Middle East talks to continue

 

 Clinton arrives in Jerusalem to continue talks and meet Peres and other Israeli politicians   [Reuters]

At the end of the second day of direct Middle East talks, the US special envoy to the region has said that Israeli and Palestinian leaders are putting the tough issues up front in the current round of talks.

But George Mitchell did not give any details on Wednesday on what was achieved during the meetings held over two days in locations in Egypt and Israel. He said the US would continue to place a sustained role in the negotiations.

With US mediation, Benjamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas will resume the talks next week in Jerusalem.

Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, will be looking to bridge the divide over Jewish settlement building when those the talks resume.

The Palestinians have warned that they will walk out of talks if a freeze on settlement construction, which is set to expire at the end of the month, is not extended. But Netanyahu had suggested that some building curbs will be lifted.javascript:void(0)

'Serious discussion'

Mitchell said on Tuesday that Israeli and Palestinian leaders "began a serious discussion on core issues".

These are Israel's security, the borders of a future Palestinian state, the fate of Palestinian refugees and the future of Jerusalem, but he did not identify the subjects discussed.

Al Jazeera's Nour Odeh, reporting from Ramallah, said that as far as the Americans are concerned, talks about peace were a must: "Many Palestinian officials tell us off the record that no American administration would allow these talks to fail so early in the process."

Tuesday's talks were also expected to tackle the agenda for the negotiations, with Netanyahu reportedly wanting first to address future security arrangements and secure Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state.

But the Palestinians want first to define the borders of a future Palestinian state, address the status of Jerusalem and discuss the right of return of refugees who were driven out of Palestine in 1948.

Besides the talks in Jerusalem on Wednesday with Netanyahu and Abbas, Clinton is due to meet Shimon Peres, the Israeli president, and Avigdor Lieberman, the foreign minister, as well as Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister.

Mitchell, meanwhile, is due to hold talks with Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, in Damascus on Thursday, the US embassy there confirmed. US officials attending the peace talks said Mitchell would then travel to Lebanon for talks with top officials.

Hamas missing

But the important regional player that is not being engaged in these series of talks is Hamas, the Palestinian movement that controls the Gaza Strip.

Hamas has opposed the talks and insists that Abbas does not have the right to negotiate on behalf of Palestinians. Ahmed Yousef, Hamas' deputy foreign minister, previously told Al Jazeera that the Palestinians were not behind Abbas.

"The negotiations that the Palestinian people have tried for over two decades are pointless negotiations, the Palestinian people never gained anything from them except the loss of their cause and their rights," Ismail Rudwan, a Hamas official, said earlier this month.

Larbi Sadiki, author and lecturer at the University of Exeter, argues that "sidelining Hamas in any process to craft genuine peace between Israelis and Palestinians is a glaring omission tantamount to ignoring an elephant in the room".

"Hamas has reached to willing interlocutors overseas from Moscow to Oslo," Sadiki wrote recently, hightlighting the willingness of the Palestinian movement to engage politically.

Prominent Israelis such as Efraim Halevy, the former director of Mossad, the Israeli secret service, and Giora Eiland, a former head of Israel's National Security Council, have called for negotiating with Hamas, according to the Washington DC based Brookings Institution.

Jimmy Carter, the former US president, has also said in the past that any future permanent Israeli-Palestinian agreement has to include Hamas.

"Hamas has got to be involved before peace can be concluded."

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

The last Indian Railway man

Complaint to U.N on 2, 237 top Indian students denied higher education in Malaysia

No.6, Jalan Abdullah, Off Jalan Bangsar, 59000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Tel: 03-2282 5241 Fax: 03-2282 5245
Website: www.humanrightspartymalaysia.com Email: info@humanrightspartymalaysia.com
Your Reference :
In Reply :
Date : 15/09/2010

Mr. Kamal Malhotra
UN Resident Coordinator
United Nations Malaysia
Wisma UN, Block C, Kompleks
Pejabat Damansara, Jalan Dungun,
Damansara Heights,                                               Fax No: 603-2095 2870
50490 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.                               Email: registry.my@undp.org


Dear Sirs,

RE: HRP Memorandum ON:-

(1)      An estimated 2,237 top and high achieving Indian students have been segregated and denied JPA scholarships, PTPTN loans, Matriculation and University seats. 
(2) Indian students in Public Universities systematically reduced from 28% to 0.27% in 40 years.       
(3)   Request for United Nations fact finding mission to investigate the ‘a la apartheid’ denial of higher education for the top and high achieving ethnic minority Indian students in Malaysia.
(4)   Request for United Nations nominated official to head the Selection Committee together with three (3) others for JPA scholarships, Matriculation and University places in Malaysia for an interim five years.


We refer to the above matter and to our letter dated 27/07/2010.
We would appreciate the update on your forwarding of the aforesaid Memorandum to the
United Nations (U.N). High Commissioner for Human Rights Council’s special Rapporteur on Right to Education.
Thank You.


Your faithfully,
Mr. S. Jayathas
Information Chief
Human Rights Party Malaysia (HRP) & HINDRAF
6 (A) Jalan Abdullah, Off Jalan Bangsar,
59000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Tel: 2282 6241 / 012-636 2287; Fax: 03 – 2282 5245

U.N to HRP: No Rights to Education (for minority Indians) in Malaysia (which is racist – by UMNO)

Memo on Top Indian students systematically denied JPA scholarships etc, University & Matriculation places to UN Secretary General accepted by UNICEF Head Malaysia Mr.Hans Olsen on 22/7/2010 

c.c:
Ban Ki-moon
Secretary General of the United Nations
One UN Plaza, First Avenue and East 42 Street
New York, NY10017 Fax: +41-22-917-9011

Ms Navanethem Pillay
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Office of the Nations High Commissioner of
Human Rights (OHCHR)
Palais Wilson, 52 rue des Paquis
CH-1201 Geneva, Switzerland. Fax: +41-22-917-9006

Mr Vernon Munoz Villalobos
UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education
United Nations Human Rights Council
Tel: (506) 2248-2508, (506) 2258-8585, ext. 1161.
Fax: (506) 2248-0991, (506) 2248-2533
PO BOX: 1245-1007 San Jose, Costa Rica
Email: vernormu@yahoo.es

UNESCO
7 Place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP
France. Fax: +33-1-4567-1690

Independent Expert on the Question of
Human Rights and Extreme Poverty (ICHRP)
Rue Ferdinand- Holder 17 Fax: +41-22-775-3303
CH-1207 Geneva Email: ichrp@ichrp.org

Mr Oliver De Schutter,
Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Palais Wilson, 52 rue des Paquis
CH – 1201 Geneva, Switzerland Fax: +41-22-917-9006

Ms Gay McDougall
Independent Expert on Minority Issues
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Palais des Nations
CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland. Fax: +41-22-917-9006

Mr Githu Muigai
Special Rapoorteur on Contemporary Forms
of Racism,
Racial Discrimination,
Xenophobia and Related Intolerance
Palais des Nations
CH- 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland Fax: +41-22-917-9006

HRP welcomes and to meet new U.S Ambassador to K.L on Malaysian Indian Minority & Human Rights Violations Annual Report 2009.

No.6, Jalan Abdullah, Off Jalan Bangsar, 59000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Tel: 03-2282 5241 Fax: 03-2282 5245

Website: www.humanrightspartymalaysia.com Email: info@humanrightspartymalaysia.com

Your Reference :

In Reply :

Date : 15^TH September 2010

To : Your Execellency Mr.Paul W Jones

Ambassador of the United States of America

Embassy of the United States of America,

Jalan Ampang, Fax: 03-21489192

Kuala Lumpur. Email: mariatimy@state.gov

Re: Welcome to Malaysia

Appointment to pay courtesy call on your goodself.

Your Excellency,

We, of the Human Rights Party Malaysia wish to extend your goodself a very warm welcome on your being appointed the Ambassador of the United States of America to Malaysia here in Kuala Lumpur.

It is heartening to read in The Star daily 15/9/10 that quoted your goodself as saying President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hilary Clinton have encouraged you “to harmonize the relations by having conversations and engagements with all parties”. We are extremely happy that you are starting on this note. This openness on your part will certainly contribute to strengthening democracy, human rights, minority rights, the rule of law and in upholding the Malaysian Constitution.

As you probably are aware, there has been, in recent years a significant weakening of the various institutions of governance in Malaysia. One of the major effects of this has been a noticeable erosion of fundamental human rights and minority rights. We, of the Human Rights Party of Malaysia represent a significant section of the population who have been adversely affected by all of this. Central to our political thrust are two major initiatives. One is to bring the marginalized minority even up to the sixth generation Malaysian born merely 8% ethnic minority Indians into the mainstream of national development of the country, who have been marginalized and segregated by the slanted policies of the current ruling coalition. The second of our thrusts is to eliminate all forms of state sponsored racist, supremacist and segregationist polices.

