Government says no bias against Hindraf, opposition baffled by ban

UPDATED
By Shannon Teoh and Debra Chong

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 - The federal government today denied any racial or religious bias in banning the Hindu Rights Action Force yesterday.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said this today in response to the outcry from opposition parties over the outlawing of Hindraf.

He said it is now up to the police to take action against those who continue to associate with the local pro-Indian rights movement.

"The government's priority is to protect the security of Malaysians," he told reporters at his office, here.

He reiterated that Hindraf activities had consistently broken laws, and their illegal demonstrations turned violent and incited racial hatred.

Pakatan Rakyat MPs are, however, baffled by the Federal government's move. In a joint statement at Parliament today, the opposition coalition condemned the Home Ministry decision and its use of public order and national security as its rationale.

The statement read by Pas secretary-general Datuk Kamaruddin Jaafar commented that there were "hundreds of other civil rights movements in the country", many of which were also unregistered including supporters of Internal Security Act detainee Raja Petra Kamarudin who attended the Cabinet Hari Raya open house.

"We are puzzled as to why only Hindraf was singled out?" he queried, referring to Tuesday's questioning of Hindraf leaders by police concerning their presence at the open house.

"We urge the government to stop oppressing any civil rights movements. We also urge the government to release all ISA detainees and abolish the ISA," the Tumpat MP said.

PKR information chief Tian Chua echoed this call.

"Following this action, we might see more people and civil activists targetted and detained under the ISA," the Batu MP said.

Ipoh Timur MP Lim Kit Siang told The Malaysian Insider that the step is "counter-productive as the organisation is already not registered" in the country.

"It only sends out a message to Malaysian Indians that the government is completely unsympathetic and hostile towards you.

"It is utter folly. It shows how the government is completely clueless as to how to deal with a very real problem," the DAP parliamentary leader said.

R. Sivarasa, the MP for Subang, called it a "big mistake on the part of the government."

"Totally unwarranted, complete over-reaction," he emphasised.

The PKR vice-president stressed that the ban would only worsen the already vulnerable racial ties among the different ethnic groups.

"As Anwar says, the way to deal with Hindraf is to sit down and listen to them," he said, referring to opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's advice.

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng also released a statement condemning the ban as vengeful and politically motivated "for contributing towards BN's loss of Indian votes in the last general

elections."

The Penang Chief Minister added that Syed Hamid's logic that Hindraf exploited racial issues is "perverse."

"Would Syed Hamid apply his own reasoning by banning UMNO, MCA or MIC?

"The government should act consistently by outlawing all racist organisations since promoting the interests of only one ethnic group is by its nature and character anti-Malaysian and not contribute to racial harmony," he concluded.

Ipoh Barat MP M. Kula Segaran has also submitted an emergency motion "over the unjust, unwarranted and ham-fisted ban of Hindraf" to the Speaker under Standing Order 18 (1) and hopes it will be debated on Monday.

In a press conference, Gerakan president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon took a softer stance on the issue.

He noted that as Hindraf's application to be registered had been rejected, the organisation was now "illegal" in the context of the Societies Act but that the issues brought up by Hindraf should and are
being addressed.

He explained that issues facing Indians are being addressed by a special Cabinet committee headed by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak that has implemented important measures although the results have not been immediate.

"I hope this will not stifle the freedom of expression by individuals and groups and legally registered organisations in voicing out their grievances as this is a hallmark of a democratic society," he added.

Ex-Umno lawyer is new CJ

 KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 – Tan Sri Zaki Azmi will be elevated to the post of Chief Justice of the Federal Court in what will certainly be a controversial appointment because of his former ties with Umno.

Zaki was for many years the legal counsel for Umno and had also served on the party's Disciplinary Committee.

The Malaysian Insider understands that the Rulers Conference meeting in Kuala Terengganu has consented to the appointment.

Zaki replaces Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamed who retires tomorrow. His elevation comes just one year after his controversial appointment as a Federal Court judge.

He has the distinction of being the first ever person elevated directly from the Bar to the Federal Court. Soon after his appointment to the Federal Court, he was made President of the Court of Appeal.

DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang was among those who urged the government against considering Zaki for the Chief Justice position, pointing out that it would herald another judicial crisis because of his close association with Umno.

The appointment of the Chief Justice is made through the recommendation of the outgoing Chief Justice to the Prime Minister. The PM in turn advises the Conference of Rulers on the appointment.

Chief Judge of Malaya Tan Sri Alauddin Mohd Sheriff and Federal Court judge Datuk Ariffin Zakaria were reportedly among those being considered for the job.

Rulers: Do not question social contract

KUALA TERENGGANU, Oct 16 - The 215th meeting of the Conference of Rulers, held at the Istana Maziah here, today issued a special press statement on several matters enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

Following is the press statement in full issued by the Keeper of the Rulers' Seal, Engku Tan Sri Ibrahim Engku Ngah. :

"Press Statement issued by the Keeper of the Rulers' Seal on the role of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the Malay Rulers regarding the special privileges, position, eminence or greatness of the Malay Rulers, Islam, Malay as the national language, the special position of the Malays, and genuine interests of the other communities in accordance with the Federal Constitution.

"The Malay Rulers who attended the meeting of the Conference of Rulers conferred on the issuing of this special joint press statement today.

 "The Malay Rulers hold the constitutional role to safeguard the special privileges, position, eminence and greatness of the Malay Rulers, safeguard Islam, Malay as the National Language, and the genuine interests of the other communities in Malaysia.

"The actions of certain quarters in disputing and questioning these matters, which formed the primary basis for the formation of Malaysia and are enshrined in the Federal Constitution, had caused provocation and uneasiness among the people.

In retaliation, several quarters particularly Malay leaders whether in the government or non-governmental organisations as well as individuals had expressed their dissatisfaction and anger against those who had made the statements and reports and organised the forums.

"Among the reasons identified for these to have occurred is the cursory knowledge of those concerned regarding the historical background as to why these provisions were enshrined in the Federal Constitution and the influence of their attempts to implicate the principles of impartiality and justice without regard for the historical background and social condition of this country.

Narrow political interests are also a cause.
 
"Unless this phenomenon is arrested immediately, it can lead to disunity and racial strife that can undermine the peace and harmony which has all this while brought progress, development and success to the nation.

"As such, it is necessary for the Conference of Rulers to emphasise and remind all quarters of these constitutional provisions besides giving emphasis to the assurance of safeguarding the genuine rights of other communities.

It has to be emphasised that each provision in the Federal Constitution has undergone the process of discussion, consideration, consultancy, sacrifice and compromise of the highest degree for what has been championed, discussed, considered, benefited from as well as agreed to by all quarters concerned, until the realisation of the provisions in the Federal Constitution which are known as the Social Contract.

It is not proper to dispute and question this Social Contract and more so to subject it to a review or change because it is the primary basis of the formation of Malaysia.

Therefore, it is appropriate for the Malay Rulers to remind that there should never be any attempt ever to test and challenge issues related to the Social Contract.

"Truly, the leaders of the pre-independence era were insightful - far-sighted. They brought along with them the Malay Rulers for the negotiations to claim independence.

The Institution of the Rulers was retained and legally enshrined in the constitution of an independent Malaysia.

The Institution of the Rulers was accorded eminence, was positioned at the apex of Government, as the head of the country and the states, as a protective umbrella, ensuring impartiality among the citizens.

The Institution of Rulers takes on the role of being a check-and-balance factor to untangle complications, if any.

"The Conference of Rulers also calls on the Malays to be united to safeguard the privileges, position, eminence and greatness of the Malay Rulers, safeguard Islam, Malay as the national language, and the genuine interests of the other communities in Malaysia as enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

It has to be emphasised that this agenda is more important and foremost than political or factional interests.

"Non-Malays should not harbour any apprehension or worry over their genuine rights because these rights are guaranteed under the Federal Constitution and provisions of the state constitutions of Malaysia contained in Article 153 of the Federal Constitution.

"It is hoped that with this emphasis, all confusion among the people regarding these matters can be contained and an atmosphere of peace, harmony and mutual respect can continue to exist among the people for the maintenance of order in the country."

 

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin, attended the meeting today.

His Majesty was accompanied by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

The two-day meeting, which ended today, was chaired by the Sultan of Kedah, Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah.

All the Rulers and Yang Dipertuas Negeri attended the meeting except the Rulers of Pahang, Johor, Terengganu, Perlis and Negeri Sembilan.

The Sultan of Pahang was represented by the Regent of Pahang, Tengku Mahkota Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah; the Sultan of Johor by the Tunku Mahkota of Johor, Tunku Ibrahim Ismail Sultan Iskandar; the Sultan of Terengganu by the President of the Regency Advisory Council Raja Tengku Sri Panglima Raja Tengku Baderulzaman Sultan Mahmud.

The Yang Dipertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan by the Regent of Negeri Sembilan, Tunku Naquiyuddin Ibni Tuanku Ja'afar; and the Raja of Perlis by the Raja Muda of Perlis, Tuanku Syed Faizuddin Putra Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Jamalullail.

Also present were the menteris besar and chief ministers except the Sarawak chief minister who was represented by State Planning and Resource Management Minister II Datuk Seri Awang Tengah Ali Hasan.

The Keeper of the Rulers' Seal, Engku Tan Sri Ibrahim Engku Ngah, said matters related to defence, security, the national economy, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong scholarships, and proposals on the appointment of the Chief Justice, President of the Court of Appeal and Chief Judge of Malaya were discussed at the meeting. - Bernama

Hindraf-PRESS STATEMENT

RE: COWARDLY ACT BY THE UMNO LED GOVERNMENT TO SUPPRESS AND OPPRESS MALAYSIAN INDIAN MINORITY

Declaring Hindraf as an illegal organization will in any case not banish the spirit that created Hindraf . Hindraf represents a very deep feeling experienced in the hearts and souls of millions of Indians both locally and Internationally.



