Be fair, sincere when using Sedition Act, says Pak Lah

There must be sincerity in enforcing laws such as the Sedition Act, otherwise, there is no point in creating better laws if there was no fair implementation, former Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said.

Believed to be alluding to the recent sedition blitz by Putrajaya, Abdullah wrote on his blog www.paklah.net that even if man-made laws were not perfect, sincerity will ensure that these laws were used effectively.

He said laws were created by man and no matter how good they were touted to be, they could never be perfect.

"If we are sincere, even imperfect laws can be used to bring good.

"If we are not sincere, even good laws can be harmful," he wrote in his posting.

Abdullah also said that of late, many individuals were criticising and pointing fingers at others over their mistakes, despite the fact that they were equally guilty of doing the same in the past.

He added that although these criticisms could be deemed reasonable, the general public could not accept them and instead viewed them cynically.

"I am not saying that someone who had made mistakes in the past has no right to criticise others.

"But if we want to criticise, at least first admit your own mistakes," he wrote, adding that he himself had made many mistakes in the past.

He said another unacceptable practice was to criticise outsiders, but allow one's own "followers" to carry on with their bad attitude without any reprimand.

This, he said, was also an act of insincerity.

As such, he said that the reality was that although the criticism levelled was reasonable, it would nonetheless attract cynicism and would not be accepted by the public, if it is not seen as being sincere.

"Let sincerity lead us in everything we do and say, so that it can bring good," he wrote.

Abdullah also said that no alliance could stand the test of time if there was no sincere agreement.

"No point being together if they are not on the same path because sooner or later, people will know whether it was truly in the name of nation-building or merely to garner support.

Putrajaya's ongoing sedition dragnet has hauled up a string of opposition politicians, social activists, academicians, news portal Malaysiakini and one of its journalists, as well as Muslim preachers, all of whom have either been charged with sedition, facing trial or are under investigation. – October 5, 2014.

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Al-Qaeda rebels dangled victims' heads to goad UN

Official report reveals the full horror of atrocities in Golan Heights, where Irish soldiers were stationed

By Jim Cusack

Islamist rebels decapitated prisoners around the United Nations bases near where Irish troops were serving in Syria, a UN report seen by the Sunday Independent reveals.

The brutal beheadings in the Golan Heights, which have not been reported on, are described as "horrific atrocities" in the report by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

The full horror of events that took place around the Irish and other UN troops in the area have so far been kept a closely-guarded secret by the Defence Forces and Government.

Last week, the Irish soldiers' representative association (PDFORRA) called for psychological support services for soldiers returning from Golan, who might be suffering from post-traumatic stress.

However, there was no mention by senior military, Government or the representative association about the horrors the soldiers witnessed during their six-month tour inside Syria at PDFORRA's annual conference in Sligo.

The UN report reveals the jihadists overthrew a Syrian Army position close to UN posts in late April.

UN troops had to stand by powerless as they then apparently murdered and beheaded prisoners.It states: "In the afternoon of April 24, two members of the armed opposition [the UN term for al-Nusra, which is affiliated to al-Qaeda] displayed the severed head of a presumed Syrian armed forces officer as they passed UN position 80."

Position 80 was the headquarters of the Filipino UN contingent that was later rescued with the help of Irish and other UN troops, supported by the Israeli Army, after they came under attack by the jihadis in August.

Aside from the main Irish contingent, which was based several miles way at the UNDOF (UN Disengagement Observer Force) headquarters at Faouar, there were nine other Irish military observers serving in posts around the area. It is not clear if any of them witnessed the decapitation of al-Nusra's prisoners.

Irish troops, armed only with rifles and 12 machin guns mounted on their armoured personnel carriers (APCs), were surrounded by the jihadi army with captured Syrian Army tanks, artillery and multiple rocket launchers. They also planted roadside mines throughout the area and one Irish APC was damaged in a bomb explosion, injuring one soldier.

