Nepal towards a Hindu Rashtra (Nation-State) again.

Restore Hindu Nation with constitutional Monarchy in Nepal!

By Dirgha Raj Prasai.

In the annals of world civilization, Hindu philosophy is considered liberal, simple and tolerant. Nepal as a Hindu state did not just signify her Hindu religious leanings. It was also a source of Nepali nationalism and an inescapable fact of Nepal. Hence, declaration of Nepal as a secular state has ignored the ground realities.

Among all religions, Hindu religion is considered the most liberal. According to renowned philosopher Voltaire, Hinduism is the best gift of the East to the West. Similarly, George Bernard Shaw, Irish littérateur, said, “Hindu religion is the most important and the most liberal religion in the world”. According to the Encyclopedia of Religions and Ethics, signs of Hindu religion are found in Islamic countries like Iran. A stone scripture dating back to 486 BC in Iran contains the words Hindu and Hindus. Even an ancient Parsi scripture, Shatir, repeats the famous Ved Vyas saying “I am a true Hindu born, in a Hindu country”. Another Hindu philosopher Manu considers the area between Bindhya in south India and the Himalayas in the north as Aryabrata, the land of Aryans.

Even outside travelers to the region like Megasthaniz and Fai Han have written in their memoirs that Hindus are tall, healthy, simple, intelligent and truthful. That Hindus do not need to bring witnesses to financial deals and they do not lock their houses as incidents of theft are simply not heard of. The rise of Buddhism does not make much of a difference because Buddhism and Hinduism are complementary to each other and Kiratis also worship the same gods, such as Shiva and Bhagawati, as do the Hindus.

Instead of declaring Nepal a completely secular state, it would have made more sense, in keeping with the ground realities, if it had been declared as the soil of Hindu rooted faiths and the basic lands of Hindu and Buddhist people. There are over 800 million Hindus in India and Indian Hindus respect Nepal as a Hindu country. This should be taken as a matter of pride. For security reasons too, Nepal, a small country with open border to the south, has a big advantage as a Hindu country. It also needs to be borne in mind that no one has the right to trample on the conviction of more than two-thirds of the people.

The declaration of Nepal as a Hindu Kingdom does not signify just its religion rather it is taken as the source of Nepalese nationalism and an inseparable part of Nepal. If Nepal is republican and secular country, China comes with communism in Nepal for its security reasons and then gradually spreading Maoist and Communist terrorism in different parts of that country making Chinese centers in Nepal. If monarchy is restored in Nepal, all the Communist activities can be controlled. So, the parliamentary party leaders will make a grave mistake this time after the present election in Nepal in 2013, if not declaring Nepal as a Hindu State instead of fake secular state as structured by the Ultra Communists some years back .

Even if one talks about secularism, the census 2001 AD can be taken as referendum. That time those who call them intellectuals, leaders of ethnic communities and communists and those who call themselves Christians had made campaign not to write anything in the column for religion or not to write Hindu as their religion. But the Hindus never confronted them or made it an issue. Despite the campaign against Hinduism, the number of Hindus in Nepal was found to be 82 per cent. If one keeps the Buddhists out the number of Hindus before the 2001 census was 83 per cent. Half of the diminished numbers were increased in Buddhism and Kiratis and there was half percentage point increment in Christians. The rise in Buddhism and Kiratis do not make much of a difference because Buddhism and Hinduism are complementary to each other and Kiratis also worship the same gods such as Shiva and Bhagawati like the Hindus.

Therefore, the holy land of Nepal can be declared as the lands of Hindu Rooted religions.  But it is a matter of serious concern for whose interest Nepal was declared a secular state. No one has right to trample believe and conviction of more than two-thirds majority of the people. Even if there is a referendum, more than 85 percent Nepalese will vote for a Hindu country. More than that Hindus have the freedom to pursue their own way of observing the religion. Therefore, if Nepal is to be declared a secular country, all countries, which call themselves as Christian or Muslim countries should also be declared secular countries. If they want Nepal to become a secular country, they should also be willing to shun their ‘Cross’ of the Christians, ‘sign of David’ of the Jews and ‘Kawa’ of Muslims. Actually, Kaaba (Kawa) shrine is a pre-Islamic Shiva temple where the Hindu practice of perambulation is still meticulously observed and strictly followed. New research tells that Jesus came to India to learn Yoga.  However, these need to be pondered that even if Nepal is to be  a Hindu Kingdom again, its nature will  remain far better than  any secular country as Hindus have never done anything that would harass or trouble other religions.

Nepal is a small country and on the south there is a big country with open border. There are about 800 million Hindus and Indian Hindus respect Nepal as a Hindu kingdom. This should be taken as a matter of pride for us. For security reasons also, Nepal has a big advantage by being a Hindu country. If the Maoists are for Nepal’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity, all Nepalese request them to change their idea about secularism. Even if one is a Christian or a Muslim, they should support to keep Nepal a Hindu country. But the seven political parties have made a great mistake by announcing Nepal as a secular state.

It is shameful to write that in Nepal there are some existing international organization (INGO) who are talking to develop Nepal but they were and has been involving in spreading the Christian religion with money and giving the fallacious assurance. The Nepalese religious people always regard the other religions. Nepal and the monarch never show the religious intolerance. From the very beginning, there are two Mosques in front of the Royal palace, near Clock Tower, have never faced intolerance. But, the so-called big party leaders and some civil society’ and INGO conveners who are the puppets Christian Mission are active to destroy the indigenous culture and identities. We should remember the quotation of Voltaire: “Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion that has ever infected the world.”  

Despite knowing this fact it is intriguing on whose interest the so-called big parties including Maoist declared Nepal a secular state by the hints of RAW. They had directly hurt the feeling of the majority of the Hindus in the country and more than 1 billion Hindus all over the world. Political leaders must rethink its decision. What they should have done is to remove the anomalies such as untouchables and other caste-based and social discrimination. This would have been the real tribute and service to the country and to the religion. Apart from some social anomalies there is nothing in Hindu religion that should be opposed. By declaring republic and Nepal a secular country; they are only serving the interest of some narrow groups who possess antagonistic approach against the majority Nepali people. Otherwise, if one thinks of the liberalism and tolerance, Hinduism comes first and foremost of all other religions in Nepal. So, Nepal must be restored with a Hindu Rashtra (Nation-State)  again.

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Survey on Islam in Austria: 18% of Muslims support death sentence for apostasy, 21.9% oppose democracy

The Threat of Islam in Austria

from Gates of Vienna
I previously reported on a survey of Flemish voters that showed how many people in Flanders consider Islam a threat, despite all the decades of multicultural indoctrination.
Now comes a mirror-image survey from Austria, showing the intolerant and non-integrative attitudes of Austria’s Muslims. And remember: teachers were the ones being surveyed. These weren’t ignorant denizens of the “Muslim street”; they were the people officially charged by the Austrian state with Islamic education.
Our Austrian correspondent ESW has compiled a report based on German-language sources. First, her prefatory note:

Muslims in Austria, especially those of official Islam, are highly nervous about the study that was made public two days ago.

Mouhanad Khorchide is a fairly well-known scientist, often invited to discussions. He was also on the panel at the recent discussion at the political academy of the ÖVP, where he filled in for Tariq Ramadan. He can certainly be considered a liberal Muslim, but a Muslim nonetheless.

I am wary of him, but he is helpful, because Muslims cannot complain about the study having been written by infidels; it was written by one of their own. This is the main reason for their nervousness. Even the political left is nervous about the results of the study. Some even consider revoking Islam’s status as a religious group if changes are not made.

However, I am looking forward to watching these changes unfold. How can the Quran and its contents be changed? People need to realize that it is not the teachers who are the problem, but rather Islam.

Will there be a special Quran for Austria? An Austrian Islam? What will Saudi Arabia say?

Interesting times. The truth will prevail. The lie of Islam will hopefully be exposed. Thank you, Mr. Khorchide. You have helped the Counterjihad more than you will ever know!

Here is the translation of an article from Wednesday’s Die Presse:

Islamic Teachers A Problem

One in five teachers of Islam (21.9%) has a problem with democracy. And he or she even says so openly. This is the result of a written survey meticulously conducted by the sociologist and scientist Mouhanad Khorchide. Apart from the above assertion, there is additional explosive data: 14.7% distance themselves from the Austrian constitution, 13.9% are of the opinion that elections are not compatible with Islam, and 28.4% believe that it is not possible to be a European and Muslim at the same time.

Even more, there are those among the polled Islamic teachers (18.2%) who advocate the death penalty in case of apostasy. And 8.5% sympathize with those using violence to spread Islam.