In the United States of America a first generation and son of an immigrant can become the President of the country, while here in Malaysia even the fifth and sixth generation non-Malay muslim citizens cannot aspire to be even the head of a small department within the government, for example even a Post Master, not to mention all the other innumerable deprivation, that is allowed to take place with impunity in the name of Article 153 of the Federal Constitution of Malaysia. Segregation, unfair allocation of resources, inequal treatment in almost all facets of life continue to occur in Malaysia in the name of this Article 153 in subtle but sure ways.

Most of the segregation of this Malaysian Indian community is as is reported on a daily basis in our website www.humanrightspartymalaysia.com .

We hope that with the openness that you will offer, you will be able to get a better understanding of all of this. This will require that you give groups of all persuausion appropriate hearing and to convey to your government a balanced picture of the Malaysian situation. This will hopefully result in the provision of the appropriate motivation to the ruling political party here in Malaysia, to move on with the process of complete democratisation and a consolidation of human and minority rights in the country.

In this regard we would like to request an appointment with Your Excellency to present the Malaysian Indian Minority & Human Rights Violations Annual Report 2009 and to share our perspective on all of that with you. We hope you to be able to meet you soon.

We welcome you once again to Malaysia and we look forward to working with you.

Thank You.

P.Uthayakumar

(Sec. General pro tem)

Human Rights Party of Malaysia

IGP says Sosilawati probe considered solved

Policemen leading one of those arresteed in the murder case.

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 15 — The police and the Attorney-General’s Chambers have begun preparing charges against the seven suspects detained for the murder of cosmetics millionaire Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya and her three companions.

Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Ismail Omar said today he considered the case solved and commended CID Director Datuk Seri Mohd Bakri Zinin, his deputy Datuk Hadi Ho Abdullah and police detectives involved in apprehending the suspects, The Star reported in its online edition.

However, he cautioned the press not to speculate that something was wrong if charges are not brought against the suspects soon as the police wanted to first make sure that the case was airtight.

A Datuk and his brother — both believed to be lawyers — and five others have been arrested in connection with the case following the discovery of four charred bodies at a poultry farm in Tanjung Sepat, Morib.

The bodies are believed to be Sosilawati, 47, her driver Kamaruddin Shamsudin, 44, CIMB Kampung Baru officer Noorhisham Mohammad, 38, and lawyer Ahmad Kamil Abdul Karim, 32, who were reported missing since August 30 after going to Banting, Selangor, for a land purchase matter.

Bakri said over the weekend that police were still trying to obtain forensic confirmation to identify the dead, revealing that the four were set ablaze and their ashes scattered into a river near Ladang Gadong in Tanjung Sepat near here.

The suspects, aged between 19 and 41, are being held at the Bukit Jalil police lockup in Kuala Lumpur, Bakri revealed. It was learnt that police have obtained seven-day remand orders to facilitate investigations into the case.

Ismail also said that the police had formed a task force to investigate all missing persons linked to the lawyers, said to number between four and 17, based on statements given by the suspects.

He added that all missing person reports must be investigated immediately and thoroughly to avoid similar incidents in future, and admitted that Sosilawati’s death could have been prevented if fast action had been taken.

“I have already instructed my men that there should be no more slacking. Those caught slacking or ignoring missing persons reports will be severely reprimanded,” he said.  - The Malaysian Insider

Sosilawati case: New findings in Sungai Panchau

BANTING, Sept 15 — The police forensic team today found more objects in Sungai Panchau, here, which could shed more light on the murders of cosmetics queen Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya and three others.

The police team who began their investigation today at 3.30pm was seen holding some objects believed to include a bundle of bone pieces.

Media members covering the case were not allowed to get close to the investigation site but about 100 metres away until the operation ended at 5.30pm.

The police have also put up a canvas screen at the investigation site, making it difficult for the media members to see what was going on and the objects brought out of the stream.

However, they could see some policemen scouring the stream which was almost knee-high.

Also seen at the investigation site was the police Forensic Department director Datuk Abdul Malek Harun.

Prior to the latest find, the forensic team had recovered pieces of bones from the river on Sunday.

Besides Sosilawati, the others who were reported murdered and burned to ashes were her personal driver Kamarudin Shansudin, 44, lawyer Ahmad Kamil Abdul Karim, 32, and bank officer Noorhisham Mohammad, 38. — Bernama

Najib gives radicals a M'sia Day whipping

By Syed Jaymal Zahiid - Free Malaysia Today

KUALA LUMPUR: Amid the ongoing row between Umno and Perkasa, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has lashed out at extremists, deeming them a threat to the nation's peace and economy.

"They treat anyone who is different as an enemy and engineer fear in people who don’t conform to their thoughts or ideologies and in some cases in people who simply look different," he said in his official address posted on his official blog for the Malaysia Day celebration tomorrow.

"I am strongly opposed to these types of behaviour. It saddens me that despite living in an independent multi-cultural nation for over 50 years, there are still those who cannot tolerate, much less accept the benefits of a diverse society.

“It saddens me because by rejecting our diverse way of life, they reject 1Malaysia," said the Umno president, adding that such radical groups wield great influence.

Although Najib did not name Perkasa, his comments, however, mirrored the views expressed by numerous Umno and Barisan Nasional leaders regarding the Malay right-wing movement.

"While these groups are often small in number, their presence is amplified through their extreme sentiments and acts," said the prime minister.

Umno leaders like Minister in the Prime Minister Department Nazri Abdul Aziz, Higher Education Minister Khaled Nordin, party secretary-general Tengku Adnan Mansor and Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin have lambasted Perkasa.

They have also urged Umno to distance itself from Perkasa, describing the latter as a stumbling block to efforts to regain non-Malay support.

However, former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, along with Umno's own mouthpiece Utusan Malaysia, have come out in support of Perkasa.

They warned Umno could lose Malay support if it sidelined Perkasa.

Last week, Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali said that his organisation did not need Umno or its leaders.

Najib's Perkasa dilemma

After its electoral debacle in 2008, Najib is attempting to chart a different course for Umno under his 1Malaysia banner.

But Mahathir warned that it was Umno's inability to protect the Malays from Chinese extremists which led to the mushrooming of groups like Perkasa.

Najib's reforms also extended into the economic sphere where capital outflows, the brain drain crisis, flagging investments and a high budget deficit forced him to unveil the New Economic Model (NEM) which recognises the need to end race-based policies to spur domestic growth.

However, this was met with stiff resistance from Perkasa, which expressed concern that the NEM could erode the special position of the Malays.

Perkasa's ultra-nationalist stand has appealed to the mainly conservative Malays who form the majority of the electorate. The movement claims to have 300,000 members.

PKR in need of reformasi

By Stanley Koh - Free Malaysia Today

COMMENT If public sentiment is everything then nothing can succeed or fail without it. Abraham Lincoln believed that those who have public sentiment on their side go deeper than those who enact statutes.
And Mark Twain said that public opinion settles everything, with some thinking it is the voice of God.

In explaining the weaknesses of a party, Russian revolutionary leader Leon Trotsky had said: “In inner-party politics, the party organisation substitutes itself for the party, the central committee substitutes itself for the organisation; and finally, a dictator substitutes himself for the central committee.”

In PKR's case, it's larger-than-life supreme leader Anwar Ibrahim should loosen his grip a little.

He must not campaign for his favourite candidates and should abide by democratic principles to ensure a free and fair party polls in line with his “Reformasi” clarion call.

Instead of playing cheerleader, Anwar should put down his pom-poms and focus on getting the party's act together, starting with fulfilling the promises and pledges made during the last general election. He must also work on strengthening PKR's hold in Selangor, which is slipping.

The sad truth is that there is little time left.

Glory or suicide?

With the intense underlying power play leading up to this November's party elections, many are wondering if the PKR leadership is on the road to glory or in the process of committing hara kiri.

Unless the leadership gets its act together, attempts to undermine candidates and engineer factionalism will only sound the death knell for PKR when the next general election comes.

This is common sense, and PKR leaders, who seem a little oblivious to this, must also wake up to the reality that their party is the weakest link in Pakatan Rakyat.

In the past, political pundits showered Anwar with accolades, calling him the Asian Renaissance Man and Mr Indefatigable among others. But that was during his heydays in Umno, when he was dubbed the new bridesmaid of Malaysian politics and successor to the premiership.

But his fate took a sharp turn in September 1998, and now as opposition leader and PKR's de facto leader, he is not in an enviable position.