The Irish contingent is due back in Dublin over the coming days, but details of their homecoming are vague as the Government appears to continue to downplay the dangers into which the soldiers were sent in June last year.

In contrast, the 84 Filipino troops who escaped being captured by al-Nusra returned home last Thursday to a heroes' welcome and a celebration march through the capital, Manila. The Philippines government has said its troops will definitely not be returning to serve with the UN mission, which is now effectively defunct.

The Irish Government made the decision to send the 137-strong, lightly-armed contingent in June last year despite the fact that Austria, Croatia and Japan had withdrawn their troops, totalling over 500 personnel, the previous month in face of the jihadi advance and after the abduction of several UN troops.

One of the lowest points in the UN mission this year concerned the major conflict in which the al-Nusra front overran the remaining Syrian Army positions close to the border with Israel in April. According to Mr Ban's four-monthy report up to June this year, the UN troops witnessed the jihadis using captured tanks to blast the remaining Syrian Army positions.

They then observed the jihadis' black flags flying from these positions. Hundreds of local people, mainly from the minority Druze sect, who have previously been massacred by the jihadis, were seen fleeing the area. The beheadings occurred in the immediate aftermath of this battle, after which the UN observed the jihadis' display of the Syrian officer's severed head.

Commenting on the jihadis' actions, Mr Ban said: "I also once again condemn the horrific atrocities committed by some armed members of the opposition and call upon all parties in the ongoing conflict to respect international humanitarian law.

"I remain deeply concerned by numerous incidents involving UN personnel. I am also gravely concerned about UN positions caught in crossfire."

Defence Minister Simon Coveney has insisted the Irish troops were well equipped for their job as the security element of the otherwise very lightly-armed UNDOF mission.

Mr Coveney said: "In accordance with standard practice in considering any mission, a full in-theatre reconnaissance and threat assessment was completed by the Defence Forces. The then Chief of Staff, having considered the threat assessment, advised the then minister that the proposed Defence Forces contingent had the capacity to discharge their mandate as the Force Mobile Reserve to UNDOF.

"This was factored into the Government's consideration and decision to deploy the contingent. All theatres of operations have an element of risk attached and situations on the ground can change. That is why UN missions are deployed in these areas.

"The role of the mission was to observe and monitor the peace agreement between Israel and Syria. The UNDOF mission was therefore primarily equipped for self-defence purposes and it had no role or mandate in relation to the conflict in Syria.

"The proposed force protection, weaponry etc was the subject of discussions between Ireland and the United Nations and was in accordance with the Statement of Unit Requirements agreed with the United Nations prior to deployment.

"Following the full in-theatre reconnaissance and threat assessment completed by the Defence Forces prior to deployment of the troops, the level of force protection and weaponry proposed was considered adequate for the mission mandate."

The Minister said there was "no decision to withhold information in relation to the ongoing conflict and its impact on UNDOF", adding: "as a matter of practice, we do not generally comment on ongoing Defence Forces operations. The nature and extent of the ongoing conflict in Syria was well known and a matter of public record and media reporting."

The UN Secretary-General's June report shows that from the outset of its six-month tour of duty in March, the second Irish contingent was caught up in the middle of an all-out war. The report says that on March 19, the Israelis carried out air strikes on four locations inside the UN area of operations.

"United Nations personnel at Camp Faouar [where the Irish were based] heard aircraft flying from the west to the east, firing missiles, and then heard four heavy explosions approximately 3km from the camp. United Nations personnel in Camp Faouar went into shelter," the report says.

Strikes from both the Israeli and Syrian air forces and heavy artillery and mortar firing continued unabated over late spring and early summer, with UN posts being struck repeatedly, the report reveals.

"The presence and use of heavy weapons and equipment by the Syrian armed forces continued while armed members of the opposition [al-Nusra] were observed to have additional heavy weapons and military equipment in their possession following the capture of the Syrian armed forces positions," the report adds.

