Interlok: TPM bohongi rakyat, dakwa Pengerusi Niat

Niat tidak akan teragak-agak untuk mengheret Muhyiddin ke mahkamah.

KUALA LUMPUR: Pengerusi Badan Bertindak Interlok Kebangsaan (Niat), Haji Thasleem Mohamed Ibrahim mendakwa Timbalan Perdana Menteri Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin telah membohongi rakyat Malaysia berhubung isu buku kontroversi, Interlok edisi murid.

“Muhyiddin di dalam sesi Parlimen pada 24 Mac menyatakan bahawa Jemaah Menteri bersetuju agar Interlok terus diguna pakai tetapi tiada seorang pun yang menjelaskan pendirian mereka.”

“Seterusnya Muhyiddin berkata keputusan penggunaan Interlok berterusan adalah muktamad namun akhbar Sinar Harian melaporkan

Muhyiddin sebagai berkata bahawa Interlok hanya akan digunakan selepas pindaan dilaksanakan.”

Thasleem turut berkata bahawa Niat tidak akan teragak-agak untuk mengheret Muhyiddin untuk membuktikan penipuan yang dibuat pemimpin kedua tertinggi negara itu.

Justeru itu, Thasleem mencabar Muhyiddin menjalankan pungutan suara untuk memperoleh pandangan rakyat Malaysia kerana pandangan yang diterima beliau dari peringkat akar umbi jelas menunjukkan rakyat menentang penggunaan buku tersebut.

Thasleem turut membidas kenyataan Muhyiddin yang mengatakan bahawa pihak yang membangkitkan isu Interlok merupakan ancaman kepada keselamatan negara.

“Siapa yang jadikan buku ini satu isu? Muhyiddin ialah puncanya. Muhyiddin ialah ancaman kepada negara,” tegas beliau.

Mengapa politikus India, mufti berdiam diri?

Beliau turut menjelaskan bahawa pemimpin politik keturunan India masih belum memberi sebarang reaksi kepada pengumuman tersebut.

Sehubungan itu, Thasleem bertegas mahu mengetahui pendirian Presiden MIC, Dato’ G Palanivel yang mahukan Interlok dihentikan penggunaannya tetapi menikus seribu bahasa.

“Bagi MIC, isu mereka hanya perkataan ‘paria’ tapi bagi kita seluruh buku ini salah,” ujar beliau.

Beliau menambah bahawa sekiranya Palanivel gagal bersuara mereka akan membangkitkan isu yang mengejutkan dalam beberapa minggu.

Thasleem juga memberitahu sidang media bahawa beliau menunggu reaksi mufti negeri Selangor, Wilayah Persekutuan dan Negeri Sembilan berhubung isu ini.

“Saya beranggapan mereka tidak memberi reaksi kepada surat-surat yang saya tulis kerana mereka bersetuju dengan pandangan saya bahawa Interlok bertentangan dengan agama Islam.”

Kepada Gabungan Penulis Nasional (Gapena) dan Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) yang menyokong penggunaan Interlok, Thasleem menggesa agar mereka mengkaji perkara ini dari perspektif Islam.

Sementara itu, ahli jawatankuasa Niat, A Rajaretinam berkata bahawa kerajaan pimpinan Barisan Nasional akan menghadapi natijah besar sekiranya memperlekehkan permintaan masyarakat India agar Interlok digugurkan.

Niat bercadang untuk menghadap Sultan Selangor, Yang Dipertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan dan Yang Dipertuan Agong sebagai salah satu jalan untuk menghentikan penggunaan Interlok di sekolah.

Mereka juga bercadang menghantar memorandum kepada Menteri Besar Selangor dan Negeri Sembilan dalam tempoh terdekat.

Isu kontroversi Interlok timbul pada Disember tahun lalu hingga membawa kepada penubuhan panel bebas dalam bulan Januari.

Seterusnya lebih dari 100 saranan telah diterima untuk dibuat pindaan dalam buku tersebut namun Niat tetap membantah atas pelbagai sebab.

Seeking EU’s help for Borneo natives, Indians

Of Borneo's over 18 million population, 10 million live in poverty despite the island being rich in natural resources.

THE HAGUE: The Dutch parliament’s Foreign Relations Committee (FRC) was yesterday briefed on the widespread religious and economic discrimination against natives in Borneo.

Sabah-based Common Interest Group Malaysia (CigMa) said more than 10 million of Borneo’s over 18 million population lived in poverty despite the region being rich in land, timber, gas and oil.

Speaking to the FRC committee, CigMa secretary-general Kanul Gindol said Borneo is the “most divided island in the world”.

“Borneo is the third largest island in the world but it is the most divided island in the world.

“It is ruled by three countries – Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia. Seven states or provinces are under the Kingdom of Brunei.

“Malaysia has the states of Sabah and Sarawak and the four huge Kalimantan provinces come under Indonesian rule.

“All seven states or provinces are each very very rich in natural resources like timber, gas, oil and fertile lands. But the natives are very poor.

“Something is very wrong and must be corrected…We are here to seek help and call for more international understanding of the peculiarities of our problems in Borneo,” Gindol told parliamentarians Kathleen G Ferrier from the Christian Democratic Party and Raymond de Roon of the Party for Freedom.

Gindol and CigMa president Daniel John Tambun and Hindraf chairman, P Waythamoorthy, have been meeting up with European Union (EC) parliamentarians and government officials at The Hague (Holland) and Brussels (Belgium) this week to drum up support from the international community to accelerate progress and social justice for the natives in Borneo and the marginalised Indians in Malaysia.

‘Eye-opening’

Both Ferrier and De Roon said that they would bring the Borneo matter to the attention of their colleagues in the Dutch parliament.

While De Roon thanked the delegation for their “eye-opening presentation”, Ferrier said: “Today we learnt a lot from you about your people’s plights and we would want to know what your people would want us to do to help…”

Both Jambun and Gindol were focused on highlighting the persistent hindrances to progress and justice to the natives of Borneo, in particular Sabah and Sarawak, while Waythamoorthy briefed the FRC on the plight of minority Indians in Malaysia.

Jambun in his presentation titled “The Disenfranchisement of bona fide Sabahans”, outlined the perennial problems plaguing Sabahans, especially the presence of millions of illegal immigrants from southern Philippines and Indonesians in Sabah.

Jambun said the federal government was not making any effort to address the issue and that it had made many, especially the natives, to believe that it was a ploy to re-engineer the demographic of Sabah which was previously a predominantly Christian state.

“This issue of illegal immigrants in Sabah became well-known for its link to a former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who stands accused of giving Malaysian identification cards to these Muslim immigrants.

“We the natives are being outnumbered by the immigrants who are taking a lot of opportunities from us with the full knowledge of the federal government. We are being disenfranchised as bona fide Sabahans,” Jambun said.

Police pick up 23 students over clashes in school

(Malaysiakini) The police have taken statements from 23 male students from a school in Section 25, Shah Alam, for allegedly being involved in a fight yesterday at their school.

