Thursday, 27 March 2014
Unprecedented Christian Persecution in Iran: UN Report
Oppression under the “moderate” President Rouhani is even greater than under the more vocally extreme President Ahmadinejad.
A new United Nations report concludes that the persecution of Christians in Iran is at unprecedented levels. A minimum of 50 Christians are in prison, with the most famous inmate being American Pastor Saeed Abedini. Evangelical ministries see the regime as trying to suppress a rising tide of conversions to Christianity.
The report states that 35 of the 42 Christians arrested last year were guilty of forming “house churches,” where church services, Bible studies and even baptisms happen in someone’s home. The punishment for this crime against Iran’s theocracy is one to 10 years behind bars.
The U.N. report shows that the oppression under the “moderate” President Rouhani is even greater than what it was under the more vocally extreme President Ahmadinejad. That is because every Islamist believes in sharia governance, so any increase in Christian numbers will lead to an increase in arrests of Christians.
The number of Christians in Iran was miniscule before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, by some accounts numbering in the low hundreds. Amazingly, the takeover of oppressive theocrats acted like a growth hormone for the faith. By claiming to represent Islam, the mullahs made many Muslims second-guess their faith.
Now, it is relatively easy to find atheist or agnostic Iranians or those who practice a reformist, liberal interpretation of their faith compatible with secular democracy. Others turn to other faiths, most commonly evangelical Christianity.
Operation World says that evangelical Christianity is growing faster in Iran than anywhere else in the world, with an estimated annual growth of 19.6%. Todd Nettleton, Director of Media Development for Voice of the Martyrs told me that the church in Iran is “growing at an absolutely phenomenal rate.”
One of the results of this disaffection with the Iranian regime and its version of Islam is a collapse in the number of Iranians going to mosque. In 2010, Planet-Iran.com reported that Mohammad Ali-Ramin, the Deputy Minister of Islamic Guidance and Culture for Media Relations, made an astonishing admission.
“We call upon all clergy to abandon civic and politics issues, partisan matters, NGO’s and western-style organizations and return to the mosques where they can benefit from greater social clout that will ultimately elevate societal and Islamic interests. We need to be able to put our clergy to proper use, as mosque attendance has thinned out,” he said [emphasis mine].
In 2010, Supreme Leader Khamenei publicly warned about the threat posed by the “network of house churches” that “threaten the Islamic faith and deceive young Muslims.” This was the first time that such language had been used towards Iranian Christians. The regime is worried and is responding with the repression permitted by sharia governance.
Islamists (Muslims who believe in governance by sharia) argue that sharia law is tolerant because it gives Christians and Jews some rights and technically permits them to practice their faith and have houses of worship. However, the restrictions on them are designed to make their faiths unsustainable so they are ultimately a thing of the past.
To understand these discriminatory restrictions, it must be understood that Islamists reference the interpretations of authoritative Islamic scholars. One such book is Reliance of the Traveler, certified by Al-Azhar University, the highest school of Sunni learning. It is also endorsed by the U.S.-based International Institute of Islamic Thought. Although Iran is Shiite, the features of sharia governance in relation to religious minorities are fundamentally the same.
Here are some features of Sharia governance that oppress Christians with a reference to the corresponding section of Reliance of the Traveler:
O9.5(8): Religious minorities including Christians are required to pay the jizya, or a special tax, as second-class citizens. (This creates a financial and societal pressure to convert to Islam.)
O11.5(2-4): Non-Muslims must be identifiable by dress and keep to the side of the street.
O11.5(5): Non-Muslims buildings must be shorter than Muslim buildings.
O11.5(6): Christians cannot ring church bells or display crosses, recite the Torah or Gospel aloud, or have funerals or religious celebrations in public.
O11.5(7): No additional churches may be constructed.
O11.10(1): Non-Muslims may not marry a Muslim woman.
O11.10(2): Non-Muslims may not hide a foreign spy. (This and other sharia determinations against subversion are used by the Iranian regime to arrest Christians as “threats to national security.” If one is not fully supportive with the regime’s foreign policy, then that can be seen as treason. For example, nine Christians were arrested for preaching to Muslims and branded as “Christian Zionists.”)
O11.10(3): It is illegal for non-Muslims to proselytize to Muslims. If any Muslim leaves the faith, that former Muslim is to be executed.
In summary, the persecution of Christians in Iran is not solely about a weak regime trying to stay in power. There is an ideological foundation for this persecution. You can change the leadership of Iran, as happened when the presidency passed from Ahmadinejad to Rouhani, but that doesn’t necessarily change the belief system.
If Christian persecution is to end in Iran and the Muslim world, governance by sharia must end as well.
American Pastor Saeed Abedini (shown here
with his wife) was arrested in Iran after having traveled there to set
up an orphanage and visit his family. He has reportedly been tortured
and is being held at a notorious maximum security prison.
The report states that 35 of the 42 Christians arrested last year were guilty of forming “house churches,” where church services, Bible studies and even baptisms happen in someone’s home. The punishment for this crime against Iran’s theocracy is one to 10 years behind bars.
The U.N. report shows that the oppression under the “moderate” President Rouhani is even greater than what it was under the more vocally extreme President Ahmadinejad. That is because every Islamist believes in sharia governance, so any increase in Christian numbers will lead to an increase in arrests of Christians.
The number of Christians in Iran was miniscule before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, by some accounts numbering in the low hundreds. Amazingly, the takeover of oppressive theocrats acted like a growth hormone for the faith. By claiming to represent Islam, the mullahs made many Muslims second-guess their faith.
Now, it is relatively easy to find atheist or agnostic Iranians or those who practice a reformist, liberal interpretation of their faith compatible with secular democracy. Others turn to other faiths, most commonly evangelical Christianity.
Operation World says that evangelical Christianity is growing faster in Iran than anywhere else in the world, with an estimated annual growth of 19.6%. Todd Nettleton, Director of Media Development for Voice of the Martyrs told me that the church in Iran is “growing at an absolutely phenomenal rate.”
One of the results of this disaffection with the Iranian regime and its version of Islam is a collapse in the number of Iranians going to mosque. In 2010, Planet-Iran.com reported that Mohammad Ali-Ramin, the Deputy Minister of Islamic Guidance and Culture for Media Relations, made an astonishing admission.
“We call upon all clergy to abandon civic and politics issues, partisan matters, NGO’s and western-style organizations and return to the mosques where they can benefit from greater social clout that will ultimately elevate societal and Islamic interests. We need to be able to put our clergy to proper use, as mosque attendance has thinned out,” he said [emphasis mine].
In 2010, Supreme Leader Khamenei publicly warned about the threat posed by the “network of house churches” that “threaten the Islamic faith and deceive young Muslims.” This was the first time that such language had been used towards Iranian Christians. The regime is worried and is responding with the repression permitted by sharia governance.
Islamists (Muslims who believe in governance by sharia) argue that sharia law is tolerant because it gives Christians and Jews some rights and technically permits them to practice their faith and have houses of worship. However, the restrictions on them are designed to make their faiths unsustainable so they are ultimately a thing of the past.
To understand these discriminatory restrictions, it must be understood that Islamists reference the interpretations of authoritative Islamic scholars. One such book is Reliance of the Traveler, certified by Al-Azhar University, the highest school of Sunni learning. It is also endorsed by the U.S.-based International Institute of Islamic Thought. Although Iran is Shiite, the features of sharia governance in relation to religious minorities are fundamentally the same.
Here are some features of Sharia governance that oppress Christians with a reference to the corresponding section of Reliance of the Traveler:
O9.5(8): Religious minorities including Christians are required to pay the jizya, or a special tax, as second-class citizens. (This creates a financial and societal pressure to convert to Islam.)
O11.5(2-4): Non-Muslims must be identifiable by dress and keep to the side of the street.
O11.5(5): Non-Muslims buildings must be shorter than Muslim buildings.
O11.5(6): Christians cannot ring church bells or display crosses, recite the Torah or Gospel aloud, or have funerals or religious celebrations in public.
O11.5(7): No additional churches may be constructed.
O11.10(1): Non-Muslims may not marry a Muslim woman.
O11.10(2): Non-Muslims may not hide a foreign spy. (This and other sharia determinations against subversion are used by the Iranian regime to arrest Christians as “threats to national security.” If one is not fully supportive with the regime’s foreign policy, then that can be seen as treason. For example, nine Christians were arrested for preaching to Muslims and branded as “Christian Zionists.”)
O11.10(3): It is illegal for non-Muslims to proselytize to Muslims. If any Muslim leaves the faith, that former Muslim is to be executed.
In summary, the persecution of Christians in Iran is not solely about a weak regime trying to stay in power. There is an ideological foundation for this persecution. You can change the leadership of Iran, as happened when the presidency passed from Ahmadinejad to Rouhani, but that doesn’t necessarily change the belief system.
If Christian persecution is to end in Iran and the Muslim world, governance by sharia must end as well.
Austria: Muslims Outnumber Catholics in Vienna Schools
by Soeren Kern
The data—which show that Muslim students are also on the verge of overtaking Catholics in Viennese elementary schools—reflect an established trend and provide empirical evidence of a massive demographic and religious shift underway in Austria, traditionally a Roman Catholic country.
The Muslim population in Austria now exceeds 500,000 (or roughly 6% of the total population), up from an estimated 150,000 (or 2%) in 1990. The Muslim population is expected to reach 800,000 (or 9.5%) by 2030, according to recent estimates.
In the current school year, 10,734 Muslim students are enrolled in Viennese middle and secondary schools, compared to 8,632 Roman Catholic students, 4,259 Serbian Orthodox students and 3,219 students with "no religious persuasion," according to statistics compiled by the Vienna Board of Education (Stadtschulrat für Wien) and published by Radio Vatican website on March 21.
As far as elementary schools are concerned, there are 23,807 Roman Catholic students, followed by 17,913 Muslim students, 11,119 "non-religious" students, 6,083 Serbian Orthodox students and 2,322 Protestants.
The statistics show that the only Viennese schools where Muslims remain a distinct minority are in the gymnasium, advanced secondary schools that place a strong emphasis on academic learning rather than on vocational skills. Students graduating from a gymnasium are more likely than others to be admitted to attend university in Austria.
Austria is also in the process of introducing new taxpayer-funded textbooks for the formal teaching of Islam in all public elementary schools across the country.
The textbooks are called "Islam Hour" (Islamstunde) and have been prepared by the Islamic Religious Authority of Austria (Islamische Glaubensgemeinschaft in Österreich, IGGiÖ), a Muslim umbrella organization whose main responsibility is the state-funded supply of Islamic religious education at Austrian public and private schools.
According to the IGGiÖ, the new textbooks are based on "secure and recognized sources of Islam" aimed at "embedding Islam into the lives of students." Unlike previous versions of the books, which were criticized for being "overly martial in tone" and for not being "sufficiently oriented toward European values," the new books have been developed based a "completely new didactic model for competency-based education."
Previously, the main textbook used for Islam instruction in Austrian public schools was a vehemently anti-Western screed entitled "The Lawful and the Prohibited in Islam" (Erlaubtes und Verbotenes im Islam) and authored by none other than Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Among other Islamic doctrines, the book taught students that Islamic Sharia law takes precedence over secular laws, that women have fewer rights than men, and that those who abandoned Islam are to be put to death.
The book was eventually banned from Austrian schools (although it is still being openly promoted on the website of the Vienna Islamic Centre, the largest mosque in Austria) after Al-Qaradawi[1] — a spiritual advisor for the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas — began publicly endorsing suicide attacks against Jews as "martyrdom in the name of Allah."
The new textbooks come in four volumes along with a companion CD that
includes not only recitations of the Koran, but also a rap song which
deals with the aspects of Ramadan.
In an interview with the Austrian newspaper Heute, an IGGiÖ project manager named Amena Shakir said the aim of the new textbooks is to "learn about how the Koranic suras [chapters] can be applied to everyday life." Shakir added that this is the first time Islam is being taught to Austrian students in the German language and that the textbooks contextualize Islam in the Austrian countryside rather than in Arabia.
"We want our young people in Austria have a sense of home," said the president of IGGiÖ, Fuat Sanac. "We have tried for years to bring these books into being."
Sanac also called on the Austrian government to approve and promulgate a new "Islam Law" that would provide Muslims with more legal rights and protections than they enjoy in the current law, which dates back to 1912.
The original law was adopted to help integrate Muslim soldiers from Bosnia-Herzegovina into the Austro-Hungarian army of the Habsburg monarchy. The law recognized Islam as a religious community in Austria, and allowed Muslims to practice their religion in accordance with the laws of the state.
In an interview with Austrian Public Radio Ö1-Morgenjournal on March 21, the Minister for Integration and Foreign Affairs, Sebastian Kurz, said he would honor a campaign pledge to update the law, which would more clearly stipulate the rights and responsibilities of Muslims living in the country.
