Ibrahim Ali called up by cops

Penang police have called up Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali over his Bible-burning remark and will call him again to record a statement in two days time.

Ibrahim confirmed in a short text message to The Malay Mail that the police were following up on a police report lodged against him.

Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hasan Syed Ali also said DAP can “go ahead” to obtain a court order to compel the attorney-general to act against Ibrahim over his statement calling for Muslims to seize and burn copies of the Bible which contained the word ‘Allah’ or other Arabic words.

He was responding to a report in The Malay Mail yesterday’ in which the DAP national chairperson Karpal Singh gave the attorney-general two weeks to act against Ibrahim.

However, Attorney-General Gani Patail had said police must investigate actual incidences of Bible-burning in order for any action to be taken.

“It is their (DAP’s) right to proceed with such actions. As a lawyer, he (Karpal) should be patient and should be aware of how such procedures are,” said Syed Hasan.

“If indeed Karpal is so concerned about such things, why doesn’t he address other issues that may disrupt the nation’s harmony such as with Patrick Teoh’s remarks on Facebook, or the spreading of hatred by other religions towards Malays?”

Syed Hasan was referring to Teoh’s Facebook posting which ridiculed the Muslims, after which he posted an apology.

- The Malay Mail

Rowan Atkinson -- An Islamophobe?

"What is wrong with inciting intense dislike of a religion if the activities or teaching of that religion are so outrageous, irrational or abusive of human rights that they deserve to be intensely disliked." -- Rowan Atkinson

Syrian Refugee Girls Forced into ‘Pleasure Marriages’

Syrian female refugees aged 14 and 15 who fled their country to Jordan and Iraq are being forced into "pleasure marriages" [Nikah al-Mut'ah] -- a pre-Islamic custom allowing men to marry for a limited period, which can last as little as 30 minutes. More disturbing is that Muslim scholars and preachers have given the green light to their followers to exploit the plight of the poor and helpless Syrian girls.

Photo Credit: Al Monitor
Syrian female refugees aged 14 and 15 who fled their country to Jordan and Iraq are being forced into “pleasure marriages” (Nikah al-Mut’ah) — a pre-Islamic custom allowing men to marry for a limited period.

Apart from being a cover for legalized prostitution (the marriage can last for as little as 30 minutes), Nikah al-Mut’ah deprives the wife of many rights.

No divorce is necessary in “pleasure marriages,” for instance, and the husband may void the marriage earlier than agreed.

What is most disturbing about this practice is not even whether or not the wife has rights, so much as that Muslim scholars and preachers have given the green light to their followers to exploit the plight of the poor and helpless Syrian girls.

Muslim men from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have in the past few weeks asked their embassies in Amman and Baghdad to help them find Syrian girls living in makeshift refugee camps in Jordan and Iraq.

This is happening at a time when the oil-rich Arab countries are doing almost nothing to help the tens of thousands of Syrian refugees who are living in extremely difficult conditions.

Some Arab human rights activists have condemned the phenomenon, but their voice has thus far fallen on deaf ears.

Muslim preachers in a number of Arab countries have been encouraging their followers to engage in “pleasure marriages” with Syrian girls as a way of ridding them and their families of their misery. Some of these preachers have even issued fatwas [Islamic decrees] permitting the sexual exploitation of minors.

Many of these girls, according to reports in a number of Arab media outlets, are being returned to their families after hours or days of the temporary marriage.

Some of the victims are being sold by their desperate families to Muslim men in return for a few hundred dollars.

The Jordanian newspaper Ad-Dustour revealed that Muslim men from the kingdom were also exploiting the plight of the Syrian refugees by targeting 14 and 15 year old girls.

According to sources in Amman, some Jordanian Islamists have even divorced their wives in favor of temporary marriage of minors.

Abdel Bari Atwan, editor of the pan-Arab Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper, expressed outrage over the “ugly exploitation” of Syrian girls who fled the war in their country.

“Exploiting the conditions of the girls in the refugee camps by marrying them temporarily is a form of rape that must stop immediately,” Atwan wrote. “Those responsible for this crime should be brought to trial.”

Yet Atwan’s condemnation seems to be a lone voice in the desert. No prominent Muslim figure or organization has deemed it necessary to denounce the sexual exploitation of the Syrian girls.

Originally published by the Gatestone Institute.

