Najib on 'panic visit' to Felda

By Zefry Dahalan - Free Malaysia Today

BANDAR BARU SERTING: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is purportedly on a mission – he will be visiting the settlers in Felda Serting and Felda Raja Alias tonight. He would also be attending a “buka puasa” event near the Bandar Baru Serting mosque.

According to Jempol PKR chief Karip Mohd Salleh, this was a panic visit to diffuse the anger among the settlers who sued the Felda management on Aug 9.

"I learnt from the settlers that Najib will be handing over a mock checque to their representative for their Hari Raya bonus. Up to now, he had no time to listen to their grouses. Suddenly he is projecting himself as a caring PM.

“But we, the Felda settlers, are not stupid to fall for such cheap antics. We won't withdraw our legal suit,” added Karip, who led the 766 settlers in filing the suit.

He had represented the settlers from Felda Serting Hilir Kompleks 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7 from Air Hitam, Jempol and also from Felda Raja Alias 1, 2, 3 and 4 from Serting, Jempol.

Karip said he expected Najib to make a sweet speech in an attempt to pacifiy the settlers but added that he would not be successful, especially with the latest bombshell dropped by the Federal Court.

The apex court had ruled today that Felda must pay RM11 million to the 354 Felda settlers from Felda Kemahang 3 in Kelantan.

Sivarasa's challenge

PKR vice-president R Sivarasa, who is representing the 766 settlers, said Najib must take this opportunity to advice Felda to stop shortchanging the settlers.

"If he is sincere, I challenge him to direct Felda to pay the settlers the actual oil palm extraction grade (Kadar Perahan Gred or KPG),” he said.

Meanwhile, PKR infomation chief Latheefa Koya described Najib's scheduled visit to Felda Serting as a desperate attempt to win back the settlers' support.

"Why all of sudden he wants to go to Serting when all this while he never had the time to listen to their complaints.

"What is Najib going to give the settlers as Hari Raya bonus is nothing to shout about as that money belongs to the Felda settlers,” she said.

Who says so?

They distort everything and give people the impression that Islam is such a stupid religion. If they say something and say that this is their personal opinion it would not be so bad. But when they say that this is what Islam asks us to do then they make Islam look really stupid. Then we get upset when people make fun of or ridicule Islam.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

All sermon readers must pray for wellbeing of Agong, rulers and people

All khatib or sermon readers in the country have been told to pray for the wellbeing of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the rulers and people in the “doa” after the Friday sermons.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom said, the action of a khatib in Penang of replacing Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin’s name with Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s in the “doa khutbah” was therefore inappropriate.

“Let’s not take advantage of that (sermon) by praying for other than the respective rulers or sultans and Muslims as stipulated,” he told reporters at a Tabung Haji breaking-of-fast function, here, tonight.

“If all the ‘tok imam’ want to pray for the local leaders, confusion will arise among Muslims when the mosque is supposed to be a place for unifying the Muslim community.”

Jamil Khir was commenting on the controversial use of Lim’s name, replacing the King’s, after Friday sermons at some mosques in Penang recently.

He said it was not wrong to pray for a particular person so as to receive divine blessings but not through the Friday sermons.

“We should understand the long-standing ruling, and no one will get angry if you want to go home and pray for someone. It’s up to you.”

He urged all khatib in the country to preserve harmony and be mindful of the sensitivities of the local community who belong to different political parties and have different ideologies and beliefs, when delivering the sermons. – Bernama

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Jamil Khir: Nurul Izzah has sinned by tarnishing country's image

Those who tarnish their country's image with the aim of causing turmoil are regarded to have sinned, says Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom.

"We should love our country and be prepared to defend it, as defending our own country is a 'jihad' (holy war) which carries a big divine reward. Hence, if the reward is big (for such a 'jihad'), it is also a big sin for one to tarnish one's own country's image and honour to cause upheaval in the country," he told reporters after handing over Raya contribution from the Federal Territory Islamic Religious Council (MAIWP) for patients and certain hospitals in the Klang Valley, today.

He was earlier asked to comment on media reports that Lembah Pantai member of parliament Nurul Izzah Anwar had allegedly said things that had tarnished the country's image and reputation in an interview with an Indonesian newspaper recently.

She was alleged to have made inaccurate statements about the New Economic Policy and had belittled the capability of the country's submarines. – Bernama

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The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom, appears to be much in the news nowadays. Unfortunately, in both instances as reported by Bernama above, Jamil Khir is wrong on both counts.

Before that, allow me to digress a bit and take you back to a time about 20 years or so ago when I made one of my pilgrimages to Mekah (I think I probably made about ten or so trips in all).

About a dozen or so friends were at the house to send me off, as is customary for Malays who are about to make the pilgrimage. All these friends have not yet made the pilgrimage and it is believed that if we were to mention their names and ‘summon’ them while on Mount Arafah (Jable Rehmat) then God would bless them with a pilgrimage.

I asked these friends for their full names and reminded them to also list down their identity cards numbers. After all, I said, with one billion Muslims and hundreds of thousands having the same name (such as Muhammad Abdullah) we must ensure that God knows exactly who I am praying for. So the identity card numbers against their names will guarantee that God would know exactly who I am ‘summoning’ to Mekah.

To my amusement they did just that. They wrote down all their names with their identity cards numbers and gave me the list. They of course did not realise I was just pulling their legs.

