MCA slams ‘transparent’ DAP’s gag order

Taking a swipe at the opposition party, traditional rival MCA says the gag order over the Ramasamy-Karpal spat is unfair.

PETALING JAYA: MCA has criticised the gag order imposed by DAP on the spat between its national chairman Karpal Singh and Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy.

Silencing the disgruntled voices, argued the Barisan Nasional component party, was contrary to DAP’s aspiration for greater transparency.

In a statement today, MCA national organising secretary Tee Siew Kiong said the gag-order was imposed despite Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s “CAT” (Competency, Accountability and Transparency) policy,

This, he said, was “unfair” to the public as it “deprives” them of their right to information.

“Every time a dispute erupts within Pakatan Rakyat parties, Pakatan leaders will instruct all forms of gag orders to block any form of information from reaching the public.

“The on-going spat between Ramasamy and Karpal is not only about factional fighting, but possibly involves public funds, suspected graft and may even be a criminal offence,” he added.

The MCA leader also accused DAP of attempting to cover up its shortcomings and deceive the voters.

“If Pakatan really upholds openness and transparency and since this issue allegedly involves public interests and cronyism, DAP’s top leaders should reveal the truth.

“They should not use their influence within the party to hoodwink and deceive the public in an attempt to cover up their own internal splits,” he added.

‘Downfall being plotted’

The spat, which erupted earlier this month, took a fresh twist last week when Ramasamy was quoted by the Star as saying that his critics were trying to plot his downfall.

Referring to the party’s grassroots leaders and hinting at possible corrupt practices, he said: “I think you would be astounded if I relate to you some of their demands.”

Following this, Karpal lambasted Ramasamy and asked him to quit his post as the former claimed that Ramasamy defied the decision of the three-man committee set up by DAP to resolve the differences between the duo.

Ramasamy had since denied making the statements, but the Star said that it would stick to its report.

The initial spat concerned a report which appeared in the Tamil newspaper Makkal Osai, which quoted Ramasamy as naming several candidates for the upcoming elections.

This led Karpal to criticise Ramasamy as a political warlord while the latter branded the party veteran as a godfather.

However, Makkal Osai later admitted that it had misquoted Ramasamy and apologised for the error.

Palanivel is a ‘liar’, says Niat’s Thasleem

Niat, a coalition of Indian NGOs, has officially disbanded itself now that the government has agreed to withdraw the Interlok novel from schools.

KUALA LUMPUR: The National Interlok Action Team (Niat), which has been pushing for the withdrawal of the controversial Interlok novel from schools, has rubbished MIC president G Palanivel’s claim that Niat had prior knowledge of the government’s decision to remove the book from syllabus next year.

Its president Thasleem Mohd Ibrahim said that Palanivel was a “greater liar” who always confused the community.

Thasleem was responding to a new report which quoted the MIC president as saying that Niat had known all along that Interlok would be removed from the school syllabus.

According to a news report in theSun on Dec 19, Palanivel claimed that he had known since May that the controversial novel would be withdrawn from the Form Five sylllabus.

He also claimed that he had spoken to Thasleem regarding the government decision to withdraw Interlok.
Following months of complaints, the education ministy director-general finally on Dec 21 said that it would replace Interlok with Konserto Terakhir from next year.

Earlier on Dec 16, both Palanivel and his MIC deputy Dr S Subramaniam revealed that the cabinet had agreed to remove Interlok from schools. Both said that an official announcement would be made by Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

It was after this that Palanivel had told theSun that he had known since May about the withdrawal, prompting many to dispute his version of events as since May, there had been various statements from MIC as well as others, including Niat, to pressure the government to remove the offending novel.

NIAT infact had even considered hunger strikes and nationwide police reports if the government failed to budge from its decision.

As such, Palanivel’s disclosure that Niat and Thasleem had known of the withdrawal decision did not sit well with Thasleem.

Why was MIC silent?

Thasleem told FMT today that he had only met Palanivel briefly at the Pantai Hospital in early November to visit former MIC deputy president S Subramaniam.

“He (Palanivel) has not met us (Niat) until today in any official or unofficial meetings.

“Yes, I met him (Palanivel) in PMC (Pantai Medical Centre) but there were no discussions.

“He did however hint that Interlok will be removed.
“But the bigger question now is why did the Education Minister amend the book if it was to be withdrawn,” asked Thasleem who spoke to FMT from Australia.

He also urged Palanivel to explain why MIC took such a long time to announce the withdrawal when the decision was allegedly made in May.

Meanwhile, the Niat committee, in a press statement today, officially announced its dissolution now that the government has agreed to withdraw the Interlok from schools.

How we fail the Malaysian Indian poor

Among the reasons why the Indian community is still stuck in the trenches of poverty is because the NEP was not extended to help those in the estates

COMMENT

By Anas Zubedy
After 54  years as a country, it is unfortunate that a lot of non Indian Malaysians do not yet know the Indians.
For example, a lot of Malaysians still do not know the difference between Punjabis and Bengalis, and in some instances in recent years this confusion has been the topic of public discussion.

This goes back to the time of Independence and the formulation of our principal social engineering programme, the NEP.

With all due respect to the Tun Abdul Razak administration which created it, one of the main reasons why some parts of the Indian community is still stuck in the trenches of poverty are because the NEP was not extended to help those in the estates.

While the NEP helped the Malays and Bumiputera out of poverty and managed to create a group of middle class Malays, it overlooked the needs of the real composition of Indians.

The NEP was designed based on the per capita income of the Malay, Indian, Chinese and foreigner population. At the time, the Chinese had the highest percentage of per capita income, the Indians second, the Malays had the lowest.

However, as for the Indians, because we did not understand them, we grouped all of them in one big group.

What we did not realise is that the Indians are not a homogenous group, but made up of different groups that came in several batches. While there are a small group of Indians who were wealthier, about 10 million of them came to Malaya as buruh kasar.

Understanding in the Indians


Based on the average between the incomes of the small group of middle class Indians and the larger community of poor Indians, the statistics drawn were inaccurate.

It shows as if the Indians were doing okay, but in reality a big cluster of them were as poor as the Malays and Bumiputera.

It is sad that because we do not really understand our Indian brothers and sisters, we have allowed their poverty problem to continue as a legacy until today.

Now that our PM has vowed to address this issue, it is important that we know who they are, where they are and where they are going.

I recommend a book by Muzafar Desmond Tate called ‘The Malaysian Indians: History, Problems and Future’.

Here are several important points from the book. As I mentioned earlier, the Malaysian Indians are not all the same, but are made up of different smaller communities.

One major way the Malayan Indians were divided were the separation between Hindu and Muslim.
Another thing was social division into four major class groups:

’1) The elite, consisting of professionals, high government officials and senior executives in leading private firms;

2) An upper, English-educated middle class consisting mainly of government servants;
3) A lower, vernacular-educated middle class, comprising merchants, school teachers, journalists, smallholders, all largely outside government service;

4) Labourers in government  service – the PWD, medical services, railways, the docks and the municipalities of large towns – and in private employ, particularly on estates.’

Tate writes that the Indian community remained highly compartmentalised as there was very little interaction between these groups, and hardly any social mobility existed for them.

A large number of Tamils who arrived in Malaya during the British colonial period were drawn from the lowest ranks of Tamil society and came as contract labourers for tin mines and agricultural estates.

They were ‘virtually debt slaves’ from the point they came to Malaya, having to work off the costs of their passage and recruitment under the contract system. Their wages were so meager that this would take them their whole term of service.

The upper-class

Besides this large group of Tamil labourers, there was also a small group of upper-class Tamils who came by their own resources. These were men of trade, commerce and finance, and Tate writes that this upper class, though small in numbers, were very significant as they ‘exerted an influence out of all proportion to their numbers’.

After Merdeka, the rift between the more affluent middle class and the larger number of Indian estate workers who ‘hover on the borders of poverty’, continued to exist.

The middle class was doing fine, dominating certain professions like law and medicine.

The enrolment of children into primary and secondary schools also remained the same. But for those in the rural areas, especially in the estates, the problem of poverty seemed intractable.

At the same time, the greatest shift that happened post-independence is urbanisation, which brought new social problems with it.

This was the ‘new poverty syndrome’ of the rootless Indians in the town. While the strategies of the NEP brought growing industrialisation, the Indian workers who left the estates found that they were in no position to compete in the towns.

They were uneducated and had no command of English, they lacked technical skills and were once again forced to live under squalid conditions.

The NEP, on the other hand, did not extend its benefits to the estate workers. The official rationale was that these workers were employees of the private limited companies who owned the estates, and thus they did not fall under the scope of the NEP.

Living below poverty line

In reviewing the Second Malaysia Plan (1970 – 75), the authors of the Third Malaysia Plan concluded that the aim of eradicating poverty in the plantation sector did not make progress.

Two-fifths of the estate workers were still living below poverty levels and unemployment was high.
Even at the end of the term of the Third Malaysia Plan in 1980, very little progress had been made towards the eradication of poverty.

In other words, Tate concludes that due to the segregation between the middle class Indians and those in the estates, and the failure of the NEP to support the Indians below the poverty line, essentially, the major problems of the Indian community remained the same in 2000 as they were before 1957.

This problem of poverty has become the legacy issue that we have to urgently deal with, along with the contemporary issues of the social problems of the urban squatters.

To really move to help the Indian poor out of poverty, any action taken cannot be a once-off thing. We need to define a target, the same way we implemented the NEP with specific goals.

There are several mechanisms we can put into place. Education is the first thing we need to look into. We can open up boarding schools like Maktab Sains MARA to make sure the children are provided a level playing field in education.