Sunday Independent

Report: ISIS Members Rape 170 Women And Young Girls In Anbar

By Dominic Kelly,

Shocking new reports say that members of the Islamic State have viciously raped more than 170 virgin girls in the Anbar province of Iraq in the course of two months.

“More than 170 rapes were committed by the members of the ISIL Takfiri group against young girls in Anbar province over the past two months,” said Sheikh Abdul Rahman Nimrawi, head of Fallujah Council, according to Iraqi News.

In a similar situation, reports also say that around 50 girls from the Yazidi sect were brutally raped by ISIS militants.

“The elements ISIS put the raped girls in Al Salam Hospital in Mosul for the purpose of treating and returning them to their families,” said Sadeq al-Shammari, media relations director for the National Alliance of Ninevah, adding, “the leaders of ISIS threatened the doctors at the hospital not to leak such information to the media.”

Meanwhile, airstrikes continue as a means of trying to stop the terrorist organization from terrorizing the region any more than they already have.

Isis: Dasar anti-Syiah Putrajaya yang mengorbankan rakyat Malaysia

Menjelang sambutan Hari Raya Aidiladha malam tadi ketika umat Islam di seluruh negara bersama keluarga untuk membuat persiapan terakhir, Bernama melaporkan lagi penglibatan rakyat Malaysia dalam kumpulan militan Negara Islam Iraq dan Syria (Isis).

Polis mengesahkan seorang doktor wanita berusia 26 tahun antara 22 rakyat Malaysia yang kini berada di Syria menyertai Isis untuk berperang tentera Presiden Bashar Al Assad.

Ketua Penolong Pengarah Bahagian Counter Terrorism Cawangan Khas Bukit Aman, Datuk Ayub Khan Mydin Pitchay berkata wanita itu berkahwin dengan ahli kumpulan militan Isis.

Polis juga mengatakan doktor wanita itu melalui Facebook ‘Diary of a Muhajirah’ cuba mempengaruhi wanita tempatan untuk menyertai militan Isis.

"Memang ada daya tarikan kuat sebab mereka boleh menggunakan Facebook untuk menarik wanita, khususnya gadis tempatan, dengan begitu mudah. Mereka boleh berkongsi gambar kononnya penginapan serta makanan disediakan dan pergi ke sana hanya untuk berjihad bersama mujahidin.

"Dengan berkahwin dengan ahli Isis, mereka dianggap turut mendapat pahala berjihad dan dapat menambahkan zuriat mujahidin,” katanya seperti dilaporkan agensi berita nasional itu.

Apabila berbicara tentang penglibatan rakyat Malaysia bersama kumpulan militan Isis, kita jangan lupa bagaimana dasar anti mazhab Syiah yang dimulakan Putrajaya satu ketika dahulu.

Rakyat Malaysia yang menyertai Isis dan berperang dengan tentera Al-Assad percaya darah golongan Syiah halal bagi mereka dan berperang melawan penganut mazhab itu jika terbunuh akan dianggap sebagai mati syahid.

Dalam ucapan penggulungan semasa Perhimpunan Umno 2013, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi memulakan kempen anti Syiah yang ditujukan kepada Timbalan Presiden PAS Mohamad Sabu yang dituduh menganut mazhab itu.

Naib presiden Umno itu turut memberikan kuasa Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (Jakim) untuk menahan Mohamad kerana dikatakan mengamalkan mazhab Syiah.

Media arus perdana melalui televisyen dan akhbar juga pada ketika itu menyerang mazhab Syiah habis-habisan sehingga mengatakan penganut mazhab itu kafir.

Tidak kurang daripada itu masjid-masjid juga mengadakan kuliah anti-Syiah sehingga khutbah Jumaat turut menyelitkan propaganda anti mazhab itu.

Selain itu, ustaz-ustaz “separuh masak” ini juga dalam kuliah dan ceramah mereka menggambarkan Al Assad sebagai seorang yang begitu kejam dan perlu diperangi walaupun mereka sendiri tidak faham dengan politik di Syria dan latarbelakangnya.

