Press statement for the immediate release of Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj
The Malaysian Insider
Jul 17, 2011
17 JULY — We, the undersigned doctors, including members of the Malaysian Medical Association (Perak Branch), and/or the Perak Medical Practitioners Society
1. are very concerned and troubled over the prolonged ‘illegal’ detention of our colleague Dr. Jeyakumar Devaraj.
2. are concerned for Dr Jeyakumar’s health, which seems to be deteriorating under detention.
3. are deeply saddened, hurt and disillusioned by the action of the Judiciary (which is supposed to be to be independent) which on 13/07/2011 delayed the hearing date of habeas corpus application of Dr Jeyakumar and five others by a month.
We urge the immediate release of our colleague, who is also the Member of Parliament Sungai Siput, Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj. Read the rest of this entry »
Let’s expose the ministers
— Spyman
The Malaysian Insider
Jul 17, 2011
JULY 17 — Enough is enough lah. Even after seeing the rakyat shout for change, the ministers continue to insult us and treat us like kids.
Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak tries to sound brave in London and challenges Pakatan Rakyat to a fight in the next elections. Hello, the polls will be rigged and election fraud will be widespread. That is why there was Bersih 2.0: to have clean and fair elections.
And now we have Ahmad Shabery Chik saying that Opposition will use Bersih as an excuse for poor performance in the coming polls. Here is where his reasoning shows him up: if BN is so confident of winning the polls, why are they so resistant to clean and fair elections? Read the rest of this entry »
Negara kita
— Michelle Chan
The Malaysian Insider
Jul 17, 2011
JULY 17 — At the not-actually-ripe-yet age of 20, I may have not experienced first-hand or seen with my own eyes how bad WWII or May 13 were, but I recognise the face of right and wrong.
Being politically inclined since school days, it was not easy to stay passionate about this Bolehland. There is too much contradiction and ignorance or even denial from the previous generations and also my own.
Raised in a middle-income family, my parents work hard to make sure I grow up to have the good things in life — a good education, leading to a good job, marriage, kids, life. The whole point of these ideals is about progressing towards betterment. No? Development is about achieving the better things in life, right?
Leading up to the Bersih rally, I thought thoroughly about the validity of this event. The objective: clean and fair elections. I sure hope that when I’m eligible to vote, my vote really counts. Read the rest of this entry »
Proud to be a Malaysian
— T. Gopal
The Malaysian Insider
Jul 17, 2011
JULY 17 — This was not my first (illegal) rally. Therefore, the usual intimidation using roadblocks and arrests did not stop my plan for the day.
I come from a poor family. Way back in the early 1980s, when the Seremban-KL Highway was being built, my parents worked there as labourers. Their combined income was less than RM600 per month.
Therefore, it was not a surprise when they opposed my plan to enter one of the local universities simply because they couldn’t afford to pay the first semester fees of RM1,600. Fast-forward to today; I am living a comfortable life, with a good income and stable job. So, why did I join the rally? Read the rest of this entry »
Kedah drops Ramadan bar closure plan
Posted by Kit in Islamic state, Pakatan Rakyat, PAS on Sunday, 17 July 2011, 5:04 pm
By Hazland Zakaria
Jul 17, 11 | MalaysiaKini
The PAS-led Kedah government has dropped plans to enforce a 1997 state enactment that requires bars, discos and karaoke clubs to close during the coming Ramadhan, a state official told AFP today.
The northern state decided in May to enforce closure of all entertainment outlets during the holy month, as stipulated in the state law passed by the previous BN-led administration.
However, the plan drew criticism from entertainment outlet operators, as well as other Pakatan Rakyat components who feared that a blanket ban would alienate non-Muslim voters. Read the rest of this entry »
Kedah entertainment ban limited to Muslims, says Hadi
Posted by Kit in Islamic state, Pakatan Rakyat, PAS on Sunday, 17 July 2011, 4:34 pm
By Syed Mu’az Syed Putra
July 17, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
AMPANG, July 17 — Kedah has revoked the outright ban on entertainment outlets during Ramadan and will instead bar only Muslims from patronising such establishments, PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang said today.
Hadi blamed the mainstream media’s inaccurate reports for causing confusion and sparking discontent among non-Muslims.
