Arizona mom accused of burning teen's face for refusing arranged marriage to older man

 

Yusra Farhan, left, is charged with beating her daughter. Mohammed Altameemi, 

top right, and Tabarak Altameemi also are charged with assault.

PHOENIX – An Iraqi mother accused of beating her teenage daughter for not going along with an arranged marriage pleaded not guilty Monday in a case police said involved burning the teen on her face and chest with a hot spoon.

Yusra Farhan, 50, entered the plea to charges of aggravated assault, unlawful imprisonment and resisting arrest.

The daughter, 19, refused to participate in an arranged marriage with a 38-year-old man, authorities said.

Two other defendants, the victim's sister, 18-year-old Tabarak Altameemi, and father, 45-year-old Mohammed Altameemi, also pleaded not guilty to assault and unlawful imprisonment.

MyFoxPhoenix.com cited court records showing that on Feb. 7 Mohammed Altameemi got mad at his daughter because she left night class with a boy. The father picked her up at school and took her home.

He is accused of cutting his daughter’s neck with a knife. Police say he admitted he was trying to kill her, but Tabarak Altameemi intervened.

They, other siblings and Farhan then allegedly taped the 19-year-old's mouth, bound her hands and body with rope and beat her.

The altercation over the arranged marriage occurred in November, MyFoxPhoenix.com reported. At that time, the victim's sisters and mom allegedly held her down and beat her, with Farhan accused of putting a hot spoon against her daughter's face and chest.

"I swear I didn't hurt her, only slightly, just like any parent would do to their children. Nobody would hurt their own children. You can ask her if she can be here with me," Farhan told a judge, according to a translation.

Indian teen "suspects" jailed 17 days without charge: Uthaya slam police's "tukar gari" culture

Re: 1) Indian Juvenile (16) & (17) mere suspects jailed up to 17 days today without charge. 2) “Tukar Gari” becoming new police culture after amendments to CPC in reducing remand period. 3) Seven (7) such suspects in one day. 4) Racial profiling of Indian youths mere "suspects" 5) Resurgence of Polis Raja Di Malay-sia abuse of powers.

We refer to the above matter and in the general public interest wish to raise the following concerns:-

Single parent Dhanaletchumy (42) called over at the Hindraf Headquarters in Bangsar complaining that her son Yuvaneswaran a/l Rajendran (16) and his uncle Saravanan a/l Aryan (33) and their friend Venugopal a/l Ganesan (30) were unlawfully arrested by the Brickfields police when they were about to go up the lift to visit her sister at the PPR Pantai Dalam flats.

Dhanaletchumy told us that she is worried that they have been detained since 29/2/2012 at the IPD Klang Police Headquarters. She further said that at this police station one policeman had slapped Yuvaneswaran in the face and the other policemen told him that they have mixed another drug addict’s urine with her son’s and that he is now in trouble. Dhanaletchumy further fears for her son’s safety as there is a metal plate in her son’s right hand since a road traffic accident last year.

Police refused to answer

Our Mr. P.Uthayakumar immediately telephoned the Klang IPD Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Chief DSP Nik Ros Azlan bin Nik Abdul Hamid (019-3805917) who said that the three were detained on suspicion of car theft. But when P.Uthayakumar asked whether they were in the midst of stealing or were in possession of the stolen car to qualify to be an arrestable offence and to be arrested, Nik Azlan refused to answer the question.

P.Uthayakumar further questioned the police inefficiency in investigating this case. He reminded DSP Nik Azlan that in any event the International Police Investigating Procedure (IPIP) requires the police to thoroughly investigate first before zooming in to arrest any suspect. Had they done this, the police should not need seven (7) days (today) but could have completed the investigations within 24 hours going by the Western Civil society standards. (see note below)

And thereafter if there is proof they could always charge the suspects in Court which is the Rule of Law. P.Uthayakumar had also questioned why they are already detained for (7) days now especially so when the Criminal Procedure Code had been amended in 2008 to drastically reduce the remand period. But the police abuse of powers seem to be old wine in new bottles as they now abuse their powers by this their new found “tukar gari” police culture.

"Tukar gari"

DSP Nik Azlan told P.Uthayakumar that the suspects would now be “tukar gari” for the third time and handed over to the Petaling Jaya police for yet again another suspected drug case. To this P.Uthayakumar had replied that he would be writing a letter of complaint to the Home Minister and the Inspector General of Police for them to be forthwith released.

We hereby express concern that today, in one day alone we have received complaints on seven (7) Indian youths via telephone including that of another juvenile (17), a lady worker Malarvili (41) and two other Indian youths “mere suspects” were arrested by the Taiping police. They have been arrested and detained for 17 days as of today. Malarvilli earns a mere RM550.00 per month as a worker and the other three are also workers at a scrap metal trader in Taiping.