According to Bernama, Shah Alam police chief ACP Zahedi Ayob said the fight between Form Four and Form Five students were stopped by teachers before they were brought to a counselling room while waiting for the police.

The police took the students to the Section 15 Police Station where they were quizzed on the cause of the incident, he told reporters yesterday.

The students were allowed to go home after the police recorded their statements, he said, adding that the police would discuss with the school on a counselling session for them.

A mother of one of the students injured in a fracas that occurred last week, however, has accused the school authorities concerned of being non-chalant about the matter.

Kia Ooi Meng alleged that following an incident that happened on April 13 that saw her son suffer injuries after being assaulted by several other boys at the school, the school authorities had declined to take further action.

He said this, Kia told Malaysiakini, on the ground that a police report had already been lodged over the fight.

“(The principal) should have been more concerned, because the incident happened in his school. Up until today, the principal still does not want to know about what happened to my son,” she said.

Kia said her son suffered injuries to the head and other parts of his body after being hit by about eight students, at least one of whom used a chair in the assault.

“Now, my son does not want to go to school, although he has to because he will be taking his PMR exams this year,” she added.

She claimed further that there had been previous incidents of fights breaking out in the school.

When contacted, the school informed Malaysiakini the principal could not come to the telephone as he was occupied by other matters.

Another alleged sex tape of Anwar in 1999, says ex-cop

KUALA LUMPUR, April 21 — A retired senior police officer has said Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was linked to a sex video in 1999, and is asking for an investigation to uncover any connection with similar allegations last month.

Former KL CID chief Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim wrote about his suspicions in an open letter to Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar this week, saying he had investigated the first case 12 years ago.

“Several comparisons and questions arise regarding the two sex videos. I am of the opinion that the investigation into the 2011 Sex Video II must take into account the circumstances surrounding the 1999 Sex Video I.

“There is a ‘nexus’ between the two,” he wrote in the letter that was made available to The Malaysian Insider.

A mysterious “Datuk T” had first screened the video purportedly showing the opposition leader having sex with a Chinese prostitute on March 21.

Former Malacca Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik, Perkasa treasurer-general Datuk Shuib Lazim and businessman Datuk Shazryl Eskay Abdullah later took responsibility for the 21-minute recording, stating that their aim was to “show that a man who wants to be prime minister is not qualified.”

The police said last weekend that they have wrapped up investigations into the video after verifying that it had not been doctored. Ismail said yesterday the Attorney-General’s Chambers has sent back the investigation papers as it needed “to be re-worked”.

“Some areas have to be re-looked at and re-worked. This is normal,” the IGP said.

But Mat Zain called on the police to investigate possible seven possible links between the two videos, namely:

1. Is Sex Video I also authentic now that Sex Video II has been officially declared authentic?

2. Are the contents of Sex Video I the same in full or in part with Sex Video II?

3. Is the identity of the man in Sex Video II that police have declared can be determined positively the same as the man in Sex Video I?

4. Does the voice of the man in Sex Video I belong to the man who is said to be identifiable in Sex Video II?

5. Does the voice of the woman in Sex Video I belong to the woman who is said to have been identified in Sex Video II?

6. Is the recording location of Sex Video I the same as Sex Video II?

7. Are the trio involved or played any role in the production or distribution of Sex Video I in 1999, seeing as they have been identified as having a relationship with Anwar? More so Rahim who is believed to have cause for revenge as Anwar had accused the former Umno Youth chief of corruption just three months before Sex Video I was made public on November 24 and 25, 1999.

Mat Zain, who was the investigating officer in the case involving the assault of Anwar in police custody, said that the sex video was distributed in Kuala Lumpur just a few days before the 10th general election on November 29.

“I believe a large segment of the public and even some police officers themselves are not aware and will be shocked to know of the existence of this first sex video that supposedly involved Anwar,” he wrote.

He said that several members of the public had found the video left in front of their homes or offices and made individual police reports, surrendering the copies as evidence.

As the city criminal investigation chief at the time, Mat Zain said his department had investigated the video.

“I myself saw the videos at least twice. The first time with senior Kuala Lumpur criminal investigation officers to classify the investigations and the second time with the former Kuala Lumpur mayor.

“To the best of my memory, the contents of the 1999 Sex Video I included recordings of phone conversations between a man said to be Anwar and his girlfriend,” he wrote.

Mat Zain said that the investigations identified “the source” of the video but failed to find the persons responsible for distributing it to the public.

“However, it is believed that the distribution was politically motivated as it was done just a few days before the 10th general election,” he said, adding that some of those who made police reports were members of Anwar’s PKR.

Mat Zain said Sex Video I should be screened to the people so that the public, especially the Malays, could make their own decision over whether the former deputy prime minister really lacked the morals to become prime minister as claimed, or if the video was created by his enemies to destroy his political career.

“Or even revenge due to Anwar exposing the abuse of power and corruption of certain leaders as mentioned,” said Mat Zain, referring to a segment of his letter where he named the Datuk T trio.

He said that the film was not pornographic and more like a documentary which would not fall foul of laws banning obscene material.

In his letter, Mat Zain also cast doubt over Rahim’s credibility as the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) had recommended he be charged for making a false statutory declaration in 1999.

“The question that arises is whether Rahim’s testimony in Sex Video II can be accepted fully, seeing as he was willing to make a false declaration to the prime minister and government to hide criminal offences as reported by the ACA,” he said.

In the final part of an interview with FMT, a former inmate reveals how detainees with deep pockets can purchase a little luxury behind bars.

PETALING JAYA: The mere mention of Simpang Rengam would make those who had the misfortune of spending time behind its walls squirm.

But a former inmate, Suresh (not his real name), told FMT that life in the prison was somewhat tolerable if a detainee had deep pockets.

“With the right amount of cash, you can get anything… RM50 for a box of cigarettes and RM100 for ganja through the wardens,” said the 31-year-old car repossessor.

He added that being a senior detainee also had its perks, especially when it came to family visits.
“Your seniority is determined by the colour of the collar on your shirt. If you are new, you will be given a shirt with white collar which entitles you to a visit once every 58 days.

“Then, we have the red collar which stands for visits every 56 days, green for every 48 days and blue for every two weeks,” said Suresh, who was arrested in connection with a murder case and spent five years detained under the Emergency Ordinance.

According to the lad from Puchong, inmates were forced to be creative in order to survive and keep their sanity intact.

“Sometimes, we buy instant noodles… to cook it, we use old tissue papers and bits of plastic to get a small fire going. We also make cakes with mashed bread to celebrate birthdays, and ‘ponggal soru’ (glutinous rice) for our makeshift temple’s festivals by mixing Milo powder with rice.”

The cat and the bird


Despite the hardship he endured, Suresh also recollected some light-hearted moments and encounters with the paranormal in prison.

“I had a pet cat and a mynah bird in prison. I named the cat Suraveli (tornado) and it had an attitude of its own. Whenever I called it, it will only respond with a snarl.