Police deny beating man, say he died of heart attack

Sugumaran’s mother, K. Manimagalay (right), is comforted by a relative after viewing her youngest son’s body. — Picture by Choo Choy May

KAJANG, Jan 24 — The police have denied beating a security guard yesterday to death, pointing out that a post-mortem today revealed that he had died of a heart attack.

Three eyewitnesses alleged earlier today that four policemen had handcuffed and then assaulted 39-year-old C. Sugumaran together with a mob of more than 20 yesterday evening near the latter’s house at Batu 12, Hulu Langat.

“At about 6.30pm yesterday, the police station at Batu 14 Hulu Langat received a call from a Malay man saying that an Indian man was going amok and destroying public property,” Kajang OCPD ACP Abdul Rashid Abdul Wahab told a press conference at the Kajang district police headquarters here tonight.

He added that three policemen in a patrol car and a motorbike tailed Sugumaran, who was on foot, for about two kilometres from Dusun Sri Nanding to Taman Lagenda Suria in Hulu Langat as the latter waved an iron rod, destroying flower vases near houses and electrical wires, until he fell down in the middle of the road.

“The police, assisted by members of the public, held and handcuffed the man as he was still acting aggressively and trying to struggle during arrest,” said Abdul Rashid, stressing that the crowd did not assault Sugumaran.

He added that a police officer then went to get a Land Rover to bring Sugumaran, described as a big-sized

Sugumaran’s neighbours who claim they saw four policemen and a mob of 20 to 30 people beating him up. From left: R. Moohanarajan, S. Sugunan, R. Vasandh. — Picture by Choo Choy May

man, to the police station.

“But upon return, the Indian man was unconscious. The police then contacted the hospital and a medical officer came and pronounced him dead,” said Abdul Rashid.

The policeman stressed that a post-mortem done by pathologist Dr Mohd Azaini Ibrahim from Serdang Hospital today from 3.30pm to 8.30pm revealed that Sugumaran had died of a heart attack.

“No other injuries could have caused his death,” said Abdul Rashid.

He also said that the policemen did not throw turmeric powder in Sugumaran’s face as alleged by eyewitnesses earlier today.

Eyewitnesses had told reporters earlier today that the security guard was chased down yesterday by four policemen who subsequently handcuffed and beat him to death together with a mob of more than 20 people in Hulu Langat yesterday.

They said that after the policemen caught and handcuffed him, more than 20 other men from a nearby restaurant joined the policemen and proceeded to assault him.

“The police stepped on Sugumaran’s neck,” R. Moohanarajan told The Malaysian Insider at the Serdang Hospital here today.

“Twenty to thirty people wearing plain clothes beat him up. He was lying facedown with his hands handcuffed behind,” added Moohanarajan, who was Sugumaran’s neighbour.

Eyewitnesses say cops, mob beat handcuffed man to death

C. Sugumaran’s mother, K. Manimagalay, is distraught after viewing her youngest son’s body. — Picture by Choo Choy May

SERDANG, Jan 24 — A security guard was chased down yesterday by four policemen who subsequently handcuffed and beat him to death together with a mob of more than 20 people in Hulu Langat yesterday, eyewitnesses alleged today.

It is unclear why policemen were trying to apprehend 40-year-old C. Sugumaran. He was found naked with handcuffs still on him, according to witnesses.

His body is now at the Serdang Hospital where family members had been denied access since their arrival at 9am.

According to witnesses who were present at the hospital today, the incident happened at 6.30pm yesterday.

Sugumaran was seen running from the four policemen in two patrol cars along a major road five minutes from his home in Taman Sri Nanding, Batu 12 Hulu Langat.

As the road was congested with traffic, the four policemen stopped their vehicles and proceeded to chase after Sugumaran on foot.

After they caught and handcuffed him, more than 20 other men from a nearby restaurant joined the policemen and proceeded to assault him.

“The police stepped on Sugumaran’s neck,” R. Moohanarajan told The Malaysian Insider at the Serdang Hospital here today.

“Twenty to thirty people wearing plain clothes beat him up. He was lying facedown with his hands handcuffed behind,” added Moohanarajan, who was Sugumaran’s neighbour.

The eyewitnesses said that the 10-minute beating happened at about 6.30pm yesterday near the Taman Perkasa cemetery at Batu 12, Hulu Langat.

Policemen stand outside the morgue of Serdang Hospital. — Picture by Choo Choy May

More than 20 people comprising Sugumaran’s family, relatives and neighbours had gathered at the hospital here since 9am, demanding to see the body.