If God is who we say He is then we really do not need to list down their names with birth certificate numbers and identity cards numbers. God will not get confused and will know whom we are praying for. Need I also carry their photographs in my pocket to ensure that my prayers do not get diverted to the wrong person?

Now, on the matter raised by Minister Jamil Khir, it is not compulsory for the imam to mention the Agong’s, Sultan’s, Prime Minister’s, etc., names in the Friday prayer sermons (kutbah). There is nothing in the Quran that says this is compulsory. You can do so if you wish. But it is no sin if you do not do so and neither does it violate Islam.

The way the Minister is talking, however, is as if this is the law (Islamic law) and the Minister’s statement is probably going to confuse not only the non-Muslims but the Muslims as well. The Minister is either ignorant of Islam -- as most Umno Ministers are -- or else he is trying to mislead the people.

If the imam were to just pray, “Oh Lord, please bless all our leaders and guide them to the right path and open their hearts so that they steer clear of sin and injustice and rule this country with justice and fairness…..etc.,” that is good enough.

Are we adding to what even the Prophet Muhammad himself did? In the Prophet’s last sermon in Arafah just before he died, this is what the Prophet said:

“All mankind is from Adam and Eve. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over black nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety and good action.

Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood. Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly. Do not, therefore, do injustice to yourselves.

Remember, one day you will appear before ALLAH and answer your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.

All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly. Be my witness, O ALLAH, that I have conveyed your message to your people."

Did the Prophet pray for anyone specifically or mention anyone by name? Were the names of kings, emperors, rulers or leaders mentioned in the Prophet’s sermon?

What the Prophet did say, however, is that Islam forbids Ketuanan Melayu because all mankind comes from Adam and Eve and no race has superiority over others. Why are the imams not emulating the Prophet by including this in their Friday sermons?

The Prophet also said, “Remember, one day you will appear before ALLAH and answer your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.” Why are the imams not including this in their Friday sermons?

Instead of praying for the rulers/leaders, like what the government has decreed, the imams should remind them, like what the Prophet did, to “not stray from the path of righteousness”, and to remind them, like what the Prophet did, that “one day you will appear before ALLAH and answer your deeds.”

It is perplexing that Malays foam at the mouth to ‘uphold the dignity of the Prophet’s name’ but they refuse to follow the simple instructions that the Prophet gave them.

“All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again…,” said the Prophet. But the imams are not doing this so I shall have to do it.

Okay, now to the next news item from Bernama about what Jamil Khir said, “Nurul Izzah has sinned by tarnishing the country's image.”

Again, either Jamil Khir is ignorant about Islam or he is trying to mislead the people. Islam says that ‘amar makruf, nahi munkar’ is compulsory. So, if the country allows or perpetuates misdeeds, transgressions, injustice, corruption, persecution, racism, abuse of power, mismanagement of the taxpayers’ money, and so on, then it is our Islamic duty to speak out against it. In fact, speaking out alone is not good enough as far as Islam is concerned. We must oppose it not only with our mouth but also with our hands, says Islam -- in short, with force.

So what is this Jamil Khir talking about? Nurul Izzah has not sinned, as he says, for exposing the wrongdoings of the government. In fact, it is the opposite. Nurul Izzah would have sinned if she keeps silent. By speaking out, this means Nurul Izzah is a perfect Muslim, not a sinner.

Aiyah, sometimes I wonder where these people gained their religious knowledge from. They distort everything and give people the impression that Islam is such a stupid religion. If they say something and say that this is their personal opinion it would not be so bad. But when they say that this is what Islam asks us to do then they make Islam look really stupid. Then we get upset when people make fun of or ridicule Islam.

PAS can't implement hudud laws on its own: Zaid

(The Star) - KOTA BARU: PAS will never realise its dreams of implementing hudud laws because it does not have enough seats to do so on its own, said PKR strategic coordinator Datuk Zaid Ibrahim.

PAS, he said, would need cooperation from other opposition parties before it could implement the Islamic law, but PKR and DAP did not share similar aspirations.

However, Zaid, who is also the Federal Territory PKR chairman, said everything was possible if the opposition alliance managed to wrest power from Barisan Nasional.

If that happened, he said, Pakatan Rakyat member parties could come up with a reasonable compromise on the matter.

"This matter has to be thrashed out to find an amicable solution. But in the end, it is the people who would decide what sort of system they would want the Government to adopt.

"As far as I am concerned, the Federal Constitution is very important to decide on the political landscape," Zaid told reporters Thursday after handing RM200 to 150 poor people in Pengkalan Chepa, here.

Pakatan, he said, has to control the Government before it could even think of changing the Federal Constitution, and even then it would not be easy.

"What am trying to emphasise is that Pakatan has to win in the next general election first and we will take it from there," he added.

What is the worth of a man, if not his word?

By Haris Ibrahim,

“It is one of (PKR’s) key objectives to restore the dignity and position of Sabah and Sarawak and uplift from poverty its diverse peoples. I therefore urge all parties to turn the page on divisiveness, pettiness and work together with a renewed commitment to unity and justice” – Anwar Ibrahim, making known that the PKR leadership crisis in Sabah had been resolved, as reported in Malaysiakini on 14th December, last year.

What Anwar did not then say to the press was that part of the peace deal brokered was that no action was to be taken against the party members involved in the application to register a new party, Parti Cinta Sabah, on condition that the application was withdrawn.

FreeMalaysiaToday alluded to this HERE.

I, too, did, in my ‘…who will now kick UMNO out of Anwar?’ post.