“As for the bird, it always stole food from the inmates, so we called him Mani first and later renamed him ‘Tiruttu Mani’ (Thief Mani). He never left our block, and at times, even joined us during the morning roll call.
“However, one day, a prison warden took the bird away and I was heart-broken.”

As for his close encounter with the paranormal, Suresh said there was a “toyol” that also dwelled in the prison, moving from one cell to another.

“The ‘toyol’ usually does not disturb anyone unless you address its existence. Once, I actually spoke about it and the creature did not allow me to sleep at night as it kept pulling my arms and legs.
“When in isolation, I also saw an apparition of a Malay girl washing clothes with a child standing next to her outside my cell,” he said.

In August 2005, when he was supposed to be released, Suresh’s detention was extended for another two years for unknown reasons.

“Six months prior to that, they held counselling sessions which I attended diligently. During the sessions, they motivated me not to indulge in criminal activities upon my release.

“But for some reason, they decided to extend my detention. When I argued that I did nothing wrong, the officers just ignored me,” he said, adding that he felt devastated.

However, before his second detention time expired, Ravi engaged a lawyer to file a habeas corpus application to have his detention declared unlawful.

Only in 2008 did he succeed, and the court ordered that he be released a week before his detention period was to expire.

“When the prison guard told me that I was free, I did not believe him. They had to drag me out of my cell. I was shivering, unable to contain my emotions.

“There is a tradition: if you’re being released, the other inmates will give you a farewell beating. But I took mine smiling, the thought of being free after five years… I did not feel any pain.”

‘Crime, it’s not worth it’


After inking his release papers, Suresh said that he received a salary of RM170 for the carpentry work he had done over the years.

“I was supposed to get more. You get paid 80 sen a day, but then 60% of that must be given to the warden. When I asked him why, the warden told me that it was to cover the prison guards’ wages.”

Suresh then took a bus from the Machap bus station and arrived at Bukit Jalil several hours later, where a friend fetched him and sent him home.

“When I reached home, even my aunty and grandmother could not recognise me. Guess I was in prison for too long,” he said, adding that he had also told his family not to visit him in prison since it was too expensive to travel.

Asked if the experience had changed him, Suresh smiled.

“Sometimes, when you are hard-pressed for cash, you do think about turning to crime. But let me tell you this, spending all those years behind bars is not worth it.

“I have lost so many years of my life. Now, I just want to focus on my future, and someday, even run my own business. I’ve paid my dues, it’s time to move on.”

1Malaysia but not one nation?

If a so-called Chinese paper, i.e. the party owned Rocket had published a similar column like that which was carried in the Utusan - except substituting anything 'Malay' with 'Chinese' what would have been the government's immediate responsible action?

 

By J. D. Lovrenciear

 

It is frightening at the rate certain local dailies are spewing out all kinds of editorials and news that are simply racialistic.

 

Despite the Home Minister's warning, one particular media is said to be advocating a 1Melayu, 1Bumi movement.

 

Some other media are accusing an opposition party of being a chinese race based party with an agenda to overthrow the Malays. Is 1Malaysia about Chinese and Malays or is it about Malaysians?

 

Where is the cracking whip of Malaysia's infamous ISA? Why are all these journalists allowed to sharpen their race-based weapons of destruction through the newspapers?

 

Let us just pause and look at the scenario with wisdom and objectivity. If a so-called Chinese paper, i.e. the party owned Rocket had published a similar column like that which was carried in the Utusan - except substituting anything 'Malay' with 'Chinese' what would have been the government's immediate responsible action?

 

Now citizens are asking why it is not the same equation when it comes to another media that is screaming for race-based blood.

 

No, we cannot continue like this and if we persist, we are going to lose all the scrutinizing investors, the jittery tourists and the young, talented minds of Malaysia.

 

Worse, we would have dug ourselves so deep down the gutter that we may never rise again to our past glory.

 

It is time that citizens demand from our able leaders to put a final nail to the coffin of any and all racist sentiments. Otherwise we might as well dump 1Malaysia into the murky rivers.

 

The ball is in the PM's court of course. He has to act decisively, fairly, without fear or favor. He has to be urgent in his stand on the matter so that the nation can rise again to salute his leadership.

 

Otherwise, Malaysians who are already asking too many questions will act decisively, in a united voice of people power because Malaysians largely do not subscribe to racism.

 

If the government machinery cannot put a stop to all these racial incitement in the media, then the heads of all religious faiths must convene and stand united over their stand, representing their respective faithful.

 

Media ethics must overule all other temptations, inclinations and obligations. These are dangerous times and it needs ethically motivated journalism to enable humanity to rise with admiration and not sink with destitute.

Khairy mengelabah : konon orang nak serang dia guna video lucah ?

artikel ini tulisan seorang blogger dan dipetik dari http://edyesdotcom.blogspot.com/2011/04/khairy-emosi-dan-mengelupur-di-sebalik.html

Tanpa membaca kenyataan penuh Chegubard yang dipublish pada 7 April lalu, Khairy mungkin saja panik dan mungkin juga dengan gelabah puyuh mengarahkan budak-budak suruhannya membuat laporan polis ke atas Chegubard. (klik untuk kenyataan penuh cheGuBard)

Kenyataan Chegubard menyentuh perihal video seks yang dikatakan milik khairy. Namun chegubard menegaskan sekerasnya betapa politik lucah harus dihentikan segera, merujuk kepada tindakan chegubard memusnahkan seberapa banyak vcd yang ada ketika kempen PRU2008.

Jika hari ini politik UMNO membenarkan penayangan video seks di beberapa hotel terkemuka sekitar ibu negara walaupun video itu fitnah kepada DSAI, Chegubard pernah memilih untuk tidak menggunakan bahan serupa untuk kempennya menentang khairy. Tindakan chegubard pada tahun 2008 adalah hujah penting beliau bagi menyeru politik selak kain dihentikan. Beliau juga dilihat konsisten dalam isu ini termasuk ketika berdepan dengan kes video Chua Soi Lek yang boleh ke blog beliau dan rujuk kenyataan beliau ketika itu yang tersiar dalam blognya. (klik tajuk Gambar anak menteri pula atau klik isu Eli Wong beza dengan CSL)

Tetapi malangnya kenyataan Chegubard telah disalah tafsir oleh seorang Yang Berhormat lepasan Oxford. Secara terus Khairy menuduh Chegubard mengedar video seks tersebut ketika kempen PRU2008 dalam laman twitter miliknya.

Di bawah adalah twitter KhairyKJ yang menuduh Chegubard mengedar Video lucah miliknya pada tahun 2008 di Paroi;

@chegubard Kamu yang edar video palsu tu di Paroi masa PRU2008 hari ni pula nak tolak politik lucah. Tolong la Barrrd... Hipokrit betul.

Apa yang menjadi persoalan di sini, mengapa Khairy tidak membuat sebarang laporan polis ke atas Chegubard apabila mengetahui 'kononnya' Chegubard mengedarkan video seks yang pelakonnya iras-iras Khairy.

Sedangkan ketika PRU lepas jentera Bn telah membuat beberapa laporan polis ke atas cheGuBard khususnya apabila ada mahasiswa turut menyertai jentera menentang Khairy di Rembau.

