Call on Cabinet to initiate an All-Party Conference to nip in the bud the political culture of aggression, thuggery and violence which will mar the holding of free, fair and clean general election
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Muhyiddin Yassin, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 29 May 2012, 2:06 pm
The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak is at it again – making sweet-sounding highfalutin speeches at international forums but doing the very opposite in the country.
Addressing the 26th Asia Pacific roundtable last night, Najib called on Asian countries to reject the use of force and violence in resolving conflicts.
What struck Malaysians is not his call on Asian countries to reject the use of force and violence in resolving conflicts, but his conspicuous silence and his government’s failure in the past month to stand up and be counted to condemn and dissociate themselves from a new political culture of aggression, thuggery and violence disrupting Pakatan Rakyat functions and activities.
As a result, Malaysians are reminded of his other sweet-sounding highfalutin speeches at international forums calling for a Global Movement of Moderates to unite against extremists, but inside the country, his three-year premiership has seen the unprecedented manifestation of extremism not only officially sanctioned but carried out with impunity and immunity when laws of the land are violated. Read the rest of this entry »
Black day for Internet users
Posted by Kit in IT, Lim Guan Eng, Media, Najib Razak on Tuesday, 29 May 2012, 11:03 am
— CPI
The Malaysian Insider
May 29, 2012
MAY 29 — The Evidence (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2012 will come into operation in a few days on June 1. The impact of this hastily and stealthily rushed legislation could be devastating.
De facto law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz denies that amendments to the Evidence Act were a means for the government to curb online dissent by making Internet anonymity more difficult to maintain or ignorance to be used as an excuse.
Instead Nazri claims that the law was tightened because “we don’t want [anonymous or pseudonymous] people to slander or threaten others,” according to a report in the Sunday Star.
However opposition leaders such as DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng are unconvinced. Read the rest of this entry »
Mahathir jangan dijadikan contoh dan ikutan
— Aspan Alias
The Malaysian Insider
May 28, 2012
28 MEI — Betulkah pandangan Dr Mahathir jika PR kalah dalam pilihanraya nanti negara akan huru-hara? Satu lagi yang menjadi persoalan ialah kata-kata Mahathir yang jika Umno kalah dan ditewaskan Melayu akan hilang kuasa politiknya? Kenapa Mahathir alih-alih terlalu sayang kepada Umno pula? Kenapa Mahathir alih-alih dan tidak semena-mena terlalu sayang kepada orang Melayu yang selama ini beliau pandang rendah? Persoalan-persoalan yang saya ajukan ini jangan di salah fahamkan.
Saya bertanya perkara ini, kerana orang Melayu telah hilang identiti asalnya oleh kerana Mahathir. Apabila Mahathir kembali bercakap pasal masa depan orang Melayu dan tentang ketakutannya kepada huru hara negara ini, ia amat bertentangan dengan apa yang beliau lakukan selama ini, terutamanya semasa menjadi Perdana Menteri selama 22 tahun dahulu. Segala yang beliau lakukan semasa sedang seronok berkuasa dahululah yang menjadi penyebab berlakunya apa yang berlaku pada hari ini.
Saya mempunyai keyakinan tinggi yang Mahathir sedang begitu panik dengan pergerakan perubahan yang sedang berlaku dalam minda rakyat termasuk minda orang Melayu. Yang pastinya Mahathir tidak mahu seboleh-bolehnya melihat Umno ciptaan beliau kecundang dihadapan mata beliau semasa beliau masih hidup ini. Kalau di nilai dari sudut mana pun, mahu tidak mahu Mahathir merupakan orang yang “accountable” terhadap kekeruhan politik negara kini.
Kecelaruan politik negara tidak akan menjadi begini buruk dalam sekelip mata dan tidak adil jika Mahathir dan konco-konconya meletakkan semua kesalahan kepada kelemahan Abdullah Ahmad Badawi sahaja. Malahan naiknya Abdullah Ahmad Badawi itu adalah kerana kesalahan Mahathir sendiri kerana Mahathir sememangnya mahukan Abdullah menjadi PM kerana beliau menyangkakan Abdullah boleh beliau pengaruhi dalam pentadbirannya. Read the rest of this entry »
Totally bizarre – Hanif’s insistence to head the “independent advisory panel” into Bersih 3.0 violence
It is totally bizarre – former Inspector-General of Police Tun Hanif Omar’s insistence to head the “independent advisory panel” into Bersih 3.0 violence when he should have recused himself and even advised the other panel members to withdraw or better still, the Cabinet should have scrapped the panel altogether and given full support to the Suhakam public inquiry into the human rights violations at the Bersih 3.0 rally on April 28.
