Najib & Taib in PROXY WAR: Ground in S'wak moving "LEFT, RIGHT & CENTER"

The dust has yet to settle in Sabah, but Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim is not going to wait. He and his Pakatan Rakyat coalition have already begun to move in on neighboring Sarawak, the domain of white-haired 'Rajah' Taib Mahmud who has ruled as and how he pleased for more than 3 decades.
"The ground is moving left, right and centre in Sarawak BN. It is the right time for Pakatan to go in for the last mile," PKR vice president Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.
"BN in Sarawak is very split now. Technically, at least 4 legislators have left their parties though they remain BN-friendly. The emergence of Sarawak Workers Party will further weaken BN."
Writing on the wall for BN
Tian and his coalition have just welcome on board 3 senior Sabah BN leaders, who quit their parties, citing disenchantment with the federal and state governments for not keeping promises or uplifting the lives of Sabahans, most of whom remain impoverished despite the state's wealth of natural resources.
Prime Minister Najib Razak personally flew in to rally the troops but was not able to stop Lajim Ukin, an Umno Supreme Council member, Wilfrid Bumburing, the Tuaran MP, and Senator Maijol Mahap from quitting the BN. The trio have confirmed plans to form an Opposition-friendly independent movement to rally Sabah leaders to fight for change in their state.
The move is ominous as both Sabah and Sarawak hold enough seats in the Malaysian Parliament to affect the outcome of the 13th general election, which must be held before June 2013. Of the 222 parliamentary seats, 25 are in Sabah and 31 in Sarawak, giving the pair a combined 25% control of the august House.
Najib himself has called Sabah and Sarawak the BN's "fixed deposits", a term that has infuriated the residents there, adding to their displeasure with the Peninsular Malaysia-based federal government whom they scorn as being corrupt and greedy. BN leaders have been accused of amassing enormous riches at the expense of East Malaysians without reciprocal investment in developing and modernizing the two states.
Taib is more worried about Najib
The 76-year-old Taib is also much reviled. His PBB party holds an iron grip on the state government due to decades of gerrymandering and other electoral trickery.
But it is not Anwar and the federal Opposition that Taib fears or has an axe to grind with. It is Najib and his Umno party that Taib distrusts. So far, Taib has succeeded in foiling all attempts including by former premier Mahathir Mohamad to 'Umno-nize' Sarawak. Sarawak BN consists of PBB, the down-spiraling SUPP as well as several other small parties.
"Taib is not so worried about Pakatan, he is Borneo-centric at heart. He is suspicious of the Semenanjung (peninsula) forces entering Sarawak and it is Najib and Umno Semenanjung that he hates," Tian told Malaysia Chronicle.
"He is still very sore about last year's state elections. He was humiliated on his own home ground when Najib openly committed to ending his appointment as Chief Minister and hinted Taib would resign after the state assembly polls."
In April 2011,Taib managed to beat off the Pakatan and held onto the state government. However, DAP and PKR made huge inroads with DAP winning 12 state seats and PKR 3. Long-established BN parties such as SUPP were annihilated
Proxy war
In the next general election, only seats in the federal Parliament are up for grabs. Speculation has swirled Taib might sponsor independent candidates or the Sarawak Workers Party to fight the candidates selected by Najib.
"It looks like Najib and Taib will fight a proxy war by supporting different sets of candidates.  Taib also wants all Sarawak MPs to be obedient to him but Najib has insisted that he will do the final selection instead of leaving it up to the respective parties. This means Najib will plant candidates loyal to the central or federal leadership and not to Taib personally," said Tian.
"Ultimately, it means Taib will lose his grip. Do you see Taib accepting this sort situation without hitting back?"
Already, cat fights and spats over who will be chosen to contest and which seat to contest have erupted across the Sarawak political landscape. Earlier this moth, controversial Meluan assemblyman Wong Judat finally resigned from his party Sarawak Progressive Democratc Party after months of speculation.
According to Judat, he resigned because of Julau MP Joseph Salang’s  "stubborn" insistence on defending his seat. But some pundits do not think that was the real reason, pointing out that Judat had barely a week ago said that he was ” still 100 percent with SPDP”.
Salang is also a BN leader and vice president of Parti Rakyat Sarawak. It is believed that "power play" amongst the BN component parties had forced Judat's hand. State BN sec-gen Stephen Rundi had publicly threatened to take disciplinary against Judat for failing to'abide by Barisan’s spirit of unity to win the general election'.
As for the controversial Sarawak Workers Party led by Larry Sng, whom many regard as Taib's protege, Najib has himself issued a public chastisement. The PM questioned SWP's sincerity in proclaiming itself "BN-friendly" and yet wanted to contest 6 of PRS' seats.
"SWP cannot claim to be BN-friendly when it wants to contest against the BN. Such action is obviously not consistent. If it is really BN-friendly, what is wrong in supporting all BN candidates. That is the crux of the issue," the prime minister told a media conference in June.
Najib said even if SWP managed to win any seat in the coming general election, it would not be invited to join the BN.
"There is no question of joining the BN. The important thing is to support all BN candiadates. Otherwise, if they plant their candidates, the votes will be split. My advice to the people of Sarawak is for them to support only the BN," said the PM.
As for Taib, he has only commented that he had tried to "dissuade" Larry from joining SWP.
Opportunity for Pakatan
Meanwhile, the Sarawak BN shadow play is being watched and followed closely by the federal Opposition. But while the mounting discontent and shifting ground provides opportunity, Pakatan leaders admit it would not be so easy in Sarawak for form new alliances.
However, Tian predicts Pakatan will make unprecedented headway, with DAP blazing the trail.
"We still wait and see. Some preliminary discussion had started last year but it is not as advanced as in Sabah. But SUPP is very weak and no match for DAP. For PKR, we are focusing our efforts on the traditional KDM areas and PAS is also breaking new ground," said Tian, the chief negotiator in the talks with the Sabah BN leaders who had quit last month to form their own movement for change.
Malaysia Chronicle

Police response to ‘Crime statistics: Let the truth be told’ — Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf

AUG 28 — In response to the article “Crime statistics: Let the truth be told” first published on August 22 via http://liewchintong.com blogsite and subsequently published by several online portals, we would like to state that any public feedback is welcomed and will be given due consideration.
As we all know it, crime reduction is everybody’s business. PDRM believe that all kind of feedback will enable us to improve our services to the rakyat, in line with the call for the public sector to enhance their effectiveness, efficiency and productivity.  Hence, we appreciate the concerns brought about by the letter from “Veteran Policeman”. We would, however, like to register our regret and utmost disappointment that the respective publications including the blog owner did not see fit to verify and check with PDRM on the facts of the allegations before presenting the letter to their readers.
Multiple factual inaccuracies
First and foremost, we would like to highlight multiple factual inaccuracies upon which the conclusions of the article were drawn.
These corrections and clarifications are necessary to enable the public to make an informed assessment of the situation.