- – - - – - – - -

Anas Shakfeh, the head of the Islamic Faith Community in Austria, also concludes that beliefs and attitudes such as the above are highly problematic. However, direct consequences cannot be drawn from this study because the questionnaires were made anonymous. “I cannot react to a private opinion,” Shakfeh says. If a teacher does make these statements, there would be consequences.

But the hiring of Islamic teachers is the responsibility of Islamic Faith Community, not that of the state. This resulted in the hiring of teachers who were inadequately trained or not trained at all. 37% of those teaching right now have no theological training, 41% are not trained as teachers — all this can also be found in the study.

The Faith Community blames these numbers on “relics”: when Islamic religious teaching was first introduced in 1982, there were no qualified teachers in Austria, which meant they had to be “imported” from Turkey. Only in 1998 was the Islamic Religious Academy (IRPA) founded in Vienna [as part of the University of Vienna].

Things have since changed somewhat, says Khorchide. “Second-generation religious teachers identify more strongly with Austria. They do not have deficits [such as those found in the study].” On the other hand, these younger teachers do not emphasize critical reflection, but rather convey rituals and laws. There remains much to do.

The title of the study was: Mouhanad Khorchide, “Islamic Religious Education between Integration and Parallel Societies: Attitudes and Beliefs of Islamic Religious Teachers in Public Schools”
The survey questions were:

1.		“I oppose democracy because it cannot be reconciled with the teachings of Islam.”
2.		“I believe it is not possible to be a European and a Muslim.”
3.		“Islam forbids taking part in elections (i.e. voting).”
4.		“I oppose the Austrian constitution because it is in contradiction with Islam.”
5.		“Islam dies not allow participation in Austrian cultural activities (theater, art, etc.).”
6.		“I oppose the Human Rights Convention because it is not compatible with Islamic teachings.”

Who is Mouhanad Khorchide?

The 37-year old Lebanese native considers himself a liberal Muslim who does not read the Quran as the literal word of God, and who applies scientific methods when he trains religious teachers and works as an imam.

What makes his Ph.D. thesis so exceptional is its exclusive approach in matters of Islam, school and integration. The higher echelons in the Faith Community saw potential in Khorchide and in 2007 gave him permission to hand out his questionnaires at a conference for religious teachers. 210 teachers (out of 330) teachers returned the questionnaires. Experts say that results are particularly representative for Vienna and Lower Austria [two states in the eastern part of Austria]. The best and most highly trained teachers can be found in these two states.

The study finds a quarter of teachers who answer questions regarding democracy, rule of law, and integration precisely the way right-wing populists allege and liberals fear. The older the teacher, the greater the rejection of the rule of law and democratic principles. What is especially disconcerting is that 44% of the teachers believe that students primarily need to learn about feelings of superiority.

One in three teachers does not hold Austrian citizenship. Teachers hail from Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, first-generation immigrants who were not exposed to democratic values and freedom in their home countries. How can they now convey these values to their students?

The Faith Community is represented by Anas Shakfeh. He has been president for ten years and worked as a teacher. Official Austria holds him in high regard on integration matters. He was even given a prestigious award for his efforts. Shakfeh is the head of the Islamic education authority and taught without formal training for 20 years. He also works for the Saudi Arabian embassy in Vienna. Is one who works for an inhuman theocracy and who knows little about education science and teaching skills the right man to establish an open and modern Islamic religious education?

A couple of weeks ago he subtly denied Israel’s right to exist. As a result, our interview starts with a discussion about the war in Gaza. Khorchide’s study? He has read parts of it. “They’re not catastrophic, but also not OK”, Shakfeh says. “Since Khorchide also teaches at university, it is also up to him to make improvements.”

Here are some of the first political reactions, as summarized by ESW from ORF:

Both the minister of education and the mayor of Vienna are publicly demanding consequences. Interestingly enough, both the minister and the mayor are members of the socialist parties.

Says mayor Michael Häupl: “The fact that a fifth of the Islamic religious teachers oppose democracy causes me sleepless nights. If I had a study like this about indigenous teachers, I would faint.” He warns that any changes in the way teachers are trained would also mean consequences for Catholic teachers, because according to the law on religious education of 1949, it is the religious groups who are in charge of religious education; the state only acts as a supervisor.

Minister Claudia Schmied said in an interview with Austrian television that this survey calls for consequences and that she will seek a meeting with Anas Shakfeh.

All other Austrian political parties have already reacted to the controversial survey well before the socialists did: Sirvan Ekici (ÖVP, conservative party), in charge of integration matters, wants the Faith Community to make sure its teachers conform to Austrian laws and values.

Socialists demand a “comprehensive explanation from the Faith Community. It is necessary to make sure that nothing that goes against democratic values is taught. There is no room for fundamentalist tendencies.”

The Freedom Party (FPÖ) and Jörg Haider’s spin-off, BZÖ, are in agreement that mosques and schools need to be monitored closely. This should be done by the Federal Agency for State Protection and Counterterrorism, since the Faith Community is unwilling or unable to take care of this.

Even the Green Party finds the results of the study troubling: “Whoever opposes human rights or demands the death penalty for apostasy is not fit to teach in Austrian schools,” says Harald Walser, who also warns of the existence of parallel societies.

Some more background from ORF:

Islamic religious teaching has been taking place at Austrian public schools for 27 years. There are 350 teachers for 32,000 students. Khorchide adds that there has never been a scientific evaluation of Islamic religious classes. Until 1998, when the university institute IRPA was founded, teachers were recruited among the Arab population in Austria. Some of those have radical tendencies and continue teaching to this day.

See ESW’s Counterji

Bahasa Candi 11 di Sungai Batu yang dimusnahkan boleh dibina semula, kata Mukhriz

Candi 11 di Sungai Batu dalam Lembah Bujang, Merbok yang dimusnahkan adalah struktur batu yang dibina semula pada 1974 di atas tapak asal candi yang dibina antara kurun ke-8 hingga 11 Masehi.

Menteri Besar Datuk Mukhriz Tun Dr Mahathir berkata kerajaan negeri kesal dengan pemusnahan itu kerana ia dianggap tapak warisan negara yang patut dipelihara.

"Tapak-tapak candi di Lembah Bujang adalah tapak warisan yang tidak digunakan sebagai tempat penyembahan sejak berkurun-kurun lamanya," katanya dalam kenyataan yang dikeluarkan di sini hari ini bagi mengulas protes banyak pihak terhadap pemusnahan candi 11 oleh sebuah syarikat pemaju.

Dalam kenyataannya Mukhriz memperjelaskan syarikat terbabit adalah pemilik tanah berkenaan dan mendapat kelulusan memajukannya pada 1993 tetapi pembersihan hanya dilaksana pada Ogos tahun ini apabila ia memusnahkan candi tersebut.

Katanya kerajaan negeri dan Kementerian Pelancongan dan Kebudayaan telah mengarahkan syarikat berkenaan menghentikan segera pembersihan di tapak candi 11.

"Candi yang sama boleh dibina semula atas tapak asal dengan persetujuan syarikat atau di tapak lain yang berhampiran dengan tapak ekskavasi Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) di Sungai Batu. Pelan candi 11 akan dirujuk bagi memastikan reka bentuk dan bahan digunakan sama seperti di tapak asal.

"Kerajaan menitikberatkan usaha memelihara semua jenis warisan turun-temurun di negeri ini. Bagi memastikan tapak-tapak warisan di lebih 100 lokasi di Lembah Bujang tidak musnah dimamah zaman akibat pembangunan, Kementerian Pelancongan dan Kebudayaan bersetuju menimbang permohonan kerajaan negeri agar tapak-tapak warisan yang dikenal pasti mempunyai nilai warisan diwartakan," kata Mukhriz.

Beliau berkata kerja-kerja ekskavasi yang dilaksanakan oleh pakar-pakar arkeologi USM akan diteruskan sehingga kawasan Lembah Bujang boleh dibangunkan sebagai tarikan pelancongan bertaraf antarabangsa.

Kajian arkeologi di kawasan Sungai Batu mendedahkan tapak tersebut digunakan sejak kurun ke-5 Masehi hingga kurun 17 Masehi. Tamadun Sungai Batu juga adalah yang tertua berasaskan industri peleburan besi. - Bernama, 3 Disember, 2013.

Lembah Bujang fiasco: ‘Sack the Heritage Commissioner

The Heritage Commissioner must be sacked and the developer charged for destroying birthplace of Malay civilisation, says Waythamoorthy.

BUJANG VALLEY: Hindraf wants Heritage Commissioner Zuraina Abdul Majid to be sacked for failing to gazette, protect, preserve and conserve an ancient Hindu temple tomb (candi) structure in the historical Bujang Valley site, demolished by a developer a month ago.

Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Senator P Waythamoorthy slammed Zuraina’s failure as “absolute negligence and collapse of statutory duties”, deserving immediate expulsion.

The Hindraf national chairman also called for developer, Saujana Sdn Bhd, to be charged for destroying a public heritage property and national treasure.

Waytharmoorthy pointed out that the demolished temple site was among some 90 temple tombs unearthed at ancient civilisation sites by archaeological research works started way back in 1930s.

He pointed out that a proposal had been submitted in 1987 under a working paper entitled: Bujang Valley and Kuala Kedah Fort – Proposals for a Master Plan, by John Sanday for Unesco’s World Heritage Listing.

The working paper was initiated under the government’s operational action for the safeguarding of immovable cultural heritage and its reintegration into modern life.

Since a proposal had been submitted to Unesco, Waythamoorthy said the Commissioner of Heritage should have exercised his or her vested power under the National Heritage Act (NHA) 2005 to inspect, survey, investigate and carry out necessary work to determine the designation of the site as a heritage site.

Submitted for heritage status 26 years ago

Waythamoorthy said the Commissioner should have made an Interim Protection Order under Section 33 of NHA 2005 to preserve and conserve the whole site.

Under Section 33, any person who contravenes an Interim Protection Order commits an offence.

Section 33 states: Upon a notice being served on the owner of a site, the Commissioner may, with the concurrence of the State Authority, make an Interim Protection Order in relation to a site if in the opinion of the Commissioner it is necessary to do so for the purpose of conservation and preservation of the site.

“The Commissioner should have designated the site which had natural heritage or cultural heritage significance to be a heritage site.

“But the Commissioner had failed to do so even though the proposal was submitted for world’s heritage listing 26 years ago.

“It is absolute negligence.

“The Commissioner’s services must be terminated.

“We cannot compromise on this,” Waythamoorthy told FMT after visiting the demolished ancient temple site in Sungai Batu Estate area here yesterday evening.

Also present were non-governmental organisation Bujang Valley Study Circle chairman V Nadarajan, Hindraf activists and local residents.

Housing developer, Saujana Sdn Bhd has reportedly demolished the historical artifacts of a 1,200-year-old Hindu temple tomb to pave the way for a new township project to be developed on the heritage site.

The developer claims they were unaware of the historical value of the demolished ancient structure that archaeologists and historians say dates back to the 8th Century.

Kedah Barisan Nasional government have issued an immediate stop-work order pending investigations into the controversial demolition which has caused an uproar among Malaysians.

Site still not gazetted

Minister of Tourism and Culture, Nazri Abdul Aziz has called on the Heritage Commissioner to gazette and protect the ancient temple tombs.

Waythamoorthy insists that the Commissioner has a public statutory duty to gazette all ancient temple tombs unearthed in the ancient civilisation site under NHA a long time ago.

“The tombs should have been gazetted by now. The Commissioner should have preserved and conserved all the tombs.

“It puzzles Malaysians on why the Commissioner failed to do so.

“Obviously the Commissioner was sleeping on her job,” rebuked Waythamoorthy.

He also called for the developer to be charged under the same law for the destruction.

Under Section 113 of the NHA, any person who destroys, damages, disfigures, disposes or alters a tangible cultural heritage, without a permit issued by the Commissioner commits an offence and shall on conviction be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or a fine not exceeding RM50,000 or to both.

Offences committed by corporate bodies comes under Section 117 which states that, where a person charged with an offence under this Act or any regulations made thereunder is a corporate body , every person who, at the time of the commission of such offence, as a managing director, manager or other similar officer of such corporate body, may be charged jointly in the same proceedings with the corporate body, and where the corporate body is convicted of the offence charged, every such managing director, manager or officer shall also be deemed to have committed the offence and shall be liable to the same penalty as the corporate body, unless he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge, consent or connivance or that he took reasonable precautions to prevent its commission.

“We cannot let the developer off the hook. He destroyed a national historical and heritage structure. The developer must be made accountable and pay for negligence and ignorance.

“The government shall not compromise,” said Waythamoorthy.

Historians like Nadarajan believes that Bujang Valley formed part of an ancient Malay-Hindu kingdom civilisation called Kadaaram covering approximately 1,000 square miles stretching from Kota Sarang Semut and Jeniang in Kedah to Bukit Mertajam in mainland Penang.

Located near Merbok, Kedah, Bujang Valley covers an area of approximately 224 square kms between Gunung Jerai in the North and Muda River in the South.

Nadarajan said the Malay–Hindu kingdom, which began in the 1st Century AD, was the oldest Malay civilisation in Southeast Asia, pre-dating Malacca.

He said the civilisation was a Malay–Hindu kingdom until the 12th Century when its Hindu king converted to Islam and started a Sultanate.

“This is the birthplace of Malay civilisation in the country.

“The civilisation proves that the Kedah Sultanate is the eldest and oldest royal lineage in the country,” insisted Nadarajan.

Rare illness compounds woman’s misery

A Komala suffers not only a rare condition but is also poverty stricken.

KUALA LUMPUR: The proverb ‘health is wealth’ is meaningless to 54-year-old A Komala.

The mother of three who is living in squalor in a longhouse settlement in Jinjang with her husband has been hit by a rare disease – she looses iron from her bones, causing them to be fragile.

She had been suffering from this ailment for the past five years but it has become worse now.

Her grown up children – aged between 23 and 35, with two of them married and living away– are of no help to her. Her youngest son only returns home to sleep.

“The doctor told me it is a rare medical condition where something like a bacteria eats into my bones causing my body to be painful. All the doctors could do is to replace the iron lost from my bones to ensure they don’t break,” Komala told FMT when met recently.

She explained that her whole body aches especially at night and on rainy days. Lately she is finding it hard to walk due to her fragile knees.

“Rotten fruit is what people describe if they were to touch any part of my body, and my bones are equivalent to those who are aged 90 and above,” she said.

Komala added that she is losing iron from her bones for some unknown reasons and currently she takes whole lots of medicines for her condition.

“I have to watch my steps especially during rainy days as I would be paralyzed if I fall anywhere,” she said while pointing at the slippery floor of her house which was wet due to leaks in the roof.

Speaking further on her medical condition, she said that fluids were removed from her knees often and she visits the Kuala Lumpur Hospital up to five times per month. Almost on all visits she is admitted.

“I spend more time in the hospital than my home,” she laughed while relating her ordeal.

She first visited the government hospital near her house but has since been referred to the KLH.

Komala gets little support from her children and her husband underwent a major cardiac bypass few months ago, thus is unable to care for her.

Often their meals are provided by the neighbours. Due to her illness and medicines, she gets weak easily, far more when proper meals are hard to come.

“Forget about medical procedures, I would be rather happy if I have proper meals everyday,” she said in tears.

Though medicines are free, she still needs to fork out RM25 as cab fare for each visit to the hospital. Taking the bus is difficult due to her fragile condition.

No action against Loga, says Speaker

Dewan Rakyat Speaker says the Deputy FT Minister did not intend to mislead the House so he will not be referred to the RPC.

KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Federal Territories Minister J Loga Bala Mohan will not be referred to the Rights and Privileges Committee for misleading the Dewan Rakyat because there is no element of malice, said Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia.

Pandikar Amin said he could not see that there was intention from Loga to confuse or mislead the Dewan.

“I could not find any element of malice. It was just that his delivery on the issue was different and was misinterpreted,” he said in Parliament today.

Pandikar was referring to Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng’s concern over Loga’s promise that the proposed assessment rates would be deferred to March pending consultation with stakeholders.

However, Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Mansor had insisted that the new assessment rates would take effect on Jan 1, despite objection by many quarters.

Lim had quoted Section 36(12) of the Standing Order which provides for any member who imputes statements that mislead the House is deemed to be in contempt of the House and the member may be referred to the Committee of Privileges for the offence.

Pandikar, however, said although assessment rates would be increased, the quantum had not been determined.

“The final rate will only be determined at the end of March, 2014. Ratepayers can thus pay according to the current rate,” he said.

Pandikar said DBKL would not penalise those who did not settle the tax before its implementation.

He urged both sides of the divide not to politicise the issue.

Anwar's defamation suit against blogger on Jan 27-28

(NST) - The hearing of opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's defamation suit against blogger

"Papa Gomo" over alleged defamatory postings implying he was engaged in indecent acts with a man will begin on January 27.

High Court judicial commissioner Rosilah Yop fixed the hearing date after meeting the lawyers from both parties while in chambers today.

When met outside the court, Anwar's counsel Muhammad Afiq Mohd Noor clarified that the trial is scheduled from January 27 till 28.