The very fact that the Hanif panel had cancelled a earlier planned press conference after its first meeting today and decided instead to merely release a media statement is eloquent proof that Hanif and the panel members are fully aware that they do not enjoy public confidence that they will be able to act fairly, independently and impartially in the inquiry into the Bersih 3.0 violence, regardless of whether the victims were police personnel, media representatives or peaceful protestors.
For the past month, the government had launched a high-level campaign to vilify and demonise Bersih 3.0 and Pakatan Rakyat and the Hanif panel is regarded as an key part of this “demonization” campaign.
Hanif himself played an important role in the demonization campaign from the very beginning when he gave blind and unthinking support to the wild allegation by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak that Bersih 3.0 rally was an attempted coup d’etat by the Opposition to topple the government.
Adding insult to injury, Hanif even said he identified pro-communist individuals at Bersih 3.0 from demonstrations in the 1970s and spoke to the media on the use of provocateurs and children in the Bersih 3.0 rally as “tactics of the communists”.
How can Hanif live down these highly prejudicial views on Bersih 3.0 unless he is going to retract and repudiate them? Read the rest of this entry »
Umno needs to rediscover its soul
Posted by Kit in Najib Razak, UMNO on Monday, 28 May 2012, 12:42 pm
— C.L. Tang
The Malaysian Insider
May 28, 2012
MAY 28 — Malaysia, or Malaya at that point in time, was fortunate that the pioneer leaders of Umno were a group of exemplary visionaries. It has the fortitude and humility to be inclusive and fair, mindful of the great urgency for all Malaysians of all races to be united as they embark on building a newly independent nation.
Not unlike the founding fathers of America who laid a strong foundation for the former British colony to thrive, Malaysia might have gone the way of other failed states had these Umno visionaries not forged a strong partnership among all its constituents, regardless of race and religion.
Indeed, it is no small miracle that we have advanced so much since independence. For a small nation made up of such diverse colours and ethnicity, we were the envy of many former colonies and new nation states that failed to replicate our stable, harmonious growth.
However, this golden age of Umno, and along with Malaysia, began to ebb and deteriorate along with the quality of its leaders.
The gentlemanly conduct, open mindset and non-confrontational nature, which was the soul of early Umno, is now replaced by a hawkish, non-compromising stance of Umno Baru “leaders”. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib’s government still in weak position, says Dr M
Posted by Kit in Elections, Mahathir, Najib Razak on Monday, 28 May 2012, 11:45 am
By Shannon Teoh
The Malaysian Insider
May 28, 2012
KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has warned Datuk Seri Najib Razak that the latter is still leading a weak government, repeating his call for federal polls to be held off until after the fasting month which ends in August.
The influential former prime minister told Bloomberg in an interview published today that the prime minister should delay plans for a general election that must be held within a year.
“Being weak, he has to respond to the criticisms. But when you are faced with this problem anything you do is not enough,” the long-serving former Barisan Nasional (BN) chief said, adding that Najib inherited a weakened coalition, which won Election 2008 by the narrowest margin since independence.
Najib took over from Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in April 2009, ostensibly to reduce the record loss of 82 federal seats and five state governments with some observers saying that only a return to BN’s customary two-thirds majority can guarantee Najib’s hold on power. Read the rest of this entry »
Removing Quotas in International Schools A Positive Development
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, Education, English on Sunday, 27 May 2012, 6:45 pm
by M. Bakri Musa
In striking contrast to the horrendously expensive and unbelievably stupid idea of sending our teacher-trainees to Kirby, the Ministry of Education’s other decision to remove quotas on local enrollment in international schools is very much welcomed and definitely positive. The Minister confidently assured us that because of the small number of students involved, the move will not impact our national schools. I respectfully disagree; his confidence is misplaced and analysis flawed. On the contrary, this measure will have a tremendous impact on our national schools and ultimately the nation, for good or bad depending on how it is managed.
Consider the liberalization of higher education instituted in 1996. The rationale was to increase access and save foreign exchange by keeping at home those who would have gone abroad. It achieved both, the most successful of government initiatives. And it did not cost a sen except for the pay of government lawyers who drafted the enabling legislation.