The central hypothesis of the article in question and its respective allegations have been synthesised in the rest of the rest of the document below.
Here, PDRM would like to respond to every allegations published in the article.
Allegation 1: 
“In 2009, the government gave PDRM the impossible target of reducing crime by 20 per cent. PDRM succumbed to this pressure.”
Response 1:
To set the record straight, the assigned targets were the result of laboratory conducted by PDRM in collaboration with relevant ministries, enforcement agencies and NGOs. These targets and their accompanying detailed initiatives were also made available to the public via the GTP Open Days in January 2010.
The NKRA target for crime reduction is 5 per cent and NOT 20 per cent, as wrongly indicated by the writer.
While the target appears challenging, it is certainly not unrealistic — especially when it is a concerted effort, PDRM supported by various agencies, ministries and the community at large. This practice is consistent with the experiences of UK and New Zealand where a significant reduction of crime was achieved when the nation, regardless of political affiliations or agency structure, is united for the purpose of fighting crime.
Allegation 2:
“To demonstrate that the GTP, NKRA and KPI are a success, classification of cases was doctored and entered into the system to produce the desired result.”
Response 2:
It was alleged that PDRM had shifted Index Crime cases to Non-Index Crime to mask the increase of overall crime. Should the allegation be true, it follows then that the overall crime (i.e. sum total of Index and Non-Index Crime) should be on a rising trend. However, one only has to examine the fact that overall crime (Index + Non-Index) has in fact reduced in 2010, 2011 and 2012 (year-to-date) to conclude that the allegation is erroneous.
The inaccuracy raises doubt if the writer was indeed a police officer, as he had claimed, if he based his “facts” on such erroneous data.
Notwithstanding, to set the record straight, even by taking Non-Index Crime into account, we have seen a sustained reduction of crime incidents since 2010.  
Allegation 3:
“Another point of contention is crime prevention. Instead of wasting manpower and time on PR exercises, the proven tried and tested methods must be invigorated. The mobile and beat patrols and roadblocks must be strengthened and energised.”
Response 3:
One of the core principles of the Crime NKRA Programme is “Prioritisation and Focus”.
According to a public survey in 2010, the rakyat desired and demanded for a safer and secure country. PDRM identified, prioritised and focused on two main areas, i.e., snatch theft due to overwhelming public concerns and vehicle thefts due to its high volume contributing up to 50 per cent of overall index crime.
This focused approach has enabled us to achieve the desired results in snatch theft and vehicle theft. However, the trade-off is that we have to acknowledge the potential for increase in other crimes — whether Index Crime (house break-in, murder) or Non-Index Crime (Gambling, Counterfeits, Mischiefs, Syndicated Crime).
This is well acknowledged by PDRM, but the accusation that any decrease in Index Crime or increase in Non-Index crime is an indication of PDRM manipulating their statistics by reclassifying index crime cases to Non-Index to meet their KPIs is baseless and misleading.
Allegation 4:
“There are many cases under the index crime category that are not opened for investigation and were closed with no further action (NFA). These cases involve robberies, snatch thefts and burglaries.”
Response 4:
We would like to clarify several misrepresentations of existing process steps which are apparent in the article in question. Specifically, to address the following issues
● Reclassification of index crime cases to Non-Index Crimes
● No Further Actions (NFA)
● Short Changing of Crime Cases, e.g. 10 Burglaries equal 1 Case
● Dark Figures, i.e. Crimes Not Reported
Reclassification from Index Crime cases to Non-Index Crime
Reclassification of cases, whether from Index to Non-Index or vice-versa, may happen during the Investigation Phase as a direct result of the outcome from the investigation or during Prosecution Phase due to the strength of the evidence.
During the Investigation Phase, the investigation officer (IO) will interview witnesses and collect evidence to prepare an investigation paper (IP). The IP is then forwarded to the Prosecution (DPPs) who will assess the strength of the evidence and witness statements based on the offence (or sections) charged to ascertain the potential for successful conviction. In cases where key criteria (or ingredients) of the offence are not fulfilled or if existing evidence is insufficient to constitute the offence initially classified, then the prudent thing to do is to consider if the crime would fall under other category of offence(s) that can be charged based on the existing evidence at hand, or/and outcome of the investigation, to ensure that the process of justice is preserved.
This step within the Criminal Prosecution Process is consistent with international best practices, e.g. in UK and the US, and has nothing to do with the collection of crime statistics. Furthermore, as pointed out in earlier sections, crime statistics are compiled based on reported cases and not based on outcome of investigation or prosecution processes.
Allegation 5:
“Robbery cases under the Penal Code are classified as index crime. This offence will be classified as non-index under section 382 of the Penal Code. Since, section 382 of the Penal Code is a non-index crime, therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.”
Response 5:
The article in question further stated that Robbery cases under section 392 (Robbery) and section 397 (Gang Robbery) are reclassified to section 382 (Theft with Preparation to Cause Hurt or Death).
At this point, we must clarify and explain the difference between Robbery and Theft, to ensure that the public has a clear understanding of the two.
Under Malaysia’s Penal Code, Robbery and Theft essentially occur in the same situation. Robbery has an additional element of causing fear of hurt, fear of death, fear of wrongful restraint, or hurt or death. The thin line of difference between Theft (section 382) and Robbery (section 392 or section 397) lies in the time period when the theft is committed.
For section 382, there must be an element of concealment e.g. weapon in the pocket, hidden accomplices, whereas for section 392 or 397, the intention to cause fear is expressed and not concealed e.g. tying up the victim, threatening the victim with a weapon.
During the process of report taking, PDRM will classify these cases as Robbery if there is explicit mention of the weapons (e.g. guns, parang, knife) or an explicit mention of fear induced in the victim.
Allegation 6:
“Burglary under section 457 of the Penal Code is an index crime. This offence will be classified as non-index under sections 452 or 453 of the Penal Code. Since, sections 452 and 453 of the Penal Code are non-index crime therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.”
Response 6:
The article in question also stated that Burglary cases under section 457 (House Break-In to Commit an Offence Punishable with Imprisonment e.g. Theft) were reclassified to sections 452 and 453 (House Break-In with Preparation made for Causing Hurt).
To recap the situation mentioned earlier, if a house break-in occurred but no goods or belongings were evidently removed by the burglar, e.g. if perpetrator escaped before he or she managed to take any goods, or if the investigation officer does not have enough evidence to prove both house break-in and theft (i.e. specific goods explicitly taken out of possession of the owner) but has enough evidence to prove house break-in — in this scenario, the investigation officer will necessarily charge the offender with a lesser offence such as sections 452 and 453.
Allegation 7:
“Causing hurt under sections 324 and 326 are index crimes. These offences will be classified under section 148 of the Penal Code. Since, section 148 of the Penal Code is a non-index crime therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.”
Response 7: 
It was alleged that Causing Hurt cases under section 324 (Causing Hurt by Dangerous Weapons) and section 326 (Causing Grievous Hurt by Dangerous Weapons) can and will be reclassified to section 148 (Possession of Weapons and Missiles at Riot).
We would like to point out that sections 324 and 326 are VERY different crime types compared to section 148 — and it is far-fetched to see how the offences in the former can be reclassified to the latter.  For example, anyone causing hurt under sections 324 and 326 CANNOT be charged under section 148 unless this incident occurred during a riot.
Consequently, an attempt by the writer to attribute the increase in section 148 cases (if any) to the reclassification of section 324 or 326 cases for the purposes of manipulation of crime statistics are also seriously flawed, both logically and factually. That said, it is also worth pointing out that there is no increase in section 148 cases.
In summary to the above three allegations, both index and non-index crimes ARE reflected in the statistics.
This clearly indicates the writer in question has absolutely no grasp of the sections of the Penal Code as well as the classification of cases. A police officer with considerable experience in criminal investigation will be able to distinguish those cases for classification.
Allegation 8:
“Police take no further action (NFA) for the reason there is no sufficient ground for proceeding with the matter if the suspect cannot be identified, the loss is minimal or there is no lead to proceed further. There are thousands of cases of this nature and since these cases are not opened for investigation, therefore, will not be reflected in the crime statistics.”
Response 8:
This allegation has been misrepresented by the writer. This again clearly puts his knowledge and intelligence of the crime cases into further question.
At this point, it is necessary to recap the report taking process.
When a complainant (e.g. victim) comes to the police station to make a police report, he or she will first file the report with an enquiry officer at the station. If the report is classified as a “jenayah” (or criminal) case, the enquiry officer will subsequently direct the complainant (i.e. victim) to meet the Investigation Officer.