Kurz said Muslims would be expected to adhere to Austrian values (as yet undefined) and to acknowledge the primacy of Austrian law over Islamic Sharia law. That is to say, Muslims would be prohibited from citing Islamic law as legal justification for ignoring or disobeying Austrian civil laws, he said.
The new law would also clearly stipulate that Islam classes may not contradict or override Austria's civil educational system. In addition, Kurz said Islamic religious institutions in Austria should be financed exclusively from within Austria and that there should be more government scrutiny of funding obtained from abroad, presumably from Saudi Arabia and other oil rich Muslim countries.
At the same time, Muslims would obtain the legal right to operate their own cemeteries according to Islamic law. The law would also regulate the activities of Muslim clergy in hospitals, prisons and the army.
Kurz did not address Muslim demands for the official recognition of Islamic holidays (Muslim students are already entitled to two such holidays each year but Muslim workers are not) in Austria.
In addition, the Austrian government would actively promote the training of Muslim clergy (imams) within the Austrian university system (modeled on the Institute for Islamic Studies at the University of Vienna), with the aim of promoting a "European" Islam.
Kurz said he did not expect significant resistance to the initiative from other political parties in Austria. "We need a new law that clearly defines that there are rights and obligations for every individual in Austria," Kurz said. "It makes sense to have an orderly legal framework regarding Islam, a topic that often raises emotions. Austria needs a clear framework for Islam."
Austria is also in the process of introducing new taxpayer-funded textbooks for the formal teaching if Islam in all public elementary schools across the country.... This is the first time Islam is being taught to Austrian students in the German language.Muslim students, according to new statistics, now outnumber Roman Catholic students at middle and secondary schools in Vienna, the capital and largest city of Austria.
"What remains, then, is to conquer Rome. This means Islam will come back to Europe for a third time, after it was expelled from it twice. We will conquer Europe! We will conquer America! Not through the sword but through our Dawa [proselytizing]." — Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Muslim Brotherhood
The data—which show that Muslim students are also on the verge of overtaking Catholics in Viennese elementary schools—reflect an established trend and provide empirical evidence of a massive demographic and religious shift underway in Austria, traditionally a Roman Catholic country.
The Muslim population in Austria now exceeds 500,000 (or roughly 6% of the total population), up from an estimated 150,000 (or 2%) in 1990. The Muslim population is expected to reach 800,000 (or 9.5%) by 2030, according to recent estimates.
In the current school year, 10,734 Muslim students are enrolled in Viennese middle and secondary schools, compared to 8,632 Roman Catholic students, 4,259 Serbian Orthodox students and 3,219 students with "no religious persuasion," according to statistics compiled by the Vienna Board of Education (Stadtschulrat für Wien) and published by Radio Vatican website on March 21.
As far as elementary schools are concerned, there are 23,807 Roman Catholic students, followed by 17,913 Muslim students, 11,119 "non-religious" students, 6,083 Serbian Orthodox students and 2,322 Protestants.
The statistics show that the only Viennese schools where Muslims remain a distinct minority are in the gymnasium, advanced secondary schools that place a strong emphasis on academic learning rather than on vocational skills. Students graduating from a gymnasium are more likely than others to be admitted to attend university in Austria.
Austria is also in the process of introducing new taxpayer-funded textbooks for the formal teaching of Islam in all public elementary schools across the country.
The textbooks are called "Islam Hour" (Islamstunde) and have been prepared by the Islamic Religious Authority of Austria (Islamische Glaubensgemeinschaft in Österreich, IGGiÖ), a Muslim umbrella organization whose main responsibility is the state-funded supply of Islamic religious education at Austrian public and private schools.
According to the IGGiÖ, the new textbooks are based on "secure and recognized sources of Islam" aimed at "embedding Islam into the lives of students." Unlike previous versions of the books, which were criticized for being "overly martial in tone" and for not being "sufficiently oriented toward European values," the new books have been developed based a "completely new didactic model for competency-based education."
Previously, the main textbook used for Islam instruction in Austrian public schools was a vehemently anti-Western screed entitled "The Lawful and the Prohibited in Islam" (Erlaubtes und Verbotenes im Islam) and authored by none other than Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Among other Islamic doctrines, the book taught students that Islamic Sharia law takes precedence over secular laws, that women have fewer rights than men, and that those who abandoned Islam are to be put to death.
The book was eventually banned from Austrian schools (although it is still being openly promoted on the website of the Vienna Islamic Centre, the largest mosque in Austria) after Al-Qaradawi[1] — a spiritual advisor for the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas — began publicly endorsing suicide attacks against Jews as "martyrdom in the name of Allah."
The Vienna Islamic Centre.
|
In an interview with the Austrian newspaper Heute, an IGGiÖ project manager named Amena Shakir said the aim of the new textbooks is to "learn about how the Koranic suras [chapters] can be applied to everyday life." Shakir added that this is the first time Islam is being taught to Austrian students in the German language and that the textbooks contextualize Islam in the Austrian countryside rather than in Arabia.
"We want our young people in Austria have a sense of home," said the president of IGGiÖ, Fuat Sanac. "We have tried for years to bring these books into being."
Sanac also called on the Austrian government to approve and promulgate a new "Islam Law" that would provide Muslims with more legal rights and protections than they enjoy in the current law, which dates back to 1912.
The original law was adopted to help integrate Muslim soldiers from Bosnia-Herzegovina into the Austro-Hungarian army of the Habsburg monarchy. The law recognized Islam as a religious community in Austria, and allowed Muslims to practice their religion in accordance with the laws of the state.
In an interview with Austrian Public Radio Ö1-Morgenjournal on March 21, the Minister for Integration and Foreign Affairs, Sebastian Kurz, said he would honor a campaign pledge to update the law, which would more clearly stipulate the rights and responsibilities of Muslims living in the country.
Kurz said Muslims would be expected to adhere to Austrian values (as yet undefined) and to acknowledge the primacy of Austrian law over Islamic Sharia law. That is to say, Muslims would be prohibited from citing Islamic law as legal justification for ignoring or disobeying Austrian civil laws, he said.
The new law would also clearly stipulate that Islam classes may not contradict or override Austria's civil educational system. In addition, Kurz said Islamic religious institutions in Austria should be financed exclusively from within Austria and that there should be more government scrutiny of funding obtained from abroad, presumably from Saudi Arabia and other oil rich Muslim countries.
At the same time, Muslims would obtain the legal right to operate their own cemeteries according to Islamic law. The law would also regulate the activities of Muslim clergy in hospitals, prisons and the army.
Kurz did not address Muslim demands for the official recognition of Islamic holidays (Muslim students are already entitled to two such holidays each year but Muslim workers are not) in Austria.
In addition, the Austrian government would actively promote the training of Muslim clergy (imams) within the Austrian university system (modeled on the Institute for Islamic Studies at the University of Vienna), with the aim of promoting a "European" Islam.
Kurz said he did not expect significant resistance to the initiative from other political parties in Austria. "We need a new law that clearly defines that there are rights and obligations for every individual in Austria," Kurz said. "It makes sense to have an orderly legal framework regarding Islam, a topic that often raises emotions. Austria needs a clear framework for Islam."
Soeren Kern is a Senior Fellow at the New York-based Gatestone Institute. He is also Senior Fellow for European Politics at the Madrid-based Grupo de Estudios Estratégicos / Strategic Studies Group. Follow him on Facebook and on Twitter.[1] Al-Qaradawi speaks openly about the goals of Islam: "What remains, then, is to conquer Rome. (...) This means that Islam will come back to Europe for the third time, after it was expelled from it twice. (...) Conquest through Dawa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe! We will conquer America! Not through the sword but through our Dawa."
Zahid admits weaknesses in Immigration Dept - Malaysiakini
The search for the missing Malaysia Airlines
(MAS) Flight MH370 enters the 19th day today, resuming in the south
Indian Ocean, after being hampered by bad weather all of yesterday.
On
Monday, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak announced that the plane went
down in the Indian Ocean, based on calculations by British satellite
company Inmarsat.
Following this, Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein declared yesterday that searches in the northern corridor, as well as in the northern tip of the southern corridor, near Indonesia, have been called off.
This means search and recovery operations are now exclusively being carried out at the south Indian Ocean, led by Australia, where attempts are being made to relocate and retrieve several objects, possibly MH370 debris, spotted on Monday.
Below are updates and the latest coverage from various sources and news agencies:
Conspiracy theories Wiki
11pm: A Wikipedia entry on conspiracy theories regarding MH370's disappearance is slowly expanding, but there are also efforts to delete the entry altogether.
The
theories ranges from early speculations to the outright bizzare -
theories about Illuminati involvement, UFOs and pop-star Shakira.
The entry was created on March 25 and efforts are underway to remove it.
PM's wife expresses sympathy
8.46pm: Prime minister's wife Rosmah Mansor has expressed profound sympathy and conveyed her condolences to family members, friends and acquaintances of the MH370 passengers and crew.
In a statement today, reports Bernama, she called on all family members of the passengers and crew to be strong in accepting the will of God.
"I have received telephone calls from several wives of world leaders to express sympathy over the tragedy.
"I thanked them for their concerns and it shows Malaysia has many friends in such times of need," she is quoted as saying.
Iranians with stolen passports
"We have investigated and came to this conclusion," he told the Parliament today.
'Sealed evidence that can't be revealed'
7.05pm: Emotions spill over once more over in Beijing at a briefing by Malaysian officials to families of MH370 passengers, who are told that there is 'sealed evidence' that cannot be revealed.
According to Singapore’s The Straits Times, it includes air traffic control radio transcripts, radar data and airport security recordings.
It adds the families continue to pressure Malaysian officials for evidence which could convince them that the plane did indeed crash into the Indian Ocean and that their loved ones are dead.
"You expect us to accept a report you cannot defend?" one family member is quoted asking Malaysian envoy to China Iskandar Sarudin, who can only reply, "no comment".
The next-of-kin are also upset at the lack of caregivers tasked with helping them, when told there were only 50 due to problems finding volunteers, with one relation asking: "Two-thirds of MH370 passengers are Chinese but only 50 caregivers?"
They also asked how much the Malaysian government is paying for the UK satellite analysis, saying "you've been cheated," The Straits Times further reports.
More objects sighted
6.02pm: Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) reports that three objects have been sighted by search planes at the south Indian Ocean, two of which are likely to be ropes while the third is described as blue.
However, it says none have been relocated upon further passes.
5.45pm: The daily press briefing on the status of the ongoing search for MAS Flight MH370 begins. As usual, Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein leads the session, now being held at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) in the centre of Kuala Lumpur.
Here are some of the highlights:
5.20pm: Deputy Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Bakri tells Parliament that the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) did not act to intercept MH370 when it was detected on the military radar off the Straits of Malacca on March 8 not long after it ceased communications with air traffic control, as it "assumed" that the flight was ordered to turn back by the control tower.
Read the full story here.
Minister denies missed meeting sparked protest
5pm: Foreign Affairs Minister Anifah Aman denies a media report claiming yesterday's protest in Beijing was sparked by Malaysia's envoy to China, Iskandar Sarudin, failing to keep an appointment with families of Flight MH370 passengers.
Read the full story here.
Search region geologically 'extremely active'
4.28pm: Search teams looking for MH370 are facing challenges ranging from huge waves to underwater volcanoes, says experts quoted by the AFP.
The report says that the region being searched is very windy with waves up to 15 metres during winter, and is also geologically “extremely active”.
“It's rugged, it's covered in faults, fine-scale gullies and ridges, there isn't a lot of sediment blanketing that part of the world because it's fresh (in geological terms),” says James Cook University underwater geologist Robin Beamen.
On the bright side, University of New South Wales oceanographer Erik van Sebille says the remoteness of the suspected crash site also means any large debris sighted is likely to have been part of the missing aircraft rather than unrelated flostsam.
Abbott moves motion of condolence in Parliament
4.05pm: Australian PM Tony Abbott today tables a motion in Parliament to express the government's condolences to grieving families.
"We mourn all those 239 passengers and crew. We especially mourn the six Australian citizens and one Australian resident who must be presumed dead and we grieve with their families and loved ones," he says.
Several of the family members are present to hear the motion.
Daily Mail floats fresh 'suicide' theory
4pm: After Telegraph, another British tabloid is pursuing the 'pilot suicide' theory by speculating that the plane was flown to its maximum altitude as part of the plot.
Citing an anonymous source, the Daily Mail claims that MH370 flew at 43,000 to 45,000 feet for 23 minutes, 11 minutes longer than oxygen supply in depressurised cabins.
It quotes an aerodynamics professor as saying that emergency air supply would not automatically kick in if the plane flew at 43,000 feet.
It also reports that investigators are probing the possibility that the pressurisation system was deliberately turned off, thereby jeopardising filtered cabin air.