This dastardly and ludicrous attempt by the Home minister to declare HINDRAF as an illegal organisation clearly indicates that the UMNO led government is at the end of their wit and shows that Malaysia is indeed a police state under the pretext of democracy.

The UMNO led government continued use of the sanctity of illegitimate laws such as ISA, Sedition Act, and now the Societies Act with their predatory acts against HINDRAF is a desperate attempt to silence legitimate voice of democracy.

The UMNO led government enjoys demonizing and bullying us on the pretext of law, public order, National security when all we are fighting for is to address the true and real condition of the downtrodden Malaysian Indians who have been systematically marginalized, suppressed and oppressed.

The UMNO government is not able to understand the phenomenon of Hindraf. Hindraf represents the Indian commoner, the hard working oily faced man who is made fun of in the streets, the man who people step on, the man who walks past you yet you notice him not. These are the people whom Hindraf represents – the marginalized and downtrodden Indians. They all do not wither away with this illegal declaration. The Government obviously has a primitive understanding of the situation, they cannot see a genuine problem within a significant section of the Malaysian society.

Look at the annals of history – when the people begin to demand what is truly theirs no governing elite have been able to stop them – take the French revolution, the American revolution, the anti-colonial and liberation movements through the first half of the 20th century and then the liberation of Africa in the late 20th century culminating in the abolition of apartheid in South Africa.



HNDRAF is peoples’ mass movement that seeks the moral and spiritual truth for the oppressed Malaysian Indians against the tyranny of the UMNO led government.

.



HINDRAF's movement has raised the self worth of every individual in Malaysia and demand that the dignity and equality for each and every Malaysian cannot be abandoned and diluted for the glory of the UMNO led government whose only intention is to stir racial tension and maintain their status quo.

HINDRAF will not flinch with these threats and will continue its struggle against the UMNO regime in Malaysia as we can no longer be cowed nor are we any longer afraid. It is the people's mass movement for moral and spiritual truth on the basis of humanity against the tyranny of the current ruling government.

It is only fair for the Prime Minister to advise his Home Minister to revoke the order.



Waytha Moorthy

HINDRAF – CHAIRMAN

The Malaysian zero sum game

COMMENTARY

By Leslie Lau

Consultant Editor

OCT 16 — The government's hostility towards the Hindu Rights Action Front (Hindraf), culminating in the outlawing of the organisation, and Utusan Malaysia's war with Teresa Kok has hardened the position of the nationalist Malay right behind Umno.

But it will have done Umno and the Barisan Nasional few favours in winning back the hearts and minds of Malay moderates or the support of the Chinese, Indian and other non-Malay communities.

By targeting Kok, Utusan and the nationalist Malays are hoping to rally the community against the “threat” of the Chinese DAP, as represented by the Seputeh MP.

Cheras Umno division head Datuk Wira Syed Ali Alhabshi has even set up a Tabung Azan to aid Utusan against the RM30 million defamation lawsuit filed against the paper by Kok.

His reasoning was that a lawsuit against Utusan was an act of hostility against all Malays and all Muslims.

Even Malaysian Press Institute chief executive officer Chamil Wariya made a thinly-veiled attempt at attacking Kok by writing a short story published last week in Utusan in which the protagonist, described as an anti-Malay female MP, is assassinated.

The jury is still out on whether such tactics by the more extreme forces of Umno will work in regaining Malay support lost to the opposition in the March general election.

But it is not likely to help the BN get back any of the non-Malay votes it lost.

The outlawing of Hindraf will certainly do no favours for the BN in engaging the disillusioned and disenfranchised of the Indian community.

By labelling the Hindraf as terrorist and extremist, the government hopes to galvanise the support of moderate, law-abiding conservative Malaysians.

But it runs the risk of allowing the Indian issue to fester, of hardening the stance of more extreme forces and turning a loosely-organised front into a legendary, mythical group united against the BN.

Already, a perception audit survey conducted by the independent Merdeka Centre a few months ago, before the Datuk Ahmad Ismail incident or the Hindraf Hari Raya episode, suggested that non-Malay support for the BN remained low.

Alarmingly, some of the findings also showed Malaysians remained highly suspicious of each other.

Some 37 per cent of non-Malays and non-Muslim Bumiputeras polled said they agreed that “the ultimate goal of Malay politicians is to restrict non-Malay cultures and religions”.

A total of 40 per cent of Malays and Muslim Bumiputeras polled believed, on the other hand, that “the Chinese and Indians are quietly planning to take over the country”.

Ultimately, the government’s hardline position against Hindraf and Utusan Malaysia’s war against Kok will appeal to such suspicions Malaysians have for each other.

The continuing suspicions we harbour against each other become justification for a curb on the discussion of “sensitive issues”.

But will curbing such discussions help repair race relations? Will it unite the races behind the BN?

Or will race relations in Malaysia forever be a zero sum game?

-themalaysianinsider

Najib again denies abusing power in Mongolian murder case

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 — Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak again denied any abuse of power in in the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case, telling Barisan Nasional MPs today that his associate Abdul Razak Baginda would be free if there was any interference.

“Najib said there is no abuse of power. If he did, Razak would be free,” a BN lawmaker told The Malaysian Insider after the breakfast meeting outside Parliament with Najib who, as BN chief whip, holds regular strategy meetings with the coalition’s lawmakers.

The deputy prime minister made similar denials two days ago as he tries to quell a fresh storm of allegations swirling around the case after Malaysia Today carried a report detailing what it alleged was an exchange of text messages between Najib and prominent lawyer Datuk Shafee Abdullah.

The lawyer initially represented Abdul Razak who was eventually charged with abetting two police officers in the murder of Altantuya in 2006.

Opposition politicians and critics have seized on text message exchanges published in the Malaysia Today news portal, whose editor Raja Petra Kamarudin is detained under the Internal Security Act and is facing criminal charges of sedition and criminal defamation related to the murder case.

In one SMS, Najib allegedly tells the lawyer that Razak — his advisor — “will face a tentative charge but all is not lost”.

Malaysia Today said this message raises some questions about Najib’s role in the case. “Why did he mention ‘tentative’ charge and that ‘all is not lost’ for RB (Razak Baginda)? How would Najib know this before Razak was charged? These are important questions which will have ramifications, not just on this case but far beyond,” a posting on the website said.-themalaysianinsider

Hindraf: Our spirit will not be banished

By Shannon Teoh

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 — Banning Hindraf will not banish the groundswell of emotion, says its chairman P. Waytha Moorthy.

In a press statement, the organisation’s leader-in-exile said that “declaring Hindraf as an illegal organisation will in any case not banish the spirit that created Hindraf” and called on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi “to advise his Home Minister to revoke the order.”

“Hindraf represents a very deep feeling experienced in the hearts and souls of millions of Indians both locally and internationally,” he claimed.

Yesterday, Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar announced the outlawing of the movement, saying Hindraf would continue to pose a threat to public order, the security and sovereignty of the country as well as the prevailing racial harmony.

“The decision to declare Hindraf an illegal organisation is not based on one or two of its activities that are in contravention of the law but covers all the actions it has taken since being formed,” he said.

Waytha Moorthy, who has been in exile in Britain since his fellow leaders, the “Hindraf 5”, were detained under the Internal Security Act, called the decision “dastardly and ludicrous”.

He added it showed the government is at its wit’s end and that “Malaysia is indeed a police state under the pretext of democracy" as it has used the ISA, Sedition Act and now the Societies Act to silence a “legitimate voice of democracy”.

“The Umno-led government enjoys demonising and bullying us on the pretext of law, public order and national security when all we are fighting for is to address the true and real condition of the downtrodden Malaysian Indians who have been systematically marginalised, suppressed and oppressed,” he stated in the e-mail.

“Hindraf represents the Indian commoner, the hard working oily-faced man who is made fun of in the streets, the man who people step on, the man who walks past you yet you notice him not.”

This current saga has developed against the background of Hindraf’s presence at the Cabinet Hari Raya open house, where over 200 supporters attended to beseech Abdullah to free the Hindraf 5.

On Tuesday, three other Hindraf leaders — S. Jayathas, K. Selvam and K. Shanti, Waytha Moorthy’s wife — were requested to present themselves at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters in Kuala Lumpur to have their statements on the incident recorded

Crisis of Confidence - IGP

Part 1


Part 2

ARAH EKONOMI KAPITALIS

Kita tidak nampak mereka kerana mereka semuanya bersarang di Wall Street New York dan di City of London. Mereka bebondong-bondong tetapi tidak bergerak. Mereka hanya mengalihkan angka dana mereka melalui internet. Tidak ada wang ringgit yang masuk, tetapi jika mereka menang 'judi' maka harta dan titik peluh kita ke kantung mereka. Inilah yang berlaku pada tahun 1997 dahulu.

DARI JELEBU

Hishamuddin Rais

Hari ini ekonomi kapitalis sedang menghadapi satu krisis yang amat besar. Kemungkinan dunia kita hari ini di bawa kembali ke zaman meleset sama seperti tahun 1929 dahulu cukup cerah.

Ahli-ahli Dewan Congress Amerika telah meluluskan dana negara sebanyak 700 bilion dolar untuk membantu lembaga-lembaga bank yang berkemungkinan jatuh muflis. Di Britain Gordon Brown telah juga meluluskan 500 bilion sterling pound untuk tujuan yang sama. Sebuah lembaga penyimpan/peminjam dana – Northern Rocks – telah di hak miliknegarakan oleh kerajaan Parti Buruh Gordon Brown.