The Investigation Officer will then conduct an interview with the complainant to capture the details of the case before proceeding with the investigation process. During the investigation process, the Investigation Officer will keep the complainant updated with the status and development of the case accordingly. If upon investigation, the Investigation Officer concludes that there are no sufficient grounds for proceeding with the investigation, or if the suspect cannot be identified, or if there are no leads to proceed further, the case will be marked NFA until new leads are found as basis to continue investigation.
This practice is consistent with international policing practices to ensure that Criminal Investigation Department (CID) resources are appropriately prioritised for cases with leads or that can be solved.
However, it is important to note although the case has been marked NFA at the investigation stage, the case will still remain and be accounted for, as part of the Index Crime statistics, whether it falls under Robbery, Burglary, Causing Hurt, or other cases. To set the record straight, crime statistics (whether Index or Non-Index) are calculated based on reported cases and not based on the outcome of the investigation or prosecution.
And again, ALL reported crimes ARE reflected in the statistics.
Allegation 9:
“There are also cases short-changed in order to achieve the KPI. Say, for example, in a particular day there are 10 cases of burglaries reported in a certain housing area. Only one case will be opened for investigation and the other nine cases will be cross-referred to the one case that was opened.”
Response 9:
On the statement of short changing of cases, e.g. 10 burglaries reported in a certain housing area, but only one case is investigated and as such, only one is reflected in the index crime statistics.
This again, is factually incorrect.
Each and every reported case will have an Investigation Paper opened and will be investigated. In this example, all 10 reported cases of burglaries will be counted as 10 Index Crime cases and 10 Investigation Papers will be opened.
Allegation 10:
“Dark figures (crimes not reported) are not factored into the crime statistics. There is a theory that for every 10 cases reported there will be one case not reported. People do not report crime when they have lost faith in the police.”
Response 10:
On this note, to date PDRM are tasked to take every report as complained by the public, regardless of how small the case may be deemed. As such, dark figures are not regarded as present.
We would like to take this opportunity again to stress to the public on the importance of making a police report when a crime incident happens. Failure to lodge police reports may affect crime prevention strategies and in cases where the properties are recovered, may cause unnecessary inconvenience for the victim to claim them.
In this regard, we will need the public support to treat lodging reports as part of their civic duty. An awareness programme will be launched soon to educate the public on the their right and responsibility to report a crime and that any police officer who refuses to accept reports will be subject to strict “Tatatertib” disciplinary actions.
We acknowledge the feedback from the public that PDRM has to improve the police reporting environment to be more conducive and efficient. In the same vein, we would urge the complainants to always check the status of investigation of their cases from the Investigating Officer. Please also ask for explanation under which a case is classified. In this way, we will be able to reduce the perception that a case has been under-classified.
As such we would like to update that PDRM is currently addressing these issues with initiatives designed to improve PDRM’s frontline services as well as ensuring sufficient IOs with a proportionate caseload to enable the IOs to better manage their cases and update the victims in a timely manner.
Moving forward in late 2012, PDRM will launch an online report tracking system, whereby anyone issued with a report number upon lodging a police report, will be able to track and monitor the progress of their case.
This would clearly allay the fears of the public that their report has not been taken seriously or has not been recorded into the crime database. Here, any report reflected online would then be part of the crime statistics.
This online report tracking system was shared with the general public during the GTP Roadmap 2.0 Open Days held in Kuala Lumpur, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu in August this year. This move was lauded by all members of the public.
Allegation 11:
“The rationalisation of the computer system (PRS) to validate the crime figures is a flawed excuse. The system picks up only what has been fed into it. PRS system does not control classification of cases.”
Response 11:
To ensure the transparency and integrity of the classification process, at present, there is a multilayer check-and-balance system in place.
The first level of checking happens at the Officer in Charge of the Station (OCS) level where the OCS will be responsible to ensure proper classification is made towards the reported cases in his station. At the district level, daily meetings will be conducted by the Officer in Charge of District (OCPD) who will scrutinise the reports and classifications made under each of his police stations in the last 24 hours to, again, ensure proper classification.
Next, at the state level, the Officer in Charge of Criminal Investigation (OCCI) will conduct inspection of all investigation papers in the districts under him to ensure the proper classification is made.
In addition, the Chief Police Officer of the respective state will be responsible to monitor all police reports made in his state and check the classifications as required under the IGP Standing Order Chapter A123.
Again, stern disciplinary action will also be taken against personnel who have been found to be intentionally misclassifying cases.
This process is further enhanced through the verification and validation of both an independent audit firm namely PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and two rounds of International Performance Review (IPR) — the first made up senior personnel from their respective public service delivery office in the UK, US, Australia, Singapore and South Korea. The second, made up of senior police and security commissioners from the US, UK, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Regular and quarterly public surveys were also conducted by TNS, Institute Integrity Malaysia (IIM) and Frost & Sullivan.
Here PDRM would like to add that crime prevention and PDRM itself has to evolve and move with the times. The public expectations are rising towards police services. They want a more attentive, empathetic and effective force. This is the reason we advocate the Omnipresence initiative, improve frontline services and investigations processes.
At this point, we would like to conclude that clearly based on the numerous flaws in the writer’s article, he/she is not someone from the PDRM force nor has he any credible intelligence of the police operations, methodology, Penal Code and last but not least of the process of crime investigations.
At best, we acknowledge that the writer has possibly good intentions and has highlighted some personal views, similar to what we have been receiving all this while through our public engagement exercises.
Lastly, we would like to point out that while we appreciate writer’s personal views on the various initiatives currently undertaken by PDRM, namely Omnipresence, Enhancement of Investigation and Criminal Prosecution System, Beat-and-Patrol, PDRM organisation (including racial composition, religious activities) etc, there are much more conducive platforms to conduct these discussions.
As such, we will not endeavour to belabour on these topics in this letter.
It suffices to point out briefly that Police Omnipresence is an acknowledged, tried and tested international best practice e.g. in London, New York, to fight crime. It was also lauded by many resident associations within communities, specifically Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Subang Jaya, Penang etc.
With due respect to the motto “Feared by criminals and Respected by the public”, while that describes accurately the environment in the pre-2000, the requirements of modern policing across the world have changed, with the police having to play the role of law enforcer and that of “provider of community servicing” in line with a far more personable, improved and attentive approach to meet the rising expectations of the public.
Conclusion
We want to put on record the published article in www.liewchintong.com on August 22 is indeed full of factual inaccuracies, misplaced allegations and misleading statements.
PDRM is more than happy to engage the public and to offer any clarification they require at any point.
We do this in the hope that the public at large will be better equipped to make an informed conclusion as to the veracity and intention of any misrepresentation of the process PDRM are tasked to uphold for the sake of public safety and national security.
In summary, 
1. Definitions of Index and Non-Index Crimes, as well as the investigation and prosecution processes have been instituted long before the introduction of the NKRA program.
2. There is no factual basis or evidence to the allegation that crime statistics is manipulated or “doctored”.
3. ALL reported crimes, regardless of which Penal Code sections or category of crimes they come under, WILL contribute to the crime statistics. And this will be further enhanced by the Online Report Tracking System under Beta testing at the moment and due for launch late 2012.
4. The achievements of PDRM and improvements by way of the NKRA are real, as are initiatives such as Omnipresence, Safe City Programme, Investigation Enhancement, Front-line Servicing.
5. The writer IF indeed a police personnel has not been long in the force, has clearly no understanding on how policing processes and crime investigations are conducted.
6. To avoid doubts and misunderstanding due to misrepresentation as demonstrated by the writer, PDRM would like to gracefully extend an invitation to any member of the public an opportunity to come forward and share their concerns with us.
* ACP Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf is the public relations officer with the Royal Malaysian Police.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.