Just because the boss had gone “missing” why unlawfully arrest their workers? These four have similarly been ‘tukar gari” to six (6) different police stations of Taiping, Sri Gombak, USJ, IPK Shah Alam, Kepong and to be transferred to Teluk Intan today according to the Kepong Investigating Officer Sergeant Effendi.

Malarvili had told her cousin brother Sutha that she is on the verge of committing suicide in jail.

As for the seventeen (17) year old boy his father is a disabled person receiving token Welfare aid and his mother a housewife.

Kindly take the necessary action and revert to us accordingly.

Thank You.

Yours Faithfully,



_______________

P.Uthayakumar

(De facto leader, Hindraf)

Note: An interesting statistic as to the position with regards to arrest and detention in United Kingdom vis a vis the at least 500% more backward and less efficient Malaysian police than the British police at expense of Constitutional freedom of the person (Article 5) may be of some relevance. In Civil Liberties, Cases and Materials by Bailey Harris and Jones at page 88 paragraph 3 the writer has outlined a very interesting piece of statistic. “The Royal Commission on Criminal Procedure found that about 75% of the suspects were dealt with within six hours and about 95% of the suspect within 24 hours. A survey done by the Metropolitan Police for three months in 1979 showed that only 0.4% of suspects had been held over 72 hours without charge or release”.)

Polis tunduk kepada gangsterisme Umno

Sekumpulan lelaki dengan diketuai oleh ketua kampung Kuala Sawah hadir dengan bersenjatakan parang di tapak program ceramah.

REMBAU: PKR Cabang Rembau hari ini melahirkan rasa kecewa dan terkilan dengan sikap Polis DiRaja Malaysia yang gagal menjamin ketenteraman dan sebaliknya tunduk kepada gangsterisme Umno di kawasan Menteri Besar Negeri Sembilan, Dato’ Seri Mohamad Hasan.

Setiausahanya Norazizi A Aziz dalam kenyataan kepada FMT sebentar tadi menyatakan kekesalan tersebut apabila pihak polis daerah Seremban gagal memberikan permit untuk program ceramah yang pada asalnya dijadualkan berlangsung pada malam ini di Taman Jed Indah, Kuala Sawah, Rantau.

Menurut Norazizi, pada 6 Februari lalu telah dijadualkan satu program ceramah di pekan Kuala Sawah dalam kawasan Dewan Undangan Negeri (Dun) Rantau dan Parlimen Rembau.

“Namun ketika persiapan tapak dilakukan pada hari tersebut, sekitar jam 6 petang sekumpulan lelaki dengan diketuai oleh ketua kampung Kuala Sawah hadir dengan bersenjatakan parang.

“Ketika kekecohan berlaku di lokasi yang hanya jaraknya sekitar 300 meter dari Balai Polis Kuala Sawah, ada anggota polis datang dan selepas bercakap dengan ketua kumpulan penyerang (Ketua Kampung), anggota polis tersebut terus beredar.

“Selepas itu PKR membuat laporan polis mengenai serangan dan ugutan bersenjata namun polis gagal mengambil tindakan hanya kerana beliau merupakan ketua kampung yang dilantik Menteri Besar.

“Serangan bukan sahaja dengan menggunakan senjata tetapi juga bersifat perkauman apabila Ketua Kampung lantikan Umno itu mencarut dan memaki hamun petugas-petugas PKR berbangsa India yang ada bersama termasuk ugut ‘mandi darah’,” kata Norazizi.

Pada masa yang sama katanya, apabila berita ini tersebar ada juga sekumpulan orang kampung yang menyokong Pakatan Rakyat dalam perjalanan untuk datang ke lokasi kejadian.

Bagaimanapun untuk mengelak kejadian yang tidak diingini berlaku PKR Rembau membuat keputusan program ceramah tersebut ditangguhkan sahaja.

“Kali ini kami telah mengatur satu lagi program ceramah dengan mengubah sedikit lokasi ceramah iaitu di Taman Jed Indah tetapi masih berdekatan dengan pekan Kuala Sawah.

Umno guna otot, tidak guna otak

“Namun sejak semalam telah disebarkan sms daripada Ketua Kampung Kuala Sawah memanggil orang-orang Umno berkumpul untuk ‘menghancurkan’ program pembangkang di Dun Rantau, kawasan Menteri Besar.

Malahan sejak pagi tadi kami mula mendapat panggilan dari pihak polis yang ‘menasihati’ agar program tersebut dibatalkan kerana mahu mengelak berlakunya kekecohan.

