
ARNIE GUNDERSEN: This is certainly right now bumping up against the magnitude of Chernobyl. It’s clearly passed what happened at Three Mile Island. And it’s not clear that this situation may not get worse, not better. You know, Chernobyl was one reactor. There are three in either partial meltdown or meltdown. And then the other one has a fuel pool fire. And I understand this morning that the temperatures in the other two fuel pools are also increasing. So, you know, I’ve said before that this could easily become Chernobyl on steroids. It’s not there yet, but given that the essential personnel have been evacuated, it could easily get there within 24 hours.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: And the issue of plutonium, Arnie Gundersen?
ARNIE GUNDERSEN: Yeah, you know, plutonium is named after Pluto, the god of Hell. And that’s an indication that it’s a pretty nasty element. It’s in all these reactors. Unit Three was using what’s called mixed oxide fuel. So Unit Three had more plutonium than the other units. But all of these reactor fuel pools and the nuclear reactors themselves have plutonium in them.
When plutonium volatilizes, when it gets hot and turns to a vapor, it can be breathed in. And, of course, it’s very—it can cause cancer in lungs very, very easily. And the containments, which are designed to contain this plutonium, are—have failed, at least in Unit Two. I believe in Unit One and Three, they are leaking, but they probably haven’t failed. So, it is likely that volatile plutonium is being released right now.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Finally, Arnie Gundersen, what is most important for people to understand as they follow the news in these coming days?
ARNIE GUNDERSEN: I guess if I were in Japan, I would at least get the children away from the reactor, because their bodies are growing faster and their cells are more susceptible to radiation damage. I would go out to 50 kilometers and at least get the children away from those reactors.
You know, Japan is a long way from the U.S. There’s 5,000 miles of ocean for that plume to disperse over. So, it’s a little bit too early to determine what the health effects are on the United States. But it’s clear to me we will detect it. Within about five to seven days, the plume will hit the West Coast, and we’ll begin to detect the radiation. Exactly what the magnitude of the radiation is, as your previous caller said, there’s not any good environmental monitoring. There’s no monitoring in the plant, because, one, there’s no people, and, two, the instruments have blown up. So, we just simply don’t know how much radiation is getting out. I think the numbers we’re seeing now are on the low side, and they don’t really represent the true magnitude of what’s already happening.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: I’d like to end with Aileen Mioko Smith. You’ve been in touch with many people in Japan. Talk about the recovery efforts right now—in the north, there’s bodies washing ashore, there’s millions without food or power—as this nuclear crisis is unfolding.
AILEEN MIOKO SMITH: Yes, that’s correct. All the people that we know in Fukushima and Miyagi, we haven’t heard from them. In, finally, the last day and a half, we received, like, a phone call, where it’s just an instant. You can hear a voice for a split second, and you know that the person is alive.
These are all people who were fighting and concerned about the seismic safety of the Fukushima plants. Actually, the last two years, there was a review of all the seismic situation at the nuclear power plants, whether the land was safe and the facility, the nuclear power plant, was strong enough to withstand quakes. And just the last few months, the last few weeks, citizens had pointed out that TEPCO’s analysis was insufficient, and the government should not approve TEPCO’s analysis, but the government approved it. And these are the citizens that are now—I don’t know, some of them, if they’re alive or not.
The areas, the towns—we know people in all those towns. And you look at the photograph of the town, and it’s just completely devastated. I just completely believe that we would hear from all of them, and it was just a matter of time of hearing from them, but when you look at their towns, you know, you’re not sure, if you haven’t heard from them yet, whether they’re alive. So, they can’t—they can’t fight this situation now at the plant. All the people who were the spokespeople, who knew about the problems with the plant and the land there and the problems, they are all evacuated, or I don’t know if they’ve survived. And here we are—we’re the other spokespeople that lived further away, knew them, and are trying to speak on their behalf. And that’s where it is.
I was at the Fukushima plant last August with Kevin Kamps from Beyond Nuclear, based in Washington, D.C. We were there to warn about the dangers of spent nuclear fuel. I remember standing there with one of the people in Fukushima and looking down on the Daiichi plant on one side and the Daini plant on the other, and we took a photograph there, the three of us. And we met with the mayor of Futaba town, and also we were with—Kumano town, and also we went to Futaba town. These are two villages that are now completely evacuated.
We had independent scientists go in there three days ago, and they went in there to monitor. These are independent journalists that went with monitors to the actual towns that were evacuated. And all their radiation monitors went off. You could—they walked into the hospital of the town, and you could see that the evacuation was really rushed. They said that beds were turned over. Equipment, tubes for injections and everything was scattered all over the place. It was obvious people had left in a big hurry from the hospital. And when they went to the town hall, it was completely evacuated, and the levels just went off. So, they’re right now monitoring.
This person—as I was coming here to the studio, he was monitoring 50 kilometers, 30 kilometers from the plant and getting readings and putting it on the blog. I mean, this is the kind of information the government should be telling the people, but they don’t have the monitoring, because beyond 10 kilometers, radiation wasn’t supposed to leave. Every site in Japan, citizens have said, “Look, why do you say radiation stops immediately at 10 kilometers?” You know, it doesn’t, and you have to have a plan for if the radiation goes beyond 10. And the government, the national government, refuses to do this, and therefore, the prefectures didn’t get a plan. We’ve been to our prefecture over and over again about this.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: Well, we’ll continue to—
AILEEN MIOKO SMITH: One of the problems that we have is that—yeah, we have plans for earthquake—
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: We’re going to continue to follow this story over the coming days. Aileen Mioko Smith, we have to leave it there.
AILEEN MIOKO SMITH: OK.
SHARIF ABDEL KOUDDOUS: We’re going to continue to cover this story very closely in the coming days. Aileen Mioko Smith is the director of the Kyoto-based Green Action, on of Japan’s leading voices challenging the production, commerce and transport of nuclear material. And thank you very much to Arnie Gundersen, a nuclear engineer who’s coordinated projects at 70 nuclear power plants around the country.