Telah ditegaskan, video seks tersebut asalnya adalah dari kumpulan UMNO yang amat membenci Khairy. Jangan kita lupa bagaimana Khairy di 'boo' beberapa kali ketika diangkat sebagai ketua pemuda suatu masa dulu. Kumpulan ini sanggup membekalkan beberapa bahan untuk kempen chegubard termasuklah video yang dimaksudkan. Tetapi di atas prinsip menolak politik selak kain, Chegubard mengarahkan jenteranya memusnahkan bahan tersebut.

Sememangnya puak-puak UMNO memang gemar mengedar bahan-bahan lucah bagi membunuh karier politik seseorang pemimpin yang dirasakan mengancam kepentingan mereka waima pemimpin di dalam parti sendiri.

Beberapa jam selepas chegubard keluar kenyataan di blognya yang bertajuk "SAMM : Hentikan Politik Lucah Segera!!", satu laporan polis telah dibuat oleh pemuda UMNO umpama ketua pemudanya seperti cacing kepanasan.

Sekali lagi saya timbulkan persoalan, mengapa tidak buat laporan polis pada tahun 2008 jika benar chegubard mengedar video tersebut sebagai bahan kempen? Laporan polis hanya dibuat di atas kenyataan chegubard yang tajuknya menggesa politik lucah dihentikan!

Seraya itu juga, dengan pantas setiausaha PKR Rembau iaitu Norazizi telah dihubungi oleh seorang pegawai penyiasat polis yang bernama Omar. Difahamkan pihak penyiasat sebenarnya belum lagi membaca kenyataan penuh Chegubard, tetapi oleh kerana pihak pemuda UMNO yang membuat report maka pihak polis begitu melulu dalam menjalankan tugasnya. Gelagat pihak polis tidak ubah seperti telah diperkudakan untuk kepentingan seseorang.

Beberapa tweet yang mempersoal 'mengapa KJ tidak membuat laporan polis pada 2008' tidak dijawab oleh Khairy. Apakah maknanya diam membisu walaupun sebelumnya beberapa kali mengicau tweet dalam isu yang sama?

Perlu diingat, melalui twitter Khairy yang tertera di atas, ia menunjukkan Khairy juga sedar video itu wujud apabila membuat tuduhan terhadap Chegubard bahawa pengedaran video itu kononnya berlaku.

Khairy dinasihatkan jangan terlalu angkuh dalam isu video lucah ini dan jangan tersalah langkah dalam mengatur gerak. Chegubard mungkin saja telah memusnahkan semua kepingan vcd tersebut pada tahun 2008, namun tidak mustahil 'jika' masih ada satu salinan buat kenang-kenangan.

Apa yang salahnya menyimpan video lucah apatahlagi menayangkan di dalam bilik hotel untuk tontonan wartawan terpilih. Asalkan ia tidak bertujuan mengaut keuntungan, ia boleh sahaja berlaku dalam negara Islam Malaysia kita ini. Terima kasih kepada Nazri!

Buat Khairy, gambar kamu 'bergembira' di Kelab Malam disebar oleh kawan-kawan kamu, gambar kamu beraksi 'maknyah' juga disebar oleh kawan-kawan kamu... Apa lagi yang kawan-kawan kamu miliki yang akan disebarkan... Cuma ketika gambar-gambar tersebut tersebar tiada pemimpin PR yang ambil jadi modal politik.

P/s : semua gambar ialah gambar hiasan tidak ada kena mengena dengan hidup atau mati dipetik dari perbagai laman pro Umno

France and Italy to send Libya advisers

France and Italy are joining Britain in sending military officers to Libya to help advise rebels on technical, logistical and organisational issues.

Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, offered assistance to Abdel Jalil, the leader of the Libyan Transitional National Council, when they met in Paris on Wednesday.

"We are going to help you," Sarkozy told him.

Jalil said he invited Sarkozy to visit Benghazi, the rebel stronghold in Libya's east.

"I think that would be very important for the revolution's morale," Jalil said after the meeting.

Sarkozy's office said it had "taken note" of the invitation.

A French foreign ministry spokesperson said a small number of liaison officers would be sent out to Benghazi along with a special envoy, while Italy said it was ready to send around 10 officers - "the same number of military staff as Britain".

Ignazio La Russa, Italy's defence minister, said that stronger intervention under the UN resolution, which does not permit ground troops, may be needed in Libya.

William Hague, Britain's foreign minister, announced on Tuesday that it would be sending a team to Libya to help rebels with "military organisational structures, communications and logistics, including how best to distribute humanitarian aid and deliver medical assistance".

He insisted that the decision was "fully within the terms" of the UN Security Council resolution that authorised a no-fly zone over the north African nation, and that the team would not train or arm rebel forces.

'Impossible mission'

But Khaled Kaim, Libya's deputy foreign minister, said the attempt would be futile.

"This is an impossible mission. To organise who? They [the rebels] are different groups. There is no leader. They are not well-organised, and I am sure it will be a failure," he said.

Meanwhile, Barack Obama, the US president, is still opposed to sending US ground troops to Libya, the White House said on Wednesday.

Jay Carney, the White House spokesperson, told journalists that Obama would support moves by the French and British to dispatch military advisors to help rebelsfighting Libyan leader Gaddafi.

"The president obviously is aware of this decision and
supports it, and hopes and believes it will help the
opposition.

"But it does not at all change the president's policy on no 'boots on the ground' for American troops," Carney said.

French: no troops on the ground

Francois Baroin, a French government spokesman, said Sarkozy's administration was "not envisaging troops on the ground, in any shape or form" and that France was not seeking new UN Security Council action that would give the allies a broader mandate to intervene in Libya.

"We are not taking the initiative to seek a new Security Council resolution. The French position is stable and unchanged on this problem of applying Resolution 1973," he said.

That resolution permitted the use of force to protect Libyan civilians, but explicitly forbade a "foreign occupation force" - a phrase which some states interpret as banning any ground intervention at all.

However, Sarkozy promised Jalil that France would intensify air strikes on the army of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya's leader, but did not elaborate.

"We are indeed going to intensify the attacks and respond to this request from the national transition council," the Elysee Palace said in a statement

Forces fighting Gaddafi have urged the West to ramp up its military campaign to try and break a deadlock in the conflict and halt attacks on the besieged city of Misrata, where hundreds of people have been killed in recent weeks.

International forces have been carrying out air strikes on forces loyal to Gaddafi since March 19, in a mission headed by NATO since March 31.

The NATO-led coalition is enforcing a UN mandated no-fly zone in Libya, which authorises "all necessary measures" to protect civilians from attack by Gaddafi's forces.

It is also policing an arms embargo and has targeted Gaddafi's military infrastructure.

The rebels have been trying since mid-February to end Gaddafi's 41-year-old rule but have struggled against his more experienced and better equipped forces.