“PKR amat kecewa dengan sikap polis ini. Demokrasi sudah tiada tetapi undang-undang negara semakin menjadi hukum rimba.

“Mengambil sikap mengelakkan daripada kekecohan maka program ini akan ditukar lokasi ke lain tetapi tetap di Dun Rantau yang kononnya kubu kuat Menteri Besar, ” jelas Norazizi.

Norazizi berkata Umno sebenarnya semakin lemah dan mereka panik apabila semakin ramai rakyat mengetahui maklumat sebenarnya.

Oleh kerana Umno semakin sedar maka mereka gagal menggunakan otak untuk berhujah sebaliknya terpaksa bergantung guna otot pula.

Umno menyebabkan politik negara menjadi politik rimba.

Justeru itu program ceramah tersebut akan diadakan pada malam ini di perkarangan Pejabat PKR Rantau (depan setesen Petronas) di Pekan Rantau.

Bertemakan “Pendedahan Hubungan Dagang Malaysia–Israel dan isu lembu NFC”, pemimpin yang akan menyampaikan ceramah pada malam ini ialah Pengarah Strategik PKR, Rafizi Ramli; Ketua PKR Cabang Rembau, Badrul Hisham Shaharin (Chegu Bard) dan Adun Paroi dari PAS, Mohd Taufek Abdul Ghani.

Pemuda Umno akan umum pendirian mengenai Ku Li

Ketua Pemuda, Datuk Bazlan Baharuddin berkata, segelintir AJK Pemuda mahu tokoh veteran Umno itu berundur.



PETALING JAYA: Pemuda Umno Gua Musang akan membuat pendirian sama ada menyokong Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah perlu bertanding dalam pilihan raya umum ke 13 dalam tempoh bebrapa hari lagi.

Ketua Pemuda, Datuk Bazlan Baharuddin berkata, segelintir AJK Pemuda mahu tokoh veteran Umno itu berundur.

“Saya nak tengok pandangan AJK bahagian yang lain tetapi waktu ini Ku Li merupakan calon terbaik BN untuk pilihan raya umum 13.

“Dia (Ku Li) masih boleh mentadbir Gua Musang dan ramai masih suka beliau. Cuma segelintir yang tidak puas hati,” katanya lagi.

Ku Li, kata Bazlan, sudah menjadi ahli parlimen Gua Musang selama 37 tahun dan menyumbang banyak pembangunan termasuk pembukaan tanah rancangan Kelantan Selatan (Kesedar).

Bagaimanapun, kata Bazlan, peneroka Kesedar tidak puas dengan Ku Li kerana tokoh veteran itu gagal menunaikan janji untuk melupuskan hutang peneroka berjumlah RM86 juta.

Bazlan berkata Ku Li berjanji jika Semangat 46 memerintah negara, hutang peneroka Kesedarkan akan diluputkan.

`Peneroka marah’

Bagaimanapun, parti itu kalah dalam pilihan raya umum 1990 dan 1994, dan akhirnya Semangat 46 dibubarkan pada tahun 1996.

Seorang AJK Umno bahagian mendakwa kira-kira 10,000 peneroka mula marah kepada Ku Li kerana tidak menunaikan janji tersebut.

Menurut Abdul Aziz Mohamad, bekas menteri kewangan itu membuat janji tersebut semasa memimpin Parti Semangat 46 pada tahun 1990.

Katanya, peneroka Kesedar dari sembilan blok Kesedar berpegang kepada janji-janji Ku Li untuk menghapuskan hutang mereka.

“Peneroka tidak suka lagi kepada Ku Li. Kalau dia bertanding, undinya akan merudum. Ramai peneroka tidak akan undi beliau.

“Saya sudah beritahu, kalau nak bertanding lagi kerana selesaikan hutang ini dulu. Saya beritahu Ku Li, peneroka marah kerana mereka ditipu,” kata Abdul Aziz yang juga ketua peneroka Jeram Tekoh. Kesedar.

Abdul Aziz juga mendakwa, beberapa lagi AJK Umno Gua Musang juga tidak setuju jika Ku Li terus bertanding dalam pilihan raya umum 13.

Borang Amanah

Kata beliau, generasi muda sudah tidak menghiraukan lagi Ku Li di Gua Musang walaupun telah menjadi ahli parlimen selama 37 tahun.

“Saya boleh katakan sambutan orang terhadap Ku Li tidak sama semasa beliau menjadi bos Semangat 46,” katanya.

Menurut Abdul Aziz, beliau ternampak beribu-ribu borang NGO Amanah pimpinan Ku Li di Gua Musang.

Bagaimanapun, borang tersebut belum diedarkan kepada orang ramai tetapi ramai berkata,`tidak ada orang nak masuk Amanah.’