For the past two years, Anwar’s leadership in PKR is regarded as being less sure-footed and with few achievements.

On the positive side, he has been credited with cementing the Pakatan coalition and creating closer ties between parties operating on different ideologies.

But on the homefront, PKR is saddled with accusations of little Napoleons running riot, character assassinations and dictatorial favouritism.

This has led the public to ask what is the difference between PKR and Barisan Nasional parties.

In a nutshell, if the PKR leadership continues sailing along this course then it is bound for an iceberg and the party can forget about capturing Putrajaya in the next election.

Some party insiders have accused the PKR leadership of having trouble casting aside its Umno-BN like mindset.

Its power-struggle fatigued leaders have not convinced Malaysians that PKR is capable of charting a roadmap which is better than Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's 1Malaysia.

Instead of vague sloganeering, the PKR leadership should articulate a clear set of policies or give a convincing account of its plan to build a new nation. It must find the momentum for the long build up to the next polls.

The clock is ticking
However, PKR has not been able to display a strong sense of conviction to groom talented leaders, the second and third echeleons within its rank and file.

With most predicting that Anwar will land in jail again, the party's sucession issue continues to be submerged in murky waters.

New entrants with leadership talent should be given the chance to prove their worth and those with potential should be groomed.

PKR should be a reservoir of talented, if not the best, leaders. A mixture of old and new blood must flow through its veins. Party elections should never be a case of winner takes all, loser gets none. But in a party at war with itself, all are losers.

The PKR leadership, which is gripped by the “Anwar factor”, is facing a “zero sum” game unlike its coalition partners PAS and DAP.

Precious time is being wasted, the clock is ticking and accusations of Anwar being a weak leader is piling up. Even during his Umno days, certain quarters had criticised him for being soft on some issues and skirting around hard decisions.

Now until the next general election will be the last mile for PKR and Pakatan to realise its dream of forming federal government.

But one thing is certain, PKR is in need of reformation.

---

Stanley Koh is a former head of MCA's research unit.

What extremism means

So you see, my dear Najib, if we really want to be non-extremist then there is much we need to change. To shed extremism there is much we need to shed. And the first would be to shed the attitude that we have a right to decide how someone lives his/her life and what he/she has to believe in and follow.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Bernama reported today that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak wants Malaysians to fight extremism and to accept his 1Malaysia. Before we can fight extremism we must first understand what the word means.

Extremist (noun): a person zealous about a belief (Synonyms: agitator, die-hard, fanatic, radical, revolutionary, revolutionist, ultra, ultraist, zealot, illiberal, immoderate, stubborn, obsessive, single-minded, biased, unreasonable, bigot, intolerant, prejudiced, passionate, etc.)

Going by the above, almost 100% of Malaysians can be described as extremists. After all, who amongst us could tolerate/allow what we would regard as an insult to our race, religion or nation? Would we not passionately defend what we would consider our rights, dignity, freedom or whatever?

That would make us extremists.

Even America is an extremist nation. It opposes Communism and would go out of its way to fight Communism and defend ‘the American way of life’. It supported Saddam Hussein in Iraq’s war against ‘extremist Islamic’ Iran and the US closed its eyes to the atrocities Saddam committed against his own people -- all in the interest of ‘democracy’ although Iraq is not the best example of a democracy.

The US also supported the Taliban in its opposition to the Communist Russian occupation of Afghanistan. The US built and nurtured the Taliban to what it is today. Basically the US created a monster to fight en even bigger monster because it is paranoid about Communism and is so intolerant to another system that does not meet ‘US standards’.

That would make the US an extremist.

The entire world, not just Malaysians, is extreme. And the only way to fight extremism would be to be the opposite of that word. And what is the opposite of extremism?

The words opposite to extremist are: conservative, moderate, humanitarian, liberal, disinterested, impartial, unenthusiastic, limited, mild, tolerant, etc.

Now, for Malaysians to shed the extremist label and become the opposite of extremist they have to make a lot of sacrifices and offer a lot of concessions. Are Malaysians prepared to do that? Are the political, community and religious leaders prepared to do that? Are Umno and the 20 or so other political parties prepared to do that? Are the Malays prepared to do that? Are Muslims prepared to do that? More importantly, is Najib prepared to do that?

For example, many of our laws are extremely outdated and are inherited from the days when the world was an extremely intolerant, biased, superstitious and narrow-minded place. Is the government (with Najib at the helm) prepared to abolish all these laws?

Let us look at a few examples.

Can Malaysia shed its extremism and allow gay marriages? The right of gays should be respected. Anything two consenting adults do is their business. Why are we being extremists by deciding what two consenting adults can and cannot do?

You may argue that religion does not allow gay relationships. So what? That is between that person and his God. Why is the government deciding everything on behalf of God? Did God appoint Umno or Barisan Nasional or PAS or Pakatan Rakyat as His representative here on earth?

The government is becoming an extremist by deciding what humankind can and cannot do. You may say that gay marriages or relationships are immoral. Well, some may say the same about a man marrying more than one wife. Why is it a man with more than one wife is tolerated but not gay marriages?

You may argue that Islam allows a man to marry four wives but does not allow gay marriages or relationships. Well and fine but why are Islamic laws imposed on those who are not Muslims? And even if that person is a Muslim should that not be between that person and God? Why is the government becoming an extremist by doing God’s work? Did God appoint the government as His agent or is God not capable of handling His own affairs?

What about the right to decide and choose your own religion? Isn’t religion between you and God? Who gave the government the right to decide what religion we can and cannot follow? What if we refuse to follow any religion altogether or even believe in the existence of God?

The government is becoming an extremist by deciding what religion we must follow and by preventing us from choosing our own religion or even from rejecting religion altogether.

The above are only two examples meant to demonstrate my point. There are of course many more examples I can offer.

Can I be allowed to register a new party called the Communist Party of Malaysia? If not, why? Isn’t the government being an extremist by deciding what party I can form? And what is wrong with Communism?

Can I become a Shia Muslim? And can I establish my own Shia mosque so that those who follow and believe in Shia Islam can have their own place of worship?

Better still, can I start a new ‘religion’ called Abrahamism, which would unite all Jews, Christians and Muslims under one banner, the religion of Abraham -- which the Quran says is the only true religion. If the answer is no and if this new religion is banned and the followers arrested and jailed (and sent for religious rehabilitation) then the government is being an extremist.

So you see, my dear Najib, if we really want to be non-extremist then there is much we need to change. To shed extremism there is much we need to shed. And the first would be to shed the attitude that we have a right to decide how someone lives his/her life and what he/she has to believe in and follow.

So let’s not talk about fighting extremism unless we are prepared to go all the way. As I said, almost 100% of Malaysians are extremists. And I don’t see this changing until I can choose to not believe in God and enter into a gay marriage or relationship. And until that changes keep your thoughts about eradicating extremism to yourself.

********************************************

Fight extremism, says PM

(Bernama) - Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak today expressed strong opposition to the actions of extremist groups or individuals who believe in their radical views and actions against others.

“It saddens me that despite living in an independent multi-cultural nation for over 50 years, there are still those among us who cannot tolerate, much less accept the benefits of a [peaceful] society,” he said.

He said this in his latest entry entitled “Our Fight Against Extremism” in his blog, www.1malaysia.com.my here.

Najib said he was sad because by rejecting Malaysians’ way of life, these groups were rejecting the 1 Malaysia concept.

He said as Malaysia celebrated a landmark in its history tomorrow, there was much to be proud of because Malaysia was a developing nation that had excelled in many sectors such as tourism, banking and finance, halal sector, medicine and many more.

“We are blessed to be able to experience different cultures, food and religions without travelling far and abroad.”

“While we have achieved so much, it troubles me to see a rise in issues rooted in extremism in the nation.”

“This is not limited to racism. Extremists are groups or individuals who subscribe to radical views and actions against others.”

“They treat anyone who is different as an enemy and engineer fear in people who don’t conform to their thoughts or ideologies and, in some cases in people who simply look different,” Najib said.

Hence, extremism here applied to a gamut of factors, including racism, arts, culture, way of life, and more, the prime minister said.

While these groups were often small in number, their presence was amplified through their extreme sentiments and acts.

Nonetheless, the government continued to keep a watchful eye on such groups.

“We have dealt effectively with a number of extreme cases in Malaysia, such as militant groups that have instigated conflicts and posed a genuine threat to national security.”

“We will continue to protect the Rakyat and the nation from threats from outside or within, through land, sea, air or cyberspace.”

“We have been exposed to examples of extremist behaviour, regionally and globally. I am glad that we have abstained from such acts, and instead displayed maturity as a people, as 1 Malaysia.”