Hari ini, jika terdapat rakyat Malaysia yang menyertai Isis dan mati di Syria kerana berperang dengan pemerintah negara itu, Putrajaya harus disalahkan terlebih dahulu.

Imbas kembali apa yang dikatakan menteri dan tokoh agama sebelum ini yang menyebabkan rakyat Malaysia terpengaruh.

Jangan kita tangisi golongan profesional seperti doktor wanita tersebut yang menyertai Isis, kerana inilah hasil propaganda anti-Syiah dan Al Assad yang dibiarkan berlaku oleh kerajaan.

Jangan bersedih jika kita kehilangan anak-anak muda yang menyertai perang saudara di Syria walaupun ia tidak mempunyai kaitan dengan Malaysia.

Imej Malaysia sebagai sebuah negara yang bertoleransi dan terbuka musnah akibat tindakan politik sesetengah menteri yang hanya mahu menjadi popular di kalangan partinya.

Sempena sambutan Aidiladha hari ini, diharap umat Islam di Malaysia kembali bermuhasabah diri dan tidak terlalu fanatik sehingga sanggup membunuh orang lain hanya kerana kepercayaan berbeza.

Agama tidak mengajar kita untuk berbunuh antara satu sama lain.

Agama mengajar kita untuk mencintai antara satu sama lain.

Yang paling penting, jangan memaksa kepercayaan kita kepada orang lain. – 5 Oktober, 2014.

* Ini adalah pendapat peribadi penulis dan tidak semestinya mewakili pandangan The Malaysian Insider.

20 sen fuel hike - what it means to different people

 

To the rich, it means fuel in Malaysia is still cheaper than in other countries in the region. The increase means nothing to them. They can happily pay for it.

To the lower income group and the poor, it means a further tightening of the belt to make ends meet on devalued money as a ringgit will get less than before, but they don’t earn more ringgit to offset the decreased value of the ringgit.

To the business people it means an opportunity to increase profits as prices would be increased in round figures that are higher than the actual percentage increase in the costs of transportation and production of goods. They are not going to do charity and absorb the price increases though the government will be saying that there won’t be unfair price increases or that businesses would absorb some of the increases if not all. This is the tune consumers have heard over and over but which has never been true. 

To Domestic Trade, Cooperative and Consumerism Minister Hasan Malek the 20 sen increase is a commendable move and the people should congregate to congratulate the government as the increase is to ensure the nation's coffers are not depleted.

Dear minister, please tell us honestly how the coffers are not depleted when RM100 wall clocks are purchased for RM3,000 and RM3,000 laptops are purchased for over RM40,000 by “stupid” government servants as recorded in the Auditor-General’s reports?

Who is responsible for depleting government coffers through irresponsible handling and spending of public money?  It is a case of easy come (through taxes, etc) and easy go (all kinds of leakages which are left to go on and on).

Just make a cabinet decision and hey presto, money will flow in to fill the coffers. It’s as easy as that for the government, but not for those who have to sweat and toil, some at two jobs, to make ends meet.

So, to take the minister’s advice, we must go back to feudal times where leaders should not be questioned. But religions teach that people not only have a right to question decisions of the leaders but must do so if the decisions are seen to be unjust. So whom do we listen to, our prophets or our leaders?

The fuel price increase is very just and commendable in the eyes of the government and considered very fair by the rich, but to the lower income and poorer people in society, who form a majority of the population, it is unjust.

If a low income person needs to drive a small car 50km a day to and from work, it means about 70 sen more a day in Ron 95. That’s about RM20.00 a month. But it doesn’t stop there as fuel prices affect everything that needs to be transported from one place to another, and that includes daily necessities such as rice, sugar, fish, vegetables, etc. 

A lot of people are forced to own their own vehicles because of very poor public transport. This in turn is due to the policy of allowing certain parties to make money from the manufacture and sale of private vehicles. The private vehicle ownership policy is a big money churner for vested interests. So it must not be killed by having an efficient public transport system.