“Mungkin Ku Li, jika tidak dicalonkan oleh BN mahu bertanding atas tiket bebas Amanah seperti yang dibuat selepas keluar Umno dulu,” kata Abdul Aziz.

PAS dilaporkan sedia membenarkan Ku Li bertanding atas tiket parti itu jika beliau tidak dicalonkan BN dalam pilihan raya umum 13.

No Prima Facie Case Against Abdul Razak Baginda, Says Judge

(Bernama) - Political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda has no prima facie case to answer a charge of abetting two Special Action Squad members in the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case in 2006, according to a written judgment released by the presiding High Court today.

Shah Alam High Court judge Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin said that the notes written by Abdul Razak, which were found in Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri’s bag with Abdul Razak’s full residential address, together with the name of his father, Datuk Abdullah Malim Baginda, were wholly consistent with an innocent man asking for assistance from the police to patrol the vicinity of his (Abdul Razak's) house over Altantuya’s harassment and threats.
   
In his 70-page judgment, Mohd Zaki also said that even if Abdul Razak could be inferred as having any “motive” in the light of all the blackmailing letters of the deceased (Altantuya), it could not be made as a basis for his conviction without any direct or circumstantial evidence of his participation in any manner in the commission of the offence.
   
"I am satisfied that there is no prima facie for him to answer his charge. I, accordingly, find the third accused not guilty and order him to be acquitted and discharged," he said in his judgment made available to the media today.
   
Regarding Abdul Razak’s affidavit, Mohd Zaki said that he had no reason to disagree with Abdul Razak that Altantuya had blackmailed him.

In the affidavit dated Jan 5, 2007, Abdul Razak admitted having a relationship with Altantuya, whom he met in November 2004, and that Altantuya demanded money from him and blackmailed him as a result of the relationship.
   
"Can these parts (about Altantuya and meeting with Azilah) of the said affidavit be ignored or rejected? It is my finding that in the absence of any rebuttal evidence against them, coupled with the fact that there is no legal onus that lies upon the third accused to rebut any statutory presumptions, there is clearly to my mind, no reason for them to be ignored and rejected.
   
"I have perused through the whole contents of the said affidavit. The learned counsel for Abdul Razak submitted that all the exculpatory parts were corroborated in material particulars by P. Balasubramaniam (a private investigator), Burmaa Oyuchimeg (Altantuya’s cousin), Lance Corporal Rohaniza Roslan and Siti Aishah Mohd Azlan (Razak’s secretary), and the other surrounding circumstances have clearly negated and nullified the act of abetment as alleged against the third accused.
   
"I have no reason to disagree with him. The averment about threat and blackmailing, for example, is corroborated by the threatening letters sent by the deceased to the third accused," he said.
   
Altantuya was murdered sometime between 10pm on Oct 19, 2006 and 1am, the following day, in a jungle clearing at Lot 16735, Mukim Bukit Raja, Shah Alam.

While Abdul Razak was acquitted, two others charged jointly with him, Azilah and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, were found guilty.
   
As for Azilah and Sirul Azhar, Mohd Zaki said the defence of each of the accused was essentially one of denial, blaming one another, irreconcilable and ambivalent.
   
He said Azilah also did not call any of his witnesses to support his defence and his alibi.
   
In his defence, Azilah said that he was not at the scene of the crime at the relevant date and time and instead, claimed that he was somewhere in Wangsa Maju.
   
Azilah also claimed that he was not the last person to be with Altantuya before he handed over to Sirul Azhar to send her back to Hotel Malaya.

Sirul Azhar, in his unsworn written statement, said he was a "scapegoat" and also claimed that he was not at the scene of the crime on the said date and time, but was instead, having tea at Devi’s Corner in Sri Hartamas and having ‘sahur’ at Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur.
   
He stressed that it was also not true that Azilah had handed over Altantuya to him for her to be sent back to Hotel Malaya.
   
"Having heard the submissions of both the defence and prosecution and having considered and tested the defence put up by both the first and second accused persons, individually and jointly, against the totality of the evidence for the prosecution, I find that the defence of each of the accused has essentially been one of denial, of blaming one another, irreconciliable and ambivalent. Consequently, they have failed to raise any reasonable doubt on the prosecution’s case," said Mohd Zaki.
   
The Court of Appeal has fixed this Friday for mention to set a date to hear an appeal filed by both Azilah and Sirul Azhar against their murder conviction.
   
The case has been pending for two years while awaiting the completion of the written judgment by Mohd Zaki.

Please, PAS & PKR, can we ABUkan Labuan?