"The court has also fixed January 20 for case management," he said.

Counsel S. Parvinder Kaur acted for the blogger whose real name is Wan Muhammad Azri Wan Deris, 30.

In his suit filed at the High Court registry on March 21, Anwar, 66, claimed that the defendant had posted defamatory statements and uploaded certain images on his website at www.papagomo.com.

He claimed the website could be accessed by anyone surfing the Internet in Malaysia and the world.

He alleged the statements meant that he was a person without morals and was not fit to hold public office.

He further stated that the defamatory words implied that he was not fit to be the prime minister and that he was irresponsible and could not be trusted.

Anwar alleged that since Malaysia was a country with a Muslim majority, the defamatory words and images impacted him negatively.

He is seeking general, aggravated and exemplary damages and for an injunction to stop the defamatory postings from being repeated or reproduced.

India refuses to learn lessons from Mumbai attacks

26/11: Could it happen again?

Is India any safer than what it was in 2008?
The fifth anniversary of the deadly Nov. 26, 2008 terrorist attacks that shook India’s commercial capital of Mumbai has once again spotlighted glaring shortfalls in the country’s security apparatus that remain unaddressed.
On that fateful day, at around 9.30 pm, Mumbai came under siege by 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba gunmen who launched simultaneous attacks on six key locations across the city. The 60 hours of terror spread over four days, resulting in a loss of roughly US $1billion to Mumbai, industry body Assocham estimated.
The coordinated attacks killed 166 people, including policemen, National Security Guard commandos and some foreigners. Nine terrorists were killed by the security forces in the operation against them. The lone surviving Pakistani terrorist, Ajmal Amir Kasab, who was nabbed after the carnage, was hanged on Nov. 21 last year in India.
However, the tragic episode refuses to get any closure as the question that continues to preoccupy the country is – Is India any safer than what it was in 2008?
Unfortunately, India's response to security threats – security experts say – continues to be ad hoc and uncoordinated. The challenges Mumbai faces in preventing militant attacks are echoed in other cities of India, often crippled by ill-equipped police forces and bureaucracies unable to respond quickly to threats.
State police forces, the security analysts say, continue to suffer from a glaring deficit of arms and equipment as well as poor infrastructural support. Worse, the intelligence agencies, both the Intelligence Bureau and the Research and Analysis Wing, the nerve centers of the security apparatus, are reeling under a severe staff crunch.
“Even though Pakistani terrorists gained access to the country through the coast, even now India’s coastline continues to be vulnerable,” said Rajeev Bhaskar, a Mumbai-based security analyst. “The fact that terrorist organizations still prefer the sea route, as evidenced by the blasts that rocked Hyderabad this February that killed 17 people and injured 119, shows that India has still not been able to build up foolproof deterrent capabilities.”
India has been targeted at least 11 times by terrorists since the 2008 attack, according to government figures. One major attack on Mumbai killed at least 21 people on July 14, 2011, with three bomb blasts also injuring 141 people.
Worse, Bhaskar points out that India’s plans to establish a comprehensive coastal security mechanism in several phases since 2005 have not progressed satisfactorily. The country was to set up coastal police stations, provide boats, streamline responsibilities between the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard and ensure better intelligence coordination, adds the expert. “Unfortunately, none of that is in evidence today. Lack of political will and upcoming general elections have only made matters worse,” he added.
India was also to implement 46 static coastal radars, but today only 34 are up. Similarly, fishermen were promised biometric identity cards by the home ministry, registration for their vessels and communication equipment on their boats.
“But there’s scant progress on this initiative either,” said Bhaskar, who was formerly with the state-run Research and Analysis Wing.
A national committee on strengthening maritime security for quick and effective implementation was also set up with much fanfare. But over time the body has stopped meeting. Defense officers point out that often there’s also overlap of responsibility between the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard, while the use of special forces like the Navy’s Marine Commando Force also remains unsatisfactory.
The political failure to set up the much-vaunted National Counter-Terrorism Center (NCTC) also poses a grave risk to national security. The NCTC mandate included streamlining intelligence collection and collation by bypassing the labyrinth of competing bureaucracies that undermine counter-terror operations. While the Center had initially announced the NCTC unilaterally, political opposition from the states and the opposition have hamstrung the plan.
A recent analysis of the status of three anti-terror initiatives of the UPA government, the National Intelligence Grid (Natgrid), National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) and the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems. Natgrid, a pet project of then home minister P. Chidambaram when he was home minister, lost momentum when he was shifted to the Finance Ministry. The system was meant to set up a sophisticated network to pull out data about any terrorist suspect within a matter of seconds,
Coastal security and disaster management is beset by poor cooperation. According to a former director general of police, recommendations, particularly on manpower deployment, weapons and coordination, have not been implemented and police personnel do not have adequate ammunition for training and practice.
The government has also failed to deliver on the critical issue of coastal security, as evidenced by a failed mock security drill in southern Hyderabad that exposed the chinks in armor of the Indian coastal security apparatus. Fake "terrorists" managed to breach coastal security in three places to enter the city. The policemen who posed as terrorists managed to reach the nerve center of the city without being intercepted even once.
“Partisan politics and a singular lack of vision have ensured that India doesn’t move forward from 26/11,” said a senior home ministry official on the condition of anonymity.
“India needs to take a leaf out of America’s book,” said Ram Naik of Madan Mohan Malviya Research Foundation, a New Delhi-based think tank. “Post the 9/11 attacks by Al-Qaeda, the United States created a department for homeland security which was tasked with creating a meticulous plan for securing its coasts. This has apparently worked very well as since then Washington hasn’t been plagued with such attacks.”
Indian businesses, which bore the brunt of the 26/11 attack, are still reserved about the country’s security set-up and top CEOs concede that while technological upgrades have taken place post-26/11, progress on many fronts is still tardy.
“It has been 13 years since 9/ 11. Since then, no major incident has occurred in the US. But terrorist attacks have happened here,” Ajay Piramal, Chairman of the US$ 700 million Piramal Group, said in a recent media interview. “I’m not confident that it won't take place again." Added Industrial Rahul Bajaj, Chairman of the 6-billion Bajaj Group, “I can only hope that my government has taken steps….that such an event will not happen again on Indian soil."
Video surveillance, analysts say, can be crucial in controlling crime. But just to give an example of one Indian city, while a record 6,000 CCTV cameras exist on paper in the government ministries in Mumbai, a laughable 100 cameras are installed across the city which hosts a whopping 26 million people.
26/11 was a reminder to everyone that India was on the radar of terrorists who were waiting to exploit the gaps in its security armor. Lives could have been saved had intelligence, reaction and preparedness worked in synchronicity. But unfortunately, even now India refuses to learn a lesson from that tragedy.

When silence isn’t an option for the Attorney General

Attorney General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail met journalists yesterday to discuss two issues – a rape
case involving a teenage bride, and the decision by the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) not to appeal former transport minister Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik's acquittal in the cheating case.

But the top government lawyer did not address the pink elephant in the room – the allegations of corruption against him by retired police investigator Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim.

The former Kuala Lumpur Criminal Investigations Department chief had been going at it for the past year with hammer and tongs against Gani - writing letters to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and finally making a statutory declaration (SD) of all his allegations.

He even met Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad this year to brief the country's longest-serving prime minister of his allegations against the chief prosecutor.

Nothing happened. The police have asked him to lodge a report instead of putting a sworn statement.

Meantime, the AG continues to remain silent.

For any person, from the humble manual worker to the powerful prime minister, the one thing of real value is his reputation. In most cases, one fights tooth and nail to protect one's reputation.

In Gani's case, he could have filed a police report against Mat Zain or sued him for defamation.

Or even given a point by point rebuttal to the serious allegations raised by Mat Zain, some of which point to treason and a miscarriage of justice.

Instead, Gani speaks to the press and tries to convey the message that it is business at usual at the AGC.

His silence is a damning indictment of this whole episode.

Putrajaya too has yet to come to Gani's defence, except to say that there is nothing to investigate as it is just a statutory declaration. But Mat Zain is a former police detective and knows his law.

His sworn statement now is in wide circulation, even if the media is circumspect to publish all its contents. As one lawyer put it, the SD is explosive.

The AG should not remain silent any longer. That option will only further reinforce the perception in the court of public opinion that he is in the wrong.

Malaysia needs an AG who prosecutes without fear or favour, not one tainted by allegations that can undermine the entire government. - December 3, 2013.