How will the lower income people be affected? If vegetables from Cameron Highlands cost 2 sen more per kg to transport, the end consumer will have to pay a rounded up figure of at least 5 sen, and more likely 10 to 20 sen, per kg. Add all other cost increases and a low-income person may have to fork out RM50 to RM80 per month. If he has school going children, he has to pay more for the school bus. Thus he could be hit to a tune of RM100 per month or more due to a 20 sen per litre increase in petrol and diesel price.

The fuel price increase therefore hits the lower income and poor people. They have to pay more for their daily needs. The rich do not suffer the same, or any consequences.

Our treasury should be in the black at all times as this is a country with plenty of natural resources. It is the mismanagement, corruption and leakages that are the cause of “depleted coffers”.

Would any minister (if he were a low-income individual) spend his hard earned money the way he spends or approves for spending public money as a minister?

Stop talking and act on wasatiyyah, PM told

Kit Siang says Najib must actively promote moderation inside and outside the country.

KUALA LUMPUR: DAP has challenged Prime Minister Najib Razak to rescue his wasatiyyah (moderation) campaign from failure by actively promoting moderation and marginalising extemism in both the national and international arenas.

In a media statement responding to Najib’s Aidiladha message today, DAP Parliamentary Leader Lim Kit Siang questioned the credibility of the PM’s assertion that he would keep faith with the pledge of moderation that he made last month at the United Nations.

“What is the use of Najib talking about the three main ingredients of wasatiyyah – justice, balance and excellence – when every day there are ample examples in Malaysia of the contemptuous disregard or violation of these values?” he asked.

For the international arena, he said, Najib should empower his Global Movement of Moderates (GMM) to mobilise world opinion against Islamic State (IS), the militant organisation that is currently engaged in a violent campaign aimed at re-establishing the Islamic Caliphate, initially covering the Middle East.

Lim suggested that GMM start by organising an international conference. “GMM can co-operate with the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies to organise an international conference for moderates to mobilise opinion against IS,” he said.

He expressed a belief that most Malaysians would like to see GMM succeed in its objective of promoting moderation.

“I am confident and convinced that the overwhelming majority of Malaysians are moderates and not extremists who want to see inter-racial and inter-religious harmony, understanding and goodwill being constantly strengthened instead of being weakened and undermined,” he said.

“If there are any reservations about the GMM, it is whether Najib is prepared to allow GMM full rein to promote moderation and marginalise extremism, whether nationally or internationally.”

Lim alleged that GMM was at present operating like an underground organisation, saying this was evident when it had to tell the media not to report the proceedings of a recent forum that it organised.

The reason for the media blackout, he claimed, was that GMM could not guarantee the participants’ safety from the sedition dragnet.

Malaysian Navy Combat Vessel Missing In Sabah Waters

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 6 (Bernama) -- A combat vessel of the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) with a crew of seven lost contact with an escort vessel as it headed to an RMN station on Layang-Layang atoll off Sabah, according to the RMN.

The CB90 type of combat vessel, assigned to operate from RMN Station Five on the atoll, lost communication with the escort vessel KD Paus during the voyage, said Chief of Navy Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar.

He said in a statement that the vessel, CB204, accompanied by KD Paus, left the RMN base in Kota Kinabalu at 5 am on Sunday and lost radio communication with the escort vessel at 11.15 am.

"The incident occurred during bad weather around Pulau Mengalum," he said.

Abdul Aziz said a search operation had been mounted by RMN assets, the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA).

The crew of seven personnel on board the missing vessel was headed by Lt Azri Bakar, he said.

Umno division wants assembly to consider abolishing Chinese schools, reports Utusan

An Umno division wants the party's general assembly next month to debate whether Chinese vernacular schools should be abolished, Umno mouthpiece Mingguan Malaysia reported today.