Dari mana asal usul krisis yang menghimpit ekonomi kapitalis ini ?

Semua ini berpunca dari asas ekonomi kapitalis yang mengajukan dasar neoliberalisma. Ertinya ekonomi kapitalis yang mengenepikan peranan daulah/state dan membuka pasaran bebas. Amerika Syarikat negara kapitalis terunggul di dunia telah mengenepikan sistem wang yang bersandarkan emas. Ini berlaku pada tahun 1971 apabila Presiden Nixon memansuhkan Bretton Woods Agreements.

Perjanjian ini dimansuhkan ketika kuasa imperial Amerika sedang melancarkan perang kolonial terhadap Vietnam, Laos dan Kamboja. Perang Indo-China ini telah membocorkan dan mengkoyak rabakkan ekonomi Amerika. Berbilion dolar telah digunakan dalam usaha sia-sia untuk mengalahkan gerakan nasionalis di bawah pimpinan Ho Chi Minh. Perang memerlukan perbelanjaan yang amat tinggi – nyawa dan harta benda.

Yang menjadi ganti Bretton Woods Agreements ialah Dolar Amerika. Negara-negara kapitalis terutamanya negara di Asia, Afrika dan Latin Amerika telah di paksa menerima pakai 'fiat money' yang hanya bersandarkan kepada kekuatan ekonomi Amerika. Justeru semua jual beli diantara negara-negara kapitalis terutama jual beli bahan bakar petrolium wajib menggunakan dolar Amerika.

Hasil awal dari tindakan dasar ekonomi ini telah menyelamat ekonomi Amerika yang mula merundum pada tahun-tahun 70'an. Ekonomi kapitalis Amerika dapat bernafas semula dan berkembang.

Rupa-rupa langkah Presiden Nixon itu hanya untuk membeli masa. Tiga puluh tahun kemudian semuanya berulang kembali. Amerika kini sedang melancarkan perang kolonial terhadap Iraq dan Afgahnistan. Kalau pada tahun 1971 Perang Vietnam melimpah ke Laos dan Kamboja, kini tahun 2008 Perang Iraq/Afghanistan telah melimpah ke Iran dan Pakistan.

Sebelum serangan ke atas Iraq bermula, Rumah Putih secara 'romantik ' telah memberi anggaran 50 bilion dolar sebagai belanja perang. Hari ini angka resminya telah mencecah hampir 600 bilion dolar. Perang di Iraq memerlukan 300 juta dolar sehari. Ada yang menganggarkan diantara 1 hingga 2 bilion dolar seminggu akan digunakan di Iraq.

Seorang pakar ekonomi Linda Bilmes dari Kennedy School of Government di Harvard, dan Joseph Stiglitz pemenang hadiah Nobel laureate Ekonomi yang juga bekas penasihat ekonomi Bill Clinton telah meletakkrer44+++aaaan harga 2 trilion dolar sebagai belanja perang di Iraq hingga ke hari ini.

Justeru peperangan di Iraq dan Afghanistan ini sedang mengancam ekonomi Amerika dan ekonomi dunia kapitalis – sama seperti ancaman di zaman Perang Vietnam dahulu.

Dalam masa yang sama dasar neoliberal juga telah memberi ancaman yang sama. Banyak peraturan jual beli, peraturan urus niaga yang menjaga kepentingan negara-negara kecil telah di lupuskan atas paksaan perjanjian World Trade Organisation ((WTO ) atau atas nasihat Bank Dunia.

WTO dan Bank Dunia adalah dua lembaga yang di wujudkan oleh kuasa imperial Amerika untuk memastikan kepentingan ekonomi Amerika berjalan lancar tanpa ganguan. Dua lembaga ini mengajukan dasar-dasar neoliberal dan memastikan pasaran dibuka seluas mungkin untuk kaum pemodal.

Peraturan dan perjanjian yang dilihat tidak menguntungkan kaum pemodal akan dihapuskan. Negara-negara Dunia Ketiga tidak dapat bertahan dari serangan dasar PENSWASTAAN yang dipaksakan ke atas mereka oleh WTO dan Bank Dunia.

Selain dari belanja perang dan dasar neoliberal ini - ekonomi kapitalis juga sedang berhadapan dengan masaalah struktur sistem kapitalis ini sendiri. Di zaman meleset tahun 1929 dahulu, Amerika tidak berperang tetapi berhadapan dengan masaalah keyakinan terhadap lembaga-lembaga bank.

Kali ini keyakinan terhadap lembaga bank datang kembali bersama bencana perang – dua-dua datang sekali harung. Memang betul jika diperhatikan ekonomi kapitalis ini ada putaran jatuh/bangun setiap sepuluh tahun – 1974 – 1988, 1997, 2008 - tetapi kali ini bebeza. Ini bukan pusingan krisis sepuluh tahun sekali lagi. Ianya lebih dari itu.

Dunia kapitalis bukan sahaja berhadapan dengan pengeluaran yang berlebihan (surplus production) malah strukturnya telah hampir hancur. Rakyat dunia tidak lagi mahu menerima dolar sebagai wang tukaran. Apabila dolar tidak lagi di yakini, maka nilai dolar jatuh.

Dalam suasana nilai dolar jatuh, Federal Reserve – badan swasta yang berhak mengeluarkan dolar – mengambil jalan pintas. Federal Reserve terus mencetak dolar untuk dijadikan bahan export utama Amerika. Hasilnya ada lambakan dolar di pasaran dunia. Bila dolar melambak maka nilainya semakin merosot. Ini samalah seperti apa yang pernah terjadi kepada ibu dan ayah kita dengan Duit Batang Pisang di zaman Jepun menjajah Tanah Melayu pada tahun 1941-1945 dahulu.

Untuk memastikan dolar terus di terima pakai, kuasa imperial telah menggunakan ancaman kekuatan tentera untuk memastikan jual beli terutama bahan bakar petrol akan terus dinilai dengan dolar. Harus dingati salah satu sebab kenapa Saddam Hussein dijatuhkan ialah kerana Saddam telah meninggalkan dolar dalam hal jual beli minyak. Iran, yang kini dianggap musuh, telah juga meninggalkan dolar dan beralih kepada Euro dalam hal jual beli minyak petrol. Langkah yang sama juga sedang diambil oleh Russia. Langkah meninggalkan dolar negara-negara ini terus membantu penurunan nilai dolar.

Satu lagi musibah yang sedang menyerang sistem ekonomi kapitalis ialah munculnya – perniagaan bentuk baru. Perniagaan ini bukan membuat sesuatu atau menghasilkan sesuatu barangan. Kalau kita memotong getah, hasilnya ialah getah. Kalau kita memburuh menanam padi hasilnya ialah beras.

Perniagaan bentuk baru- tidak membuat apa-apa barangan - ianya hanya membuat spekulasi tentang tentang harga barangan masa depan dan nilai mata wang dari sebuah negara ke sebuah negara. George Soros, nama yang dikenali di Malaysia hanya salah seorang dari beratus-ratus peniaga bentuk ini.

Perniagaan ini lebih tepat kalau kita kenali sebagai – berjudi/betting. Berniaga mata wang ini tidak produktif. Ianya tidak menghasilkan apa-apa barangan/products. Jenis perniagaan ini muncul hasil dari dasar neoliberalisma. Perniaga jenis ini akan berbondong ke hulu ke hilir dalam dunia global mencari pasaran untuk berjudi.

Kita tidak nampak mereka kerana mereka semuanya bersarang di Wall Street New York dan di City of London. Mereka bebondong-bondong tetapi tidak bergerak. Mereka hanya mengalihkan angka dana mereka melalui internet. Tidak ada wang ringgit yang masuk, tetapi jika mereka menang 'judi' maka harta dan titik peluh kita ke kantung mereka. Inilah yang berlaku pada tahun 1997 dahulu.

Dalam masa kurang lebih 6 bulan krisis ekonomi kapitalis ini akan sampai kepada kita. Di Amerika dan Eropah pada masa ini sedang berhadapan dengan zaman meleset. Rakan niaga kita di Amerika Utara dan di Eropah akan mengurangkan permintaan. Apabila ini berlaku maka banyak pabrik dan kilang akan ditutup. Banyak yang akan hilang pekerjaan.

Inilah hakikat krisis ekonomi global kapitalisma.

Sekarang para pemimpin kita wajib membuat satu dasar ekonomi baru yang bersandarkan kepada ekonomi pertanian. Bumi Hijau seharusnya dijadikan dasar oleh Pakatan Rakyat. Bumi Hijau bermakna kita mengajukan penanaman bahan-bahan makanan dan bukan pembuatan barangan. Apabila zaman meleset sampai kita memiliki beras yang cukup. Kita memiliki sayuran, ikan, daging, bijirin dan buah-buahan yang cukup.

Kita pasti tidak dapat makan Proton. Kita tidak dapat makan komputer chips kerana ianya bukan potato chips. Dengan asas ekonomi pertanian yang kukuh pasti sedikit sebanyak akan dapat membantu orang ramai dari dilanggar zaman meleset yang akan sampai tidak lama lagi.

3,500 years of the Sedition Act

I started blogging after get inspiration from RPK or Raja Petra Kamaruddin. He was a wonderful blogger. It is pity to see that our government still detaining him under ISA. To remember RPK's article. I am reposting it again. Please read it carefully. -Admin NEM

It is clear that the Sedition Act can solve all our problems. The Sedition Act, properly and seriously implemented, would result in the entire world sharing just one religion. There would not be so many religions, which, today, are the source of most of the world's problems.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

There is an old law which many Malaysians do not realise still exists in this country. This law is called the Sedition Act. How old is this law, you may ask. Trust me, it is very, very old.