The policy’s impact however, went far beyond. It permanently and profoundly altered the academic landscape of our public universities. Their current emphasis on the use of English for example, is the consequence of the impact of these private universities. Local employers (other than governmental agencies of course) made it clear that they prefer these graduates over those from public universities because of their demonstrably superior skills in English.
There were initial attempts at imputing ugly racial motives to this preferential treatment of private university graduates as most of them were non-Malays. That worked, but only temporarily. Ultimately the horrible truth was exposed. That realization was the impetus to the current greater use of English in public universities, with their erstwhile nationalistic Vice-Chancellors now fully embracing the move. They had to; the pathetic sight of their unemployed graduates was a constant and painful reminder. Read the rest of this entry »
Increasing campaign violence
Posted by Kit in Anwar Ibrahim, Elections, Najib Razak, Police on Sunday, 27 May 2012, 12:00 pm
– The Malaysian Insider
May 27, 2012
MAY 27 — Here’s the dichotomy. Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak is working hard to get the people’s support. From anywhere in Malaysia to the O2 arena in London. But some of his followers are pelting their political foes with eggs and stones.
The case in point is Lembah Pantai where Umno leaders have accused Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim of provoking Thursday night’s violence during a PKR rally in Lembah Pantai, and said it should not be held responsible for the incident.
They have denied starting the ruckus. But Anwar only criticised them after the PKR ceramah was pelted with stones, eggs and water bottles, resulting in a “night of bloodshed” that saw at least two seriously injured. Read the rest of this entry »
Is Mahathir telling the world that his daughter Marina is naïve to be a pawn of Bersih 3.0 and PR to topple the Najib government by violence?
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Hishammuddin, Mahathir, Najib Razak, Police on Sunday, 27 May 2012, 8:28 am
Malaysians must thank former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir for furnishing the fifth evidence of the highest-level campaign to vilify and demonise Bersih 3.0 and Pakatan Rakyat and why the Hanif Omar “independent advisory panel” to investigate into Bersih 3.0 violence is totally unacceptable and should be scrapped altogether.
The four evidence were earlier provided by the Prime Minister, the Home Minister and two former Inspector-General of Police, viz:
• The wild and baseless allegation by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak that Bersih 3.0 rally was coup attempt by the Opposition to topple the government;
• The instant public support for Najib’s coup allegation by former Inspector-General of Police, Tun Hanif Omar who said he identified pro-communist individuals at Bersih 3.0 from demonstrations in the 1970s with futher allegation on the use of provocateurs and children in the Bersih 3.0 rally as tactics of the communists!
• The equally instant public support for Najib’s coup allegation by another former Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Rahim Noor who went on to allege that Bersih 3.0 had used “Marxist” tactics as well as accusing the Opposition of wanting blood shed as it was not confident of taking over Putrajaya.
• The allegation by Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein in an interview with Sunday Star on May 20 that “democracy was hijacked” on April 28.
Mahathir’s blog two days ago that the Bersih 3.0 rally was a “preparation” and “warm-up” by Pakatan Rakyat for violent demonstrations to reject the results of the 13th general election should the opposition fail to win it is the fifth evidence of the highest-level campaign of vilification and demonization of Bersih 3.0 and Pakatan Rakyat involving the current and former Prime Minister, two IGPs and the current Home Minister, although they have not furnished one iota of evidence to substantiate their serious allegations in the past month. Read the rest of this entry »
Berjuang untuk perubahan memang susah
— Aspan Alias
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2012
26 MEI — Memperjuangkan yang benar itu amat susah dan tidak ada jalan yang senang dan mudah. Sebaik sahaja manusia itu ingin perubahan untuk kebaikan ia akan tetap mendapat reaksi serta merta.
Bak kata seorang ulamak yang muktabar, “jalan ke syurga itu berduri-duri dan beronak, jalan ke neraka itu penuh dengan roti dan keju”. Pejuang yang berniat untuk kebaikan itu selalunya akan merasakan kepedihan.