PAS moots Anti-Racism Act

(Harakah Daily) - PAS has proposed the introduction of an 'Anti-Racism Act' to counter racism and other similar agenda.

Parit Buntar member of parliament Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa said racism has been advocated by certain quarters recently for various motives, including to maintain political power.

“We should start by introducing the Anti-Racism Act because this act can help keep tab on those who have narrow racist agenda,” he told parliament during a debate on the royal address.

Mujahid, who is advisor to PAS Supporters Congress, pointed out that race relation in Malaysia should have improved after half-a-century of independence.

“What saddens us is that after 50 years of independence, there are still certain quarters who come out with their narrow racist politics, in fact using the racist politics as to be in power,” he lamented.

He said that there were even those who resort to racism in defining patriotism.

“To the extent that patriotism is treated like an exclusive ownership for a section of Malaysians, while those whose opinions differ from them are labeled unpatriotic,” he added, , reminding that the country belonged to all citizens regardless of race.

'Interlok' panel 'withdrawal' now in question

The withdrawal of three members from the government-established panel to review the Interlok novel yesterday is now in question.

According to the panel chief, Prof Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, the panel had already completed its duties on March 4.

“Based on the terms of reference for the independent panel, the panel completed its duties after agreeing to submit its proposals to the (education) minister,” said Shamsul Amri in a text message to Malaysiakini.

The proposals were submitted to Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on March 8, said Shamsul Amri, who is also a Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) lecturer.

Shamsul Amri also clarified that he did not attend the panel's meeting with Muhyiddin in Parliament house yesterday as he is currently overseas.

During the meeting, three representatives of the Indian community withdrew from the eight-member panel.

They claim that the panel had reneged on their earlier consensus to make about 100 amendments to the novel, which is used in secondary school as a Malay literature text.

Critics claim that the novel had portrayed the Indian community in negative light. Some amendments were also proposed concerning the portrayal of the Malay and Chinese communities.

Shamsul Amri refused to comment on the consensus that was arrived at by the panel, but instead said that a copy of the proposals can be obtained from those who had withdrawn from the panel.

“Every panel member has a copy,” he said.

'Maximum' effort at Japan's stricken plant

The Japanese head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, has denied that the situation at an earthquake-damaged nuclear plant is out of control.

"It is not the time to say things are out of control," Yukiya Amano told a news conference. "The operators are doing the maximum to restore the safety of the reactor.

Yukiya Amano was responding to comments by Guenther Oettinger, the EU energy chief, suggesting that efforts to contain the crisis at the Fukushima plant had failed after efforts to cool a reactor by dumping water on it from a helicopter were abandoned.

The plant has been hit by a series of explosions since Friday's quake knocked out reactor cooling systems.

"In the coming hours there could be further catastrophic events which could pose a threat to the lives of people on the island," Oettinger told a European Parliament committee.

There was hope early on Thursday that a newly built power line that could restore electricity at the plant would soon be ready. If the plant's electricity-powered pumps can be restarted, water could be pumped to the damaged reactors to cool them.

Naoki Tsunoda, a spokesman for Tokyo Electric Power Company, said officials planned to try the line as soon as possible, but could not say when, the AP news agency reported.

Radiation levels

Surging radiation levels forced Japan to order emergency workers at the crippled nuclear plant to be briefly moved to a bunker, as reported in the local media, in the desperate battle to cool the overheating reactors.

Al Jazeera's Harry Fawcett said workers struggling to avert a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear complex were allowed to return to the facility later.

"The 70 workers who were taken into that protective bunker were able to go back and restart operations crucial to keeping this entire plant cool," he said.

"They have been pumping sea water into the reactors; the ones that were active before the earthquake and the ones which were just housing spent fuel."

Yukio Edano, the Japanese chief cabinet secretary, said the workers dousing the reactors in a frantic effort to cool them needed to be taken to safety after an explosion a day earlier in the Unit 4 reactor led to a surge in radiation.

The blast is thought to have damaged the reactor's suppression chamber, a water-filled pipe outside the nuclear core that is part of the emergency cooling system.

Hajimi Motujuku, a spokesman for the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company, said the outer housing of the containment vessel at Unit 4 was in flames on Wednesday.