There has been no official response by PKR to deny this.

And Anwar, too, chooses to remain silent.

Why?

Does it end there?

No!

Malaysiakini reports today that PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution issued a media statement today announcing that the disciplinary committee that heard the 12 Sabah PKR divisional leaders yesterday in relation to show cause notices issued, have found all guilty of being involved in the application to form Parti Cinta Sabah and has recommended that each be suspended for one year.

Have Anwar, and by default, Azmin, just lynched Jeffrey’s knights?

Why?

Again and again I keep hearing that Jeffery is being neutralised to allow the Muslim factor led by Ansari to hold sway in Sabah.

If this is not so, and if there are more cogent reasons why Jeffery should not lead in Sabah, is this not the time to make the same known, rather than allow these unsettling concerns to go unchecked?

Is this what Anwar meant by restoring “the dignity and position of Sabah and Sarawak” and turning “the page on divisiveness, pettiness and work together with a renewed commitment to unity and justice”?

And is this perhaps what we are to expect of the many promises Anwar has laid at our door?

Peddling fear and distrust, Harussani-style

By Deborah Loh | The Nut Graph

”Saya dimaklumkan sekarang sudah ada perlembagaan baru yang dibuat oleh pihak tertentu.

”Kebetulan saya ada memberi satu ceramah di Alor Setar. Ada seseorang datang dan memberikan saya tiga buah buku Perlembagaan yang dikehendaki pihak tertentu.”

PERAK mufti Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria, alleging that a new constitution is being drafted which will deny Malay Malaysians and Islam their special positions. He offered no proof, but claimed that someone gave him three copies of the supposed document. Harussani made his revelation while speaking as a panelist at a forum on Malay Malaysian unity and the erosion of their constitutional privileges. After the session, however, he declined to elaborate on his allegations when approached by reporters. (Source: Harussani dedah kewujudan ‘perlembagaan baru’, Utusan Malaysia, 16 Aug 2010)

“Saya tahu siapa, parti politik mana terlibat dalam menubuhkan perlembagaan baru itu. Tetapi saya tidak akan dedahkan, biarlah sekadar memberitahu terdapat kegiatan pihak tertentu untuk mewujudkan perlembagaan baru menggantikan Perlembagaan Persekutuan.

“Sekiranya didedahkan kesannya terlalu besar sehingga boleh mencetuskan peperangan besar di negara ini.”

The day after making his revelation about a new constitution that would erode the position of Malay Malaysians and Islam in the country, Harussani said he knew the political party involved but refused to disclose it. He said this was to avoid a war in the country. He added that he would only name the political party if the government asked him to do so. (Source:‘Elak perang besar’, Utusan Malaysia, 17 Aug 2010)

“In the first place, it is not an offence to desire to change the constitution. What can you charge that person with?”

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz, rubbishing Harussani’s claim as “coffee-shop talk”. Nazri said any attempt to change the Federal Constitution would first have to be tabled as a motion in Parliament, and he, as the minister in charge of parliamentary affairs, would have to know about it.

Nazri dismissed the possibility of such a thing happening because the Barisan Nasional currently held the majority of seats in Parliament. He added that police should not waste time investigating Harussani’s claim. However, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassanhas said that police would check the claim. (Source: ‘New Constitution’ claim is coffee-shop talk, says Nazri, The Star, 20 Aug 2010)

“It was never my intention to create chaos. As the mufti (Muslim scholar who interprets syariah laws), I have the responsibility to remind Muslims of the threats facing Islam today … I was only carrying out my duty as a mufti to inform the necessary people of the supposed baptism.”

Harussani, explaining why he raised the allegation that Muslims who had converted to Christianity were to be baptised en masse at a church on Jalan Silibin in Ipoh on 5 Nov 2006. He first spoke about it at a private meeting and said he did not expect what he said to spread. He also said the originator of the claim was a woman who had sent him a text message and later came to his house.

The SMS that circulated resulted in angry Muslims protesting outside the church on the day of the supposed baptism. However, the event turned out to be the first Holy Communion for Catholic children, and the claim that Muslims were being baptised turned out to be false. A woman and her husband were later detained in connection with the text message. (Source:‘Baptism’ message started by woman, claims Perak Mufti, The Star, 13 Nov 2006)

Kakitangan Kerajaan Selangor Terima Bantuan Khas Hari Raya Sebanyak RM500

KENYATAAN AKHBAR

26 OGOS 2010

KAKITANGAN KERAJAAN SELANGOR TERIMA BANTUAN KHAS HARI RAYA SEBANYAK RM500

Kakitangan Kerajaan Negeri Selangor akan menerima bayaran Bantuan Khas Hari Raya sebanyak RM500 sebagai persediaan untuk menyambut Hari Raya Aidilfitri bulan depan.

Menteri Besar, YAB Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim berkata bayaran Bantuan Khas Hari Raya ini akan dibayar sebelum 1 Syawal kepada semua kakitangan Kerajaan Negeri kecuali kakitangan Gred JUSA ke atas.

Seramai 9,089 kakitangan awam akan mendapat manfaat daripada keputusan ini yang melibatkan kos pembayaran sebanyak RM4.5 juta.

Selain itu, Kerajaan Negeri juga telah memperuntukkan bayaran khas sebanyak RM250 kepada 5,297 guru Kelas Agama dan Fadhu Ain (KAFA) yang akan melibatkan pembayaran sebanyak RM1.3 juta.

