5 Assyrians, Including Two Nuns, Missing in Mosul

Sister Utoor Joseph (left) and Sister Miskintah, who disappeared on late 

Saturday, June 28 in Mosul (photo: Ishtar TV).

Mosul, Iraq (AINA) -- The Assyrian television channel Ishtar TV is reporting that 5 Assyrians have gone missing in Mosul. Two Chaldean nuns from the Daughters of Mary Order, Sister Miskintah and Sister Utoor Joseph, as well as Hala Salim, Sarah Khoshaba and Aram Sabah have not been heard from for nearly two days.

Sisters Miskintah and Utoor managed an orphanage for girls in Mosul, in the Khazraj neighborhood near Miskintah Church. After Mosul fell to ISIS, the two nuns brought the orphaned girls to the city of Dohuk for safety. The Nuns returned late Saturday to Mosul, accompanied by Hala, Sarah and Aram, to inspect the monastery but there has been no contact with them nor any trace of their whereabouts since then.

It is believed they have been kidnapped by Muslims.

Nearly all of the Christians of Mosul have fled the city since it fell to ISIS on June 10. ISIS members bombed an Armenian church which was under construction in the Left Bank neighborhood, near al-Salaam hospital and looted The Church of the Holy Spirit (AINA 2014-06-12). Two days after taking over Mosul, imposed Islamic law (Sharia) (AINA 2014-06-14) and began collecting the poll tax (jizya) from Christians (AINA 2014-06-21). On June 21 ISIS members raped a mother and daughter and killed four women for not wearing the veil (AINA 2014-06-23).

From left: Hala Salim, Sarah Khoshaba and Aram Sabah.

IGP gets stay in Izwan vs Deepa custody battle

 

The Seremban Syariah High Court today granted inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar a stay of execution on an order compelling police to assist in the retrieval of the children of N Viran @ Izwan Abdullah, who is involved in a custody battle.

The court had earlier granted the IGP to be an intervener in the ex-parte application.

The decision was made by judge  Kamal Bashah Ahmad Tajuddin, after hearing submissions from lawyers Zulkifli Che Yong (left) and Azmi Mohd Rais in chambers.

The Seremban Syariah High Court had previously issued an order to the police to assist in the recovery of N Viran @ Izwan Abdullah's children from his former wife S Deepa.

Deepa had on April 7 this year obtained an order from the High Court in Seremban for the custody rights over her two children.

On Sept 19 last year, the Seremban Syariah High Court granted custody of Izwan's two children to him.

The decision today follows a separate order from the same Syariah High Court compelling the police to find and retrieve the children.

Zulkifli told reporters that the ex-parte stay order gained today is pending a decision on the jurisdiction of the civil and syariah courts on this interfaith child custody dispute, which would be decided by the Court of Appeal or the Federal Court.

It is understood that the IGP had, through the Attorney-General's Chambers, also filed an application in the civil High Court in for a stay of execution of an order on them brought by Deepa (right), who was granted custody of both children by the civil court.

Attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail had applied for the stay order for the IGP, through the firm of Zulkifli Yong Azmi and Co in the Seremban Syariah High Court last Thursday.

Application so as not to interfere in custody battle

Zulkifli told reporters that the IGP is filing the application so as not to interfere in the inter-faith custody dispute but as there are conflicting orders from the syariah and civil courts, it was difficult on the police to react.

He said there was conflicting jurisdiction as the civil courts relied on Article 121 while the syariah courts on Article 121 (1A)

“The syariah court has agreed to suspend the order they gave against the police sought by Izwan until the Court of Appeal or Federal Court decide on the jurisdiction of the syariah and civil courts in such cases and also determine Section 52 of the Child Act,” he said.

Following this, he said the IGP filed this intervener application and had sought the ex-parte order as this is an urgent matter and of public interest.

Viran was also present for a short while before the proceeding, while being accompanied by two non-governmental organisation members from Angkatan Skuad Mubaligh Malaysia.