The level of radiation at the plant surged to 1,000 millisieverts early on Wednesday before coming down to 800-600 millisieverts.

'Lethal doses'

But Gregory Jaczko, head of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, said Wednesday that emergency workers may have been exposed to "lethal doses" of radiation.

"It would be very difficult for emergency workers to get near the reactors. The doses they could experience would potentially be lethal doses in a very short period of time," told a House subcommittee.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from a 20 km zone around the plant, while those within 30 km of the plant have been told to stay indoors because of the risk from heightened radiation levels.

The official death toll from Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami rose to 4,340 on Wednesday although thousands of people are still missing and officials say at least 10,000 have likely been killed.

Japanese Emperor Akihito also gave a rare televised address to the nation describing the catastrophe as being of an "unprecedented scale".

Many governments have urged their citizens to leave Tokyo and earthquake-affected areas amid concerns Japan's capital could be exposed to dangerous levels of radiation if the situation worsens.

Great Britain said Britons in Tokyo should leave because of the "evolving situation at the Fukushima nuclear facility". Australia, France and Germany have also advised their citizens to leave Tokyo.

The US said Americans living within 80 km of the plant should leave the area or take shelter indoors.

Tokyo reported slightly elevated radiation levels on Tuesday, but officials said the increase was too small to threaten the 39 million people in and around the capital.

Businesses have issued similar travel advisories telling people to consider moving away from disaster areas if they have no reason to be there.

Meanwhile US forces in Japan have been told to stay at least 80 km from the crippled Fukushima complex without special authorisation.

Reuters news agency, citing the US military, said potassium iodide tablets have been given to some air crews ahead of missions as a precaution against radiation, though no personnel in Japan are showing signs of radiation poisoning.

Rising toll

Authorities are staring at a staggering death toll following last week's twin disasters which decimated Japan's northeastern coastline.

The devastation in the tsunami-hit areas such as the small fishing town of Minamisanriku have been huge, with the northeastern settlement missing about half of its 17,000 people.

"Ten of my relatives are missing. I haven't been able to get in contact with them," 54-year-old Minamisanriku resident Tomeko Sato, who lost her house in the disaster, told AFP news agency.

"I was very surprised by the power of the tsunami... next time, I will live on the hill and hope it never happens again."

Andrew Thomas, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Osaka, Japan, said the trouble with the tsunami is that many of those people may never be found having been washed out to sea. He also said the weather had taken a turn for the worst for any survivors."

Another of our correspondents in the north said apart from a few isolated incidents of rescue on Tuesday, the large amount of work rescuers do is recovering bodies and looking after those who have been displaced.

Millions in Japan have been left without water, electricity, fuel or enough food. Hundreds of thousands more are homeless, stoically coping with snow and freezing rain in the northeast.

Source:Al Jazeera and agencies

Residents council seeks referendum on Kampung Baru fate

The Malay enclave lies almost within the shadow of the Petronas Twin Towers. — All pictures by Choo Choy May

KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 — The main Kampung Baru residents council wants a referendum to determine if landowners agree with Putrajaya’s redevelopment plans for the Malay settlement just a stone’s throw from the world’s tallest twin towers.
 
Kampung Baru Malay Agricultural Settlement Administrative Board (MAS) honorary secretary Shamsuri Suradi said such a poll was needed if the government “really wanted to know” the type of development residents here want.

He told The Malaysian Insider that the Election Commission (EC) was ideal to carry out the task as they were seen as neutral by both Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat (PR).
“They have authority to do all these elections. It (referendum) is sort of like an election, only the method is different,” he added.

Shamsuri suggested a spokesman be appointed for every lot to convey the decision of co-owners after discussing it among themselves.

Residents have begun flying banners to protest the planned redevelopment.

He said this was to prevent any open bickering between siblings who might support opposing political parties.
 
The referendum proposal comes on the heels of a new bill to regulate development in the 111-year-old settlement in the capital city, where it is hemmed in by newer buildings and towers built over the last two decades. Parliament is expected to debate the bill by June.

Most of the land in the settlement is under multiple ownership due to Islamic inheritance laws and cost a fraction of the land across the Klang River, where the 88-storey Petronas Twin Towers dominate the city skyline.
There are more than 4,000 Kampung Baru landowners spread across seven villages in the settlement measuring 90.2 hectares.

An average of five co-owners share each lot now, although some lots have many more.

Shamsuri, however, said a referendum would not be easy and would likely take up to a year to complete.

He noted that Titiwangsa MP Dr Lo’ Lo’ Ghazali was trying to canvass the area for opinions now, but pointed out the difficulties the PAS lawmaker would face as she had not approached MAS for assistance.

MAS keeps records of landowners in Kampung Baru dating all the way back to the settlement’s inception in 1900 that are crucial to such an endeavour.

Masjed Jamek will undergo a RM20 million renovation.

“They can do it but it’s not an easy task, let’s put it that way,” Shamsuri said.

 
However, he was quick to point out that Lo’ Lo’ only got involved due to the government’s failure to engage with residents here from the start.