Menteri Besar berharap bantuan Hari Raya ini dapat meringankan beban kakitangan awam untuk membuat persiapan menyambut Aidilfitri terutama mereka yang mempunyai ahli keluarga yang ramai.

Menteri Besar juga menasihatkan kakitangan awam dan guru KAFA supaya bersederhana dalam segala hal dan berbelanja secara berhemah mengikut kemampuan serta keperluan.

SEKRETARIAT AKHBAR
PEJABAT DATO’ MENTERI BESAR SELANGOR

Sarawak Chieftain's US$1 Dollar Mansion

(Asia Sentinel) We've heard of falling housing markets, but this seems extreme The Sarawak Report, (http://sarawakreport.org/) an NGO based in the east Malaysian state, has uncovered exhaustive evidence that the chief minister, Abdul Taib Mahmud, has looted Sarawak of hundreds of millions of US dollars and hidden the wealth in Canada, the UK, Australia and the United States. It now has found indications that Taib may have received a US$7 million home from a timber company which depended on Taib for a license to harvest timber. Asia Sentinel is pleased to print the latest of the Sarawak Report's examinations of the Taib family's wealth. Abdul Taib Mahmud, the chief minister of the Malaysian state of Sarawak, appears to have acquired a Seattle, Washington, mansion valued at nearly US$7 million from one of his state's biggest timber barons for just US$1, records in the United States say, according to the NGO, Sarawak Report. Taib has controlled the issuance of timber licenses in Sarawak for the past 30 years. The Seattle property, which covers 26,000 square feet in one of the most prestigious areas of the northwestern US city, was passed to a company owned by Taib in 1991 by a California corporation called CSY Investments, set up in 1988. CSY acquired the property in 1991 and then registered it under subsidiary company called WA Boylston Inc. CSY are the initials of Chee S Yaw, who signs himself as the company's president in documents publicly available at the King County Land Registry. Yaw is one of the younger sons of Yaw Teck Seng, founder of the massive logging conglomerate Samling Global. Yaw Teck Seng is regularly featured in Forbes Asia's Rich List of Malaysia's top 40 richest individuals, as does his eldest son, Yaw Chee Ming, establishing them one of the richest families in Asia. Details of a very nice property Described as a "Top Grade Mansion" in 'very good' condition by the King County Department of Assessments, the property was valued at more than US$6.8 million in 2008. It has 6 bedrooms and 5 main bathrooms and an enormous living space of 9,020 square feet, plus a basement of 2,120 square feet. The house is surrounded by a large open porch and there is a big basement garage for the car-loving Taib family, plus a second, attached garage. The mansion is surrounded by gardens kept in manicured condition on grounds totaling 26,172 square feet. Mysterious acquisition The property, registered under the company W A Boylston Inc (California), has been in the possession of the Taib family since the early to mid-1990s. Family portraits of the chief minister, his deceased wife and four sons and daughters as small children adorn the elaborate rooms. They have all spent time in the mansion, which is not occupied by anyone else. The property forms part of the family's Sakti International Corporation, incorporated in California and managed by Hisham (Sean) Murray, Taib's son-in-law, out of his offices at 333 Preston Street, Ontario, Canada. However, there is confusion in the Seattle public records as to how the property passed to the Taibs. Sarawak Report has been unable to obtain any clear record of the transfer from one owner to another or, importantly, the register of any payment that would normally be eligible for taxation. We have requested a statement from the Taibs to explain the situation. 'Unethical' Earlier this week Samling made international headlines when the Norwegian Government Pension Fund withdrew all investments after condemning the company as 'unethical', owing to illegal logging and environmental devastation in Sarawak. Taib's control over the issuance of Sarawak's timber licenses leaves clear questions over his incentives for favoring such a company. It is no secret that Samling has based its business success on achieving numerous logging concessions in Sarawak. Over the period of the chief minister's rule, companies operating under his licenses have razed virtually all Sarawak's virgin forest, much of it taken without compensation from the indigenous peoples who had been granted these territories under Native Customary Land Rights. Samling is one of the main companies involved in this destruction and it has used its base in Sarawak to launch similar logging operations in the Congo, Amazon, Russia and elsewhere, many of which have been heavily criticized by concerned NGOs across the world. The US $1 Sale How and why did the chief minister come by a mansion formerly owned by Samling? The only official record available of a transfer of the property in the King County Land Registry from CSY is the granting of a so-called Quit Claim Deed for just US$1. The transaction on 19th September 1991 placed the property into the subsidiary company W A Boylston Inc, incorporated a few days earlier on September 5th by CSY at its registered address, 2260 Douglas Boulevard, Roseville, California, which was the headquarters of CSY. CSY and Boylston then immediately filed a joint letter to the King County Real Estate and Excise Tax Department declaring 'under penalty of perjury' that W A Boylston was a wholly-owned subsidiary of CSY Investments, thereby making the Quit Claim transaction exempt from excise tax. However, our investigations have shown that there is no subsequent record in the Land Registry of the later transfer of ownership of W A Boylston from CSY (Samling) to the Taibs. According to rules published by King County such a transfer would normally require the payment of thousands of dollars of excise tax. Proof of Taib ownership Despite the lack of open records, Sarawak Report is able to confirm that there is definitive proof that the Taibs did take over the property from Samling's CSY. In fact they took up residence as the effective owners not long after the property was placed in the hands of the CSY subsidiary W. A. Boylston. Rahman Taib had an insurance assessment drawn up in 1996 (see above). Furthermore, a significant alteration was made to the company's official address and official representative in 2000. In that year W A Boylston's annual Statement by a Domestic Stock Corporation to the State of California noted a change of address to that of the headquarters of Sakti International (the property company, which Sarawak Report has recently proved to be majority owned by the chief minister). Likewise, the company representative was altered from a CSY official to Rahman Taib, the Chief Minister's younger son. How much did it cost? Taib's salary as chief minister of the state of Sarawak is about RM50,000 (US$15,900) per month. If he had bought the Seattle home, the cost would have been about US$3 million at the time to purchase it from Samling. If he acquired it for US$1, there could well be tax implications for Samling and Taib in the states of California and Washington as well as the federal government. There is a second Seattle Mansion! If the Boylston mansion was indeed a 'gift' from Samling to the Chief Minister, then one cannot expect such a thing to be done by halves. Indeed, a second, equally gracious and prestigious mansion has also found its way from the Yaws to the Taibs in Seattle, by what would appear to be exactly the same route. W. A. Everett Inc 2222 Everett Avenue East, worth $2,854,000 at its peak value in 2008, was also originally purchased by the Yaws. It was then registered under another California corporation, W A Everett Inc, set up on the same day as W A Boylston (5th September 1991). W. A. Everett Inc is likewise listed as a subsidiary of CSY in the King County Land Registry. This mansion also ended up in the hands of the Taibs. The property is smaller, with four bedrooms and bathrooms, but has famously sought after views over the City. Sarawak Report understands that the Taibs have mainly rented it out over the past two decades, but as with Boylston, the only information about a transfer of ownership of the company from Samling to the Taibs comes with an identical change of address and officers in 2000, from the CSY address in Roseville to Rahman Taib, at Sakti International's Headquarters in San Francisco. This leaves many questions about how the Taibs have acquired their wealth and property.