The Sedition Act was already around 3,000 or 3,500 years ago during the time of the Egyptian Pharaohs. At that time a man called Musa -- namesake of Musa Hitam, Musa Aman and Musa Hassan; who are all the exact opposite of the Musa of old Egypt -- received a message from God. And the message is that the Pharaoh is not God, as he believed he was, and Musa was to go tell him so.

Of course Musa was scared because he was aware of the Sedition Act and anyone who disputes that the Ruler of Egypt is God will be dealt with severely. So Musa asked God for permission to bring his brother along since his brother had the gift of the gab and was able to 'spin' just like the Bloggers of modern days. Knowing that a lot of spinning would be required to counter Pharaoh's claim of divinity, God agreed and Musa and his brother then went and confronted the Pharaoh.

The Pharaoh asked Musa what are the credentials to become God. Musa then replied that God gives life and God takes life. The Pharaoh then sentenced Musa to death thereby 'taking his life'. The Pharaoh then commuted the death sentence thereby 'giving back' Musa his life.

"So I have just taken life and given life," argued the Pharaoh. "That means I am God."

That was certainly a very smart move indeed. So what is the moral of this story? Simple. If the Internet and Blogs had been around 3,000 or 3,500 years ago, the Pharaoh would have been the King of Bloggers since he is the best spin-doctor in history.

But Musa insisted that the Pharaoh was not God and this resulted in the Pharaoh invoking the Sedition Act on him. Any act to make the people hate or turn against the Ruler is an act of sedition and punishable under the Sedition Act. However, Musa did not play fair. He skipped bail and escaped from Egypt and this resulted in the new nation of Israel being created. And, ever since, this has been the cause of great turmoil and countless deaths. If the Pharaoh had arrested Musa under the Sedition Act and had not allowed him bail then, today, there would be no turmoil and chaos in this world and we would all be living in a peaceful world, in particular in the Middle East.

Slightly over 2,000 years ago, another person by the name of Isa came along. This was Isa The Man, not ISA the Internal Security Act. Isa too was seditious and he turned the people against the Rulers. Of course Isa was not really that successful because he only had about a dozen followers, not even enough to form an Umno branch, which requires more members than that. But the Ruler made the great mistake of making a martyr out of Isa and his support grew, until today where he has more than one billion followers.

That was certainly not a very smart move indeed. So what is the moral of this story? Simple. Never make a martyr of someone who commits the crime of sedition, as then his or her following will grow beyond controllable proportions.

1,400 years or so ago, another man came along. This man was called Muhammad (but he had only one Muhammad in his name, not like today where we have people with two Muhammads in their name). For ten years he tried turning the people against the Rulers of the tiny state called Mekah. Finally, the Mekah government could stand it no longer and they tried arresting Muhammad under the Sedition Act.

But Muhammad managed to escape to another small village called Medina. Within 12 years this village grew into a city and they managed to build a large army and then went back to Mekah to topple the government.

That was certainly a very smart move indeed. So what is the moral of this story? Simple. Never allow anyone who commits the crime of sedition to escape to another country, as he or she can then build up a large army and come back to topple the government.

These examples of Musa, Isa and Muhammad have taught the world a thing or two. Firstly, never allow anyone to commit the crime of sedition. Secondly, sedition is not about punishing someone for lying. Sedition is about punishing someone who tells the truth. And that was demonstrated in Penang not too long ago when Marina Yusoff was found guilty of sedition for telling the truth -- yes, she proved that she had told the truth and had not lied. Marina Yusoff wrongly thought that if she could prove she was telling the truth she would escape punishment. Little did she realise that the Sedition Act does not punish you for lying. It punishes you for telling the truth. And Musa, Isa and Muhammad too told the truth so they are all rightfully guilty of sedition.

600 years or so ago, the English King decided to make it illegal to speak against the Ruler. God appoints Rulers as Rulers, argued the King, and to oppose the Ruler or speak ill of the Ruler is seditious and you can be arrested and your ears will be cut off. So many people who did not bodek the King were arrested and punished under the Sedition Act.

62 years ago, Malayans too started opposing the British Monarchy. They did not like the British proposal to form the Malayan Union. The Malays then got together and formed an amalgamation of the many Malay movements, societies and associations, which they called Umno. And through Umno the Malays began to make seditious statements in their many road-shows that criss-crossed the length and breadth of Malaya.

As the movement gained momentum and Umno started winning the support of the Malayan population, the British decided in 1948 to introduce the Sedition Act, more than 500 years after it was introduced in England. That was of course 60 years ago but the Sedition Act did not achieve its purpose. Finally, in 1957, Malaya managed to gain independence from Britain in spite of the Sedition Act.

Today, the Sedition Act that was introduced to punish Malayans who speak against the British still remains. But there is no longer a British Colonial government ruling Malaya. Today, Malaya is Merdeka and is now called Malaysia. But the law that makes it a crime to speak ill of the British still remains even though no one speaks bad about the British any longer other than Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who was Prime Minister of Malaysia for 22 years and who managed to get Margaret Thatcher's knickers all twisted into knots.

Sigh….if the Pharaoh had been serious about the Sedition Act then there would be no Jews today. And if there were no Jews then there would be no Isa; so there would be no Christianity. And if the Mekah government too had been serious about the Sedition Act there would be no Islam today. And since there would be no Jews, Christians and Muslims, then all 26 million Malaysians would today still be Hindus, like they were more than 600 years ago. And since we would all be Hindus there would be no problems and therefore no need for Hindraf. And as there would be no Hindraf then Barisan Nasional would not have done so badly in the 8 March 2008 general election.

It is clear that the Sedition Act can solve all our problems. The Sedition Act, properly and seriously implemented, would result in the entire world sharing just one religion. There would not be so many religions, which, today, are the source of most of the world's problems.

Malaysians must be able to look at the Sedition Act in this light. Against the backdrop of the Sedition Act being able to prevent the growth of new religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam -- which would result in world peace -- then the Sedition Act is good. But because the Rulers since 3,500 years ago failed to ensure that no one escapes the Sedition Act, today, we have so many religions that have divided the world and which have created a lot of conflicts that have resulted in so many deaths.

And remember, the Sedition Act is used to punish those who tell the truth, not those who lie. If they lie then there are so many other laws we can use against them.

Budget Debate(eurocopter)

Part 1

Part 2

Transkrip Perbahasan Belanjawan 2009

Tuan Yang di-Pertua: Saya persilakan Yang Berhormat Permatang Pauh untuk memulakan perbahasan.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim [Permatang Pauh]: Assalamualaikum warahmatullahhiwabarakatuh, salam sejahtera Tuan Yang di-Pertua. Izinkan saya mengucapkan rasa hormat kepada Tuan Yang di-Pertua memberi kesempatan berbahas di hadapan Tuan Yang di-Pertua yang saya kenal sebagai orang yang pendekar dan petah berbicara, berbahas sendiri.

[Timbalan Yang di-Pertua (Datuk Dr. Haji Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar)
mempengerusikan Mesyuarat]

Saya juga ingin menyatakan penghargaan kepada bekas Menteri Kewangan, Perdana Menteri, Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi kerana membentangkan Belanjawan Negara bulan lalu. Meskipun terdapat perbezaan dasar yang ketara di antara kami dalam Pakatan Rakyat dan Perdana Menteri, bekas Menteri Kewangan, saya ingin melahirkan rasa hormat dan menghargai usaha beliau sehingga dapat membentangkan satu belanjawan dalam keadaan krisis yang besar yang hampir melanda pada ketika itu.

Hanya setelah setengah purnama berlalu, keadaan negara bertambah meruncing. Keadaan dianggap sudah sampai ke tahap parah. Persoalan yang pertama yang harus kita bahaskan, adakah wajar untuk kita meneruskan perbahasan tentang satu belanjawan yang sudah ketinggalan melihat kepada unjuran, akta, data, satu setengah purnama yang lalu dengan keadaan sekarang. Apakah wajar Ahli-ahli Yang Berhormat di dalam Dewan yang mulia ini diminta untuk terus berbahas satu belanjawan yang sudah tidak realistik, tidak menepati fakta dan tidak mampu mengangkat ekonomi dan menyelamatkan negara kita dari kemelut ekonomi yang kian meruncing.

Continue reading ‘Transkrip Perbahasan Belanjawan 2009′

KIt Siang: Solicitor General's findings implicate AG

©The Sun KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 15, 2008) : DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang claimed that the findings of a probe by Solicitor-General Datuk Idrus Harun "implicate" Attorney-General (AG) Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail and "confirm allegations" that Abdul Gani had fabricated evidence during the probe into Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s infamous ‘black eye’ incident 10 years ago. Quoting "sources" during the debate on Budget 2009 in the Dewan Rakyat today, Lim said: "I have come to know that the solicitor-general found the AG guilty of abusing his power to fabricate evidence against Permatang Pauh (Anwar) and Gani should resign now," said Lim, adding thate there should be no delay in announcing the findings. In July, Anwar said in a police report that Abdul Gani and Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan, who was the investigating officer for the case 10 years ago, had fabricated evidence relating to the case. Lim said the probe by the solicitor-general was launched following this. Musa filed a defamation suit against Anwar after the report was lodged, and Abdul Gani threatened to do the same. Last week, during Anwar’s sodomy trial at the Kuala Lumpur sessions court, his lawyer, Sulaiman Abdullah read out a document in court over why Abdul Gani should not be involved in any aspect of the case. The prosecution team had applied to transfer the case to the High Court but the defence argued on the validity of the transfer certificate that was signed by Abdul Gani. The document read by Sulaiman contained claims by Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim, the investigating officer into the black eye incident. Mat Zain, who retired from the force in 2001, had also been named in Anwar’s police report in June as having collaborated with Musa and Abdul Gani to fabricate the evidence. Following this, Mat Zain filed a RM30 million defamation suit against Anwar and the document read in court by Sulaiman was from this suit. In the document, Mat Zian stated that Abdul Gani, then a senior DPP, had tampered with evidence, delayed investigations and concealed facts from the then AG, the late Mohtar Abdullah. During today's debate, Lim also asked for the setting up of a Royal Commission of Enquiry to probe into the allegations on the involvement of Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak in the murder of Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu in October 2006.