Shamsuri said the government should instead allow residents to choose from a few development options rather than build “castles in the air”.

Kampung Baru lies within the Titiwangsa federal constituency, which has always been an Umno fortress but fell to PAS in Election 2008.

PR has been quick to capitalise on the growing anger of residents unhappy with the Najib administration’s plans to develop the area into an icon of Malay ownership in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.

Several houseowners have already put up banners opposing the new law or plans to redevelop the settlement, which has an LRT station and is popular among tourists and city residents as a street cuisine spot.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak kick-started the redevelopment of Kampung Baru by getting a RM20 million allocation recently to renovate the iconic Masjid Jamek in the middle of the settlement.

What drive the authorities up the wall

These are interesting times that we live in. The 30,000 bibles in Malay print, held up at Kuching Port since Jan 11, will be released by the home ministry pending the fulfilment of two conditions. Another 5,100 bibles seized at Port Klang will not be released unlike those at Kuching.

This smacks of double standard, which will not hold up in any court of law. Yet the Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail thinks that the decision will not prejudice a pending case involving The Herald at the Court of Appeal. Obviously, the AG knows something that others don’t since there’s little sign that the appeal will ever be heard.

De facto Law Minister Nazri Aziz opines that the release of the bible in Kuching is not sub judice as there are no enactments in Sabah and Sarawak against the bible being in Malay print.

The first condition for Kuching is that the importer labouriously stamps each copy of the bible with the words “For Christians Only”. He should perhaps consider sub-contracting the job to the home ministry where the officials have been known to tar-black offending lines and passages in numerous publications. The forbidden fruit surely now tastes sweeter.

The other condition is that each copy should carry a serial number. Serial numbers would probably make it easier to produce evidence in court should any Muslim be found with a copy of the bible. Also, the Customs at the airports and seaports will now be able to prevent the bibles from being smuggled into Peninsular Malaysia where the holy book continues to be banned in Malay print.

A Malaysian from Sabah and Sarawak would have to leave his bible behind if he wants to visit Peninsular Malaysia. Otherwise, if the Customs misses his bible, he could face an uncertain fate for running foul of some law or fatwa yet to come.

Two thousand years ago, the Roman Empire had a similar attitude towards Christianity. The emperors routinely fed Christians to the lions at the Coliseum for the amusement of its citizens. In the end, Rome like the Greeks ditched its galaxy of Gods and Goddesses, embraced Christianity and ceded the Vatican as the Holy See and seat of the Holy Roman Catholic Church.

Tough stand

The home ministry cannot throw the book at Hindus, for example, found in possession of the Al-Kitab, Berita Baik. “For Christians Only”, getting into semantics, is therefore an unreasonable condition. The alternative would be to stamp “Not for Muslims” or “For non-Muslims only”. The second comes across as if the home ministry is proselytising. The first alternative is definitely a no-no considering, again, that “the forbidden fruit tastes sweeter”.

The tough stand taken by the Sarawak government probably had something to do with the speedy release of the bibles. No doubt the imminent state election figured in the equation. In any case, the Sarawak government needs rare praise. It did not cite “Muslim sensitivities”, unlike in Peninsular Malaysia, and do nothing about getting the bibles released.

Christians in Sabah and Sarawak have no choice but to use the Malay bible since they are more comfortable in that language than English. Also, there’s no bible available in the local languages.

Muslim-majority Indonesia must be credited as well for bringing out the bible in Malay translation.

It was not easy to translate the bible from Greek into other languages. Thousands of experts have to be employed to work on a translation. It takes maybe 25 years or more before the Vatican approves a translation.

It’s an over-simplification to say that the home ministry is bent on curtailing the rights of the Christians although it does look that way.

The real issue is that the home ministry lives in constant fear that Muslims will read the “Al-Kitab, Berita Baik” and decide that “this is the original stuff”. God in the bible in Malay print is Allah, the one word that drives the ministry up the wall.

After all, the Quran itself is based almost wholly on the bible plus the years of the Prophet Muhammad. If the bible had been available in Arabic instead of Greek after Christ, it’s anyone’s guess whether there would have been a Quran or Islam today.

Tolerant religion

It would be naïve to think that many Muslims will not read the “Al-Kitab, Berita Baik”. If their faith in Islam is shaken by their reading of the bible, they will surely abandon the Ummah. Many Muslims already think that Christianity is a more tolerant religion than Islam and one that allows for the practice of local language, culture, customs and traditions. Besides, many Muslims themselves don’t know much about their own faith.

Those who are lost will have to seek, as the bible advises, “and they shall find”; “knock and the doors shall be opened to them” and “ask and they shall receive”. This is the favourite portion of the bible with born-again Christians who credit their faith for their material success in life.

The bible, among other sources, also inspired the all-time best seller The Secret by Rhonda Byrne and subsequently, The Power.

Again, it’s from the bible that we find that “there are those who see and don’t see’, hear and don’t hear”.

Those who are in law should find the bible particularly interesting and useful. Western civilisation, including the law, is based on the Judeo-Christian tradition. However, secular law is always several steps behind compared with religion, moral studies, ethics and civics. The more one reads up on these subjects, the less that one will be convinced by the ability of existing law to render true justice and equality.