Yesterday, Germany's Speigel Online posited the ghost plane theory—that an electrical fire caused the system to halt, knocking out all on board and leaving the aircraft to fly on auto-pilot until it ran out of fuel.
Special equipment no use without wreckage
3.30pm: BBC reports that the US Navy has flown in "specialist underwater detection equipment" which will aid detection of the plane's flight recorder.
However,
it says that can be carried out when the wreckage is found, and even
then, it states it will still be several days before the ship carrying
the detectors will arrive at the search site.
BBC further warns that tomorrow's weather threatens to deteriorate once more, "with a cold front bringing thunderstorms and strong winds", and that this could further slow the progress of search efforts.
Chinese envoy meets PM
3pm: China’s news agency Xinhua reports that special envoy to Malaysia Zhang Yesui meets with Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to discuss the search for the missing plane.
This comes as family members of Chinese national on board Flight MH370 protested in Beijing yesterday, unwilling to accept the Malaysian government’s announcement that the plane crashed into the south Indian Ocean and none survived, due to lack of any concrete evidence.
China's Foreign Ministry also reportedly requested for all relevant satellite data from Malaysia and British satellite company Inmarsat.
It is later reported by Reuters that he requests for "unremitting
efforts" on the search for the missing plane.
Meanwhile, Bernama reports that Indonesia, too, is sending a special envoy to hold an “intensive dialogue” with Malaysia.
It cites Antara news agency, which quotes Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa as saying: “We need clarification from the Malaysian authorities. We do not want the families to miss out on clear information”.
'Little can be done without debris'
2pm: Oceanographers have used data from drift models to construct a dynamic map of the sea in order to find where MH370 went down. But without debris, there is little they can do.
Time is also running out, Australia's leading scientific agency Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, or CSIRO's team leader David Griffin tells the Wall Street Journal.
“You can really only follow things with any certainty for a couple of weeks. We’re getting to the end now of the time when you can backtrack to the original location (of the crash),” Griffin says.
'Families shouldn't have been informed by text'
1.50pm: PKR vice-president Tian Chua says families should not have been informed that their loved ones in all certainty did not survive, via text message.
"I
urge Malaysian Airlines to choose a more comforting method to handle
the situation...After two weeks anxiously waiting for some good news,
receiving a text message with such news would have been very painful,"
he says in a statement.
He also urges media to not publish speculations accusing the pilot of suicide, fingering specifically the UK's Daily Telegraph.
MAS has defended contacting families via text message, saying that it was a "last" resort when it could not call or speak to the 1,000 family members to avoid them learning about it on the news.
Flags to be flown at half-mast
1.37pm: The sultan of Pahang ordered that the Pahang and Malaysian flags be flown at half-mast in the state for three days from today as a mark of respect over the MAS aircraft tragedy, Bernama reports.
The state Information Department says in a statement that the order was directed at all government departments and agencies and private sector firms.
Families opt to stay put, for now
12.30pm: Some families of MH370 passengers are opting not to go to Australia, despite MAS' offer to fly them out until the wreckage is found.
Indonesian news outlet Tempo reports that the family members of Indonesian passengers Indra Suria Tanurisman and Firman Chandra Siregar as holding on to belief their son is alive, opting to wait at home until there is physical evidence of a crash.
"At this moment, Firman's mother and myself still believe that our son is working with in China," Firman's father Krisman is quoted saying.
Firman's family is mulling legal action.
Meanwhile, the Sydney Morning Herald reports that Chinese families, too, feel there is no point travelling to Perth until more concrete evidence is found.
PM Abbott: Search not open-ended
12.01pm: Another three Chinese ships have now joined merchant vessel Xue Long and Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) HMAS Success at the MH370 search site, along with five aircraft, reports The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa).
11.30am: Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott says that while there is no deadline set for the search for MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean, the search is not endless.
"It's not absolutely open-ended, but it's not something we will lightly abandon," Abbott is quoted by dpa as saying.
Locators useless if pinger damaged
11.20am: While the US Navy is shipping its towed pinger locator to Australia to find MH370’s black box, its manufacturer tells Sydney Morning Herald that the device has limitations despite numerous past successes.
The
pinger locator is designed to search up to a depth of 6,000 metres, but
the Indian Ocean can be as deep as 7,000 metres in parts.
In addition, the device can only be used once the search area is narrowed down further, while the black box’s pinger have a battery life of some 30 days. MH370 went missing on March 8.
The pingers may have also been damaged upon impact, rendering the locators useless as it did in the Air France Flight 447, which crashed in 2009.
Pingers are attached to the black box and emits a sound when submerged in water, while the pinger locator is comprised of highly sensitive underwater microphones designed to find it.
11 days left before black box battery dies
11am: It has been 19 days since MAS Flight MH370 disappeared.
The
clock ticks as that leaves less than just 11 days for search teams to
find the plane before the black box battery runs out and it ceases to
emit 'pings'.
According to Australia's news.com.au, the black box emits one 'ping' per second for 30 days, which can be picked up by sonar and acoustic-locating equipment.
However, Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has vowed that search for the missing plane will not stop even after the black box battery runs out after the 30-day mark.
He says there are other means investigators and search parties can employ to locate the black box.
China, US affirms support
10.20am: Both the Chinese president Xi Jinping and US president Barack Obama reaffirm their support towards the search for MH370, says Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.
The New Straits Times reports that Muhyiddin met the two leaders at the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Hague, to express Malaysia’s appreciation for the two country’s contribution in the search efforts.
To
a question whether China is dissatisfied with Malaysia’s handling of
the crisis, Muhyiddin is quoted saying that Xi empathised with Malaysia
over the large scale of the SAR effort, and alluded to longstanding
diplomatic relations between Malaysia and China.
However, in apparent disatisfaction at the PM's announcement on Monday, Reuters had reported that China's Deputy Foreign Minister Xie Hangsheng ‘immediately demanded’ all relevant satellite data from Malaysia.
The ministry is also seeking satellite data from British satellite company Inmarsat, to know exactly how the final conclusion was derived.
What are they searching for
10am: Another recap - On Monday, Australia announced spotting two objects in the search area - an orange rectangular object and a green or grey circular one.
Although it said it maintained aerial view of the objects as at yesterday, the search was called off for 24 hours yesterday due to rough weather.
The objects were located more than 2,000km west of Perth in what is described as one of the most remote corners of the globe.
However, Al Jazeera reporter Andrew Thomas, who was on board the Australian P3 Orion aircraft that spotted the reported debris, claimed that there were five objects.
How the Doppler Effect factors in
9.15am: To recap, investigators determined that MH370 had flown to the southern corridor by looking for subtle shifts in the radio frequency that the aircraft used to communicate with Inmarsat’s satellite.
The
shifts - caused by the Doppler Effect - is akin to a police siren that
sounds differently as the police car passes by. The same principle that
changes the sound of moving vehicle also applies to the radio frequency
of a moving aircraft.
By measuring these shifts and comparing it against what would have been expected if MH370 had turned north or south, investigators found a good match between the measurements and the expected radio frequencies of the southerly route.
This type of analysis has not been used to locate an aircraft before, and investigators tested the method with six other aircraft whose flight path were known to ensure that it works.
Read more here.
Final ping 'not by human interaction'
8.50am: British satellite operator Inmarsat says the final "partial ping", that is a digital handshake between MH370 and its satellite was not from human interaction.
It says investigators are investigating if the partial ping which originated from the aircraft at 9.15am Malaysian time on March 8 was "failed login" or the system "resetting itself".
"We're not looking at (the partial ping) as someone trying to turn on the communication system," Inmarsat senior vice-president Chris McLaughlin tells the Wall Street Journal.
Australia defends Malaysia
8am: Australian Minister of Defence David Johnston defends Malaysia’s handling of the MH370 crisis, saying that its critics have the benefit of hindsight.
"Look, this has been a tragedy that has come from nowhere, who would have anticipated anything like this, an aircraft just going off the radar?
"And
now we believe it’s about three and a half thousand kilometres away
from where it was supposed to be at its last point of identification –
and may I say – in one of the most outrageously remote parts of the
planet.
"I mean, there is just nothing down there…," he says in an interview with CNN yesterday.
He adds analyses on satellite data used to determine MH370’s location took time because the relevant data needs to be filtered from large amounts of other data, including those from other aircraft communicating with the satellite.
“I think they’ve achieved something that might be the beginning of something concrete. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
“As I say, when we pull something out of the ocean and someone says this is clearly a part of this aircraft, I think that will be a significant step,” he says.
A transcript of which is available from the Australian Ministry of Defence. Read the full transcript here.
Weather permits search
7am: The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) confirms that the search for objects sighted in the south Indian Ocean has resumed as weather conditions improves.
It says a total of 12 aircraft will be involved in searches covering 80,000 sq km.
Meanwhile, Australian vessel HMS Success and Chinese ice-breaker Xue Long are in the search area.
Background:
On
Monday, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak announced that the plane went
down in the Indian Ocean, based on calculations by British satellite
company Inmarsat.Following this, Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein declared yesterday that searches in the northern corridor, as well as in the northern tip of the southern corridor, near Indonesia, have been called off.
This means search and recovery operations are now exclusively being carried out at the south Indian Ocean, led by Australia, where attempts are being made to relocate and retrieve several objects, possibly MH370 debris, spotted on Monday.
Below are updates and the latest coverage from various sources and news agencies:
Conspiracy theories Wiki
11pm: A Wikipedia entry on conspiracy theories regarding MH370's disappearance is slowly expanding, but there are also efforts to delete the entry altogether.
The
theories ranges from early speculations to the outright bizzare -
theories about Illuminati involvement, UFOs and pop-star Shakira.The entry was created on March 25 and efforts are underway to remove it.
PM's wife expresses sympathy
8.46pm: Prime minister's wife Rosmah Mansor has expressed profound sympathy and conveyed her condolences to family members, friends and acquaintances of the MH370 passengers and crew.
In a statement today, reports Bernama, she called on all family members of the passengers and crew to be strong in accepting the will of God."I have received telephone calls from several wives of world leaders to express sympathy over the tragedy.
"I thanked them for their concerns and it shows Malaysia has many friends in such times of need," she is quoted as saying.
Iranians with stolen passports
8pm: Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that the two
Iranians who boarded the MH370 flight with stolen passports were not
terrorists and nor were they asylum seekers.
"We have investigated and came to this conclusion," he told the Parliament today.
He also said that the immigration officers could not identify the Iranians, and not Europeans, because of "weaknesses".
He also blames China's press for instigating families of the passengers in Beijing. Read our full story.
He also blames China's press for instigating families of the passengers in Beijing. Read our full story.
'Sealed evidence that can't be revealed'
7.05pm: Emotions spill over once more over in Beijing at a briefing by Malaysian officials to families of MH370 passengers, who are told that there is 'sealed evidence' that cannot be revealed.
According to Singapore’s The Straits Times, it includes air traffic control radio transcripts, radar data and airport security recordings.
It adds the families continue to pressure Malaysian officials for evidence which could convince them that the plane did indeed crash into the Indian Ocean and that their loved ones are dead.
"You expect us to accept a report you cannot defend?" one family member is quoted asking Malaysian envoy to China Iskandar Sarudin, who can only reply, "no comment".
The next-of-kin are also upset at the lack of caregivers tasked with helping them, when told there were only 50 due to problems finding volunteers, with one relation asking: "Two-thirds of MH370 passengers are Chinese but only 50 caregivers?"
They also asked how much the Malaysian government is paying for the UK satellite analysis, saying "you've been cheated," The Straits Times further reports.
More objects sighted
6.02pm: Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) reports that three objects have been sighted by search planes at the south Indian Ocean, two of which are likely to be ropes while the third is described as blue.
However, it says none have been relocated upon further passes.
5.45pm: The daily press briefing on the status of the ongoing search for MAS Flight MH370 begins. As usual, Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein leads the session, now being held at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) in the centre of Kuala Lumpur.
Here are some of the highlights:
-
Yesterday Malaysian Remote Sensing Agency (MRSA) received new satellite
images from France, taken on March 23 and covering an area of 400sq km,
shows 122 potential objects 2,557km from Perth.
-
Of these objects, some are 1 metre in length and some 23 metres, and bright, possibly indicating solid material. This "new lead" was immediately forwarded to Perth yesterday.
-
Malaysia has established an international working group comprising,
among others, satellite company Inmarsat, UK Air Accidents Investigation
Branch (AAIB), The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), US
National Transport Safety Bureau (NTSB) and Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), as well as Boeing, engine maker Rolls Royce, as
well as relevant Malaysian authorities.
-
The group will study the Inmarsat data try to determine, more accurately, the final position of Flight MH370.
-
Malaysia Airlines (MAS), tasked with briefing and dealing with affected
families of those on board Flight MH370, will be holding another press
conference tomorrow.