“The BN media is exploiting this issue. So only non-Muslims can enter (the entertainment outlets), but Muslims will not be allowed to enter,” Hadi told reporters here today. Read the rest of this entry »
Planking or ‘pok kai’ in Hong Kong
Posted by Kit in Articles, Human Rights on Sunday, 17 July 2011, 12:40 pm
By Anita Anandarajah
July 17, 2011
JULY 17 — So it seems planking has caught on in Hong Kong. Making like a plank of wood, practitioners like to shock their audiences by remaining utterly stiff and horizontal in the most inappropriate places.
The Planking Hong Kong Facebook page has chalked up 156 likes, a long way off from Planking Australia which has received 175,271 likes where the craze has taken its strongest hold. Read the rest of this entry »
Can the police investigate itself?
By The Malaysian Insider
July 16, 2011
JULY 16 — Just a week ago, the police took a no-nonsense approach in locking up the city and chasing Bersih 2.0 supporters from gathering and making their way to Stadium Merdeka for a rally calling for free and fair elections.
It resulted in one death, ostensibly from a heart attack, and a hospital clouded in teargas and drenched by water cannons fired by riot police.
The death and the incident at the Tung Shin Hospital are contentious. Putrajaya has ordered a series of probes, one by the Health Ministry and three by the police. Read the rest of this entry »
On toothless tigers
By Hafidz Baharom
July 17, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JULY 17 — Barisan Nasional has proven to this nation and its citizenry time and again, if not just rather blatantly in the recent days through their denials and openly disproven lies, that it is arrogant, relentlessly hostile and even, and you may quote me on this, downright stupid.
Let’s begin by stating the obvious for those who read my piece on LoyarBurok. Yes, I did join the Bersih 2.0 rally, wearing pink. Unfortunately I didn’t brandish a gigantic yellow umbrella as promised, so for that I apologise. Read the rest of this entry »
A lie has robbed their freedom
By P. Ramakrishnan
July 16, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JULY 16 — A lie has robbed six Malaysians of their precious freedom. For three weeks they have been locked up and put away unfairly and unjustly.
Not a shred of evidence has been unearthed so far to justify their detention. Not an iota of proof has been disclosed to date to convince sceptical Malaysians that the action of the police has been honourable.
A lie that robs innocent Malaysians of their human rights discredits the police beyond repair. A lie that denies access to lawyers for the detained six denigrates the rule of law and disgraces the Barisan Nasional government for not observing the principles of decency, truth and honesty. Read the rest of this entry »
Good cop, bad cop
By June Rubis
July 17, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JULY 17 — A few days ago, I had a conversation with a taxi driver who was excited about July 9th. While he had supported the rally, and could list out the points for free and fair elections, he was too scared to attend because of the heavy police presence.
He told me of a Vietnamese passenger he had that day, who was curious about the many roadblocks around the city.
“I explained to him about the rally, and how the police were there to stop the people from entering the city.”
The Vietnamese was so surprised at his explanation, he told me. Read the rest of this entry »
Ambushed Like Animals, I Had to Walk-Crawl
By June Rubis
14 July 2011 | LoyarBurok
We were so close that I could wipe the sweat off his forehead if I had wanted to. Instead, I stood uncertainly in front of him, not wanting to push forward.
His expression on his face mirrored mine: which was of fear. After exchanging a glance with me, he looked away and determinedly stared into space, while in locked arms with few of his blue-clad colleagues.
I saw more police milling around and they did not stop us from entering KL Sentral. There were many chances to arrest the BERSIH leaders as soon as they had stepped outside the hotel. But it seemed to me that the police had a different plan: they wanted to ambush them, and pick them off one by one. Read the rest of this entry »
In memory of Teoh Beng Hock
Posted by Kit in Teoh Beng Hock on Saturday, 16 July 2011, 5:43 pm
By Teoh El Sen
July 16, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today
SERI KEMBANGAN: The cute little toddler played and ran about, bringing a tinge of a smile to the crowd of serious-looking adults around him.
Clad in an orange shirt, the 17-month-old Teoh Er Jia’s cheerful disposition bore a stark contrast to the tears of his family and the sombre mood of some 400 people who gathered to commemorate the anniversary of his father’s death.
Today, marked the second year of Teoh Beng Hock’s death.
Last night, a memorial function in his honour was held at the Seri Kembangan multipurpose hall, attended by Teoh’s former employer, Selangor exco Ean Yong Hian Wah and other DAP leaders.
Throughout the event, Er Jia was the centre of attention as his mother Soh Cher Wei received praises and support from the people. Read the rest of this entry »
Building a new ‘We’ for the nation
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Bersih, nation building on Saturday, 16 July 2011, 3:03 pm
By M Nadarajah
Jul 16, 11 | MalaysiaKini
Recently, I had to go to IJN to be with my brother-in-law who recently went through open-heart surgery to replace a faulty valve in his heart. He was in ICU.