IGP's Xmas hit - You better watch out

I am on the waiting-list for membership of the exclusive ‘Sedition Club Uniting Malaysians’, (SCUM) which has several distinguished members like Adam Adli, Haris Ibrahim, Tian Chua, Tamrin Ghafar, Safwan Anang and Zunar. I don’t think many people know the criteria which makes one eligible for membership.

Who would have realised that a well-meaning article ‘One Idealogy, Two Reactions’ about the need to be compassionate to Malaysians, regardless of their political leanings or social background, would have upset the inspector-general of police (IGP) Khalid Abu Bakar?

Does Khalid (right) suffer from an inferiority complex or was he under extreme pressure to explain his involvement in the Lahad Datu debacle?

More importantly, he wanted to divert attention from the terrible handling of the Siti Aishah Abdul Wahab story, by the Malaysian government and himself. They probably thought they would capitalise on the story of Aishah’s enslavement.

Initially, the Metropolitan police in England refused to divulge the identity of the Malaysian woman who had been “freed”, but Khalid jumped the gun and blurted out her name before the English police were ready to make this public.

Even before Kamar Mahtum and Hishamuddin Rais arrived in London, the IGP was already boasting about the welcome they would give Aishah on her return, home. Khalid said she would not be arrested as her “crime” was in the past. Meanwhile, the women’s minister talked about providing counselling.

It was like a couple expecting their first child, preparing the nursery to receive the baby, except the ‘baby’ - Aishah - refused to come home.

As information trickled back to KL, the IGP was probably told that Aishah had not deviated from her ideology. She had not been enslaved, as was previously reported. She had no intention of returning to Malaysia. She was not remorseful, nor did she want to resume ties with the land of her birth. Sources also allege that the reunion between Kamar and Aishah was far from cordial.

If Aishah really wanted to flee from her captors, she would have.

Khalid and the government realised, too late, that Aishah had outsmarted them. Aishah did not follow the Umno Baru script.

The IGP and Najib Abdul Razak probably wanted to give Aishah a heroine’s welcome at KLIA. Then, after a six month religious rehabilitation at one of the indoctrination centres, arrange a photo-shoot of Aishah kissing Najib’s hand, renouncing her previous ideology, giving up her Marxist beliefs, and praising Najib’s government as the saviour of her body and soul.

The penny must have dropped as Kamar and Hisham passed through passport control at Heathrow, on Saturday morning to return home. So, Khalid had to divert attention from the government’s terrible handling of the Aishah story. A distraction had to be found. Me! The rest is history.

A means to intimidate the public?

Did Khalid, in a moment of madness, lose his judgment and decide to abuse his position and utilise the publicity machinery of the state, and use me as a means to intimidate the public?

He was foolish to think I would be intimidated. Perhaps, he wanted me to be cowed and cower under the bed, as a certain politician, who was caught in flagrante delicto in Port Dickson, was alleged to have done.

Khalid believes that writers for the alternative media write, merely to get hits. They don’t! One would like to ask the IGP if his men have been given orders to use their weapons, just to score hits, on their victims?

Will Khalid understand that one of the reasons the mainstream media is failing the public is because they are economical with the truth. They manipulate facts and tell lies to incite hatred.

If Khalid were to talk to former Utusan journalists, he would learn many painful truths. Those who joined the exodus, in 2007, have alleged that their wages have not been paid. Another journalist alleges that the paper is losing money, because Umno Baru takes out full page advertisements in Utusan, and then fails to pay the paper.

Utusan loses revenue, and Najib, the president of Umno Baru knows that the party is bankrupt. So, he urges the government-linked companies (GLCs) to place advertisements in Utusan Malaysia.

My calling is to continue informing the public and stimulate them to ask questions of their parliamentarians and people in positions of responsibility, like the IGP. What are Khalid’s good points?  People have lost faith in the police because of leaders like Khalid.

One would have thought that Khalid would have understood the nuances of my article.  Surely, someone could have explained them to him, before he was allowed to shoot his mouth off.

It was Khalid who incorrectly mentioned race as the reason for the different treatments meted out to Chin Peng and Aishah. Perhaps, he would like to tell us why the dead Malaysian terrorists like Dr Azahari Hussein and Noordin Mat Top, the masterminds of the Jakarta and Bali bombings, were allegedly given the VIP treatment? Not many dead Malaysians would be returned to Malaysia at the taxpayer’s expense, in an RMAF transport.

Khalid warned me via a Bernama report that, “She (Mariam Mokhtar) had better watch out...”

Despite his failings, we should praise Khalid for his ‘1Malaysia’ spirit. During his visit to multicultural and predominantly Christian Sabah, he has kicked off the Christmas season with the classic song ‘You’d better watch out’. Most readers may know it by its original title, ‘Santa Claus is coming to town’.
A Malaysian makeover

With apologies to the original songwriters, J Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie, whose song made its debut in 1934, I have given the song a Malaysian makeover, and substituted the words ‘Santa Claus’ with ‘The IGP’.

The older generation may recall Fred Astaire, Dean Martin or Frank Sinatra singing this song. Khalid and younger Malaysians may prefer Miley Cyrus’ catchy rendition on YouTube.

Oh! You better watch out,
You better not cry,
You better not pout,
I'm telling you why:
The IGP  is coming to town!

He’s making a list,
He's checking it twice,
Gonna find out who’s naughty or nice.
The IGP is coming to town!

He sees you when you’re sleeping,
He knows when you're awake.
He knows when you've been bad or good,
So be good for goodness sake!

So...You better watch out, You better not cry
You better not pout, I’m telling you why.
The IGP is coming to town.

Who knows? The Khalid inspired song, ‘You Better Watch Out’, may prove to be this year’s Christmas hit.

Khalid was wrong to attack and intimidate members of the rakyat. This harassment should be our catalyst for real, meaningful change. It is Khalid and Umno Baru who had better watch out!

---

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO).

GLCs Need To Prepare Comprehensive Plan To Assist Bumiputera Companies - Muhyiddin

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 3 (Bernama) -- The need for government-linked companies (GLCs) to
prepare a comprehensive plan to assist Bumiputera companies is among seven initiatives that should be implemented in near term in support of the implementation of the Bumiputera Economic Empowerment Agenda.

Outlining the seven initiatives, Umno deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said GLCs should also list opportunities that could be seized by Bumiputera companies, apart from submitting periodical performance reports to the Bumiputera Economic Council.

He said this was in line with the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) prescribed for GLC chief executive officers under the Bumiputera Economic Agenda.

The construction of more vocational training colleges should be expedited to meet the growing demand of Bumiputera students in pursuing vocational training, he said when simultaneously opening the general assemblies of the Umno Wanita, Youth and Puteri movements in conjunction with the 2013 Umno General Assembly at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC), here Tuesday night.

"This is in line with efforts to produce more skilled Bumiputera workers to cater to market needs and high-income economy," said.

Muhyiddin, who is also deputy prime minister, said the government should redouble its efforts to produce more Malay and Bumiputera professionals in various fields.

"To date, the government has succeeded in raising the number of Malay and Bumiputera professionals through training schemes and higher education to churn out up to between 40 and 50 per cent Malay and Bumiputera professionals among doctors, dentists, veterinary doctors, engineers and surveyors.

"This effort should be continued in all professional fields to reflect the racial composition of the country," he said.

Muhyiddin said Malay and Bumiputera businessmen and traders should improve their competitiveness and be willing to adapt to the market-friendly business environment.

"Hence, they must accept the principles of transparency and competition to enable them to enjoy government support and seize the opportunities available," he said, adding leakages and wastage should be plugged to enhance the effectiveness of efforts to help them.

Other initiatives outlined by Muhyiddin included continuing efforts to develop assets belonging to the Malays and Bumiputera to further strengthen their economic progress.

He also stressed on the importance of implementing more programmes to generate income, especially in rural and urban poor areas, to offset the high cost of living.

The deputy prime minister said the government should expand agro-based industries through various forms of support such as capital and training, by empowering small and medium-scale industries, and helping small business owners, farmers and fishermen.

"Agencies provide financing should ease loan processing for qualified Bumiputera entrepreneurs and traders," he said, adding that local authorities should facilitate licensing of small businesses.

As such, he urged Wanita Umno, Youth and Puteri wings, particularly their economic bureaus, to cooperate with relevant government agencies to pioneer efforts to help raise the income of Bumiputera entrepreneurs and traders.

Muhyiddin also wanted the Affordable Housing Scheme to be extended, apart from introducing affordable house rental scheme in an effort to improve the well-being of Bumiputera living in cities.

Malaysia's one-spot jump in corruption index 'not enough'

Malaysia’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI) score this year has improved by one step from the previous year but there are still many matters to be concerned about, stated Transparency International-Malaysia (TI-M).