-
Hishammuddin, who is also defence minister, says he cannot confirm if the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) didn't act as it had assumed Flight MH370 was asked to turn back by Subang air traffic control.
-
Hishammuddin assures that security at Malaysian embassy in Beijing is under control.
-
He assures that anger directed at Malaysia by Chinese citizens has not
affected China-Malaysia bilateral ties. He says PM Najib Abdul Razak
will go ahead with plans to visit China in May.
-
He also opines that Malaysia has handled this crisis "admirably"
and considering its unprecedented nature, was able to garner the "most
sophisticated" assets from all over the world to come assist in the
search and rescue operations.
-
He appeals for understanding from Chinese families, saying that as a brother and a father, he understands their ordeal.
He points out that Malaysia, along with several other nations, have also lost citizens.
5.20pm: Deputy Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Bakri tells Parliament that the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) did not act to intercept MH370 when it was detected on the military radar off the Straits of Malacca on March 8 not long after it ceased communications with air traffic control, as it "assumed" that the flight was ordered to turn back by the control tower.
Read the full story here.
Minister denies missed meeting sparked protest
5pm: Foreign Affairs Minister Anifah Aman denies a media report claiming yesterday's protest in Beijing was sparked by Malaysia's envoy to China, Iskandar Sarudin, failing to keep an appointment with families of Flight MH370 passengers.
Read the full story here.
Search region geologically 'extremely active'
4.28pm: Search teams looking for MH370 are facing challenges ranging from huge waves to underwater volcanoes, says experts quoted by the AFP.
The report says that the region being searched is very windy with waves up to 15 metres during winter, and is also geologically “extremely active”.
“It's rugged, it's covered in faults, fine-scale gullies and ridges, there isn't a lot of sediment blanketing that part of the world because it's fresh (in geological terms),” says James Cook University underwater geologist Robin Beamen.
On the bright side, University of New South Wales oceanographer Erik van Sebille says the remoteness of the suspected crash site also means any large debris sighted is likely to have been part of the missing aircraft rather than unrelated flostsam.
Abbott moves motion of condolence in Parliament
4.05pm: Australian PM Tony Abbott today tables a motion in Parliament to express the government's condolences to grieving families.
"We mourn all those 239 passengers and crew. We especially mourn the six Australian citizens and one Australian resident who must be presumed dead and we grieve with their families and loved ones," he says.
Several of the family members are present to hear the motion.
Daily Mail floats fresh 'suicide' theory
4pm: After Telegraph, another British tabloid is pursuing the 'pilot suicide' theory by speculating that the plane was flown to its maximum altitude as part of the plot.
Citing an anonymous source, the Daily Mail claims that MH370 flew at 43,000 to 45,000 feet for 23 minutes, 11 minutes longer than oxygen supply in depressurised cabins.
It quotes an aerodynamics professor as saying that emergency air supply would not automatically kick in if the plane flew at 43,000 feet.
It also reports that investigators are probing the possibility that the pressurisation system was deliberately turned off, thereby jeopardising filtered cabin air.
Yesterday, Germany's Speigel Online posited the ghost plane theory—that an electrical fire caused the system to halt, knocking out all on board and leaving the aircraft to fly on auto-pilot until it ran out of fuel.
Special equipment no use without wreckage
3.30pm: BBC reports that the US Navy has flown in "specialist underwater detection equipment" which will aid detection of the plane's flight recorder.
However,
it says that can be carried out when the wreckage is found, and even
then, it states it will still be several days before the ship carrying
the detectors will arrive at the search site.BBC further warns that tomorrow's weather threatens to deteriorate once more, "with a cold front bringing thunderstorms and strong winds", and that this could further slow the progress of search efforts.
Chinese envoy meets PM
3pm: China’s news agency Xinhua reports that special envoy to Malaysia Zhang Yesui meets with Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to discuss the search for the missing plane.
This comes as family members of Chinese national on board Flight MH370 protested in Beijing yesterday, unwilling to accept the Malaysian government’s announcement that the plane crashed into the south Indian Ocean and none survived, due to lack of any concrete evidence.
China's Foreign Ministry also reportedly requested for all relevant satellite data from Malaysia and British satellite company Inmarsat.
It is later reported by Reuters that he requests for "unremitting
efforts" on the search for the missing plane.
Meanwhile, Bernama reports that Indonesia, too, is sending a special envoy to hold an “intensive dialogue” with Malaysia.
It cites Antara news agency, which quotes Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa as saying: “We need clarification from the Malaysian authorities. We do not want the families to miss out on clear information”.
'Little can be done without debris'
2pm: Oceanographers have used data from drift models to construct a dynamic map of the sea in order to find where MH370 went down. But without debris, there is little they can do.
Time is also running out, Australia's leading scientific agency Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, or CSIRO's team leader David Griffin tells the Wall Street Journal.
“You can really only follow things with any certainty for a couple of weeks. We’re getting to the end now of the time when you can backtrack to the original location (of the crash),” Griffin says.
'Families shouldn't have been informed by text'
1.50pm: PKR vice-president Tian Chua says families should not have been informed that their loved ones in all certainty did not survive, via text message.
"I
urge Malaysian Airlines to choose a more comforting method to handle
the situation...After two weeks anxiously waiting for some good news,
receiving a text message with such news would have been very painful,"
he says in a statement.He also urges media to not publish speculations accusing the pilot of suicide, fingering specifically the UK's Daily Telegraph.
MAS has defended contacting families via text message, saying that it was a "last" resort when it could not call or speak to the 1,000 family members to avoid them learning about it on the news.
Flags to be flown at half-mast
1.37pm: The sultan of Pahang ordered that the Pahang and Malaysian flags be flown at half-mast in the state for three days from today as a mark of respect over the MAS aircraft tragedy, Bernama reports.
The state Information Department says in a statement that the order was directed at all government departments and agencies and private sector firms.
Families opt to stay put, for now
12.30pm: Some families of MH370 passengers are opting not to go to Australia, despite MAS' offer to fly them out until the wreckage is found.
Indonesian news outlet Tempo reports that the family members of Indonesian passengers Indra Suria Tanurisman and Firman Chandra Siregar as holding on to belief their son is alive, opting to wait at home until there is physical evidence of a crash.
"At this moment, Firman's mother and myself still believe that our son is working with in China," Firman's father Krisman is quoted saying.
Firman's family is mulling legal action.
Meanwhile, the Sydney Morning Herald reports that Chinese families, too, feel there is no point travelling to Perth until more concrete evidence is found.
PM Abbott: Search not open-ended
12.01pm: Another three Chinese ships have now joined merchant vessel Xue Long and Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) HMAS Success at the MH370 search site, along with five aircraft, reports The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa).
11.30am: Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott says that while there is no deadline set for the search for MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean, the search is not endless.
"It's not absolutely open-ended, but it's not something we will lightly abandon," Abbott is quoted by dpa as saying.
Locators useless if pinger damaged
11.20am: While the US Navy is shipping its towed pinger locator to Australia to find MH370’s black box, its manufacturer tells Sydney Morning Herald that the device has limitations despite numerous past successes.
The
pinger locator is designed to search up to a depth of 6,000 metres, but
the Indian Ocean can be as deep as 7,000 metres in parts.In addition, the device can only be used once the search area is narrowed down further, while the black box’s pinger have a battery life of some 30 days. MH370 went missing on March 8.
The pingers may have also been damaged upon impact, rendering the locators useless as it did in the Air France Flight 447, which crashed in 2009.
Pingers are attached to the black box and emits a sound when submerged in water, while the pinger locator is comprised of highly sensitive underwater microphones designed to find it.
11 days left before black box battery dies
11am: It has been 19 days since MAS Flight MH370 disappeared.
The
clock ticks as that leaves less than just 11 days for search teams to
find the plane before the black box battery runs out and it ceases to
emit 'pings'.According to Australia's news.com.au, the black box emits one 'ping' per second for 30 days, which can be picked up by sonar and acoustic-locating equipment.
However, Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has vowed that search for the missing plane will not stop even after the black box battery runs out after the 30-day mark.
He says there are other means investigators and search parties can employ to locate the black box.
China, US affirms support
10.20am: Both the Chinese president Xi Jinping and US president Barack Obama reaffirm their support towards the search for MH370, says Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.
The New Straits Times reports that Muhyiddin met the two leaders at the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Hague, to express Malaysia’s appreciation for the two country’s contribution in the search efforts.
To
a question whether China is dissatisfied with Malaysia’s handling of
the crisis, Muhyiddin is quoted saying that Xi empathised with Malaysia
over the large scale of the SAR effort, and alluded to longstanding
diplomatic relations between Malaysia and China.However, in apparent disatisfaction at the PM's announcement on Monday, Reuters had reported that China's Deputy Foreign Minister Xie Hangsheng ‘immediately demanded’ all relevant satellite data from Malaysia.
The ministry is also seeking satellite data from British satellite company Inmarsat, to know exactly how the final conclusion was derived.
What are they searching for
10am: Another recap - On Monday, Australia announced spotting two objects in the search area - an orange rectangular object and a green or grey circular one.
Although it said it maintained aerial view of the objects as at yesterday, the search was called off for 24 hours yesterday due to rough weather.
The objects were located more than 2,000km west of Perth in what is described as one of the most remote corners of the globe.
However, Al Jazeera reporter Andrew Thomas, who was on board the Australian P3 Orion aircraft that spotted the reported debris, claimed that there were five objects.
How the Doppler Effect factors in
9.15am: To recap, investigators determined that MH370 had flown to the southern corridor by looking for subtle shifts in the radio frequency that the aircraft used to communicate with Inmarsat’s satellite.
The
shifts - caused by the Doppler Effect - is akin to a police siren that
sounds differently as the police car passes by. The same principle that
changes the sound of moving vehicle also applies to the radio frequency
of a moving aircraft.By measuring these shifts and comparing it against what would have been expected if MH370 had turned north or south, investigators found a good match between the measurements and the expected radio frequencies of the southerly route.
This type of analysis has not been used to locate an aircraft before, and investigators tested the method with six other aircraft whose flight path were known to ensure that it works.
Read more here.
Final ping 'not by human interaction'
8.50am: British satellite operator Inmarsat says the final "partial ping", that is a digital handshake between MH370 and its satellite was not from human interaction.
It says investigators are investigating if the partial ping which originated from the aircraft at 9.15am Malaysian time on March 8 was "failed login" or the system "resetting itself".
"We're not looking at (the partial ping) as someone trying to turn on the communication system," Inmarsat senior vice-president Chris McLaughlin tells the Wall Street Journal.
Australia defends Malaysia
8am: Australian Minister of Defence David Johnston defends Malaysia’s handling of the MH370 crisis, saying that its critics have the benefit of hindsight.
"Look, this has been a tragedy that has come from nowhere, who would have anticipated anything like this, an aircraft just going off the radar?
"And
now we believe it’s about three and a half thousand kilometres away
from where it was supposed to be at its last point of identification –
and may I say – in one of the most outrageously remote parts of the
planet."I mean, there is just nothing down there…," he says in an interview with CNN yesterday.
He adds analyses on satellite data used to determine MH370’s location took time because the relevant data needs to be filtered from large amounts of other data, including those from other aircraft communicating with the satellite.
“I think they’ve achieved something that might be the beginning of something concrete. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
“As I say, when we pull something out of the ocean and someone says this is clearly a part of this aircraft, I think that will be a significant step,” he says.
A transcript of which is available from the Australian Ministry of Defence. Read the full transcript here.
Weather permits search
7am: The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) confirms that the search for objects sighted in the south Indian Ocean has resumed as weather conditions improves.It says a total of 12 aircraft will be involved in searches covering 80,000 sq km.
Meanwhile, Australian vessel HMS Success and Chinese ice-breaker Xue Long are in the search area.
Background:
-
The Beijing-bound Boeing 777-200ER aircraft went missing not long after
taking off from KL International Airport in the early hours of March 8,
with 12 crew members and 227 passengers.
-
Authorities have determined the plane intentionally made a turn-back and
altered its course shortly after cutting communications with tower
controllers for unknown reasons.
- Its whereabouts is now narrowed to the southern Indian Ocean after employing a "new analysis" method to deduce the location based on six pings the aircraft sent out to British satellite communications provider Inmarsat's satellite before disappearing into the waters.
MH370: Major breakthrough in search
New satellite images show 122 objects floating in the southern Indian Ocean.
KUALA LUMPUR: Investigators scouring for the missing MH370, which disappeared 18 days ago, have made a major breakthrough in locating the runaway jet with the emergence of new satellite images showing hundreds of floating objects in the Southern Indian Ocean, where the jetliner is suspected to have crashed.
Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said latest satellite images have been verified by the Malaysian Remote Sensing Agency and sent to the Australian Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Perth for search efforts in southern Indian Ocean.