“I urge all Malaysians to be calm and rational in the face of such extremism. To respond like with like only serves to escalate tensions between our countries and becomes a hindrance to our own progress.”

“Economies have faltered because of acts of extremism, and the road to recovery is often long and hard,” Najib added.

Raja Petra Kamarudin: UMNO’s public enemy No. 1

Raja Petra Kamarudin

The name Raja Petra Kamarudin – popularly known as RPK – is dreaded by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).
His blog, Malaysia Today , Malaysia’s most popular blog (read here), has been a source of embarrassment to the ruling party as RPK reveals, mostly with documented evidence, the litany of abuses that UMNO is involved in.
His biggest scalp thus far has been none other than current Prime Minister, Najib Razak. RPK has made a statutory declaration that Najib’s wife, Rosmah Mansor (read here), was at the scene of the crime of the murder of Altantunya Sharibu (read the account of the case here). Najib, despite vehemently denying any involvement, has not sued RPK for defamation nor did the police investigate his claims.
RPK is now a fugitive in the United Kingdom after being released from detention under Malaysia’s draconian Internal Securities Act (read here).
He is considered too hot even for the BBC’s hard-hitting socio-political programme, HARDTalk, which cancelled at the last minute, a scheduled interview with him – reportedly under pressure from either the British or Malaysian government (read here and here).
With elections in Malaysia drawing near, RPK remains a threat to UMNO. His latest revelation, shows how Tajuddin Ramli, a Mahathir-Daim crony (read here), plundered nearly RM9 billion through control (purchase, operation and sale) of Malaysian Airlines (read here ).
His website is now believed to be under attack. It has been shut down twice in recent days and now experiences low bandwidth (read here). Many believe that this is the work of the Malaysian government or their agents (read here and here).
RPK has broken more stories (e.g. scandals, controversial UMNO/BN government plans and conspiracy, etc) than any other media organisation.
As long as RPK is free, Malaysians can be assured of continued breaking news of government shenanigans. This should keep UMNO, marginally at least, on its toes.

Utusan cuba naikkan Tun M, pinggir Najib?

(Harakahdaily) - Ekoran menyokong Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa), akhbar Utusan Malaysia terus menerima kritikan dari pemimpin Umno.

Kali ini Ahli Majlis Tertinggi Umno, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz pula mempersoal agenda sebenar akhbar milik Umno itu yang didakwa cuba merendahkan kepimpinan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Razak dengan melebihkan penasihat NGO tersebut, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Utusan juga jelasnya seperti mempunyai agenda tersendiri apabila lebih menonjolkan Dr. Mahathir berbanding Najib.

"Saya tidak faham Utusan. Siapa bos mereka? Najib atau Dr Mahathir? Kadangkala saya tertanya adakah mereka ada agenda untuk membawa kkembali Dr Mahathir untuk menggantikan Najib," katanya dalam satu temubual bersama The Malaysian Insider.

Menurutnya lagi, dengan mempromosikan kenyataan Dr. Mahathir yang menyokong perjuangan melampau Hak Melayu Perkasa itu bermakna Utusan secara jelas telah merendahkan gagasan 1Malaysia Najib.

Nazri turut meminta agar Utusan memainkan peranan sebagai lidah rasmi parti itu dengan menyokong agenda 1Malaysia Najib seperti akhbar politik yamg lain.

"Jika kita lihat Harakah, mereka promosikan program PAS, Suara Keadilan promosikan PKR, The Star promosikan MCA, tetapi akhbar Umno sendiri, Utusan tidak menyokong bos mereka," katanya.

Semalam, Ketua Pemuda Umno, Khairy Jamaludin membidas Utusan Malaysia menerusi twitternya.

Khairy menulis bahawa beliau "berpendapat akhbar tertentu itu perlu diingatkan siapa pemiliknya".

"Saya penyokong pembaharuan supaya akhbar lebih bebas dan bertanggungjawab tetapi dalam paradigma hari ini, saya tidak boleh menerima bentuk editorial akhbar tertentu," tulisnya.

Meskipun Khairy tidak menyebut sebarang nama, tetapi kenyataannya jelas ditujukan kepada Utusan.

Ketua pemuda Umno itu juga telah berulang-kali menegaskan bahawa Umno tidak bersekongkol dengan Perkasa dalam apa bentuk sekalipun.

Sejak seminggu lalu, beberapa pemimpin kanan Umno termasuk setiausaha agungnya, Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, naib presiden, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi dan ahli majlis tertinggi, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz mula menyuarakan rasa tidak puas hati mereka terhadap Perkasa.

Mereka mendakwa pandangan melampau Perkasa berhubung hak dan dan keistimewaan Melayu akan meminggirkan sokongan bukan Melayu pada pilihan raya umum akan datang.

Utusan melalui beberapa artikelnya telah menyokong Perkasa dan rencana pengarangnya pada Ahad lalu menggesa Umno supaya memikirkan semula hubungan dengan NGO itu.

Why politics, racism and religion are bad for humankind

Politics, racism and religion are screwing up Malaysia. In fact, they have been screwing up the world since the world began. I doubt I need to write in great length about this issue. Let me instead just produce SOME of the statistics of the death toll. Take note that more people than that have died but then not all are documented. To save the world we may need to shoot all politicians, racists and religionists.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

The death toll due to wars and conflicts through the ages

The Second World War: 50 million to 70 million (against a world population of 2 billion)

The First World War: 45 million to 65 million (against a world population of 1.6 billion)

Mongol conquests (1207-1472): 40 million to 60 million (against a world population of 400 million)

Chinese Revolution (756-763): 35 million to 40 million (against a world population of 200 million)

Qing dynasty conquest of the Ming Dynasty (1616-1632): 25 million (against a world population of 500 million)

Taiping Rebellion of China (1851-1864): 20 million to 30 million (against a world population of 1 billion)

Timur Conquest (1369-1405): 15 million to 20 million (against a world population of 400 million)

Dungan Revolt of China (1862-1877): 10 million (against a world population of 1 billion)

Thirty Years War (Holy Roman Empire; 1618-1648): 10-11 million

Russian Civil War (1917-1921): 9 million (against a world population of 1.6 billion)

Congo wars: 6-8 million

Yellow Turban War of China (184-205): 5-7 million

Napoleonic wars: 5-6 million

Vietnam War: 5 million

Polish-Lithuanian conflict (1655-1660): 3-4 million

French wars on religion (1562-1598): 3-4 million

Korean War: 3 million

Sudanese Civil War: 2 million

Crusades (1059-1291): 2 million

Shaka’s conquest of Africa (1816-1828): 2 million

Spanish Civil War: 400,000

Greek-Turkish War: 250,000

******************************************

Stalin's regime of Russia: 20 million

Middle East slave trade: 19 million

European slave trade: 18 million

British occupation of India: 15-17 million

European colonisation of the Americas: 10-20 million

Nazi genocide: 10 million

Ukraine genocide: 10 million

Fall of the Roman Empire: 8 million

‘Killing Fields’ of Cambodia: 3 million

Bangladesh genocide: 3 million

Genocide of Germans after WWII: 3 million

Assyrian genocide: 1.5 million

Armenian genocide: 1 million

Rwanda genocide: 1 million

Greek genocide: 1 million

French occupation of Algeria: 1 million

Angola genocide: 550,000

Massacres in Zunghar Khanate, China: 500,000

Ustashe massacres of Serbs, Jews, Roma and Croats in Croatia: 500,000

Brazilian genocide of the Indians: 500,000

Sudan conflict: 500,000

Russian conquest of the Caucasus: 400,000

Darfur genocide: 400,000

West Papua genocide: 400,000

Abyssinian Conquest: 400,000

French Indochina War: 400,000

Indonesian Communist genocide: 400,000

Somalia genocide: 400,000

East Timor genocide: 300,000

Nanking genocide: 300,000

Idi Amin’s regime: 300,000

Guatemala genocide: 200,000

Iraq genocide: 200,000

Tito’s regime: 200,000

Guatemala conflict: 200,000

Bosnia genocide: 175,000

Hutu genocide in Burundi: 100,000

Masacre of Tamils in Sri Lanka: 100,000

Tutsi genocide in Burundi: 50,000

Are we a failed state, KJ?