The Nut Graph’s 2012 Merdeka Awards

The Nut Graph
by Koh Lay Chin

AS we welcome Peninsular Malaysia’s 55th year of independence this year, we celebrate once again the people who continue to inspire us and give us hope for a better Malaysia.

We first published The Nut Graph’s Merdeka Awards in 2009. Four years later, we continue to be reminded of the immense talent in the country. And we continue to be moved by fresh initiatives from citizens of all stripes. Our selection comprises awardees who uphold constitutional freedoms and civil rights, empower citizens and/or care for the environment or the cities we live in. They are people whose actions contribute towards making Malaysia a better democracy and place to live.

We do not claim that this list of awardees is definitive or exhaustive in any way. Indeed, these are our picks. We welcome readers to include theirs in the comments section to make the picture complete.

At The Nut Graph, we tip our hats off to the following Malaysians, in no particular order:

Borders

This bookstore chain has been uncompromising about ensuring that the religious authorities don’t get away with abuse of power. When its store manager was arrested and charged for distributing Irshad Manji’s book Allah, Kebebasan dan Cinta before it was banned, Borders publicly protested the actions of the Federal Territories Islamic Department (Jawi). And then Borders took Jawi to court. In an environment where Islamisation has ridden roughshod over our constitutional civil liberties, no less because many fear speaking up, we salute Borders for standing by its employee and standing up to the religious authorities’ abuse of power.

The courts

Against the backdrop of more book banning, the Court of Appeal upheld the lifting of the ban on a Sisters in Islam book. The court went as far as to describe the Home Ministry’s ban as “outrageous” and “irrational”.

There was also another nod for freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly when the Kuala Lumpur High Court quashed the home minister’s declaration that Bersih 2.0 was unlawful.

And where the High Court had failed to grant a stay, the Court of Appeal unanimously granted a temporary stay against Jawi’s further action over the Manji book ban, in favour of Borders.

Yes, two, or in this case, three swallows do not make a summer. And it’s hard to predict if these three cases demonstrate that our courts are returning to their rightful role as custodians of our constitutional freedoms. Indeed, there is still room for an intelligent, independent and fearless judiciary in Malaysia. Still, in these three cases, the courts provided a check and balance against the executive. After years of court decisions that were seen to deny constitutional freedoms and cement the executive’s power, these three court decisions have been a breath of fresh spring air.

Rumah Anak Teater

Set up in 2008 by Malay-language playwright and actor Nam Ron, and other theatre practitioners, Rumah Anak Teater has been pushing the bar when it comes to showcasing and promoting local talent in the performing arts.

It’s also not afraid to tackle political and social issues through its productions. The collective is responsible for Beng Hock, a production that drew from the Royal Commission of Inquiry’s findings into Teoh Beng Hock’s controversial death at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s office in Shah Alam. It also produced independent film, Jalan Pintas. The group has also been instrumental in setting up Projek Asas Teater which trains aspiring thespians in acting, dance, music and scenography.

For their work with youth, and for bringing a different feel and relevance to Malay-language theatre and film, we hope Rumah Anak Teater will continue to inspire us with their work.

Poskod.my

Poskod.my is an online community-driven site about the city, with a focus on what’s happening in local communities and on the streets. Poskod “believes that the more we know about ourselves and the people around us, the stronger our communities, the easier our participation as citizens in this country, and the better our lives.”

To realise this mission statement, Poskod.my launched #betterKL, a grassroots campaign linking various people and initiatives in Kuala Lumpur. Thus far, the two have organised a series of Poskod Talks that have highlighted topics like public transportation, urban cycling, and creative young companies in the city.

Rafizi Ramli and Khairy Jamaluddin

In the past year, several politicians have had public debates on issues of national interest. One, however, was notable above the other debates.

On 29 Jan 2012, at a debate organised by the United Kingdom and Eire Council of Malaysian Students, Pakatan Rakyat’s Rafizi Ramli and Barisan Nasional’s Khairy Jamaluddin showed Malaysians that political opponents can still be equally civil and respectful of each other.

Other debates between politicians have featured rhetorical questions or ad hominem attacks. Rafizi and Khairy showed us a glimpse of mature politics where discussing issues like education, student rights and economic growth are far more important than personality attacks or mere rhetorics.

Occupy Dataran

They were beaten, harassed and arrested, but that did not deter them. Those involved in Occupy Dataran did more than just set up tents in a historic public space. They ignited debate about student rights, freedom of assembly, public spaces and education.

Occupy Dataran was founded even before Occupy Wall Street emerged in the US. The leaderless, independent and autonomous grassroots initiative wanted to reclaim Dataran Merdeka as an open and democratic space. And by doing so, they wanted to explore and imagine a new political culture that redefined the meaning of democracy in Malaysia.

It takes courage to think outside the box. Just as it takes courage to stay the course despite the violent response from state and non-state actors. What will the authorities do if more citizens demonstrate such courage?

Kill The Bill

Initially formed as a “one-stop information centre” against the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011, Kill The Bill now specialises in spreading information and gathering supporters for civil society events. Their main mission? To grow an empowered citizen movement that organises and supports peaceful assemblies.

The team organised a Bersih 2.0 remembrance day this July, where people walked from Merdeka Square to Stadium Merdeka. It was a feat and a record. Activist Wong Chin Huat, who is also a columnist for The Nut Graph, said he couldn’t remember the last time an assembly, which had no police permit, dispersed according to the organiser’s schedule instead of being dispersed by the police.

They are on our list for their tenacity in upholding freedom of peaceful assembly and expression for all Malaysians.

Election monitoring and civic education groups

These groups include  Bersih 2.0, UndiMsia!, Jom Pantau PRU13, Tindak Malaysia, and the #MyMP project which have been educating, informing and engaging voters in Malaysia.

With the 13th general election approaching, these groups have been relentless despite their limited resources. The mammoth success of the Bersih 3.0 rally this year speaks for itself. At the same time, Jom Pantau PRU13 aims to monitor any irregular and fraudulent practices in the coming general election. Tindak Malaysia has been providing regular training for anyone who wants to be a polling and counting agent when the election is held. Many of these initiatives target young voters, hence ensuring we have an engaged citizenry in the generation to come.

LoyarBurok

They shared this award last year with the UKM4 for their fight for students’ rights and freedom. But LoyarBurok has continued to inspire us with its drive and commitment and hence, they deserve to be mentioned again and on their own.

Impressive by any standard, efforts under the LoyarBurok group include Undi Msia!, Idola Demokrasi, #MyMP, and regular events for youths at their Pusat LoyarBurok in Bangsar.

The LoyarBurokkers have continued to stir debate and discussion on social media platforms on a variety of issues. With a presence on many fronts, LoyarBurok continues to engage young Malaysians in cool and intelligent ways, hence empowering more citizens to participate more actively in shaping this nation.

Wild Asia*

Wild Asia has been working diligently throughout Malaysia and across Asia, encouraging businesses to be both profitable and responsible. Through their Responsible Tourism Initiative, Sustainable Agriculture Initiative and Corporate Social Responsibility programmes, the homegrown social enterprise has been reaching out to a wide range of companies.

These range from hotels to oil palm producers with a message that emphasises sustainability through practical and viable changes. The social enterprise is humble in size, but dreams big and makes meaningful changes that benefit both businesses and the environment.