As my trip was from PJ during peak hours, I had time to chat with the taxi driver – something I normally do with drivers who are friendly and willing to chat.
Most of the time, such conversations lapse into topical political issues, race relations, the economic situation and sometimes, personal challenges.
This time it led to conversation on Bersih and what it stood for. He was completely for it, showing a lot of knowledge about it. Read the rest of this entry »
Bersih asset freeze will scare investors, says DAP
By Boo Su-Lyn
July 16, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, July 16 — The government’s threat to freeze the assets of those involved with Bersih 2.0 will destroy Malaysia’s financial reputation as bad press abounds on the Najib administration’s handling of last weekend’s rally, the DAP said today.
Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Awang Adek Hussin said yesterday that Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) can freeze the assets of those believed to be participating in activities deemed risky to the nation’s security. Read the rest of this entry »
Wear Yellow to support Bersih 1Malaysia generation coming of age
"Yellow Saturday" at DAP National Retreat in Seremban
DAP MPs and Assemblymen representatives meeting in the Seremban National Retreat are wearing yellow today to support the “Yellow Saturday” campaign.
We call on Malaysians to wear yellow every Saturday to support the Bersih 1Malaysia generation which came of age on 709, when Malaysians regardless of race, religion, region, age or gender braved police threats, mass arrests, tear gas and chemically-laced water cannons to endorse Bersih 2.0 demand for free and fair elections.
Let today, 716 be the beginning of the long march to A Clean Malaysia, not only in elections but also in political system and national governance. Read the rest of this entry »
Yes Mr PM, it’s ‘all about politics’
By Jeswan Kaur
July 16, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today
COMMENT The dust on the crackdown by the Barisan Nasional government against a rally seeking to reform the electoral system will never settle.
In exactly a week since election watchdog Bersih 2.0 held its “Walk for Democracy” last Saturday, much dirt has surfaced, all pointing in the direction of the BN leadership under Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak.
Not only did Najib try his very best to play out Bersih 2.0 or the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections comprising 62 non-governmental organisations, he unwittingly ended up making the biggest mistake in his mere two-years of premiership, when he pitted the police force against the rakyat. Read the rest of this entry »
Bersih and the wider trust deficit problem
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Good Governance on Saturday, 16 July 2011, 12:46 pm
By Hafiz Noor Shams
July 16, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JULY 16 — Somewhere in Streatham, south of London earlier this year, I found myself slouching lazily on a couch watching the BBC with a friend and his still lazier cat. On television was the Egyptian revolution “live”, with protesters and government supporters throwing rocks at each other. Such was the lamentable state of Egypt that used to be the apex of human civilisation not once, but twice. Its deeply-flawed institutions had reduced Egypt into a state of anarchy.
“Don’t you find this impossible?” I think I asked my friend. “We know these protesters want Mubarak out but what about his supporters? Are their wishes less legitimate than those protesting on the streets?”
The reply came promptly, “The importance of a credible election. Credible elections are important in determining popular opinion. Nothing in Egypt has enough credibility or the competence to ascertain the popular opinion right now.” Read the rest of this entry »
BNM can freeze Bersih assets, says Awang Adek
July 15, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
Datuk Awang Adek Hussin today said Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) can freeze the assets of those believed to be participating in activities deemed risky to the nation’s security if the police recommend so.
The deputy finance minister highlighted this in relation to reports that the Bersih 2.0 movement headed by Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan was receiving foreign funding for its activities.
According to Awang, provisions within the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act allowed for the central bank to not only bar access to such funds but also trace both deposits and withdrawals of the offending accounts. Read the rest of this entry »
One event, many ‘truths’
By Eric Loo
Jul 15, 11 | MalaysiaKini
Being clean is good. Being clean in government is best. So, the people walked the streets of KL for a clean cause. But when the government and its media played dirty on the discontented multitudes who flooded the streets of Jalan Tun Perak, Jalan Petaling and Jalan Pudu on July 9, it makes me very angry. I was there.
Right-wing threats against Bersih, splashed across the mainstream papers and screened on television, had ironically mobilised to the public square the Malays, the Chinese, the Indians and other usually ‘invisible’ minority groups. The people gathered and chanted as one body in front of Menara Maybank. ‘Hidup Bersih! Hidup Rakyat! Hancur Bersih! Hancur Rakyat!’ Read the rest of this entry »