Sugumaran’s mother K. Manimagalay was only allowed access to her son’s body about six hours later at 3.10pm.

She burst into tears after emerging from the mortuary and had to be consoled by her younger brother.

Chaos ensued when Kapar MP S. Manikavasagam shouted: “The handcuffs are still on the body. Celaka (Damn)! Already dead, still handcuffed.”

Other people started shouting angrily as about five police officers tried to control the crowd.

Moohanarajan, who is unemployed, said he was returning home after buying a video game when he saw the police chasing Sugumaran, beating him, handcuffing him, and then throwing turmeric powder in the latter’s face.

He added that the forensic police only came at about 11pm to remove the body after it had rained.

Sugumaran’s family, relatives and neighbours wait to view his body. — Picture by Choo Choy May

Manimagalay said that her youngest son Sugumaran did not have a criminal record.

“He never stole. He did not murder anyone...People said that he had fought with Nepalese though,” she told reporters.

The mother of three sons also said that Sugumaran suffered from a mental illness, but did not specify what it was.

Sugumaran’s friend T. Panirselvam said that Sugumaran was hot-tempered and reacted to provocation.

“Maybe he has depression,” said Panirselvam, adding that Sugumaran’s mother had lodged a police report against Sugumaran a few years ago, but did not specify further.

Sugumaran’s family lawyer N. Surendran told reporters here today after viewing the body that Sugumaran’s left leg was injured and had lots of scars, which indicated that “he was pushed down.”

“There was bleeding from the back of the head. On his face, there were remains of turmeric powder around the mouth,” said Surendran, who is also a PKR vice-president.

Surendran called for an immediate police investigation and the suspension of the men involved in the incident.

The post-mortem results were unavailable at press time.

Kajang CID chief DSP Marzuki Mohd Mokhdar told The Malaysian Insider today that the police would brief reporters after the post-mortem that would likely be finished tonight.

“We’ve nothing to hide,” he said.

Sugumaran’s family lawyer N. Surendran (2nd left) speaks to relatives at the hospital. — Picture by Choo Choy May

Burn the Bible, and you burn the church

Pentecostal Churches of Malaysia representative Bishop Robert Judah Paul also expresses resentment against Perkasa chief’s Bible burning plan.

KUALA LUMPUR: Perkasa’s plan to burn the Malay edition of the Bible, which carries the word “Allah” to refer to God, is equivalent to burning churches, the Pentecostal Churches of Malaysia representative Robert Judah Paul said today.

“Burning the Bible is equivalent to burning churches and the churches have every right to bring it to their highest authority. Churches which are linked to international non-governmental organisations will seek the international voices to air their grievances… and this would reflect badly on the country,” he told FMT in an interview.

He said Pentecostal Christians will stand by the Catholics in protecting their religious rights if it comes to that.

“Churches are united and we strongly feel it is a political move rather than a social threat,” he said.

Recently, Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali announced that the organisation will seek out Malay Bibles which carries the word “Allah” and burn them. This caused a furore among Christians in the country.

While the issue is more religious in nature, politicians have not missed the bandwagon, especially with the general election just around the corner.

About 9% of the country’s 29.1 million population are Christians, practising various denominations of Christianity.

“Ibrahim made a wrong statement which incites anger and hatred among Malaysians. We, as Christians are against the statement and totally abhor what he said,” he added.

Robert said if Ibrahim proceeds with the burning of the Malay Bibles, the Churches will initiate legal proceedings against him.

He said there are various reasons why the Malay Bible was being targeted by the ultra-Malay group.

“The Sikh holy book also refers to God as Allah while some Hindu scriptures also do the same. Why target just Malay Bibles? I feel that it is because Christianity is the closest to Islam. Maybe they see Christianity as a threat to Islam.

“Christians will take to the street if our voices are not heard legally. Ibrahim and whoever are behind him are very narrow-minded and are not looking at the bigger picture”, he added.

‘Enough with the warnings, haul up Ibrahim’

MIC Youth wants stern action against Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali, who has called on Muslims to burn the Al-Kitab.

PETALING JAYA: MIC Youth has urged Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein to stop pussy-footing around the contentious call by Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali, to burn the Malay Bible and instead take immediate action against him.

“MIC Youth wants Hishammuddin to take action against Ibrahim.