Traders have social obligation to cut price, says PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 15 - Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said today that the traders should voluntarily lower the prices of goods in line with the drop in the fuel retail prices without waiting for the government to act.

"It is their social obligation," the prime minister told reporters after attending the closing of the Merdeka Spirit Programme 2008 and the opening of Akademi Kenegaraan at the National Civics Bureau in Jalan Bellamy here.

Yesterday Abdullah announced a reduction of 15 sen in the price of petrol to RM2.30 a litre and 20 sen to RM2.20 for a litre of diesel, effective today.

Abdullah also took a swipe at some consumer associations for leaving it to the government to monitor and overcome the problem of high prices of goods without lifting a finger to help.

"They don't do anything and this is something that should not have happened. If these consumer associations want the government to supervise the prices of essential goods, they should cooperate with the government," he said.

He said the consumers associations were very powerful and they should use that power to teach their members how to handle traders who sell goods at high or unreasonable prices.

Asked whether he was advocating that consumers boycott traders who charge exorbitant prices for essential goods, he said it was up to the consumers because "we cannot teach them what to do."

He gave an assurance that the government would take action against traders who quoted excessively high or unreasonable prices for their goods but said that it needed the cooperation of consumers.

The prime minsiter also said that he had instructed the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Samad to meet the representatives of consumer associations to discuss the matter.

Asked whether reducing the fuel prices in stages or a little at a time had made it difficult for traders to make adjustments to the prices of essential goods, he said the government had decided to lower the fuel prices according to what was happening in the international market.

"I hope that the people will understand and work with the government in this matter," he said.

He also advised them to grow their own food like vegetables in efforts to overcome the increase in the prices of goods. – Bernama

Muhyiddin dismisses talk of ‘Dr M the Mastermind’

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 15 – International Trade and Industry Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today dismissed talk that Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad orchestrated the increasing popularity of Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and him (Muhyiddin) so that they could be the future leaders of the country.

“I don’t think you need to be in any way confused because you see us together (with Mahathir). The fact that we meet in certain functions doesn’t mean that there are major developments happening,” he told reporters after co-chairing the 1st Malaysia-Indonesia Joint Trade and Investment Committee Meeting here today.

Muhyiddin said this when asked by a reporters whether Dr Mahathir had a Role to play in determining the future leaders of the country.

“He (Mahathir) still is respected as an elder Malaysian statesman. You people also have high regards for him. I don’t think we can deny that fact. But to what extent he has influence in terms of the administration, I think that is something that Datuk Najib should be able to manage,” he said.

He said Najib had the requisite experience to manage the country and had worked in the previous cabinet with Dr Mahathir.

“I was also in the old cabinet and now a member of the present cabinet. I think a blend of past experience together with that of the present is important,” he said.

Najib and Muhyiddin are the frontrunners for the president and deputy president posts for Umno’s upcoming elections in March next year. By convention, Umno president and deputy president become prime minister and deputy prime minister respectively.

Meanwhile, when speaking to reporters at Puteri Umno’s Aidilfitri open house here, Muhyiddin said experience and capability should be the main criteria when nominating candidates for leadership posts and not the factor of age.

“As long as the person is healthy, has a sharp mind and is capable of handling the job, one’s age, old or young, should not be the main concern,” he said when asked to comment on remarks by Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin that the old should make way for the young.

At the same function, Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin told reporters that he was confident of making the cut to contest the Umno Youth chief post.

Asked about the slow pace of nominations for him at Umno Youth’s ongoing delegates meetings, Khairy said : “Maybe because I have been said to have become the underdog now.”

He has garnered 19 nominations and is trailing behind Umno Youth executive council member Datuk Mukhriz Tun Dr Mahathir who has picked up 40 nominations, two more than the 38 nominations to be eligible to contest. Of the others in the fray and after 72 divisions have held their meetings, former Selangor menteri besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohamed Khir has obtained 12 nominations while Perlis Umno deputy chief Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin has just one.

– Bernama

Hindraf Declared An Illegal Organisation

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 15 (Bernama) -- The Hindu Rights Actions Force (Hindraf) has been declared an illegal organisation from today, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar.

In a statement issued here, Syed Hamid said the decision to declare Hindraf as an illegal organisation was made following the ministry being satisfied with facts and evidence that showed Hindraf had and was being used for unlawful purposes and posed a threat to public order and morality.

"Based on powers vested under Section 5(1) of the Societies Act, Hindraf from today is declared an illegal organisation," he said.

He said the order was being made as a result of monitoring and investigation on the organisation's activities by the Registrar of Societies (ROS) and Home Ministry, since Hindraf's inception.

Syed Hamid said if left unchecked, Hindraf would continue to pose a threat to public order, the security and sovereignty of the country as well as the prevailing racial harmony.

"The decision to declare Hindraf an illegal organisation is not based on one or two of its activities that are in contravention of the law but covers all the actions it has taken since being formed," he said.

Syed Hamid said Hindraf had all the criteria of an organised movement because it had filed for registration with the ROS on Oct 16 last year.

he application had yet to be approved but Hindraf had actively exploited the Indian community to organise illegal assemblies and street demonstrations without permits to the point of causing a segment of the community to rise up against the government and also hatred among the Malays and Indians in the country, he said.

"Hindraf has also tried to secure support from foreign countries for the purpose of pressuring the government to bow to its demands," he added.

Syed Hamid advised the public to distance themselves from Hindraf and not participate in any way in any of its activities.

-- BERNAMA

**************
lim kit siang

Hindraf ban - retrogressive/vindictive hampering nation-building healing process

The banning of Hindraf by the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hamid Albar must be deplored in the strongest possible terms.

It is a retrogressive, vindictive and petty step which will hamper the nation-building healing process vital for Malaysians to feel one and united people again.

Instead of reaching out to the Malaysian Indian community to resolve the root political, socio-economic, cultural and religious causes which have made Malaysian Indians an alienated and aggrieved community as the new underclass in the country, ham-fisted measures to ban Hindraf will only aggravate the disaffection among the Indian community.

Coming in his last five months as Prime Minister, the ban on Hindraf is also testimony to the failure of Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to take nation-building to a new and more mature level.

DAP MPs will raise in Parliament the undemocratic and myopic ban on Hindraf.

After the March 8 general election, BN MPs from all the BN component parties pledged to be more outspoken to protect the rights and interests of all communiies.

I invite MPs from all the BN component parties to join with Pakatan Rakyat MPs to take a common stand – to demand that the Home Minister revoke the ban on Hindraf and to call on Abdullah to give top priority in his last five months as Prime Minister to end the polarisation process by heading an all-party parliamentary committee to address the long-standing and legitimate grievances of the Malaysian Indians.

Hindraf turns up at Anwar’s open house

Hindraf and Makkal Sakthi supporters had a great time at Anwar’s open house (Photo credit: abinesh.com)

More surprise guests showed up at Anwar’s open house, this time in KL on Sunday. Blogger Abinesh reports:

The exact same group visited Dato Sri Anwar’s PKR Hari Raya open house last weekend at Kelab Sultan Sulaiman at Kg Baru. Like the previous open house, the group met outside the venue where they were chatting up the other Malay friends wishing them “Selamat Hari Raya“, with the passers-by wishing them the same and some chanting “Makkal Sakhti” (back at them) in the process. How do I know, you may ask? I was there!

They were greeted outside by YB S Manikavasagam and YB Zuraidah Kamaruddin and eventually started making their way into the venue of the celebrations.

As they were walking in, there was applause for them and the other Malaysians were chanting “Makkal Sakhti!”, and Hindraf supporters were wishing everyone “Selamat Hari Raya”. They went in and greeted the PKR leaders and, when DSAI and Datuk Seri Wan Azizah came out to greet them after finishing their prayers, they handed DSAI a Raya card, gift and a letter. They then moved out of the main canopy area where (some of them) went to get some food to eat while others enjoyed the company of friends that were there as well.

(Later they) took some pictures at the field with a brilliant view of KLCC behind it - together with some of the law-makers - and left the event. I witnessed the proceedings and it was very peaceful, light-hearted, fun and very Malaysian! There was no drama, and everyone went back happy!

Paper 'planting assassination idea'

DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timur) has accused the Malay newspaper, Utusan Malaysia, of planting the idea of assassinating members of parliament through a story published in Mingguan Malaysia, its Sunday edition.

Lim said the fictitious story entitled "Politik baru YB J" was aimed at Teresa Kok.

"The YB Josephine, who is the main character in the piece, actually referred to Teresa Kok," he said.

YB Josephine takes an anti-Islamic stand in the story and is killed by an alleged supporter at a function held in her stronghold.

The assassin approaches her on stage and then shoots her three times in the chest.

"I know it is creative licence, but the author had clearly planted the idea of political assassination. He was being inciteful," Kit Siang said during the debate on the budget.

"What would you say if the short story envisaged a minister being killed at the end of the story?

"Surely there would be hostile reaction from Barisan Nasional backbenchers."

Kok and Utusan Malaysia are currently locked in a dispute after the newspaper claimed that she had called for the Kinrara Mosque in Section 5, Bandar Kinrara in Puchong to tone down the volume of its call to prayer or Azan.