By Haris Ibrahim,

Khairy Jamaluddin has taken exception to Lee Kuan Yew’s suggestion that Malaysia is a failed state.
“For cynics who say Malaysia is a failed state: I was a war correspondent in Taliban Afghanistan. I know a failed state when I see one. We’re not” , Malaysiakini reports KJ as having retorted.
I think KJ is right.
We are not a failed state.
Not yet, anyway.
We’re well on our way there, though.
FreeMalaysiaToday quotes former Sabah chief minister Harris Salleh as saying that our ‘existing political and administrative system as heading towards a “failed state status” within the next 20 to 30 years‘.
I think Harris is being optimistic, time-wise.
More like 10-15 years, if you ask me.
Wikipedia offers 12 indicators of state vulnerability to a nation falling into failed nation status.
In my view, at least 5 of those 12 indicators are already clearly visible in our country.
Do we not have a serious problem of  ‘brain drain’ of professionals and intellectuals?
Has not the NEP inflicted upon us a sustained uneven economic development along group lines?
Is the nation not languishing under “endemic corruption or profiteering by ruling elites and resistance to transparency, accountability and political representation”? Is there not ‘widespread loss of popular confidence in state institutions and processes”?
Have we not, since the days of the Mahathir administration, endured an authoritarian, dictatorial rule in which constitutional and democratic institutions and processes are suspended or manipulated?
Are we not seeing, even to this day “fragmentation of ruling elites and state institutions along group lines by the use of aggressive nationalistic rhetoric by ruling elites, especially destructive forms of… communal solidarity”?
Khairy opines that “If we followed the Singaporean model, Malaysia would today be a failed state. We are not practically homogeneous and not the size of a postage stamp…Which is why 1Malaysia must succeed. Neither Lee’s model nor Perkasa’s ideas can take Malaysia forward” .
1Malaysia must succeed, did you say, KJ?
And PERKASA stands in its way?
Tell us, Khairy, who approved the registration of PERKASA in double-quick time?
Who approved PERKASA its permit to publish its news bulletin?
Why don’t you just go back to reporting in Afghanistan, KJ?

Why Do Terrorists Blow Themselves Up?

(Asia Sentinel) An exhaustive study by an Australian professor finds a complex set of factors

Nine years ago, 19 young Muslims commandeered passenger jets and killed themselves, taking with them 2973 people to the inferno of fire. Since the 9/11 attacks, suicide bombings have become a staple of daily news, although the practice dates back at least two decades. A commonly accepted narrative frames such acts of self-destruction as the action of psychologically impaired, morally deficient, uneducated, impoverished individuals and, most of all, religious fanatics.

But the analysis of information based on 1597 suicide attacks between 1981 and 2008, which killed more than 21,000 in 34 countries, suggests a more complex set of reasons, an understanding of which is essential if the world is to see an end of such slaughter.

My book, "Life as a Weapon," analyzes suicide bombings as a method of choice among terrorist groups around the world and the motivations.

Surprisingly, altruism emerges as a major factor in the complex set of causes behind the suicide attacks.

In its most fundamental character, following the seminal studies of economist Ernest Fehr and colleagues, altruism can be defined as the costly actions that confer benefits on other individuals. Altruism is a fundamental condition accounting for human cooperation for organization of society and its cohesiveness.

In the conceptual map of French sociologist Emile Durkheim, suicide bombings would fall in the category of altruistic suicidal actions – distinct from other types of suicidal actions caused by personal catastrophes, hopelessness and psychopathologies that lead people to believe life is not worth living. Altruistic suicides, on the other hand, involve valuing one's life as less worthy than the group's honor, religion or other collective interests.

The genesis of suicide bombings is rooted in intractable asymmetrical conflicts pitching the state against non-state actors over political entitlements, territorial occupation and dispossession. Invariably such conflicts instigate state-sanctioned violence and repressive policies against weaker non-state parties causing widespread outrage and large-scale dislocation of people, many of whom become refugees in makeshift camps, in or outside so called war zones.

Carolyn Nordstrom captures the mood in Sri Lanka during the recently ended civil war: "In the war zones, violence and war permeated all aspect of daily life. It was not certain a person going for work would return in the evening. A home could be suddenly searched, someone brutally killed, a mother raped or father taken away. A shell could land anywhere destroying everything around.…This kind of pervasive atmosphere of violence, rather than breaking down the resistance and spirit of population, in times creates resistance and defiance, particularly in the youth." Other contributing factors include incarceration and dehumanizing treatments of insurgents in state custody and mutual dehumanization of the "other."

Suicide bombing, rarely the strategy of first choice, is selected by terrorist organizations after collective assessments, based on observations and experience, of strategies' relative effectiveness to achieve political goals.

The decision to participate is facilitated by suicide bombers' internalized social identities, their exposure to asymmetric conflict and its costs, their exposure to organizations that sponsor such attacks as well as membership in a larger community where sacrifice and martyrdom carry high symbolic significance.

In Sri Lanka, the Black Tigers attached importance to how the community would view their actions: They were glorified in their burial rituals, and an eternal lamp adorned the tombstone of every Black Tiger grave to commemorate the sacrifice.

From sociological and economic perspectives, suicide bombings can be linked to altruism as a form of intergenerational investment or an extreme form of saving in which the agent gives up current consumption for the sake of enhancing probability of descendants enjoying benefit of some future public good.

Analysis of Hezbollah suicide bombers in Lebanon shows that incidents of suicide bombing attacks increase with current income and the degree of altruism towards the next generation. Hezbollah suicide bombers come from above-average wealthy families and have above-average levels of education. The willingness of more educated people to engage in suicide missions suggests that education affects one's view of the world, enhancing sensitivity to the future.

Altruism is not antithetical to aggression. In war soldiers perform altruistic actions by risking lives for comrades and country and also killing the enemy. Actions of Japanese kamikaze pilots in World War II are examples of military sacrifice.

Altruism can also be socially constructed in communities that have endured massive social and economic dislocations as a result of long, violent and painful conflict with a more powerful enemy. Under such conditions people react to perceived inferiority and the failure of other efforts by valuing and supporting ideals of self-sacrifice such as suicide bombing. Religiously and nationalistically coded attitudes towards acceptance of death stemming from long periods of collective suffering, humiliation and powerlessness enable political organizations to give people suicide bombing as an outlet for feelings of desperation, deprivation, hostility and injustice.

The evidence, however, also shows that such personal and collective sufferings motivating suicide bombers coexist with their inner feelings of altruism and sense of fairness. An Iraqi suicide bomber Marwan prayed that "no innocent people were killed in his mission." Shafiqa, an incarcerated failed Palestinian suicide bomber in Israel, did not detonate her device after seeing "a woman with a little baby in her carriage. And I thought, why do I have to do this to that woman and her child?... I won't be doing something good for Allah. I thought about the people who loved me and about the innocent people in the street…It was a very difficult moment for me."

French filmmaker Pierre Rehov interviewed many Palestinians in Israeli jails, arrested following failed suicide-bombing missions or for aiding and abetting such missions, for his film "Suicide Killers." Every one of them tried to convince him that that the action was the right thing to do for moralistic reasons. According to Rehove, "these aren't kids who want to do evil. These are kids who want to do good…." The result – young people who had previously conducted their lives as good people believe that a suicide bombing represented doing something great.

Everyday degradations of Israeli occupation had created collective hatred, making them susceptible to indoctrination to become martyrs. As Stanford University psychologist Philip Zimbardo puts it, "It is neither mindless nor senseless, only a very different mind-set and with different sensibilities than we have been used to witnessing among young adults in most countries."

Suicide bombings invariably provoke a brutal response from authorities. By injecting fear and mayhem into ordinary rhythms of daily life, such bombings undermine the state's authority in providing security and maintaining social order. Under such conditions the state can legitimately impose altruistic punishments to deter future violation threatening security and social order. These include punishments meted out to perpetrators and their supporters. The state-sanctioned military actions against the Palestinians, Sri Lankan Tamil Tigers, Iraqi insurgents and the Taliban in Pakistan and Afghanistan are examples of these punishments.

But altruistic punishments are only effective when they do not violate the norms of fairness. Punishments and sanctions seen as unfair, hostile, selfish and vindictive by targeted groups tend to have detrimental effects. Instead of promoting compliance, they reinforce recipients' resolve to non-compliance. Counter-insurgency operations are aimed at increasing the cost of insurgency to the insurgents, and invariably involve eliminating leaders and supporters who plan suicide bombings, destroying insurgents' capabilities for mounting future attacks, and restrictions on mobility and other violations of civil liberties.

But there is mounting evidence that such harsh measures reinforce radical opposition and even intensify it. This is now happening in Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Palestinian territories and has also been the case in Sri Lanka and Iraq and other conflict sites.

Riaz Hassan is emeritus professor at Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia, and global professor of social research and public policy at New York University Abu Dhabi. His book, Life as a Weapon: The Global Rise of Suicide Bombings, was published last month by Routledge.This is published with the permission of YaleGlobal, the publication of the Yale Center for the Study of Globalization.