Malaysia had scored 50/100 compared to last year’s 49/100 in the CPI, and the country ranked 53 out of 177 countries compared to last year’s 54 out of 177 countries.

However, despite the improvement, there are still massive improvements to be done in the judiciary sector, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) sector and the corporate sector, said TI-M president Akhbar Satar.
“So there are some improvements (this year), of course we have a lot of things to do,” said Akhbar during his speech announcing the results.

Malaysia is currently ranked third among the 10 countries in the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean), with Singapore and Brunei ranking first and second.

It is a popular adage that a country with a higher gross domestic product (GDP) will be less corrupted. Malaysia, with a current GDP per capita of US$10,381 is the third highest in Asean, and this is reflected in Malaysia’s improvement in the CPI index.

Singapore is ranked fifth out of 177 countries, alongside Norway with a CPI score of 86. Norway is currently holding the highest GDP per capita of US$99,558, but did not obtain the top spot.

In this year’s CPI overall ranking and score, Malaysia is on par with Turkey. Denmark and New Zealand top the chart with a CPI score of 91.

Among those at the bottom of the chart, Somalia had retained its last spot for 10 consecutive years with a CPI score of eight.

The CPI has been published by Transparency International (TI) since 1995 to annually rank countries by their perceived levels of corruption, as determined by expert assessment and opinion surveys.

The scale used to determine the severity of a country’s corruption range from zero to 100, zero being the most corrupted to 100 being clean from corruption.

TI-M had pointed out concerns over the lack of investigations and convictions in high-profile cases, privatisation and mega projects awarded without open tenders or competitive bidding.

Concerns over Official Secrets Act

Other than that, TI-M also pointed out concerns over the government’s Official Secrets Act, no public disclosure of assets, and corruption in the corporate and political sector.

Thus, TI-M had made several recommendations to improve on Malaysia's CPI score and to curb corruption:

• Pursue corruption cases of officials at the highest levels without fear or favour to restore public confidence in the fight against corruption.

• Improve transparency by repealing the amendment to Section 203A of the Penal Code. Repeal the Official Secrets Act and replacing it with a Freedom of Information Act. There must be public disclosure of assets, as well as a review of the weaknesses in the Whistleblowers Protection Act.

• Grant MACC more independence without undue pressure or interference. MACC should improve and increase enforcement, intelligence and evidence-gathering.

• Amend the MACC Act 2009 to close loopholes:
  
  Section 23 - A member of the administration can award contracts, tenders and procurement to a relative or associate merely with a declaration of interest.
  
  Section 36 - No power to require a declaration of assets without initiating a corruption investigation.

• Companies should be punished along with their employees for corruption offences committed by their employees for the companies’ benefit.

• More severe punishments for corruption convictions.

• Political parties to be more transparent and accountable in how they receive and spend political donations.

• No privatisation and mega projects without open tenders and competitive bidding.

• Electoral reform along with the Election Commission for better accountability and to ensure integrity at federal and state elections.

• Adoption of ‘Open Government Partnership’ to ensure better representation, better laws, better governance and better results.

'Wrecking of Bujang Valley candi federal gov't's fault'

PAS has blamed the BN-run federal government for approving the Bujang Valley developer, which acknowledged that the remains of an 8th century temple was demolished to make way for a housing project.

Bandar Saujana Sdn Bhd spokesman Saw Guan Keat had told The Star newspaper that its plans to develop Bujang Valley were approved by the Sungai Petani district council between 1994 and 1995.

Saw was reported as saying that the land was purchased from another developer in February this year and the work of levelling the land in the area began in September.
He also acknowledged that they had destroyed the remains of the temple.

But when contacted, PAS said its responsibility was limited to the sale of the land.

Former Kedah executive councillor, Dr Hamdan Khalid, who had been in charge of the state's arts and heritage affairs committee, said the PAS-led government had then only approved land acquisition in an area of the historical site.

"Pakatan Rakyat in Kedah under (late leader) Azizan Abdul Razak as menteri besar very much supported any project under the federal government at that time.

"We supported and approved the purchase and acquisition of the land as decided by the federal government... we could only do so much.

"Everything else was under the purview of the central government (Department of National Heritage)," Hamdan (right) said in an SMS to Malaysiakini.

The former state assemblyperson for Tanjung said PAS was in the dark about the demolition of the remains of the ancient temple at the heritage site, which was brought to public attention by NGOs over the weekend.

Hamdan reiterated that the project was under the supervision of the federal Department of National Heritage and not under the supervision of the state government.

"The state was not involved (in the monitoring of the project)," he added.

Builder unaware of 1,000-year-old candi at site

Housing developer Bandar Saujana Sdn Bhd, which demolished a more than 1,000 years old candi in Lembah Bujang, Kedah, which sparked public outrage, said it was not aware of the structure's historical value.

"We had a site visit before land clearing started in September. We saw a stone structure (candi). We did not know what it was," the company's project manager Saw Guan Keat is quoted as saying in The Star today.

Following the demolitions, Saw said, the rubble of bricks and pebbles have been disposed of.

"If we had known the structure was a historical site, we would have not have cleared it," he said.

Saw added that he only learnt the significance of the candi after reading about it in the newspapers.

According to the report, Saw said his company had purchased eight lots of land from a previous housing developer after carrying out a land search with the Kedah Land Office on Jan 14.

"The company proceeded to buy the land in February. When we did another search at the Land Office on July 30, again, we did not find any encumbrance," Saw is quoted as saying.

He said a plan for a mixed development project submitted by the previous developer had been approved by the Sungai Petani Municipal Council and the state exco, between 1994 and 1995.

His company, Saw added, had merely taken over the project. He has lodged a police report on Nov 29, following the demolition of the candi.

View comments (39)

Our Nusantara multicultural past

COMMENT We have yet to know the extent of the damage done by a developer in the Bujang Valley historical area, where a candi was found to have been demolised.

Until there is greater clarity on what happened, it is unwise to cast aspersions on the authorities in Kedah, especially those custodians of our national heritage. Let us give them the benefit of the doubt.

What we cannot excuse however is how the Bujang Valley historic site has been managed.
Unfortunately, Malaysians have woken up to the poor condition of care for this historic site after the “demolition” of the historic Sg Batu Candi (No 11).

If it is true that a private developer had been given permission to “clear the land” for development, the Sungai Petani Municipal Council (MPSP) must explain how it came to giving such consent especially as the Sg Batu Candi is quite well-known.

Finger-pointing aside, the MPSP needs to come clean about what happened and more importantly, how can it happen.

Right thinking Malaysians must be wondering how a developer and a local council can be so derelict in the performance of their duties. But a more important question is: why are we talking about the Bujang Valley only now?

I suspect there many Malaysians who are not aware of the special significance of the Bujang Valley. Put simply, they do not know or care about this our common heritage.

About a month ago, I visited the Bujang Valley museum with some colleagues. It took us some time to locate the museum as the signage was not very helpful on the highway.

The museum, which resembles a 1980s archaeological gallery, has seen better days.
A group of school children from Putrajaya came, led by their teachers. One of them, upon examining the artefacts on display, said to his friend: “This must be Shiite religious instruments.”

No one corrected him and they left without having had any kind of meaningful guidance.

Recalling my primary and secondary education History syllabus, I was very sure that our text books had extensive descriptions about Malaysia’s pre-Islamic history. After all, our oldest Malay royal family is the Kedah royal household. It can trace its lineage back to its Hindu-Buddhist past in the 10th century.

The Malaysian education system cannot be so bad that it is not providing knowledge about the Hindu-Buddhist periods, an era that gave us words like ‘kerajaan’, ‘cinta’, ‘putera’, ‘bumi’, ‘menteri’ and other markers of our national language. Perhaps History text-books in schools have yet to catch up to the latest discoveries.

The Bujang Valley historical site, which covers a vast area, has sites dating back to the 1st century BC. Latest discoveries at the Sg Batu archaeological site, verified by the Department of National Heritage and international scholars, has been proven to be the oldest iron-age human settlement in all of Southeast Asia.

When iron ingots were being produced and exported to southern India from the ports of the Bujang Valley, there were no other trading ports in the region as sophisticated or a community so well organised. It would be another 600 years before Borobudur was built and 800 years before Angkor Wat was conceived.

As the Global Centre for Archaeology at Universiti Sains Malaysia does not have enough funds, we were told during our site visit that excavation works have been scaled back. By September this year, a picture of this well-organised iron production centre had been documented and a small gallery set up at the site.

There is even evidence of jetties, foundries, an administrative centre and temples. It is particularly interesting that the Sg Batu site is not an expatriate colony but more likely a combination of both settlement and a local civilisation.