“Ibrahim’s irresponsible action of inciting hatred against another religion can lead to this nation’s instability,” said the party’s Youth secretary, C Sivarraajh.

He was reacting to Ibrahim who urged Muslims to burn Malay Bibles known as the Al-Kitab which bore the term”Allah”.

Ibrahim, who is also Pasir Mas MP, made the call on Saturday in reaction to reports that the Al-Kitab is being distributed to Muslim schoolchildren.

He said this at a Perkasa convention held in Penang.

Following that call, DAP chairman Karpal Singh and a group of individuals have lodged police reports.

Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail, meanwhile, told FMT that action will be taken only after the law had been breached.

Describing Ibrahim’s call as “outrageous”, Sivarraajh said that it is time Ibrahim is brought to book since he has raised racial and religious sensitivities in the past.

“Even though he has been warned many times, but he’s still walking the same way and using the same old tune which made other people hate him,” said Sivarraajh.

In a related development, a little known group called Pasukan Bertindak Anti Bible Bahasa Melayu (Anti-Malay-Bible Action Force), urged Muslims to join in the “Malay Bible burning festivities” on Jan 27 in Penang.

Kerajaan Selangor batal projek kondo Batu Caves

Keputusan dibuat demi menjaga keselamatan orang ramai dan memelihara alam sekitar, kata Menteri Besar.

PETALING JAYA: Kerajaan Selangor hari ini membatalkan projek kondominium 26 tingkat di Batu Caves, dekat ini.

Dengan keputusan itu, kebenaran merancang yang telah diberikan kepada Dolomite Properties Sdn Bhd untuk pembinaan kondominium Dolomite Park Avenue setinggi 26 tingkat dibatalkan.

Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim mengumumkan pembatalan tersebut dalam satu kenyataan media petang ini.

“Jawankuasa Bebas bagi mengkaji dan menilai pembangunan di Batu Caves dan kawasan sekitarnya telah mengadakan mesyuarat yang pertama pada Selasa lalu.

“Dalam mesyuarat itu, Jabatan Perancang Bandar dan Desa telah membentangkan secara terperinci status pembinaan struktur dan bangunan di Batu Caves serta tahap keselamatannya.

“Selepas mendengar penjelasan itu, saya membuat keputusan supaya Majlis Perbandaran Selayang (MPS) membatalkan kebenaran merancang yang telah diberikan kepada Dolomite Properties Sdn Bhd untuk pembinaan kondominium Dolomite Park Avenue setinggi 26 tingkat.

“Keputusan ini dibuat demi menjaga keselamatan orang ramai dan memelihara alam sekitar.

“Saya mengucapkan terima kasih kepada mereka kerana kesediaan untuk membantu kerajaan negeri mencari jalan penyelesaian jangka panjang terhadap isu pembangunan di Batu Caves dan sekitarnya,” kata Abdul Khalid dalam kenyataan tersebut.

Beliau amat berharap keputusan ini diterima positif oleh semua pihak kerana ia melibatkan keselamatan orang ramai.

Beliau menambah, kerajaan Selangor tidak berkompromi dengan mana-mana projek pembangunan yang boleh mengancam keselamatan rakyat.

Kerajaan Selangor, kata Menteri Besar menyokong sebarang projek pembangunan untuk kesejahteraan rakyat tetapi ia perlu dirancang dengan teliti, mengikut peraturan dan tidak membahayakan keselamatan rakyat.

‘Police murdered security guard’

PKR vice-president N Surendran also claimed the police conspired with Serdang Hospital to deny the family their right to see his body.

PETALING JAYA: PKR vice-president N Surendran today accused the police of murder in the death of security guard C Sugumar in Hulu Langat yesterday evening.

He also charged that the police conspired with the Serdang Hospital to cover up the case.

“It is murder by the police. The cover-up is clear. Serdang Hospital is not allowing the family of the deceased to see the body on the instructions of the police.

“They [hospital] have also not conducted a post-mortem,” said Surendran, who was at the hospital mortuary with the family of the deceased.

Sugumar, 40, a bachelor, the youngest in the family, has two brothers.

According to PKR human rights and legal bureau deputy chief, S Jayathas, Sugumar was involved in an argument with some people in Sri Nanding, Hulu Langat, yesterday evening.

Policeman stepped on Sugumar

The police, who were informed about the brawl, arrived at the scene. Sugumar tried to run but the police handcuffed him, Jayathas said.