Patently, the home ministry should re-think its pre-occupation with the bible in Malay print and its fixation with the term Allah. God has 99 attributes, no names, and Allah is just one of them. Many Muslims, especially in Sabah and Sarawak, are rightly proud that the Christians recognise Allah – he who has the Godhood which is the power to create the entities – as the main attribute of God. The People of the Book – the bible, the Quran and the Jewish holy books – are members of a common faith divided initially by language and subsequently by ignorance.

If the pope can declare in recent days after 2,000 years that the Jews were not responsible for the death of Jesus Christ, the Muslims can come around to the Catholic view that they are members of a protestant branch of Christianity like the Anglicans and others. This would pave the way for Muslims to be represented at the Ecumenical Council of Churches and help bridge the divide between Islam and the West.

Respect people’s language of worship

Rakyat will doubt the government's sincerity in respecting religious freedom and the mode of worship, says consultative council

PETALING JAYA: The government should respect religious freedom and the language used for worship, said the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism.

Its president Thomas Phillips said the government’s announcement that it will release 35,000 Malay-language bibles being held at two ports, was no soccour as there was no reason for the authorities to hold back the scriptures in the first place.

“Religion is an individual’s personal matter. It is important we respect their rights to worship and the language they use for that
purpose,” said Phillips.

Yesterday, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Idris Jala announced that the government would release the Malay-language bibles impounded at the Klang and Kuching ports.

The scriptures were imported from Indonesia by the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) in March 2009.

Asked on suggestions how to avoid such incidents in the future, Phillips said it was better for everyone to put this episode behind and move forward.

“However, I hope that the government would not seize Malay-language bibles in the future.

“If not, Malaysians would doubt the government’s sincerity in protecting the people’s choice of worship,” he said.

Self-appointed, self-righteous custodians

If we want to look at it on the basis of elected then only Barisan Nasional has been elected. The rest, Pakatan Rakyat included, are just ‘dogs barking at a hill’, as the Malays would say. And that would make everyone else illegitimate, hypocritical and self-appointed.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin
'I have been following some of the threads and must admit that like you I also have misgivings about key aspects of the MCLM project.

Fundamentally, I think the screening of PR candidates smack of self-righteousness and is also hypocritical given that nobody elected MCLM in the first place and hence it is not accountable to anyone as much as we would like to think otherwise.

At the heart of this is the middle class composition of what most consider to be civil society, with little or no links with, let alone representation of, marginalised groups or workers.

Given these misgivings and my inability to commit time, I think it would only be fair for me to withdraw from MCLM and concentrate my efforts where I can in the ISA campaign. I would also like to remain unaffiliated politically although my sentiments are with the Opposition.'

**************************************************

That was the message that one committee member sent to another committee member but which was not copied but forwarded to me. So I suppose I am not meant to receive this resignation letter from that committee member.

Anyway, what he said is probably true. MCLM, like SABM (Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia), Friends of Pakatan Rakyat, MyOverseasVote, BERSIH (the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections), Aliran, Just, Suaram, AIM (Anti-ISA Movement), HINDRAF, and the many hundreds of movements, associations and organisations all over Malaysia do appear self-righteous.

As the committee member argued, who appointed them? Basically, they are all self-appointed. How many of the 27 million Malaysians signed a letter giving them the mandate to fight for all Malaysians?

BERSIH might think they are fighting for free and fair elections for all Malaysians. But then five million eligible Malaysian voters do not register to vote and three million registered voters do not vote. Then, four million voters voted Barisan Nasional.

This means less than four million of the 27 million Malaysians would like to see a better-run election. Can BERSIH claim to represent all Malaysians when only 14% of Malaysians want to see the opposition in power while the balance 86% did not indicate so?

Even then we are assuming that all 14% of Malaysians who voted opposition are not happy with the way the elections are managed.

To be honest, nobody elected MCLM just like nobody elected SABM (Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia), Friends of Pakatan Rakyat, MyOverseasVote, BERSIH (the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections), Aliran, Just, Suaram, AIM (Anti-ISA Movement), HINDRAF, and the many hundreds of movements, associations and organisations all over Malaysia.

If we want to look at it on the basis of elected then only Barisan Nasional has been elected. The rest, Pakatan Rakyat included, are just ‘dogs barking at a hill’, as the Malays would say. And that would make everyone else illegitimate, hypocritical and self-appointed.

How many movements, organisations or associations can claim a large membership? How many from the 27 million Malaysians have joined not just MCLM but also SABM (Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia), Friends of Pakatan Rakyat, MyOverseasVote, BERSIH (the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections), Aliran, Just, Suaram, AIM (Anti-ISA Movement), HINDRAF, and the many hundreds of movements, associations and organisations all over Malaysia?

If based on membership then everyone is self-righteous -- except maybe Pekida, which has a huge membership base. And Pekida supports the ISA because, according to Pekida, this is a law that can be used to uphold Malay rights and privileges. So, since Pekida has more members than all the other NGOs combined, in particular AIM, then the fight to uphold the ISA is more legitimate than the fight to abolish the ISA.