Since I got banned from entering Sabah last December, I’ve taken to Labuan to carry on my work.
A report in the Daily Express might give you some insight into the kind of work going on there.
And in the course of that work, I have had the pleasure and privilege of meeting and working with some of the leaders and members from PKR, DAP and SAPP in Labuan.
The parliamentary seat of Labuan is currently held by UMNO / BN.
In the 2004 12th GE, UMNO’s Suhaili Abdul Rahman, the incumbent, garnered 11,087 votes against 3,186 votes that went the way of PAS candidate Matusin Abdul Rahman to retain the seat for UMNO /BN.
Voter turnout that year was 14,761 or 68.59%, with 488 spoilt votes.
The breakdown of voters according to ethnicity in 2004 was :
Chinese: 25.20% Indians: 2.20  Bumiputra Muslims: 37%  Others: 35.60%
In the 12th GE, Suhaili Abdul Rahman was dropped and replaced by Yusoff Mahal, who was involved in a 3-corner contest involving PAS candidate Matusin Abdul Rahman and independent candidate Lau Seng Kiat.
Yusoff Mahal won, polling 10,471 votes, Lau came in second with 2,014 votes, whilst Matusin managed only 1,106 votes, losing his deposit.
Voter turnout was 14,149 or 68.1%, with 311 spoilt votes.
Why did the PAS candidate fare the worst of the 3 candidates?
I’m told by the locals, including some of the Muslims, that the lifestyle of the majority in Labuan simply does not favour a PAS candidate.
Notice how in Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur in the 12th GE, of the 11 parliamentary seats there, PAS only contested and won in only 1 seat, that is, Titiwangsa?
Might this have anything to do, however slight, with the lifestyle of a large number of KLites, including those who profess Islam as their faith who, then, at least, might have been more ready to dump BN if the alternative was a non-PAS candidate?
The locals I spoke to in Labuan feel that given local sentiment, a non-PAS Malay candidate has a better chance of displacing UMNO / BN come the next elections.
Specifically, they have stated a preference for a Malay candidate from PKR.
The DAP, PKR and SAPP members and leaders I spoke to share this view, with one proviso.
PKR in Labuan, they tell me, is split into 2 factions.
Unless the PKR top leadership can get the 2 factions to settle their differences, picking a PKR candidate from either faction, assuming PAS makes way, risks internal sabotage from the other faction.
I am told that Sabah PKR chief, Tamrin Jailani, who I met in Labuan on 22nd February, has been asked by the local Labuan Pakatan leaders to intervene and resolve the dispute between the 2 factions in PKR Labuan.
DAP, PKR and SAPP members and leaders in Labuan that I have met have told me that they are confident that if PAS will  make way and PKR resolve their internal differences and offer a solid candidate, Labuan can be ABUed.
PAS?
PKR?
Can we work together to ABUkan Labuan?

The trouble with our race relations

Kee Thuan Chye |  Malaysiakini

COMMENT

Blogger Hussein Abdul Hamid aka Steadyaku47 made waves when he wrote in a posting asking the Chinese not to blame the Malays for being treated as ‘second-class citizens’.

Civil society activist Haris Ibrahim felt “troubled”. He was equally disturbed by what Raja Petra Kamarudin (RPK) had written about the Malays having become “kecik hati” (disappointed) because they feel the Chinese are not real friends to them.

Haris asked a senior journalist friend about what RPK had expressed, and the friend said it was true. He said the Umno-controlled media had been influencing the Malays by spinning that the DAP, “which is painted as a Chinese party, would be the principal benefactor if Pakatan Rakyat came to power”.

As I see it, this is ironic. The media says that the DAP is riding high in Pakatan and Umno leaders drum it in that PAS has become a puppet of the DAP, but look at what the MCA, Umno’s partner, is saying.

Repeating his theme for the umpteenth time, MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek has just called the DAP, in relation to PAS, a “political eunuch”. He insists, as he has insisted many times before, that the DAP will have no guts and ability to stop PAS from bossing Pakatan and getting its way, including implementing hudud and establishing an Islamic state.

What a contradiction between what Umno says and what the MCA says! Umno says the DAP will be the principal benefactor, the MCA says PAS will be the one and the DAP will be the loser. So whom do we believe?

Of course, it’s plain to see that the BN strategy adheres to the archaic mould – Umno says one thing to its Malay audience, the MCA says another thing to its Chinese audience. Never mind if they are contradictory.

Perhaps that could have worked in the old days, when mass communication technology was not so sophisticated, but today anyone with brains and knowledge would say, “Whom are Umno and the MCA trying to deceive?”