We can provide channels for skills-based training and open up job opportunities. For those who are not able to read and write, we can perhaps provide vocational academies for them to learn the basic skills they need.

To help the poor Indians, there needs to be provisions for the whole process from homes to schools to jobs, so that within one generation we can reduce poverty among the Indian poor and move them into the middle class via education and support, just like what we did for the Bumiputera under the NEP.

We must remember and take to heart that the Malaysian Indian poor problem is not an Indian problem, but a Malaysian one.

Anas Zubedy is a unity advocate and founder of zubedy (M) sdn. bhd., a training provider with the mission to add value to society.

Legitimacy of the Judiciary: Political Foes, BN Businessman and You

Tay Choo Foo, a Barisan Nasional friendly business man, has lost all confidence in the Malaysian judiciary. When he was sued, he was sure the Courts will throw out the case. To Tay Choo Foo, the claim was a fabrication of lies. To his horror, the Court accepted the claimant’s witness hearsay evidence and threw out his testimony. The High Court ordered him to pay RM13 million. The Court of Appeal and the Federal Court upheld the High Court judgment. Tay Choo Foo feels like a victim of sexual assault, he feels violated except he does not have a video to prove it.

Tay Choo Foo now realizes from bitter experience what Alexander Hamilton warned Americans in 1787, more than 200 years earlier in the Federalist Papers, that:-

“A steady, upright and impartial administration of the laws” is essential because “no man can be sure that he may not be tomorrow the victim of a spirit of injustice, by which he may be the gainer today.”

Tay Choo Foo is writing a book entitled “Lawless” to warn Malaysians of the dangers of judicial corruption and to stir citizens into action. The question is whether Malaysians having been warned will act on it. When it mattered most Malaysians did not act.

In 1988, Malaysians did not speak out when Tun Mahathir sacked the Lord President and the 5 Federal Court Judges. In 1998, many stood by when he sacked his Deputy Prime Minister and the Courts convicted and put him in jail for 6 years. The Federal Court judges, who had dedicated their entire career to the principle of upholding the Rule of Law, became victims of the Rule of Man. They suffered a grave injustice in being sacked, disgraced and robbed of their personal dignity and self-esteem. The monetary payment given twenty years later can never compensate for their pain and suffering. An even graver injustice was visited on Anwar Ibrahim when he was arrested, beaten and imprisoned for a crime he did not commit. All this was done for the purpose of destroying his political career in order to prolong that of others. It is not just heinous it is evil. The Federal Judges were sacked and the Deputy Prime Minster was imprisoned for political purposes.

Malaysians allowed political powers to exert influence over the judiciary for political ends. They did not realize that like in all usual public private initiatives, economic entities would also gain influence over the Courts. Thus were spawned judicial decisions:-

· That interfered with the shareholding control of a public listed company such as the infamous Insas Bhd v Ayer Molek Rubber Co Bhd [1995] 2 MLJ 833;

· That allowed multi-million ringgit defamation suits against MCG Pillay, Param Cumaraswamy, Raphael Pura, Tommy Thomas and Skrine & Co for writing about judicial corruption;

· That allowed contempt cases to be instituted against Zainur Zakaria, Tommy Thomas, Manjit Singh and prosecution of Karpal Singh who dared to challenge the unfairness of court proceedings;

· That allowed a forger to acquire indefeasible title to property such as the Federal Court decision in Adorna Properties v Boonsom Boonyanit [2001] 1 MLJ 241 that made our country a forger’s haven for 10 years until corrected by the case of Tan Ying Hong v Tan Sian San [2010] 2 MLJ 1 FC;

· That ordered an insurance company to pay an arsonist that set fire to his own factory to claim on his insurance policy and dismissed the insurance company’s application for review in Asean Security Paper Mill v Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance (Malaysia) Bhd [2008] 5 AMR 377

· In Tay Choo Foo’s case, the administrators of the estate of Tunku Mansur (deceased) sued him for the purchase price of 1.2 million Harrisons Holdings Berhad shares. Tay Choo Foo contended that the shares were given to him by Tunku Mansur as commission for arranging an investor to participate in the management buy-out led by Tunku Mansur. The High Court allowed the hearsay evidence of a purported conversation between the witness and Tunku Mansur to be admitted under section 32(1) (b) of the Evidence Act. Until the Federal Court upheld the High Court decision, section 32(1) (b) of the Evidence Act is accepted of only allowing a statement made by a deceased clerk in the entry of account books and records kept in the ordinary course of business. Tunku Mansur was not a deceased clerk and the statement was not an accounting entry or documents kept in the ordinary course of business. The Federal Court held that section 132(1) (b) should be given a broad and liberal interpretation. The Federal Court decision adopted a new approach that differed from what lawyers and academicians knew about section 32(1) (b). The decision may be a development of the law but it gave rise to the issue of satisfying the requirements of certainty and predictability which is so essential to the legitimacy of judicial decisions.

There are many more cases that are not reported. I have a friend who lost his family business built over several generations to a third party despite non-compliance of the clear provisions of the law. He dared not challenge the matter in the courts because the third party is well connected. If the rich are fearful to fight for their rights, the weak, the poor and the disadvantaged have no chance at all. Many are suffering in silence. This is because we did not speak up when it was needed to.

In 2008, the cycle of political interference has been repeated. The 2nd edition of the Anwar Ibrahim trials is instituted to clip the opposition’s momentum after the 12thGeneral Elections. The Guardian in its editorial on 13th December 2011 described what the Courts will do to Anwar Ibrahim as an egregious travesty of justice. The last vestiges of the judiciary’s legitimacy will be lost on 9th January 2012 if Anwar is convicted.

The public knows there is a clear distinction between a legitimate system of law and a mere system of commands coercively enforced. It is not necessary for the public to be lawyers or legally trained to know whether a judicial decision is legitimate or not. Each of us has a built-in antenna that can sense the truth from a lie and whether a judicial decision is fair or unjust.

The public can detect judges, who while hiding behind a veneer of fairness make intellectually dishonest decisions. They make procedural and evidential rulings to admit into evidence facts favourable to the outcome they want. They shut out facts that would make it inconvenient for them to arrive at the desired outcome. They are thus able to write impeccable decisions by adopting the applicable laws to the selected evidence.

However, to the losing litigant and the public such decisions are complied with only because of the coercive force the court can bring to bear. The decisions are not accepted as expressions of legal and valid authority. They lacked legitimacy. It is public confidence that gives legitimacy to the judiciary and its decisions. To enjoy public confidence the judiciary must honour the values and principles of consistency, coherence, legal certainty, predictability and not the least justice and objectivity. The citizens must always be vigilant and remind the Judges of their sacred duty. Sandra Day O’Connor said:

“If judges are to be independent guardians of rule of law values, they must be incorruptible. Judges are entrusted with ultimate decisions over life, freedoms, duties, rights, and property of citizens. But judges will never win the respect of the citizens if they are subject to corrupt influences. Whenever a judge makes a decision for personal gain, or to curry favour, or to avoid censure, that act denigrates the Rule of Law… If the judiciary is perceived as being corrupt, biased, or otherwise unethical, society’s confidence in the legal system and its respect for the Rule of Law will crumble”

The public is aware that the Anwar Ibrahim trials lacked legitimacy:-

In the first Anwar Ibrahim trial for corruption, the Judge attracted adverse worldwide criticism for the manner he conducted the trial. The Judge threatened and charged defence counsel for contempt for complaining the court was not impartial and fair. The words “Irrelevant! Irrelevant! Irrelevant!” were uttered so often that it was only matched 10 years later by a subsequent refrain of “Correct! Correct! Correct!” The trial did not meet the requirement of impartiality, justice and objectivity;

In the second Anwar Ibrahim trial for sodomy, the High Court Judge applied the wrong law in convicting Anwar Ibrahim. It is a well established law that the court cannot convict on uncorroborated evidence of the complainant in a sexual offence. The Judge can only do so upon reminding himself of the danger of convicting on uncorroborated evidence. The Judge is required to set out in his judgment the reasons he found the complainant’s evidence were sufficiently convincing to establish the case beyond reasonable doubt. The High Court Judge failed to do this and the Court of Appeal did not pick up this error. It was only after the change of Prime Ministers that the Federal Court pointed out that the complainant’s evidence lacked credibility and that the confession of sodomy was extracted by torture and improper means. The second trial did not meet the standards of consistency and coherence to existing legal principles;

In the 2008 edition of the Anwar trials, Ragunath Kesavan, Chairman of the Malaysian Bar Council said that the Federal Court’s decision to dismiss Anwar’s application for access to key evidence was a regressive decision. The decision contradicted the clear language and intent of Parliament in section 51A of the Criminal Procedure Code. The section imposed on the prosecution a statutory duty to provide to the accused before the commencement of the trial the documents that the prosecution intended to use at the trial. This was made in the interest of enhancing an accused person’s right to a fair trial. By barring Anwar access to CCTV footage, medical reports, chemist reports and witness statements, Anwar was severely and unfairly impaired in defending himself. The Federal Court decision did not meet the standard of coherence, consistency, certainty and predictability, impartiality and justice;

Anwar applied under Rule 137 of the Federal Court Rules 1995 to review the Federal Court’s decision in dismissing his application for disclosure under section 51A Criminal Procedure Code. The second Federal Court dismissed the application on the ground that the Federal Court does not have jurisdiction to review an earlier Federal Court decision. NH Chan said that the decision fly in the face of the plain words of Rule 137. Rule 137 provides that nothing shall be deemed to limit or affect the inherent powers of the court to hear any application or make any order as may be necessary to prevent an abuse of the process of the court. The Federal Court decision was clearly incoherent and inconsistent with the clear words of the Rule;

The trial was filled with rulings on procedural and evidential matters that left the public with the distinct feeling that the decisions did not satisfy the standards and values of impartiality, legality, certainty, predictability, transparency and justice;

International and domestic observers with a sense of fair play have a bad taste in the mouth at the injustice perpetrated. The New York Times in an article published on 13th December 2011 reported that human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have criticized the trial. Condemnation has also come from Al Gore, the former US Vice President who with Paul D Wolfowitz, the former US Deputy Secretary of Defense wrote in the Wall Street Journal that the trial “threatens not just Mr. Anwar but all those who have struggled for a freer and more democratic nation.”