Kok was subsequently detained under the Internal Security Act for several days.

Upon her release, she filed a RM30 million suit for damages against the newspaper.

Lim, who waved a copy of the Oct 12 issue of Mingguan Malaysia as he spoke, said in the country's 51 years of independence, never had creative licence been used in this way to promote a violent idea.

At this point, Datuk Bung Moktar Radin (BN-Kinabatangan) demanded to know how Lim came to the conclusion that the short story was aimed at Kok.

"If you ask 100 people who read the story, they would say that it refers to Teresa Kok, except you," replied Lim, saying that he wanted to know whether the authorities would investigate the matter.

"The backbenchers and opposition may have our differences but in the matter of assassination, it should be condemned by all of us."

Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing (BN-Bintulu) felt that Lim was being dramatic.

"After all, five attempts have been made on me. Someone tried to run me off the road, but you never kicked up a fuss.

"You are only doing this because it is Kok," he said.

To this, Lim said that he could not kick up a fuss in Tiong's case because the latter had not highlighted the incident in the house.

- nst

Cops probe commotion at PM’s Raya open house

PETALING JAYA: Police have re­corded statements from three Hindraf organisers regarding a commotion at the Prime Minister and Cabinet members’ Hari Raya open house at the Putra World Trade Centre recently.

The three are S. Jayathas, 41, K. Shanti, in her 30s, and K. Selvam, 43. They were accompanied by their lawyers Latheefa Koya and N. Surendran.

Shanti is the wife of Hindraf chairman P. Waythamoorthy who is in self-exile in London.

The three arrived at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters at 3pm yesterday where they gave their statements for an hour.

Surendran said the three were asked about 28 questions under Section 27 of the Police Act and Section 447 of the Penal Code.

“However, we chose to remain silent for each of the questions because we felt that the questions had nothing to do with the case we were being investigated under,” said Jayathas.

Surendran said the questioning was a form of intimidation and harassment against his clients who had gathered peacefully at the Prime Minister’s Hari Raya open house.

“It is absurd because for the first time in Malaysia someone is called in for questioning for attending a Hari Raya open house. We believe this is politically motivated and a clear case of police abuse of power,” he said.

He added that police did not mention whether there was a need for the three to present themselves again at the police headquarters for further questioning.

Kuala Lumpur deputy police chief Senior Asst Comm (I) Datuk Abdul Samah Mat confirmed that police were investigating the case.

A group of 160 Hindraf and “Free Raja Petra Kamarudin” supporters were said to have allegedly caused a commotion at the Prime Minister’s open house before presenting him with a teddy bear and a Raya greeting card containing signatures requesting the release of detained Hindraf leaders.

- The Star

Malaysia’s Risk-Takers

The government’s promise not to censor the Internet has allowed bloggers more latitude than journalists working in other media. Now, with a leading blogger jailed, that freedom is in jeopardy.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia
The jailing of Raja Petra Kamarudin, a self-described risk-taker who has led Malaysia’s lively blogging culture, has come to symbolize the government’s new assault on Internet expression. On September 12, police raided Raja Petra’s residence, seized documents, and arrested the popular blogger under the draconian Internal Security Act, which allows for detention without trial.

Two weeks later, Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar ordered the detention extended for two years on charges that Raja Petra published seditious and anti-Islamic articles on his blog, Malaysia Today. The government, signaling a wider crackdown on dissent, detained a newspaper journalist and an opposition politician the same day.

In the four years since he launched Malaysia Today, the 58-year-old Raja Petra has established a reputation for running news and commentary critical of the administration. This year, as the ruling party’s influence has slipped, the government has stepped up harassment of the blog’s founder. Raja Petra’s reporting on a politicized murder case led to several days of detention on sedition charges in May and, later, to three counts of criminal defamation. In August, government regulators ordered domestic Internet service providers to block Malaysia Today on grounds that the blog was publishing seditious material. The move also happened to coincide with Raja Petra’s plans to post real-time results of a special election eventually won by opposition politician Anwar Ibrahim.

Despite the government’s actions, Malaysia Today has managed to survive. Raja Petra got around the censorship order by publishing the blog on a mirror site and creating new Internet addresses in foreign countries. His wife, Marina Lee Abdullah, and colleagues have continued to publish since his imprisonment. And in a September 30 post written and smuggled out of prison, Raja Petra remained defiant as he described his conditions.

That attitude was on display when CPJ interviewed Raja Petra a month before his imprisonment. “I’ve been charged with everything from insulting Islam, the prime minister, the sultans—every known living thing,” he said, relaxing that day in a restaurant in the Bangsar neighborhood. “Islam makes it mandatory to oppose oppression. It’s your duty, and it’s what I’m doing.”

A former businessman turned political activist, Raja Petra started Malaysia Today in August 2004 in response to what he considered to be a chronic lack of critical coverage in the state-controlled mainstream media. The site runs commentary and news from three regular, pseudonymous writers. With a steady stream of hard-hitting reports, he claims a higher daily readership than most Malaysian newspapers.

Malaysia Today has been at the forefront of the country’s vibrant and proliferating blogosphere, which independent researchers, press freedom advocates, and journalists say has expanded the boundaries of Malaysian press freedom. News-driven blogs like Raja Petra’s have taken hard aim at the government and individual politicians, providing a sharp counterpoint to state-led television news and ruling party-influenced newspapers. “We take risks no one else takes,” Raja Petra told CPJ in August.

The Malaysian government has long held local newspapers and magazines in check through a renewable licensing system that has also led to arbitrary suspensions. National security laws such as the Internal Security Act, Sedition Act, and Official Secrets Act have instilled a culture of self-censorship at most news publications.

But a government pledge not to censor the Internet, first made in 1996, has allowed bloggers and online news sites to tackle tough issues the mainstream media habitually neglect. The no-censorship policy, developed by then-Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, was designed to lure foreign investment to the Multimedia Super Corridor project, a big ticket, state-led bid to incubate Malaysia’s own version of the Silicon Valley.

The country’s commitment to an open Internet appears to be in doubt now. With only a clutch of multinational companies in residence, the incubator project has failed to live up to commercial expectations. And as Malaysia’s blogosphere has grown in political significance, the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) has seen its own position weakened. In March elections, UMNO lost its two-thirds majority in parliament and control over five of the national federation’s 13 states. Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi and others have lashed with greater frequency against bloggers, claiming they publish false and libelous material.

The government’s actions against Malaysia Today were the first instances in which the government directly broke its no-censorship pledge, but journalists and human rights lawyers told CPJ that troubling signs had been coming throughout the year. “The government seems to be intent on creating a climate of fear, although with dubious procedures,” says Jun-E Tan, a doctoral student at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University who recently co-authored a book on Malaysian blogs and their impact on democratization.

Unconfirmed blog reports, for example, said that a hard-line UMNO faction working alongside the Science Ministry had explored closing YouTube and template blog sites such as Wordpress and Blogspot in the run-up to the March election. Around the same time, reports posted on several blogs said that UMNO’s youth wing had compiled a list of 30 local bloggers it considered potential threats to social stability.

Information Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek would not confirm or deny those reports. In e-mail comments made to CPJ before Raja Petra’s arrest, he said “the government encourages the growth of online journalism” and that Malaysia “was one of the freest environments on earth where blogs and bloggers are concerned, even compared with the United States, Britain, and Europe.”

“What we stress is accountability. … The government is, of course, concerned with anyone who is out to undermine the country’s peace and stability,” said Ahmad Shabery. “If the person who tries to incite racial discord happens to be a blogger, the government will act against him, not because he is a blogger, but because he is out to create trouble.”

That’s clearly how the government views the likes of Raja Petra. Last year, the blogger ran a 12-part series on corruption among police, particularly alleged links to organized crime syndicates. Before that, he ran a series of investigative reports on alleged nepotism involving Abdullah and son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin, deputy chief of UMNO’s youth wing.

“I have deep throats both inside and outside government,” Raja Petra told CPJ before his imprisonment. Yet neither those sources nor his lineage to one of Malaysia’s main royal families has shielded him from government harassment. Since launching his blog, Raja Petra says he has been hauled in for police questioning more times than he can remember. He has also received anonymous death threats on his cell phone, although he said he doesn’t take the calls too seriously.

“I’m a risk-taker, not a troublemaker,” he said in August. “We see how far we can go with what the government considers a crime and see if we can get away with it.” Now, as Raja Petra sits in solitary confinement, the Malaysian government appears to have responded.

---

Shawn W. Crispin is a Bangkok-based journalist and consultant to CPJ’s Asia Program.
http://www.cpj.org/Briefings/2008/Malaysia/Malaysia08.html

Claims of modern day slavery in estates

GEMAS, Oct 15 — Recent news reports claimed that there were at least five forced labour cases in Negeri Sembilan estates but only three made it to the court due to the lack of evidence.

Absence of crucial evidence like the birth certificate that could verify the victims as Malaysian citizens had made the cases failed to ‘hold water’ in the courts of justice, said the English newspaper.

Incidents of forced labour happened when unscrupulous contractors or agents took the advantage when recruiting workers for jobs in the estates.

The irony is that most of the victims were Malaysians, and not foreigners as initially believed, said Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam.

Poverty and illiteracy have further compounded this problem, resulting in what can be described as modern day slavery as what had been claimed to had occurred in an estate Sungai Senarut in Gemas, close to the Negeri Sembilan-Johor border.

A similar incident was reported in Jempol, not far from here.

MINISTER’S ATTENTION

These reports on modern day slavery have drawn the attention from the minister.

When approached by Bernama, Subramaniam said three reports on such cases had came to his attention and he had issued a directive reminding workers’ recruitment agencies to be registered with the ministry.