Challenges of management

In many ways, the reason why the Bujang Valley historical site is so badly managed is bound up with Malaysia’s inability to understand who we are.

Having evolved at the crossroads between East and West, with India and China as major influences, it is inevitable that Southeast Asian societies are very open to different cultural and religious influences. If it is difficult to pinpoint a set of cultural markers that make us Malaysian, it is because we share our identity markers with so many different ethnicities and civilisations.

Archaeological discoveries at Bujang Valley are a clear showcase that the people there may not have started out as Hindu-Buddhists although it is clear that in later times - especially in the 5th to the 8th century AD - both Hinduism and Buddhism were dominant.
Seen in this continuum, it is not surprising that present-day Kedah should be a bastion of Islam as it was the first Malay kingdom to embrace Islam.

Lest we forget, the Bujang Valley site covers an area of more than 100sq-km. It covers coastal and riverine areas right up to the Jerai Peak. It also stretches all the way to Ceruk Tok Kun in Seberang Perai (in Penang) and comes under the Sungai Petani municipality.
Obviously, urban planning and development, often superimposed over this area before historical discovery, allowed for plantations and housing development.

If Malaysia is having to meet the challenge of accommodating places of worship that spring up along crossroads and other significant areas, this is because some of these religious sites are scattered over a vast area that may have once been poorly inhabited.

The same is the case for the Bujang Valley site, with candis found in paddy fields and in rubber and oil palm estates.
In fact, one of the reasons why the Sg Batu site was so easily discovered was because the top soil that protected the site had been stripped away for rubber and oil palm planting. It did not take archaeologists too long to reach their target as the top soil was not more than a couple of feet deep.

For readers who have not been to the Bujang Valley or have not ventured outside the parameters of the Bujang Valley museum, it is a worthwhile trip to go experience the site personally.

Once there, the challenges associated with its management and care become very obvious. The local communities no longer identify themselves with these historic sites especially those having been buried for more than a millennia.

More importantly, the tourism infrastructure around these sites is poorly developed and as such, there is very little incentive for the local community to ‘look after’ the sites. The best that we can hope for is for these communities to leave the sites alone.

The best thing for the Bujang Valley now is to have a complete audit of where these historic sites are and design a heritage management plan around them. This should be embedded into the State Local Plan that regulates development at the local level. It is also important to provide more resources to the Department of National Heritage as it can help build local capacity to care for these sites.

Finally, as all land matters come under the jurisdiction of the Kedah government, there needs to be greater vision to see the great potential for the Bujang Valley, which is just a skip and a hop away from the George Town Unesco World Heritage Site, as well as the Lenggong Valley Unesco site.

Going forward, this is the perfect opportunity for the government to take the lead in protecting and developing the Bujang Valley. Archaeological studies have shown indisputably that the site is a result of local and foreign interactions.

It is a clear reminder that, for more than 2,000 years, the people of the Malay peninsula have remained open and supportive of sojourners, migrants and settlers.

Here is clear evidence that the ethnocentric cries of some groups in the country today is a clear blip in our longer history of Malaysian identity-making built upon openness, friendship and mutual respect.

---

NEIL KHOR completed his PhD at Cambridge University and now writes occasionally on matters that he thinks require better historical treatment. He is quietly optimistic about Malaysia's future.

'Developer's historical ignorance not surprising'

It is a historical site that houses the ancient ruins of temples that date back more than 2,000 years. The Bujang Valley in Kedah commemorates the nation's Hindu-Buddhist past.
  
And while such archaeological treasures are celebrated in other parts of the world, Malaysian Indian Progressive Association (Mipas) secretary-general S Barathidasan said the situation is different here.

So, according to him, it comes as no surprise that the developer Saujana Sdn Bhd, which demolished one of the temples, was not aware that the area was a historical site.

"This is because our education system is only concerned about highlighting the country's Islamic past. There is little or no emphasis given to the rest.

"It is common knowledge that our history textbook syllabus keeps changing over the years, tailor-made to suit the warped agendas of certain groups," he told Malaysiakini.
Against this disappointing backdrop, Barathidasan said foreigners appear to have a better understanding about Malaysia's history as opposed to Malaysians themselves.

The Mipas secretary-general said he was also disappointed to read that the housing developer's checks with the Kedah Land Office showed that the land had no encumbrances.

"This is how dismissive the authorities are when it comes to the nation’s non-Islamic past, once again punching a gaping hole into the prime minister's so-called 1Malaysia," he said.
Malaysian heritage

However, Barathidasan stressed that Bujang Valley is not a Hindu or Buddhist historical site, but rather a Malaysian heritage that must be celebrated by all irrespective of colour or creed.

"What is the point of the government promoting tourism campaigns vis-a-vis the Visit Malaysia Year when such blatant historical massacre happens?" he asked.

Barathidasan urged all politicians not to use this issue to gain political mileage by twisting the facts.

"Mipas hopes that the people do not fall into this trap. Keep your political differences aside, this is about saving the nation’s historical heritage," he added.

Barathidasan called on both the state government and federal government to intervene and stop this unpardonable destruction.

"Bujang Valley must be given due recognition and not be kept under wraps.

"It is heart breaking that the site gained national prominence, only after a temple had been demolished," he added.

Barathidasan also called for action to be taken against the officials who facilitated the selling of the land for commercial development, knowing well that it has invaluable historical significance.

"If this nation is to progress, then there is no room for people with such regressive mentalities in our midst," he said.

"In more mature democracies, heads would have rolled for this incident. But then again... this is Malaysia," he added.
Badan Warisan Malaysia concerned
Badan Warisan Malaysia (BWM) expressed concerns over the intentional demolition of the 8th century temple remnants.
Executive director Elizabeth Cardosa said it was alarming that only some monuments in the Sungai Batu area in the Bujang Valley had been gazetted in 2012 under the National Heritage Act, while others remain without any legal protection.
BWM warned that unless there is a rigorous management and protection of such monuments - along with punitive action by the official custodians of the country's heritage - the destruction would continue and the people would only be able to stand and watch helplessly.
"This loss undermines the rich character and texture of our cultural history which is important to all Malaysians," Cardosa said in a statement.
"Hence, we urge the National Heritage Department and Kedah government to immediately put measures in place to halt the needless destruction of this ancient archaeological site and accord them the necessary protection.
"BWM believes this archaeological site has enormous potential and outstanding values to world history and culture and that steps should be taken quickly to inscribe it on the tentative list as a World Heritage Site before more monuments fall prey to further furtive and irresponsible acts of destruction."

Acid attack: Two women burned by husbands

The man, 90, had suspected that his [young] wife was having an illicit relationship, said Police. PHOTO: FILE

BAHAWALPUR / MULTAN: An elderly man was arrested on Sunday for throwing acid at his wife.

The woman was taken to the rural health centre, where she was said to be out of danger. Doctors treating her said her chest had been affected.

Police said they were told that Ghulam Qadir, a resident of Taranda Muhammad Panah, was suffering from a psychological disorder.

They said his wife had died a decade ago. A few years ago, they said, he married a young widow from the same village. Police quoted some neighbours as saying that Qadir suspected that his wife was having an illicit relationship. They said he often beat her and would stop after some neighbours’ intervention.

On Sunday, police said, some neighbours heard the woman’s cries. When they rushed to her rescue, they found that Qadir had thrown acid at her.

Police were called and Qadir was arrested. Police said they were investigating the matter.

“Burned for giving birth to a girl”

A woman was burned with acid allegedly by her husband apparently for giving birth to a girl, who their relatives said was thrown into a canal. The relatives told the police that the man told them that his wife had had a still birth.

The woman was taken to Nishtar Hospital in Multan where doctors said she had 60 per cent burns. They said she would likely survive.

The assailant fled and has been missing.

Police said the 22-year-old Saiqa Bibi* of Jinnah Colony in Jahanian had married Muhammad Alam, 24, a daily wager.

Saiqa Bibi told police that Alam had been quarreling with her since the day he discovered that she was pregnant with a girl. She said he often beat her publicly. She said he had wanted a son.

On Sunday, she said, shortly after she gave birth to a girl, he told the midwife to leave.

She said he took the newborn with him and returned a few hours later without it. He told them that the baby was dead and that he had thrown it in the Lower Bari Canal in Chak 10-R.

She said when she started shouting, he threw a jug full of acid at her that he had brought with him. He fled.

She said some neighbours rushed to help her and took her to the tehsil headquarters hospital, from where she was sent to Nishtar Hospital in Multan. Doctors treating her said her face was unharmed. They said her chest, abdomen and arms had been burned.

Khalida Bibi, an aunt of the woman, told police that she was at the house when Alam took the baby and attacked his wife.