Malaysians had twice missed the call to stand up and speak out against injustice in 1988 and 1998. If we miss the third chance on 9th January, it will be strike three and Malaysia shall be struck out. It is therefore not inappropriate to recall the famous words of Martin Niemoller who emerged as an outspoken public foe of Adolf Hitler:-

“First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out

Because I was not a Socialist;

Then they came for the Trade Unionists and I did not speak out

Because I was not a Trade Unionist;

Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out

Because I was not a Jew;

Then they came for me- and there was no one left to speak for me”

Martin Niemoller’s quotation reminds us that the people were complicit through their silence in the Nazi imprisonment, persecution and murder of millions of people. We will similarly by our silence be complicit in the erosion of our society’s foundation. By staying neutral, by keeping silent, we will allow the rule of law to be replaced by the rule of man, criminals to go unpunished, the innocent to be deprived of a fair trial and the poor losing out to the rich. This country has deteriorated not because of bad people but because good people did not stand up and speak out against injustice. Tay Choo Foo is now standing up and speaking out. Many more must do so otherwise, they will take Anwar, then Tay Choo Foo and when they finally come for you, no one is left to speak for you.

William Leong Jee Keen
Member of Parliament for Selayang
27th December 2011

Concern over effective implementation of Domestic Violence Act

The Star
by REGINA LEE

PETALING JAYA: Women's groups say that much more has to be done before the Domestic Violence Act approved by Parliament recently can be effectively implemented.

They believe that related laws such as the Evidence Act and the Criminal Procedure and Penal Codes have to be amended to accommodate the numerous changes.

The groups are especially concerned with enforcing the amendments that include psychological abuse that can result in emotional injury as a form of domestic violence.

While welcoming the much awaited changes, they also express worry over the attitude of frontline agencies, including the police.

Association of Women Lawyers president Meera Samanther, who is also Women's Aid Organisation committee member and past president, wants to know who would be deemed qualified to determine whether psychological abuse has taken place.

“Do we need proper psychologists when this country doesn't have enough? Or will a normal medical officer do? And who pays for it (the assessment)?” she asked.

“Also, if we are to tender a report on psychological abuse in court, there should be correlating changes to the relevant Acts.”

Empower Malaysia executive director Maria Chin Abdullah said that all the legal amendments in the world would not make a difference if frontline personnel at police stations were not sympathetic and supportive.

She said her group was concerned about how sensitively the enforcement agency personnel would treat abused women.

“The supplements are overdue, but their effectiveness boils down to the government agency and how they interpret the law. Sometimes it's the police who don't understand the law and they will ask the abused wives to go back home.

“The police have to be more sensitive because time and time again we have had women complaining about their attitude,” she said.

All-Women Action Movement programme manager Betty Yeoh said Malaysian law did not recognise domestic partnerships between two unmarried individuals.

“There is an increasing number of couples who do everything as a married couple, although they do not have a marriage certificate.

“They do not get protection from the Domestic Violence Act,” she said.

The Women, Family and Community Development Ministry said counsellors and psychiatrists in government hospitals and clinics would determine whether psychological abuse had happened.

“Anything that can incite fear in the victim should be considered psychological abuse,” deputy minister Datuk Heng Seai Kie said.

The Domestic Violence Act was passed in 1994 and implemented in 1996 after tireless campaigning by women's groups, beginning in the 1980s.

The Act had not been amended until now despite several memorandums from the groups calling for it to be more encompassing to include marital rape and psychological abuse.

“It really took us a long time to have the Act in place. When it was implemented in 1996, there were still a lot of aspects that were left out,” Maria said.

Heng said the ministry had to wait for feedback from non-government agencies before sending a proposal to the Cabinet.

“The Cabinet rejected and accepted certain parts of the amendments, so we had to refer to the Attorney-General for advice,” she said.

'Individual Jihad' Becomes New Face of Terror in 2011

 

The body of a suicide bomber lies in the doorway of Bethel Injil Sepenuh church in Solo, Central Java, on Sept. 25. (AFP Photo) 

In 2011, the nation got several wake-up calls that radicalism was still alive in Indonesia despite the arrests and convictions of key terrorists the year before.

“We’ve had it coming,” terrorism expert Noor Huda Ismail told the Jakarta Globe recently.

The first sobering wake-up call came in March. That month, mysterious packages containing explosives in the guise of books were delivered to several selected targets, including a co-founder of the Liberal Islam Network (JIL), Ulil Abshar Abdalla, as well as rock star Ahmad Dani.

Ulil’s bomb package was found first, but it exploded when a police officer attempted to defuse it before the bomb squad arrived. The officer lost his hand in the explosion and two other officers were injured.

The people responsible for the book bombs were arrested in Aceh a month later, following the discovery of five bombs near a Catholic church in Serpong, Tangerang, that were scheduled to explode on Good Friday.

The ringleader of the book bomb plot, Pepi Fernando, 32, was not connected to any known radical groups in Indonesia, such as the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), the Indonesian Mujahideen Council (MMI) or Jamaah Anshorut Tauhid(JAT), the terrorist organization of hard-line cleric Abu Bakar Bashir,

Pepi was, however, known as an activist for the Indonesian Islamic State (NII) movement, which aspires to overthrow the secular republic in favor of an Islamic state. He had built a network of like-minded people at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University (UIN) in Jakarta, where he had studied.

The 14 other people arrested for the attempted bombing in Serpong were also UIN alumni, all between the ages of 20 and 30 years old.

“Pepi and his group learned to make bombs on the Internet,” Noor Huda said. “They determined their targets by Googling, for instance, ‘Indonesian Jews.’ ”

The group’s selected targets included Ahmad Dani, Yapto Soerjosoemarno, Ulil Abshar Abdalla and Gories Mere.

Rock star Dani was picked because the plotters thought he often wore clothes with Jewish symbols and characters; Japto was perceived as a Jew and a fanatic defender of the national ideology, Pancasila, which the group regarded as inspired by Hindu teachings; Ulil allegedly misinterpreted the Koran; and Gories was targeted as the former head of the National Police’s antiterror squad, Densus 88.

“[This year] marked the rise of individual jihad,” Noor Huda said. “Small groups conducted their own acts [partially] as a protest to the larger groups that went silent [after their leaders were gone].”

The country’s second wake-up call came in April when Muhammad Syarif blew himself up in a mosque at the Cirebon Police headquarters in West Java.

It was the first attack targeted at the government and at Indonesian Muslims. Syarif was the only fatality in the blast, but 30 people were injured.

As police investigators tried to pick up a lead on Syarif’s network, an Islamic boarding school in Bima district, West Nusa Tenggara, made headlines in July when a bomb detonated prematurely inside the school, killing the school’s treasurer.

In September, another suicide bombing occurred at a church in Solo, Central Java.

“We always forget that these people are radicals first, and then terrorists,” Noor Huda said, referring to Syarif and the Solo suicide bomber, Achmad Yosepa Hayat, who were both sworn in by Bashir upon joining JAT in Tasikmalaya, West Java, in 2008. “They don’t wake up one morning and realize that they’re terrorists.”

In the wake of the Solo attack, the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) said in October that radicals may constitute 2 percent of the country’s population, or 1.8 million people.

“That’s why the BNPT needs all departments to collaborate in the de-radicalization process,” said BNPT head Ansyaad Mbai.

The country saw how radicalism can spread among young people when a teenage student at an Islamic boarding school in Bima stabbed a police officer to death in July. The 16-year-old student, Sa’ban Uma, said police officers were infidels because they worked for a government that did not apply Shariah law.

The Islamic boarding school’s principal, Abrory M. Ali, also admitted that he had participated in a paramilitary training camp in Poso, Central Sulawesi, where he learned how to use weapons and build bombs.

He had taken over the school after his predecessor, Mujahidul Haq, a JAT member known as Uqbah, was arrested on suspicion of raising funds for a terrorist training camp in Aceh.

Intelligence analyst Al Chaidar believes that with the “major players” gone from the scene, small cells are now “competing” with each other in jihad.

“There is a contest among the small terrorist groups,” Chaidar said. “They compete in jihad, to see which group can do best.

“The small groups can be more brutal since they carry out their actions based on pure hatred. Hatred toward Christians, non-Muslims, churches, Americans or Israel, without a clear reason.”

Chaidar also said small cells were more difficult to stamp out.

“The smaller the size, the safer they are,” he said. “If they’re more mobile, they’re less likely to be discovered.”

He added that most terrorists tried to involve their own family members in their networks. “It minimizes the chance of betrayal and leaks,” he said.

Ansyaad, the BNPT head, said the country had “dozens” of such terrorist groups, consisting of “hundreds” of members.

“But out of these hundreds, we currently only have sufficient evidence to name 15 people as suspects,” he said. “These people are still at large.”

This year, security forces have arrested at least 108 suspected militants and terrorists. As of April, BNPT said it had made as many as 600 arrests, with 500 of those being prosecuted.