Itulah sebabnya setengah orang merasa hairan kenapa seseorang itu terus menerus berjuang sehinggakan menghadapi kepayahan dalam kehidupan mereka. Sesungguhnya yang paling penting ialah kepuasan dalaman dan jika kita pautkan usaha kita itu dengan beriktikad untuk ke addin dan agama itu ia amat menyejukkan jiwa seseorang itu. Read the rest of this entry »
We shall overcome
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Lim Guan Eng, Najib Razak, PKR, Police, UMNO on Saturday, 26 May 2012, 10:24 pm
— Jacob Sinnathamby
The Malaysian Insider
May 26, 2012
MAY 26 — Can you hear it? Listen closely. Now can you hear it?
I am talking about the deafening silence from the prime minister downwards on the burgeoning violence and thuggish behaviour by Umno and its subsidiaries.
What happened at the PKR ceramah in Lembah Pantai, where blood was drawn after rocks, eggs and bottles were rained on PKR leaders by Umno Youth affiliates, was not the first show of state-encouraged violence.
It is not even the second or third time, but the umpteenth time in recent months that groups affiliated to the ruling party have shown disdain for the rule of law.
Nurul Izzah Anwar and Mat Sabu have faced stones and thugs before while speaking at Felda events, Lim Guan Eng faced thugs during the anti-Lynas demo in Penang recently, and Bersih organisers in Merlimau had their vehicles damaged. And the list goes on. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia after regime change
Posted by Kit in Articles, Elections, Lim Guan Eng, Mahathir, NEM, NEP, Pakatan Rakyat on Saturday, 26 May 2012, 10:08 pm
– Greg Felker
New Mandala
May 26th, 2012
Credibility and the search for a new developmental model
In comparative politics the word “regime” refers to the formal and informal institutions by which political power is acquired and exercised. In political economy, a regime refers to an enduring combination of “socio-economic alliances, political-economic institutions, and a public-policy profile” (Pempel 1998: 20). In the case of Malaysia, the Barisan Nasional (BN) regime’s durability in the former, political sense has been closely associated with a particular sort political economy, or regime in the second sense. Despite significant changes over the years, Malaysia’s hegemonic-party political system, centered on United Malays National Organisaion’s (UMNO) dominance, has since the early 1970s practiced a form of developmentalism that has shaped Malaysian society in profound ways. As the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) understands, its challenge to the BN’s national political monopoly is inescapably a contest about Malaysia’s economic development model, as well. To what extent, and in what ways, does the prospect of change in Malaysia’s political regime imply a change in the country’s pattern of development?
Contemporary debates make clear the close connection between political contestation and economic policy choices. Indeed, one of the UMNO-led government’s vulnerabilities is a sense, growing in recent years, that the Malaysian development miracle has wavered and, for large segments of the population, inadequately fulfilled its promise of a steadily improving quality of life. The notion of the “middle-income trap”, first popularised in a global context by Geoffrey Garret in 2004, quickly became a frame for discussions of possible policy reform within Malaysia and among foreign observers. Two themes have been prominent in these discussions. One is the issue of the quality of governance as this affects broader economic efficiency and productivity. Second is the mooted necessity of a broad liberalisation of restrictions and regulations to enable greater flexibility and entrepreneurial dynamism. In both areas, the opposition and pro-reform civil society organisations have made telling critiques of the incumbent leadership. For its part, Najib Razak’s administration has launched a series of reform initiatives under the New Economic Model (NEM) that speak to the same concerns about governance and the structural challenges to Malaysia’s continued economic development. This dimension of the new competitiveness in Malaysia’s politics adds programmatic substance to a political tableau in which mass protest, scandal, and cultural controversies have comprised much of the drama. Read the rest of this entry »
A reply to Umno Youth’s challenge to debate
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Najib Razak on Saturday, 26 May 2012, 4:13 pm
Hiu Woong-Sin
Malaysiakini
May 25, 2012
An open reply to Umno Youth’s challenge to a debate published in The Star over my ‘heckling’ of PM Najib Razak in London:
Dear Khairun Aseh,
There is enough evidence on YouTube to substantiate my act of chanting “Bersih” (during Najib’s event in London). I do not know what other evidence you require from me to substantiate what I did.
If you wish to understand what Bersih is all about, there’s plenty of information and evidence provided by the organisation’s steering committee online.
Rather than debate with me about Bersih wouldn’t it make more sense for you to publicly engage with its steering committee? A principled government will engage with civil society groups like Bersih instead of using the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 to suppress civil dissent.
I am aware that my actions have attracted numerous responses through media and social network.