And Pekida has elections so its office bearers are voted into office while no one elected the AIM officer bearers since they do not hold elections. And Pekida represents the farmers, fishermen, estate labourers and all those marginalised groups and workers (who are registered members of Pekida) while AIM is a middle-class, bleeding heart movement.

Going by these standards, Pekida that fights to uphold the ISA is more legitimate than AIM that fights to abolish the ISA.

Longing For A Free Mind (Part 2 of 14)

By M. Bakri Musa


The Meaning of A Free Mind

[In Part 1, I discussed the importance of having leaders and followers with free minds – Hamka’s “berani menyebut yang aku yakin” – if we hope to aspire to Vision 2020. In this second part I assert that a free mind is Allah’s command; it is a necessary condition to being a believer.]

I will not wax philosophical on the meaning of a “free mind.” My co-panelist Dr. Azly Rahman is more than qualified to do that; he is also more erudite. The only formal exposure I had to philosophy was an introductory course in my freshman year; that hardly qualifies me. Instead I will share with you my understanding of the concept.

I am less concerned with the philosophical pondering on whether something can exist without being perceived (the tree falling in the deep forest) rather the more practical problem of the same reality being perceived differently, sometimes diametrically so. It is this that can so often leads to much strife and even greater misery.

One way to grasp the meaning of a word is to seek its synonyms and antonyms; likewise a concept. An open, liberated or flexible mind would mean the same as a free mind. Its opposite would be a closed or rigid mind. We have a saying, katak di bawah tempurung (frog underneath a coconut shell). That is an apt and beautiful metaphorical imagery of a closed mind, the very opposite of a free mind.

As Roger William’s song has it, we are “Born free! And life is worth living. Live free and beauty surrounds you.” A free mind is also Allah’s command, as attested to by many Koranic verses. Those who would enslave others are going against His command. And not having a free mind is to be enslaved.

Consider Allah’s command to Prophet Muhammad, s.a.w., as eloquently revealed in Surah Al-Rud (Thunder), “… Thy duty is no more than to deliver the message; the reckoning is Ours!” (13:40 – approximate translation). The prophet was to deliver the divine message but not to force it. This is reinforced in Surah Al-Rahf (The Cave, 18-29), “… Let him who will, believe; and whosoever will, let him disbelieve.”

A faith enforced is no faith. That is the essence of those verses. We accept Islam on our own free will, not because it is forced upon us. A free mind is thus a necessary condition to being a believer.

We have an obligation, to ourselves and to our Creator, not to be enslaved. Nor should we enslave others. Of course none of us would willingly submit ourselves to be so. The road to serfdom however, to borrow economist von Hayek’s phrase, is often laid with the best of intentions. We can be readily seduced into following the paved path that would lead to our enslavement.

We also have an obligation to those enslaved, to help topple their coconut shell. To do so effectively, we first must appreciate and understand the challenges and obstacles they face.

Let me clarify three related terms: brain, mind, and mindset. The brain is the jelly-like anatomical structure in our skull; it is part of our central nervous system (the other being the spinal cord). To use the language of the computer, the brain is the central processing unit of our nervous system. The brain is also the core of our consciousness.

The definition of the mind that is relevant here refers to the intellect and consciousness, our thoughts, perceptions, memory, emotions, will and imagination. The mind is also our thinking process, the rational aspects of our behavior. Thus behaving in an aberrant fashion is referred to as being out of one’s mind.

Mindset on the other hand refers to our outlook in or philosophy of life, the German’s Weltanschauung. It is the set of ideas, attitudes and assumptions that we as individuals or members of a group share of reality, or what we perceive to be reality. While the brain is something physical and can be touched, mind and mindset are but concepts or constructs, as the social scientists would put it.

All three are interrelated but the nature and level of the relationships are not well understood. Increasingly they point towards the molecular (specifically neurotransmitter) level, or what neuroscientists refer to as “neurotransmitter correlates of consciousness.”

Anatomists would be hard put to declare at the gross or even microscopic level that there is such an entity as the Malay brain any more than there is a Negro or Caucasian one. At the genomic level however, certain markers are associated with certain races and that there is indeed a Malay brain in contrast to a Caucasian one, just as there is with Malay intestine or red cell in contrast to Caucasian ones. That is why Malays do not tolerate cheese and the English readily succumb to malaria.

Those with a racist bend will find these insights of modern biology as supporting their prejudices. The scientist Daniel Hillis however, likens our genes (or genome) to the menu of a restaurant, or the ingredients found in its kitchen. Yes, if you were to see a wok and MSG in the kitchen and the menu offers sweet and sour pork, then you could categorically conclude that you are at a Chinese restaurant. Similarly if you were to find cheese and truffles in the fridge and the menu offers chicken cordon bleu, then it is most likely a French bistro.

You cannot however conclude from that the taste or quality of the food, the reason for choosing a restaurant. Those depend less on the ingredients and tools in the kitchen and more on the talent and experience of the chef.