Najib should not come empty-handed to Sabah for first Malaysia Day celebrations as national public holiday but should address problem of “Sabahans losing patience over 20 Points” as articulated by UPKO Senator

By Lim Kit Siang,

Malaysia Day on September 16 tomorrow will be celebrated as a national public holiday for the first time in the nation’s history.

The very fact that it has taken 47 years for Malaysia Day to be recognized officially as a national public holiday is testimony of why Sabahans and Sarawakians feel so aggrieved at not being accorded full and proper treatment as an integral part of Malaysia.

This prevailing sense of alienation, discrimination and even marginalization is best illustrated by a newspaper headline in the Sabah press today, viz: “Sabahans losing patience over 20 Points – Maijol”.

United Pasokmomogun Kadazan Dusun Murut Organisation (UPKO) vice president Senator Datuk Maijol Mahap was quoted as declaring that “Sabahans are fed up with the Federal Government’s failure to fulfill what have been promised in the 20 Points Agreement”.

Maijol said: “Even after 47 years of being part of Malaysia, they are still waiting for the time when the 20 Points Agreement will be fully fulfilled.”

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak is coming to Sabah with a high-level Federal Government delegation to celebrate Malaysia Day as the first national public holiday.

Declaring Malaysia Day as a national public holiday is just not good enough to address the 47 years of grievances of Sabahans articulated by Senator Maijol.

Najib should not come emtpty-handed to Sabah for the Malaysia Day celebrations but should use the occasion to announce policy decisions and measures to instill the spirit behind the declaration of Malaysia Day as a national public holiday into all aspects nation-building policies to give to Sabahans and Sarawakians their rightful dues as equal citizens of Malaysia.

This is the best and opportune occasion for Najib to announce a Royal Commission of Inquiry to assess the success or shortfalls into the 20 Points Agreement to address the root causes of grievances of the people of Sabah and Sarawak in the past five decades.

Malaysia Day: Malaysians Should Show Appreciation In Various Ways, Says PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 15 (Bernama) -- Malaysians could show their appreciation for the formation of Malaysia on Sept 16, 1963 in various ways, said Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

The prime minister said each citizen of this country also had a role to play, to ensure that Malaysia realised its aspiration to achieve Vision 2020, that is, becoming a developed nation by then as envisaged by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

"I want each one of you to feel that we belong to this country. We can say thank you to our country. There are 28 million ways to say thank you to Malaysia.

"If you are a teacher, you educate, if you are an artist, you use colours to paint pictures of Malaysia, if you are a government servant, you work with full dedication. These are some of the ways we can say thank you to Malaysia," he said at the launching of the Music, Arts and Style International Festival (MASiF) at The Pavilion, here, Wednesday night.

Najib said without unity and diversity, Malaysia might not have been able to achieve the kind of success enjoyed by today's generation.

"With these two pillars (unity and diversity) and the 1Malaysia spirit, we will definitely achieve the nation's goals by 2020," he said.

Najib praised the MASiF organisers for their inaugural event which was a special curtain raiser to the Malaysia Day celebrations.

"I am attracted to the concept of MASiF. Usually, such ideas would come from the government but this time, from Malaysians from the post-independence generation, and I thank Tun Dr Mahathir for being the patron of this festival," he said.

Dr Mahathir, in his welcoming address, called on Malaysians to continue remembering Malaysia Day and make it as the basis for building a peaceful, stable and prosperous nation.

He said the formation of Malaysia on Sept 16, 1963, was the fruit of the people's fortitude throughout the trials and tribulations before the federation was established.

"Many things had happened and we went through it all. Therefore, let's together commemorate Malaysia Day irrespective of our race and religion.

"As Malaysians, we should not think of our differences but to continue pursuing the development and success that we hope for."

Dr Mahathir said the Malaysia Day celebration would be meaningful for all citizens of this country as on that day, all the states that were colonised agreed "to form a nation as what it is today".

The five-day MASiF 2010 beginning Wednesday, organised in conjunction with Malaysia Day, features various arts, fashion and musical events involving over 100 local and foreign participants.

The foreign artistes include Ruth Sahanaya and Tengku Ryo from Indonesia, Rachelle Ann Go from the Philippines and Mint from Thailand.

Burial plots won't be repossessed

GEORGE TOWN (Sept 14, 2010): The Penang Island Municipal Council will not repossess "occupied" burial plots in the Western Road Christian cemetery and is only requiring the deceased's family members to provide their contact information for proper management of the cemetery.

Clarifying the council's notice calling on family members and relatives of those buried in the 19th century cemetery at Jalan Utama to provide certain information to the council by Nov 30, development planning committee alternative chairman Felix Ooi Keat Hin said the council does not plan to repossess plots that are occupied even if nobody came forward to provide the information required.

"We will not exhume those already buried there. We only want contact information of the relatives of the deceased relatives so that we know who to contact in future if anything were to happen to the graves such as vandalism," he said.

However, those who have bought burial plots in the cemetery and left it vacant for years are required to provide more detailed information such as proof of purchase, their contact information and plot number.

"There are about 100 vacant plots that we do not have records of ownerships so those who have bought plots there, they must come forward to register with the council," he said.

He added that the cemetery, covering 7.28ha, currently has around 200 available burial plots which the council could put up for sale.

"We need to find out if the additional 100 over vacant plots are available or were bought and left vacant so if no one come forward to claim the vacant plots, we will repossess it and sell it as available burial plots," he said, adding that burial plots in the cemetery are high in demand.

He said the purpose of the exercise is to put in place a proper management of the cemetery so that the council will have a complete record of those who owned the vacant plots and the contact information of relatives of those who were buried there.

The council is also in the process of upgrading the cemetery including improving the security of the cemetery to prevent vandalism and also to stop it from turning into a drug addicts' haunt.

"The council has allocated RM400,000 to upgrade the cemetery such as building new perimeter fencing, cleaning up the area, getting rid if mosquito breeding grounds and we are also hiring a new caretaker since the previous one has already retired," he said.

The Christian cemetery is probably one of the oldest in the country, dating back to the late 1800s.

The cemetery houses more than 11,000 burial plots and amongst those buried there are 84 Russian soldiers who perished when the Russian ship Zemschug sank off Penang harbour on Oct 28, 1914, British soldiers who died fighting the communists during the Emergency between 1948 and 1960 and Royal Australia Air Force soldiers.

THE ROLE OF MEDIA IN COSMETIC TYCOON'S GRISLY MURDER CASE

By Muralitharan Ramachandran - http://malaysianminorityindians.blogspot.com

First and foremost let us pray for Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya and her three friends for their souls to attain eternal peace. It is indeed sad this incident took place during the holy month for the muslims. The whole nation regardless of ethnics is grieved by these gruesome murders. While police are conducting investigations, certain quarters of them are using these gruesome murders to generate racial tension among Malaysians.

It is indeed poignant to see media like Utusan Malaysia (14/09/10) which carried headline news which linked one of those detained who is a lawyer by profession as giving legal aid to Hindraf. This statement is rather seditious and could affect racial harmony and disunity among Indians and Malays in this country. The question here is, the police are not even over and done with their investigations, so how did Utusan Malaysia get a hold of this information? Main stream media like Utusan Malaysia should play an important role on emphasizing racial harmony and unity among Malaysians. They should pursue stringent journalism ethics by not publishing seditious and fictional statements such as above.

As for the main stream Media Utusan Malaysia, they are not first timers in these kind of issue. Numerous police reports were lodged against them but were fruitless. Another question here, are the relevant authorities blind or blind folded for certain reason? There are also other blogs on the internet which is aggravating racial disunity using this grisly occurrence. Their motives are clear and it is obvious that these irresponsible people are all out to construct racial pressure among Malaysians. It’s time the relevant establishment steps in and put an end to this state of affairs. These Internet blogs and main stream media should be given ruthless punishment.

Malaysians out there please think outside the box and don’t craft anymore racial disharmonies as lot of damages have been done by immature selfless people and organizations in the name of race and religion which has turned the nation into disarray. Let us give moral support to the families of the deceased and let justice triumph

Umno at odds with race-tolerant world, says HRP

By Athi Shankar - Free Malaysia Today

KUALA LUMPUR: The Human Rights Party (HRP) today congratulated Malaysia-born Penny Wong for her appointment as Australia’s new finance minister and used the occasion to denounce the current Malaysian government as racist and out of tune with the times.
HRP pro-tem secretary-general P Uthayakumar said Wong’s appointment yesterday to the Australian cabinet was part of a global tide against racial and religious prejudice.

“Sadly, though, this will never happen in our 1Malaysia,” he said.

“The whole world is now going against racist and religious supremacy, except our Umno-ruled 1Malaysia.”

Uthayakumar, a former ISA detainee, is also the legal advisor for Hindraf Makkal Sakti.