Stand up and be counted, Malaysia

By Azmi Sharom | Brave New World

It is strange that in the 21st century, we are still having to face the problem of institutionalised racism.

OVER the past week or so, there have been some developments in our country which are more disturbing than usual.

In particular, the two cases of alleged racist remarks by school heads; the accusations that Penang mosques have replaced the Yang di-Pertuan Agong with the Chief Minister’s name in their prayers; and the continued insistence that Article 153 of the Constitution is equal to an inalienable right that could not be questioned.

These events are interrelated and it seems to me that they indicate that there is a battle of ideology going on in the country now.

On one side is the idea that a person’s ethnicity and religion entitles him to be treated better than anyone else who is different. On the other side is the idea that equality is an aspiration that is both noble and necessary for nation building.

It is strange that in the 21st century we are still having to face the problem of institutionalised racism.

Looking at our history, one can see why this has occurred. The combination of race-based politics and poorly interpreted constitutional provisions have meant that the idea of racial and religious superiority has been allowed to grow and become the norm rather than something undesirable and out of the ordinary.

How else can one explain the possibility that teachers, the very people to whom we entrust the education of our children, can have such warped values and also have the gall to express those views publicly?

How else can we explain the near rabid attack on the Penang Chief Minister for something which he and the state religious department have vehemently denied and in fact would have been insane to attempt?

Let’s analyse this one step at a time. When the dominant political parties in this country do not have any political ideology to speak of and are instead, based on the principle that each race-based component has a duty to safeguard the interest of its community, what one has is a recipe for the kind of policy and rhetoric that divides rather than unites.

Historically, one can see the reasons why the politics of the nation was forged in this way. It was a necessary evil in the face of the divide-and-rule policy by the British to show that even when separate, the three major communities of the nation can still work together politically.

However, it is an unsustainable model and what started life as a fairly rosy example of racial cooperation too easily descended into crude racialist type politics.

Which is why the early aspirations that our founding fathers had for a society treated with equality has now been all but buried by the idea that one race is superior to others and in fact is the only race with any right to be here in Malaysia.

This is because in the battlefields of politics, it is easiest to appeal to base racialist emotions, especially when without those types of ideas, a party based on race will have no collateral to work with.

In this kind of political atmosphere, it is of no surprise that what has been forgotten is that the basis of this nation was one of justice and equality. And the document that is meant to protect that, the Federal Constitution, has been misinterpreted to the extent that there is no longer any trace of this aspiration in the mainstream discourse of the day.

Let us be absolutely clear on this matter, the Constitution does give powers to the government to take affirmative action and it does acknowledge the fact that Islam has a special place in the public life of the nation.

What it does not intend to do however is create a perpetual system of ethnic-based favourable treatment nor does it advocate the idea that all other religious beliefs must be subservient to Islam.

However, instead of this reasonable position, what we have today is the idea that affirmative action for Malays is unquestionable and to be continued in perpetuity becoming the norm.

This cannot be further from the truth as there are no legal justification for it at all.

Article 153 of the Federal Constitution is seen as the holy grail for those who hold this view. However, if we examine the provision closely we will notice two things.

Firstly, affirmative action is not a Malay right. Article 153 does not endow a right. What it does is to merely give government the power to take affirmative action despite the overarching ideal of equality which is enshrined in Article 8 of the Constitution.

To support this contention, we see that Article 8 clearly states that all citizens in this country are equal except for situations specifically provided for in the Constitution. Those “specific provisions” are found in Article 153 and there are not many of them.