The inter-faith dispute which is a personal matter had become a matter of public interest following the protracted custody dispute between Viran and Deepa.

Although initially Deepa regained custody of the two children in April following the Seremban High Court order, Viran took his six-year-old son two days after the order.

Now the couple’s nine-year-old son is staying with the mother.

It was reported that Abdul Gani had in a statement indicated its intention to intervene and get a stay order in Deepa and M Indiria Gandhi’s dispute to resolve cases of inter-faith custody dispute once and for all.

M'sian diplomat in NZ sexual assault case

A Malaysian diplomat has been accused by New Zealand authorities of sexual assault with the intention to commit rape, Malaysiakini understands.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry however did not confirm nor deny this matter when contacted by Malaysiakini today, with minister Anifah Aman saying that he would call a press conference on the matter tomorrow in Wisma Putra.

"I will conduct a press conference tomorrow at 12pm in Wisma Putra. Further advice would follow," the minister (right) said in a text message.

New Zealanders responded with outrage yesterday after the authorities revealed that the man, in his 30s, had followed a 21-year-old woman home and assaulted her.

The press in New Zealand is prevented from revealing the offender's name or country of origin after a New Zealand judge issued a suppression order on his details.

However, Malaysiakini understands the accused is a Malaysian diplomat who worked at the Malaysian High Commission based in Wellington.

Malaysiakini is withholding the man's name pending Wisma Putra's official response.

According to the Associated Press, police arrested the diplomat on May 9 and charged him with burglary and assault with intent to rape, both of which carries a maximum jail term of 10 years.

However, the man invoked his diplomatic immunity and has fled the country.

NZ wants diplomat extradited

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key broke his silence on the matter this morning, revealing that his government had demanded the man's diplomatic immunity be waived but was rebuffed.

"It was the government's strong preference that this person be held to account in New Zealand, but this was refused by the sending country," Key is quoted as saying by New Zealand news portal stuff.co.nz.

Key (left) did not reveal specific details about the diplomat, citing the court's suppression order which also applies on the government.

He said assurance had been made that the diplomat will be held accountable in his own country.

"As a signatory to the Vienna Convention our hands are effectively tied, but we still expect justice for the victim," he was quoted as saying.

Key has come under criticism for only summoning Malaysia's High Commissioner a month after the incident.

However, Key revealed his government has been in a diplomatic back-and-forth with the man's country of origin in the past month, without mentioning "Malaysia".

"There's been a series of meetings held at a variety of different levels with MFAT (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade) in New Zealand and the representatives of the sending country.

"I'm led to believe, and I strongly accept that advice, that the host country is absolutely aware at a very senior level about New Zealand's expectations and how seriously we're taking the issue," he is quoted as saying.

Labour foreign affairs spokesperson David Shearer, who represents New Zealand's largest opposition party, called for the diplomat's extradition to face the law in New Zealand.

What it means to be Malaysian

A foreigner reading the local news of late would be left with the impression that Malaysians were an unhappy lot – paranoid that their respective communities were under threat and quick to provoke or threaten other Malaysians in the name of their race or personal beliefs.

There are reports of Malay rights groups claiming that Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia containing the word "Allah" are a threat to Islam, despite the use of the word by Malaysians of indigenous descent – or Christian Bumiputeras – for more than a century.

Islamist groups, meanwhile, have made inflammatory remarks, including labelling Malaysians of Chinese descent "trespassers" and claiming non-Muslims wanted to remove Malay rights and destroy the sovereignty of Malaysia and Islam.

News of a Taoist funeral and a Hindu wedding being disrupted within the same week by Islamic religious enforcement officers, who claimed they were defending Islam by taking away the body of a Chinese and detaining the Hindu bride, respectively, have left many angry and bewildered that such incidents are occurring in a modern, multicultural society. That both incidents happened in states ruled by the federal opposition, Pakatan Rakyat, could also be a mere coincidence.

Then there are the bitter custody battles between mixed-faith couples into which the police have waded by refusing to act on court orders that favoured the non-Muslim spouse, leaving the spouses bereft of justice and opening up room for arguments whether civil or religious courts should have the last say on such matters.