Sabah government

It must be something when WWF-Malaysia praises a state government for its actions in protecting the environment. In July, WWF-Malaysia applauded “the Sabah state government’s passing of the Bill to prohibit coastal areas in Kota Kinabalu to be alienated to others”.

An amendment to the Sabah Land Ordinance 1930, the Bill that was passed bars any development on the Kota Kinabalu seafront from Tanjung Aru to Likas Bay. The passing of this law garnered plenty of praise from other environmental NGOs. And rightfully so. The amendment helps protect the state’s precious coastal areas, mangroves and coral reefs.

Irene Fernandez and Tenaganita

She has endured two decades of state pressure and persecution for her longstanding work for migrant workers. But Irene Fernandez continues to soldier on to protect the rights of vulnerable and abused migrant workers who live in our midst.

While the authorities regard her as unpatriotic and have threatened her with the Sedition Act, Fernandez remains unflinching. At 66, her untiring work at Tenaganita, which helps foreign workers and victims of human trafficking, has been recognised internationally. It is a pity that her work gets less than positive coverage in her own country. We salute Fernandez for being such a strong voice for those who have none.

Sze Ning

(Corrected) Sze Ning became aware of the plight of indigenous communities affected by oil palm estates while interning with Centre for Orang Asli Concerns. Today, this freelance photographer documents these marginalised communities through her lens. Sze Ning continues to do research, documentation and capacity-building training for the Orang Asli.

She is also involved in the online fair trade enterprise Elevyn which connects craftspeople directly with consumers. Craft producers benefit from up to 85% of their goods’ sale price. The initiative also allows consumers to evaluate how their purchases improve the lives of the indigenous communities.

---

The list of awardees were selected by The Nut Graph team. We created and published The Nut Graph’s Merdeka and Malaysia Day awards as a way to honour and model exemplary Malaysians.

* Disclosure: The Nut Graph’s editor Jacqueline Ann Surin was the media trainer for Wild Asia’s Responsible Journalists Programme II last year.

Putrajaya Contract Workers To Wear Uniforms, Says Aseh

PUTRAJAYA, Aug 28 (Bernama) -- Putrajaya Corporation (PPj) is making all contract workers involved in cleaning and maintenance works at the federal government administrative centre to wear uniforms, said PPj president Tan Sri Aseh Che Mat.

He said this was among the improvement measures to be carried out quickly to facilitate enforcement teams and the public to identify such workers.

"At the moment, there are 1,050 foreign workers involved in cleaning work. Putting on uniforms will enable us to easily identify the workers. It will also give them a new image apart from appreciating their work. The uniform colour has been identified," he told reporters here Tuesday.

Janji Demokrasi: Polis belum beri kata putus

Muqadas Kainat Murdered after allegedly being Gang Raped by Muslims

A Christian minor girl from Sahiwal, a city in Punjab, Pakistan, was recently murdered after being “gang raped” by a group of five Muslim men.

The young girl’s name, Muqadas Kainat, was revealed to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net) by the Legal Evangelical Association Development (LEAD Family Pakistan), an organization that provides free legal aid, settlement and spiritual support to Christian persecuted and destitute,

The group said that they had discovered news of this terrible crime after being visited in their office by two rights campaigners who told them that the father of child, Mr. Rafique Masih, had been working as a brick maker and had lived in the area for the past 15 years. Also that he, and his wife, had seven children.

They were told that on August 14, 2012, he was visiting a local hospital where his wife was having her appendix removed and during that time, the group were told that the minor girl had gone into a local field to relieve herself and was then viciously set upon by a gang of men and gang raped and murdered.

“The father’s elder brother, Arshad Masih, came to hospital and told Rafique Masih that his daughter had not come home since the morning,” said a spokesperson for LEAD Family Pakistan.

“Rafique Masih rushed to home and searched for her in area of the brick kiln company [where he worked] and also in the homes his neighbors, but did not find his daughter.

“Then, on August 15, 2012, the Muslim clerk of the brick kiln company told Rafique Masih that he had received a phone call on his cell phone from an unknown caller that Muqadas Kainat was in fields. On hearing this, Rafique Masih, along with other people, started searching the nearby fields and eventually found dead body of his daughter.”

The spokesperson went on to say that her body was taken to the police station for a postmortem which, he said, proved that she had been “gang raped and later strangled to death by five men.”

The Farid Town Police Station has since registered a First Information Report (FIR) against unknown rapists and killers and started an investigation, but at this time none of culprits have been found and arrested.

Now Missionary Pastor, Mushtaq Gill, President/National Director of LEAD, is pledging for legal help and support for this case.

Taliban behead 17 caught dancing to music at party

Taliban militants pictured in Musa Qala in 2007.  Photo: AFP/GETTY

Taliban militants beheaded 15 men and two women for holding a late night party with music and dancing, according to Afghan officials.

The insurgents executed the guests, who included two women, after attacking the party in northern Helmand late on Sunday because they considered it immoral.

Hamid Karzai ordered a full investigation into the “mass killing”. “This attack shows that there are irresponsible members among the Taliban,” the Afghan president said in a statement.

The attack occurred in an area of Musa Qala district which is almost totally under Taliban control and Afghan officials said an investigation into the deaths was being hampered because they could not reach the area.

Nematullah Khan, governor of Musa Qala, said the Taliban had tried to stop the party. “They were having a music party and the Taliban came and killed them and cut off their heads,” he said.

Shooting was heard at the scene, he said, and it was unclear if they had been shot dead first.

There was no claim of responsibility from the Taliban and their spokesmen were unavailable for comment.

Parties and social occasions in Afghanistan are usually strictly segregated and there is no mixing of men and women unless they are related.

An elder from the area confirmed a group of young men had held an “immoral” party at a house and had been attacked and killed.

Juma Khan said: “Unfortunately the young men do this sometimes. They had a party with music and dancing and they were behaving badly with the women.”

However he said the killing may have been driven by a local feud, with enemies of the guests either tipping off the Taliban, or pretending to act with their authority.

A statement from the provincial governor’s office later claimed the massacre was caused by two Taliban commanders fighting over the women, but did not explain how so many civilians came to be beheaded.

Hours after the massacre, an Afghan army checkpoint was stormed elsewhere in the province and 10 soldiers killed.

A spokesman for the governor said the post in Washer district was believed to have been betrayed by insiders and five soldiers who were missing after the attack were being investigated.

Meanwhile two American soldiers were shot dead by an Afghan comrade after an argument during a joint patrol.

Monday’s shooting in the eastern province of Laghman brought the Nato coalition death toll from so-called green on blue killings to 42 this year, and 12 in August alone.

American soldiers returned fire and shot dead the Afghan soldier.

Bowler escaped jail for rape of minor as he did not use force, coercion or violence, says court

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 27 — A lengthy jail sentence would have been imposed on national bowler Noor Afizal Azizan for the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl when he was 19 if he had been older or had used force, coercion or violence, the Court of Appeal said today in a written judgment explaining why it had controversially substituted imprisonment with a good behaviour bond for five years.

The court said, however, that its decision should not be considered a precedent for all future cases involving statutory rape and should be judged on its own merits.

Court of Appeal president Tan Sri Raus Sharif (picture) said in the judgment released today that Noor Afizal, who is now 21, was a “young boy who was extremely remorseful for what he had done and had thrown himself to the mercy of the court by pleading guilty to the charge.”

Raus, who sat with Justices K.N. Segara and Azhar Ma’ah, wrote the grounds of judgment.

Noor Afizal was let off with a RM25,000 bond instead of being jailed after he pleaded guilty to statutory rape, sparking a firestorm online over the court’s message on sex with minors even as it raised questions about the Penal Code and other criminal laws.