They include the power to establish quotas for the civil service, permits and licences, scholarships and education.

Therefore anything other than these areas should not be subjected to affirmative action.

Furthermore, any affirmative action has to be reasonable. The idea of what is reasonable must surely be open to research and debate otherwise there will always be the risk of abuse and wastage of resources.

This being the case, although questioning the existence of such a power to have affirmative action is moot, discussion on the efficacy of affirmative action policies and programmes surely is not.

The way the discourse is today, and not merely by the racialist fringe but by mainstream politicians in power, is that even the implementation of Article 153 is not to be questioned at all.

This is surely wrong based both on the meaning of the Constitution as well as the principle held by the founding fathers that Article 153 was an unfortunate but necessary aberration from the ideals of equality and that it was to be used not in perpetuity.

With these kinds of distortion of law, is it any wonder then that we still get people actually classifying whole swathes of the citizenry as having no right to be here?

Is it any wonder then that a crazy accusation against a Chief Minister whose government has given twice as much money to the Islamic bodies in the state than the previous administration, can give rise to the belief that he is a threat to the faith?

If this country is to have any future as a true nation, the time has come for those who believe in the ideals of equality, ideals which were held by the political founding fathers of the country as well as the traditional Rulers of that time, to stand up and be counted.

To not be cowed by the bigots and to say that this is our country and it stands on noble humanitarian ideals, not opportunistic racialist thinking.

Video: DPP demonstrates ‘self-strangulation’

By Anil netto,

DPP Abdul Razak Musa demonstrates during the Teoh Beng Hock inquest how a person might strangle himself.





This clip is an except of a much longer video that was uploaded to the AG’s website this afternoon. Thanks to Malaysiakini for the editing

HRP's 20-point plan to improve Indians' lot

(Malaysiakini) The Human Rights Party Malaysia (HRP) has responded to Premier Najib Abdul Razak's request for feedback from the public for the 2011 Budget.

It yesterday submitted a 20-point proposal for the betterment of the Indian community in the country to Najib, who is also the finance minister.

HRP pro-tem secretary-general P Uthayakumar made available a copy to Malaysiakini today.

It proposes a budget of RM53 billion - based on an allocation of RM1 billion to "undo each year of injustice suffered by the Indian community for the past 53 years".

Uthayakumar's argument is that the Malaysian Indian poor are the poorest community in Malaysia - even poorer than the Orang Asli, Malay, Kadazan and Iban, who all have their traditional villages and ancestral land as their social safety net, unlike the Indian poor.

HRP's proposal is as follows:

1) Grant the estimated 450,000 hardcore poor Indians 10 acres of land each in a scheme similar to the Felda, Felcra and Risda land ownership schemes that 442,000 poor Malays have benefited from.

2) Grant land titles to all Hindu temples, Hindu cemeteries, Tamil schools and Indian settlements as a permanent solution.

3) All Tamil schools must be converted to fully financially aided government schools by December 2011 to be on par with other Malay, Islamic or Chinese schools.

4) The 12,650 places in the 39 MRSM and fully residential schools and in the 20 elite public schools like MRSM, MCKK, Tunku Kurshiah College, Cyberjaya College (NST July 9, 2010) to be open to all, especially deserving poor Indian students.

5) Grant scholarships from JPA, Mara, Petronas, Yayasan Negeris, GLC Yayasan, TNB, TM, etc to all, especially the poor Indian students who had scored 5A1s and above.
6) For all others, especially poor Indian students, PTPTN loans are to be granted to pursue their ambitions, to do medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, bio-medicine etc at local private and overseas universities and institutions of higher learning.

7) In short no poor Indian student should be denied higher education.

8) A minimum monthly wage for all Malaysians at RM1,300 per month.

9) That Socso be made the poor man's insurance scheme and 24-hour insurance coverage be granted, unlike the present accidental death and disability coverage only at work or going to and from work.

10) The minimum Socso pension should be RM750 which is the marker for poverty in Malaysia.

11) Licences and bank loans be granted to all, especially deserving poor Indians for businesses like scrap-metal, car washing, petty trading, and the operation of stalls and food stalls, lorries, taxis, buses, tourist vans etc.

12) Licences, permits, direct projects and contracts and bank loans and business opportunities be granted to all deserving Indians.

13) There should be no impediments for Indians to serve in the Malay-controlled civil service and GLCs, banks and corporations. And there shall be no race-based discrimination in promotions, salary increments, or top civil service jobs like secretaries-general, directors-general, directors, managers, officers etc.

14) Similarly the Indians should not be discriminated against in the Malaysian Chinese-controlled private sector.

15) A 'Protection of poor Malaysian Indians' Act to be passed to secure the interests of the ethnic Indian minority community.

16) The 209 Giat Mara colleges, vocational and technical schools and all government funded and aided skills training institutions should be fully open and made available to every poor Indian.

17) Full legal aid for all criminal cases beginning from remand proceedings onwards for all Malaysians earning RM5,000 and below.

18) Affordable three-bedroom state-funded homes with a minimum of 1,000 sq feet at nominal rentals of RM50.00 per month, or available to be purchased at RM25,000. Government loans to be provided for those blacklisted, or above 55 years old or who cannot get bank loans, for every poor Indian.

19) The estimated 150,000 Indian children being denied birth certificates and their parents denied identity cards and rendered stateless; to get their documents on or before December 2011.

20) All Indian-based welfare homes, orphanages and old folks' homes to be granted full financial assistance and facilities.