Noor Huda and Chaidar agreed that more government ministries, especially those for education and religious affairs, should be involved in national de-radicalization programs.

“There are more or less 127 Islamic boarding schools that could be linked to JI [Jemaah Islamiyah],” Chaidar said. “Has the government done anything to introduce multiculturalism to these schools?”

According to Sukemi, an adviser to the Ministry of Education and Culture, his ministry and the Ministry of Religious Affairs have been involved in several de-radicalization programs since 2010.

“We’ve held various workshops and seminars in universities and high schools, involving teachers, principals and students, at both private and state schools,” Sukemi said.

Dhyah Madya Ruth, the chairwoman of the Jakarta-based peace group Lazuardi Birru, is involved with the government’s de-radicalization programs, though she acknowledged that they had limited reach.

“We are still trying to refine the methods,” she said of the programs. “Every year we’re trying to find the best one.”

Aside from education, Noor Huda said the government should focus on the care and rehabilitation of convicted terrorists.

“For people like Pepi and his friends who are self-made terrorists, what happens if they all meet charismatic leaders such as Abu Tholut in prison?” he said.

Abu was sentenced in October to eight years in jail for helping establish a jihadist camp for a group that plotted attacks on foreigners and assasinations of the country’s moderate Muslims leaders.

In May, a former Australian intelligence analyst concluded that Indonesian jails often act as incubators of terrorism.

Based on interviews with 33 Indonesian terror convicts, the analyst, Dr. Carl Ungerer, found that the convicts were often placed in the same prison block where they could mingle.

He said jihadists also used prison mosques to preach and recruit new members.

Chaidar also said that many convicts use “de-radicalization” funds to “re-radicalize” others.

“They were given money to start a new life, but they use it to fund their next jihad,” he said.

Noor Huda said a revised Anti-Terrorism Law might hold the key for improvements.

“The law needs to be more rehabilitative, involving terrorist convicts and their immediate relatives,” he said. “And it needs to employ extraordinary methods because terrorism is an extraordinary crime.”

Muhyiddin: No bullying under Article 153

Muhyiddin said Eu was interpreting Article 153 of the constitution incorrectly.—File pic

SHAH ALAM, Dec 27 — Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin denied today that any community had been bullied as a result of Article 153 of the Constitution as claimed by a senior Christian leader last weekend.

The deputy prime minister told reporters that the clause, which charges the Agong with protecting the position of Bumiputeras, was “enshrined in the Constitution (because) there is history, there is a rationale”.

“That is an incorrect interpretation,” the Umno deputy president said when asked to comment on National Evangelical Christian Fellowship (NECF) chairman Reverend Dr Eu Hong Seng’s claim that Article 153 was akin to “bullying” if it only protected the rights of one group.

“The government’s policies under Barisan Nasional (BN) have served all. Efforts to help all levels of society... are all sealed in the (social) contract that has been implemented all this while.

“I hope no debate is sparked for certain purposes. What is already enshrined in the constitution should not be questioned,” the Pagoh MP said.

Perkasa had responded to Eu on Sunday by saying the Article helped keep the country peaceful, further claiming that the race riots of May 13, 1969 happened because it was not implemented properly.

“This country is peaceful because of Article 153 which protects the rights of Bumiputeras who are the majority in this country.

“The reverend needs to remember that Christians are able to practise their religion without worry in this country because of Article 153,” Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hasan Syed Ali said.

Muhyiddin had also said yesterday no one was sidelined under BN due to the ruling coalition’s power-sharing concept that is based on a common understanding among the various races and religions.

The Pagoh MP cited the RM2 billion to be handed out to all households earning less than RM3,000 a month under Budget 2012 as an example of “how we give equal treatment without looking at your background, race or religion.”

Article 153 states that “it shall be the responsibility of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to safeguard the special position of the Malays and natives of any of the States of Sabah and Sarawak and the legitimate interests of other communities in accordance with the provisions of this Article.”

The provision in the Federal Constitution has been repeatedly invoked by Malay right-wing groups who insist on the continuance of pro-Bumiputera affirmative action.

These include quotas in education, scholarships, business equity and employment in the public sector.

But constitutional expert Prof Abdul Aziz Bari said on Sunday this meant “the King must also make sure that (safeguarding Bumiputeras) must not be done at the expense of the legitimate interests of other communities.”

Muhyiddin looking into blogger’s graft claim

The deputy premier is looking into the allegation that his private secretary allegedly received bribes.
FMT ALERT

SHAH ALAM: Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin is looking into the allegations by an anonymous blogger that his private secretary received bribes.

FMT had reported last week the blogger’s claim that Muhyiddin’s senior aide Mohd Shukor Abdul Manan received more than RM100,000 in kickbacks.

The blogger, who calls himself Whistleblower 771, also named Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s senior aide and Deputy Finance Minister Awang Adek Husin in his allegation.

Muhyiddin said he was not aware of any wrongdoing but promised to probe the matter.

Mahkamah berdepan pelbagai kes perlembagaan

Beberapa keputusan mengejut dicatat sepanjang tahun 2011.
REWIND 2011

Oleh Suriati Sidek Ahmad

KUALA LUMPUR: Badan kehakiman terus berdepan dalam menangani lebih banyak kes berhubung isu perlembagaan tahun ini terutama hak individu.

Awal bulan lepas, empat lelaki yang memilih kerjaya sebagai mak andam, mendapat kebenaran Mahkamah Tinggi Seremban untuk mencabar perintah undang-undang Syariah yang menghalang mereka berpakaian seperti perempuan.

Mereka meminta Mahkamah Tinggi mengisytiharkan Seksyen 66 Enakmen Jenayah Syariah Negeri Sembilan 1992 tidak mempunyai kesan dan tidak terpakai kepada mereka yang secara psikologi adalah wanita atau mempunyai kecelaruan identiti jantina.

Hakim Rosnaini Saub membuat keputusan itu atas pendapat bahawa permohonan itu membabitkan pelbagai isu perlembagaan.

Bagaimanapun tarikh pendengaran permohonan semakan kehakiman yang difailkan mereka belum ditetapkan.

Dalam permohonan itu, Muhamad Juzaili Mohd Khamis, 24, Shukor Jani, 25, Wan Fairol Wan Ismail, 27 dan Adam Shazrul Mohd Yusoff, 25, menamakan Jabatan Hal Ehwal Agama Islam Negeri Sembilan, pengarahnya, ketua pegawai penguatkuasa syariah, ketua pendakwa raya syariah dan kerajaan negeri sebagai responden.

Antara lain, Seksyen 66 didakwa menafikan hak mereka dari segi kebebasan melahirkan perasaan masing-masing dan enakmen itu menyebabkannya sukar bergerak dan ini merupakan satu pelanggaran hak mengikut Perkara 9(2) Perlembagaan Persekutuan mengenai mobiliti.

Mereka juga mendakwa seksyen itu juga melanggar Perkara 5 Perlembagaan Persekutuan berhubung hak kebebasan terutama dari segi kebebasan memilih.

Tukar jantina

Di Kuala Terengganu, Mohd Ashraf Hafiz Abdul Aziz, 25, yang menjalani pembedahan menukar jantina dua tahun lepas, gagal dalam permohonan untuk menukar namanya kepada Aleesha Farhana Abdul Aziz dalam MyKad.

Mahkamah Tinggi yang mendengar kes itu memutuskan ia tidak mempunyai bidang kuasa untuk mengeluarkan perintah berhubung penukaran status jantina dalam dokumen pengenalan diri dengan hanya berdasarkan pembedahan menukar jantina ekoran ketiadaan peruntukan yang membenarkan mahkamah berbuat demikian.

Dalam penghakimannya, Hakim Datuk Mohd Yazid Mustafa berkata keputusan itu juga dibuat setelah mengambil kira tiga faktor iaitu kromosom, kewujudan alat kelamin semasa pemohon dilahirkan dan kewujudan organ dalaman.

Mohd Ashraf, yang berasal dari Seberang Takir, memfailkan permohonan itu pada 25 Mei selepas menjalani pembedahan menukar jantina di Thailand kerana mendakwa berdepan kesukaran untuk hidup secara normal sebagai seorang wanita, selain memudahkan beliau diterima masuk ke sebuah universiti tempatan.

Hakim Mohd Yazid juga memutuskan bahawa Mohd Ashraf bukanlah wanita tulen walaupun beliau telah menjalani pembedahan menukar jantina.

Dua minggu selepas itu, Mohd Ashraf meninggal dunia akibat serangan jantung tidak stabil.

Politik pelajar

Satu lagi keputusan “mengejutkan” dibuat Mahkamah Rayuan yang mengisytiharkan Seksyen 15(5)(a) Akta Universiti dan Kolej Universiti (AUKU) 1971 yang melarang mahasiswa menyatakan sokongan atau bangkangan dalam aktiviti politik sebagai tidak sah di sisi undang- undang.

Dalam keputusan majoriti 2-1, panel tiga hakim memutuskan seksyen itu tidak munasabah dan melanggar kebebasan bersuara.

Hakim Datuk Mohd Hishamuddin Mohd Yunus dan Datuk Linton Albert membuat keputusan itu setelah membenarkan rayuan empat penuntut jurusan sains politik Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), yang berdepan tindakan disiplin kerana didakwa terbabit dalam kempen pilihan raya kecil bagi Parlimen Hulu Selangor pada 24 April tahun lepas.

