Rais, the desperadoes are those in Umno
Malaysiakini Your Say | Jun 28, 11
‘If PSM were waging war, the authority would have known a long time ago. Why is it only during the lead-up to Bersih that they discovered this?’
Rais: Communist ideology last resort of the ‘desperate’
Multi Racial: Information Minister Rais Yatim, you are getting senile. It was the authority who coined the communist threat and slapped it on the group which supports the peaceful demonstration for fair and clean elections.
It was Umno who was getting desperate, so don’t turn around saying others were getting desperate. If Umno is confident with the support they having, why not allow Bersih to go ahead with their peaceful demonstration?
Read the rest of this entry »
Dr Jeyakumar detained, Ibrahim Ali walks free
Malaysiakini Your Say | Jun 28, 11
‘Ibrahim will walk away with a small fine, but Pakatan Rakyat leaders will find themselves ineligible to contest elections.’
Ibrahim Ali hauled up for alleged sedition
DannyLoHH: The double standard of treatment is glaring. Sungai Siput MP Dr D Micheal Jeyakumar was arrested and remanded for seven days for having some T-shirts with him, whereas Ibrahim Ali, who had openly threatened bloodshed and violence, is “probed” for two hours and then let go.
Penang deputy police chief Abdul Rahim Jaafar, you are doing a really good job of portraying the image of the Royal Malaysian Police (RMP) as the running dogs of Umno.
Read the rest of this entry »
National laureate probed over ‘seditious poem’
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Human Rights, Police on Tuesday, 28 June 2011, 8:44 am
Joseph Sipalan
Malaysiakini
Jun 27, 11
National laureate A Samad Said today decried police investigations into his poem recital during a Bersih 2.0 event and said the authorities are now treating poetry as a weapon.
The septuagenarian was hauled up for about 90 minutes of questioning today at the Dang Wangi district police station on his poem recited during the June 19 ‘launch’ of the Bersih 2.0 rally.
(Refer to the poem Unggun Bersih below)
“Poetry has now become something extraordinary; it has now become a weapon,” he told a throng of journalists jostling to hear the soft-spoken man. Read the rest of this entry »
Umno Youth members protest Khairy death threat at PKR headquarters
By Shannon Teoh and Clara Chooi
The Malaysian Insider
June 28, 2011
PETALING JAYA, June 28 — Hundreds of Umno Youth members on motorcycles circled the PKR headquarters here late last night in a threatening manner ahead of the July 9 Bersih rally, ostensibly to protest a death threat against their leader Khairy Jamaluddin.
They arrived at the office block in Tropicana, just a few doors away from the Tropicana police station, claiming that a death threat sent to Khairy recently came from the opposition party, which denied the allegation.
The group of Umno Youth members protesting outside the PKR headquarters last night.
Executive committee member Lokman Noor Adam claimed he led 600 Umno Youth members at 10.30 last night, blocking the street in front of the PKR headquarters as they chanted loudly in the night.
Read the rest of this entry »
Dear Brother Anas
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Lim Guan Eng, nation building on Tuesday, 28 June 2011, 8:24 am
by Art Harun
The Malaysian Insider
Jun 27, 2011
JUNE 27 — I am moved to comment on your “Open letter to Lim Guan Eng.”
First of all, I have no doubt of your centrist stance. Having known you for close to 27 years, I think I could state, with some level of authority, that your centrist stance is one which you have embraced all this while. Now you are just utilising that stance for what you think is for the good of the society. I respect that.
As unity is a subject which is really close to your heart, allow me to put my thought to that subject, especially in relation to what you had written in your said open letter. Read the rest of this entry »
Mat Zain: Bala’s SD might save cops on death row
Posted by Kit in Court, Judiciary, Law & Order, Police on Tuesday, 28 June 2011, 7:59 am
Malaysiakini
Jun 27, 11
Former Kuala Lumpur CID chief Mat Zain Ibrahim has urged Inspector-General of Police Ismail Omar to intervene in the decision of the Attorney-General’s (AG’s) Chambers not to charge private investigator P Balasubramaniam with falsifying a statutory declarations (SDs).
In an open letter to Ismail, Mat Zain said the contents of Balasubramaniam’s statutory declarations, if tested in court, may influence the outcome of the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case.
Two young police personnel, Azilah Hadri, 33, and Sirul Azha Umar, 36, were both sentenced to death for Altantuya’s murder.
However, political and defence analyst Abdul Razak Baginda was acquitted of abetment without his defence being called. Prosecutors did not appeal the decision.
“If the judge had mistakenly freed Abdul Razak, that is inconsequential. Maybe that is his luck. But we cannot allow the judge to mistakenly sentence Azilah and Sirul to death. Read the rest of this entry »
Gani Patail playing judge in Altantuya case, says Mat Zain
By Shannon Teoh | June 27, 2011
The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 27 — A retired senior policeman has accused Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail of superceding the courts by dismissing private investigator P. Balasubramaniam’s statutory declarations (SD) regarding the murder of Altantuya Shariibuu.
Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim said in an open letter to Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar today that the Attorney-General was trying to ensure that the Mongolian’s murder case is not reopened.
The Shah Alam High Court ended a 159-day trial in April 2009, meting out death sentences to two police officers who are now appealing the judgment.
Read the rest of this entry »
Unggun Bersih
By A. Samad Said
June 27, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
Semakin lara kita didera bara —
kita laungkan juga pesan merdeka:
Demokrasi sebenderang mentari
sehasrat hajat semurni harga diri.
Lama resah kita — demokrasi luka;
lama duka kita — demokrasi lara.
Demokrasi yang angkuh, kita cemuhi;
suara bebas yang utuh, kita idami!
Dua abad lalu Sam Adams berseru:
(di Boston dijirus teh ke laut biru):
Tak diperlu gempita sorak yang gebu,
diperlu hanya unggun api yang syahdu.
Kini menyalalah unggun sakti itu;
kini merebaklah nyala unggun itu.
* A. Samad Said adalah Sasterawan Negara Malaysia
Police in grip of Bersih hysteria
By Terence Netto
Jun 27, 11 | MalaysiaKini
COMMENT It’s now quite clear that the Bersih 2.0 march planned for July 9 is not such a threat to public order and security as the fret and fever the government has generated over the whole affair.
It has driven elements of our security establishment nuts.
How else to explain the arrests of 30 Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) activists in Penang late Saturday, apparently under section 122 of the Penal Code which arraigns rebellion against the king?
That the likes of the professorial Dr Mohd Nasir Hashim, the PSM chair, the affably rotund S Arutchelvam, party secretary-general, and the mild-mannered Dr D Jeyakumar, their sole MP in Sungai Siput, are capable of plotting something as bizarre as rebellion against the king – as well believe that Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali has all along been an agent of PAS. Read the rest of this entry »
Academic consensus on unfair elections: Reinforcing the Case for BERSIH’s March
By Dr Lim Teck Ghee | 27 June 2011
CPIASIA
Many Malaysians may be unaware of the considerable research work by social scientists – both local and foreign – that have unequivocally concluded that the country’s record on free and fair elections has been abysmal. Analysis of this remarkable record of trickery, manipulation and gerrymandering by first the Alliance, followed by Barisan Nasional (BN), goes back for more than 50 years – in fact soon after the country received its independence.
Dishonest election conduct takes the following main forms:
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the manipulation of electoral boundaries or gerrymandering
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the vast disparity of voter numbers among the constituencies
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the contamination of electoral rolls with phantom voters and other fraud
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the grossly unfair use of the governmental machinery and resources in support of ruling party candidates
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impersonation, multiple voting, ballot stuffing and other frauds in polling, counting and tabulation
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the rigid and opaque postal voting system
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the short campaigning period and selective restriction on campaign freedom
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the biased and distorted official media coverage
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the inadequate and outdated regulations on election expenses and funding
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the ineffectiveness of or limitation in judicial remedy
Are activists more dangerous than criminals?
By P Ramakrishnan | Aliran’s President
The way the police hound and harass activists engaged in social issues gives the impression that they are more dangerous than the criminals who cause hell for peace-loving citizens.
The number of police engaged in this activity makes one wonder why the police are running after these activists instead of the criminals who are lurking among our midst committing all kinds of crimes, some even resulting in death.
More and more Malaysians are beginning to believe that the police are no longer what they used to be in the past when they were professional in their duty and were not seen as political tools of the ruling party.
Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #71
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, globalisation on Monday, 27 June 2011, 10:34 am
Chapter 9: Islam in Malay Life
Religion must act as the lights do in a car, and not as the brakes do.
—Abdolkarim Soroosh, Contemporary Iranian Philosopher
Islam is Malaysia’s state religion. It permeates all aspects of Malaysian life, for Muslims and non-Muslims alike. In this chapter I will examine the impact of Islam on law, education, and economics. These are the three major areas that have the greatest impact on the ability of Malaysians generally and Malays in particular at meeting the challenges of globalization.
Read the rest of this entry »
Swearing at police not an offence
26 Jun 2011 | The Telegraph
Scotland Yard has told its officers that bad language on its own is not a good enough reason to detain someone.
The guidance has been given on Justify, Account and Record memo cards, which are carried on patrol.
According to The Mail on Sunday the advice states: “The courts do not accept police officers are caused harassment, alarm or distress by words such as: f—, c—, b—–ks, w—–s.” Read the rest of this entry »
Release the 30 PSM members, DAP demands
By Melissa Chi
June 26, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 — The DAP has demanded for the immediate release of the 30 Parti Sosialis Malaya (PSM) members, including Sungai Siput MP Michael Jayakumar, who were arrested in Penang, and has dispelled claims that they were trying to revive communism.