She said he had taken the child as soon as it was born. She said she was not sure if the child was alive or not. “It wasn’t crying,” she said.

Jahanian SHO Asim Shaheen said the police were looking for Alam and the midwife. He said rescuers had been asked to look for the baby in the canal.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 2nd, 2013.

Kedah issues stop-work order on relic site

The Kedah state government has ordered the housing developer involved in the demolition of several 8th century heritage site temple remnants known as Candi Sungai Batu or Bujang Valley site 11, to stop development at the site immediately.

Menteri Besar Mukhriz Mahathir said the developer was asked to stop work immediately after a request made by Kedah exco member Tajul Urus Md Zain today.

"I cannot comment further because I need the full report of what happened there. I will have a meeting to find out what actually happened because there seem to be two versions of what happened in Sungai Batu and I want to get the actual picture myself," he said.

The Bujang Valley is an archeological site and excavation had revealed jetty remains, iron-smelting areas and a clay-brick monument dating back 110AD, making it the oldest man-made structure to be recorded in South-east Asia, said a report.

It is said to be the most important entry port before Melaka (15th century) and Singapore (19th century) as the Bujang Valley was believed to be a transit point for Arab nations, India and China.

Mukhriz who officially opened the 'New Seasons Ward' at the Kedah Medical Centre (KMC) in Alor Setar today was asked to comment on the outrage of netizens after a tomb temple was destroyed by a developer.

Meanwhile, Mukhriz said the state government which owns 46 percent share of KMC had spent RM3 million to upgrade the New Seasons Ward at the 7th floor of the hospital with 28 beds, including a VVIP room.

He added that such investment was necessary to cater for the growing demand for quality service and privacy.

MIC leader: How can you sell history?

An MIC leader is shocked that the Kedah state government sold the land that housed ancient Hindu temples and wants the state administration to repurchase it.

"Can the present state government disclose when it was sold?

"Was it done by the previous PAS government or the present BN government? In any event, it is unpardonable, no matter which government did it," said S Murugesan (right).

The MIC central working committee member said Bujang Valley is a historical and archaeological site that is even older than the Malacca Sultanate.

"What were they thinking of when they sold the land to a developer?" Murugesan asked.

He also said he was not convinced by Menteri Besar Mukhriz Mahathir’s assurance that the land would not be developed any time soon.

"Bujang Valley belongs to all Malaysians and it is part of our history and heritage.

"Selling it to a private company shows the short-sightedness and insensitivity of those who made the decision," Murugesan added.

He urged the menteri besar to repurchase the land and ensure that the area remains a historical site that belongs to all Malaysians.

Poultry traders cry foul over slaughter ban

Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) has been urged to suspend the ban on poultry slaughtering at the Pudu wet market until the new centralised abattoir at Desa Tun Razak is completed.

At a press conference today, Pudu Hawkers and Petty Traders Association president Jeff Tan said traders are unable to adhere to the ban, which comes into effect on Jan 1, without the new abattoir.

Compounding the issue further was the fact that DBKL has yet to inform the traders of the completion date for the new abattoir and Tan said little was currently known about the facilities to be provided.

"They ordered us to cease slaughtering, but never informed us when the the new abattoir will begin operation. Where should we do our poultry slaughtering? In our homes?

"We want this ban to be suspended until the abattoir is ready. We are not certain how the abattoir will function. We want to know there will be transparency in its management," Tan said.

Poultry traders were issued with notices in September and November, informing them that poultry slaughtering could no longer be carried out at the Pudu wet market, for reasons of hygiene.

A monopoly in the offing?

Tan warned that if the order was not rescinded and put off until the abattoir was completed, the livelihoods of many poultry traders would be affected.

Meanwhile, Cheras MP Tan Kok Wai said he had written two letters to DBKL, on Nov 8 and Nov 29, to urge the city council to suspend the poultry slaughter ban and urged it to consult the hawkers involved.

"I want to ensure that the proposed abattoir is managed transparently, will have a fair distribution and cost to the hawker traders. I do not want this to be monopolised by any crony out there," said Kok Wai, who is the association's adviser.

He also dismissed DBKL's claim that the poultry slaughtering techniques currently in practise by the hawkers are unhygienic, noting that the current practise has not changed for decades.

Putrajaya has considered banning the slaughter of poultry in markets following the outbreak of the the H5N1 virus in 2005, not no action has been taken on this since then.

Explain 'cultural barbarism', Najib, MB told

Describing the destruction of an ancient Hindu temple in Kedah as nothing short of “cultural barbarism”, an opposition MP has called on Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and Menteri Besar Mukhriz Mahathir to break their silence on the matter.

Padang Serai MP N Surendran (left) said the nation is stunned by the destruction of the ancient temple structure dating from the 8th century in the historic Bujang Valley archaelogical site.

“The destruction, carried out by a private developer, is an act of cultural barbarism, comparable to the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas by the Taliban.

“It is a shame and embarrassment to our country,” added the PKR vice-president.

Bujang Valley, said Surendran, is the most important archaeological site in Malaysia, and is famed throughout Southeast Asia.

The destroyed Candi Number 11, he added, was a tangible part of Malaysian history and invaluable to the nation.

“It is simply incomprehensible that the area was not gazetted as a historical site. How could the federal government and Kedah government allow this to happen?” he asked.

'What's the use of Culture and Tourism Ministry?'
Surendran also took the state government to task for its excuse that the land was privately owned, calling this “pathetic and unacceptable”.

“Why did the Kedah state authorities give the necessary approvals for development to proceed, knowing full well that the area is historically significant?

“The Kedah government and authorities have displayed breathtaking irresponsibility and cultural philistinism in allowing the development to proceed,” he added.

The federal government, he said, also has a positive duty to ensure that historically significant sites are preserved.

“What is the use of having a Ministry of Culture and Tourism if the nation's heritage is so easily destroyed for private profit? How do we answer for this cultural vandalism to future generations of Malaysians?” he added.

The PKR leader called on the Kedah government and the federal government to take urgent and effective steps to protect the Lembah Bujang archaeological site.

“We demand that the state government immediately issues a stop work order for the development projects at the site.

“We further call  for the urgent preservation of the debris and wreckage of Candi No 11 with a view towards repair and full restoration.

“Meanwhile both Najib and Mukhriz must break their silence on this matter. The people are entitled to an explanation,” he added.

Kedah to get 'experts' to probe ruins before acting

Amid the outcry over alleged destruction of ancient ruins in Kedah's Bujang Valley, the state said it will act only after engaging experts to probe the claims.

The state's arts, culture and heritage committee chairperson Aminuddin Omar told Malaysiakini that they are bringing in experts from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) to investigate the priceless archeological site.

Aminuddin said the state government was aware of the situation but needed experts to investigate the site before any action could be taken.

"Both Tanjong Dawai assemblyperson Tajul Urus Mat Zain and USM academic staff will meet up to identify the exact area involved and its focal point," he said when contacted yesterday.

Aminuddin said that Bujang Valley comprises a huge land area which could not be completely gazetted as a heritage area.

He was responding to questions on the destruction of the remnants of a 8th century Hindu temple in Bujang Valley, known as Candi Sungai Batu.

Some groups are appealing to the state government to recognise the historical significance of the site as it is a sign of early civilization in what is now known as Merbok, Kedah.

In an oil palm estate

Meanwhile, Tajul Urus told Malaysiakini that the location of the demolished heritage site was situated on private land.

"We will identify if any candi was demolished (as reported). I drove by the said area, and I only saw an oil palm plantation.

"We will get the archaeologist to look into this," Tajul Urus said, while sounding a bit sceptical.

Tajul Urus said he will try his best to have the site preserved if the veracity of the claims were confirmed, adding that there are numerous ancient temple ruins throughout the Bujang, Merbok and Semeling districts.
Proposed funding from federal gov’t or Unesco

Meanwhile, The Star reports that Kedah exco member for Religion, Indian and Siamese Community Affairs Mohd Rawi Abdul Hamid had said that the housing developer could have deliberately failed to inform Sungai Petani Municipal Council about the presence of the candi structure within its development plan.

In expressing disappointment over news reports that the Candi Sungai Batu had been demolished, he said the developer could have neglected to inform the officers over the candi’s location and the officers themselves could have overlooked its significance.

Mohd Rawi said it may need huge amounts of fund as Lembah Bujang covers a vast area containing about 50 candis.

“The state government wanted to protect such heritage monuments and I will propose to the Kedah exco that a special allocation be provided by the federal government or through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) so steps can  be taken to purchase back the land with the heritage sites.

“If we want to block everything, we need to buy it (the land) back,” said the Kedah exco member.