A long-standing row between Muslims and Christians over the use of the word "Allah" has not ended despite the highest court upholding a ban on the Church’s use of the word in one of its publications.

Yesterday, a bloodied severed cow's head was found on the doorstep of a Penang state lawmaker, who had angered many from the federal ruling party when he said "Umno celaka" (Umno be damned) in the state legislative assembly.

The incident was roundly condemned by politicians from both sides of the divide, and was a reminder to ordinary folk that peace and harmony meant acceptance and tolerance.

Throughout all this, the spectre of May 13 is constantly raised – not only as a reminder of what could happen to Malaysia should citizens turn on one another, but a threat used by one racial community to quell another.

But it would be a mistake to stereotype all Malaysians based on what a few individuals, claiming to be their community’s representatives, say.

To prove this, The Malaysian Insider took to the streets recently to ask people from various backgrounds one question: “What does it mean to be Malaysian?”

Read more : http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/on-being-malaysian

Perkasa sokong Zahid, dakwa kaum lain singgung kedudukan Melayu

Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa (Perkasa) menyokong kenyataan Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi dalam isu kepala lembu yang ditinggalkan di rumah pemimpin DAP, RSN Rayer baru-baru ini.

Setiausaha Agung Perkasa Syed Hassan Syed Ali berkata insiden tersebut adalah sebagai peringatan kepada kaum lain agar tidak menyinggung perasaan orang Melayu.

"Perkasa bukan mahu membodek atau mengampu Zahid tetapi memang tepatlah komen beliau atas isu kepala lembu dilempar di depan rumah Rayer.

"Bukan Rayer saja. Mana-mana pihak yang menjadi punca kemarahan orang ramai perlu beringat keceluparan mulut boleh bawa binasa," kata Syed Hassan.

Beliau berkata, tindakan sedemikian berlaku kerana bukan Islam yang mula menyinggung mempersoalkan tentang kaum Melayu dan Islam.

"Pihak tertentu bukan Melayu yang membuat kenyataan terlebih dulu jelas membuat provokasi terhadap orang Melayu dan Islam.

"Pelbagai isu membabitkan pihak bukan Melayu dan bukan Islam lebih dulu membuat kenyataan singgung perasaan orang Melayu dan Islam," katanya.

Beliau berkata, sikap bukan Melayu yang bermain isu sensitif seperti menyentuh hak Bumiputera, kroni dan menyokong LGBT (lesbian, gays, biseksual dan transgender) antara yang boleh menyebabkan Melayu terguris.

"Kamu mula dulu kami menjawab. Jangan melenting kerana kamu memulakan dulu," katanya.

Zahid sekali lagi mencetuskan kemarahan pelbagai pihak apabila menyatakan insiden kepala lembu yang ditinggalkan di depan rumah Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (Adun) Seri Delima sebagai balasan ke atas keceluparan mulutnya.

"Sebagai ahli politik, saya simpati dengan beliau tetapi itulah harga yang perlu beliau bayar kerana mulut celupar," kata Zahid Sabtu lalu.

Zahid bukan sahaja dikecam oleh DAP yang lantang menyatakan menteri itu harus berundur daripada jawatannya malah parti komponen Barisan Nasional (BN) sendiri turut mengecamnya.

Gerakan berkata, Zahid perlu melihat insiden itu secara serius kerana ia bukan merupakan perkara main-main memandangkan ia melibatkan keselamatan wakil rakyat.

Rayer sebelum ini mencetuskan kontroversi susulan kenyataannya "celaka Umno" yang dibuat ketika sidang DUN Pulau Pinang bulan lalu.

Dr M: Chaos if Sedition Act is scrapped

The former prime minister says the new laws to replace the act will not be able to prevent all kinds of sedition from occurring.

KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad said today Malaysia could descend into chaos if the government went ahead with a proposal to abolish the Sedition Act 1948.

He said the proposed new law to replace the act would not be able to prevent all kinds of sedition that would occur.