"To this effect Hindraf and HRP would like to participate in the Economic Planning Unit's (EPU) Implementation and Co-ordination Unit (ICU) and the Central Coordinating Unit (CCU) to help the government implement the above," suggested Uthayakumar.

Perkasa boss: Joy in Umno if 'psycho' Khairy quits

By G Vinod - Free Malaysia Today

PETALING JAYA: Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali has unleashed a vitriolic attack on Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, saying the latter's exit from Umno would not be a solemn affair.

In a SMS to FMT, the Pasir Mas MP said he also suspects that the Oxford-trained Khairy was suffering from a psychological disorder (sakit jiwa).

“Perhaps Khairy is too disappointed that he was overlooked for a cabinet position, he is now venting out his frustration on Perkasa,” he added.

Ibrahim was responding to the Umno Youth chief's remark at a forum yesterday that he would leave the party if the majority of its members supported Perkasa.

He said this after PAS' Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad, who was also present, accused Umno of working “hand in glove” with Perkasa.

'Spewing nonsense'

Continuing his tirade, Ibrahim said the majority of Umno members would be delighted if Khairy left the party because he was one of the reasons why Barisan Nasional fared poorly in the last polls.

“When his father-in-law (Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) was prime minister, the famed fourth-floor boys led by Khairy at the Prime Minister's Department caused BN to lose much of its prized seats in the 12th general election.

“In my view, the majority of Umno members will be happy if he leaves. Now that his father-in-law is no longer PM, Khairy has lost his fangs and is spewing nonsense for no reason,” he added.

Previously, Khairy and Ibrahim locked horns over the latter's call to have Deputy Education Minister Wee Ka Siong arrested under the Internal Security Act.

Perkasa was livid with Wee, who is the MCA Youth chief, for asking the government if it would abolish the exclusively Malay Mara scholarships since it planned to scrap the Public Service Department overseas scholarships.

In the ensuing tit-for-tat, Khairy had labelled Ibrahim a “jaguh kampung” (village hero).

'If Yong is hanged, I will return with a coffin!' [video]

'If Yong is hanged, I will return with a coffin!'

By Patrick Lee - Free Malaysia Today

KUALA LUMPUR: A PKR leader promised that if convicted Malaysian drug mule Yong Vui Kong is hanged, it will have grave repercussions.

"I warn the Singaporean government: if they hang Yong, I will come back and bring a coffin here! (Singapore High Commission)," said Kapar MP S Manikavasagam.

He also took a swipe at Foreign Minister Anifah Aman for not doing enough.

“I am ashamed of the minister. He should put more pressure on the Singapore government,” he said.

Added human rights lawyer N Surendran: “Our government claims that it's doing great things for this country. But if it cannot stand up for one Malaysian in trouble overseas, can Malaysians rely on the government?”

Earlier, Manikavasagam and Surendran joined some 20 mostly PKR members to present a memorandum to the Singapore High Commission here today. Also present were Teluk Intan MP M Manogaran and PKR information chief Latheefa Koya.

The memorandum protested against the denial of the judicial process for Yong and called on the Singapore government to spare Yong's life. The memorandum was drafted by Lawyers for Liberty.

Yong was arrested by Singaporean authorities in 2007 for drug trafficking. Aged 18 at the time, the Sabahan was sentenced to death, and subsequently appealed to Singapore President SR Nathan for clemency.

According to the memorandum, the Singapore High Court in August had said that Nathan did not have the power to pardon prisoners on death row.

It also said that Singapore Law Minister K Shanmugam had affected the outcome of Yong's appeal against the death penalty. Before Yong's appeal was heard, Shanmugam had said, “Yong Vui Kong is young. But if we let him go, what signal are we sending?”

The memorandum also said that Yong's petition for clemency was dismissed before it was filed. “In the face of death, Yong has been denied the fundamental right to be heard,” it added.

Yong's death sentence has been branded as “illegal”. Said lawyer Fadiah Nakwa Fikri, who was in the group: “We are asking the Singapore government to be answerable to this. We are asking them to show some compassion (to Yong), and that he be given the due process under the law.”

Added Surendran: “What is the Malaysian government doing? It is keeping quiet. Our foreign minister should quit because he is not taking up the cause of a Malaysian who is facing an illegal execution.”

PKR leaders were also disappointed that the High Commissioner was not present today despite having agreed to meet them.

The group was told that the commissioner was not at his office.

The memorandum was handed over to the High Commission's First Secretary, Walter Chia.

Fighting the good fight for Lembah Pantai

By Stephanie Sta Maria - Free Malaysia Today

SPECIAL REPORT ON KL The Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur has long been a political trophy for the government and the opposition and the competition took a fierce turn after 2008.

Prior to that fateful year, the Barisan Nasional (BN) enjoyed dominion over the city with seven representatives in the 11 constituencies. The tsunami washed out six of them thus putting the trophy in the hands of Pakatan Rakyat.

Now BN understandably wants it back and has begun its conquest with the key constituency of Lembah Pantai. But MP Nurul Izzah Anwar isn't going down without a fight.

Right now though, her days are occupied by regular scuffles with Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), which she claimed is an immovable block in her path towards serving her constituents.

“Most of the issues plaguing Lembah Pantai, like enforcement, public housing and services, fall under DBKL's purview,” she said. “Which means that all the opposition MPs in KL are at the mercy of DBKL's officers, legislations and structure. And our role is made even more complex by the on-going dynamics between elected and appointed representatives.”