He said that the images were taken on March 23 and handed over to Malaysia on March 25. He said that the new images were from Airbus Defence and Space, which is based in France.
The minister said a total 122 potential objects measuring from 1 metre to 23 metres in length have been found some 2,557 km south of Perth.
“This is the most credible lead that we have,” said Hishammuddin.
“MRSA analysed the images and – in one area of the ocean measuring some 400 square kilometres – were able to identify 122 potential objects.
“Some objects were a metre in length; others were as much as 23 metres in length. Some of the objects appeared to be bright, possibly indicating solid materials.
“The objects were located approximately 2,557 kilometres from Perth,” he added.
He said that there were now four separate satellite leads – from Australia, China and France, showing possible debris.
He added it was imperative to link the debris to MH370.
“This will enable us to further reduce the search area, and locate more debris from the plane.
“It must be emphasized that we cannot tell whether the potential objects are from MH370. Nevertheless, this is another new lead that will help direct the search operation,” he added.
International working group
Hishammuddin also announced that an international working group has been established to try and refine more accurately the final position of MH370 in the Indian Ocean.
The agencies involved in this working group include satellite providers Inmarsat, the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch, the Chinese CAAC and AAID, National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration from the US, MH370 makers Boeing, the airplane’s engine providers Rolls Royce as well as the relevant Malaysian authorities.
Meanwhile, Australia which is leading the search effort in the southern Indian Ocean has divided the search area into two sectors, East and West.
“Twelve planes will travel to the search area; six in the East sector and six in the West.”
In the East sector, searches will be conducted by one Australian P3 Orion, three Australian civilian aircraft, one Chinese Ilyushin IL-76 and one New Zealand P3 Orion.
Chinese ship ‘Xue Long’ has today been deployed to the East sector.
In the West sector, searches will be conducted by one US P8 Poseidon, one Korean P3 Orion, one Japanese P3 Orion, two Australian P3 Orions, and one civilian aircraft. Two ships will also join the search operations.
‘HMAS Success’ which was redeployed to the south of the search area due to bad weather will also support the search operation in the West sector.
A Japanese Coast Guard Gulfstream aircraft which left Subang this morning for Perth has also joined the search operation.
Closure
Hishammuddin stressed that the new satellite images continue to provide clues in the search for MH370.
“With improved weather conditions, aircraft are now able to investigate objects of interest.
“Our determination to find MH370 remains steadfast. As we have said all along, we will never give up trying to find the plane in order to bring closure for the families, and to establish exactly what happened to MH370.”
He however refused to answer a question if this was solely as search effort or a search and rescue mission.
MH370 disappeared from the radar on March 8 while on its journey from KLIA to Beijing, carrying 239 passengers and crew members.
Investigators found that the plane’s communications and transponder were deliberately disabled, and the plane flying away from its original journey towards the Indian Ocean.
Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said latest satellite images have been verified by the Malaysian Remote Sensing Agency and sent to the Australian Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Perth for search efforts in southern Indian Ocean.
He said that the images were taken on March 23 and handed over to Malaysia on March 25. He said that the new images were from Airbus Defence and Space, which is based in France.
The minister said a total 122 potential objects measuring from 1 metre to 23 metres in length have been found some 2,557 km south of Perth.
“This is the most credible lead that we have,” said Hishammuddin.
“MRSA analysed the images and – in one area of the ocean measuring some 400 square kilometres – were able to identify 122 potential objects.
“Some objects were a metre in length; others were as much as 23 metres in length. Some of the objects appeared to be bright, possibly indicating solid materials.
“The objects were located approximately 2,557 kilometres from Perth,” he added.
He said that there were now four separate satellite leads – from Australia, China and France, showing possible debris.
He added it was imperative to link the debris to MH370.
“This will enable us to further reduce the search area, and locate more debris from the plane.
“It must be emphasized that we cannot tell whether the potential objects are from MH370. Nevertheless, this is another new lead that will help direct the search operation,” he added.
International working group
Hishammuddin also announced that an international working group has been established to try and refine more accurately the final position of MH370 in the Indian Ocean.
The agencies involved in this working group include satellite providers Inmarsat, the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch, the Chinese CAAC and AAID, National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration from the US, MH370 makers Boeing, the airplane’s engine providers Rolls Royce as well as the relevant Malaysian authorities.
Meanwhile, Australia which is leading the search effort in the southern Indian Ocean has divided the search area into two sectors, East and West.
“Twelve planes will travel to the search area; six in the East sector and six in the West.”
In the East sector, searches will be conducted by one Australian P3 Orion, three Australian civilian aircraft, one Chinese Ilyushin IL-76 and one New Zealand P3 Orion.
Chinese ship ‘Xue Long’ has today been deployed to the East sector.
In the West sector, searches will be conducted by one US P8 Poseidon, one Korean P3 Orion, one Japanese P3 Orion, two Australian P3 Orions, and one civilian aircraft. Two ships will also join the search operations.
‘HMAS Success’ which was redeployed to the south of the search area due to bad weather will also support the search operation in the West sector.
A Japanese Coast Guard Gulfstream aircraft which left Subang this morning for Perth has also joined the search operation.
Closure
Hishammuddin stressed that the new satellite images continue to provide clues in the search for MH370.
“With improved weather conditions, aircraft are now able to investigate objects of interest.
“Our determination to find MH370 remains steadfast. As we have said all along, we will never give up trying to find the plane in order to bring closure for the families, and to establish exactly what happened to MH370.”
He however refused to answer a question if this was solely as search effort or a search and rescue mission.
MH370 disappeared from the radar on March 8 while on its journey from KLIA to Beijing, carrying 239 passengers and crew members.
Investigators found that the plane’s communications and transponder were deliberately disabled, and the plane flying away from its original journey towards the Indian Ocean.
Anwar ordered to pay Nalla RM20,000, court decides case has ‘triable issues’
The five-person panel lead by Chief Justice of Malaya Tan Sri Zulkefli Ahmad Makinuddin over turned an earlier High Court decision in August 2013 which struck out Nallakaruppan’s defence.
“Striking out is only for plain and obvious matters,” said Zulkefli Ahmad. The court also ordered Anwar to pay RM20,000 in cost to Nallakaruppan.
Elaborating on the decision, Nallakaruppan’s lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said the panel found there to be matters which are contestable for a trial process in court.
“There are triable issues in the defence,” he told reporters.
During submissions today, Muhammad Shafee argued that it’s not the case where Nallakaruppan was not “willing to provide the facts” but rather “was simply unable to give (facts)” as the incident occurred almost nine years ago.
He had also requested for damages amounting to RM100,000 to be paid to Nallakaruppan.
Muhammad Shafee also argued that due to the “fragility of the human memory”, his client could not remember the exact amount or time. He also argued that it was “naive” of the Court of Appeal to demand for receipts of the transaction.
“The transaction happened in various stages. This is “back-alley” payment. There is naivety of the Appeal Court when they asked for audited statements or accounts. Back-alley payments are never captured,” he said.
He argued that Nallakaruppan should be called to his defence as there was a difference between primary facts and evidence. He said that Nallakaruppan would be able to provide these primary facts to the court in his defence.
Zulkefli Ahmad was also one of the members in the five-person Court of Appeal panel which granted a stay to Nallakaruppan last year.
Anwar’s counsel, R Sivarasa argued that Nallakaruppan was not consistent in his allegations.
“First he said that the money transferred through his own hands. Later he changed his statement saying that it was delivered.
“This is a huge sum of money. So we just know (how the transaction occurred),” he argued.
Tan Sri Suriyadi Halim Omar, Datuk Hasan Lah, Datin Paduka Zaleha Zahari and Datuk Jeffrey Tan Kok Wha were the other four members in the panel today.
On June 19,2012 High Court Judge Su Geok Yiam ruled that Nallakaruppan is liable for making defamatory statements in 2008 against the PKR leader. The decision was reached after Su allowed Anwar’s application to strike out Nallakaruppan’s defence.
The basis for Anwar’s application then was that Nallakaruppan had failed to furnish better and further particulars in his allegations, which was directed by a court order issued on Aug 28, 2009. The High Court also ruled that Nallakaruppan should pay damages to Anwar which will be assessed by the deputy registrar.
Nallakarupan who is president of the Malaysian Indian United Party (MUIP), allegedly made the statements in an article entitled “Anwar terima RM60 juta” (Anwar receives RM60 million) which was carried by some local dailies.
On August 1 last year, a five-person panel lead by Tan Sri Md Raus Sharif granted leave to Nallakaruppan to appeal the High Court’s decision to the Federal Court. Justice Zaleha was also part of the panel which granted this stay order. The other judges on the panel were Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Richard Malanjum and Federal Court judges Tan Sri Ahmad Maarop.
Zahid accuses Chinese media of flaming anger - FMT
Home Minister says the Chinese print media is stirring up emotions of the passengers' kin through its manipulative reports.
KUALA LUMPUR: Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi today accused the Chinese media of inciting anger among families of 154 passengers aboard the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.
Speaking at Parliament today, Zahid said the Chinese print media through its provocative reports have stirred up the emotions of the passengers’ family members, despite the government trying its best to locate the jetliner.
“The prime minister has used all the means available to try to solve the crisis. This is a tragedy, nobody wants it to happen.
“But unfortunately, these (Chinese) newspapers have manipulated the families’ sentiments, causing them, especially those in Beijing to be upset,” he said in his winding up speech for the debate of royal address this evening.
It remained unclear whether Zahid was criticising the local Chinese newspapers or the ones in China.
Zahid said he would not hesitate to take action against individuals spreading manipulative facts in the media or social media.
Most media practitioners from China have been critical of Malaysia’s search and rescue operations since the Boeing
777-200ER that carried 239 passengers disappeared on March 8.
More than half of the passengers were from China.
Some of them have openly called the MH370 “a Malaysia conspiracy”, while top Chinese tennis player Li Na told a Chinese media that she would never take a Malaysia Airlines flight again.
Meanwhile, Zahid said the two Iranians who boarded the plane using fake passports were able to avoid trouble at the Malaysia immigration checkpoint because their passport photograph matched the one shown in the system.
He said similarly the authorities have allowed them to board the plane because they did not overstay in the country.
“This is the standard operating procedure of immigration system around the world.
“But if they come to Malaysia using a different passport in the second visit, we would be able to track that through our biometric system,” he said.
He said the fake passports cost US$10,000.
Speaking at Parliament today, Zahid said the Chinese print media through its provocative reports have stirred up the emotions of the passengers’ family members, despite the government trying its best to locate the jetliner.
“The prime minister has used all the means available to try to solve the crisis. This is a tragedy, nobody wants it to happen.
“But unfortunately, these (Chinese) newspapers have manipulated the families’ sentiments, causing them, especially those in Beijing to be upset,” he said in his winding up speech for the debate of royal address this evening.
It remained unclear whether Zahid was criticising the local Chinese newspapers or the ones in China.
Zahid said he would not hesitate to take action against individuals spreading manipulative facts in the media or social media.
Most media practitioners from China have been critical of Malaysia’s search and rescue operations since the Boeing
777-200ER that carried 239 passengers disappeared on March 8.
More than half of the passengers were from China.
Some of them have openly called the MH370 “a Malaysia conspiracy”, while top Chinese tennis player Li Na told a Chinese media that she would never take a Malaysia Airlines flight again.
Meanwhile, Zahid said the two Iranians who boarded the plane using fake passports were able to avoid trouble at the Malaysia immigration checkpoint because their passport photograph matched the one shown in the system.
He said similarly the authorities have allowed them to board the plane because they did not overstay in the country.
“This is the standard operating procedure of immigration system around the world.
“But if they come to Malaysia using a different passport in the second visit, we would be able to track that through our biometric system,” he said.
He said the fake passports cost US$10,000.
Malaysia’s airliner response exposes a ruling malaise
By washingtonpost,
IF YOU are perplexed by Monday’s announcement on the missing Malaysian airliner, no wonder. Prime Minister Najib Razak declared that the flight “ended” in the southern Indian Ocean, and the state-owned airline said that “we have to assume beyond a reasonable doubt” that the plane went down in the ocean, far off its course to Beijing. Both announcements were vague; neither said much about why or how.
From the moment the plane went missing, the Malaysian government has been ham-handed in its dealings with grieving families and the global glare of attention. It delayed for hours saying anything after the plane first vanished, and over the next few weeks much of the information it disseminated was conflicting, wrong or misleading.
Such a bizarre disaster would be difficult for any government
to deal with, and a fair amount of uncertainty and confusion is
expected. But the Malaysian government has shown signs of a deeper
malaise that comes from a half century of rule without challenge or
transparency. When the prime minister was about to make a statement
recently, his spokesperson told reporters there would be no questions.