The truth must be somewhere in the middle – if Pakatan wins, both the DAP and PAS will be winners, and both will likely see each other as equal partners. On hudud and the Islamic state, they have already agreed to disagree. So if Pakatan takes Putrajaya, there cannot be an Islamic state unless the DAP agrees.

Not all Malays are Umnoputras

Coming back to Steadyaku47’s proposition, I have to say that although some Chinese might have been resentful of the Malays in the past, they have since realised that the people responsible are actually Umno – and, by extension, the MCA as well.

This explains why the Chinese have largely rejected the MCA. Even former finance minister Daim Zainuddin has recently said that at the next general election, he expects only 20 percent of the Chinese to vote for BN. And that these would mostly be rural Chinese.

Nowadays, the majority of the Chinese blame Umno – and therefore BN – for making them “second-class citizens”.

In fact, a Chinese friend of mine asserts, “The Chinese have never blamed the Malays. Ask any Chinese person and they will tell you that. They do not blame; instead, they will compromise and look around for a solution. If they cannot find a solution, they will move away.”

He’s mostly right. It explains why Chinese businessmen still do all right settling for sub-contract work from bumiputeras who get government contracts (unless they are cronies of the government, like some of the big towkays, who get contracts directly); why until March 8, 2008, they rarely spoke out against the system even though it discriminated against them; and why so many Chinese have emigrated since the New Economic Policy came into force.

Those who stay back work doubly hard to make sure they fulfil certain dreams, and if they can’t get into the civil service, they go to the private sector. They do grumble and sometimes target certain Malays who have beaten them to certain opportunities, but they rarely malign the entire race.

Gov’t has poisoned ethnic ties

But to be fair to Steadyaku47, his blog posting does not accuse the Chinese of blaming the Malays as a whole. It is most unfortunate that his blaring headline, ‘The Chinese Must Stop Blaming the Malays!’ (with exclamation mark, to boot), gives that wrong impression.

After reading his article carefully, one would realise that Steadyaku47’s real intention is to urge the Chinese to blame the BN government, Umno, the MCA and “the lack of education to make our young understand the need to celebrate our differences”.

In fact, a large part of the article shows understanding and sympathy for the plight of the Chinese. And it also expresses the embarrassment Malays feel for having “a Malay-led government that is corrupt, arrogant and totally without compassion for its own race”.

Steadyaku47 asks, “Do you want to be a Malay whose private life … is under the control of … government-appointed religious bodies that think that it is their duty to raid houses of ill-repute to save Malay girls from … depravity while the same politicians that appointed them have lives that would rival Hugh Hefner’s?”

I think Steadyaku47’s intent is honest and sincere, and his meaning is clear.

We should be more concerned about Haris’s concern, i.e. that the Malays are “kecik hati” regarding the Chinese, thanks to the spin of the Umno-controlled media.

This idea that the Chinese are not friendly needs to be debunked, but it’s going to be very difficult because the government has done such an excellent job over the last few decades of polarising the races and sowing suspicion between them.

It will take decades more to undo the damage. It will take re-education. It will take new government policies that radically change the racial paradigm, beginning with the dismantling of race-based political parties. It will take the organising of countless programmes to foster goodwill among the various races.

Will it happen under the current BN government? Or will it stand a better chance under a Pakatan government? This is something Malaysians will need to think about when they cast their votes at the next general election.

The day when the Chinese and the Malays feel they are real friends will still be a long time coming, but the outcome of the next elections could decide if it can be somewhat shortened.

——————————————————————————–

KEE THUAN CHYE is the author of the new book ‘No More Bullshit, Please, We’re All Malaysians’.

Malaysia Does Not Need A Revolutionary Programme - Najib

KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said Malaysia does not need a revolutionary programme but instead needed leaders committed to change who the people could trust.

The prime minister said this year promised to be a year of robust political discourse in Malaysia and hoped it would be one where more and more of the politicians addressed the real choices Malaysians faced.

"Ultimately it is the people who will determine the future. That is what our freedom from colonial rule was all about, that is what we preserved from the moment of Merdeka and we should all be proud of: a Malaysia where Malaysians decide," he said.

Najib said this in his latest entry titled "1Malaysia Is A Commitment To Transformation" in his blog www.1malaysia.com.my today.

He drew attention on those opposing the 1Malaysia concept, categorising them in two groups, the die-hards who say there should be no change from the approach of 1971 and the first wave of the New Economic Policy and those demanding revolutionary change.

As for the first group, Najib said: "I can understand why some are fearful: many of the historic imbalances in our society still need addressing; - and we will.

"But we must also have an approach that encourages all who can contribute to Malaysia to stay here and also we must recognise that widening ownership of the economy will not, of itself, fight poverty at root."