“The police and the public bashed up Sugumar. A policeman stepped on Sugumar’s neckwhile another smeared his face with turmeric powder, and he died,” he claimed.

Sugumar’s body was brought to Serdang Hospital yesterday but no post-mortem has been conducted.

“The government has learnt nothing and continues to kill Indians in police custody,” said Surendran.

A police officer from the Hulu Langat district police headquarters told FMT that the case is being investigated.

‘Najib responsible for stateless Indians’

Lawyers' group accuses Najib and NRD of failing to protect stateless Indian claimants.

PETALING JAYA: Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) have accused Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and the National Registration Department (NRD) of failing to protect stateless Indians in the country.

In a press statement yesterday, LFL co-founder and adviser, Eric Paulsen, said Najib was ultimately responsible for the problem as the NRD is a department under the Home Ministry and implements policies decided by the Prime Minister and his Cabinet.

He dismissed Special Implementation Taskforce (SITF) chairman N Siva Subramaniam’s statement yesterday which suggested Najib and the NRD were doing a good job in addressing the problem while blaming the Home Ministry and, to a lesser extent, individuals affected.

“We are therefore at a loss as to how he [Siva] can praise the Prime Minister when he is ultimately responsible for the citizenship policies and practices in the country,” he said.

He added that the NRD was a government department responsible for ensuring all bona fide Malaysians are registered and issued with corresponding identity documents.

“Instead of recognising these people of Indian origin – born and bred in Malaysia – they chose instead to perpetuate their statelessness by discriminating against them and placing an unrealistic burden of proof on them to “prove” their citizenship,” he claimed.

Citing the Sabah “citizenship-for-votes” scandal, Paulsen pointed out that the Home Ministry and NRD have powers to simplify citizenship procedures and requirement.

“…but it had been exercised improperly and with ulterior motives,” he said.

LFL accused BN and the NRD of “serious lack of concern and care” for people of Indian origin and other stateless communities.

“There is no genuine effort to register the affected communities nor is there any special procedure provided to facilitate their registration despite knowing the historical inequities and the context of their present circumstances that have kept them stateless for generations,” Paulsen said.

He added that Siva “should know better than to blame the affected communities when he knows that the applications are usually hampered by administrative obstacles, burdensome requirements, gross delays and require repeated visits and interviews”.

“Even then, these cases are rarely resolved despite fulfilling the general citizenship requirement and they are forced to continue living a precarious and wretched existence without recognition as citizens.”

He urged BN and the NRD to immediately rectify the situation by registering the affected communities under proper procedure for nationals (as opposed to foreigners); simplifying the application procedure and documentation requirement; and undertaking mobile registration.

Yesterday, Siva said the issue of stateless Indians in the country is aggravated by Home Ministry officials handling the matter and Indians themselves who have a careless attitude.

He said that the major complaint was the “unfriendly” nature of Home Ministry officers when interviewing them.

He said the problem is further complicated by Indians, especially those living in estates or rural areas, who do not register marriages or birth.

Siva added these people are mostly uneducated as they could not afford formal education.

Batu Caves temple claims they’re being punished for protesting

(The Star) - The Batu Caves temple committee claims it is being victimised by the Selangor government for staging a protest against the construction of a condominium near the limestone cave site last year.

Sri Maha Mariamman Devasatha­nam committee chairman Datuk R. Nadarajah alleged the state government, through the Selayang Munici-pal Council (MPS), had made bizarre requests, including asking for a building plan of the iconic staircase that leads into the main cave.

“After we protested against the condominium, MPS sent us a barrage of letters, and one of them was to dispute the safety of the staircase.

“The staircase has been around since the 1930s. Millions of people have been going up and down it and there has never been a problem.

“And now they want a building plan for the staircase?’’ Nadarajah said here yesterday.

He alleged the state government was also punishing him by scrapping his plans for an Indian cultural centre as well as made him face a lot of bureaucracy over the Batu Caves cable car project.

Nadarajah claimed the development order for the cable car was approved on Dec 31 last year, but MPS was asking for the building plan again.

“That will take us another year of waiting. People are already asking about the cable car,’’ he said.

The cable car project was announ-ced in 2011 and was expected to be completed in 2012.

He reiterated that the problems began after he started speaking againt the condominium project.

“I protested and they are now coming after me,’’ alleged Nadarajah.

Nadarajah had led a protest against the 29-storey condominium project, located just 120m next to the Lord Murugan statue, in October last year, saying the development was too close to the limestone hills.