Source:Al Jazeera and agencies

Pakatan wants Utusan punished for 1Melayu, 1Bumi campaign

KUALA LUMPUR, April 20 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lawmakers have demanded that Datuk Seri Najib Razak take action against Utusan Malaysia for stoking racial tension and “blatantly” challenging his 1 Malaysia policy of inclusiveness.

Utusan called on its owners Umno today to spearhead a 1Melayu, 1Bumi movement involving all Malay parties — claiming DAP was intent on toppling the country’s Malay leadership.

“What Umno needs to do now, in this pressing time, is to launch a wave of racial unity — 1Melayu, 1Bumi. Launch 1Melayu, 1Bumi immediately with other Malay parties,” assistant chief editor Datuk Zaini Hassan wrote in the Malay daily earlier today.

DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang said today that Utusan’s latest “anti-national” call proved that Najib’s 1 Malaysia concept was not a serious nation-building campaign but a big vote-getting sham involving “1Malaysia T-shirt, 1M Tupperware, 1M mineral water, 1M burger, 1M email a/c and other new-fangled 1M paraphernalia yet to be conjured up by 1M fortune hunters.’

“In making the irresponsible anti-national call today, Utusan Malaysia has in fact put Najib to the test — whether he is prepared to bring Utusan Malaysia into line and discipline those who are blatantly challenging his 1 Malaysia policy or whether he is an Umno President who is not in full charge of Umno, ceding real Umno power to the Umno kingmakers lurking in the shadows,” said Lim in a statement today.

In his Cuit column, Zaini said that DAP slogans in the recently concluded Sarawak state election called for Chinese voters to change the Malay-led government, adding that they already controlled everything and were now aiming for political power.

In his column, he said that the Chinese community was a united force whose “brotherhood” was unmatched by any other race in the country.

He said that despite their different political stances, Chinese voters would unite when the time came to decide the fate of their community.

Zaini also said that the Chinese community helped each other economically and stood together unwaveringly to protect their culture, language and vernacular education.

However, he provided no facts to substantiate the claim that the Chinese community was such a united force.

Zaini said that while DAP has united the Chinese politically, Malays have so far done nothing in response.

“Utusan Malaysia’s call today for Umno to spearhead a 1Melayu, 1Bumi movement involving all Malay parties, based on the lie and canard that the DAP is intent on toppling the country’s Malay leadership, marks the culmination of a two-year anti-1 Malaysia campaign by Utusan Malaysia.

“This is irresponsible and anti-national politicking at the gutter worst — trying to pit race against race in plural Malaysia based on lies, calumnies and falsehoods ... this is the old politics of race which must give way to the politics of Malaysian multi-racialism,” added Lim.

He said that the DAP had never been a political party for the Chinese but a party for all Malaysians, and that it was the first Pan-Malaysian political party with branches not only in Peninsula states but also in Sarawak and Sabah.

According to Lim, DAP’s success in the recent Sarawak state elections was the result of 33 years of hard political work by Malaysians and Sarawakians who believe in a just and equal society for all, and not just for any one ethnic group.

He also challenged Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties to state their views on the matter.

PAS MP Khalid Samad echoed Lim’s views and said that Utusan editors should be charged for sedition.

“They should be charged for saying seditious matters, inciting racial tension.

“What they are saying is factually wrong ... DAP’s struggles are not for just the Chinese, they are fighting for a just and transparent government,” he told The Malaysian Insider.

The Shah Alam MP charged that it was Umno who were “obsessed” with “race-based issues” and that fears of the Chinese overthrowing a Malay-dominated government were part-and-parcel of Umno’s “propaganda” to stay in power.

PKR vice-president Chua Tian Chang said that Utusan’s editorial content showed Umno’s inability to adapt in a “multiracial” society.

“That is how they want to visualise everything ... everything is a big conspiracy against Umno.

“This is just a façade to stay in power,” Chua told The Malaysian Insider.

Police report against ranting Pembela

Muslim group's 'willing to shed blood against Christians who insult and ridicule Islam' statement, highly provovative, says lawyer.

PETALING JAYA: A distressed Christian lawyer today lodged a police report against Pembela (Muslim Organisations in Defence of Islam) alleging their ranting at the national mosque recently were racially insidious and highly provocative.

Annou Xavier lodged a report at the Petaling Jaya police station over the NGO’s (a coalition of 20 Muslim groups) protest on Friday over the government’s handling of the Malay bible issue.

The group claimed that Christians had gone overboard in defending the Malay bible issue.

“Their statements on Friday are insidious, seditious and highly provocative. They are willing to disrupt harmony, cause hatred, and raise disaffection with Christians and among other peace loving citizens of Malaysia,” said Annou, who had the backing of eight NGOs.

In his police report, Annou cited a news article from online news portal, The Malaysian Insider (TMI), which reported that Pembela had “declared they were willing to shed blood against ‘extremist’ Christians who insult and ridicule the position of Islam in this country.”

TMI also reported that Pembela had urged “all Muslims leaders to unite against extremist Christians who challenged and insulted Islam”.

Annou said that such statements were a “warning” and a “threat” to peace loving Malaysians despite their differing religious believes.

Among the groups that endorsed Annou’s police report were Council of Churches of Malaysia Youth (CCM Youth), Civil Rights Committee of the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (CRC-KLSCAH) and the Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF).

Furore over Malay bibles


In a joint statement, the civil groups said that they were disturbed as Friday’s protest was carried by the international media and hoped that police would prevent “any future intimidation and threats of violence against one another in public spaces.”

The home ministry caused a furore when it seized 35,000 copies of the Al-Kitab in Port Klang (in 2009) and Kuching Port on Jan 12 earlier this year for being a threat to national security.

After a public outcry, the government agreed to release the 5,100 bibles held in Port Klang but not before stamping them with the home ministry’s “For Christians Only” seal and a serial number on each copy.

This angered the importers who refused to collect the bibles, with numerous Christian groups accusing the government of desecrating the holy books.

Earlier this month, the government issued a 10-point solution to solve the issue, and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak promised that the bibles will never again be impounded.

However, the solution has not pleased all parties as several Christian groups have rejected it.

Pergaduhan kaum: Pengetua lepas tangan, kata bapa pelajar

Pergaduhan antara pelajar India dan Melayu berpunca dari panggilan berunsur menghina.

SHAH ALAM: Seorang bapa kepada pelajar di sebuah sekolah menengah di sini melahirkan rasa kecewa berikutan kegagalan pengetua sekolah berkenaan menangani masalah pelajar-pelajarnya sehingga mencetuskan pergaduhan berunsur perkauman.

Stephen Perumal Velu berkata, kes terbaru berlaku pagi tadi yang melibatkan pergaduhan besar berikutan sekumpulan pelajar memanggil pelajar kaum India dengan kata-kata kasar dan menghina.

“Saya menerima panggilan daripada anak saya sekitar pukul 10.30 pagi lalu bergegas ke sekolah,” kata beliau yang juga bekas Ahli Jawatankuasa Persatuan Ibu Bapa dan Guru (PIBG) sekolah berkenaan ketika ditemui di hadapan sekolah itu sekitar pukul 11.00 pagi tadi.