He also criticised Pakatan Rakyat parties for similarly going against the global trend.

He said Malaysia was not only bucking current trends but also going against its own admirable history of appointing officials without reference to their racial or religious backgrounds.

He recalled that the first minister of education of the yet-to-be-independent Malaya in 1955 was Clough Thuraisangam and that in post-independence Malaya the first two finance ministers were Tan Cheng Lock and Tun Tan Siew Sin, the first navy chief was Rear Admiral K Thanabalasingam, the first chief justice was CS Gill and the first governor of Malacca was Leong Yew Koh.

“And the list goes on if one were to refresh one’s memory on the number non-Malay or non-Muslim CPOs, OCPDs, district officers and council mayors,” he said.

“This cannot happen again in Umno’s 1Malaysia.”

To illustrate his assertion that the rest of the world was moving away from racial and religious prejudice, he mentioned, among other personalities, former Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori, former US secretaries of state Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice, former Tamil Nadu governor Fatima Beevi, former Indian presidents Zakir Hussin and APJ Abdul Kalam and several Singapore presidents and foreign ministers.

“But most intriguing is that the current president of the world’s most powerful nation, the United States, is a black with a Muslim name,” he added.

He alleged that in contemporary Malaysia “even sixth-generation Malaysia-born Indians could only dream” of becoming national school headmasters, postmasters, district officers or “even assistant district officers”.

Turning his ire on Pakatan Rakyat, he said “Pakatan Indian exco mandores in Selangor, Penang, Kedah and previously Perak” all held only the minor portfolios such as welfare, labour and community activities.

“Why don’t Pakatan governments give them more significant local government, finance or land portfolios even when they qualify?”

He blasted Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for not elevating the highly qualified political scientist P Ramasamy to the post of Deputy Chief Minister 1 instead of maintaining him as Deputy Chief Minister 2.

He charged that Lim did not promote Ramasamy when Mohammad Fairus Khairuddin resigned in April last year because “he was merely a politically powerless ethnic minority Indian”.

French senate approves burqa ban

 

A woman wearing a niqab veil participates in a protest 

against a ban earlier this year in Tours, central France.

 

Paris, France (CNN) -- The French senate approved Tuesday a law banning any veils that cover the face -- including the burqa, the full-body covering worn by some Muslim women -- making France the first European country to plan such a measure.

The law passed by a vote of 246 to 1, with about 100 abstentions coming essentially from left-leaning politicians.

The legislation was overwhelmingly approved by the lower house of parliament in July and will go into effect next spring.

French people back the ban by a margin of more than four to one, the Pew Global Attitudes Project found in a survey earlier this year.

Some 82 percent of people polled approved of a ban, while 17 percent disapproved. That was the widest support the Washington-based think tank found in any of the five countries it surveyed.

Clear majorities also backed burqa bans in Germany, Britain and Spain, while two out of three Americans opposed it, the survey found.

A panel of French lawmakers recommended a ban last year, and lawmakers unanimously passed a non-binding resolution in May calling the full-face veil contrary to the laws of the nation.

"Given the damage it produces on those rules which allow the life in community, ensure the dignity of the person and equality between sexes, this practice, even if it is voluntary, cannot be tolerated in any public place," the French government said when it sent the measure to parliament in May.

The law imposes a fine of 150 euros ($190) and/or a citizenship course as punishment for wearing a face-covering veil. Forcing a woman to wear a niqab or a burqa will be punishable by a year in prison or a 15,000-euro ($19,000) fine, the government said, calling it "a new form of enslavement that the republic cannot accept on its soil."

The French Council of State has warned that the ban could be incompatible with international human rights laws and the country's own constitution. The council advises on laws, but the government is not required to follow its recommendations.

The ban pertains to the burqa, a full-body covering that includes a mesh over the face, and the niqab, a full-face veil that leaves an opening only for the eyes. The hijab, which covers the hair and neck but not the face, and the chador, which covers the body but not the face, apparently are not banned by the law.

However, a 2004 law in France bans the wearing or displaying of overt religious symbols in schools -- including the wearing of headscarves by schoolgirls.

The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life estimates that France has about 3.5 million Muslims, or about 6 percent of the population.

France does not keep its own statistics on religious affiliation of the population, in keeping with its laws requiring the state to be strictly secular.

Zaid warns PKR to change leaders or turn into Umno

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 15 — Leading contender for the PKR deputy presidency contest Datuk Zaid Ibrahim warned its members today that the party risks turning into another Umno unless there is a leadership change.

The former de facto law minister, who was sacked from Umno in late 2008, said PKR has been plagued with problems such as defection of lawmakers which is not faced by its Pakatan Rakyat (PR) partners DAP and PAS.

”Everyone says PKR is a weak party,” said Zaid in an interview published in today’s edition of Sin Chew Daily.

The former Kota Bahru MP who joined PKR in June last year said the party has lost its original direction and risks becoming the ‘second Umno’.

He claimed PKR is facing the same problems as Umno and Malaysia and so a leadership change is needed for improvement.

“If you (members) want these problems to continue, you can elect the same leadership. If you want changes, you have to change the leaders. The same leaders will result in the same problems,” said Zaid who coordinated the framing of PR’s common policy platform, launched in December last year.

Zaid is supporting party de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to contest the party presidency in order to legitimise his position as the PKR chief.

Supporters of another contender, Azmin Ali, however want the status quo to be maintained with Anwar continue holding the unelected position while his wife Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail serves as president.

Anwar had said that he would decline nomination to contest in the party polls.

The post of de facto leader was created after party election 2007 as a compromise between two groups who wanted Anwar to contest the presidency and the other who were against it, fearing that the party would be deregistered as the former deputy prime minister was at that time banned from holding any elected political posts.

The ban expired in April 2008.

Zaid previously alleged that since announcing his intention to contest late last month, his loyalty to the party has been questioned and he was also accused of working for former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin to destroy PKR.

He also claimed that he was warned that he risk being “buried” — the way the late Tun Ghafar Baba had been in the 1993 Umno party election — if he chooses to stay in the race.

Then, Ghafar only received four nominations in that contest and withdrew from the race in favour of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Some 400,000 PKR members will vote beginning this weekend until November 21.

The party amended its constitution last year allowing all members to vote for divisional leaders and the 25 members of the central leadership council — including the president, deputy president and four vice-presidents.

The party’s 218 divisions will hold two separate meetings: One for the annual general meeting and election of divisional leaders, and a second meeting to vote for national leaders.

The divisions will vote for national leaders over several weekends, from October 29 to November 21.

- The Malaysian Insider

Malaysia -- a nation shrouded in sensitivity

By Stephanie Sta Maria - Free Malaysia Today

SPECIAL REPORT KUALA LUMPUR: In Malaysia “sensitivity” isn't just a word. It is a way of life; an ideology that warily circumvents the country's political, economic and social spheres.
Such guardedness is inherent in a nation with a mixed racial and religious population, but the practice of sterilising and reshaping thoughts and ideas for the sake of keeping the peace may be backfiring on us.

The tip-toeing around “sensitive issues” originated at a time when Malaysia was still testing its multiracial waters. The formation of a young nation meant placing freedom of expression as a secondary priority to national unity and the invisible lines were honoured for this very reason.

Fifty-three years on and those lines have spread and hardened to create boundaries that silence the country's growing number of dissenting voices. While the length of the leash on freedom of expression heavily depends on which side of the political divide one is on, “sensitivity” remains at the root of every discourse.

In short, you are either gagged for broaching a sensitive issue or given free rein to speak your mind because your sensitivity has been breached.

The question that begs an answer, therefore, is whether our learned sensitivity requires a restriction on freedom of expression or whether the restriction itself has enhanced our sensitivity.

HR Dipendra, project coordinator of the SEA Media Legal Defence Network, believes it is the former.

“This sensitivity has restricted the development of thought and hampered the ability to think critically,” he explained. “So when confronted by controversial topics, many Malaysians will either shy away or unwittingly tread on toes.”

Dipendra described the first group as using “sensitivity” as an excuse for their inability to engage in critical discussions. Most of the critical thinkers, he noted, are a handful who reside within the Klang Valley.

Danger zones
The population beyond the urban landscape is either devoid of an opinion or is afraid to vocalise it for fear of being offensive. While the passivity is alarming, more concern should be reserved for the second group.

“This group recognises its right to freedom of expression but doesn't understand how to exercise it responsibly,” Dipendra said. “It lacks the intellectual creativity to put forth critically constructive comments and resort to stereotypes and insults to get its point across, which only serves to justify the government's clampdown on freedom of expression.”

