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Call on political parties from both sides of divide – BN and PR – and civil society to come forward to defend Hatta Wahari and NUJ to uphold professional ethics and integrity of Malaysian journalists

Congratulations to Hatta Wahari the newly elected President of National Union of Journalists (NUJ) for bringing in fresh air with the courage of conviction to uphold journalistic professionalism and ethics.

Although Hatta is from Utusan Malaysia, he has drawn the line in the sand to uphold, defend and promote journalistic ethics and professionalism when he blamed Utusan Malaysia’s editors for the daily’s frequent run-ins with politicians.

Hatta, who is a senior journalist at Utusan, said the conflicts were between the daily’s chief editor Aziz Ishak, backed by senior editors, against the politicians from both BN and Pakatan Rakyat.

He said: “NUJ sees that it is unfair to fault Utusan Malaysia which includes journalists, photographers, graphic artists and other staff who don’t share the agenda (of the editors).

“They also do not have the authority to criticise the chief editor and the senior editors.

“NUJ is also of the opinion that the chief editor and senior editors of Utusan were not advocating media freedom but instead merely fulfilling the needs of their ‘political masters’.”

I am sure all the suffering journalists in the mainstream media, who have not been able to fully practise the ethics and professionalism of their craft, fully endorse the intrepid stand taken by Hatta, who deserves the support of political parties from both sides of the divide – Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat – as well as the civil society. Continue reading “Call on political parties from both sides of divide – BN and PR – and civil society to come forward to defend Hatta Wahari and NUJ to uphold professional ethics and integrity of Malaysian journalists”

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When is Najib going to provide leadership and take a stand against Malaysians “whose heads are not right” who have caused unprecedented inter-racial and inter-religious strain?

Speaking at the Interfaith Relations Working Committee luncheon yesterday, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the world contained individuals whose heads were “not right”.

He was referring specifically to the recent threat by an American pastor to burn the Quran and the Sept 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre by terrorists who “hijacked Islam” and said such conflicts were caused by ignorance.

He said: “Without understanding and knowledge, there can never be goodwill and understanding. We need to know the beauty found in every religion.”

What Najib said yesterday is very correct but Malaysians are entitled to ask why he had not provided leadership to take a stand against those in Malaysia “whose heads are not right” in the past 18 months of his premiership resulting in the escalation of the rhetoric of racial bigotry and religious extremism despite his proclamation of “1Malaysia. People First. Performance Now” policy? Continue reading “When is Najib going to provide leadership and take a stand against Malaysians “whose heads are not right” who have caused unprecedented inter-racial and inter-religious strain?”

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Teoh Beng Hock, Did You Commit Suicide?

by Richard Loh

I am truly sorry, Sdr. Teoh Beng Hock, that I have to ask you this question, Did You Commit Suicide? Everyone knows that this is really a stupid question to ask but am I wrong? No, I am not wrong because this is the way how our government, macc, pdrm and the judiciary taught us, to be stupid.

When your family met up with the prime minister, he made a promise that your mysterious death will be fully investigated and ensured that no stone will be left unturned. With this promise, the prime minister should called for a royal commission of inquiry which your family and the public had wanted, instead, he called for an inquest. Why did he reject the RCI, simply because the chances of getting the truth of your mysterious death is very high. For an inquest, they have the upper hand to protect the guilty (if any), manipulate and fabricate, anyway, anyhow they wanted.

On the onset, the government, PDRM, MACC and the judiciary had already made up their mind to see that your mysterious death be concluded as committing suicide, that is, you took your own life. I came to this conclusion by judging the way they presented the case, the investigation by PdRM, the judiciary allowing the DPP to ridicule witness and articulation of imaginary theories. Continue reading “Teoh Beng Hock, Did You Commit Suicide?”

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Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #33

Chapter 5: Understanding Globalization

Earlier Forms Of Globalization

Globalization is not a new concept. There have been other globalizing trends in the past. Imperialism was one form, based essentially on the “White Man’s burden” to enlighten the dark world. The ensuing economic bounty to the colonizers is not to be dismissed. The world of the 19th and 20th Centuries was carved according to imperial dictates.

The legacy of colonialism is such that today Malays in Malaysia, having been under British rule, know more about Britain than about their kindred across the strait in Sumatra. Malays in Sumatra in turn, being under the Dutch, know more about Amsterdam than Kuala Lumpur even though imperial forces have long left the region. Colonialism was able to break longstanding cultural and ethnic ties. Another ready example is Hong Kong where its residents, though ethnically and culturally Chinese, feel more at home in Britain than Mainland China. Quite apart from their choices of names, there is a gulf separating Hong Kong’s Christina Chin with her affected British accent from Beijing’s Jeng Zoumin. They each view the world very differently; one ignores such differences at one’s own peril.

The difference between today’s globalization and the colonialism of yore is that with the latter, there was no choice. Colonialism was imposed; the colonized had no say on the matter. It was premised on the supremacy of the colonialists over the natives, or more crudely, the White man over the colored. Colonialism’s globalizing trends were restricted to within territories controlled by that particular power. There was freedom of trade and movement of people only within the colonial empire but not beyond. British colonies were integrated only with Britain.

Like colonialism, today’s globalization is also broad and transcends race and geography. But unlike colonization where there was no choice on the part of the colonized, in today’s globalized world no nation is forced to join in. It is completely voluntary. Continue reading “Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #33”