“I call on the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to ensure that good sense prevails in his government despite facing the mortal challenge of a peaceful Bersih 2.0 rally on July 9 calling for free, fair and clean elections — as such a proposed peaceful rally cannot, under any stretch of the imagination, be equated to a ‘war against the King’,” said the DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang at the DAP Ubah Dialogue organised by the DAP Socialist Youth of Johor (Dapsy) at Hotel Li Gardens in Masai, Johor Baru, tonight. Read the rest of this entry »
Walk with the rakyat, not against us, Bersih tells Najib
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Election, Najib Razak, Police on Monday, 27 June 2011, 1:21 am
June 26, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 — Bersih 2.0 told Datuk Seri Najib Razak today the next two weeks leading to its July 9 rally will define his leadership, saying any further crackdown is a “tragic reflection of the failure” of his government in handling the issue.
The group also said it was disappointed in the prime minister’s declaration that Bersih 2.0 supporters are to be held responsible should chaos ensue during the July 9 rally, noting that it was against any form of violence.
“We once again make an open, sincere and heartfelt call to the prime minister to walk with the rakyat, not against us,” Bersih 2.0 said in a statement issued tonight. Read the rest of this entry »
DAP calls for immediate release of the 30 PSM members and an end to ridiculous police charade
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Human Rights, Police on Sunday, 26 June 2011, 8:28 pm
DAP calls for the immediate release of the 30 Parti Sosialis Malaya (PSM) members, including Sungai Siput MP Dr. Michael Jayakumar in Penang yesterday and an end to the ridiculous police charade that they are trying to revive communism.
I could not believe my eyes when just before being called to the rostrum to speak, I read the online news portal The Malaysian Insider a completely unbelievable news story, entitled:”Bersih supporters nabbed for waging war against King”.
The Yang di Pertuan Agong, the Prime Minister and the government-of-the-day can count on my loyalty and patriotism and that of the DAP in any treasonous war against the King, but we will not lend ourselves to any fictitious claims to justify gross abuse of power and blatant human rights violations against patriotic Malaysians to prevent them from peaceful and democratic exercise of free speech and free assembly. Read the rest of this entry »
Pua slams ‘ridiculous’ Bersih arrests in Penang
By Melissa Chi
June 26, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 — DAP’s Tony Pua hit out today against the arrests of 30 Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members, saying the police were out to “create an atmosphere of intimidation” ahead of the Bersih rally planned for July 9.
DAP and their allies in Pakatan Rakyat (PR) support the rally calling for free and fair elections.
“I think it is completely ridiculous. Anyone out there conducting any political act is immediately arrested despite the fact that they are not inciting violence, not holding arms, not doing anything of that sort that will threaten the security of the people around them. Read the rest of this entry »
How far is BN willing to go?
By Othman Wahab
June 26, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JUNE 26 — The strong-arm tactics have started and the trumped-up charges have started to flow.
I can imagine the headlines in tomorrow’s papers: “30 detained for waging war against King” and “Group trying to revive communism.”
And of course, the name of Chin Peng will be all over. I must say the Najib administration and the police are quite “imaginative.” They have gone one step further than the dictators and autocrats in Algeria or Syria, reviving the bogey of communism. Read the rest of this entry »
Hisham says cannot rule out ISA for July 9 rallies
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Election, Hishammuddin, ISA on Sunday, 26 June 2011, 7:02 pm
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
June 26, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
HULU SELANGOR, June 26 — Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein has not ruled out using the Internal Security Act (ISA) against the July 9 rallies, but said today the Home Ministry will use other security laws for now.
Election watchdog Bersih plans to hold a mass rally on July 9, while Perkasa and Umno Youth plan to hold counter-rallies on the same day. Police arrested 30 Bersih activists yesterday on grounds of waging war against the King.
The Home Minister stressed that action would be taken against anyone who causes havoc on July 9, and said that the police were impartial in the matter. Read the rest of this entry »
Hisham defends Bersih arrests, says activists had ulterior motives
Posted by Kit in Bersih, Elections, Hishammuddin, Police on Sunday, 26 June 2011, 7:00 pm
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
June 26, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
HULU SELANGOR, June 26 — Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein has defended the arrest of 30 Bersih activists in Penang under Section 122 of the Penal Code, saying today there were reasons to justify the police action.
The police said they are probing an alleged attempt by some Bersih activists to revive communism and are investigating 30 Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members, including Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael Jayakumar for “waging war against the Yang DiPertuan Agong.”
Hishamuddin, who is the Home Minister, said that he had yet to be briefed in detail on the arrests, but stated that preliminary reports showed that the activists had “other agendas” in mind. Read the rest of this entry »