Incensed Malaysians have taken to Twitter and Facebook to vent their outrage against the judiciary after the Court of Appeal reversed earlier this month a High Court decision to jail the bowling ace for five years — suggesting that fame and a bright future are enough to ensure a convicted offender gets a ticket away from jail.

But the Court of Appeal pointed out today that its decision to let the bowler off with a bond did not have blanket application, or applied to all cases involving young offenders committing a similar offence.

“If the appellant (Noor Afizal) had been older or if he had used force, coercion or violence on the victim, or if he had tricked the victim... or he had not co-operated with the police and he had not shown any remorse to his act or there is no guarantee that he will not be committing the same offence in future, we would not have any hesitation, as we have done in many other cases of similar nature, to impose a lengthy custodial sentence,” said Raus.

In the Malacca Sessions Court, the judge had imposed a RM25,000 bond with good behaviour for five years on Noor Afizal after he pleaded guilty to raping the girl at a hotel in Ayer Keroh, Malacca on July 5, 2010.

However, the public prosecutor had appealed to the High Court on September 20 last year and obtained a five-year custodial sentence, the mandatory minimum for rape under the Penal Code.

According to the facts of the case which was laid down in the written judgment of the Court of Appeal today, Noor Afizal had checked into a hotel in Malacca on July 5, 2010 together with the girl who was then 13 years and four months old.

The two had what was described as consensual sex. The next morning Noor Afizal sent the girl home.

The girl did not complain to anyone and the incident only came to light when her father read about what she had done in her diary.

Raus pointed out today that Noor Afizal’s bond was in fact a suspended jail sentence and that he would always have a criminal record as a rapist.

Pakatan beri jamin hak Melayu dan kaum lain

Negara tidak akan bangkrap jika ditadbir Pakatan Rakyat.

PETALING JAYA: Ahli Parlimen Permatang Pauh Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim menegaskan bahawa hak keistimewaan orang Melayu dan lain- lain kaum akan terjamin jika Pakatan Rakyat berjaya membentuk Kerajaan Pusat pada pilihan raya umum akan datang.

Katanya, antara tawaran Pakatan termasuklah menurunkan harga minyak dan kereta serta membatalkan Perbadanan Tabung Pendidikan Tinggi Nasional (PTPTN).

“Rakyat tak bodoh…..menurut Umno-BN (Barisan Nasional), negara akan bankrap sedangkan kita bagi fakta,” katanya merujuk tawaran berkenaan ketika berucap pada Ceramah Perdana Demi Rakyat di Bagan Serai malam tadi.

Beliau yang juga Ketua Umum PKR berkata, rakyat tidak bodoh untuk terus percaya dakwaan Umno-BN bahawa negara akan bangkrap jika ditadbir Pakatan.

Anwar berkata, semua golongan akan mendapat keuntungan daripada tawaran tersebut, terutama rakyat miskin dan kebanyakannya Melayu.

Beliau turut menyangkal tohmahan sesetengah pihak mengatakan nasib orang Melayu tidak akan terbela di bawah pentadbiran Pakatan.

Menurutnya, PKR, PAS dan DAP bersetuju memberi jaminan untuk terus membela Melayu dan pada masa sama hak kaum lain sebagai warganegara yang sah.

“Ini kerana Malaysia tidak akan selamat kalau orang Melayu sebagai kaum majoriti tersisih dan tidak kuat,” kata Anwar lagi. Jelasnya, orang Melayu tidak mendapat pembelaan sebenar di bawah pemerintahan Umno-BN yang hanya mengkayakan keluarga dan kroni.

“Ahli-ahli Umno yang bawah dapat apa? Itupun ahli masih lagi melaungkan ‘Hidup Melayu’,” kata Anwar.

‘Suspend all who attended meeting’

The recent leak of a closed-door meeting involving Penang DCM Mansor Othman was a 'clear act of sabotage', claims PKR.

GEORGE TOWN: PKR’s top brass must immediately suspend those who attended the now leaked closed-door unofficial meeting with state chairman Mansor Othman, pending a probe on their alleged internal misconduct.

State PKR information chief Johari Kassim insisted that the leadership should not hesitate to sack any of them if found guilty as charged in the internal investigation.

He said the leak was a clear act of sabotage on the party that the central leadership cannot ignore and step aside.

He said it was obvious that one or more among them could have leaked out the information to serve own selfish interests and the party disciplinary committee must act fast to punish them.

“Obviously the culprits who leaked the meeting details did not hold dear the party’s best interests.

“All those who attended the meeting should be hauled up to the dock and suspended immediately pending investigation.

“If anyone is found guilty, sack instantly to teach others a lesson. It’s the best way to deal with it or else it will happen again,” warned Johari.

Lim ‘cocky and arrogant’

Details of the closed-door meeting between Mansor and party local grassroots Chinese leaders, including elected representatives, were posted in a blog Gelagat Anwar in June.

The meeting was held in May in Mansor’s DCM office in Komtar.

In the leaked details, Mansor had allegedly described Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng as “cocky and arrogant”.

However, last Friday, Mansor denied describing Lim as “cocky and arrogant” but admitted saying that Lim was being revered like a “tokong” (deity) by Chinese voters in Penang.

In its postings in June 16, 18 and 19, the blog revealed that PKR’s state deputy chief and Batu Kawan division chief Law Choo Kiang; Bukit Bendera division deputy chief Felix Ooi; Bayan Baru deputy chairman Tan Seng Keat; 2004 candidate for Bayan Baru parliament seat Raymond Ong; Tanjung Youth chief Ng Chek Siang; Batu Uban branch chief Cheah Peng Guan and Mansor’s assistant John Ooi attended the meeting.

Party insiders and political observers view the controversy as part of a conspiracy by certain PKR local reps to kick out Mansor from state PKR altogether.

Merdeka ‘no relevance’ to Sabah, Sarawak

The true 'National Day is Sept 16, according to Sabah opposition STAR as that was when Sabah, Sarawak and Malaya committed themselves to a 'common identity.

RANAU: The federal government should stop duping Sabah and Sarawak into celebrating Merdeka Day when the 55th anniversary had “no relevance” to the two states, STAR Sabah chairman Jeffrey Kitingan said.

“How can these leaders continue to twist history to suit their political interests without considering our feelings and the truth?

“How could they [federal government] insist we must celebrate Malayan independence which has no relevance to Sabah and Sarawak?” asked Kitingan when launching STAR’s Kundasang zone in Pinampadan near here.

He said what was important and relevant to Sabah and Sarawak is their own independence – July 22, 1963 for Sarawak and Aug 31, 1963 for Sabah – and that of Malaysia Day or the formation of Malaysia on Sept 16, 1963.

“This date – Sept 16, 1963 – is the true ‘National Day’ that gives all three territories of Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak, a common identity as Malaysians”, said Jeffrey.

He said that by continuing to impose Malaya’s version of history on Sabahans and Sarawakians, “the government is alienating the two territories”.

“By insisting that Malaysia is 55 years old now and not 49, the federal government is sending the wrong message to the people.

“Firstly, what the government is doing is teaching the people how to lie and manipulate the facts of history.

“Secondly, the Peninsula-controlled federal government is now telling Sabahans and Sarawakians [intentionally or not] that Malaysia was nothing more than a ‘takeover’ project for Malaya and that Sabah and Sarawak are now Malayan states/territories so they [Sabah and Sarawak] must now adopt Malayan historical independence,” he said.

Jeffrey, who is expected to take on his elder brother Joseph Pairin, the president of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS), a Barisan Nasional member, for the Keningau parliamentary seat in the coming general election, also described the BN’s Janji diTepati (Promise Fulfilled) as an empty slogan.