Beliau berkata, “saya tanya pengetua mengapa masalah pergaduhan kaum kerap berlaku sejak kebelakangan ini tetapi jawapannya tidak memuaskan kerana beliau menyalahkan pelajar kaum India.”

Walau bagaimanapun Stephen mendakwa bahawa anaknya berkata bahawa kumpulan pelajar Melayu menghina kumpulan pelajar India dengan memanggil mereka menggunakan perkataan ‘Keling Paria’.

Pada waktu itu, beberapa polis dan ibu bapa pelajar sudah berkumpul di hadapan pintu masuk sekolah selepas mendapat tahu apa yang berlaku.

“Saya tanya kepada Yang Dipertua PIBG dan dia kata dia dan pengetua sedang selesaikan isu itu.

“Tapi tiba-tiba seramai 26 pelajar diserahkan oleh pengetua kepada polis untuk dibawa ke balai polis untuk disiasat,” katanya sebelum beliau sendiri bergegas ke balai polis kerana anaknya turut ditahan polis.

Tinjauan wartawan FMT di hadapan sekolah itu pada jam 12.30 tengah hari mendapati suasana tenang.

Wartawan cuba menghubungi pejabat sekolah untuk mendapatkan maklumat tetapi diberitahu oleh pihak sekolah bahawa “saya tak tahu, tak ada apa-apa berlaku di sekolah”.

Apabila wartawan FMT menghubungi Stephen melalui telefon pada 1.00 tengah hari, beliau masih berada di balai polis.

Pelajar-pelajar diberi taklimat

“Kesemua 23 pelajar India dan tiga pelajar Melayu sedang diberi taklimat dan saya diberitahu bahawa keterangan mereka akan diambil sebelum dibenarkan balik.

“Saya sangat kecewa kerana anak saya dan pelajar lain yang tidak bersalah dibawa ke balai polis sedangkan pelajar yang benar-benar mencetuskan pergaduhan masih ada di sekolah,” katanya.

Menurutnya, pengawas sekolah telah menyerahkan kepada polis satu senarai nama pelajar yang benar-benar terlibat dalam pergaduhan itu tetapi mereka tidak dipanggil untuk siasatan.

“Apa yang dilakukan puan pengetua dan YDP PIBG sudah keterlaluan dan sengaja menimbulkan pergaduhan antara kaum.

“Saya akan berbincang dengan semua ibu bapa pelajar terbabit dan akan membuat laporan polis selepas polis melepaskan anak saya dan pelajar lain,” katanya.

Tinjauan wartawan FMT pada pukul 1.30 tengahari mendapati beberapa anggota polis ditempatkan di hadapan sekolah. FMT cuba menghubungi pengetua sekolah tersebut untuk mendapatkan komen tetapi tidak berjaya.

Satu pergaduhan turut berlaku sebelum ini melibatkan seorang pelajar Tingkatan Tiga dan lapan pelajar Tingkatan Empat di sekolah berkenaan.

Sumpah:Hanya Patuh Kepada Peraturan Allah

Dari Harakah

Setahu para ulama, tiada sumpah dalam urusan yang melibatkan zina, rogol liwat (melainkan isteri yang mengadu kepada hakim bahawa dia diliwat oleh suami dibenarkan bersumpah), tuduhan seseorang itu melakukan zina tanpa mengemukakan saksi (qazaf) berpandukan tindakan yang tidak memanggil Safwan atau Aisyah bersumpah dalam peristiwa fitnah ke atasnya.

Demikian penerangan yang diberikan Naib Presiden PAS, Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man mengenai cabaran bersumpah dari bekas bendahari agung Perkasa, Datuk Shuib Lazim kepada dua pemimpin kanan PAS, Mursyidul Am, Tuan Guru Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat dan Presiden, Datuk Seri Tuan Guru Abdul Hadi Awang dan Ketua Umum PKR, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim hari ini bagi membuktikan kebenaran dakwaan rakaman video seks yang dikaitkan dengan Anwar.

“Sumpah hanya ada dalam urusan yang bukan jenayah di atas, yang pembuktian hanya dilakukan melalui penyaksian atau pengakuan.

“Andainya dibenarkan sumpah dalam urusan qazaf, nescaya akan binasalah masyarakat, apabila seseorang wanita atau lelaki yang khianat atau berniat jahat kepada seorang imam, sanggup bersumpah dengan nama Allah:

“Wallahi, wabillahi, watallahi, imam itu telah merogol saya, nescaya akan punah keyakinan masyarakat pada imam, demikian seterusnya,” terang Tuan Ibrahim dalam satu kenyataan kepada Harakahdaily hari ini.

Lantaran itu, katanya yang juga Pesuruhjaya PAS Pahang, Rasulullah s.a.w mengkategorikan qazaf sebagai dosa membinasakan – yakni ia akan membinasakan diri yang dituduh, keluarganya mungkin bercerai-berai, masyarakat hilang kepercayaan padanya dan institusi atau syarikat akan membawa hilang kredibiliti kepada majikannya.

“Bayangkan kalau sumpah dibenarkan dalam tuduhan zina, rogol dan liwat, sudah tentu akan ada golongan yang akan mengambil kesempatan sanggup bersumpah demi menjatuhkan maruah seseorang,” tambahnya.

Disebabkan itu, katanya, Islam menyeru umatnya agar berpegang pada panduan ilmu yang disampaikan oleh para ulamak yang muktabar.

“Apabila Dr Yusuf al-Qardhawi menjelaskan tiadanya sumpah dalam urusan qazaf, bermakna inilah panduan syarak yang perlu dipatuhi oleh umat Islam.

“Semoga Allah menjauhi kita dari membuat tuduhan yang berupa qazaf kerana ia termasuk dalam tujuh dosa besar yang membinasakan umat manusia,” kata Tuan Ibrahim.

Oleh itu, beliau berkata, Shuib harus mendalami peraturan syarak sebelum mencabar pemimpin PAS untuk bersumpah.

“Yang minta saksi ini bukan PAS, tapi Allah dan Rasul-Nya. Jangan kita anggap Allah jahil dalam membuat peraturan-Nya – Allah yang Maha Mengetahui dan Maha Hakim dalam menetapkan hukuman-Nya.

“Kita mesti ikut peraturan Allah, bukan membuat peraturan baru yang bercanggah dengan peraturan Allah. PAS tidak berhasrat membela sesiapa tetapi kita perlu ikut peraturan Allah,” tegas Tuan Ibrahim.

Kalau Shuib merasakan klip video seks itu satu kes penting, kata Tuan Ibrahim dia perlu menayangkannya pada hakim yang bakal memutuskan sesuatu kes dan bukannya kepada orang ramai untuk minta penghakiman awam.