Dipendra confided that his biggest concern is this set of people who allow their overwhelming frustrations to blind them to the danger zones. He chose controversial rapper Wee Meng Chee, better known as Namewee, as an example.

Wee shot to popularity in 2007 after releasing a song which purportedly ridiculed the national anthem and the Islamic call to prayer. Last month he made headlines again with another music video in which he was accused of making seditious remarks. The latest video also contained his trademark utterances of vulgarities and obscenities.

“I feel that Namewee had actually exercised some restraint in that video,” Dipendra laughed before resuming seriousness. “But if given a choice, he would have been more inflammatory and a wildfire would have started.”

“These people are turning to music and writing as an outlet to express themselves because there is a lack of discourse from the government,” he pointed out. “It's always the civil society that reaches out for a dialogue. We don't live in caves, we live in a globalised world. If we can't talk of basic things, then why do we even exist?”

Indeed it was talk of the basics that landed actor and radio personality Patrick Teoh in trouble with the authorities during his tenure at the now defunct Radio Four.

Teoh had fielded a phone call from a listener who related his experience with an allegedly corrupt policeman. The broadcast of that conversation led to a police report being filed against Teoh and the ensuing “interviews” at the police station. Yet Teoh maintains that he had more room to breathe than the radio announcers today.

“I could raise and talk about issues more openly but the broadcasts on Radio Four weren't exactly earth-shattering,” he quipped. “My show consisted mainly of my opinion and those of the average Malaysian on what was already published in the mainstream media. But I daresay that back then, things were not as sensitive as it is now. Much of what I discussed on air would never been given the green light today.”

98.8 FM DJ Jamaluddin Ibrahim recently found that out the hard way. The popular Chinese-speaking DJ was given the boot after being accused of discussing too many “sensitive issues” on air. While his sacking has been widely speculated to be politically motivated, it also underscores the staggering power that “sensitivity” wields.

Constant harping

Teoh, however, pins the blame for this sensitivity on the constant harping by the government for Malaysians to be tolerant rather than understanding of each other.

“We have always been a racist society,” he declared. “But we kept our racism contained within a trusted circle of friends where our remarks were considered funny instead of offensive. There was no exaggerated sensitivity because we understood each other.”

“Then after May 13 the government demanded that we tolerate each other because we are so different. But unlike understanding, tolerance has a shorter lifespan which means it can run out and from the looks of things, that could be fairly soon.”

Political analyst Dr Ong Kian Ming agreed that the May 13 riots has been used as a justification to impose restrictions on the freedom of expression and turn Malaysia into a sensitive society.

“I think people are much more willing to discuss so-called sensitive matters in a way that is rational and constructive,” he added. “It is when certain politicians use these issues to up the ante that emotions are riled up. The solution is not to have further restrictions but to encourage an environment where 'extremist' politicians are punished electorally.”

Ong also supported Dipendra's observation of the link between sensitivity and the lack of critical thinking.

“I blame the authorities in power, the politicians and the education system for this. With the proper environment, our multicultural society should encourage rather than restrict debate and engagement on different ideas and belief systems.”

Here, Dipendra mused that our multicultural society may very well be the breeding ground of our sensitivity. In his opinion, the fact that we're not a homogeneous society has robbed us of a common agenda to move forward together.

Malaysian gene

Interestingly enough, Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew touched on this very same sentiment in his interview with the International Herald Tribune three years ago.

In that interview, he acknowledged that Singapore didn't have the “ingredients of a nation, the elementary factors... a homogeneous population, common language, common culture and common destiny”.

This further heightened Lee's awareness of the challenge that lay before him to “create and develop a stable and prosperous nation that was always on guard against conflict within its mixed population”.

“The Malaysian gene also plays an important role,” Dipendra added. “Our forefathers were traders who came to this country in search of economic prosperity. Freedom of expression was not on their agenda unlike that of the generations after them. So what we have on our hands is an ideological battle between the old guard and the new order.”

Anwar to campaign for Azmin in Sabah?

By FMT Staff

KOTA KINABALU: PKR supremo Anwar Ibrahim and vice-president Azmin Ali are in Sabah today, prompting a blogger to question if the duo plan to hit the campaign trail.

Gombak MP Azmin is regarded as the opposition leader's protege and despite remaining above the fray on the surface, it is widely speculated that Anwar wants him to be the next deputy president.

However, the plan has hit a snag in the form of supreme council member Zaid Ibrahim, who has announced his interest to vie for the post.

Commenting on the duo's visit to Sabah, blogger Haris Ibrahim asked: “Is Anwar campaigning for Azmin already?”

Azmin is yet to announce his candidacy, but Zaid has hinted that the former is already pulling out Umno-like weapons from his arsenal to undermine the latter's chances.

According to Haris, the Anwar-Azmin tag team's first stop is Tuaran, where the current division chief Ansari Abdullah is facing an uphill battle to retain his post.

Describing him as Anwar's “chosen Muslim poster boy”, the blogger said Ansari is being challenged by Edward Linggu, who is aligned to Sabah PKR strongman Jeffrey Kitingan.

Next stop - 'Jeffrey's territory'
On Malaysia Day (Thursday), Haris said the pair is scheduled to visit Keningau, which is “Jeffrey Kitingan territory”.

“Both Anwar and Azmin can expect the best of Sabah hospitality, I’m informed,” he added in a sarcastic referrence to the tension in Sabah PKR.

Recently, the PKR disciplinary board hauled up 12 local leaders aligned to Jeffrey over their role in the aborted attempt to form a splinter party called Parti Cinta Malaysia.

Following this, the supreme council suspended three division leaders and issued a stern warning to the remaining nine.

A livid Jeffrey then accused Anwar of reneging on his word that no action will be taken. The promise was made during the peace talks held last year to diffuse the leadership crisis.

The PKR leadership claimed that during the negotiations, it was under the impression that the rebel group was contemplating on forming a new party and was not aware that an application had been submitted to the Registrar of Societies.

However, Jeffrey rubbished this argument.

Following the visit to Keningau, Haris said Anwar will return to the peninsula while Azmin will take his campaign into neighbouring Sarawak.

Meanwhile, party insiders said if it is true that Anwar will be campaigning for Azmin in Sabah, this means that PKR and its boss do not practise what is preached.

“Why gloat about having free and fair elections when such tactics are used to cull opponents. The code of conduct states that nobody should abuse their position and power to sway votes.”

Observers also noted that the bitter battle shaping up between Azmin and Zaid is similar to Umno's political culture and does not bode well for PKR's image.

Then again, said insiders, Anwar, Azmin and Zaid are all products of Umno.

Yesterday, incumbent deputy president Syed Husin Ali announced that he will not be defending his post during November's elections.

Zaid denies being backed by businessman

By Stephanie Sta Maria - Free Malaysia Today

KUAL A LUMPUR: Zaid Ibrahim has hotly refuted allegations that he is being financially backed by a businessman to infiltrate and destroy PKR.
In his latest blog posting, the PKR supreme council member asserted that he has no links with businessman Soh Chee Wen whom he claimed to have only met nine months ago.

Soh was charged in May 2002 with abetment in submitting false information to the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. He is also known for accusing former transport minister Dr Ling Liong Sik of being involved in corruption, cronyism and nepotism.

“Yesterday, Selangor PKR deputy chief Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud warned of enemies within the party but he didn't mention any names or numbers,” Zaid said. “Since the party elections began, the term 'enemy within' has often been heard. I suppose this refers to anyone who has offered his services without the necessary blessings.”

Zaid, who flew in to Kuching yesterday to hear the High Court's decision on case involving native land, said that even party leaders there had questioned his loyalty.

“Is this what the campaign has resorted to? Calling me a traitor and a greenhorn?” he asked in disgust. “As far as I know, Chee Wen is a close friend of Anwar's and has been of assistance to PKR. (PKR vice-president) Azmin Ali, Syed Shahrir and (Johor PKR chief) Chua Jui Meng all know this.”

“So I find it highly peculiar that Chee Wen is being portrayed as the enemy because he is now friends with me when all throughout his friendship with Anwar, he was a viewed as the good guy.”

The election campaign issue, according to Zaid, is very straightforward. If party members are satisfied with PKR's current standing and believe that all its problems and weaknesses are Umno's doing, then he strongly encourages them to choose their leaders from the existing stable.

“I will only step forward if the members are looking for an alternative,” he reiterated. “And I will only explain why I can be an asset to the party if I receive a nomination.”

In the same breath, however, he poured cold water on the very position he has set his sights on.

“In Malaysian politics, the role of the number two is solely for the name and the glamour. So being party deputy president doesn't come with much power. What more in PKR where even the top position doesn't have the power that is in the hands of the de facto leader. So I really don't understand all the fuss over this number two post.”