He added that he would be revealing more next week as well as showing the letters from MPS.

Anwar: Not Lembah Pantai-bound, but certain on Permatang Pauh

(The Malaysian Insider) - Denying plans to swap constituencies with daughter Nurul Izzah, PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim nevertheless conceded that he was not guaranteed to contest in his Permatang Pauh stronghold.

The opposition leader was responding to rumours that he may instead run for the Lembah Pantai federal seat now occupied by Nurul Izzah, who is expected to face stiff challenge there from Umno’s Federal Territories and Urban Well-being Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Zainal Abidin.

“Why Lembah Pantai? I wasn’t informed of this,” he was quoted as saying in a Sinar Harian report, adding that Nurul Izzah will berate him if he decides to contest her seat.

“God willing I will contest, but most probably there will be requests for me to consider contesting in one or two other seats,” Anwar told Malay-language daily yesterday.

Anwar held Permatang Pauh from 1982 until 1999, when he was convicted and jailed for corruption. The conviction was subsequently overturned.

His wife, PKR president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, contested and held the seat during his absence, before making way for Anwar in 2008.

Election 2013 must be called by April 27, after which Parliament will automatically be dissolved and polls initiated.

Sabah churches demand action against anti-Christian frenzy — Bob Teoh

JAN 24 — Sabah churches want the government to act decisively against the latest round of anti-Christian frenzy.

“We see the increasingly provocative attacks against the Malay-language bible — Alkitab — by certain quarters as a direct attack on the rights of Bumiputera Christians in Sabah to religious freedom as enshrined in both the Sabah and the Federal Constitution,” Rev Datuk Jerry Dusing, chairman of the National Evangelical Christian Fellowship Commission of Sabah Affairs (NECF COSA) said.

“We, therefore, urge the authorities to act immediately against such groups and individuals to the full extent of the law before the anti-Christian frenzy gets out of hand,” he said in a statement.

Dusing said it must be remembered that Sabah has always enjoyed complete religious freedom since time immemorial. Sabah was guaranteed certain safeguards known as the 20-points as a condition for the formation of Malaysia. It is no coincidence that the first of these twenty points pertains to religious freedom.

He also said the majority of Christians in Malaysia are Malay speaking Bumiputeras mainly in Sabah and Sarawak whose use the Alkitab as their Bible for their liturgy and devotional reading.

As many East Malaysians are working or studying Peninsular Malaysia, the Alkitab is also extensively used by them over there. Any attack on the Alkitab is an affront to their faith and religious liberty.

“We now see our religious freedom yet again under threat as the anti-Christian frenzy threatens to get out of hand. A right wing Malay group has even called for bibles, including the Alkitab, to be seized and burned. This is irresponsible and incendiary hate speech,” said.

Although he did not name the group, he was referring to Perkasa which made the threat three days ago.

The statement also said another Muslim group (Pembela) has also called for the halt to the printing of the Alkitab. It added that indeed, it was the Cabinet itself that decided in 2011 to allow for the continued printing and distribution of the Alkitab as part of its so-called 10-point solution to the Allah controversy.

“This is another attempt to deprive Bumiputera Christians of their Holy Scriptures,” the statement said.

NECF COSA also highlighted the call for a ban on the distribution of the Alkitab in public universities and said it must be remembered there are many Bumiputera Christians from East Malaysia studying and teaching in such universities.

“They use the Alkitab as their personal Bibles. This Alkitab ban only serves to deprive Bumiputera Christians their right to their Holy Scriptures. This very right is fundamental to religious freedom,” it said.

The statement said if such unwarranted provocation against Bumiputera Christians are left unchecked it militates against the very concept of 1 Malaysia of putting people first.

“It is time for such promises to be fulfilled. Otherwise, we may to turn out to be a nation divided by religious hatred perpetrated by irresponsible elements. There is no place for such extremists in our beloved homeland,” it added. — mysinchew.com

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.

Opposition Are Opportunist In Capitalising RCI Issue For Political Gains, Says Salleh

KOTA KINABALU, Jan 24 (Bernama) -- Former Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak opined that the opposition led by former Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was worried over the possibility of the Barisan Nasional (BN) government resolving the illegal immigrants' issue in Sabah, once and for all.

Describing the opposition as opportunist, he said the opposition was trying to manipulate and opportunistically take advantage of the situation for political gains and interfered with the work of the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on illegal immigrants in the state.