Your challenge to me is but an act of redemption for your president and an act that avoids a loss of face for Umno.
In other words, your challenge is just another public relation stunt for that party and it will not benefit the Malaysian taxpayers who had already paid for the PM’s promotional stunt in London. Read the rest of this entry »
Instead of raging over Mahathir’s outrageous and preposterous blog, Malaysians should commiserate with him
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Mahathir, Najib Razak, Pakatan Rakyat, UMNO on Saturday, 26 May 2012, 3:38 pm
Yesterday, former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir blogged that the Bersih 3.0 rally was a “preparation” and “warm-up” by Pakatan Rakyat for violent demonstrations to reject the results of the 13th general election should the opposition fail to win it.
He said: “Their defeat will be followed by violent demonstrations that will go on and on so that the election results are rejected and a new government is put in place, that is approved by the opposition.
“After that, they will attempt to hold an election again that they can manipulate.”
Mahathir must hold the Malaysian record of having made the most number of outrageous and preposterous statements in his political life, before, during and after his 22-year premiership (1981-2003) but what he blogged yesterday must rank as among his most outrageous and preposterous statements.
It was a complete figment of his imagination as there is no truth or basis whatsoever – like Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s ludicrous allegation that Bersih 3.0 was an Opposition coup d’etat attempt to topple the government (an idea probably inspired by the discredited Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Rahim Noor) when all that the peaceful protestors were armed with, if at all, were salt and water bottles to protect themselves against any indiscriminate police teargas and chemically-lacked water cannon. Read the rest of this entry »
Perubahan tetap akan berlaku, yang penting bersabar
— Aspan Alias
The Malaysian Insider
May 25, 2012
25 MEI — Bergiat dalam politik hari ini merupakan satu aktiviti yang bukan sedikit seriknya. Politik tanahair hari ini merupakan politik yang paling getir sekali yang belum pernah kita alami selama ini. Bahangnya panas terik dan ianya hanya boleh digiatkan oleh mereka yang benar-benar yakin dan menjadikan keyakinan mereka itu sebagai penambahan kepada tenaga yang dikeluarkan oleh penggiat politik.
Saya sendiri telah berehat daripada bergiat selama lebih dari satu dekad dengan menghabiskan masa di rumah dan kadang-kadang pergi melihat di tempat-tempat yang belum saya lawati. Selama saya berehat itu saya tidak dihubungi oleh mana-mana pemimpin Umno walaupun saya pernah bersahabat dengan mereka.
Tetapi saya tidak pernah putus hubungan dengan kawan-kawan yang berada di strata bawah parti Umno dan jumlah kenalan saya yang saya kenali dengan rapat adalah ribuan jumlahnya di seluruh negara. Setelah saya mengambil keputusan untuk memutuskan hubungan saya dengan Umno, saya telah mengambil keputusan untuk berfikir di luar kotak dan menyertai DAP pada 8hb Januari yang lalu.
Saya menyertai DAP setelah berfikir dan melakukan introspeksi yang mendalam selama bertahun lamanya. Saya berfikir kerana jika saya menyertai parti itu tentulah kerana saya bersetuju dengan perjuangannya dan akan bersamanya buat selama-lamanya. Saya katakan kepada ahli keluarga saya serta sahabat-sahabat akrab saya, ‘that I am going to grow old together with DAP’. Saya impikan untuk bersama sebuah parti politik yang mempunyai intergriti yang tinggi dan mengutamakan ‘rule of law’ serta memperjuangkan sebuah kerajaan yang mempunyai ‘governance’ yang tinggi.
Saya telah nampak dengan jelas bahawa DAP adalah parti yang penuh dengan disiplin, berintergriti, menghormati undang-undang dan mendukung semua yang tertulis di dalam perlembagaan persekutuan kita. Saya tidak boleh dipengaruhi oleh momokan Umno dan media arus perdana kerana saya menumpukan kepada mengasah pemikiran yang tidak boleh dipengaruhi oleh unsur-unsur jahat dan negatif apatah lagi jika momokan itu datangnya dari Umno sendiri. Read the rest of this entry »
Police appeared to have bad faith, says Pak Samad
By Nigel Aw | 1:48PM May 25, 2012
Malaysiakini
INTERVIEW Observations made by a number of Bersih 3.0 participants during the April 28 rally are that many of the policemen on duty that day were somehow different from the usual courteous officers and men patrolling neighbourhoods.