To those who feared 1Malaysia for these reasons, Najib advised them to be calm and patient as 1Malaysia was about a dynamic strategy to fight poverty in the country.

"And I believe, (1Malaysia) will achieve much more than if we refuse to change," he said.

The prime minister said it was the second group of opponents of 1Malaysia who worried him more.

"They dismiss anything and everything we have done as being not enough and instead demand a revolutionary programme of change. To different audiences they say different things: motivated only by a lust for power and what seems like congenital need to provoke more and more controversy."

"Of course, taken together their programme is a mess: one cannot promise to abolish road tolls, write off RM40 billion in National Higher Education Fund (PTPTN) loans and cut the budget deficit all at once: very quickly one of these promises would fall apart leaving a lot of angry people and an economy in free fall," he said.

Nevertheless, despite his fears, Najib said he was an optimist.

"Stocking up anger at the alleged failure of the current government to implement such a crazed programme will, I believe, only fail in the end, because the more such a dangerous mix of impossible promises is exposed to public scrutiny, the less and less credible those who seek to stir things up will be," he added.

Polis gagal jamin kententeraman dan akur dengan gansterisma Umno

(promosi asal yang terpaksa diubah tempat ke depan Petronas Pekan Rantau)

6 Febuari lepas telah dijadualkan satu ceramah di Pekan Kuala Sawah dalam Dun Rantau dan Parlimen Rembau. Namun ketika persiapan tapak dilakukan pada hari tersebut sekitar jam 6 petang sekumpulan lelaki dengan diketuai oleh Ketua Kampung Kuala Sawah telah hadir dengan bersenjata parang. Ketika kekecohan berlaku di lokasi yang hanya jaraknya sekitar 300 meter dari Balai Polis Kuala Sawah ada anggota polis telah datang dan selepas bercakap dengan ketua kumpulan penyerang (ketua kampung) anggota polis terus beredar. Malah kemudian PKR telah membuat laporan polis mengenai serangan dan ugutan bersenjata namun polis gagal mengambil tindakan hanya kerana dia ketua kampung lantikan Menteri Besar NS.

Serangan bukan sahaja bersifat bersenjata tetapi juga bersifat perkauman apabila Ketua Kampung lantikan Umno ini mencarut dan memaki hamun petugas-petugas berbangsa India yang ada bersama termasuk ugut 'mandi darah'.

Pada masa yang sama apabila berita ini tersebar ada juga sekumpulan orang kampung yang menyokong PR dalam perjalanan untuk datang ke lokasi. Untuk elak kejadian kami buat keputusan ceramah tersebut ditangguhkan sahaja.

Di lokasi hampir sama tetapi diubah sedikit di perkarangan rumah Sdr. Selvam ahli Jawatankuasa PKR Rembau namun masih di Pekan Kuala Sawah. Sejak semalam telah disebarkan sms dari Ketua Kampung memanggil orang Umno berkumpul untuk 'menghancurkan' prog. pembangkang di kawasan Menteri Besar (DUN Rantau). Malah sejak pagi tadi kami mula mendapat panggilan dari pihak polis yang 'menasihati' agar program tersebut dibatalkan kerana mahu elak kekecohan.

PKR amat kecewa dengan sikap polis yang jelas lemah dalam menjamin kententeraman dan akur dengan gangsterisma Umno. Demokrasi sudah tiada tetapi negara sudah semakin menjadi hukum rimba.

Mengambil sikap mengelakan kekecohan maka program diubah sedikit lokasi tetapi masih diteruskan. Mohon semua untuk hadir sama membantu kami menggempur kawasan yang konon kubu kuat Menteri Besar Negeri Sembilan. Semua diharap sebarkan makluman dan hadir beramai ramai.

CERAMAH UMUM

6 Mac 2012, 9mlm

hadapan Pejabat PKR Pekan Rantau

(depan Petronas Pekan Rantau)

bersama

- Sdr. Rafizi Ramli (Pengarah Strategi PKR)

- YB Taufek (P/jaya PAS NS)

- che'GuBard (Ketua Cabang PKR Rembau)

- Dr. Ahmad (Penyelaras SAMM)

Umno sebenarnya makin lemah mereka panik apabila makin ramai rakyat mengetahui maklumat sebenarnya oleh kerana makin sedar mereka makin gagal guna otak untuk berhujah maka mereka terpaksa bergantung guna otat pula. Umno membawa politik negara menjadi politik rimba.

The secret meeting on 11 March 2008

Khalid Samad, the MP for Shah Alam, had a bad throat and was sucking lozenges. He had been barn-storming the ceramah trail, countering criticism from his one-time Pas ally, Hasan Ali, that there was a “parasite” group within the party.