Sementara itu Hakim Datuk Wira Low Hop Bing, yang mengetuai panel itu menentang dan memutuskan bahawa larangan itu perlu bagi mengelakkan ideologi politik meresap di kalangan penuntut yang mudah terdedah, tertakluk kepada tekanan rakan sebaya dan mudah terpengaruh, yang akan menjejaskan peranan utama universiti dalam menyediakan pendidikan.

Bagaimanapun, Hakim Hishamuddin berpendapat seksyen itu tidak rasional kerana ia menghalang pembangunan pemikiran kritis dan asli penuntut institusi pengajian tinggi.

Hakim Albert pula berkata seksyen itu melanggar Perkara 10(1)(a) Perlembagaan Persekutuan yang membenarkan kebebasan bersuara dan ekspresi.

Selain itu, perbicaraan kes liwat ketua pembangkang Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim terus mendapat liputan meluas media.

Bagaimanapun, Mahkamah Tinggi akan membuat keputusan sama ada Anwar bersalah atau sebaliknya pada 9 Jan depan bagi pertuduhan melakukan persetubuhan di luar tabii terhadap bekas pembantunya, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, 26, tiga tahun lepas.

- Bernama

Quetta’s (Pakistan) Hindus demand govt to protect them from kidnappers, killers & persecutors.

Hindu Sit-in outside Baloch Assembly against Hindu trader’s killing, ransom, torture.

QUETTA, 23rd December, 2011 : Members of the Hindu community staged a protest demonstration in front of the Balochistan Assembly (BA) on Friday against increasing incidents of kidnapping for ransom in the province.

The protestors took out a procession from Arya Samaj temple on Masjid Road and after marching through different parts of the city, staged a protest demonstration in front of the BA building.

The protesting people, including children, were carrying placards and banners inscribed with slogans demanding protection from criminals.

Addressing the protestors, Raday Sham and Dr Maher Chand, members of Hindu Panchayat, said police should investigate the killing of young Hindu trader Ravi Kumar, whose bullet-riddled body was found in Quetta after his family failed to pay the ransom money to his abductors.

The members of the Hindu community raised slogans against the government for its failure to protect the life of those belonging to minority communities.

Provincial minister for minorities Basant Lal Gulshan and Minister for Revenue Zamurkh Khan Achakzai addressed the protesting Hindu community members and tried to pacify them.

Achakzai said that the law enforcing agencies were constantly striving against the kidnapping gangs operating in Quetta and other parts of the province.

“Police have booked many suspects and also carrying out raids in different localities including Saryab and Pashtunabad areas of Quetta. Soon, the criminals will be brought to book,” he ensured.

The protestors called off their protest after the provincial minster assured them that he will arrange a meeting between a delegation of Hindu community and Chief Minister, to resolve the issues.

Embattled Indonesian Church Forced to Celebrate Christmas in Private Home

 

Congregants of the GKI Yasmin church in Bogor held their Christmas service in the house of one of its members on Sunday. The site of the service was moved after their attempt to use the Yasmin building was thwarted by opposing Islamic groups. Suara Pembaruan Photo/Joanito De Saojoao 

Bogor. The congregation of the embattled GKI Yasmin church in Bogor was forced to move its Christmas prayers to a member’s house after Islamic groups assembled at the disputed site and threatened to challenge the sermon on Sunday.

The service was slated to start at 9 a.m. in the sealed church on Jalan Abdullah bin Nuh, but the congregants went elsewhere after members of the Indonesian Muslim Communication Forum (Forkami), the Islamic Reform Movement (Garis) and the Bogor Muslim Community (KMB) objected to that plan.

The opposition protestors came to the church in the morning and shouted to guarding police officers and members of the public order agency (Satpol PP) to expel the congregation.

“On December 23, they were given a letter stating that they are banned from holding a prayer here. The letter clearly mentioned they can’t hold the service,” Forkami head Ahmad Iman said.

Garis head Majudien threatened to deploy his members to the location in a mass Muslim gathering known as tabligh akbar should the Yasmin congregation insist on holding the service there.

Police blocked the roads around the church and diverted traffic to other roads for security reasons.

The modest Christmas service was attended by Lily Wahid and Inayah Wahid, sister and daughter of the late president Abdurrahman Wahid, as well as representatives from GP Ansor, the youth wing of Indonesia’s largest Muslim group Nahdlatul Ulama, and the Asian Muslim Action Network.

A number of veiled female Muslims were seen at the scene distributing flowers to express support for religious freedom.

Inayah said the groups who continued to pressure the Yasmin congregation didn’t represent the true spirit of Islam, saying that the Prophet Mohammed himself lived in harmony, side by side with Christians and Jews in Medina.

“Now the diversity of Indonesia can be seen at this small house,” Inayah said.

The letter issued by controversial Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto ordered Yasmin to move its service to a public building near the contested church, but the congregation refused to obey on the grounds that the building was not a worship venue.

“It seems that Diani Budiarto issued the letter to confront Yasmin’s congregation against those intolerant mass,” church spokesman Bona Sigalingging said.

The mayor earlier ordered the closure of the church, arguing that the founders had falsified signatures in the process to acquire a city permit.

The Supreme Court has ruled that the mayor must reopen the church, but the city government has continued to deny the congregation access to the building.

The central government has thus far failed to take a clear stance on the dispute.

Police Admit Bedouin Abuse, Abduct Young Jewish Girls

Young Bedouin woman.

Israel news photo: Flash 90

Voice of Israel radio reports growing phenomenon in Negev, with seven cases last month alone. Victims are aged 11-18.



Bedouin and other Arabs in the northern Negev are increasingly involved in predatory relationships with young Jewish girls, according to Voice of Israel government-run radio. The relationships sometimes begin as romantic involvements, often with under-aged minors, and develop into rape, abductions and abuse.
Seven victims last month alone are aged 11-18. These are only cases that were reported to police, but many others are believed to have taken place without being reported.
Complaints were filed to the police in four cases of such abductions last month in Kiryat Malachi alone, and a fifth case of rape.
Voice of Israel radio said that all four cases of abductions in Kiryat Malachi involved young Bedouin men. The rape took place on the Ashkelon beach last weekend.
In one of the abduction cases, two men from the Bedouin city of Rahat, aged 40 and 24, were arrested, but one has since been released.
In the rape case, the main suspect is a resident of the Palestinian Authority who is illegally staying inside pre-1949 Israel. He has been charged and two other Arabs who were also present at the scene of the crime face lesser charges.
Voice of Israel's reporter in southern Israel, Asaf Kuzailov, said that the phenomenon is on the rise and is a well known one – to residents, to police and welfare authorities. It is confirmed by the Center for Assistance to Women in the Negev.
Regarding the abductions, Voice of Israel interviewed Zehava Drori of NGO Yad L'Achim's Anti-Assimilation department, who said that while Arab abductions of Jewish girls occur throughout Israel, the cases in southern Israel are typified by greater violence. While the victims in other parts of Israel are usually 16 or older, the ages of the victims in the south are often lower.
Police say that they can only get involved in cases where a specific complaint has been filed, and where there is evidence of abduction and abuse. Police and welfare elements note that the cases do not necessarily start as kidnappings. Often the relationships are consensual at first, with the Arabs plying the girls with money, gifts, attention and warmth that they lack at home. In other cases, the contention is that the girls who were taken to the Arab villages later returned home, and so the men cannot be charged with abduction.
The abuse often begins at a later stage and by then it is hard to determine that the girls are not responsible for their actions, they said.
Voice of Israel reported a specific case of a girl they called Tania from Ashkelon, who fell in love with an Arab from Gaza and moved in with him. After she became pregnant she was tied up at home for days on end and beaten. This happened five years ago, and she is now back in Israel, but still suffers from trauma.
Yad L'Achim says about 1,000 cases of Jewish girls being held against their will by Arabs occur every year.
The Family Lobby, which blames a breakdown in parental -- and particularly paternal -- authority in the Jewish sector for the problem, noted that the Israeli feminist movement and women's organizations do nothing to raise public awareness of Arab predatory behavior against Jewish girls, as that would negate their leftist credo.
"While separation of buses in the hareidi sector and religious soldiers' requests to be excused from immodest performances receive top headlines for months on end, thanks to militant feminist politicians and journalists, actual rape and abduction of minor girls is swept under the rug by these groups because it is carried out by their Arab darlings," the group's chairman, Gil Ronen, said. "Unfortunately, nationalist and religious women have not made an effort to forge an independent agenda for their women's groups on this issue, and are content to be led by the ultra-leftists, who use them for bashing religious men and Jewish religion in general."

Muhyiddin says no one sidelined under BN

Muhyiddin added today national unity has been strengthened in the 54 years since independence due to BN’s power-sharing concept. — Picture by Choo Choy May

KAJANG, Dec 26 — Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin denied today the Barisan Nasional (BN) government had sidelined any group, after the Church and Malay rights group Perkasa clashed over whether Article 153 of the Constitution safeguarded the rights of all communities.

The deputy prime minister told thousands at the government’s Christmas open house here that the Najib administration “does not look at your background, religion or race” in formulating policy.

“No one is sidelined. All enjoy efforts to develop the nation,” the Umno deputy president said.

National Evangelical Christian Fellowship (NECF) chairman Reverend Dr Eu Hong Seng said on Saturday Article 153 is akin to “bullying” if it only protects the rights of one group.

But Perkasa responded by saying the Article helped keep the country peaceful, further claiming that the race riots of May 13, 1969 happened because it was not implemented properly.

“This country is peaceful because of Article 153 which protects the rights of Bumiputeras who are the majority in this country.

“The reverend needs to remember that Christians are able to practise their religion without worry in this country because of Article 153,” Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hasan Syed Ali said.

Muhyiddin added today national unity has been strengthened in the 54 years since independence due to BN’s power-sharing concept that is based on a common understanding between the various races and religions.

