Archive for September 12th, 2008
Teresa Kok arrested!
Posted by Kit in Human Rights on Friday, 12 September 2008
[UPDATE – Teresa was taken to Wangsa Maju Police Station from the condominium and at 2.50 a.m (13th September 2008), she left the Wangsa Maju police station and was taken to the an unknown custody centre where she would be held for her police custodial detention which could be up to 60 days. After that, it is up to the Home Minister to decide whether to issue a formal order of detention without trial, which could be for two years, renewable indefinitely]
I have just been informed that Selangor Senior Exco Member and DAP MP for Seputeh Teresa Kok has been arrested under the Internal Security Act by the police at 11.18 p.m. when returning to her condominium in Kuala Lumpur from a Mooncake Festival reception in her constituency office.
Three police cars with over 10 police personnel stopped Teresa at the condominium entrance and took her away.
Malaysia in the grip of another ISA madness?
Posted by Kit in Human Rights, Media on Friday, 12 September 2008
A second Internal Security Act (ISA) arrest in less than eight hours after RPK – the Sin Chew Daily senior journalist Tan Hoon Cheng, 33, who reported that Umno Bukit Bendera division chief Datuk Ahmad Ismail’s speech at a Permatang Pauh by-election ceramah on August 23 that the Chinese in Malaysia are “squatters” in the country and which resulted in a nation-wide furore and political crisis.
Ahmad got off lightly with a three-year Umno suspension but why is the Sin Chew Daily reporter detained under the ISA, when her report had been confirmed as true when Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Umno President Datuk Seri Najib had apologised “on behalf” of Ahmad?
Although Ahmad did not “recognise” Najib’s apology on his behalf, the Deputy Prime Minister’s apology is confirmation that Tan’s report was correct, especially as Najib was present when Ahmad had given the controversial speech at the Umno ceramah during the Permatang Pauh by-election.
Will the two reporters, one from Guang Ming and the other from Nanyang, who had collaborated Tan’s report of Ahmad Ismail’s speech be next on the ISA crackdown? What about all those columnists who had flayed Ahmad for his provocative, inflammatory and racist speech – are they all marked for the Kamunting Detention Centre?
Read the rest of this entry »
ISA for RPK and show-cause letters to three newspapers while 3-year Umno suspension for Ahmad Ismail – is this the Abdullah justice and rule of law?
Posted by Kit in Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Human Rights, ISA, Post-2008 general election on Friday, 12 September 2008
The detention of blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin (RPK) under the Internal Security Act (ISA) and the show-cause letters to three newspapers, Sin Chew Daily, the Sun and Suara Keadilan why action should not be taken against them over their news coverage on a number of political issues must be condemned by all Malaysians concerned about human rights and democracy.
These actions make a mockery of the claims of the Abdullah administration to usher in a more open and democratic society under a just rule of law.
It shows the administration’s utter cynicism and Machiavellian politics in unblocking RPK’s news portal Malaysia Today after a two-week censorship only to arrest RPK under the ISA in less than 24 hours.
The unblocking of Malaysia Today was made to demonstrate the country’s commitment and allegiance to the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) Bill of Guarantees to the world of no Internet censorship but it is just naive for the government to think that the world can be fooled by such subterfuge – as by detaining RPK and taking him out of public circulation, the Malaysian Government has effectively blocked off Malaysia Today and violated the “no internet censorship” Bill of Guarantee!
The detention of RPK had only deepened the multiple crisis of confidence besetting the Abdullah premiership.
RPK just arrested under ISA
Posted by Kit in Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Announcement, Human Rights, ISA, Police, Post-2008 general election on Friday, 12 September 2008
The police have just taken Raja Petra Kamarudin from his house in Sg Buloh under the Internal Security Act.
Seems to be the beginning of a crack down.
Untimely gift of RM160,000 watch for Khir Toyo
Posted by Kit in Good Governance on Friday, 12 September 2008
The Sun September 12, 2008
Untimely gift of RM160,000 watch for Khir Toyo
by Terence Fernandez and R. Nadeswaran
PETALING JAYA (Sept 11, 2008) : What can you buy with RM160,000? An X-ray machine for one, or five low-cost homes, breakfast for 1,000 poor schoolchildren for two years and feed a hardcore poor family of 10 for almost 20 years!
However, a company owned by the Selangor government, Permodalan Negeri Selangor Berhad (PNSB), deemed that it was better to spend the sum on a watch for its then chairman and mentri besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo.
On Jan 8, PNSB paid RM159,250 for a Patek Philippe watch as “cenderamata untuk pengerusi PNSB” (souvenir for the chairman of PNSB) – Mohamad Khir at that time.
It is understood that the watch in white gold was presented to the former MB before the March 8 general election.
But Mohamad Khir returned the watch. And it was not until two months later that a buyer was found. Read the rest of this entry »
Whether 916, 1016, 1116 or in an early 13th general election, time has come for new federal government
Posted by Kit in Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Pakatan Rakyat on Friday, 12 September 2008
Will there be any “916” political transformation setting in motion the changes to bring about a Pakatan Rakyat federal government, ending Umno political hegemony and Barisan Nasional federal power?
This is the question uppermost in the minds of all Malaysians – and the reason for the farce of some 50 BN MPs forced to suffer daily media humiliation, Malaysian and Taiwan, in pursuing a “mong-cha-cha” (“blur, blur”) agricultural study trip to Taiwan just to foil the “916” political transformation.
However, whether the political transformation takes place in four days’ on 916, or 1016, 1116 or in an early 13th general election is a secondary question to the important fact that the Malaysian political mould has been completely recast and it is only a matter of time that a transition of federal power is effected.
What is most significant about “916” is not whether federal power will change hands from Barisan Nasional to Pakatan Rakyat in four days’ time, but in the sea-change in the political attitude of Malaysians as compared to six months ago before the March 8 general election. Read the rest of this entry »
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