“If this was indeed Malaya’s real intention, then those promises, assurances, undertakings and persuasions by Tunku Abdul Rahman and other Malayan leaders were all lies or Janji Terang Bulan.”

“And if they were mere Janji Terang Bulan, then the slogan Janji diTepati is an empty and hollow slogan as far as Sabah and Sarawak are concerned.

“If we Sabah and Sarawak have been cheated, we have to stop all this nonsense and start putting things right,” added Jeffrey.

Is Malaysia’s IPO Boom Overhyped?

By: Dhara Ranasinghe

Malaysia is marking itself out as the IPO destination to beat this year with a string of billion-dollar-plus deals. Impressive, for sure, but don’t take the booming IPO market as a sign that Malaysia is poised to become a regional financial hub, experts say.

The reasons for this, they add, are simple: once the slew of big Malaysian companies seeking new listings runs out there is likely to be a dearth of initial public offerings (IPOs) in Malaysia. Because Malaysia is still developing open and liquid capital markets, foreign firms looking to list in the region are likely to pick Singapore and Hong Kong over Kuala Lumpur.

All the big companies listed in Malaysia this year are local firms. To really develop itself as a centre for IPOs, Malaysia needs to attract new listings from big foreign firms in the way Singapore and Hong Kong have done in the past, analysts add.

“Part of the boom in the Malaysian IPO market can be explained by the well-developed pension system in Malaysia, which has allowed for growth in domestic demand for equities,” said Herald Van Der Linde, Head of Equity Strategy, Asia-Pacific at HSBC in Hong Kong.

“However, when it comes to comparing Malaysia with Singapore and Hong Kong, these markets are much larger, more diversified and much better developed. As such, they can compete for global IPOs. This is unlikely to happen in Malaysia yet,” Van Der Linde said.

Pay-TV company, Astro Malaysia last week said it would launch an IPO, worth about $1.75 billion. The new listing, expected by the end of September, would be Malaysia’s third largest this year and follows a $3.3 billion listing in June by palm oil firm Felda Global Ventures and a $2.1 billion IPO by state-backed IHH Healthcare last month.

The high-profile listings – Felda’s IPO is the biggest globally so far this year after the listing of Facebook – have certainly made investors sit up and pay attention to the developments in the Southeast Asian economy.

The hot IPO market in Malaysia also compares with a generally lackluster market globally as the fragile state of the global economy prompts many companies to shelve their IPO plans. Jeweler Graff Diamonds postponed a $1 billion listing in Hong Kong in May, while motor racing company Formula One earlier this year postponed a listing, worth up to $3 billion, in Singapore.

Despite these setbacks, the long-term outlook for IPOs in Asia still favor Hong Kong and Singapore over Malaysia, analysts said.

“To have a large IPO market, you need an international investor community and that isn’t there in Malaysia,” said Sanjay Mathur, Director of Research Strategy Asia ex-Japan at Royal Bank of Scotland in Singapore.

“You need to have an unfettered flow of capital, a diaspora of fund managers and a strong linkage with other financial centers,” Mathur added, referring to the things Malaysia would need to turn its booming local market into a regional one.

Domestic Focus

According to research firm Dealogic, Malaysia has moved to third place after the U.S. and China in rankings of new listings in value terms globally. That’s up from twelfth place last year.

Analysts point out that the boom in the Malaysian IPO market must be seen in the context of what is happening in Malaysia locally and not as a sign of what is changing in terms of Malaysia’s role regionally.

The Malaysian government, keen to open up the equity market, has encouraged firms to list and the growth of large domestic pension funds has meant there has been strong demand locally for the new listings.

HSBC says that the core of Malaysia’s pension system is the Employees Provident Fund, which covers around half of the country’s work force. It adds that the equity portion of the fund is estimated to have grown to almost 30 percent of total assets in 2010 from below 5 percent in 1991 and 20 percent in 2000.

Against this backdrop, the momentum in Malaysia’s IPO market was expected to continue for a little while longer. Malaysian Power firm Malakoff and Karex, the world’s biggest condom maker, are both said to be considering listings in the months ahead.

“The IPOs will continue for a while. Remember there is a herd mentality, so if one company does well that encourages others,” Mathur at RBS said.

From the perspective of a foreign investor, what Malaysia lacked was a regional exposure, analysts said. Hong Kong has attracted new listings from global companies keen to tap into the China growth story – examples of this are the listings of commodities trader Glencore and luxury goods firm Prada in 2011.

“We are looking at very different markets here,” said Chris Wong, Senior Investment Manager at Aberdeen Asset Management in Singapore. “Hong Kong is the market centre for the greater China story and Singapore is a magnet for the regional story.”

While Malaysia’s equity market [.KLSE 1648.13 -0.09 (-0.01%) ] has attracted a lot of attention because of the large IPOs, the benchmark stock index is up about 7.8 percent year-to-date, this is a similar performance to Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index [.HSI 19798.67 -81.36 (-0.41%) ]and perhaps not as impressive as the 15 percent rally in Singapore’s stock index [.FTSTI 3044.49 -6.00 (-0.2%) ] .

“As for the outlook on IPOs in 2013, I would think that this is very dependent upon global growth and how Europe will resolve its crisis,” said HSBC’s Van Der Linde. “If it was up to Asia, it should be a good IPO market - demand for equities is rising and companies need to invest more and can tap equity markets for this.”

- By CNBC's Dhara Ranasinghe

Nazri looks into bid to close court

The New Straits Times 
by JASPAL SINGH

TAIPING HIGH COURT: Minister to discuss matter with chief justice

PADANG RENGAS:  WITH pressure from the public and the legal fraternity mounting against the proposed closure of the Taiping High Court, the government will  hold talks with the judiciary to resolve the issue.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said he would be meeting Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria to discuss the matter.

Nazri, who is also the de facto law minister, said the government respected the separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary.

"(However), I will be meeting the chief justice to discuss the closure proposal in the very near future," he said at a community programme in his constituency here yesterday.

Acknowledging that the closure was related to changes made in the jurisdiction of the Sessions and magistrate's courts, Nazri said the proposal was not advisable after taking into account the long-term needs for a court in Taiping.

"Perak is not a small state. It is one of the bigger states in Peninsular Malaysia," he said, adding that the proposal to close down the High Court, which was set up 20 years ago, was a regressive move.

"In the future, the Taiping High Court may serve not only the northern regions of Perak but also Penang and southern parts of Kedah."

The closure was suggested following amendments to the Subordinate Courts Act two years ago.

Under the amendments, magistrates have jurisdiction to hear claims of up to RM100,000. Previously, the limit was RM25,000.

Sessions Courts have been empowered to preside over civil claims of up to RM1 million, from RM250,000 previously.

On Saturday, Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir had urged the Federal Government and the judiciary to reconsider closing Taiping High Court.

Police Supt Gets Two Years Jail, RM1.75 Million Fine For Money Laundering

JOHOR BAHARU, Aug 27 (Bernama) -- A police superintendent was today sentenced to two years jail for each of the four counts of money laundering by the Sessions Court here.

Azmi Osman, 55, was also fined RM1.75 million for the offences committed between 2002 and 2005.

Johor Baharu Sessions Court Judge Salawati Djambari ordered the sentence on Azmi Osman to run concurrently after finding him guilty under the Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorism Financing Act 2001.

Salawati later allowed Azmi to be freed on RM900,000 bail in two sureties and a stay of execution pending an appeal on the decision.