Besides, we have so much more in common between the races and so much more variations within a race that it is less helpful if not distasteful to discuss the brain in terms of race.

The mind and mindset however, are culturally and experientially dependent. Since the cultures and experiences of the various races are so demonstrably different, an argument could be made for the meaningful discussion of the Malay mind and Malay mindset, in contrast to those of the Chinese or English.

The practical reality is that whenever we discuss the Malay mind or the Malay mindset, the dialogue inevitably and quickly degenerates into the dredging up of old ugly stereotypes to “explain” our current dilemmas instead of trying to find solid empirical evidence from which to formulate useful and workable solutions. For this reason I will shy away from discussing specifically the Malay mind despite it being on the agenda and instead focus more on the overriding theme of this conference, “Longing for a Free Mind.”

Next: Part 3 of 14: The Comfort of the Coconut Shell

Should M’sians abroad be able to vote?

The Sun
by Husna Yusop

KUALA LUMPUR (March 16, 2011): An argument broke out in the House today over whether Malaysian citizens residing overseas should have the right to vote in elections.

It led to name-calling between Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Abdul Aziz and Datuk Mahfuz Omar (PAS-Pokok Sena), with each describing the other’s statement as stupid.

Fong Po Kuan (DAP-Batu Gajah) also tried to raise a point of order against Datuk Seri Abdul Ghapur Salleh (BN-Kalabakan) for having said Malaysians who choose to reside overseas are not loyal to the country.

However, Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia put paid to that, saying a standing order could only be raised during debates, and not during question-and-answer sessions.

In her original question, Fong had asked about progress on the issue of giving Malaysians overseas the right to vote as requested by the Malaysians Overseas – Right To Vote campaign group.

In his reply, Nazri said the government’s policy on the matter is explained in Article 119 (1) (a) (b) of the Federal Constitution, Elections (Voters Registration) Regulations 2002 and Elections (Postal Voting) Regulations 2003.

“The laws state that only Malaysian citizens who are public servants working overseas and their spouses, and full-time students and their spouses, have the right to cast their votes (from overseas) if they are registered as voters,” he said.

Fong asked whether the government intended to change the policy as it was not right to deny Malaysians overseas their right to vote.

“According to the xonstitution, they can be absent voters if they don’t live here. But the government made regulations to deny them their right. They want the right because they still love the country and want to play a role,” she said.

Nazri said the government was only adhering to the law which states that in order to vote, one must be a resident of a constituency at the said time.

“We want them to be physically present to vote on election day. Exemption is only for public servants and students,” he said.

“If they really love Malaysia, they should come back and vote. They willingly went abroad and stayed there for five, six years and didn’t come back. It means they don’t love Malaysia.”

Abdul Ghapur in his supplementary question asked why Malaysians overseas were asking for the right to vote when they had lost trust in the country and are not loyal.

At this juncture, Mahfuz quipped that the government had been granting foreign nationals and illegal immigrants citizenship status.

Nazri said Mahfuz had made a stupid interjection as the law provides that only Malaysian citizens have voting rights.

Mahfuz in turn responded that the minister’s reply was stupid.

The question-and-answer session then turned into a noisy affair with Nazri and Mahfuz shouting at each other and Fong trying to argue her point.

Pandikar Amin finally put a stop to it, saying MPs who make unnecessary comments during question-and-answer sessions would not be given the chance to debate.

Praise for 'heroes' working to avert Japan's nuclear catastrophe

(CNN) -- As the rest of the world waits with bated breath to see if Japan can avert a nuclear catastrophe, a small band of experts is putting their lives at risk to prevent the disaster.

Thousands of people living near the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant have been evacuated from their homes because of the risk of radiation leaks from reactors damaged by last week's devastating earthquake and tsunami.

But while most hurry in the opposite direction, about 180 plant workers are staying put -- despite the fact that doing so could result in serious illness or even death -- to battle the meltdown threat.

"The workers at this site are involved in a heroic endeavor," former U.S. Department of Energy Official Robert Alvarez told CNN.

"There is at least fragmentary evidence that in some places on this site there are life-threatening doses of radiation. I think they are doing enormously heroic work"

The workers left at the site are said to be highly trained and experienced nuclear operators, engineers and safety staff with highly specialized knowledge.

Professor Richard Wakeford, of the Dalton Nuclear Institute at the University of Manchester, said for many of them -- despite the highly unusual and potentially dangerous circumstances -- it will be just another day at the office.

"They see it as doing their job," he said. "The Japanese in particular are dedicated to duty, and they will see it as their duty to do what they are doing."

According to the World Health Organisation, the average person is exposed to about 3.0 millisieverts (mSv) a year of radiation, from naturally-occurring, medical and other sources.

But monitoring at the Fukushima Daiichi site has recorded radiation as high as 400 millisieverts an hour -- a level known to be a risk to human health.

Exposure to 1,000 millisieverts (1 Sievert) of radiation can cause radiation sickness.

"It is difficult to get a clear picture, but there have been spikes in radiation to enormous doses, high enough to risk radiation sickness," said Dr Ira Helfand, a member of the organization Physicians for Social Responsibility.