Umno Petaling Jaya Utara division deputy head Mohamad Azli Mohemed Saad, who made the suggestion, said this was because Chinese schools were being used by the opposition to breed racial and anti-government sentiments.

He was also quoted as saying that the upcoming November assembly was the best platform to discuss the issue.

"This is very important because nowhere else in the world is there a dual-stream education system.

"The primary and secondary systems must be under one umbrella," he said, according to the Malay-language weekender.

The report said this was not the first time the suggestion was made, adding that various parties had made the call in the name of unity of the nation.

It added that in August, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Razali Ibrahim had also called for the government to stop building Chinese vernacular schools as it was not contributing to national harmony.

Azli was also quoted as saying that the Petaling Jaya Utara branch also wanted all SJKC schools to be placed under the full control of the Education Ministry.

"We want to be rid of racism that is often being politicised by those who have a very shallow understanding of politics," he said, according to the report.

The Umno general assembly will be held from November 25 to 29. – October 5, 2014.

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Politicians playing to the gallery with call to abolish Chinese schools, says education group

A good number of pupils enrolled in Chinese schools are non-Chinese, a vernacular education group said today in response to calls ahead of the Umno general assembly next month that Chinese schools should be abolished because they breed racism.

United Chinese School Committees Association (Dong Zong) deputy president Chow Siew Hon said that politicians, who brought up the issue of abolishing Chinese schools, were only playing to the gallery and were in fact aware that these schools were here to stay.

Chinese schools have been in existence for more than 100 years before Merdeka and currently, 14%, or some 80,000 of the 600,000 pupils enrolled in these schools were non-Chinese, he said.

"This dispels any notion that Chinese schools do not contribute to national harmony and unity.

"Anyone, Chinese or not, is free to enrol in our schools as long as they want to study in Mandarin, so there is really no issue here," he told The Malaysian Insider.

It was reported today that an Umno division wants the party's general assembly next month to debate whether Chinese vernacular schools should be abolished.

Umno Petaling Jaya Utara division deputy head Mohamad Azli Mohemed Saad, who made this call, said this was because Chinese schools were being used by the opposition to breed racial and anti-government sentiments.

Such remarks are a norm in the run up to Umno's yearly assembly and also turn up in debates by delegates.

The largest Malay party and lynchpin of the Barisan Nasional coalition will hold its general assembly this year from November 25 to 29.

Weary of entering a debate with Umno conservatives, Chow said such "issues" were only created by some politicians who wanted to be seen as fighting for a "cause" for their personal benefit.

"They know that Chinese schools are here to stay, but they choose to play this tune for personal benefit, and fail to think about the good of the nation when they speak like this.

"We will not be perturbed by their calls and will continue to ensure the progress of Chinese schools and pupils," he said.

Article 152 of the Federal Constitution protects vernacular schools and education in the mother tongue, where it is stated that the national language shall be the Malay language, and that no one shall be prohibited or prevented from using, teaching or learning any other language.

MCA Religious Harmony Bureau Chairman Datuk Ti Lian Ker said that Azli should be investigated for sedition over his call to abolish Chinese schools.

In a statement uploaded on the party's website, Ti said that Azli's call contravened the Federal Constitution and Barisan Nasional’s spirit of inclusiveness.

"Not only has Azli challenged the rights of all Malaysians to study their mother-tongue language, but he has also questioned the legitimate rights of the Chinese community to education, and his careless call is liable to create racial tension.

"As such, I urge the police to investigate Azli for sedition, "he said.

Ti also reminded the Umno division deputy head that in October 1978, a Sabah Umno MP, Mark Koding, was charged with sedition for advocating the call to abolish Chinese and Tamil schools.

Ti said it was the policy of Barisan Nasional to defend the rights of all Malaysians to learn their mother tongue, adding that the policy had been in place ever since independence.

"Even in the previous general election, the BN government had pledged to continue funding for the construction of national-type schools, and if Azil disagrees with this, he is very welcome to leave BN," Ti said. – October 5, 2014.

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