Their uniforms did not have the shinny numbers and name tags, which spruce up the men in blue. And it was many of these officers, the protesters said, who had beaten them up.
The widespread occurrence of this, Bersih co-chairperson A Samad Said said, seemed to concur with the belief that the actions were endorsed by higher powers.
“They had no name tags, they wore no identification serial numbers… many were like that. My interpretation is that if the police did not want to show their names and ID numbers, then it meant that they already had ill intentions.
Read the rest of this entry »
Najib and Hishammuddin must condemn and dissociate themselves if they do not want to be regarded as encouraging a political culture of aggression, thuggery and violence by their prolonged silence on recent series of disruptions and attacks on PR functions
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Hishammuddin, Najib Razak, Pakatan Rakyat on Friday, 25 May 2012, 3:25 pm
The question Malaysians are asking is whether the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussin are encouraging a political culture of aggression, thuggery and violence by their failure to condemn the recent series of disruptions and attacks on Pakatan Rakyat functions!
Is this the route for Malaysia to take to become the world’s best democracy as Najib had boasted after Bersih 2.0 on July 9 last year?
Is this the example Najib is setting for the world on what he meant when he called for a Global Movement of Moderates to isolate and marginalize the extremists?
Yesterday, a Pakatan Rakyat ceramah in Lembah Pantai was pelted with eggs and stones, leaving several injured and bloodied. Read the rest of this entry »
Best democracy in the world – mobocracy
By Mariam Mokhtar | May 25, 2012
Free Malaysia Today
The Malaysians who oppose clean, free and fair elections, otherwise known as Umno and their cronies, have claimed two casualties; democracy and the rule of law.
In place of democracy, we now have mobocracy. S Ambiga and her neighbours have been targeted. Now anything to do with Bersih and the opposition are subject to mob attacks. How soon before the same happens to ordinary citizens like you, should you disagree with Umno policy?
The harassment of Ambiga is a calculated distraction. For the past 54 years, Umno has broken every rule in the book to continue its stranglehold on the country.
Then, along comes Ambiga and Bersih to reproach the government for its shoddy election practices. Bersih stands in the way of the continued Umno domination of Malaysia and the face which one normally associates with Bersih, is Ambiga’s.
Read the rest of this entry »
Ambiga a victim of race and religion, says Pak Samad
By Nigel Aw | 4:00PM May 24, 2012
Malaysiakini
Today, as Bersih co-chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan’s Bukit Damansara residence is turned into a bizarre combination of a mini market, crime scene and conflict zone with pro- and anti-Ambiga groups taking their positions under the watchful eyes of the authorities outside her house, it is business as usual at the Bangsar Utama flat of her fellow co-chairperson A Samad Said.
Since the Bersih 3.0 protest on April 28 which organisers claimed saw some 250,000 participants taking to the streets of Kuala Lumpur, anti-Bersih groups have taken their counter-protest to the doorstep of Ambiga’s residence with burger stalls, butt exercises and now, a mini-market.
But for the 77-year-old A Samad, or more fondly known as Pak Samad, the situation at his residence has been anything but unusual, despite his cheeky baiting of the protesters at Ambiga’s residence.
This tale of two Bersih chiefs, Pak Samad said, is likely because Ambiga is being targeted for her race, religion and to some extent, gender; issues that are often played up by the powers-that-be.
Read the rest of this entry »
‘Then there was Hang Tuah, now Hang Samseng’
By Nigel Aw | 3:19PM May 23, 2012
Malaysiakini
During the glorious days of the Malacca sultanate, the legendary warrior Hang Tuah, leading his four other ‘Hang’ companions, stood out as a symbol of pride for the Malay kingdom.
But in modern Malacca, ‘Hang Samseng’ (gangster) have emerged, lamented Bersih co-chairperson A Samad Said, in reference to the violence targeting his colleague Ambiga Sreenevasan in Merlimau, Malacca, last Saturday.
“When Ambiga was going to Merlimau… There were around 200 gangsters waiting there. Ambiga was invited by PAS to explain Bersih’s struggle. This is democracy.
“But before she could arrive, our friends there called and asked her not to come because there already were gangsters in the land of Hang Tuah.
“Think about it, in the land of Hang Tuah, there is ‘Hang Samseng’,” added the national laureate, fondly known as Pak Samad.
Read the rest of this entry »