The Pagoh MP cited the RM2 billion to be handed out to all households earning less than RM3,000 a month under Budget 2012 as an example of “how we give equal treatment without looking at your background, race or religion.”

Article 153 states that “it shall be the responsibility of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to safeguard the special position of the Malays and natives of any of the States of Sabah and Sarawak and the legitimate interests of other communities in accordance with the provisions of this Article.”

The provision in the Federal Constitution has been repeatedly invoked by Malay right-wing groups who insist on the continuance of pro-Bumiputera affirmative action.

These include quotas in education, scholarships, business equity and employment in the public sector.

But constitutional expert Prof Abdul Aziz Bari said yesterday this meant “the King must also make sure that (safeguarding Bumiputeras) must not be done at the expense of the legitimate interests of other communities.”

Muhyiddin also said today religious leaders were welcome to air their views and suggestions for the benefit of the nation.

Ramasamy says he was misquoted, yet again

Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy is unperturbed by calls for his resignation by party supremo Karpal Singh and is instead blaming the latest brouhaha on misreporting by a national daily.

The embattled DAP deputy secretary-general, in an apparent move to settle the dispute, denied the content of a report in The Star of Dec 23 under the heading ‘DAP in distress’.

"On the morning of Dec 23, I called the reporter to express my regret about the content of the said article," Ramasamy told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

"He (the reporter) promised to put a retraction the same day on the publication's website.
However, on Dec 24, the statement was reduced to one sentence in an article headed 'DAP's Ramasamy changes his tune', he said.
'No grand design to oust me'

In the contentious article of Dec 23, Ramasamy had allegedly said that there was a plot to topple him because he did not heed requests for projects and favours from the party grassroots.

"They are now conspiring to invoke a grand design to oust me," Ramasamy was quoted saying.

This led to DAP national chairperson Karpal’s outburst, demanding Ramasamy resigns as Penang's deputy chief minister for not toeing the DAP central executive committee's (CEC) directive to refrain from making any public statement on the party or to openly attack its leaders.

"I categorically reject the allegations that I said DAP leaders were corrupt and that there was a grand design to oust me from Penang," said Ramasamy.

He explained that he had met with several reporters , including one from The Star, on Dec 21 to discuss state-related issues. However, The Star reported something else.

Adding that the content of the report was "baseless and frivolous", Ramasamy said he felt that "injustice" had been done to him.

"The last thing I want to do is to talk about internal party matters with the press," he said.

Asked if he had written to the CEC to explain the situation, Ramasamy, who is in Kuala Lumpur for a break, said that he preferred to defend himself through the media.
No problems with Karpal

"I am entitled to a clarification and that's why I arranged for this press conference."
Together with Ramasamy today, were DAP parliamentarians Charles Santiago (Klang), and M Manogaran (Teluk Intan), as well as senator S Ramakrishnan and Sungkai state assemblyperson A Sivanesan.

Just as tension was easing between Karpal and Ramasamy on the public spat over the "godfather-warlord" row, the latest Ramasamy-Karpal exchange on Christmas Eve has again cast the spotlight on infighting within the DAP.
Asked whether he was on talking terms with Karpal, Ramasamy replied: "Why not? He (Karpal) is the national party chair. I've got no problems with him... I even used to call Karpal for advice from time to time."

He also left it to the party to decide on the next course of action, keeping mum on whether he would resign as Penang deputy chief minister.

This is the second time in recent weeks that Ramasamy has blamed the media for misquoting him.

He had earlier blamed Tamil daily Makkal Osai for misquoting him, prompting the whole “godfather-warlord” row.
The daily later admitted to Ramasamy's charge that he was misquoted and published a clarification.

Pengajaran daripada Interlok

Kontroversi novel itu membuktikan kewujudan kuasa rakyat atau The Third Force yang berani menegakkan kebenaran.