According to Joshua Kurlantzick of the Council on Foreign Relations, writing
in Bloomberg Businessweek, when reporters pressed for more access, the
reply came back: “Go watch a movie.” When China, no champion of
transparency, complains — as it did recently, asking for “more thorough and accurate information” from Malaysia — you know the depth of the problem.
Malaysia, ruled by the same governing coalition since independence, has enjoyed strong economic growth, and we had hopes before last year’s election that, if the vote was free and fair, the country would be on a path toward a more competitive democracy. Mr. Najib has taken steps toward modernization and reform, but the election fell short. Mr. Najib’s coalition won a majority of seats in Parliament largely through gerrymandered districts, while the opposition coalition led by Anwar Ibrahim won a popular majority and disputed the outcome. Clearly there is rising popular discontent with corruption, authoritarianism and ethnic favoritism of the ruling powers.
It is especially disturbing that the government has renewed its politically motivated prosecution of Mr. Anwar on dubious charges of sodomy in order to sideline him from politics. On March 7, he was sentenced to five years in prison by a court, overturning a 2012 acquittal. The move had the effect of removing him from eligibility to run in an important by-election. The use of the sodomy charge is shameful and archaic, but as Graeme Reid of Human Rights Watch pointed out this month in Foreign Policy, if upheld, it could effectively remove Mr. Anwar from politics for 10 years. Malaysia should not tolerate this brazen manipulation.
It is entirely premature to say what happened to the airplane. But it is not too early for Malaysia’s rulers to draw lessons from their unsteady performance of recent weeks and commit themselves to transparency and openness. Their alternative is not working.
IF YOU are perplexed by Monday’s announcement on the missing Malaysian airliner, no wonder. Prime Minister Najib Razak declared that the flight “ended” in the southern Indian Ocean, and the state-owned airline said that “we have to assume beyond a reasonable doubt” that the plane went down in the ocean, far off its course to Beijing. Both announcements were vague; neither said much about why or how.
From the moment the plane went missing, the Malaysian government has been ham-handed in its dealings with grieving families and the global glare of attention. It delayed for hours saying anything after the plane first vanished, and over the next few weeks much of the information it disseminated was conflicting, wrong or misleading.
Malaysia, ruled by the same governing coalition since independence, has enjoyed strong economic growth, and we had hopes before last year’s election that, if the vote was free and fair, the country would be on a path toward a more competitive democracy. Mr. Najib has taken steps toward modernization and reform, but the election fell short. Mr. Najib’s coalition won a majority of seats in Parliament largely through gerrymandered districts, while the opposition coalition led by Anwar Ibrahim won a popular majority and disputed the outcome. Clearly there is rising popular discontent with corruption, authoritarianism and ethnic favoritism of the ruling powers.
It is especially disturbing that the government has renewed its politically motivated prosecution of Mr. Anwar on dubious charges of sodomy in order to sideline him from politics. On March 7, he was sentenced to five years in prison by a court, overturning a 2012 acquittal. The move had the effect of removing him from eligibility to run in an important by-election. The use of the sodomy charge is shameful and archaic, but as Graeme Reid of Human Rights Watch pointed out this month in Foreign Policy, if upheld, it could effectively remove Mr. Anwar from politics for 10 years. Malaysia should not tolerate this brazen manipulation.
It is entirely premature to say what happened to the airplane. But it is not too early for Malaysia’s rulers to draw lessons from their unsteady performance of recent weeks and commit themselves to transparency and openness. Their alternative is not working.
Malaysia’s credibility at stake in search for missing flight MH370, says report
(TMI) Putrajaya’s handling of search efforts for flight MH370 has set the country on a long road to repair its reputation, The Wall Street Journal said, following a slew of criticism over disorganised search efforts besides the conflicting and opaque information released since the aircraft disappeared on March 8.The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said that complaints have stung a government seldom used to such global scrutiny, and this week, authorities appeared to seek a new course.
The business daily cited Monday night's press conference where Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had explained how foreign experts had concluded from new satellite data analysis that the plane had gone down in a remote portion of the southern Indian Ocean.
WSJ said that Najib’s statement was uncharacteristically forthright, and the new information was released unusually fast – and the backlash was just as intense.
A source familiar with the matter told WSJ that Najib had dismissed the Malaysian army's warnings that the country shouldn't reveal sensitive military data to speed up the search, and overruled armed forces chief General Zulkefli Zin, who had opposed the release of the data.
"He (Najib) was quite adamant. He said this absolutely had to be done," the source was quoted as saying.
Mike Smith, a crisis management expert at Australia-based Inside Public Relations Pty Ltd, told WSJ that Malaysia "swung the pendulum back too far the other way".
"Malaysia needs to find some equilibrium and control, but that's not going to happen overnight," he said.
Acting Transport Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein had said at yesterday's press conference that Monday’s announcement was because of Putrajaya's "commitment to openness and respect for the relatives, two principles which have guided us in our investigations".
He also said that despite new satellite analysis, physical evidence such as debris would be a more acceptable reason for families to come to terms with the claim that flight MH370 had indeed ended up in the Indian Ocean.
"Until we know that, it is very difficult to have closure for the families," he had said.
Reuters said today that the prolonged and so far fruitless search and investigation have taken a toll, with dozens of distraught relatives of Chinese passengers clashing with police outside the Malaysian embassy in Beijing yesterday, accusing Malaysia of "delays and deception".
The news agency added that Malaysia's confused initial response to the plane's disappearance and a perception of poor communications has enraged many relatives of the 153 Chinese passengers and has strained ties between Beijing and Kuala Lumpur.
The Economist earlier, in an editorial, also criticised Malaysia’s handling of the search and said the authorities had provided information “in dribs and drabs, much of it confusing, even contradictory”.
The newsweekly said: “Until parts of the plane are examined, how it came to grief will remain unknown. In the meantime, for the grieving relatives, there is little comfort to be taken from the fact that such mysteries should soon be a thing of the past.”
According to WSJ, some experts suggested that Malaysia and its national airline might still be able to recover from the fallout of the search for flight MH370 if it regains control of the information flow.
"But Malaysia is still in a bad place," Smith, the crisis-management expert, was quoted as saying.
"They'll be scrutinised no matter what they do." – March 26, 2014.
Father of MH370 passenger seeks information, may be prelude to suit, says report
The Malaysian Insider
A
father of a passenger who was on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH370
filed an application with a US court yesterday, seeking 26 kinds of
information and records from the airline and Boeing on the ill-fated
aircraft, reported Bloomberg.
The
request put in by Januari Siregar – father of Indonesian passenger
Firman Chandra Siregar – which was filed in the Illinois state court in
Chicago could be a prelude to the filing of a lawsuit.
It was filed by Chicago-based Ribbeck Law Chartered on behalf of Januari.
The
list of 26 includes data on possible defects in the missing
Boeing-built 777-200 ER or its component parts, the airline’s training
of its crew, and information about its cargo, Bloomberg said.
A
partner of the law firm Monica Kelly was quoted as saying that Januari
is seeking that "possible design and manufacturing defects that may have
contributed to the disaster".
Flight
MH370 vanished from the radar shortly after taking off from the Kuala
Lumpur International Airport en route to Beijing, with 239 people on
board. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had said on Monday that the
plane probably ended up in the southern Indian Ocean, without any
survivors.
Families
in Beijing criticised the Malaysian government for reaching to the
conclusion that the plane had ended up in the Indian Ocean with no
survivors, saying that it was premature as no debris had been found yet.
Najib said that the conclusion was reached based on satellite data from Inmarsat.
The
law firm was reported as saying that the petition seeking evidence is
the same request it had used when it began legal action against Asiana
Airlines Inc. after a crash at the San Francisco International Airport
which killed three people and injured 181 on July 6, reported Bloomberg.
"That’s
usually how we begin the process," Mervin Mateo, a spokesman for the
firm, was quoted as saying yesterday. "We have our own experts doing
their investigation."
"If
the wreckage is not found, there would be little or no evidence we can
rely on. We are hoping against hope that they do find the wreckage of
the plane and the black box."
The
lawyer also said that even without flight MH370's wreckage, litigation
could be carried out based on the firm's investigation and information
about past similar aviation accidents.
"We’re
thinking it’s probably something wrong with the plane or the training
of the pilots," said Mateo, adding that they can't rule out hijacking or
other cause that led to the disappearance of the plane.
The
Asiana suit is still in court after the law firm sought to move the
case back to a state court. Boeing had previously moved the lawsuit to a
federal court, arguing that the flight’s path over water placed it in
federal maritime jurisdiction.
Boeing, Bloomberg said, declined to comment on the filing while Malaysia Airlines has yet to respond.
It
also reported that families of those on board the flight could receive
as much as US$175,000 (RM578,025) or more in compensation from Malaysia
Airlines under the 1999 Montreal Convention.
The
international treaty states that carriers have to pay damages for each
passenger killed or injured in an accident, even if the cause is not
known.
If
the airline was not able to show that the sole fault for the plane’s
loss lies with another party, such as the airplane’s maker or
terrorists, its liability under the treaty may be higher, the report
said.
It
said that claimants would have a better chance for seeking more
compensation if they found a way to sue in the US, where "awards and
settlements can be more generous than in the two Asian countries".
“The US is where people want to go,” a lawyer with a New York law firm Dorothea Capone told Bloomberg. – March 26, 2014.
Sports Reflects Extraordinary Legacy - Najib
KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 (Bernama) -- Sports has reflected its
extraordinary legacy when it brings people closer through the
competition and unite behind a purpose higher than prize money.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said sports also showed what was happening in the world but for millions of people, sport was also an escape from hardship, from poverty and from conflict.
He said in such hard times for Malaysia which was facing the MH370 incident, many people gave their support and respect, including the 2014 Laureus World Sports Awards, which was held for the first time in Malaysia.
"For Malaysia this is one such time. On Monday night, with deep sadness and regret, I had to inform the world that 239 people on flight MH370 are lost. Our thoughts and our prayers are with them and their families.
"At this difficult moment, we draw strength, we draw strength from individual stories of perseverance, of generosity and endurance. The nominees here tonight display those values. They have crossed the world in search of success," he said in his opening speech at the 2014 Laureus World Sports Awards at Istana Budaya, Wednesday night.
Najib also expressed his gratitude for all involved in the awards for their support during the hard times faced by Malaysia and congratulated the nominees for their nomination.
He acknowledged that Laureus Awards not only rewarded the athletes but also does something important to improve the lives and future of people around the world such as HIV/AIDS projects in Uganda and educational programmes in Brazil.
Also present at the ceremony was his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Abdul Wahid Omar.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said sports also showed what was happening in the world but for millions of people, sport was also an escape from hardship, from poverty and from conflict.
He said in such hard times for Malaysia which was facing the MH370 incident, many people gave their support and respect, including the 2014 Laureus World Sports Awards, which was held for the first time in Malaysia.
"For Malaysia this is one such time. On Monday night, with deep sadness and regret, I had to inform the world that 239 people on flight MH370 are lost. Our thoughts and our prayers are with them and their families.
"At this difficult moment, we draw strength, we draw strength from individual stories of perseverance, of generosity and endurance. The nominees here tonight display those values. They have crossed the world in search of success," he said in his opening speech at the 2014 Laureus World Sports Awards at Istana Budaya, Wednesday night.
Najib also expressed his gratitude for all involved in the awards for their support during the hard times faced by Malaysia and congratulated the nominees for their nomination.
He acknowledged that Laureus Awards not only rewarded the athletes but also does something important to improve the lives and future of people around the world such as HIV/AIDS projects in Uganda and educational programmes in Brazil.
Also present at the ceremony was his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Abdul Wahid Omar.
Wednesday, 26 March 2014
95% of worship places put to commercial use: Survey
ILLUSTRATION: FAIZAAN DAWOOD
ISLAMABAD: Out of 428 minorities’ places of worship in the country, 408 have been converted into toy stores, restaurants, government offices and schools after 1990, a survey has found.
Another shocking figure disclosed in the survey conducted by the All Pakistan Hindu Rights Movement (PHRM) was that only 20 Hindu temples out of the 428 places of worship are operational.
“The remaining places of worship have been leased for commercial and residential purposes by the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB), said PHRM Chairman Haroon Sarab Diyal. The 135,000 acres of land owned by around four million Hindus is now under ETPB’s control.
Representatives of the Hindu community also wrote to all the chief ministers of the four provinces but have not received a response yet, Diyal added. He urged the government to hand over these religious places to the Hindu community to mitigate their resentment and fear of being forced to leave their homeland.
Sharing documents with The Express Tribune, he revealed that Kali Bari Hindu Temple has been rented out to a Muslim party in Dera Ismail Khan. This historic temple is being used as Taj Mehal Hotel, he added.