“The people will be subjected to all kinds of sedition, including incitement to amend the Federal Constitution. It is not inconceivable that they would agitate for the institution of the monarchy to be abolished,” he said in his latest post on his blog, http://chedet.cc.

Mahathir said the abolition of the Internal Security Act (ISA) and the Banishment Act had resulted in a rise in various kinds of crime in the country.

“Sedition, despite its occurrence, has not exceeded the limits,” he said.

Mahathir said that without the Sedition Act, the extremists among the people would be free to openly criticise the rulers and the monarchy and eventually call for the abolition of the institution of the monarchy.

“No other law can stop them after the abolition of the ISA and the Sedition Act,” he said, adding that Malaysia did not have legislation that could prevent any ridicule of the rulers and the monarchy like the “lese-majeste” in Thailand. (Under lese-majeste rules, anyone convicted of insulting King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the queen, heir or regent faces up to 15 years in prison on each count.)

Mahathir said many people might be angered by the agitation to abolish the monarchy but, because sedition was allowed, those interested in making Malaysia a republic would have the right and freedom to proceed with their campaign.

“The possibility is that chaos will occur in the country. This is a result of the liberal attitude that we exalt now,” he said.

The government announced on May 30 a proposal to introduce a new law to replace the Sedition Act and confirmed having received the drafts of three bills on national harmony.

This followed an announcement by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak in 2012 to abolish the controversial act to, among other things, enhance freedom of expression among the people.

The three bills are the National Harmony Bill, National Unity Bill and National Unity and Integration Commission Bill.

Mahathir previously criticised the proposal to introduce the three new laws which he had said would be deemed to continue to marginalise a section of the people besides eliminating the advantage based on race, religion, ancestry, place of birth, gender or the needy. -Bernama

Indira files writ forcing IGP to act

The ex-wife of a Muslim convert is seeking judicial remedy to compel the IGP to arrest her ex-husband and return her daughter.

IPOH: Kindergarten teacher M Indira Gandhi is seeking a court order to compel the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to execute two High Court orders issued by Judge Lee Swee Seng on May 30.

Indira Gandhi has applied for leave of the High Court to get a judicial remedy to compel IGP Khalid Abu Bakar to execute the warrant of arrest of her ex-husband and to return her daughter.

Lee issued the warrant for the police to arrest Indira Gandhi’s ex-husband, Muslim convert Muhammad Ridzuan Abdullah, previously known as Pathmanathan Krishnan.

He also ordered the police and education department to search and return the divorced couple’s youngest daughter Prasana Diksa to Indra Gandhi.

She filed the application today through her legal counsel, M Kulasegaran, who is also the Ipoh Barat MP and DAP national vice-chairman. She named Khalid as the respondent.

Kulasegaran said Indira Gandhi filed the application after Khalid had made his intentions known to defy the court orders.

In April 2009, Ridzuan took away Prasana, then 11 months old, and converted her and two siblings, Tevi Darsiny, 12, and Karan Dinish, 11, to Islam without Indira Gandhi’s knowledge.

She won custody of her three children by a High Court order in 2010.

On March 11, 2010, the High Court ordered Ridzuan to return Prasana to the mother.

In her application, Indira Gandhi pointed out that initially, Khalid, instead of executing the court orders, had wanted the children involved in the interfaith cases to be placed in welfare homes.

She said the Perak police chief Senior Deputy Commissioner Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani later confirmed that he had been directed to arrest Ridzuan.

She added that both she and Kulasegaran met the Ipoh OCPD on June 25, who revealed that police had been to several locations to look for Ridzuan.

On June 26, Indira Gandhi said Khalid told reporters that he was not arresting Ridzuan but “merely seeing to the safety of the child.”

Kulasegaran said Indira Gandhi was compelled to take this action to prevent lawlessness and for fellow citizens to feel safe.

“I hope the court will give priority to hear this case.

“Law-abiding citizens need protection and the guilty ones must be arrested,” said Kulasegaran in a statement.