COMMENT

Genap setahun sejak Raja Rajeswari Seetha Raman menghubungi saya dan meminta Kumpulan Sasterawan Kavyan (Kavyan) melakukan sesuatu untuk “menghalang” penggunaan novel Interlok Edisi Murid sebagai teks Komsas.
Malah, panggilan telefon daripadanya bermula 20 Disember 2010 memberi pengajaran berguna kepada saya supaya sentiasa berhati-hati dan berwaspada dengan musang berbulu ayam.
Setahun kemudian, pada 21 Disember 2011, Ketua Pengarah Pelajaran, Datuk Seri Abdul Ghafar Mahmud membuat pengumuman rasmi bahawa novel Interlok Edisi Murid akan digantikan semula dengan novel Konserto Terakhir sebagai teks Komsas.
Maka, saya terpanggil untuk mengimbau sebahagian daripada begitu banyak “pengajaran” yang diterima daripada pengalaman terlibat secara langsung dalam kontroversi Interlok Edisi Murid selama setahun.
Sesungguhnya tidak adil jika saya dan Kavyan tidak merakamkan penghargaan tertinggi kepada Raja Rajeswari (bukan ahli Kavyan) yang mula-mula “mengadu” kepada kami.
Katanya, kandungan novel Interlok Edisi Murid memang menghina kaum India dan agama Hindu, serta tidak sesuai dijadikan teks di sekolah.
Saya juga sedar betapa penting dan perlu menyimpan SMS, e-mel dan rakaman perbualan telefon apabila berkomunikasi dengan orang yang disyaki sanggup menikam dari belakang.
Dokumentasi seperti itu menjadi amat penting apabila ada individu tertentu yang tiba-tiba berubah pendirian 180 darjah mulai 14 Januari 2011 dan mula mengatakan novel Interlok Edisi Murid tidak sedikit pun menghina kaum India dan sangat sesuai dijadikan teks di sekolah.
Kavyan turut menyedari betapa penting menyimpan rekod dan dokumentasi bahan sebagai rujukan. Sebab itulah kami berusaha menulis serta mengumpulkan bahan berkaitan kontroversi ini dan dipaparkan di blog sejak setahun lalu demi manfaat orang ramai.
Kita perlu mengkaji sesuatu perkara secara objektif, teliti dan mendalam sebelum membuka mulut atau membuat sebarang kenyataan; atau menyatakan pendirian.
Kavyan mengkaji novel Interlok dalam versi asal selain membaca edisi pelajar (2005) dan edisi murid (2010) sebelum membuat sebarang kenyataan. Sebab itulah pendirian Kavyan sejak hari pertama (3 Januari 2011) hingga kini tetap sama.
Saya ada bertemu beberapa pihak yang hanya membaca salinan fotokopi halaman 210 dan 211 novel Interlok Edisi Murid, tetapi mahu memulakan kempen besar-besaran mendesak novel itu diharamkan.
Di pihak satu lagi, ada yang membuat pendirian tegas bahawa novel itu tidak boleh diubah walau sepatah perkataan. Apabila saya menjelaskan bahawa edisi murid dan edisi pelajar tidak sama dengan edisi asal, ada beberapa tokoh terkebil-kebil kerana mereka ternyata tidak membaca novel berkenaan sebelum ke medan perang.
Sandiwara
Saya juga sedar bahawa apabila kita berjuang bagi sesuatu yang benar, kita akan dihina, dicaci dan dipulaukan puak tertentu. Sekadar contoh, ada seorang individu yang menggunakan nama ‘Subari Ahmad’ mencadangkan menerusi Facebook supaya saya dikenakan tahanan di bawah ISA kerana bersikap anti-Melayu dan “cuba menggugat ketenteraman rakyat di negara ini”.
Kavyan bersikap objektif dan rasional dalam menangani kontroversi novel Interlok Edisi Murid. Kami mengkaji novel itu dari semua segi dan kami tegaskan sejak awal bahawa Sasterawan Negara Datuk Abdullah Hussain (Pak Lah) selaku pengarang tidak boleh dipersalahkan dalam isu ini.
Ada pihak yang mendesak dan masih menggerakkan usaha meminta novel Interlok (termasuk edisi asal) diharamkan dengan alasan kandungan novel itu bertentangan dengan ajaran agama Islam. Ada juga yang mendesak Pak Lah memohon maaf kepada kaum India.
Kavyan menerima dengan baik keputusan menggantikan Interlok Edisi Murid dengan Konserto Terakhir oleh pengarang sama berikutan kegagalan Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia (KPM) serta Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) memurnikan Interlok Edisi Murid yang dicetak semula dengan kulit biru baru-baru ini.
Saya menghubungi Datin Siti Saroja Basri (isteri Pak Lah) pada 21 Disember 2011 dan memaklumkan bahawa Kavyan akan terus memantau bagi memastikan KPM dan DBP membayar royalti bagi Interlok Kulit Merah (cetakan 2010) dan Interlok Kulit Biru (cetakan 2011) walaupun novel berkenaan ditarik balik selepas dicetak atas persetujuan dan kelulusan MIC yang berpuas hati dengan sekadar sekitar 20 peratus pemurnian.
Sementara ramai yang “unfriend” saya di Facebook sejak setahun lalu, ramai pula yang menambah saya sebagai rakan serta tampil membantu Kavyan secara sukarela dalam usaha memurnikan Interlok Edisi Murid. Kerjasama “silent majority” pelbagai kaum dan pelbagai bidang ini amat dihargai dan disanjung tinggi.
Bercakap mengenai parti politik dan politikus pula, saya amat bangga dan bersyukur kerana Kavyan sentiasa mengekalkan pendirian apolitikal serta tidak bernaung di bawah mana-mana parti politik.
Apa yang berlaku dalam kontroversi novel Interlok Edisi Murid sejak setahun lalu membuktikan bagaimana orang ramai (rakyat) boleh ditarik masuk ke dalam “sandiwara politik” yang saya namakan “Drama Paul Lathic”.
Bayangkan jika Kavyan bersikap pro-BN (termasuk UMNO dan MIC). Tentu segala kenyataan Kavyan sejak setahun lalu adalah berbaur pro-BN, pro-pemerintah, mengampu dan tentu kami tidak berani bersuara menegakkan kebenaran.
Begitu juga jika kami bersikap pro-PR. Memandangkan Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim mengatakan beliau “tidak nampak apa-apa yang rasis pun” dalam novel itu, tentu Kavyan telah berubah pendirian 180 darjah – seperti yang dilakukan seorang penulis kaum India (bukan ahli Kavyan) yang menulis dalam bahasa Melayu.
Hasil penelitian saya, tidak salah jika dikatakan bahawa kontroversi yang wujud sengaja dijadikan “sandiwara” oleh politikus tertentu dalam usaha licik memancing undi rakyat menjelang Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-13.
Kami memaafkan
Namun, percayalah! Rakyat Malaysia pada masa kini tidak mudah digula-gulakan. The damage has already been done dan tidak mudah untuk “memujuk” pengundi kembali menyokong mana-mana parti politik yang mengecewakan rakyat berulang kali.
Jadilah perubahan yang mahu anda saksikan di dunia ini. Tidak akan tercapai kebaikan sekiranya tidak ada sesiapa yang berani mengetengahkan kebenaran. Demikian antara pandangan Mahatma Gandi yang menjadi panduan dan pegangan Kavyan.
Sebagai individu yang turut dilantik menganggotai Panel Bebas Meminda Novel Interlok Edisi Murid, saya bangga dengan sikap profesional yang ditunjukkan oleh Setiausaha Satu Gapena, Profesor Datuk Zainal Abidin Borhan dan Ketua Pengarah DBP, Datuk Termuzi Abd Aziz.
Walaupun kami berbalah, berbahas, berhujah, bertikam lidah dan tidak sependapat semasa bermesyuarat, tetapi di luar Panel Bebas, kami masih berkawan dan bersalam-salaman. Itulah semangat musyawarah yang diharapkan.
Pengarah Institut Kajian Etnik, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Profesor Datuk Shamsul Amri Baharuddin turut menunjukkan sikap profesional dengan menjadi pengerusi panel yang objektif dan tidak memihak kepada sesiapa.
Kavyan memutuskan untuk tidak mendendami sesiapa. Kami bersikap simpati dan empati. Kami memahami bahawa segala tindakan memburuk-burukkan Kavyan dilakukan akibat bersikap emosional; bukan rasional. Ya, kami memaafkan.
Sepanjang kontroversi novel Interlok Edisi Murid berlangsung, orang ramai turut menjadi pemerhati dan terlibat sama. Selepas keputusan pemurnian lebih 100 perkara diumumkan Menteri Pelajaran di Dewan Rakyat pada 24 Mac 2011, orang ramai turut menjadi pemantau bagi memastikan apa yang dijanjikan itu dilaksanakan.
Maka, sudah terbukti wujud kuasa rakyat atau apa yang disebut juga sebagai “The Third Force”. Misalnya seperti Kavyan sendiri yang bersikap apolitikal tetapi berani bersuara lantang dalam isu ini untuk memastikan KPM melaksanakan apa yang dijanjikan di Dewan Rakyat.
Bagaimanapun, apabila kontroversi novel Interlok Edisi Murid selesai, timbul pula persoalan: Apakah kaum India sudah mampu mencapai mobiliti sosial? Dan apakah perpaduan dan kerjasama yang ditunjukkan oleh kaum India sejak setahun lalu akan berkekalan?
Penulis teraniaya
Knowledge is power. Atas kesedaran itulah Kavyan sentiasa mempersiapkan diri dengan ilmu dan maklumat sebelum berhujah. Malangnya, ramai yang masih bersikap “tin kosong” dan membuka mulut (atau menghantar SMS) tanpa berfikir. Kerana pulut, santan binasa. …
Bagi KPM dan DBP pula, biarlah apa yang berlaku ini dijadikan suatu “pengajaran positif” agar bersikap penuh teliti dan profesional dalam soal buku teks sekolah. Paling kurang, edit sebuah novel dengan adil dan sempurna sebelum dijadikan teks Komsas.
Sepanjang kontroversi, ada persatuan penulis tertentu dan NGO tertentu yang kecewa kerana kaum India tidak mengenali Pak Lah. Saya rasa, secara umum, masyarakat pelbagai kaum kurang mengenali para Sasterawan Negara – kecuali Datuk A. Samad Said.
Maka, bolehlah KPM, DBP, persatuan penulis tertentu dan NGO terbabit menggerakkan usaha mempromosi Sasterawan Negara dan karya mereka kepada masyarakat pelbagai kaum. Kalau bukan sekarang, bila lagi? Tentu sahaja Kavyan sedia membantu.
Malah, sejak kontroversi ini timbul, para Sasterawan Negara mula tampil mengeluarkan “kenyataan bersama” berhubung isu bahasa dan sastera. Nah! Bukankah ini suatu keajaiban yang wajar dilihat sebagai hikmah?
Penglibatan Kavyan dalam isu ini sejak setahun lalu juga “membantu” orang ramai memahami dan menyedari pendirian, ketegasan serta keikhlasan kami.
Selepas ini, Kavyan akan menumpukan pula perhatian pada usaha membantu empat penulis yang dinafikan hak royalti bagi karya mereka yang dijadikan teks Komsas. Kebetulan, sekali lagi melibatkan kementerian yang sama!
Semoga “The Third Force” akan terus bersama-sama Kavyan dan “empat penulis teraniaya” dalam usaha murni ini yang juga dikatakan melawan arus.
Uthaya Sankar SB merupakan bekas pelajar SRK Convent Aulong, SM Darul Ridwan dan SM King Edward VII, Taiping. Koleksi bahan berkaitan Interlok Edisi Murid boleh dibaca di www.uthayasb.blogspot.com

Perkasa kecam pemimpin gereja kerana persoal perlembagaan

"Nampaknya serangan terhadap Artikel 153 sudah di tahap kemuncak apabila ketua agama lain juga mempersoalkannya," kata Setiausaha Agung, Syed Hasan Syed Ali.

PETALING JAYA: Perkasa mengecam pemimpin tinggi Gereja National Evangelical Christian Fellowship (NECF) Rev Dr Eu Hong Eng kerana mempersoalkan perlembagaan persekutuan.

Dr Eu dilaporkan sebagai berkata, Artikel 153 perlembagaan persekutuan seperti membuli jika hanya melindungi hak satu kaum sahaja.

Beliau berkata demikian dalam majlis jamuan teh Krismas yang turut dihadiri Menteri Jabatan Perdana Menteri Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim dan isterinya Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Ismail serta beberapa ahli politik BN dan Pakatan Rakyat .

Perkasa berpendapat paderi tersebut tidak faham apa Artikel 153 perlembagaan negara atau sengaja mahu menimbulkan ketegangan.

Setiausaha Agung, Syed Hasan Syed Ali berkata, imam Islam tidak pernah mengusik perlembagaan negara.

“Nampaknya serangan terhadap Artikel 153 sudah di tahap kemuncak apabila ketua agama lain juga mempersoalkannya.

“Lebih sedih ianya dipersoalkan dalam gereja oleh paderi,” katanya dalam kenyataan hari ini.

Fasa 153

Syed Hasan berkata, perkara begini tidak pernah berlaku dalam ucapan atau khutbah solat Aidilfitri mahupun Aidiladha.

Katanya, paderi sepatutnya menyampaikan ucapan yang sihat sesuai pada hari perayaan penganut Kristian dengan mengajak semua ke arah keharmonian bukan menegangkan suasana.

Beliau berkata, paderi itu perlu ingat mereka peganut Kristian boleh mengamalkan agama mereka tanpa ada rasa bimbang dalam negara ini kerana adanya Artikel 153.

“Negara ini aman kerana adanya Artikel 153 yang menjamin kepentingan kaum Bumiputera penduduk majoriti.

“Jika tiada Artikel 153 pastinya akan ada ketegangan. Peristiwa 13 Mei 1969 juga adalah berpunca dari Artikel 153 tidak dipratik dengan baik dan tegas,” tambahnya.

God versus religion

The Abrahamic faiths all believe that there is only one God. That makes it easy. However, there are three Abrahamic faiths and many more branches and sub-branches of these three faiths. And each of these faiths, branches and sub-branches claims that it is the only true faith and that all the others are false. That makes it complicating.
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Just a short ‘Boxing Day’ note to assure you that I am still around.

“Is it rational to believe in God?” asks Giovanni Serritella, which was published in Harakah, the party organ of PAS. You can read the article here: http://en.harakah.net.my/index.php/articles/depth/4048-is-it-rational-to-believe-in-god.html

The world has always addressed this matter as a theist versus atheist issue. You believe in the existence of God or you do not. However, it is not as simple as that. And because they have allowed very narrow parameters to the discussion it falls into a mere ‘yes’ or ‘no’ exercise.

I would like to introduce a new word, religionist, so that I can break the two groups into three (theists, religionists and atheists).

What I mean here is: there is one group that believes in the existence of God, another that does not, and a third that believes in the existence of God but not in religion. Once we expand the two groups into three it becomes easier to discuss the issue.

And this is where the religionists have been very devious. They not only reduce the groupings to two (theist and atheist) but they also tie the belief in God to the belief in religion. In other words, to believe in God you must also believe in religion.