The documents also allege that Frontier Constabulary officials, with the help of the ETPB, occupied the Shamshan Ghaat, also in Dera Ismail Khan. The Hindu community is unable to cremate their dead because of the unavailability of Shamshan Ghaat and is forced to bury them in a graveyard shared my members of other faiths.
A Hindu temple in district Bannu, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, is now a well-known sweets shop. Meanwhile, the Holy Shiv Temple in Kohat has been converted into a government primary school.
Government Girls High School, Peshawar Cantt, now stands where a historical Hindu temple used to be; other historic temples such as the Asamai temple has been closed down in the K-P capital.
Meanwhile, Guru Duwara Gali, a Sikh religious place, has been converted into a garments shop in Abbottabad.
In the federal capital, Islamabad, the Raam Kunde Complex of Temples at SaidPur Model village is now a ‘picnic site’. A second temple at Rawal Dam, Islamabad, has been shut down and the Hindu community believes that it is going to dilapidate day by day without being handed over to them.
In Punjab, a Hindu temple was demolished and reconstructed as a community centre in Rawalpindi, while in Chakwal, ten famous temples collectively known as Bhuwan are being used by the local Muslim community for commercial purposes, despite being handed over to the Hindus.
“Even if we have control of the temples, local residents dump oil drums, utensils and animals around them,” complained Diyal.
However, Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Yousaf assured that the Evacuee Trust has already been directed to gather the data pertaining to all religious places owned by minority communities. “At least, [all this] did not happen during our government’s tenure,” he said when he was informed of the survey’s findings. “I’ll take up this matter with minorities’ leaders. It’s a serious matter.”
A committee will be constituted to address these concerns, he routinely added.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 25th, 2014.
Malaysia says evidence of final ‘ping’ from MH370 at 8.19am
The
graphic shows the final location of MAS flight MH370 as concluded by
experts based on data from the Inmarsat satellite. - The Malaysian
Insider graphic, March 25, 2014.Satellite data that confirmed Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, missing for more than two weeks, had crashed in the Indian Ocean included a final electronic signal at 8.19am (Malaysian time) on March 8, that is still being investigated, Malaysian acting Transport Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said today.
"There is evidence of a partial handshake between the aircraft and ground station at 0019 UTC (GMT)," Hishammuddin told a news conference.
"At this time, this transmission is not understood and is subject to further ongoing work."
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said on Sunday that groundbreaking satellite-data analysis by the British company Inmarsat had revealed that MAS flight MH370, which vanished while flying to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur on March 8, had crashed thousands of kilometres away in the southern Indian Ocean.
Preliminary analysis of the satellite "pings" had only been able to place the plane's final position in one of two vast arcs stretching from the Caspian Sea to the southern Indian Ocean. – March 25, 2014.
Wan Junaidi wants rape remarks out of Hansard
However, despite admitting that his statement could have caused hurt if read "out of context", Wan Junaidi did not apologise for what he had said."If you read the sentence on its own, out of context, maybe it can be offending," Wan Junaidi said in Parliament today.
Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia agreed to the request to expunge the remarks from the Hansard.
Wan Junaidi made his request when responding to a motion by Chong Chieng Jen (DAP-Bandar Kuching) to refer Wan Junaidi to the Rights and Privileges Committee for his racist remarks.
"Maybe I overspoke the answer, but I am not racist. My wife is Chinese," Wan Junaidi said.
Chong said the decision to expunge the remark was equivalent to a retraction and as such, he accepted Wan Junaidi's decision.
Pandikar had earlier asked Wan Junaidi to state whether he would like to apologise or retract his statement.
Wan Junaidi faced a barrage of criticism last week for making the suggestion, but said today in Parliament that he uttered the statement because he had statistics to back up his claims.
“I have the statistics with me, I could read it out if you want to,” he said, referring to statistics regarding how many under-16 non-Malays have children out of wedlock and the amount of police reports lodged in comparison.
‘Why Uthaya’s sentence harsher than Karpal’s’
Makkal Sakthi Youth is questioning why P Uthayakumar was given a harsher sentence than Karpal Singh for sedition.
PETALING JAYA: Hindraf de facto leader P Uthayakumar should have been given a lesser sentence similar to DAP chairman Karpal Singh for sedition, said Makkal Sakthi Youth chief J Vasanth.
On Feb 18, the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed Uthayakumar’s appeal against his 30-month jail sentence for sedition.
Karpal Singh was fined RM 4,000 fine by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on March 11.
“Karpal received a lesser sentence due to Umno’s fears that the DAP leader had the backing of economically and politically powerful Chinese and Malay voters,” Vasanth said in a statement today.
“Even the previous sedition cases of Ooi Kee Siak and Fan Yew Teng were only fined RM2,000 after the May 13 riots while Lim Guan Eng was sentenced to one-and-a-half years imprisonment in 1994.
“Is Uthaya the softest political target and the Indians can be easily bullied by the Umno-led government?” asked Vasanth.
Vasanth said despite all the challenges Uthaya was still persistent in fighting for poor Indians and refused to come out on bail pending the Court of Appeal’s decision.
Last June, Session Court judge Ahmad Zamzani Mohd Zain found Uthaya guilty under the Sedition Act 1948, for writing seditious letters to then British Prime Minister Gordon Brown in 2007.
The Hindraf leader had first refused to submit his defence at the Sessions Court in protest against the alleged discrimination suffered by Indians in the country.
Justice Azman Husin ruled that the Sessions Court did not err in its verdict but said Uthaya could appeal against the decision in the Court of Appeal.
On Feb 18, the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed Uthayakumar’s appeal against his 30-month jail sentence for sedition.
Karpal Singh was fined RM 4,000 fine by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on March 11.
“Karpal received a lesser sentence due to Umno’s fears that the DAP leader had the backing of economically and politically powerful Chinese and Malay voters,” Vasanth said in a statement today.
“Even the previous sedition cases of Ooi Kee Siak and Fan Yew Teng were only fined RM2,000 after the May 13 riots while Lim Guan Eng was sentenced to one-and-a-half years imprisonment in 1994.
“Is Uthaya the softest political target and the Indians can be easily bullied by the Umno-led government?” asked Vasanth.
Vasanth said despite all the challenges Uthaya was still persistent in fighting for poor Indians and refused to come out on bail pending the Court of Appeal’s decision.
Last June, Session Court judge Ahmad Zamzani Mohd Zain found Uthaya guilty under the Sedition Act 1948, for writing seditious letters to then British Prime Minister Gordon Brown in 2007.
The Hindraf leader had first refused to submit his defence at the Sessions Court in protest against the alleged discrimination suffered by Indians in the country.
Justice Azman Husin ruled that the Sessions Court did not err in its verdict but said Uthaya could appeal against the decision in the Court of Appeal.
Hisham: Satellite data conclusive
Analysis done by Inmarsat and AAIB was convincing to conclude on MH370's last position, says Hishammuddin Hussein.
PETALING JAYA: Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein provided more information today on the new analysis based on satellite data that concluded that Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 did indeed end in the southern Indian Ocean.
Last night, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said the new analysis of satellite data from Inmarsat and UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) concluded that MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.
The new analysis considers the velocity of the aircraft relative to the satellite.
Depending on this relative movement, the frequency received and transmitted will differ from its normal value, in much the same way that the sound of a passing car changes as it approaches and passes by. This is called the Doppler effect.
The Inmarsat technique analyses the difference between the frequency that the ground station expects to receive and one that is actually measured.
This difference is the result of the Doppler effect and is known as the Burst Frequency Offset.
The Burst Frequency Offset changes depending on the location of the aircraft on an arc of possible positions, its direction of travel, and its speed.
In order to establish confidence in its theory, Inmarsat checked its predictions using information obtained from six other B777 aircraft flying on the same day in various directions. There was good agreement.
Flight MH370 transmitted several messages during the early stage to the Kuala Lumpur Internationl Airport.
At this stage, the location of the aircraft and the satellite were known, so it was possible to calculate system characteristics for the aircraft, satellite, and ground station.
During the flight, the ground station logged the transmitted and received pulse frequencies at each handshake. Knowing the system characteristics and position of the satellite it was possible, considering aircraft performance, to determine where on each arc the calculated burst frequency offset fit best.
The analysis showed poor correlation with the Northern corridor, but good correlation with the southern corridor, and depending on the ground speed of the aircraft it was then possible to estimate positions at which the last complete handshake took place.
MH370′s final position
Hishammudin, however, emphasised that this was not the final position of the aircraft.
“There is evidence of a partial handshake between the aircraft and ground station. At this time this transmission is not understood and is subject to further ongoing work,” he said.
No response was received from the aircraft at 0115 UTC, when the ground earth station sent the next log on/log off message. This indicates that the aircraft was no longer logged on to the network.
Therefore, sometime between 0011 UTC and 0115 UTC the aircraft was no longer able to communicate with the ground station. This is consistent with the maximum endurance of the aircraft.
This analysis by Inmarsat forms the basis for further study to attempt to determine the final position of the aircraft.
Accordingly, the Malaysian investigation has set up an international working group, comprising agencies with expertise in satellite communications and aircraft performance, to take this work forward.
Hishammuddin said the analysis was convincing enough for the AAIB to brief the Prime Minister that MH370 flew along the southern corridor, and that its last position was in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Perth.
“As the Prime Minister stated, this type of analysis has never been done in an investigation of this sort.
“There remains more work to be done, and we are grateful to Inmarsat, AAIB and the international investigations team, who are continuing to work with the Malaysian authorities.
“This is a developing situation, and as soon as we know more, we will share it,” said Hishammuddin.
Hishammuddin’s explanation today comes at a time when family members of the missing passengers are demanding for concrete and tangible proof that their loved ones had perished in a crash, if at all there has been a crash.
Search efforts in the new target area in southern Indian Ocean were called off today due to bad weather and is set to continue tomorrow with searchers trying to gain possession of two objects found floating two days ago.
MH370 disappeared from the radar on March 8 while on its journey from KLIA to Beijing, carrying 239 passengers and crew members.
Investigators found that the plane’s communications and transponder were deliberately disabled, and the plane flying away from its original journey towards the Indian Ocean.
Last night, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said the new analysis of satellite data from Inmarsat and UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) concluded that MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.
The new analysis considers the velocity of the aircraft relative to the satellite.
Depending on this relative movement, the frequency received and transmitted will differ from its normal value, in much the same way that the sound of a passing car changes as it approaches and passes by. This is called the Doppler effect.
The Inmarsat technique analyses the difference between the frequency that the ground station expects to receive and one that is actually measured.
This difference is the result of the Doppler effect and is known as the Burst Frequency Offset.
The Burst Frequency Offset changes depending on the location of the aircraft on an arc of possible positions, its direction of travel, and its speed.
In order to establish confidence in its theory, Inmarsat checked its predictions using information obtained from six other B777 aircraft flying on the same day in various directions. There was good agreement.
Flight MH370 transmitted several messages during the early stage to the Kuala Lumpur Internationl Airport.
At this stage, the location of the aircraft and the satellite were known, so it was possible to calculate system characteristics for the aircraft, satellite, and ground station.
During the flight, the ground station logged the transmitted and received pulse frequencies at each handshake. Knowing the system characteristics and position of the satellite it was possible, considering aircraft performance, to determine where on each arc the calculated burst frequency offset fit best.
The analysis showed poor correlation with the Northern corridor, but good correlation with the southern corridor, and depending on the ground speed of the aircraft it was then possible to estimate positions at which the last complete handshake took place.
MH370′s final position
Hishammudin, however, emphasised that this was not the final position of the aircraft.
“There is evidence of a partial handshake between the aircraft and ground station. At this time this transmission is not understood and is subject to further ongoing work,” he said.
No response was received from the aircraft at 0115 UTC, when the ground earth station sent the next log on/log off message. This indicates that the aircraft was no longer logged on to the network.
Therefore, sometime between 0011 UTC and 0115 UTC the aircraft was no longer able to communicate with the ground station. This is consistent with the maximum endurance of the aircraft.
This analysis by Inmarsat forms the basis for further study to attempt to determine the final position of the aircraft.
Accordingly, the Malaysian investigation has set up an international working group, comprising agencies with expertise in satellite communications and aircraft performance, to take this work forward.
Hishammuddin said the analysis was convincing enough for the AAIB to brief the Prime Minister that MH370 flew along the southern corridor, and that its last position was in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Perth.
“As the Prime Minister stated, this type of analysis has never been done in an investigation of this sort.
“There remains more work to be done, and we are grateful to Inmarsat, AAIB and the international investigations team, who are continuing to work with the Malaysian authorities.
“This is a developing situation, and as soon as we know more, we will share it,” said Hishammuddin.
Hishammuddin’s explanation today comes at a time when family members of the missing passengers are demanding for concrete and tangible proof that their loved ones had perished in a crash, if at all there has been a crash.
Search efforts in the new target area in southern Indian Ocean were called off today due to bad weather and is set to continue tomorrow with searchers trying to gain possession of two objects found floating two days ago.