"These people are undergoing total body radiation, which can cause leukaemia and lymphoma as well as thyroid cancer later on," he said.

Experts say lessons have been learned since the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl 25 years ago, when an unauthorized experiment saw radioactive dust spread across swathes of Ukraine, Belarus, Russia and western Europe.

Then, emergency workers were sent in with little or no protection to deal with the fallout.

"The workers at Chernobyl had no idea that they were walking into an intense radiation field," said Professor Wakeford. "It was pandemonium; there was no monitoring, no idea of the risks."

By contrast, he said, staff at Fukushima Daiichi will be kitted out in protective clothing and breathing apparatus, they will be closely monitored and working in teams to limit their exposure to radiation.

"If I were them I would be more worried about the hydrogen explosions, which have been huge -- enough to blow the roofs off two buildings -- and which I think are a much bigger risk to the workers on the ground," he told CNN.

But Dr. Helfand said reports suggested that the operation was not going 100% to plan, describing it as "something out of an adventure movie."

"We are in totally uncharted waters, people are ad-libbing to deal with the situation," he said. "Using fire trucks to pump a mixture of sea water and boron onto the reactors is not in any of the manuals."

Professor Wakeford said the workers will have known they may one day face a risky situation such as this.

However, Dr. Helfand said that made them even braver, and their work more admirable.

"These workers are trained to understand the risks, but that only makes it all the more heroic that they have agreed to stay and work to prevent a disaster," he said.

"They know that if there is a reactor meltdown it could be a major disaster affecting huge areas and massive numbers of people, and they are risking their lives to try and prevent that. All of us owe them a huge debt of gratitude."

Professor Wakeford agreed: "They are heroic, there is no doubt about that -- it's a pity that isn't recognised more. They are heroes, and I bow down to them."

HRP Vice President K. Tamil Selvam’s house burnt down in suspected police Ops Padam Hindraf at 5.00 a.m @ Kg Bengali, Rawang.

HRP Vice President K. Tamil Selvam’s house burnt down in suspected police Ops Padam Hindraf at 5.00 a.m @ Kg Bengali, Rawang.

Memo to IGP on Illegal detention

Alkitab defaced, says Bible Society

KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 — The Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) was told today that its shipment of 5,100 Malay bibles seized at Port Klang had already been stamped with the home ministry’s official seal without its prior permission.

“At 5pm today, KDN informed Bible Society of Malaysia that they had already chopped the bibles and asked Bible Society of Malaysia to come collect the bibles,” the importer said in a statement to The Malaysian Insider, calling the home ministry by its Malay initials.

“Bible Society of Malaysia is alarmed by the defacement of the Christian bible by non-Christians chopping it with words that the Christians have not accepted or agreed to,” it added.

The BSM had earlier today refused to collect its cargo of holy books that had been detained for the last two years after the home ministry imposed two conditions for their release.

The society was stunned that home ministry officials had moved to act on their own and only notified BSM after the act, and called on the ministry to immediately put a stop to it.

“As the bible is the holy book of the Christians, due respect should be given to it by consulting the relevant Christian representative organs before any external text is inserted into the bibles.

“Bible Society of Malaysia calls upon KDN to stop chopping the copies of the Alkitab detained at Port Kelang [sic],” it said in the statement issued today.

Church leaders have stressed that they cannot follow the conditions imposed by the ministry, as it would mean desecrating their own holy book.

A separate shipment of 30,000 Malay bibles worth RM78,000 imported by the Sarawak branch of global Christian group, The Gideons, was also seized at Kuching port.

The Malaysian Insider understands that its cargo has been untouched, unlike BSM’s consignment, after the Sarawak importer told the home ministry state director to wait while it consults national Christian leaders.

The Sarawak importer had said it too was refusing to collect the Alkitab for the same reasons as the BSM.

The Malaysian Insider understands Sarawak home ministry officials had earlier contacted the importer to collect their holy books and carry out the stamping on their own.

Both importers are seeking advice from national church leaders on the matter.

BSM reminded the home ministry of its previous agreement made with the Christian community and repeated in an official letter dated December 22, 2005 “that Christians are permitted to have access to their holy book in the Bahasa Malaysia language provided that the sign of the cross and the words ‘Penerbitan Kristian’ are respectfully imprinted by Christians themselves”.

The society urged the home ministry to honour that agreement.

Yesterday, the importers each received a notice from the home ministry’s Publications Control and Quranic Text Division secretary, Datuk Zaitun Ab Samad, informing them of the two conditions imposed for the release.

The first requires the importers to directly stamp on the cover of each of the 35,000 copies the following words: “Peringatan: ‘Al Kitab Berita Baik’ ini untuk kegunaan penganut agama Kristian sahaja. Dengan perintah Menteri Dalam Negeri.”

[In English: “Reminder: This ‘Al Kitab Berita Baik’ is for the use of Christians only. By order of the Home Minister.”]

The cover of the Alkitab would be stamped with the department’s official seal and dated as well.

The second condition requires the importers to stamp a serial number on each copy, as if to demarcate copies from the released shipment and to enable the book to be traced back to the port of import.