Eyewitness: Cops shot unarmed man point blank

Cover-up suspected as shootout witnesses detained

(Malaysiakini) PKR supreme council member Latheefa Koya said police are trying to cover up an extra-judicial killing by “harassing” eyewitnesses and the friends and relatives of the deceased.

At a press conference today, she said four people who had witnessed the fatal shooting of D Dinesh, 26, in Ampang on Aug 21 were re-arrested and sent to the Sea Park police station after their remand order expired on Aug 25.

“This is what is called ‘chain-smoking remand’ (tukar gari). If the police can’t get an extension of remand,
they pass (the suspect) to another set of police... defying the magistrate’s order,” said Latheefa (right).

Two of Dinesh’s cousins and four of his friends who had visited him in Hospital Ampang were nabbed there, but released last night after four days in remand.

“They were nowhere near the shootout. If (police) did nothing wrong, there is no reason to do this,” she said.

Dinesh died from close range gunshot wounds to the head and arm two days after the shooting.

Police have claimed that the shooting occurred after patrolling officers were attacked with a parang.

Ampang Jaya district deputy police chief Md Nazri Zawawi was reported by dailies Kosmo! and Harian Metro as saying that the car which Dinesh was in tried to rear-end a patrol car.

He also said that those in the car with Dinesh, allegedly from the Viva Nanda gang, also smashed the windscreen of the patrol car with parangs.

They were said to be involved in a gang fight in Pandan Perdana earlier, and were on the way back to resume the fight when intercepted at about 2am.

When contacted, Ampang OCPD Amiruddin Jamaluddin, who is still on leave, said he stands by his deputy’s statement but pledged to conduct a “thorough investigation”.

According to PKR vice-president N Surendran (extreme left in photo), the police statement on the matter
smells of a cover-up as eyewitnesses said Dinesh was unarmed and retreating when he was shot.

He said that, instead of trying to cover up the matter, police should classify the case as murder, suspend all personnel who were involved and begin investigations.

“They are interfering with key witnesses. I am warning the home minister and the inspector-general of police ... We have other witnesses. Do no touch, harass or intimidate these witnesses.

“Don't try to go after these witnesses, or you’ll face street protests."

Latheefa noted that the police reaction has not changed since the fatal shooting of 14-year-old Aminulrasyid Amzah, despite vows to review the standard operating procedure.
Echoing him was his son Rajan (right in photo), who tearfully defended his brother’s innocence.

“My brother was always teaching me how to do business. I didn’t expect things to end up like this. I want justice for him. Please,” he pleaded, alongside his mother Florence Abeyesekera and sister Sharon.

Citing statistics provided in Parliament, Kapar MP S Manickavasagam said that from 2000 to 2009, 279 people had been shot dead by police, the majority of whom were Indonesian nationals.

The written reply by Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said this is in accordance to the Criminal Procedure Code and the Inspector-General of Police Standing Order.

However, Subang MP Sivarasa Rasiah said the figure could be understated.

“In 2008 alone, police figures state that 27 people were shot, but human rights NGO Suaram documented at least 44 cases that year alone (as) published in their documents.

“The Human Rights Party which also monitors this, found 82 cases the same year."
“Since then we have had other shootings, like the Glenmarie shootings which involved three youths who were also claimed to be part of a gang. The parang said to be found in Aminulrasyid’s car is also still unaccounted for,” she added.

Family refutes police claims

Like the family of Aminulrasyid and the three youths gunned down in Glenmarie, Shah Alam, Dinesh’s family members who were present today refuted claims that he was part of a gang.

“My son is a very pious and simple boy. He won’t do anything like this. I want justice, I want the person (responsible) to be charged,” his father W Darmasena said.

Echoing him was his son Rajan (right in photo), who tearfully defended his brother’s innocence.

“My brother was always teaching me how to do business. I didn’t expect things to end up like this. I want justice for him. Please,” he pleaded, alongside his mother Florence Abeyesekera and sister Sharon.

Citing statistics provided in Parliament, Kapar MP S Manickavasagam said that from 2000 to 2009, 279 people had been shot dead by police, the majority of whom were Indonesian nationals.

The written reply by Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said this is in accordance to the Criminal Procedure Code and the Inspector-General of Police Standing Order.

However, Subang MP Sivarasa Rasiah said the figure could be understated.

“In 2008 alone, police figures state that 27 people were shot, but human rights NGO Suaram documented at least 44 cases that year alone (as) published in their documents.

“The Human Rights Party which also monitors this, found 82 cases the same year."

Eyewitness: Cops shot unarmed man point blank

Two eyewitnesses of a police shootout in Ampang last week have claimed that plainclothes personnel shot an unarmed man "point blank" and released at least 10 rounds of ammunition indiscriminately.

Entrepreneur D Dinesh, 26, who died two days after he was shot in the wee hours of Aug 21, was not

carrying anything when he got out of a white Proton Perdana, said his friend Y Ilavarasen, 24 (right).

He said the Proton had been blocked by an unmarked car at a traffic light near Ampang Waterfront.

"I was a few cars ahead of him and could see him from the back. He wasn't holding anything, Ilavarasen told a press conference called by PKR today.

"(Police) were shooting point blank, up and down. Everyone panicked. The shooting was haywire and there was no warning, neither did they identify themselves as police. They just started shooting, pointing towards people and cars.”

Ilavarasen said he had seen the Proton behind him after he sped off, and thought that Dinesh had escaped unscathed.

“When I pulled to the side of the car, I notice that he was not the one driving, but another person. The driver told me Dinesh had been shot. I found out from his cousin that he was taken to Ampang Hospital,” he said.

The second eyewitness and another friend, K Moses, 23, (left) had stopped at the traffic lights two cars behind the Proton. He said Dinesh was “running back” to his car when he was shot.

“Then I saw beside my car (that) a guy was shooting. I didn't know who he was. He shot everyone, whatever that was moving,” he said.

“I sped off, but one bullet hit my car. I was lucky it didn't hit the side window. The way he was shooting, it looked like he wanted to kill people. He didn't stop. I heard more than 10 shots. (One bullet hit) a taxi.. If I knew they were police, I would not have left.”

Asked if he would be able to recognise the officer who released the shots, he said: “Yes.”

Ilavarasen, who works in logistics and Moses who works at a car dealership, were driving separate cars and were planning to have supper with Dinesh in the area, after receiving a call from him.

“We had not decided where to go. Just to meet around Ampang, maybe go to Pandan, to Steven's Corner, but on the way there, we saw Dinesh's car so we just followed him,” Ilvarasen said.

He did not know if Dinesh's car was part of a 14-car convoy - as the police have claimed - as the supper plan only involved Dinesh, Moses and himself.

Police report lodged

The duo lodged police reports today at the Tropicana police station with their respective accounts of the incident.

They were accompanied by PKR MPs for Subang and Kapar, Sivarasa Rasiah and S Manickvasagam, PKR vice-president N Surendran and PKR supreme council bureau member Latheefa Koya.

Ilavarasen’s account refutes that of the police, who had said the Proton had tried to back into a police patrol car.


"After that, four men carrying parangs got out of the car and smashed the (windscreen of the) patrol car," Ampang Jaya deputy police chief Md Nazri Zawawi was reported as saying in Malay daily Kosmo!.

Police also claimed that the Proton had been intercepted as it was part of a 14-car convoy which was on the way to resume a gang fight which had taken place at the Pandan Perdana flats.

Harian Metro quoted Md Nazri as saying that the Dinesh was part of the ‘Viva Nanda’ gang which is suspected to be involved with loan shark syndicates.

He said police were on the hunt for the gang members after the gang fight was reported to have left three injured.

Dinesh's father W Darmasena has lodged a police report to seek an investigation into the death of his son.