“Dia perlu mengadu kepada polis bukan tayang pada wartawan untuk jadi bahan menjatuh seseorang, kalau ianya benar sekalipun, apa lagi ianya penuh dengan pertikaian kesahihannya,” bidas Tuan Ibrahim, yang turut melahirkan rasa kesal ke atas kelambatan polis untuk mengambil tindakan terhadap trio Datuk T yang diketuai bekas Ketua Menteri Melaka, Tan Sri Rahim Thamby Chik yang melakukan jenayah secara terang dengan menyiarkan video lucah kepada orang awam.

Troubled firm to spearhead Malaysian Email Project

(Asia Sentinel) Is the government once again bailing out UMNO cronies?

The Malaysian government has handed a RM50 million (US$16.5 million) contract to a nearly-moribund company to set up a citizen email service that probably isn't needed, raising new questions about Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's vow to clean out cronyism from the United Malays National Organization.

The contract, announced Tuesday by Najib, was awarded to a firm called Tricubes Bhd., one of 12 companies listed by the Malaysian Stock Exchange as eligible to seek help from the Corporate Debt Restructuring Committee to reform its debts because of its "poor or adverse financial condition."

Tricubes has a year to convince the stock exchange that it has a proper recovery plan, including the settlement of all its debts or face delisting, making it appear that the government contract is a lifeline thrown to keep it going. Tricubes has also received contracts to supply the government's MyKad smart ID cards, which all citizens must carry, as well as supplying a biometric passport.

Najib delivered a fire-breathing speech on his selection as UMNO head and prime minister in 2009, saying corruption and money politics would wreck the party if they weren't curtailed. But in the intervening months, little has been done to rein in the rent-seekers who dominate the party, winning government contracts for dubious enterprises. While the email contract is tiny compared to many doled out to government-linked companies or companies tied to UMNO, it illustrates the way the system works.

The blogosphere erupted with hundreds of critical emails after Najib announced the contract, which was awarded under the 1Malaysia Project, designed to drive the country into high-income nation status. An anti-1Malaysia e-mail Facebook account had 1,500 members signed up less than three hours after it was established.

The project, Najib said in announcing it at the Putrajaya International Convention Center in the government complex south of Kuala Lumpur, is to allow for "direct and secure communications between citizens and the government" as well as enhancing the "delivery of government services to consumers and businesses alike."

But critics said the project is an unnecessary duplication of commercial services like Facebook and Google that are already in place, not to mention the government's own websites. Asked if the project will conflict with e-government sites and services like MyEG, a Tricubes executive said the project differs from the existing initiatives.

"We will focus on delivery of notices and bills, MYEG is about online payment," CEO Khairun Zainal Mokhtar told a press conference after the announcement.

Asked how the companies came to be awarded the projects, Performance Management Delivery Unit chief executive officer Idris Jala, told reporters it was a mixed bag.

"For government projects like 1Malaysia Email Project, there was open bidding and Tricubes won the award," Idris said. "Other projects….are private projects that the company itself wanted to do. Our (government's) role is to facilitate approvals."

Lim Kit Siang, the parliamentary leader of the opposition Democratic Action Party, called the project "the ripoff of the century." Other opposition lawmakers complained about the project as well, saying that even if it were to be put in place, it would give the government potential access to millions of Malaysians' emails.

Premesh Chandran, the chief executive officer of the Malaysian website Malaysiakini, said the costs of maintaining the e-mail project would by themselves be controversial: "There is a need to maintain the site. Most of it will be for maintenance, to have the software in place, and make sure it is up to date. There is also the danger of spamming, so it involves a lot of risk and possibly costs," he said.

Chandran asked Malaysians needs a separate 1Malaysia email account when many already have their own emails.

"A cheaper solution is to approach established companies like Google to provide emails. Malaysiakini staff have already adopted Google for its email and it's free," he said, adding that with 7 million Facebook users in Malaysia, such messages could be delivered via Facebook for free.

He also questioned why users would want to access their bills via the 1Malaysia email account when some have already registered their emails with service providers like Telekom Malaysia, and Tenaga Nasional Bhd, the state-owned energy company.

"When we go to the National Registration Department, they also ask if we have an email on their form. So would there now be duplication?" he asked.
New initiatives

The project is one of seven new initiatives and five revisited endeavors that are part of 12 EPPs announced by Najib today.

The other projects are:

1. Asia Media's RM500 million Digital LiveTransit-TV Broadcasting infrastructure
2. Karambunai Corp Bhd-led consortium's RM9.6 billion Karambunai Integrated Resort City
3. International Islamic University Malaysia's RM3.17 million initiative to develop and position Malaysia as the world's leading Islamic finance education hub
4. Infineon Technologies' RM480 million expansion and upgrade to its production capacity, research and development and manufacturing facilities in Malacca
5. Pensonic Holdings Sdn Bhd's RM250 million electrical home appliances manufacturing hub and international distribution network in Penang
6. RM45 million Radio Frequency Identification infrastructure for security and automation of paperless Royal Malaysian Customs checkpoints
7. Myled Master Sdn Bhd's RM175 million expansion to their manufacturing capability in LED lighting
8. Federal Agriculture Marketing Authority's RM30 million 'Pasar Komuniti' initiative to co-ordinate and amalgamate day- and night-markets in locations with better facilities
9. A RM3.26 million government baseline study on e-counter

With reporting with Malaysiakini

Pemandu takes fire as hostility grows over 1 Malaysia email a/c

By Shannon Teoh | TMI

KUALA LUMPUR, April 20 — The Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) today reiterated the 1 Malaysia email accounts project is a private sector initiative — despite a report that the government had invited bids last November for a RM50 million government services internet solution.

Within 15 minutes of the clarification going live on its Twitter account, @etp_roadmap, Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin questioned if the private investment to fund the project was being guaranteed by the government.

The government’s Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit (Mampu) invited bids for the project last November, according to documents sighted by The Malaysian Insider.

It is understood as many as five companies were invited to pitch for the project by Mampu although it was unclear why the task was given to a civil service unit that manages the public service.

Tricubes Bhd, a company in danger of being delisted from the stock exchange for financial irregularities, in a filing to the Bursa Malaysia on April 4, said it had been awarded the email project by Mampu.

“The Board of Directors of TRICUBES wishes to announce that the Company has on 4 April 2011 accepted the appointment by the Government of Malaysia represented by Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit (MAMPU) vide MAMPU’s letter of award dated 29 March 2011 to implement the 1 Malaysia Email Project,” the filing read.

The little-known ACE-listed company triggered Bursa Malaysia Securities’ Guidance Note 3 (GN3), paragraph 2.1(f) last year when auditors “expressed a modified opinion with emphasis on Tricubes’ going concern in the latest audited financial statements for the financial year ended March 31, 2010”, according to a separate filing made by Tricubes on October 29, 2010.

As a GN3 company, Tricubes has to submit and implement a regularisation plan, appoint a sponsor until it is no longer deemed a GN3 company, retain the services of a sponsor for three full financial years after the company is no longer considered a GN3 company and announce the status of its regularisation plan monthly.

Tricubes’ latest filing to Bursa Malaysia on April 1 indicates that it is still in the process of regularising its finances.