MH370 disappeared from the radar on March 8 while on its journey from KLIA to Beijing, carrying 239 passengers and crew members.
Investigators found that the plane’s communications and transponder were deliberately disabled, and the plane flying away from its original journey towards the Indian Ocean.
Malaysian Airlines’ Troubled History
Corporate mismanagement goes back
Malaysian Airlines, the flag carrier whose MH370 Boeing 777-200 disappeared on March 8 without a trace into the Indian Ocean, has been given high marks as a quality airline. Nonetheless it has a troubled corporate history and a series of scrapes going back almost to the launch of its flying operations in 1972.
The publicly traded airline’s most recent annual reports indicate losses skyrocketed by 171 percent to RM1.17 billion ($359.12 million). That follows years of lackluster performance, management changes and exploitation by cronies connected to the country’s ruling Barisan Nasional, or national coalition, particularly the United Malays National Organization. It has been the subject of repeated “turnaround plans” that turned out to be cul-de-sacs. The 2013 losses followed 2011 losses of RM2.52 billion, the largest in the airline’s history. The losses were laid to rising fuel costs and mismanagement, forcing it to cut back eight international routes.
That isn’t to say the airline’s management woes had anything to do with the disappearance of the airliner, with 239 passengers and crew aboard on the way to Beijing. They didn’t. But mismanagement and other sloppy practices have belied MAS’s record of excellent service and its flight safety record, which is on a par with other regional carriers. When it has needed to import foreign expertise – pilots – it has done so.
Nonetheless, MAS has been required to do national service, flying into low-passenger-volume areas to keep local politicians happy and has seen low-cost airlines like AirAsia, controlled by private entrepreneur Tony Fernandes, eat its lunch on both high-profit domestic and international routes. An attempt to sell the airline to Fernandes last year foundered because of union opposition and a political furor.
Cronies have repeatedly very nearly ruined the business operations, requiring a long series of government bailouts. It is now controlled by Penerbangan Malaysia Bhd., a government holding company. Kazanah Nasional, another government sovereign fund, holds a minority share.
In 1994, according to affidavits filed by one-time CEO Tajudin Ramli after a falling out with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Tajudin bought a controlling 32 percent of MAS shares at an inflated price of RM8.00 at Mahathir’s behest – while the shares were trading at RM3.30 – using disguised funds from government-linked companies to shift the excess to cover massive speculation losses in foreign exchange by Bank Negara, the country’s central bank.
When Tajudin took control of MAS in 1994 through his company, Naluri Bhd, MAS had a cash reserve in excess of RM600 million. Seven years later, in 2001, when the government bought back the airline for RM8 a share although their worth had plummeted, the state-owned airline had accumulated losses in excess of RM8 billion. The government bought back an almost bankrupt airline for the same price that it sold to Tajudin.
According to a long list of whistle-blowers within the airline, court records and investigators, Tajudin and his associates were involved in looting it of tens of millions of dollars and very nearly putting it into bankruptcy before the government buyback. When officials not connected to the United Malays National Organization recommended prosecution, they came under fire that nearly ruined their careers and almost put them in jail. Ultimately, despite evidence of Tajudin’s actions, the government settled out of court, paying him the equivalent of US$293.2 million, raising suspicions the government wished to cover up the entire affair.
Back in the hands of government sovereign funds, MAS reported losses of RM1.3 billion in 2005 despite the fact that revenue was up by 10.3 percent and passenger traffic grew 10.3 percent. The airline has 19,000 employees and efforts to cut staff have run into trouble both from unions and from the political constituency connected to the United Malays National Organization.
Too often, as with Tajudin, political cronies rather than professionals have been put in charge of running the carrier. It did chop back its domestic routes from 113 to 22 but it continues to lag its competitors. Despite the bloated employee load, it is considered to have ignored investments in customer service, especially in comparison to Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific, considered to be the region’s best carriers.
MAS’s safety record isn’t unblemished, although given the record of other carriers in the region, including Garuda Indonesia, China Airlines of Taiwan, Korean International and others, it isn’t that bad. It’s worth noting, for instance, that Silk Air, a budget subsidiary of Singapore International, suffered an apparent pilot suicide in December 1997 when the pilot apparently crashed the plane in southern Sumatra, killing 97 passengers and seven crew members on board. Singapore officials attempted to cover up the reasons for the crash.
Since 1977, 20-odd other minor incidents have been recorded by air industry officials along with three fatal crashes. In recent days, the airline suffered two minor incidents that probably would not have come to press attention without the publicity surrounding the disappearance of MH370. One was an unscheduled landing by a Seoul-bound A300-330 in Hong Kong on March 23 after an electrical generator failed on the two-year-old jet. A second occurred last week when a plane suffered a shattered windscreen when it hit birds as it landed in Kathmandu, Nepal. MH370 itself suffered wing tip damage in 2012 when it clipped another aircraft on the ground at Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport, although it was repaired by Boeing and cleared to fly.
A more troubling question involves credible reports that an attractive South African woman named Jonti Roos and a companion were allowed to ride in the cockpit of an MAS plane with Fariq Abdul Hamid, the 27-year-old copilot aboard MH370, on a flight last year from Phuket to Kuala Lumpur. The flight included picture-taking of one of the two young women wearing the pilot’s hat. If nothing else, it brings into question MAS’s flight deck discipline and should raise red flags at the air carrier over training.
US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules promulgated in the wake of four airliners turned into bombs on Sept. 11, 2001 required cockpit doors to remain locked during flight and restricted access to the flight deck as “essential to the safety and security of the US aviation system. The FAA urged all international airlines to adopt the same standards, which applied to all non-military aircraft with cockpit doors and more than 19 seats.
The most serious incidents involving MAS planes are as follows.
Dec. 4, 1977: Boeing 737-200 crashes in swamp on approach to Subang airport, Malaysia, killing 100 passengers and crew. Suspected cause was an attempted hijacking.
Dec. 18, 1983: Airbus 300-B4 crashes in heavy rain short of runway at Subang airport. No fatalities but the plane exploded shortly after everyone escaped the wreckage. Airport officials didn’t notice anything was amiss until the passengers walked out of the mud at the end of the runway.
Sept. 15, 1995: Fokker 50 crashes after overshooting runway at Tawau airport, Malaysia, killing 34 passengers and crew. Pilot error blamed.
Oct 10, 2013: MASWings MH3002, a Twin Otter aircraft carrying 16 passengers from Kota Kinabalu to Kudat overshoots the runway and crashes into a house. The co-pilot and one passenger died and six passengers were seriously injured. This was the first incident involving MASWings, an MAS budget offshoot.
Malaysian Airlines, the flag carrier whose MH370 Boeing 777-200 disappeared on March 8 without a trace into the Indian Ocean, has been given high marks as a quality airline. Nonetheless it has a troubled corporate history and a series of scrapes going back almost to the launch of its flying operations in 1972.The publicly traded airline’s most recent annual reports indicate losses skyrocketed by 171 percent to RM1.17 billion ($359.12 million). That follows years of lackluster performance, management changes and exploitation by cronies connected to the country’s ruling Barisan Nasional, or national coalition, particularly the United Malays National Organization. It has been the subject of repeated “turnaround plans” that turned out to be cul-de-sacs. The 2013 losses followed 2011 losses of RM2.52 billion, the largest in the airline’s history. The losses were laid to rising fuel costs and mismanagement, forcing it to cut back eight international routes.
That isn’t to say the airline’s management woes had anything to do with the disappearance of the airliner, with 239 passengers and crew aboard on the way to Beijing. They didn’t. But mismanagement and other sloppy practices have belied MAS’s record of excellent service and its flight safety record, which is on a par with other regional carriers. When it has needed to import foreign expertise – pilots – it has done so.
Nonetheless, MAS has been required to do national service, flying into low-passenger-volume areas to keep local politicians happy and has seen low-cost airlines like AirAsia, controlled by private entrepreneur Tony Fernandes, eat its lunch on both high-profit domestic and international routes. An attempt to sell the airline to Fernandes last year foundered because of union opposition and a political furor.
Cronies have repeatedly very nearly ruined the business operations, requiring a long series of government bailouts. It is now controlled by Penerbangan Malaysia Bhd., a government holding company. Kazanah Nasional, another government sovereign fund, holds a minority share.
In 1994, according to affidavits filed by one-time CEO Tajudin Ramli after a falling out with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Tajudin bought a controlling 32 percent of MAS shares at an inflated price of RM8.00 at Mahathir’s behest – while the shares were trading at RM3.30 – using disguised funds from government-linked companies to shift the excess to cover massive speculation losses in foreign exchange by Bank Negara, the country’s central bank.
When Tajudin took control of MAS in 1994 through his company, Naluri Bhd, MAS had a cash reserve in excess of RM600 million. Seven years later, in 2001, when the government bought back the airline for RM8 a share although their worth had plummeted, the state-owned airline had accumulated losses in excess of RM8 billion. The government bought back an almost bankrupt airline for the same price that it sold to Tajudin.
According to a long list of whistle-blowers within the airline, court records and investigators, Tajudin and his associates were involved in looting it of tens of millions of dollars and very nearly putting it into bankruptcy before the government buyback. When officials not connected to the United Malays National Organization recommended prosecution, they came under fire that nearly ruined their careers and almost put them in jail. Ultimately, despite evidence of Tajudin’s actions, the government settled out of court, paying him the equivalent of US$293.2 million, raising suspicions the government wished to cover up the entire affair.
Back in the hands of government sovereign funds, MAS reported losses of RM1.3 billion in 2005 despite the fact that revenue was up by 10.3 percent and passenger traffic grew 10.3 percent. The airline has 19,000 employees and efforts to cut staff have run into trouble both from unions and from the political constituency connected to the United Malays National Organization.
Too often, as with Tajudin, political cronies rather than professionals have been put in charge of running the carrier. It did chop back its domestic routes from 113 to 22 but it continues to lag its competitors. Despite the bloated employee load, it is considered to have ignored investments in customer service, especially in comparison to Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific, considered to be the region’s best carriers.
MAS’s safety record isn’t unblemished, although given the record of other carriers in the region, including Garuda Indonesia, China Airlines of Taiwan, Korean International and others, it isn’t that bad. It’s worth noting, for instance, that Silk Air, a budget subsidiary of Singapore International, suffered an apparent pilot suicide in December 1997 when the pilot apparently crashed the plane in southern Sumatra, killing 97 passengers and seven crew members on board. Singapore officials attempted to cover up the reasons for the crash.
Since 1977, 20-odd other minor incidents have been recorded by air industry officials along with three fatal crashes. In recent days, the airline suffered two minor incidents that probably would not have come to press attention without the publicity surrounding the disappearance of MH370. One was an unscheduled landing by a Seoul-bound A300-330 in Hong Kong on March 23 after an electrical generator failed on the two-year-old jet. A second occurred last week when a plane suffered a shattered windscreen when it hit birds as it landed in Kathmandu, Nepal. MH370 itself suffered wing tip damage in 2012 when it clipped another aircraft on the ground at Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport, although it was repaired by Boeing and cleared to fly.
A more troubling question involves credible reports that an attractive South African woman named Jonti Roos and a companion were allowed to ride in the cockpit of an MAS plane with Fariq Abdul Hamid, the 27-year-old copilot aboard MH370, on a flight last year from Phuket to Kuala Lumpur. The flight included picture-taking of one of the two young women wearing the pilot’s hat. If nothing else, it brings into question MAS’s flight deck discipline and should raise red flags at the air carrier over training.
US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules promulgated in the wake of four airliners turned into bombs on Sept. 11, 2001 required cockpit doors to remain locked during flight and restricted access to the flight deck as “essential to the safety and security of the US aviation system. The FAA urged all international airlines to adopt the same standards, which applied to all non-military aircraft with cockpit doors and more than 19 seats.
The most serious incidents involving MAS planes are as follows.
Dec. 4, 1977: Boeing 737-200 crashes in swamp on approach to Subang airport, Malaysia, killing 100 passengers and crew. Suspected cause was an attempted hijacking.
Dec. 18, 1983: Airbus 300-B4 crashes in heavy rain short of runway at Subang airport. No fatalities but the plane exploded shortly after everyone escaped the wreckage. Airport officials didn’t notice anything was amiss until the passengers walked out of the mud at the end of the runway.
Sept. 15, 1995: Fokker 50 crashes after overshooting runway at Tawau airport, Malaysia, killing 34 passengers and crew. Pilot error blamed.
Oct 10, 2013: MASWings MH3002, a Twin Otter aircraft carrying 16 passengers from Kota Kinabalu to Kudat overshoots the runway and crashes into a house. The co-pilot and one passenger died and six passengers were seriously injured. This was the first incident involving MASWings, an MAS budget offshoot.
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