Hence you must believe in the Trinity, that the road to salvation is through Christ and therefore you must accept Christ, or that Muhammad is the last Prophet and only by following Prophet Muhammad will you be ensured paradise, and so on. You are not allowed to believe in God independently. The belief in God must be packaged and tied to the belief in a religious doctrine. To reject this doctrine means you also reject God.

The Abrahamic faiths all believe that there is only one God. That makes it easy. However, there are three Abrahamic faiths and many more branches and sub-branches of these three faiths. And each of these faiths, branches and sub-branches claims that it is the only true faith and that all the others are false. That makes it complicating.

If we reduce everything to just the belief in God then it makes life very simple. Only when the belief in God also involves the belief in religion and you are not allowed to believe in God without also believing in one of the so many religions does it make our life messy.

Granted, you may believe that God exists and that the universe (and everything within it) was created by God. The question now would be: but was religion also created by God or was this an invention of humankind? God can exist because there is only one God. But how can there be so many religions if they were from God?

Well, we can talk more of this later if you wish.

Kit Siang reins in Kulasegaran, Nga

(The Star) - DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang has stepped in to calm the simmering feud between its party vice-chairman and Perak DAP secretary.

In a tweet Monday, the veteran leader issued a gag order on M. Kulasegaran and Nga Kor Ming.

"Both Kula n Nga agree int(internal). party channels x (not) BN msm (mainstream media) 1st resort 4thrashing out matters affecting party leaders," he said.

"Nga 2explain 2party leadership," he added.

The war of words between the Ipoh Barat MP and Nga started after Kulasegaran urged the Pantai Remis assemblyman to come clean over his alleged involvement in awarding a tailoring contract to his wife during Pakatan Rakyat's rule in 2008.

Kulasegaran had reportedly said business and politics did not mix and one should not enter politics to make money.

Meanwhile, Nga, in his blog, said he respected the party's directive and thus would refrain from commenting on the issue.

"I shall leave it to the party's leaders and members to judge his (Kulasegaran) conduct," he said.

In his tweet, Kulasegaran defended his action of calling Nga to come clean over the tailoring contract.

"I made no allegation/accusation. Unfortunately my comments misinterpreted as internal problems/ bad blood," he said.

"Many members/supporters also talked about it. They wanted answers too. So I said Nga should come clean - to explain," he added.

The Tragedy of Nepal's Badi Women

Nepal's lowest caste say prostitution is all they know
Four years ago, Taruna Badi, 38, a member of the Badi community, one of the most marginalized groups in Nepal, thought her days of prostitution were over.

In 2007, she and dozens of other Badi women travelled from Kailali, a district in the far west of Nepal, to the capital Kathmandu, located across the country, to join in protests by Badi activists seeking government help to lower longstanding economic and social barriers. For many women, this meant coming up with alternatives to prostitution.

The government agreed to study the Badis' situation and to provide aid in the form of land grants, employment training, free education for Badi children, health services, citizenship with the caste of their choice, and a declaration of the end of prostitution within the community.

That was then. Today, many of the Badi women say they've barely received any support and have gone back to the only work available to them.

"What else to do?" Taruna asked in desperation. "Prostitution is the only means of earning so far for us." Badi women say they earn between 70 cents and $2.75 for a sexual encounter.

To assess the situation, Binod Pahadi, who has travelled across the region as the member of a government group, concurs with Taruna's account of the administration's failure to uphold its agreement with the Badi community. "We roamed across [the] nation," Pahadi said. "Nowhere is it implemented."

Taruna says Badi women need government help because of their lack of education and inferior social status. A government study estimates the Badi population at just more than 8,000, almost all of whom live in the western part of the country. Nepal's 1853 civil code categorized the Badi community as the lowest among the socially and economically disadvantaged Dalit caste.

"We haven't had education and hence can't get any work," Taruna explains. "If we try to start a business with the help of loans, customers ostracize our establishments on the grounds that they are run by 'untouchable' Dalits. What is an alternative then for means of survival?"

Food is a necessity, she adds. "Children need to be fed," she says. "There is [not] another source of income. This is the only source of income for us."

Few Badi people own land. They live instead in rented cottages by the roadside, on riverbanks and on the forest edges. Maya Badi, 32, from Doti, another western district, says she left prostitution after the 2007 protests but has since returned to it.

"We have no wealth or property and a family of eight to feed," she says. "It was all right when government and non-governmental organizations had provided aid [in the form of stipends]. [But once that ceased] we have to see to our own survival."

Now men have once again started queuing outside the houses of Taruna, Maya and their female neighbors. Mina Badi, 24, Maya's neighbor, says she has returned to the work and has stopped finding prostitution difficult or uncomfortable. "What is the use of shame?" she asks.

She says that since her parents live with her, she goes out into the village to look for customers. "My parents are old," she says. "Therefore, I roam in the village the entire day, eat out and return in the evening."

Various local governmental and non-governmental organizations in the Badi-inhabited regions have banned prostitution, which nonetheless has been openly practiced for the past five decades. Nirmala Nepali, a member of both the National Badi Rights Struggle Committee and a government committee formed after the 2007 protest to assess Badi rights, says women get around this by going to other villages without such restrictions.

In the absence of other employment opportunities, Maya says the ban worsens women's lives by making it harder to earn any living. "The state had agreed to rehabilitate the Badi community and provide employment, but these assurances have been limited to paper alone, and the flesh trade flourishes once more in almost all the Badi-inhabited areas," says CB Rana, another member of the National Badi Rights Struggle Committee.

A number of NGO groups have been advocating for Badi rights. One such group, Save the Children Norway, a child's rights advocacy and development assistance organization, has been working to carry out the government's free education initiative for Badi children.

Some say that although tuition may be waived, some institutions are still making it hard for Badi children to attend school because they charge fees for integral programs such as sports and using the library.

Non-Badi women's rights activists have also spoken up. Both Mira Dhungana, a lawyer, and Mina Sharma, a women's rights activist, urge the government to fulfill its 2007 promise. Sharma says that if there is no action soon, women's rights activists will get more actively involved.

"No woman joins the flesh trade out of mere choice alone," Sharma says. "If the government does not provide the opportunity for Badi women to lead honorable lives like any other Nepali citizen and make necessary employment arrangements for them, we, all women['s] rights activists, are ready to actively engage in a renewed protest movement for them."

By arrangement with Women's eNews. For original story, log on here.

Mahasiswa perlu tegas perjuang hak rakyat- Anwar

(Oleh: Sidiqin Omar)
KUALA LUMPUR 23 Dis:  Mahasiswa perlu tegas, bebas dan lantang memperjuangkan hak rakyat, menegur pemimpin yang rasuah serta salahguna kuasa, kata Ketua Umum KEADILAN, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim
Bercakap di depan kira-kira 100 hadirin pada sesi ‘Dialog Anak Muda Bersama Anwar Ibrahim’ di kediamannya malam tadi, Anwar memulakan bicaranya dengan membacakan sajak terkenal Taufik Ismail, bertajuk ‘Takut 66, Takut 98′.
“Saya mula aktif dalam gerakan mahasiswa, dan biasa dengan demonstrasi. Justeru, gunakan sebaiknya era mahasiswa itu untuk menyatakan yang benar.
“Kamu boleh tidak bersetuju dengan (perdana menteri) Najib. Kamu juga boleh tidak bersetuju dengan Anwar. Tidak salah berhujah dan melawan dengan fakta,”  kata Anwar, pemimpin mahasiswa yang ditahan selama dua tahun di bawah Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISA) kerana menyokong mogok petani miskin di Baling, Kedah pada 1974.
Menurut Anwar, berbanding Datuk Seri Najib Razak, bapanya lebih bersikap terbuka dengan tuntutan mahasiswa ketika menjadi Perdana Menteri.
Tun  Abdul Razak  kerap mengadakan pertemuan bersama mahasiswa, menjamu mereka dan berbincang di kediaman rasmi Perdana Menteri, sedangkan pada siangnya mahasiswa berdemonstrasi di tengah ibu kota.
“Manakala mahasiswa berani dan bersedia untuk bertanya (kepada pimpinan negara),” kata Anwar mengimbau zaman sebagai pemimpin pelajar.
Merujuk tuntutan memansuhkan Akta Universiti dan Kolej Universiti (AUKU) dan kes pelajar Adam Adli- Anwar berkata kerajaan hari ini gagal mendengar pandangan mahasiswa, apabila ugutan pihak tertentu terhadap gerakan itu dan isu yang dibangkitkan mereka dipandang sepi.
“Mereka memperbodohkan kritikan (mahasiswa). Sedangkan mahasiswa ialah pemangkin untuk memecahkan permasalahan. Ketika saya menjadi Menteri Pendidikan, tanpa gagal setiap tahun saya pusing setiap kampus di seluruh negara,” katanya.
Beliau memberikan contoh,  ‘Great Economic Debate’ yang dianjurkan mahasiswa di Universiti Malaya selama tiga malam sebagai acara debat tahunan pada zamannya, kini tidak lagi diteruskan.
“Ribuan hadir. Ada wakil (mahasiswa penyokong) kerajaan, ada wakil pembangkang dan ada wakil akademik. Kenapa sekarang tidak boleh? Itu  (budaya) yang mesti kita kembalikan,” katanya.
Short URL: http://www.keadilandaily.com/?p=24738

Global economic crisis: In denial mode?

Somehow the government appears to think that the effects of the global economic crisis will have minimal effects on the local economy. Is it in denial mode?
This article by Dr Jeyakumar published by Aliran might prompt the government to think again about and be better prepared for any shockwaves next year.