One particular DBKL practice that has Nurul gritting her teeth in frustration is its lack of transparency in issuing housing to the people of Kampung Kerinchi. Her requests that DBKL publicly display a list of recipients has gone unheeded.

“The list is crucial so people know that no invisible hand is involved in the distribution of housing,” she emphasised. “But DBKL is still continuing to operate based on its whim and fancy. There is no way of tracking the basic requirements to qualify for housing, and when there is no rule of thumb or consistency, the whole process is then open to abuse.”

Concerned over Bangsar

DBKL's inconsistency has also grated on her nerves where Bangsar is concerned. As the vibrant hub of Lembah Pantai, Bangsar has attracted droves of developers, businesses and regular city slickers. Residential and commercial property often vie for space and priority.

DBKL's move to change certain zoning areas to include commercial premises became a bone of contention among residents who viewed it as encroachment on their living environment. In most cases, DBKL axed the business concerned to placate the residents but Nurul once again spied double standards at play.

“The five-year lease for One Bangsar, a string of commercial property facing a stretch of residences, expired last December,” she pointed out. “Yet it remained open. In March, the KL Mayor (Ahmad Fuad Ismail) assured unhappy residents that Bangsar One would be closed down within six months. Now I heard that it plans to use legal assistance to fight to continue operations.”

“And yet a nearby shelter for orphans in Jalan Bukit Pantai was given a month to close down for the same reason. How can DBKL favour certain places this way? You will never see such leniency in Pantai Dalam or Sri Sentosa. DBKL has to be consistent and answerable, otherwise it is just contributing to the problems in Lembah Pantai.”

Nurul then cast her sight on Brickfields which is currently undergoing a face-lift aimed at transforming it from a mere township into a cultural enclave named Little India.

“The Little India project will definitely bring an economic boom to Brickfields, but again it's a very top-down approach,” she observed. “There is existing artistic value displayed by the businesses and community itself, so I don't see a need for Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB) to decide on what represents the Indian culture there.”

She also reminded Deputy Federal Territories and Urban Well-being Minister M Saravanan of his promise to supply her with the project blueprint, which she has yet to receive.

“As an MP there is a sense of futility when the appointed representatives don't take your requests and suggestions seriously,” she said in frustration “It drives you to become angry and vocal just to force a response from them.”

Ornamental enforcement

Aside from stubborn business owners, Bangsar also faces an alarmingly high crime rate. The police beat in the midst of the thriving entertainment vicinity may very well be invisible, considering the number of brazen criminals who get away scot-free.

Just recently, a press photographer accompanying Nurul on her rounds in the bustling Telawi streets fell prey to a snatch thieve who made off with his camera.

“This is unacceptable,” Nurul said. “That police beat is a useless ornament and all it has done is erode the people's faith in the police. Instead of fighting crime, the police are being misused to monitor subversive elements and political events.”

“A few weeks ago we were handing out leaflets explaining the subsidy cuts and the entire police contingent, including three FRU trucks, were present at the scene. It's ridiculous and a waste of police resources. And at the end of the day the residents suffer because they have to pay extra for a gated community.”

Then there are the illegal car jockeys. They emerge at nightfall to offer a much-needed service to Bangsar's party-goers. Apart from the legal aspect of their job, the patrons' safety is a prime concern.

“Many of these jockeys are known to get aggressive, especially with drunk patrons,” she said. “We have repeatedly asked DBKL to take action, but the growing number of illegal jockeys has raised suspicions of a collusion between them and the authorities.”

“Bangsar isn't prepared to address the needs of private car users, but it's not too late to set up a system to legalise these jockeys. People need to be able to park and feel a sense of ease and comfort when visiting an upmarket place like Bangsar.”

Returning fire and pushing ahead
Nurul, however, reserved her harshest criticism for Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin. She is incensed with the Federal Territories and Urban Well-being Minister for constantly thwarting her 

efforts to deliver assistance to her constituents.

According to her, the minister has resorted to using government agencies to prevent her from holding non-political events in a mosque, which she has called a “disservice to our democracy”.

Of late, Nong Chik has been picking on both Lembah Pantai and Nurul, which has not gone unnoticed by the other MPs. While they bristled on her behalf, Nurul herself is unexpectedly amused.

“I'm touched because I didn't realise that I pose such a threat,” she grinned. “And Nong Chik has helped me tremendously in attracting interest to the redevelopment of Lembah Pantai.”

“Where it angers me is when he tries to stop me from doing my work. I draw the line there. When he orders my banners removed and blocks me from running programmes in my constituency. I can't even book halls under my name anymore! It's disappointing to have a minister involved in such practices.”

“If he wants to fight, then he should fight on an equal playing field so that it is fair to the people too,” she declared. “I wouldn't say I'm not worried but I won't live my life always looking over my shoulder. And I will counter-attack when the time and place is right.”

Her mood peaked, however, at the topic of PKR's new Federal Territories chief Zaid Ibrahim, who subsequently handpicked her as his vice-chairperson for KL.

“This is very exciting as KL MPs are often brushed aside because we don't control the state unlike Selangor,” she said. “KL is an opposition stronghold and the birthplace of PKR. It's crucial to ensure our success in KL before focusing on other states.”

“From Zaid's first speech, it is clear that he understands the importance of this. Since losing Wangsa Maju to an independent, we are down by one MP and there is still much to do. We have our work cut out for us and we have to start now.”