"They should be registered (with the ministry) and so far some 30 per cent had registered with us and the whole process is expected to be completed by the year end”, he said.

Subramaniam said he had also issued a directive requiring all estate owners to keep proper documentation of their workers’ particulars like their salary slip and that on deductions for the Social Security Organisation (Socso) and Employees Provident Fund (EPF).

"With these measures, we should be able to clamp down on forced labour and enable the police to take action with the evidence available.

"Previously it was difficult (for the authorities to take action), as even though reports were made but there were lack of evidence", he said.

ISOLATED INCIDENTS

Subramanian said there were some 200 workers’ recruitment agencies nationwide and the incidents of forced labour were isolated cases.

So far such cases were reported to have occurred in only two or three estates, he said.

Whether the workers were recruited by middlemen or direct by the estate owners, Subramaniam reminded the employers that the workers should be well treated and given the privileges and benefits due to them.

Meanwhile the Segamat MI divisional head, A. Nadarajah, told Bernama that the forced labour case reported at the Sungai Senarut estate involved allegations that the workers were forced to work beyond their working ours and they were also assaulted.

However the police did not find any evidence that could support the allegations, he said. — Bernama

Court orders NS ruler to pay US1million to bank

PUTRAJAYA, Oct 15 - The Special Court which was set up to hear cases involving royalty today ordered the Yang Dipertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan, Tuanku Ja'afar Tuanku Abdul Rahman, to pay US$1 million (RM3.4million) to Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (SCBMB) after ruling that Tuanku Ja'afar has to honour the terms in a letter of credit.

Chief Justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad, who sat with Chief Judge of Malaya Tan Sri Alaudin Mohd Sheriff, Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Richard Malanjum, and Federal Court judges Datuk Arifin Zakaria and Datuk Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin unanimously allowed the bank's suit against the former king.

The court also dismissed Tuanku Ja'afar's counter-suit against the bank for a declaration that the bank was not entitled in law to uplift his fixed deposit to settle the sum of US$1 million.

The suit arose after Tuanku Ja'afar, on or about Feb 12, 1999, established through SCBMB a standby letter of credit valued at US$1 million made in favour of the Connecticut Bank of Commerce (CBC) in the United States for credit facilities to be extended to a U.S company called Texas Encore LLC (TEC).

According to the bank's counsel, Robert Lazar, the bank was entitled to withdraw the said amount from Tuanku Ja'afar fixed deposit. - Bernama

The RM 2.4 billion Telecom HSBB (High Speed Broadband) subsidy

Why is Telekom subsidised with RM2.4 billion of tax payer’s money for the HSBB project when an alternative proposal do not require subsidy? Why wasn’t there an open tender to choose the best proposal?

Why does the govt think Telekom is the best company to role out HSSB in spite of the fact that Telekom failed to achieve the national objective of high internet penetration after more than 10 years?

Simple economics will tell that a competitive environment will produce the results the country wants.

Besides failure to deliver the numbers (high internet and broadband penetration) and despite the fact that Telekom is a laughing stock because TMnet is well known for bad quality of service, the govt persist to award the next generation broadband project to Telekom.

HSBT (High Speed Broadband Technology Sdn Bhd) has offered to build a similar network without subsidy. Even if the govt deem HSBT inexperienced to carry out such a large project, wouldn’t the fact that their not requiring a subsidy tell them a subsidy may not be required?

Why then does the govt. need to provide public funds especially in this financially troubled time? The money will be better spent on the rakyat.

Since public money is involved, why wasn’t there an open tender? The govt should justify the rationale and provide details.

To make it worse, Telekom’s HSSB network is only a partially open network when it is known globally that such an infrastructure should be open and accessible to other broadband providers such as in S’pore. Furthermore, the govt did not have specific terms for the sharing of the HSSB network with other service providers.

Telekom has said screening will be done to allow competition that adds value to the industry, country and consumer. The term ’screening’ is bad enough while the part on adding value is open to interpretation.

A similar initiative, “Equal access plan for fixed line phone” introduced a decade ago supposedly to encourage competition in the ISP industry failed miserably. It played to Telekom’s hand to stunt the rise of serious competitors.

It is amazing that the govt continued to allow Telekom to use vague words when Telekom has shown this bad faith previously. Doesn’t the govt learn?

In spite of openly talking about increasing internet penetration and quality, the failure of Telekom to deliver still encourages the govt to dish out the same and to support Telekom further. There is no real competition for broadband in the country.

Can anyone say that Telekom’s 95% share of the market shows M’sia has liberalised the broadband service provider industry effectively?

What the country needs to propel itself forward in the information age is true liberalisation and not simply pay lip service to it. The HSSB project awarded to Telekom will only strengthen their already dominant position.

Will the govt force Telekom to adopt open access where any service provider can use the HSSB network to reach their customers when it is constructed? This is the way to create competition to provide the best service at reasonable prices, vital in order to develop the content and IT industry here.

A few questions to conclude:

• Isn’t the RM2.4 billion subsidy unfair, Telekom is already too dominant?

• Why allow Telekom to defer third party full access to the HSSB network for 7 years when Telekom is already the dominant player? It will be their right if they funded it 100% themselves but with public funds, there should be no delay at all.

• Will the govt listen to all stakeholders – the public, IT industry and broadband industry as to the best way forward for the HSSB project through a study because it is now a public project with public funds involved?

• Why is the govt protecting the revenue of one entity Telekom when true liberalisation will develop the industry, potentially returning revenue many times more for the country?

• Will the govt put in a proviso in the agreement with Telekom HSSB project to ensure open access to all service providers at reasonable price that includes annual audit by a third party? Failing this, will the govt ensure since there is interest, for at least one more HSSB provider within a year? Competition must be created.

Hindraf never insult

Hindraf did not and will not ever insult our Malay Brethren - we are all one - Anak Bangsa Malaysia.

Two similar occasions, one was the PWTC Open House hosted by our PM, the other Hari Raya Open House hosted by Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim and yet how different the treatment…

The very same 6years old Vwaishnavi, daughter of Hindraf chairman P.Waythamoorthy with the almost similar home made, Hari Raya greeting card carrying the same message accompanied by a teddy bear. The same Hindraf supporters of approximately 200 members, in their now familiar, orange Tee shirts. The very same occasion of Hari Raya open house but only this time hosted by the opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim at Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur on 12th October 2008.

As the supporters began to gather outside Sultan Sulaiman Club, our Muslim brothers who were passing by smiled and waved at us. In return Hindraf supporters wished them "Selamat Hari Raya bang”. Police officers on duty too were greeted Selamat Hari Raya by the Hindraf supporters, some of them wished us back while some just smiled and waved. What a contrast from the reception we got from the policemen on duty at PWTC? Were these officers the same ones who stopped and bullied us at PWTC? On whose orders?

Similar to our attendance at PWTC on the 1st of October 2008, Vwaishnnavi and her mother Mrs.Shanti took the lead into the club together with the Kapar MP YB Manikavasagam. The moment we stepped into the compound YB Zuraida Kamaruddin, the Ampang MP welcomed us . There was an announcement made to mark our presence and thousands of our Malaysian Muslim brothers cheered, clapped and welcomed us into the hall. Among the MPs who welcomed us were YB Tian Chua , YB Sivarasah ,YB Nurul Izzah and I might have missed some of the other hospitable YB's. Minta Maaf.



YB Anwar Ibrahim and Datin Wan Azizah who came in after prayers welcomed the hundreds of the Hindraf supporters with a welcoming smile .They shook hands with each and every one of us. We greeted them "Selamat Hari Raya, Release all ISA detainees and Abolish ISA". Datuk Seri confidently said "sure I will" to me and I believe to the rest as well. To digress a bit, no body says "Makkal Shakti" with so much conviction, encouragement and yet these powerful words of "Peoples'Power" is expressed with gentleness by Kak Wan – truly a woman of substance!! They accepted the same home made card and the teddy bear from little Vwaishnnavi.

Yet what a difference on how we were received by the two hosts and how it was reported by media, Hindraf had been demonized for attending the PWTC open house on 1st October 2008.

Frankly, we never anticipated the shameful way we were treated during the Hari Raya Open House hosted by none other than the PM of Malaysia and his cabinet ministers at PWTC.

Malaysians were fully aware of intentions of getting our Hindraf leaders out before Deepavali so that they may celebrate this auspicious occasion with their family. We are also serious about getting our brother RPK and other ISA detainees released. All of which was turned, twisted , manipulated and propagated by the powers that be.

Hindraf was accused as "Biadap" , "Kurang Ajar" "Pengacau" and the most heart breaking "Insulting Islam and Muslims of this country". This was further compounded with 4 Hindraf supporters being summoned to the Dang Wangi Police station for merely attending the open house of the Prime Minister.

They were charged for illegal gathering?? and trespassing?? at PM's Open House. By the way, we even informed Senior Officers in Putra Jaya on 22nd Sept 2008, that Vwaishnnavi and some of us Hindraf supporters would be at the Open House, PM's secretary assured us that we would be welcome at the open house. Additionally, wasn't the PM's invitation to the open house extended to all Malaysians?

So then why PM Sir, were we consistently provoked ever since we stepped into PWTC premises? You yourself saw how the hand made Hari Raya card by six years old Vwaishnnavi was torn by your officials? This wasn't a petition or a memo. A simple self made Hari Raya Greeting card offered to you by a Malaysian Child was taken over by dozens of police officers who stormed in to confiscate and rip it apart, what an insult to the Indian children and the entire Malaysian community!!

Why then did you say we did not greet you? You and your advisors, the police insulted us Indians, every step of our way in the Open House. Are we not correct to assume that the Hari Raya Open House was paid by us Malaysian Tax payers? So then, why were we so badly treated at our own Malaysian open house? Mr PM, don't you consider us Hindraf supporters as Malaysians?