In tweets that were sent out between 2pm to 2.05pm today, Pemandu’s Fadhlullah Suhaimi Abdul Malek, director of Communications Content and Infrastructure, Business Services NKEA said “I wish to reiterate that this is a private sector-led initiative by Tricubes. The investment DOES NOT come from the govt.”

The unit headed by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Idris Jala also said that “this is an alternative secured mode of communication between the govt & the people” whereas “most M’sians use non-secured public emails e.g. yahoo, hotmail, gmail (hosted overseas) in their communications w the govt.”

However, Pemandu did not explain why the government invited bids if it was a private sector initiative or why secured emails were required to communicate with the government.

It also did not explain why a key performance indicator (KPI) of hit 100 per cent take-up by qualified Malaysians was necessary if the project was being executed by the private sector.

Questions posed by The Malaysian Insider on Twitter regarding these issues sent concurrently with Pemandu’s broadcast were unanswered as of 2.55pm.

Questions sent to Pemandu this morning have also not been answered.

Pemandu’s clarification drew an immediate response from Malaysians on Twitter who accused it of not answering the important questions regarding the 1 Malaysia email accounts.

“@etp_roadmap You didn’t answer my ques.Why contract given to a GN3 company? #1malaysiaemail,” tweeted Adrian Ng.

Others also attacked Pemandu for claiming that Gmail was not secure.

“@etp_roadmap Google uses RC4_128 encryption! It is as secured! not non-secured!” said a user known as comeez.

A user known as Pakdi7 said “@etp_roadmap hi doc! How bout Tricubes GN3 status? Are they really competent enough to handle other person data but not their own financial?”

Rembau MP Khairy also tweeted at 2.20pm that he understood “that private investment to fund project BUT is there implicit/explicit govt guarantee?”

He said the two main issues were the “award of project and “Big Brother” concerns. Award done based on standard ETP “open proposal system.”

The hashtag #1malaysiaemail, RM50m and Tricubes are still dominating the top five Malaysian topics on Twitter as of 3pm.

1Malaysia E-mail A Private Sector Initiative, Says Najib

IPOH, April 20 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said that the 1Malaysia e-mail project is a purely private sector initiative without any public sector involvement.

"Participation is voluntary and people are free to opt out of the programme," he told reporters after launching the Malaysian Unit Trust Week here Wednesday.

He explained that the initiative had been evaluated by the Performance Management and Delivery Unit (PEMANDU) and announced as one of seven new projects under the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP).

Under the proposed scheme, Malaysians aged 18 and above will each be assigned an e-mail account.

Najib had said that the initiative would allow direct and secure communication between Malaysians and the government, and enhance the delivery of government services to consumers and businesses alike.

It was reported that Tricubes Bhd would spearhead the RM50 million investment which also includes the development of a web portal as a one-stop centre for government services, providing value-added services such as social networking, checking bills online and payments.

Certain parties have questioned the initiative, with some of them seeking clarification over the status of the company and the use of public funds.

Explaining the matter Tuesday, PEMANDU said the government would not fund the e-mail scheme and that it was not compulsory for Malaysians.

"It's a private sector-driven initiative led by Tricubes, with investments from the private sector, not the government," it said.

Sarawak analysis shows different picture

Most people think that the main gains for the opposition in Sarawak came from the ethnic Chinese. But an analysis by political science professor Bridget Welsh shows a different picture.



As you can see, the biggest opposition gains in percentage share of  voters came from the Orang Ulu, Malay and Bidayuh groups – higher than the Iban and Chinese gains.

This could be because the baseline for Chinese voters was already high, given that many of them reside in urban areas and had already voted for the opposition in 2006.

The other myth is that the opposition gains (in percentage terms) came from urban areas. Not so. The largest gains in percentage terms came from semi-rural seats.
Again, this could be because the urban seats had already seen high levels of support in 2006; thus they had a higher baseline compared to semi-rural and rural seats.
This time around, I imagine the voter awareness has spread out from urban areas to reach semi-rural areas such as Batu Kawah, Dudong and Piasau. It has even reached rural areas, which experienced a distinct increase in support for the opposition, but not enough for a tsunami – yet.
Bridget’s analysis in Malaysiakini also points to something of a ‘youth revolt’:

In the lower polling streams, where new voters are concentrated, more than 70% of voters opposed the BN. Given the largely young crowds at rallies, especially in Kuching and Miri, this is no surprise.
We see two pattern – higher mobilisation of younger voters, an estimated 16% increase in turnout compared to older voters, and an overwhelming level of support for Pakatan among younger voters in the lower streams, with a change in trend of over 25%. In 2006, there was already stronger support for the opposition among the youth, but this appears to have significantly increased.

What this suggests to me is that political awareness is growing. It is reaching younger voters (who are also the biggest users of new media and new technology) while simultaneously fanning out from the cities and towns to sub-urban and semi-urban areas and even creeping into rural areas.

With increasing awareness over time will come a new consciousness. Expect the ruling coalition to come under even more pressure the next time around.

To me, the results of the Sarawak should not be looked at in ethnic terms but should be seen as a function of how aware voters are of the governance issues of the day and whether they are able to see a connection between these issues and their immediate daily problems and needs.

That said, those of us in the urban areas should not be arrogant enough to think that we know what is best for our counterparts in the interior areas. There is much that we too can learn from those living in the interior areas – about the importance of community solidarity and networks, food self-sufficiency, and the ability to live in harmony with the natural environment with a minimal carbon footprint.

Respect minority religions, Cheng told

KL and Selangor Chinese Chamber chief's call to do away with Deepavali and Wesak day holidays uncalled for, says Hindu Sangam.

KUALA LUMPUR: William Cheng, the chairman of the KL and Selangor Chinese Chamber of Commerce, was criticised for urging the government to remove Deepavali and Wesak Day as public holidays.

“It’s a Hindu’s right to celebrate Deepavali, just like the Chinese their New Year. What does Cheng know or understand about Deepavali? asked Hindu Sangam president RS Mohan Shan.

Recently, in reports carried by Tamil newspapers Makkal Osai and Malaysia Nanban, Cheng complained about too many public holidays in Malaysia and said they were bad for business.

He then urged the government to remove Deepavali and Wesak Day holidays from the list of public holidays because they were celebrated by minorities.

“It’s not right for him to say that about a religious festival,” said Mohan, who added that out of 17 public holidays, Deepavali was just the one day given to the Hindu community.

His sentiments were echoed by Reverend Thomas Philips, president of the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST).

Thomas said Cheng’s statement smacked of disrespect for the religion.

“It’s not a question of majority or minority. Everybody should be treated as equal in this multireligious, multiracial society,” he said.

Thomas called on all communities to recognise and respect religions different from their own.

“We’ve been living with these holidays all along. The question of business should not arise as we should view the holidays as a long-term investment which brings diversity and peace.”

He said out that holidays were good for the economy as people shopped more during such events.

Approximately 87% of the 1,970,000 Indians in Malaysia are Hindus. Additionally, 19.2% of Malaysia’s population is Buddhist, although if combined with Chinese religions it can go up to 21.6%.