His hoarse voice last night did not stop him from addressing about 80 villagers in a little kampung in Tasik Gelugor and later a few hundred others gathered at the PKR office bungalow in Tasik Gelugor town.

Wearing a black haj cap, Khalid denied he was such a parasite in the party. “As far as I know, a parasite is one that feeds on a mature organism, like a plant on an older tree,” he said. “I joined Pas in 1983 and Hasan Ali joined in 1998. How then can I be a parasite when I have been around longer?”

In fact, Khalid said he supported and welcomed Hasan when he entered the party.

But the bad blood began to surface when the 2008 election results started trickling in.

Although the non-BN candidates were waiting for the results to be released in dribs and drabs until 5.00am (on 9 March), Umno already knew they had lost Selangor by 8.00pm the previous night, recalled Khalid. That night, Hasan was in discussions with the Umno people for a possible alliance, alleged Khalid.

Matters came to a head when a meeting was arranged between Abdullah Badawi and Khir Toyo from the BN and Hasan and Pas president Hadi Awang, three days later.

Umno members, alleged Khalid, were touting Hasan as the next MB of Selangor, fuelling his ambitions – provided he could get Pas to join forces with the BN in Selangor in a coalition state government.

The Selangor state election results (seats):

PKR – 15
Pas – 8
DAP – 13
(Pakatan – 36)

Umno/BN – 20

Total – 56 seats

So you can see, Umno needed Pas’ eight seats to tie the Selangor State Assembly at 28-28, explained Khalid.

Just before the Umno-Pas meeting, when Khalid suspected something was up, he confronted Hasan angrily and asked him where he was going.

As Khalid recalled, Hasan was taken aback by the rebuke and vague in his response. “Even my father never spoke to me like that,” Hasan said.

“Well, this is not your father’s party either!” retorted Khalid.

When Pas leaders got wind of the meeting, they intervened but decided to go ahead with the meeting with the BN as Badawi and Khir Toyo were already waiting. But changes were made to the composition of the Pas team: it was hastily decided that Pas sec-gen Mustafa Ali would represent Hadi while Khalid Samad and Nasha would accompany him.

The secret meeting was held at a bungalow behind Parliament.

“Khir Toyo was standing around, looking as if he was the waiter, and he even poured me drinks,” Khalid told the amused villagers.

Toyo, he observed, looked pale and not his usual self. “Maklumlah, sudah hilang kerajaan negeri Selangor,” Khalid recounted.

At the meeting, it was pointed out that the new Selangor government lacked a Malay-Muslim majority among its ranks. With PKR’s eight Malay-Muslim members (out of its 15 winning candidates) and Pas’ eight candidates, a Pakatan government in Selangor would have only 16 Malay-Muslims within its ranks of 36 winning candidates, the BN side told the Pas team.

Abdullah then asked if Pas’ eight assembly members could join forces with them (and form a Malay-Muslim dominated state government).

Khalid countered with a deal crusher: “(If you are so concerned), why don’t you give us five of your Umno assembly members instead of expecting eight of us to cross over to your side?”

That effectively ended the meeting. And the bad blood between Hasan and Khalid boiled over soon after.

“What was on the cards amounted to a betrayal of the rakyat’s wishes, which was for Umno/BN to be ousted from Selangor,” Khalid would observe later.

Five months after that meeting, Hasan sacked Khalid Samad as Selangor Pas deputy commissioner and summarily dismissed Saari Sungib as Selangor Pas information chief when the latter tried to chime in, according to Pas sources.

Meanwhile, Selangor MB Khalid Ibrahim tried to placate the ambitious Hasan by offering him senior positions and portfolios in the Selangor state government.

But the Shah Alam MP said a frustrated Hasan started pitting (“memperlaga-lagakan”) Pas against DAP over a number of controversial issues in Selangor that hit the headlines.

Unfortunately for Hasan, his star in the party began to fade. The motivational expert had secured the fourth highest number of votes in elections for the party’s central committee in 2009. But in the 2011 party polls, he could only muster 16th place among central party committee candidates.

After the 2011 polls, he was not chosen as the Selangor Pas commissioner.

The last straw came when Hasan’s own party division in Sri Gombak did not select him as their candidate for the coming election, said Khalid.

The writing was on the wall for Hasan, who these days has been going all out in his campaign against Pas.

Later last night, one Pas official told me he was concerned about the party’s prospects in Kedah and feared they could lose the state. Kedah has a problem: not enough state government revenue to see to the people’s needs.

But he thought Pas stands a good chance in Terengganu as the party has a dynamic team there. Moreover, the people in the state are still poor despite the state’s oil wealth. Selangor, he felt, was 50-50.