Is it wrong for us to ask you to release our Hindraf leaders, RPK and other ISA detainees, who are in prison, without you giving us any valid reasons for their imprisonment? So many Malaysians of all races concur with us that the draconian ISA law should be abolished, even members of your own cabinet voiced it out, so what's so wrong about us voicing our democratic right at our own Malaysian Open House??

Then again, why didn't Datuk Seri Anwar , Datin Wan Azizah , rest of the YBs and VIPs present at Sultan Sulaiman Club think that Hindraf as Biadap , Kurang Ajar , pengacau. Our Malay brothers there never commented or felt that Hindraf had insulted theMuslims, by attending this open house in our orange colored Tee shirts with a simple home made Raya greeting card and a teddy bear?? By the way we still asked that ISA be abolished and detainees released, yet what a contrast in treatment we received at PWTC ?

The Main stream media especially the Malay newspapers under your control has blamed and accused us for unruly behavior, labeled our women and children as trouble makers and said Hindraf supporters never respected Hari Raya. The Almighty God knows the truth and you too should let all Malaysians know the truth, that we conducted ourselves with decorum, even though we were initially stopped and not allowed to meet you.

You all with your propaganda had Hindraf demonized, some of you even wanted the society deregistered, do you think you can kill the spirit of Hindraf?? Sorry, we are not just a society, we are a united in spirit, not just Indians, but every Anak Bangsa Malaysia, and this spirit can never die, it will continue until we are accorded due respect as Malaysian citizens.



One may ask why we chose the Hari Raya Open House, our answer Mr Prime Minister is that you have just avoided all our calls to meet you in your office or elsewhere. We have no other choice but to state our request at this open house, we wanted you to look us in the eyes so that we can directly tell you to release our leaders, RPK and other detainees. That's all. So cut out the condemnation and lies about our behaviour.

Many guests who were at the PWTC open house did not even know that we were present. Categorically we did not create any ruckus or commotion, full familes came in support. We are the ones who feel insulted that you did not treat us Malaysian citizens with due respect of a courteous host, especially as one would expect from a person of your stature.

I might not be a scholar on religion, but I can definitely say what the Prime Minister , the deputy prime minister, the home minister , the information minister, the tourism minister, Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister and rest of the ministers have said against Hindraf on and after the 1st of October 2008 Hari Raya Open House at PWTC - untruths, insincerity and lies are never condoned and unacceptable by any religion!!

Sambulingam Wisvalingam

Hindraf National Co-ordination team

14th October 2008.

Cops grill Hindraf leaders

Anwar calls for a fresh budget

Govt ‘in denial’: Anwar

By Anwar Ibrahim

Straits Times

By Hazlin Hassan, Malaysia Correspondent

KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim yesterday attacked the government’s budget for next year, saying it was ‘irrelevant’ in the wake of the current global meltdown.

Making his first speech in Parliament in more than 10 years, he said about 44 per cent of government revenue in the 2009 budget was based on crude oil prices being at US$125, whereas oil is now at US$80.

The former deputy prime minister and finance minister spoke from the opposition benches, claiming that there had been a capital flight of RM125 billion (S$53 billion) in the first half of the year.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is also the new finance minister, had announced foreign direct investments of only RM31 billion, he added.

The opposition leader slammed government leaders whom he accused of ’sleeping in broad daylight’ and of being in a ’state of denial’ as the world’s economy collapsed.

‘If the new finance minister is truly responsible, he must table a new budget,’ he said, adding that the government must review spending on mega-projects and roll out plans to handle any effects of the global turmoil.

Datuk Seri Najib took over the post of finance minister last month from Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi. Datuk Seri Abdullah had presented the 2009 budget at the end of August.

Datuk Seri Anwar said even neighbouring Singapore, with its robust economy, has fallen into a recession while Malaysia continues to insist it is able to weather the storm.

Both Mr Najib and Mr Abdullah were absent when Mr Anwar spoke.

Mr Abdullah told reporters elsewhere that the Malaysian banking system is not facing a liquidity crunch like banks in the United States and Europe.

He said Malaysia is ‘not going into recession at the moment’.

‘We have some very strong economic fundamentals. And we have very strong reserves. Our trade surplus is still strong…Our savings are also very high,’ he added.

The RM208 billion budget announced by Mr Abdullah in August outlined higher development spending that is expected to boost the fiscal deficit to 4.8 per cent of gross domestic product this year and 3.6 per cent in 2009.

Mr Anwar told a news conference during a Parliament break: ‘My concern is they are still in a state of denial. A responsible position would be to say, okay, we are having this crisis, it may come to recession, it may not come to recession, but we have to handle it.’

He claimed Mr Najib was preoccupied with approving projects worth billions of ringgit without tender instead of working to tackle the economic situation.

Mr Anwar pointed to ‘mega’ deals such as the RM11.3 billion high-speed broadband project, the controversial purchase of PT Bank Internasional Indonesia by Maybank, and the purchase of 12 new helicopters for the Defence Ministry worth RM1.5 billion.

He also slammed Mr Abdullah and Mr Najib for not being present during the debate, calling it a ’sheer arrogance of power’.

Mr Anwar was returned to Parliament after winning back his old seat in Penang in a by-election in August. He has been appointed by the opposition parties as Parliamentary Opposition Leader.

His targeting of Mr Najib is seen as a strategy to weaken the leader who has been anointed as the next prime minister when Mr Abdullah steps down next year.

Last week, the opposition said it may table a vote of no-confidence against the PM this week but yesterday Mr Anwar indicated it may abandon the plan in order to focus on the budget for now.

Not in support of Utusan Malaysia

Defamation Suits - ISA of the Opposition?

A letter from Mansor Bin Puteh

Dear Rocky,

I am not writing in support for Utusan Malaysia and its reporter, Mohd Zaini Hassan or anyone, but for fairplay and for the unfettered freedom of the press and of expression. They know how to defend themselves and the freedom of the press and of free speech.

But what I am utterly speechless is, how come there is no blogger or member of the ‘liberal’ crowd who is organizing a candle-light vigil to support and press for the freedom of the press and of freedom?

Have the stores run out of candles? Have the supporters of the freedom of the press and of expression and bloggers and their supporters run out of candles to light?

Where are they, the liberals and democrats amongst the Malaysia, especially those who have been vocal to the point of annoyance and who demand these freedoms?

And where is the National Union of Journalists or NUJ? When is its president, Norlida Daud going to ‘ambush’ Teresa Kok and Karpal Singh to demand that they withdraw their suits against anyone or to stop using the defamation suits as the ‘ISA’ of the opposition?

What if their party is able to form the federal government, don’t you think that they, too, would want to take such drastic and even ‘draconian’ actions against anyone who do not write or speak like them?

Can’t they find their way to berate the journalists and newspapers for having uttered what they consider to be disparaging and defamatory remarks against them the same way that these papers have been said to have done that to them?

American president George W Bush has been called by many names, by the media all over the world; if he take similar actions, surely, he can’t call himself a leader who supports the freedom of the press and of expression.

Suing anyone for RM30 million is serious business by any account. It is aimed to put the person who loses the case in permanent disability and castration much like the persons who are in detention under the ISA.

Therefore, by anyone’s rough calculations there is no difference in the ISA than filing a defamation suit.

Now it seems that the opposition only has the defamation suits to use and they are using them to their full advantage and to get wide publicity which they could otherwise not get, unless if they go around to put up road signs in Mandarin or Tamil, a habit that they decided to stop with the arrest of the three under the last ISA roundout.

I am sure those who had wanted to put up more of the same road signs elsewhere, have now not given it a serious thought anymore. Why stop doing that if they think it is good for the multiracial society?

And when is Teresa going to put out more of these road signs?

But if they come to power and are able to introduce new laws will they not want to ban anyone from filing defamation suits since it is against the spirit of the freedom of the press and of expression?

Look at America or the United Kingdom and many other countries in the West, or for that matter, Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines, for instance; how many of the national leaders from both sides, have instituted defamation suits against anyone?

If the Malaysian politicians who are members of parliament can withstand insults and disparaging remarks that are uttered against them al the time in parliament, so surely, they can also withstand those that are hurled against them outside of it.

Is it because the members of parliament are immune to prosecution for whatever they say in parliament that the other members are not able to do anything about it?

If this the case, why not also allow the members of the public and especially, members of the press the same rights and immunity, since they are also in the same business, just to be fair and liberal? What’s the difference being in parliament and in the public anyway?

I was speechless again when I heard on television that there is one opposition member of parliament who said that freedom of the press has its limits! Was he serious?

There is no such thing. Freedom of the press and of expression do not have their limits. If there are limits, then there is no such freedoms in the first place.

They cannot say that and expect anyone else to respect them for their stand; it’s the weird form of the freedom of the press and of expression.

Maybe all of them are still in the happy Raya mood, and have their stomach full of ‘ketupat’ and ‘rendang’ and are ‘ketupat’ and ‘rendang’ – drunk.

Let’s hope once they have cleared this that they would want to bring out their candles and light them outside of the Utusan office in Jalan Chan Sow Lin.

I do subscribe to the freedom of the press and of expression, especially those whose skins have become so thick that cutting them with razor blades would not hurt them at all.

In fact, they won’t even mind to show the scars, that they can get from the cuts as a ‘badge of honor’; the more scars they have the better their reputation is.

There is no such a thing as a bad or negative publicity.

If those who had lost in any elections including those in the party had any real ‘reputation’, they would not stayed in politics, having lost in the elections even once before.

Yet, with their ‘thick skin’ and being so shameless, they still pursued.

Thank You.-Rocky's bru