"Obviously, Pakatan (opposition) is worried that BN will resolve the illegal immigrants' issue in Sabah. That's why they are politicising the issue. They don't want the RCI panel to complete their work and use statements from ex-ISA (Internal Security Act) detainees to undermine the findings.

"Their sole strategy is to implicate Umno," he told Bernama after attending a state Maulidur Rasul function, here Thursday.

Salleh, who is Sabah Umno liaison deputy chief and State Legislative Assembly Speaker, was asked to comment on the purported RCI forum organised by an opposition party, here today.

He reiterated that BN government was serious about solving the perennial illegal immigrants' problem in Sabah.

"If they are sincere in resolving the issue, they should support the RCI to accomplish the task," he said.

On Tuesday, Salleh, who is also the Kota Belud Umno Division chief had challenged Anwar to tell the truth about the illegal immigrants to the (RCI) that is tasked with looking into the long-standing problem in the state.

Salleh was quoted as asserting that Anwar was duty-bound to do so as he was Deputy Prime Minister at that particular period, adding that "he was a powerful man and knew what was going on in Sabah".

The setting up of the RCI and appointment of its chairman and members was announced by the Prime Minister on Aug 11, last year to solve the problem of illegal immigrants in Sabah.

The hearing of the proceedings was headed by former Chief Justice of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Steve Shim Lip Kiong.

The panelists were Universiti Malaysia Sabah ex-vice chancellor Professor Datuk Seri Dr Kamaruzaman Ampon, Kuala Lumpur ex-police chief Datuk Henry Chin Poy Wu, former Sabah state secretary Datuk Kee Mustafa and ex-deputy Chief Minister and former state attorney-general Tan Sri Herman J. Luping.

Subsequent proceedings would be held on Jan 29 to Feb 1 and from Feb 22 to Feb 27.

Election campaign has all but officially begun

As speculation intensifies over the date of dissolution of Parliament, the final lap of the months of campaigning heads towards its final lap.

The Edge business website reports receiving text messages from unnamed sources speculating that Parliament would be dissolved on 22 February, and that’s the date being mentioned in coffee-shops. The other theory is that elections would be held at the end of March. But then again, who knows for sure? People are plain tired of this guessing game anyway.

But the campaign appears to have begun all the same. A couple of people have received the following notice in their mail of a decidedly youthful looking Najib and a message:

Some parents of pupils, meanwhile, have already collected their nicely timed RM100 from the schools. Now there’s BR1M 2.0 coming up. Before that we had the smartphone rebates.

Najib and Rosmah meanwhile have visited Gaza – in what appears to be an attempt to court the Muslim vote ahead of the polls.

It appears to be neck and neck, if the UM survey is to be believed.

But it’s bad news from the Sabah front with the Royal Commission of Inquiry proceedings receiving some shocking testimonies (actually, not so shocking) of how foreigners were given identification papers so that they could vote in the state elections.

That has put Mahathir on the defensive. And next thing you know, Perkasa is talking about Bible burning. Don’t fall for the bait! It is so predictable they will use all kinds of racial and religious issues to divide voters (and opposition political parties) ahead of the polls. This is the Old-style Politics that Francis Loh discussed in this Aliran article, whose practitioners are terrified of losing ground to the New Politics (the multi-ethnic approach to issues of justice and governance e.g. Bersih 3.0, the anti-Lynas movement, etc). So the politicians practising Old Politics are trying desperately to make up lost ground.

Then another setback for the BN: another death reportedly involving the police. Not good. Malaysiakini reports: “Four police officers were alleged to have chased, handcuffed and then smeared turmeric powder on the face of a security guard, before beating him to death along with a mob at Taman Pekaka, Hulu Langat yesterday.” Now it the response is there was no turmeric powder, the deceased had gone amok and – wait for it – he died of a heart attack!

Meanwhile, the Felda Global Ventures share price plunged to a new low before bouncing back to RM4.51 a day later.

While over in Batu Caves, the controversy over the condo project has turned into a hot potato. The Nut Graph attempts to dissect the issue, and both sides of the political divide appear to have a lot to answer in this case. Which makes you wonder: are the developers more powerful or influential than the rakyat? Finally, the Selangor state government did the right and wise thing by cancelling the project.

So take note, state governments CAN cancel projects when they want to or then they have the political will to do so. None of that talk about being liable to pay millions in compensation here.